A mysterious figure ruling at the fringes of the known world, Prester John might be the most famous person you’ve never heard of. Like a medieval Carmen Sandiego, Prester John was a man people searched the globe for, from Ethiopia, to Tibet, to the New World, never quite catching up to him in the end. So, who was Prester John and why were medieval people so keen to find him? This week, Danièle speaks with Chris Taylor about where the legend comes from, how it may have had a disastrous effect on the fifth crusade, and what Prester John has to do with the Fantastic Four.
A mysterious figure ruling at the fringes of the known world, Prester John might be the most famous person you’ve never heard of. Like a medieval Carmen Sandiego, Prester John was a man people searched the globe for, from Ethiopia, to Tibet, to the New World, never quite catching up to him in the end. So, who was Prester John and why were medieval people so keen to find him? This week, Danièle speaks with Chris Taylor about where the legend comes from, how it may have had a disastrous effect on the fifth crusade, and what Prester John has to do with the Fantastic Four.
Christopher Taylor is Assistant Professor at Western New Mexico University, where he researches medieval literary history. His new book is The Global Legend of Prester John, published by Cambridge University Press. See also The International Prester John Project
The creator and host of The Medieval Podcast is Danièle Cybulskie. Click here to visit her website or follow her on BlueSky @5minmedievalist.bsky.social
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Top Image: Prester John depicted on a 16th-century map of East Africa, by Diogo Homem
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