Black Metal, Folkish Heathenism, Church Burning, and Medievalism
The revival of ancient religions and the love of powerful, loud music can be used for good, or for ill.
Latest Posts
Henry V in the cinema: Laurence Olivier’s charismatic version of history
Public attitudes to Henry V are very much influenced by William Shakespeare’s interpretation. Richard Inverne discusses how Shakespeare’s version has been translated into cinematic form by Laurence Olivier and Kenneth Branagh.
Where to find the Middle Ages in Scotland in 2019
Historic Environment Scotland has unveiled its events programme for 2019, which will feature medieval tournaments, Norse sagas and unique looks into castles.
Viking warrior women with Leszek Gardeła
This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle interviews archaeologist Leszek Gardeła to learn more about women, warriors, and when a weapon is more than just a weapon.
Royal charter of King John discovered
A rare, original royal charter from the first year of King John’s reign has been discovered in Durham by a medieval historian from the University of Bristol
Project breathing new life into forgotten medieval chants
Trinity College Dublin is involved in an ambitious international cultural heritage project which is bringing back to life forgotten medieval chants and prayers associated with Irish saints such as St Patrick, St Brigit and St Colmcille.
Ecstatic Pain: manifestations of physical pain in the visions of Julian of Norwich and their implications for imitatio Christi
This thesis explores the manifestations of bodily pain in two visions received by the late medieval English mystical writer Julian of Norwich (c.1342-1416).
Chalke Valley History Festival prepares for 2019 event
Spread over 60 acres, the Chalk Valley History Festival is a unique combination of talks, discussions and topical debates, plus a vast living history encampment, where the very best living historians – all experts in their field – bring history to life with their extensive knowledge and passion for their subjects.
Viking ship discovered in Norway
The remains of a Viking ship has been discovered in southern Norway, thanks to ground penetrating radar.
Game of Thrones, J.R.R. Tolkien, and the Roots of Modern Fantasy
With the coming of the final season of HBO’s Game of Thrones, the mainstreaming of the medieval-fantasy genre that began with Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings movies is complete.
How the borders of Abbasid Caliphate changed in the Middle Ages
A look at the rise and fall of the Abbasid Caliphate, which ruled much of the Middle East and North Africa between the years 750 and 1258.
The Origins of Wessex – Archaeology and Landscape in the Upper Thames Valley, 5th-7th centuries AD
Most people are very well aware that the kingdom of the West Saxons – Wessex -was ultimately the most successful of all the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms … but a lot of people are unaware that the heartland of early Wessex wasn’t in fact around Winchester which of course became its later capital but rather it lay in the Upper Thames Valley.
A Beast of a Project: Curating an Exhibition on Bestiaries at the Getty
This presentation will look at the behind-the-scenes planning for the Book of Beasts: The Bestiary in the Medieval World exhibition, which will open at the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles on May 14, 2019
Chaucer’s Periodization
This lecture explores how Chaucer and his contemporaries saw their own place in time
Intercession and Motherhood: The Queenships of Philippa of Hainault and Anne of Bohemia
How successful were the queenships of the fourteenth-century consorts Philippa of Hainault and Anne of Bohemia?
The Sad Story of the Queen of the Elves: An Icelandic Folktale
Once upon a time, in a mountainous region somewhere in Iceland, something strange took place that was at the same time puzzling and frightening: every year
Vasco da Gama’s astrolabe discovered
Guinness World Records have independently certified an astrolabe excavated from the wreck site of a Portuguese Armada Ship that was part of Vasco da Gama’s second voyage to India in 1502-1503 as the oldest in the world.
New Medieval Books: Fortunes and Thoughts
Five books that will take you from the borders of England and Scotland to the islands between Japan and China.
Avicenna in Ireland: A manuscript discovery with Padraig O’Machain
This month, an exciting connection was made between Islamic and Irish medicine through the discovery of a fragment of Avicenna’s Canon of Medicine bound in a sixteenth-century printed book.
The Measure of Literacy in Late Medieval England: The Case of St. Albans, 1237-1399
In the mid-thirteenth century, the tenants living on the manors of the liberty of St Albans had no use for letters.
Dragomans and Crusaders: The Role of Translators and Translation in the Medieval Eastern Mediterranean, 1098-1291
How did the invading Franks navigate the multifaceted language barrier when they conquered, settled, and ruled Syria in the era of the crusades?
King Alfred, Mercia and London, 874-86: A reassessment
The status of London in the later ninth century has for some time been the subject of enquiry by historians, numismatists and archaeologists
How the borders of Japan changed in the Middle Ages
Three videos taking a look at how Japan evolved during the medieval period.
‘I wanted to make them a little book’: The knight and the book for his daughters
I wanted to make them a little book to read so they might learn and study and understand the good and evil that has already happened, in order to keep them from that which is yet to come.
Augustine and the Master of the Sentences
This begs the question, what were the Sentences exactly, who was Peter Lombard and what did he have to do with Augustine?
BooksAll posts
New Medieval Books: People and ideas on the move
Five new books about the Middle Ages, which look at people and ideas that moved around the medieval world.
New Medieval Books: Fortunes and Thoughts
New Medieval Books: Fighting Manuals
Medieval Reads: A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court by Mark Twain
My Husband: The Extraordinary History of Nicholas Brome
Creating the Vikingverse – An Interview with Ian Stuart Sharpe
New Medieval Books: From Walls to World War II
Medieval Reads: Henry Treece’s Viking’s Dawn
13 Books about the Middle Ages that are now in the Public Domain
Places to SeeAll posts
Örebro Castle: History, Secrets, and Romance
For anyone who visits Örebro, it is hard to miss its castle – an ancient-looking fortress made of weathered grey stones that stands on an islet in the middle of the city centre.
The Vasa: Gustav II Adolf’s Glorious and Doomed Warship
On the 10th of August 1628, the Vasa sank in Stockholm harbour, thus ending the career of the most powerful warship that Sweden had ever seen.
Uppsala Slott: 5 Things You Ought to Know About One of Sweden’s Greatest Castles
This strategic location not only makes the castle a majestic sight, but also earns it the reputation as the most modern defence fortress in its time. But, as all ancient buildings, there is always more than meets the eye. Here are the five things that you may not know about Uppsala Castle.
Making Your Mark: Medieval Masons’ Marks at Tarascon
How do you operate a business when you can’t read and your knowledge of math is extremely limited? Making your mark on the…
The Weird, the Wonderful, and the Macabre in the Cathedral of Narbonne
Narbonne is one of those European cities with evidence of its past on every street. This important Roman city was adopted in the…
Medieval English Embroidery on Display for the Last Time at the V&A’s Opus Anglicanum Exhibit
The V&A Museum opened its latest medieval exhibit exhibit on Saturday: Opus Anglicanum: Masterpieces of English Medieval Embroidery. I had the opportunity to see it opening day and it was spectacular.