Line has enlarged and revised his Ph.D. dissertation on medieval Swedish kingship for the University of Leeds in 2003. In it, he examines the nature of the political conflicts and of kingship and administration in the 12th and 13th centuries, and traces the process by which a cohesive state developed. His period begins with the accession of King Sverker and the end of a particularly unstable and chaotic period, and ends with the death of King Magnus Ladulas, when a system of administration had been created that lasted for the rest of the medieval period and the Swedish nobility had adopted the culture of mainland Europe. Annotation ©2007 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)