Third Reich Medievalists: National Psychology and the Study of Chaucer
Exploring how Chaucer studies were shaped by Nazi ideology, this article uncovers the influence of national psychology and propaganda on medieval scholarship in the Third Reich.
New Medieval Books: Forgotten Vikings
This book sets out to provide a sweeping overview of the Viking Age, covering Norse history from the sixth to the fifteenth centuries. Unlike many similar works, it reaches well beyond Scandinavia and England, incorporating a wide geographical scope and drawing extensively on archaeological evidence.
How Popes Died in the Middle Ages: Ritual, Power, and Performance
What happened when a pope died in the Middle Ages? Behind the closed doors of Rome and Avignon, elaborate rituals unfolded—blending faith, politics, and performance to preserve the illusion that the Church never died.
12 Things You Didn’t Know About the Bayeux Tapestry
Discover 12 surprising facts about the Bayeux Tapestry, from its true origins and missing scenes to erotic imagery and medieval military insights.
New Medieval Books: History in Flames
Many medieval materials survived for centuries, only to be lost in more recent times to war and violence. This book tells the story of some of Europe’s most important collections that have since vanished.
How to Behave Like a Civilised Man: Hygiene and Manners from the Middle Ages
A newly translated 13th-century guide, The Book of the Civilised Man, reveals how medieval people approached hygiene and manners with surprising detail—from grooming tips to rules about belching and flatulence.
The Invention of the Idea of Sovereignty in the Middle Ages
Discover how the concept of medieval sovereignty evolved through Roman law, canon law, and political theory—shaping papal power, imperial authority, and the rise of sovereign kingdoms in the Middle Ages.
El Cid with Nora Berend
This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle speaks with Nora Berend about the real Rodrigo Díaz, the astonishing way his legend grew and changed over time, and how El Cid is still being used as a political tool in the modern world.
New Medieval Books: The Romance of the Violet and Other Wager Tales from Medieval France
This book offers translations of three thirteenth-century romances—The Romance of the Violet, The Romance of the Count of Poitiers, and The Tale of King Flore and the Fair Joan—each centred on men who wager over a woman’s virtue.
The Seventh Crusade: New Research Reveals a Different Story
New research using Arabic sources to reveal a different story of the Seventh Crusade — one shaped by internal Ayyubid power struggles, political intrigue, and the rise of the Mamluks during Louis IX’s failed Egyptian campaign.
New Medieval Books: Marco Polo and His World
Marco Polo’s account of his journey to Asia is one of the most well-known texts to come out of the Middle Ages. This book explores the people, places, and wonders that Polo described in his writings.
How to Harvest a Mandrake: Medieval Medicine and Magic in the Old English Herbarium
Discover the medieval cure-all known as the mandrake—and why you needed a hungry dog to pull it from the ground, according to a 10th-century medical text.
New Medieval Books: Merovingian Worlds
This book offers an overview of the Merovingian realm, roughly what is now France and parts of neighbouring Western Europe during the 5th to 8th centuries.
When Medieval Nuns Stopped a Papal Construction Site: The Turbulent Story of the Basilica of Saint-Urbain in Troyes
Discover the dramatic story of how a powerful abbess and her nuns defied the papacy and halted the construction of a major Gothic basilica in 13th-century Troyes, France.
What if a Nightmare Foretold Your Death? The Strange Final Days of William Rufus
After a terrifying dream warns him of his sins, King William Rufus vows to change—only to be killed the next day in a mysterious hunting accident. A 12th-century poet tells the chilling tale.
How to Become an Evil Wizard in the Middle Ages: The Secrets of Picatrix
Discover the dark spells, strange rituals, and magical powers found in Picatrix, a medieval guidebook for aspiring wizards—featuring shapeshifting, poison recipes, and spirit summoning.
Mothers Who Weren’t: Wet Nurses in the Medieval Mediterranean
Explore the complex and often harsh realities of wet nursing in the Middle Ages, from slave contracts to moral expectations—revealing how “mothers who weren’t” shaped medieval childhood and society.
Five Ways the Lion Roared in the Middle Ages
A look at the five symbolic identities that the lion had in Western medieval culture: The Threatening Lion, The Christian Lion, The Noble Lion, The Sinful Lion, and The Clement lion.
New Medieval Books: Annals of Winchester
Covering the years 519 to 1277, this chronicle provides an account of events in England throughout much of the Middle Ages. It includes both the 19th-century Latin edition and an English translation
New Online Course: The Devil’s Brood: The Angevin Empire 1154-1216
Starting May 14th, this online course investigates the history of the Angevin Empire during the reigns of Henry II, Richard I, and John. Topics covered will include the Great Rebellion, the murder of Thomas Becket, and Magan Carta.
The Moral Purpose of the Medieval State
Explore how medieval thinkers from Augustine to Aquinas debated the role of government, from preserving peace and order to promoting virtue and human fulfillment in the pursuit of the common good.
New Medieval Books: Robert de Vere, Earl of Oxford and Duke of Ireland (1362-1392)
This biography re-examines the life of Robert de Vere, the English nobleman best known as a childhood friend of Richard II. It investigates whether he truly deserved the reputation of a shameless sycophant that medieval chroniclers gave him.
Royal Women of Sweden with Caroline Wilhelmsson
This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle speaks with Caroline Wilhelmsson about the royal women of Sweden, how they became queens, and how they exercised their power.
The Role of Saints in Canterbury Cathedral
Discover how saints shaped medieval religious life, pilgrimage, and power through the story of Canterbury Cathedral and the shrine of Thomas Becket, one of the most important cult sites in medieval England.
