Everything Medieval!'s Journal

en_viktor @ 8:07pm: Ladder tower of the Andrey Bogolubsky's Palace in bogolubovo, Russia
The Ladder (Lestnichnaya) Tower of the Andrey Bogolubsky's Palace.
XII century.
A dark fragment is a fragment of the former palace.
At this tower's ladder the duke Andrey bogolubsky according a legend was killed in the night from 28 till 29 june 1174.
Over the tower at XVII c. the bell-tower was constructed (some reconstruction of XVIII c.)
Virgin Nativity Church was constructed at XVIII c. on the place of XII century's church.
The hipped roof is the building of XVII c.
Now all this buildings are on the territory of Bogolubovsky Monastery (Bogolubovo near Vladimir, Russia).



( Read more... )

- photos by mnezhutka

girlmacbeth @ 4:43pm:
Name:Girlmacbeth
Age:35
Location:mid-west Missouri,usa
Do you study the period in any way?Yes Do you do historical reenactments or role-playing of this period?:I'm a ren-faire actress
What do you like about the Middle Ages?:the culture,people,customs
If you could live anywhere during anytime in the Middle Ages, where and when would it be and why?:England or Ireland very early middle-ages I love all thing ancient ,that are  not rushed or old fashioned in a way.

theriddle13 @ 4:15pm: 1st of all I want to say "sorry" for my English. I am from Leipzig, a town in Germany, so don't worry or be angry  for translating or grammar errors....

I am a new member here and only wanted to give you a very, very short introduction about myself:

Since I am 9years old ,I' am interested in history , because in  an anime there was a girl (which was  also my favorite character) the reincarnation of Jeanne d'Arc.  I begun to specially interest in her history,.

Now I'm 15 years old and my favorite historical topics are: Vlad Tepes, Jeanne d'Arc, 2nd WW,  Barock and Michelangelo but also the middleages.

Writting my 1st entry I have also a very important question:I have to write a very, very, very big and important paperwork which can give me the chance to improve my mark in a subject. So I have chosen history and my Topic is " Vlad Tepes and the myth of the vampires". Does anybody know the name and link for very exact and  informative websides  (  except for  Wikipedia) ?

smile_my_friend @ 9:15pm: 9th-10th century Hagiography question

I hope this is ok here.  A few questions:

I am writing an undergrad thesis on Odo of Cluny's Vita Geraldi. I <think> I am focusing on the monastic-lay relationship from an early Cluniac perspective as seen in Odo's work, with special attention to the level of cooperation emphasized by Odo in the Vita.  I am looking for other hagiographic sources from the century of the composition, as well as sources dating back to the 700's.  (From what I can tell there are many connections to be made between the Cluny reforms and the reforms that took place during Louis the Pious). I have found a few, but I want to make sure I am not missing anything.  Also, any other random sources would be appreciated, as there is not much research done on this subject (to my, as well as my advisor's, knowledge anyway) and most bibliographies/papers are directing me to post 1000 A.D. sources and research.  Anything translated into English is preferred, but Latin and French is fine as well. 

Caitlin

shittlefrau @ 6:06pm: Pursuing a Degree
Hi all!

I am not sure if this is the right community for this, but I am thinking about pursuing a degree in Medieval Studies at my university, with the eventual goal of getting a Masters and PhD so I can teach at the university level. Does anyone have experience with this? My family is trying to talk me out of it, saying that it is impractical and I'll never find a job. But my time in the elementary education department is kind of sucking my soul dry...I love medieval studies and it's where my true interests lie. Can anyone tell me if this is worth pursuing? Or if you do this yourself, could I talk to you by email?

Thanks,

Kate (esclarimonde @ gmail . com , if anyone wants to start up a discussion about this)

en_viktor @ 11:43pm: Borisoglebsky Monastery in Dmitrov (Moscow Oblast)
Borisoglebsky Monastery (Борисоглебский монастырь) = St. Boris and St. Gleb Monastery.
The accurate date of monastery's foundation isn't known. According a legend, the monastery was created by the grand duke Yuri Dolgoruky.



The oldest of the buildings of the monastery is Boris and Gleb Cathedral constructed before 1537.

( Read more... )

monsalvatworld @ 7:07pm: Dear friends!
Dear friends!
I would like to introduce you the new project dedicated to the history of Middle Ages – “Medievalist”. You will find here chronicles, studies, rare and unique materials related to medieval history, culture and art. Special care was taken to assemble and make publically accessible as much digital versions of historical primary sources as was possible in current circumstances. In the present time there are following materials published:
GEOFFREY of MONMOUTH. History of the Kings of Britain
GILDAS. On the Ruin of Britain
RICHARD of DEVIZES. Chronicle of the deeds of Richard I
GEOFFREY de VINSAUF. Itinerary of Richard I and others to the Holy Land
TORQUATO TASSO. Jerusalem Delivered
JOINVILLE, JOHN DE. Memoirs of Louis IX, King of France.
ASSER OF SAINT DAVID'S. Annals of the reign of Alfred the Great From A.D. 849 to A.D. 887.
LANCELOTT, FRANCIS, ESQ. Queens of England and their times. Vol.1.
MATTHEW OF WESTMINSTER. The flowers of history, especially such as relate to the affairs of Britain vol.1-2
ROGER OF WENDOVER Flowers of history. The history of England from the descent of the saxons to A.D. 1235. vol.1-2
MAKRISI. The road to knowledge of the reigns of kings.
ROSEBAULT, CHARLES J. Saladin. Prince of Chivalri.
http://www.medievalist.globalfolio.net/index.php

