The Consolidation of Local Authority Through the Defense of the Church in the Royal Domain of France Under Louis VI
When Louis VI ascended to the throne in 1108 AD, he faced substantial challenges as the fifth monarch of the Capetian dynasty; he confronted the problem of stopping the general decline of the monarchy and achieved this in a way that reasserted the foundations of the crown as the sole dominant figure in the royal domain and a respected lord throughout the kingdom.
The Tale of Bealhildis or how an Anglian slave became a saintly French Queen
It is not every day England gives a home girl to be worshipped as a Saint by enthusiastic Gallic crowds.
Saving Da Vinci
Studying a famous Leonardo self-portrait, a team of scientists has developed a new, nondestructive way to gauge degradation of ancient paper art and docs
15th-century copy of The Brus restored
One of the oldest copies of The Brus – the epic poem about Robert the Bruce and the Scottish Wars of Independence – has been restored by the University of Cambridge.
The Identity of the St Bees Lady, Cumbria: An Osteobiographical Approach
USING AN OSTEOBIOGRAPHICAL approach, this contribution considers the identity of the woman found alongside the St Bees Man, one of the best-preserved archaeological bodies ever discovered. Osteological, isotopic and radiocarbon analyses, combined with the archaeo- logical context of the burial and documented social history, provide the basis for the identifica- tion of a late 14th-century heiress whose activities were at the heart of medieval northern English geopolitics.
Empress Matilda and the anarchy: the problem of royal succession in medieval England
Why is it that Matilda was unable to secure the throne in her own right? And why do historians continue to debate the legitimacy of her brief lordship?
10 Things to Know About Medieval Drinking Horns
Here are ten things we learned about medieval drinking horns from Vivian Etting’s book The Story of the Drinking Horn.
The report of friar John of Plano Carpini: analysis of an intelligence gathering mission conducted on behalf of the Papacy in the mid thirteenth century
During the course of the Council, Innocent IV sent three separate embassies to the Mongols: two Dominican missions under Andrew of Longjurneau and Friar Ascelin respectively, and a Franciscan mission under Carpini.
Surtshellir: a fortified outlaw cave in west iceland
The name Surtshellir means, variously, the ‘Black Cave’ or the ‘Cave of Surtur’,a powerful fire giant according to norse mythology. Surtshellir is mentioned several times in icelandic medieval literature and seems to have been well-known as a threatening place, inhabited by giants or outlaws.
An Unknown Female Martyr from Jerusalem
In the present article we edit the fragment of a text related to an unnamed female new martyr from Jerusalem from the time of John XIII.
Images of the Medieval City
What did medieval cities look like? Here are 15 images of the urban world from the Middle Ages.
The two swords: using the symbol of the battle of Grunwald (1410) in the 19th and 20th century Poland
It would be difficult to find an event in the Polish history which imprinted more influence on common social imagination or the actions of modern Polish social and political leaders that would be comparable to the battle of Grunwald.
Medieval Movie Review: The Physician
It’s a brilliant film and one well worth your medieval Saturday night in!
An Introduction to the Mechanical Arts in the Middle Ages
A brief overview of where these “mechanical arts” fit into the scholastic world. The thesis of the “Dark Ages” often suggests that there was a discontinuity in knowledge between Antiquity and the Renaissance, and perhaps nowhere so obviously as in the mechanical arts. This is certainly false…
Medieval Prisons: Between Myth and Reality, Hell and Purgatory
When were medieval prisons founded? What was life inside them like? How did contemporary observers perceive them?
Copycat: The Life of a Medieval Scribe
Here’s a five-minute look at the process by which a book came to be copied.
Memorial to Athelney Island, Home of Alfred the Great
Alfred was forced to flee with his family to safety in the woods and eventually made his way to the island of Athelney in the marshes of Somerset.
Book Review: The Rhyme of King Harold
The Rhyme of King Harold is an entertaining way to learn more about the flip side of the Bayeux Tapestry and getting in touch with your Saxon roots.
Mapping the Medieval Countryside
My summary of a Institute of Historical Research session on the digitization of records in Late Medieval England.
Protecting the Battlefield of Hastings from today’s battles
Dr Glenn Foard — one of the world’s leading battlefield archaeologists — is developing a unique project designed to unearth whatever genuine material survives from 1066.
The Carolingian Army and the Struggle against the Vikings
There have been many previous studies of the Carolingian army, but none examining the ninth-century armies which faced the Viking invasions.
The Influence of Humanist Culture on Sephardi Scholars Active in Medieval Italy
This talk will set the context by introducing three generations of the Iberian Shohams, a late 14th-mid-15th century Sephardic family moving from Sicily to Apulia and Calabria.
Early Medieval Ireland: New Perspectives
Finbar McCormick examines the archaeological research being carried out in Ireland, including early medieval burials, monastic sites and ringforts.
‘Vikings’ protest inside the British Museum over BP sponsorship
One person was arrested during a protest held inside the main court of the British Museum on Sunday.