The personnel of English and Welsh castles, 1272-1422
In England, the role played on the continent by the castellanies would appear to have been performed by the county castle and the sheriff, a post that remained firmly under the king’s control in all but a few counties. Instead, a more subtle link between the castle community and political power will have to be found. It will be searched for in the appointment of constables to royal castles, and in grants of ownership of castles, royal or forfeited. It may be found in the building activity that was so common in this period, or in the marriage alliances that created many of the great castle owning estates.
The warhorse and military service under Edward III
How, for example, are we to assess the likely extent and distribution of campaigning profits (and, indeed, costs) in society – or the impact of military service on the workings of shire administration, or the influence of war on the retaining practices of the nobility and gentry – without first establishing the identities of those who served in the king’s armies during this period? There can be few major research undertakings in the field of late medieval English history that would offer such wide-ranging benefits as a full-scale reconstruction of the military community.
Inland water transport in Medieval England—the view from the mills: a response to Jones
As has been pointed out by several commentators, from early times mills began to have a significant impact, for good or ill, upon inland water transport. They were not the only objects to do so, since fishing weirs could also have a major impact, but mills tended to be mostly permanent structures and, once established, maintained a strong presence on England’s waterways.
From Wine to Beer: Changing Patterns of Alcoholic Consumption, and Living Standards, in Later Medieval Flanders, 1300 – 1550
The basic problem with the ‘hop’ thesis is that the Flemish evidence for the relative shift from wine to beer consumption comes too late. My primary sources are the annual revenues from sales of excise tax- farms on wine and beer consumption recorded in the treasurers’ accounts of two towns: Bruges and Aalst.
The Art of the Science of Renaissance Painting
During this study we began to examine paintings for the presence of optical artifacts that could serve as supporting scientific evidence for these visual observations. Here we briefly describe some of the scientific evidence contained within three paintings that demonstrate lenses were in use by certain artists to project images as early as c1425. We present only a general discussion here, and refer interested readers to previous publications for details.
Airship and Submarine in the Medieval Imagination
The king is seen flying aloft, to the amazement of the bystanders, in a metal cage drawn by four griffins; nearby, we see him lowered into the sea in a glass tub.
Cogs, Sails and Longbows: Implications of Naval Tactics and Technology in the Hundred Years War
There were several naval engagements during the Hundred Years War. The three that will be looked at in this work are the battle of Sluys in 1340, the battle of Les Espagnols-Sur- Mer in 1350, and the capture of a French fleet from La Rochelle. The battle of Sluys is the best known of these, but it can be argued that subsequent engagements are of equal or greater importance. Many historians have downplayed these events.
The Printing Press: As An Agent of Social Change
Europe was ready to receive the printing press as the 12th and 13th centuries had been a period of radical change in the way new inventions and innovations changed the traditional ways of managing of production, and economic growth.
Fulling Mills in Medieval Europe : comparing the manuscript and archaeological evidence
This paper provides a brief overview of the current knowledge concerning medieval fulling mills, but is primarily focused on eliciting further information and speculation from conference attendees about recent archaeological finds and manuscript evidence from medieval France and other parts of Continental Europe
The Lexis of Building in Wood in Bilingual Medieval England
The medieval literatures of England, in English, Anglo-Norman French, and Latin, make frequent references to the necessities of life such as shelter, food and clothing, but always in passing.
Glass discovered at Glastonbury Abbey dates back to 7th century, researchers find
Glass furnaces recorded in 1955-7 were previously thought to date from before the Norman Conquest. However, radiocarbon dating has now revealed that they date approximately to the 680s, and are likely to be associated with a major rebuilding of the abbey undertaken by King Ine of Wessex.
Technology and Alchemical Debate in the Late Middle Ages
The medieval world view was marked by a deep division between art and nature. Stemming partly from Aristotle, and partlyfrom other Greek, Latin, and Arabic sources, this view placed strict boundaries on the conceptual limits of technical innovation.
The Efficacy of the English Longbow: A Reply to Kelly DeVries
According to DeVries, historians (myself specifically included) who argue for the lethal efficacy of the longbow are committing the sin of technological determinism, and indeed ‘have done military history and the history of technology a disservice’…
The Stirrup as a Revolutionary Device
A German legal historian, Paul Roth, published in 1850 a work that set out the basic concept of feudalism. According to Roth, Charles Martel had combined the two existing institutions of ‘vassalage’ and ‘benefice’—that is, a vassal swore allegiance to his lord in return for which he was given some kind of benefice, usually rent-free land.
The Medieval Horse Harness: Revolution or Evolution? A Case Study in Technological Change
Medieval historians have considered the role of technology for some time; it is perhaps now appropriate to reexamine conclusions reached by early historians of technology.
Smashing the Bridge between Roman and Medieval Artillery: The Onager
This paper will attempt to uncover some information about the technological level of artillery used during the decline of the Roman empire and the beginning of the middle ages (300 AD – 600 AD). Although several types of artillery were used during this time, only the onager seems to have been unique to the period.
The medieval crossbow as surgical instrument: an illustrated case history
The crossbow could be carried loaded,required little training or strength,and propelled its quarrel or bolt with frightening accuracy and force for eighty yards on direct aim and double or triple that on extreme range.
Early Medieval Lead Processing in the Slavic Territories and the Possible Mention of Trade in Lead by Ibrāhīm Ibn Ya’Qūb
The purpose of this article is to draw attention to the beginnings of lead processing in the Early Middle Age, based on the latest archaeological information.
Why so Many Viking Age Swords in Norway?
Logically it does not seem reasonable that Norway should have had so many more weapons than Sweden and Denmark, not to mention the military superpower Frankia. All the same, it seems that a comparatively rather larger part of the adult and free men were buried with weapons in Norway than in other countries.
The Flemish Evidence for the Gender of Weavers and the Boat Shuttle
Professor Berman’s paper details a story about changes in weaving found in the Gesta abbatum Trudonsium…