msmcknittington @ 6:56pm: Medieval fiction recommendations
I'm looking for recommendations of modern historical fiction set in the medieval period, not fiction written during the medieval period. I find that most medieval historical fiction tends to be more la-di-da fairytale, noble knight on a big white horse, pretty girl in a hennin than anything historical. I go into a book expecting to read about Normans in Saxon England, and instead I get a story about modern people playing dress-up in a "midievil" setting. DO NOT WANT! I want stories about medieval people in a medieval setting reacting like medieval people in a medieval setting.

Books I've read and enjoyed that I think nailed this:

Death Comes As Epiphany by Sharan Newman, 12th century France (later books fall off in this respect, I think)
The Kristin Lavransdatter series by Sigrid Undset, 14th century Norway
The Doomsday Book by Connie Willis, 14th century England (What do you mean, it's science fiction?)
The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco, 14th century Italy

It's a very short list. I've also heard very good things about Sharon Kay Penman, but have not read any of her books. I've also read a lot of the Brother Cadfael mysteries, but it's been a few years, so I can't remember how well they did on the history, though I recall it as being pretty good.

Things I'm done with:

King Arthur -- I am all King Arthur-ed out.
Elves/fairies/"fey" folk -- Perfectly good historical novel, and then the elves show up without virtue of Thomas the Rhymer.
Bernard Cornwell -- The Grail Quest series is the same thing as the Sharpe series, only set in the Hundred Years War instead of the Napoleonic wars. Which means all the women get killed as soon as they outlive their usefulness. :(

Can anyone think of any books that I would like that fit my qualifications? I don't really care about setting, as long as it's somewhere in medieval Europe. Locations outside of England are good.

Crossposted to sca; my apologies if you're seeing it twice.

akrav @ 3:58pm: Henry VI


Hello.  I hope someone would be so kind to answer my question...

Who was/were the Henry VI’s ambassador(s) to Constantinople (before the Empire’s fall, of course)?

I assume there was no "resident ambassador" but there were some Cardinal Beaufort’s emissaries visiting Constantinople from time to time, correct?  Who were those envoys?

Thank you!

ethelfleda @ 3:18pm: Book of the City of Ladies - radio dramatisation
A dramatisation of Christine de Pisan's Book of the City of Ladies is available for the next few days, streaming from BBC 7. Listen Again page - the programme is at 0800 on the list. BBC 7 doesn't use the iPlayer, but I still don't know if it will work outside the UK.

I thought it fell flat in a couple of places (knowing references to the future in period pieces are hard to pull off, and this doesn't manage it), but generally quite good.


On a different topic, I'm looking for some medieval pictures for my walls - my flat's quite plain and undecorated, and could really do with some gorgeous medieval colours about the place! Reproductions of the bigger pictures from illuminated manuscripts or anything like that (bonus if they're from the slightly barmy end, like rabbits manning siege engines) . I don't even know where to start looking. Has to be either UK based or will ship to the UK for reasonable cost.

swedishgoddess @ 10:05pm: Can someone help me identify this?
I picked up a copy of The Oxford Book of Medieval Latin Verse today from my library, and I'm really interested in the 100th piece in the book, which the author editor has titled "A Call to the Crusade", anonymously written circa 1350s. I did a google search on the first line of the poem in an attempt to find some scholarship on the piece, but came up with nothing.

Here's the first stanza.

Christiani nominis corruit insigne,
spurci pompa germinis et gentis indignae
regnat in Jerusalem--quis ferro vel igne
deleat propaginem sobolis malignae?

Anyone ever run across this poem before? Not too worried about finding a translation because the Latin's not too tough, but I would love to find ANY info on this piece.

[cross posting to latin and medievalstudies]

kitty_iii @ 5:01pm: Anglo-Saxon Elves
So, I wrote a research paper all about elves and how people at one time viewed elves as a part of life, both good and bad, but later the elves were demonized with the rise of Christianity.
My thesis is as follows:
Whereas the Anglo-Saxons believed that elves were non-human beings who interacted with humans in both a good and a bad way, the rise of Christianity turned elves into members of the out-group who were inherently harmful to humans.

