Where the Middle Ages Begin
One of the most infamous images of medieval cruelty—the Iron Maiden—was never used in the Middle Ages. But a real reform by King Louis XI of France, the ‘fillettes,’ tells a different story about medieval justice.
What everyday objects did people use in the Middle Ages? From clothing and household necessities to tools for work and warfare, these 25 medieval items were essential to daily life and shaped how people lived, ate, and survived.
Delve into the pivotal figures of the Middle Ages whose enduring legacies shaped the course of history. From visionary leaders and profound scholars to prolific writers and formidable warriors, these individuals left an indelible mark on medieval society.
Discover the 50 most significant events of the Middle Ages, spanning the years 500 to 1500.
Here are seven vivid facts about colour in the Middle Ages
In medieval times, many unique jobs, such as Ale-wife and Groom of the Stool, were essential but have since vanished. Discover these obsolete occupations and how historical changes led to their disappearance.
Are you wanting to talk more like someone from the Middle Ages? We have a list of 30 great sayings and proverbs that you can use in your conversations.
Have you wondered what a medieval king did on a typical day? Thanks to Christine de Pizan, we have an account of what daily life was like for King Charles V of France.
Some of our most popular phrases have a long history, including some that go back to the Middle Ages.
Want to know what kind of jobs there were in the Middle Ages? A unique source from the 15th century gives us some beautiful images of medieval people at work.
Public health problems in the medieval statutes of Vinodol, Vrbnik and Senj (West Croatia) By Jozip Azman et al., Journal of Public Health,…
The prevalence and pattern of distribution of root caries in a Scottish medieval population By N.W. Kerr Journal of Dental Research, Vol 69:3 (1990)…
Characteristics and Dating of Anglo-Saxon Churches By H.M. Taylor The Fourth Viking Congress, ed. Alan Small (Edinburgh, 1961) Click here to read/download this…
Anglo-Saxon Churches in Yorkshire By H.M. Taylor The Fourth Viking Congress, ed. Alan Small (Edinburgh, 1961) Click here to read/download this article (PDF…
The York Viking Kingdom; Relations between Old English and Norse Culture By Alan Burns The Fourth Viking Congress, ed. Alan Small (Edinburgh, 1961)…
The excavations have exposed a very interesting series of building techniques and revealed that the medieval peasant houses at Wharram Percy were rebuilt about every generation suggesting that they were very flimsy structures.
Late Saxon Pottery By J.G. Hurst The Fourth Viking Congress, ed. Alan Small (Edinburgh, 1961) Click here to read/download this article (PDF…
An Eleventh-Century Farmhouse in the Norse Colonies in Greenland By C.L. Vebaek The Fourth Viking Congress, ed. Alan Small (Edinburgh, 1961) Click…
Eysteinn Haraldsson in the West, c.1151: Oral Traditions and Written Record By A.B. Taylor The Fourth Viking Congress, ed. Alan Small (Edinburgh, 1961)…
In many quarters, no doubt, a smouldering resentment and a sense of shame helped to spread the leaven of unrest and dissatisfaction among the native population.
Brus versus Balliol, 1291-1292: The Model for Edward I’s Tribunal By G. Neilson Scottish Historical Review, vol. 16 (1918) Click here to read/download…
The Cantar de Mio Cid: A Morphological-Syntagmatic Analysis of the Exile of the Cid By Jack J. Himelblau eHumanista: Journal of Iberian Studies, vol.6…
Rethinking the Arthurian Legend Transmission in the Iberian Peninsula By J. Conde de Lindquist eHumanista: Journal of Iberian Studies vol.7 (2006) Click here to…
The plot of Grisel y Mirabella is relatively simple. A Scottish king has but one child, a daughter, Mirabella. Although she has many noble suitors, her father refuses to allow her to marry. Because her beauty causes conflicts between knights and nobles, the king imprisons her in a tower to prevent her suitors from killing each other.
Some New Christians managed to escape abroad, founding Jewish communities in Bordeaux, London, Amsterdam, and other cities (Azevedo 359-430). With the union of the Portuguese and Spanish crowns (1580-1640), the number of those who moved to Spain and its American colonies was so great that the word “Portuguese” became practically synonymous with “Jew.”
The story told in Alfonso’s cantiga 103 is not original to his court writers. In fact, as has been made abundantly clear in several studies to date (Hans-Jörg [Aarne-Thomson] 471A (“The Monk and the Bird”),4 Wagner, and Röhrich 124-45), the cantiga story is a variation of a legend that had already existed for at least one hundred years before its inclusion in the Cantigas collection (the compilation of which took place during the years spanning from 1257 to 1283).
Were medieval jurors more inclined to condemn female self‐killers to a suicide’s death because of the familiar figure of the mad, possessed woman?
The way in which children’s authors have translated medieval history into their own “historicity” has changed during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries as popular and scholarly attitudes toward the Middle Ages have changed. Looking at these changes, my purpose in this thesis will be to answer two questions: why would children’s authors draw upon Anglo-Saxon England for their subject matter? And, what relevance does children’s literature have for an audience of medievalists?
This essay explores these encounters, whether on English shores, on board ship, or abroad in foreign ports.
Roger of Powys, Henry II’s Anglo-Welsh Middleman, and His Lineage By Frederick Suppe The Welsh History Review, vol.21:1 (2002) Introduction: In his play…
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An Interview with Christopher Dinsdale, author of Stolen Away Stolen Away is the second book written by Christopher Dinsdale. Aimed at younger readers,…
Natalie Zemon Davis is a Professor of History (Emeritus) at Princeton University and currently teaches at the University of Toronto.
Florin Curta is the Associate Professor of Medieval History and Archaeology at the University of Florida. After working as an archaeologist in Romania,…
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.
This week on The Medieval Podcast, 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 conversation with Cliff Ando about the revenue models of American research universities and the dangers to advanced research posed by the freezes recently placed on federal funding.
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.
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.
A conversation with Gavin Kelly about the corpus of Latin literature from antiquity down to the present, where we discuss the reasons why most scholars focus on the period before 200 AD, why late antiquity is overlooked (despite having some first rate authors), and what can be done about that. Similar issues, we find, emerge from the study of Greek literature too.
This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle speaks with Graham Loud about how Barbarossa came to power, how he managed to reign supreme in both Germany and Italy despite some bumps along the way, and why he’s sometimes revered as a once and future king in Germany.
