Dolphins in the Middle Ages
Like just about everyone else on planet Earth who’s been lucky enough to see them, medieval people shared a friendly admiration of dolphins. Their smiling faces seem to have garnered them human respect, and curiosity enough for medieval people to study them carefully and share dolphin stories.
On Heroes and Monsters: The Proposed Influence of the Aeneid on Beowulf
The proposed study will take an indepth approach by examining two sets of passages to show that the similarities between the behaviors, descriptions, and lineages of the heroes and monsters are so precise that they exclude many other possible influences of Beowulf.
A Tale of too Many Romes: Competing Byzantine and Medieval Claims to Roman Legacy
Likewise in the Middle Ages, Rome’s legacy was contested among many powers and interested parties. The eastern (Byzantine) and western (German) emperors insisted that each was the sole legitimate owner of the title ‘Emperor of the Romans.’
The Seafarers’ Saint: Medieval Representations of St Nicholas in the North Sea Area
The cult of St Nicholas was spread in Scandinavia in the last decades of the 11th and the first decades of the 12th centuries. Because the medieval cult of saints was not limited to the liturgy of the saints themselves, but was a wider social phenomenon.
Berserk for berserkir: Introducing Combat Trauma to the Compendium of Theories on the Norse Berserker
This thesis attempts to provide a brief overview of major pieces of the English-language scholarship concerning the Norse berserker. It tries to demonstrate consistent flaws in scholarly treatment and the hollow nature of many major theories and attitudes.
23 Medieval Uses for Rosemary
In the Middle Ages, Rosemary was considered a wonder plant, which could be used to treat many illnesses and keep you healthy. One 14th century writer found 23 uses for it, including keeping your hair beautiful and preventing nightmares!
Municipal problems in mediaeval Switzerland
In Switzerland the chief cities were by this time either component parts of the Confederation or in alliance with it. Municipalities, therefore, entered into the borders of the higher state-craft and of diplomacy.
Call for Papers: Medieval Midlands Postgraduate Conference
Power and Society in the Medieval World
The University of Nottingham
13th April 2016
Zorita Castle: A Glimpse of Medieval life in a Spanish stronghold
Amidst the olive tree-lined plains of central Spain is a remote Medieval castle overlooked by archaeologists until the arrival of husband-and-wife team Dionisio Urbina and Catalina Urquijo. What secrets are emerging from this bastion of history?
Conception of Knighthood and Fifteenth-Century Chivalric Manuals
Chivalric writings like chronicles, romances and military handbooks, either in manuscript or in print, were popular and widely read in the latter half of the 15th century.
Ten Papers We Are Looking Forward to at the 2016 International Congress on Medieval Studies
The sneak preview of the schedule for the 51st International Congress on Medieval Studies has been released online by Western Michigan University
Isabeau of Bavaria, Anne of France, and the History of Female Regency in France
With Charles VI and Isabeau of Bavaria the history of female regency in France takes a turn of the greatest importance, moving towards a conception of regency as a proxy reign for the king exercised ideally by the queen mother.
Ladies, Concubines, and Pseudo-Wives: Mistresses in the Courtly Culture of Emilia-Romagna of Renaissance Italy
This work examines the lives of mistresses within the Italian province of the Emilia-Romagna, predominantly during the fifteenth century.
Agnès Sorel: Death of the Official Mistress of the King
Some people are born to break the rules, and one of those people was Agnès Sorel.
Medieval monastery destroyed by Islamic State
Saint Elijah’s Monastery – the oldest Christian monastery in Iraq, has been completely destroyed by forces from the Islamic State (IS), according to a report from the Associated Press.
DNA study reveals that the English are ‘one-third’ Anglo-Saxon
‘This study, using whole-genome sequencing, allowed us to assign DNA ancestry at extremely high resolution and accurately estimate the Anglo-Saxon mixture fraction for each individual.’
The Medieval Magazine: Royal Mistresses (Issue 51)
This week we take a look at royal mistresses in the Middle Ages, including a profile of Alice Perrers, the infamous lover of King Edward III.
The First Manuals of English History: Two Late Thirteenth-Century Genealogical Rolls of the Kings of England in the Royal Collection
The reign of Edward I (1272-1307) witnessed the creation of numerous genealogical rolls of the kings of England from Egbert to the reigning king,
How Many Of These British Cathedrals Have You Visited?
A very quick guide to see which cathedrals people are visiting, and which you still need to see :)
The Infamous Military Campaign of 1379
The destruction of an English fleet led by Sir John Arundel in 1379 is reported by most chroniclers to be an unfortunate accident. However, if you read what Thomas Walsingham has to say about what happened, you get a far more horrific version of events.
MEDIEVAL BOOKS: Hot New Releases – January!
A look at a few new medieval book releases for January 2016!
Medieval Traffic Problems
The medieval city was seen as a crowded, bustling place, with people, horses, carts and wagons all moving around. Just as in our modern city, this would all lead to inevitable traffic problems.
Using Salt in the Middle Ages
Salt was an integral part of medieval life: not only is some salt a necessary part of a human diet, but it’s also essential for preserving food such as meat, seafood, and dairy products in the absence of refrigeration.
Great Wonders: The Great Walls of China
This talk will examine these Great Chinese Walls from the perspectives of their contemporary and later observers, foreign and Chinese, advocates and critics.