Ten Medieval Inventions that Changed the World
Ten Inventions from the Middle Ages that have had lasting importance, even to the present-day.
The Royal Palaces of England
Three video lectures by Dr Simon Thurley that links architecture, court life and politics to paint an intimate picture of everyday life in the palaces of the English monarchy.
Monsters: An etymological and cultural reading of the ‘freak’ in the Middle Ages
That the medievals did not interpret ‘freaks’ as an insult to creation is the theme of this paper, showing that medieval thought on the disabled body was not as ‘backward’ as the Dark Ages school of popular historical perception teaches
The Kidnapped King: Richard I in Germany, 1192–1194
In 1193 the rulers of Germany and England met for the first time in history.
The Birth of the Monarchy out of Violent Death
There were many motives for murdering a king.
Which Famous Museum Are You?
They contain national treasures, priceless artworks and prehistoric artifacts; which of these museums of the world are you?
Rome, New Rome and Baghdad: Pathways of Late Antiquity
What I propose to do in this lecture is to discuss some salient features of Late Antiquity as a category in historical studies and then move on to the theme of Islam in Late Antiquity
Famous Last Words from the Middle Ages
From the strange to the serene, here are some last words by kings, queens, saints, warriors and other people from the Middle Ages.
What Type of Warrior (or Assassin) Are You?
History is filled with legends and fables, spanning the globe. Amongst these are tales of great warriors–some strong and noble, others silent and deadly. All of them, however, hold a special place in the hearts of many. It is now time to find out which one you connect with!
Five Medieval Books recommended by the Five-Minute Medievalist
Here are just a few of the non-fiction books I’ve read and enjoyed. They reflect my interest in the UK and France (especially the fourteenth century), as you’ll see.
For Medievalists: Want to Give a Conference Paper?
Over the last couple of weeks we have received a few requests to pass along Calls for Papers for upcoming conferences
Castle for Sale in France: Château de Corbère
Dating back to the 11th century, this castle is selling for about $9 million.
Cannibals and Crusaders
Almost all the dozen chroniclers who wrote books about the Crusade in the twenty years following Jerusalem’s capture acknowledge it, sometimes with disbelief or disgust or denial, but always with discomfort.
Manor Village and Individual in Medieval England
This thesis explores peasant life of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries in England from information found in the manorial court rolls-the village court records–of Ramsey Hepman grove and Bury.
Pedlars and Alchemists in Friuli History of itinerant sellers in an alpine reality
This short review discusses about itinerant sellers in Friuli, who are Cramaro called (XI-XIX centuries). Attention is focused, in particular, on the question if some of theme were alchemists.
Northern Renaissance? Burgundy And Netherlandish Art In Fifteenth-Century Europe
Everyone who has studied medieval or modern history knows that the periodisation of the eras on either side of the Renaissance provides much food for thought. This contribution aims irst to address the usefulness of the widespread concept of the ‘Northern Renaissance’.
Race, Periodicity, and the (Neo-) Middle Ages
My goal is to intervene in ongoing discussions of race and periodicity, particularly vis-à-vis medieval culture, in order to investigate the informing role of the medieval and more particularly of medievalisms in the construction, representation, and perpetuation of modern racisms.
Quiz: A Medieval Who Said That?
Do you know who said these famous quotes from the Middle Ages?
The Kingdom, the Power and the Glory: the Albigensian Crusade and the Subjugation of the Languedoc
In March of 1208, Pope Innocent III preached the Albigensian Crusade. The crusade, which covered an area from Agen to Avignon and the Pyrenees to Cahors, initiated a new phase in the already strained relationship between the Catholic Church and the Languedoc.
A Peripheral Matter?: Oceans in the East in Late-Medieval Thought, Report and Cartography
It is something of a truism that the Ocean Sea {mare oceanum in medieval texts and cartography) marked out a real and conceptual periphery for medieval Western Europeans.
Aelfgyva: The Mysterious Lady of the Bayeux Tapestry
One of the most intriguing of these puzzles centers upon a scene in that initial segment of the Tapestry treating with Earl Harold Godwinson’s famed and controversial visit to the court of the Norman duke
Ten Old Norse Proverbs: Wisdom from the Hávamál
The Hávamál (Sayings of the High One) is part of the Poetic Edda, a collection of Old Norse poems that survive in a 13th century manuscript.
Nicolette : action transvestite, or, who and what is the heroine of Aucassin et Nicolette?
In this paper, I will show how Nicolette is constantly, deliberately, changing, in appearance and identity, from the beginning of the story, and how she is thus Izzard’s action transvestite.
The Knight, the Hermit, and the Pope: Some Problematic Narratives of Early Crusading Piety
A much more general question, one that extends beyond the geographic confines of the Limousin and the period between 27 December 1095 and 15 August 1096 is why an individual choose to confront any of these difficulties at all. Why did they go?
The Visit of King Sigismund to England, 1416
Though Sigismund grew up in Prague and was known elsewhere as a German prince, in England he seems to be recalled as a Hungarian knight