15 Sayings of Medieval Steppe Warriors
Discover 15 medieval sayings from the Book of Dede Korkut, capturing the wisdom, honour, and values of nomadic steppe warriors.
Medieval Goddesses of the Moon: Chang’e and Diana
Explore how medieval writers and artists depicted the moon goddesses Chang’e and Diana, revealing their beauty, power, loneliness, and lasting influence in literature, art, and legend.
Sir Gowther: The Demon Knight
Discover the medieval tale of Sir Gowther — a knight born of demonic origins whose violent youth gives way to a powerful story of repentance and redemption.
New Medieval Books: Black Knights
Medieval Arabic literature frequently included Black African characters, offering valuable insight into contemporary ideas about race and race relations. This book examines those sources to uncover how such concepts developed in the Middle Ages and how they have continued to influence perceptions of race up to the present day.
Medieval Love Letters with Ad Putter and Myra Stokes
This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle speaks with Myra Stokes and Ad Putter about where we find love letters, and the way people wrote and sent them, along with a couple of spicy – and hilarious – examples.
Twelve Medieval Types of Drunk, According to Oswald von Wolkenstein
Medieval poet Oswald von Wolkenstein knew his way around a wine jug—and the many personalities it could unleash. In one lively poem, he catalogued twelve all-too-recognisable types of drunk, from the swaggering braggart to the repentant sinner.
Medieval Rednecks: How Rustici Became the Butt of the Joke
From crude punchlines to the ‘medieval mullet,’ discover how peasants—known as rustici—became the butt of jokes in medieval Europe.
The Pirate’s Daughter: A Story of Compassion from a Medieval Bestseller
A tale from the medieval Gesta Romanorum tells of a pirate’s daughter who frees a prisoner and faces a moral trial. Her bold defense reveals a deeper lesson about compassion, loyalty, and justice.
New Medieval Books: Huon d’Auvergne
This book presents an edition and translation of a 14th-century epic poem that takes readers on a journey to hell—literally. Spanning over 12,000 lines, the narrative is rich with fantastical twists and unexpected encounters, including appearances by Charles Martel and the legendary Prester John.
Chaucer’s Wade Uncovered: A Medieval Romance, Not a Monster Tale
Scholars have solved a 130-year-old medieval literary mystery, revealing that the lost Song of Wade—referenced by Chaucer—was a chivalric romance, not a monster tale.
The Medieval Sleeping Beauty
Perceforest: a medieval tale with a sleeping princess.
Can You Solve These Medieval Riddles?
Test your wit with 10 medieval riddles by Saint Aldhelm, a 7th-century English bishop and poet. Can you solve these ancient brainteasers?
The Sword in the Stone and Other Legendary Blades of the Middle Ages
Explore medieval swords like Excalibur, Joyeuse, and Durendal, where legend, miracle, and history meet in tales of power and mystery.
The Copper Guardian: A Medieval Tale of Treasure Hunters and Curses
In a tale preserved from the 10th century, a man from Cairo sets out in search of treasure hidden deep in the mountains.…
Swim in the Sea Yourself: Twelfth-Century Insights on Experiential Learning
Discover how the 12th-century philosophical tale Hayy Ibn Yaqzan by Ibn Tufayl explores self-guided learning, critical thinking, and the power of experience—insights still relevant in modern education
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.
Latin Literature in Late Antiquity, with Gavin Kelly
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.
New Medieval Books: Hiding in Caverns Formed from Old Roots
Yu Xuanji is celebrated as the greatest female poet of the Tang Dynasty. This book presents the original Chinese texts alongside English translations of her surviving poems, as well as selected writings that illuminate her extraordinary life.
New Medieval Books: Historians on Robin Hood
This collection of 16 essays explores the medieval story of Robin Hood, examining its sources, how it may have been understood by medieval audiences, and what it reveals about the broader fabric of medieval society.
New Medieval Books: Enchanted Creatures
A journey through humanity’s long fascination with the monstrous, ranging from dragons to walruses. This book explores how cultures across time have imagined, exaggerated, and feared creatures both real and mythical.
The Starving Scholar: A Medieval Satire
A 12th-century Byzantine poem by Theodore Prodromos mocks the false promises of education through the voice of a hungry scholar who finds his purse full of parchment instead of coin.
Unruly Bodies and Subversive Laughs: Why I Started The Court Jester
I started The Court Jester to share the stories I kept stumbling upon in manuscripts: tales so absurd and outrageous that they made me laugh out loud in libraries.
The Medieval Writings of Jean Bodel with Lynn Ramey
This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle speaks with Lynn Ramey about the incredible Jean Bodel, his massive influence on other medieval writers, and some of his unforgettable works.
Spring in the Middle Ages
How did medieval people perceive the arrival of Spring? How was Spring depicted in medieval calendars and literary texts? And, was Spring the “mating season” for humans, as it is for many animal species?