^* There are also four timelines at the back of the book, beginning at 491, corresponding to the four introductory chapters.

^† A cross-reference to one of the individually authored chapters does not imply agreement with the points made in these four introductory chapters, nor does it provide a foundation for the arguments made here; the cross-reference means simply that a similar issue is discussed there.

^‡ The four chapters in this section were written by the editor.