Government Jobs in the Middle Ages: 14th-century London
What were the kinds of jobs that medieval people did in a city government? A book from 14th-century London offers details about the positions and roles of civic officials in that city, ranging from the Mayor to Scavengers.
Corrupted Air and Water: Pollution in Medieval Cities
When poop and entrails filled the Thames. Dealing with urban pollution in the Middle Ages.
Peasant Kids at Work: Apprenticeship and Service in the Middle Ages
What trade should the child of a medieval peasant learn?
Imagining Microplaces: From Medieval into the Present
Exploring how thinking through microplace might open up new possibilities for historians, bringing together research, imagination, and varied tools for immersive, experiential analysis and interpretation.
Sanitation in Medieval Paris with Emily Hutchison
Just how dirty was medieval Paris? And what did people do with their waste? This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle speaks with Emily Hutchison about sanitation in the Middle Ages.
Medieval Apartment Buildings
We know that medieval cities could be crowded and space could be in short supply. There are even some places where people lived in what we would call apartment buildings.
How to go to the toilet, medieval style?
A history of not-so-private privies in the Middle Ages.
The 5 Most Common Jobs in a Medieval City
The five most common jobs were farming, carpentry, butchery, shoemaking and Church-related work.
Why Was a Scotsman Working as a ‘Cop’ in 15th-century Bologna?
How can this be, and what does it say about both medieval policing and the movement of people in the Middle Ages?
Ten Most Important Cities in the Medieval World
Here is our list of the ten most important cities in the medieval world – we looked for those that had enduring significance throughout the Middle Ages. Today, some of these places remain leading global centres, while others are mostly known for the countless tourists they attract.
Crafting Communities: Masons in Medieval London
A look at how misteries, guilds and fraternities worked to create a sense of community for the masons of medieval London.
Why did Bruges get a porpoise each year?
For about three centuries, the coastal town of Blankenberge would send to the nearby city of Bruges a porpoise. A new study examines this tradition and why it happened.
Were medieval cities greener? Urban agriculture in the Middle Ages
This article looks at the urban farmers of medieval France and discusses the roles of the gardens that were found throughout medieval cities.
Ravenna and Constantinople in the 6th-8th centuries
Judith Herrin addresses the status of Ravenna as the Byzantine Empire’s outpost in the West
Medieval Working Women: Their role in the trades of Southern France in the 14th century
This article provides an overview of the roles and place of women in artisanal guilds in late medieval southern France
The Two Towers: Crusader Acre and its Defences
The Accursed Tower and Tower of the Flies were the infamous defences of the city of Acre. Strange legends surround both towers, and they would prove to be formidable challenges to besieging armies during the Crusades.
Uncovering the people who lived in medieval Ypres
Unique research into skeletons from the 13th century aims to determine health status, origin and lifestyle
Medieval Alexandria: Life in a Port City
The article presents an overview description of medieval Alexandria, based on the integration of archaeological finds, Muslim historiography, and medieval travelogues, with Geniza documents.
Piped water supplies managed by civic bodies in medieval English towns
This article uses studies of individual towns, together with civic records and Leland’s Itinerary, to examine the sources and technologies of urban water supplies, the origins of civic piped water systems, their relationships to other local systems, finance, management and oversight.
Granum Bonum: Grain Distribution and the Emergence of Popular Institutions in Medieval Genoa
This dissertation is an exploration of Genoese institutionalism that demonstrates the way grain and grain distribution were intertwined with state debt and public spending in the exercise of political power in the medieval urban republic under the fourteenth-century government of Simone Boccanegra (r. 1339–1363) and his successors.
Reading Medieval Ruins: A Material History of Urban Life in 16th-Century Japan
The city of Ichijôdani served as the capital of Echizen Province for approximately one century during Japan’s late medieval period.
Project to examine late medieval local government
A new research project has been launched to examine the local governments of the historic cities of Augsburg and Aberdeen, and how they evolved in the late Middle Ages.
Filthy and indecent words: Insults, defamation, and urban politics in the southern Low Countries (1300-1550)
In 1527, the Bruges fishmonger Thomas Haghebaert shouted at the governors of his guild: ‘I will have nothing to do with you or the magistracy. I sh*t on you and on the aldermen and on all those who think they can harm me!’
London Under Danish Rule: Cnut’s Politics and Policies as a Demonstration of Power
In 1016, London was one of very few English cities of European significance. This reflected London’s prominence as a trading port, an economic and administrative hub, and population centre, rather than any status as a nascent capital city.