New Medieval Books: Africanism
A groundbreaking book that examines the history between Arab and African peoples in the Middle Ages, focusing on Arab depictions of Black people in literature.
New Medieval Books: Middle Imperial China, 900-1350
An overview of Chinese history during the Song and Yuan dynasties, covering its politics, international relations, religion, economics and more. Offers a look into time when China was deeply interconnected with its neighbours and other parts of the medieval world.
New Medieval Books: Chaucer Here and Now
A collection of eight articles that traces how the English writer Geoffrey Chaucer has been interpreted and reimagined over the centuries. Works like The Canterbury Tales have inspired many people and led to much new media being created.
New Medieval Books: Out of Bounds
A collection of nine essays that tackle different ways for scholars to approach art, and suggest that they should go beyond traditional boundaries in how they study the subject where artworks, artists and artistic knowledge all moved around the medieval world.
New Medieval Books: Dynasty in Motion
A look at royal weddings in the 15th and 16th centuries, focusing on the travel that took place before getting to the ceremony.
New Medieval Books: Agincourt: Battle of the Scarred King
A look at Henry V’s victory at the Battle of Agincourt (1415), one of the key clashes in the Hundred Years’ War. The author offers a new interpretation of exactly where the battle took place, which in turn, gives new insights into how the fighting unfolded.
New Medieval Books: Bede and the Theory of Everything
A biography of the eighth-century monk Bede, focusing on his vast interest in learning and writing about the world he lives in.
Eleanor of Aquitaine with Karen Sullivan
She’s one of the most well-known figures in history: married to two kings, mother to three, and a powerful duchess in her own right. This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle speaks with Karen Sullivan about the legendary Eleanor of Aquitaine, her famous – and infamous – relationships, and what makes her such a fascinating subject for historians and fiction writers alike.
New Medieval Books: On Earth or in Poems
A look at how al-Andalus – Islamic Iberia – has continued to be an important symbol in today’s world.
20 Open Access Books about the Middle Ages you can Read for Free
Here are twenty recently published books that medievalists will enjoy and are free to download and read.
New Medieval Books: Making Money in the Early Middle Ages
Why did people make and use coins at all in the early Middle Ages, if cash was so scarce that they were used to getting by without?
New Medieval Books: Political Meritocracy in Renaissance Italy
Patrizi deserves to be recognized as the most substantial and influential voice of Italian humanist political thought between the time of Francesco Petrarca in the fourteenth century and Niccolo Machiavelli in the sixteenth.
New Medieval Books: Introducing the Medieval Fox
A look into how medieval people viewed the fox, through religious writings, bestiaries, hunting manuals, and literature, most notably the stories revolving around the famous literary character Reynard the Fox.
New Medieval Books: The Secret History of the Mongols
A translation of a 13th-century account of the life and reign of Chinggis Khan, this is by far the most important source we have about the Mongols from the time they established their empire across Eurasia.
The Best Medieval Books of 2023
This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle continues the annual tradition of sharing some of her favourite books of the year, along with the top picks of Peter Konieczny, editor and co-founder of Medievalists.net.
New open-access book charts the archaeological discoveries at Berkeley Castle
Berkeley Castle’s origins date back to the 11th century. A newly published book – which you can read for free – reveals 15 years of archaeological excavations that have unearthed forgotten treasures and greatly enhanced understanding of the area’s rich medieval history.
New Medieval Books: A Compendium of World Sovereigns
This guide lists all the various rulers of the medieval world, covering Europe, Asia, Africa and even Mexico and Central America. Includes emperors, kings, even dukes and counts in over 500 pages.
New Medieval Books: The Vanished Settlers of Greenland
There was a small Norse colony in Greenland during the Middle Ages. Centuries later, Danes and other Europeans came to this region to search for what happened to these people, leading to new encounters with the Inuit and much speculation about the fate of this colony.
New Medieval Books: The Plantagenet Socialite
A unique English history, it lists and explains the important and less-than-important events that took place from the reign of Henry II to Richard III. Arranged chronologically, it allows the reader to track the day-to-day history of English rulers and their subjects.
New Medieval Books: The Cosmography and Geography of Africa
This new addition to Penguin Classics is a translation of an early 16th-century account of Northern and Sub-Saharan Africa. It is the most important text we have about the continent to cover its medieval history.
New Medieval Books: American Vikings
The first part of this details the Norse arrival in North America, incorporating the latest research on the topic. The second part examines how Americans have been fascinated by the Viking mythos and its effects on culture and politics in the United States.
New Medieval Books: Beatrice’s Last Smile
A look at medieval Europe through a series of accounts of individuals’ lives and actions. Covering a wide range of times and places, it aims to show the scope of the medieval world through many different stories.
New Medieval Books: The Book of Monasteries
While this tenth-century is text about monasteries it’s not about religion. Instead, it is very much an account of the social and literary world of Christian monasteries in the medieval Middle East and the poetry of this time.
New Medieval Books: Battle Song
This novel is set during the Second Barons’ War (1264–1267), so it will appeal to those interested in English history and the reign of King Henry III in particular.