To read more, go to the link below:
http://www.freewebs.com/kontrapunctus/seating.htm

smile_my_friend @ 5:21pm: Documenta Catholica Omnia
This sight has a ton of primary source material in the original language.  As far as I can tell the infrastructure of the sight is completely in Latin, as well as many of the sources.  It is a conservative Catholic web page, but should prove useful for research.  I am sorry if everyone has seen this already, but my professor found it online last night and we were all tickled pink so I wanted to share.

http://www.documentacatholicaomnia.eu/

ethelfleda @ 1:43pm: BBC 4 Medieval Season
Haven't seen this flagged up yet. BBC 4 are having a Medieval Season, the centrepiece of which is Rob Bartlett's series "Inside The Medieval Mind". UK people without digital can get it via the iPlayer.

Not in the UK? Well, you can at least enjoy the wonderful trailer they made for it!

callirhoe @ 7:11pm: Full wise is he that can himselven knowe.
Name: Callirhoë
Age: 20
Location: Iowa
Do you study the period in any way? Do you do historical reenactments or role-playing of this period?: I'm an English major at the University of Iowa studying medieval literature. Actually, right now I'm starting the process of grad school applications, so I can go on and study more medieval stuff. :-) Aside from that, I have a great interest in medieval needlework; I'm just learning embroidery, but I'm working out my own designs based on medieval tapestries and on illuminated manuscripts.
What do you like about the Middle Ages?: I'm in it for the lit. I'm fascinated with all sorts of medieval texts, especially Arthurian romance (favorites: Chrétien's Yvain, Gottfried's Tristan and Malory's Le Morte Darthur), the writings of medieval mystics (favorites: Julian of Norwich and Hildegard of Bingen), a whole lot of lyric poetry, especially of the Minnesang and Meistersang variety, and so on and so on. I'm in love with Middle English and Middle High German, and I'll use it given any chance.
If you could live anywhere during anytime in the Middle Ages, where and when would it be and why?: Definitely sometime in the high to late medieval period. The late fourteenth and early fifteenth has a lot going for it, including a lot of great literature and art and some nifty political stuff. Then again, the thirteenth century is pretty sweet too. I'm undecided, o wê.

So that's me. Some other medieval things in which I'm interested: manuscripts and illumination; the intersection of the religious and the secular in poetry; the medieval cult of Mary; narratology in medieval lit; gender and sexuality studies; linguistics and medieval etymologies; typology and allegory in MA texts and art. You'll probably get to read me blathering on about some of these things. Sorry.

Oh, and this! Since April is National Poetry Month, I've been posting a poem a day; I recently posted a strophe from the "Marienleich" (Song of Mary) of the thirteenth-century German poet Heinrich von Meissen der Frauenlob. I love this poem to pieces, and Barbara Newman has a great recent translation. It's just really fantastic. <3

evilninjafencer @ 7:26pm: med 2 total war
so does anyone else in the forum play this pc game?

i've been hooked on the series since shogun: total war and have literally just fallen for the rest of their line (with the exception of the Alexander the Great which was just a re-spitting out of Rome: Total War). can't wait to see empire: total war which just oozes with imperialistic goodness...but i must admit that i'm having a jolly good time with the second run-around of their medieval series.

i've also added the expansion and had my way with the new world as spain and became a juggernaut in the holy lands as the principality of antioch.

but the best must be playing england in the regular version. my norman/plantagenet/lancastrian/yorkist monarchs now hold sway over all the british isles, france (*lots of evil laughter*), parts of denmark, a few italian provinces, tunis in north africa, and making some headway into the iberian peninsula. my expansion into teutonic lands will be cut short since i'm deciding on rampaging down into the excommunicated holy roman empire to form a solid frontier for the eventual appearance of the mongols and the timurids after they're done thrashing the holy lands and asia minor.

sounds like fanciful nerdy computer geek talk...but where else can my staked battle lines of longbowmen, dismounted english knights and men-at-arms, with supporting cavalry take on three portuguese armies and come out smelling like roses (pun intended)?

anyway...just thought i'd share that aspect of modern medieval-ness.

huzzah to you all!

=)

winterlillies @ 6:36pm: 20 Medieval Icons
I've searched from some icons but couldn't find any to my liking so I made some. If this isn't the right place to post, please delete. Cross posted to medievalstudies

Teaser

Fake Cut: Da mihi castitatem et continentiam, sed noli modo

karmaku @ 6:28pm: Middle English.
I'm reading Sir Gawain and the Green Knight in a library, right now.

Well, I just had to fight a burst of giggles when I read:

"with mony luflych lorde" 

(SGGK, v. 38)

A pointless entry about an absurd reaction, but I thought you might understand my appreciation of Middle English as so very cute.

gwinna @ 11:11am: Pearls & Trade
Does anyone have any information on when and where Pearls were available in Europe before and during the medieval ages? I have a lot of tidbits of information, but I'm really looking for a list (Pearls were available to Germany during x years, England xyears, Vikings Xyears, etc) or a trade route map with dates which includes Pearls specifically.

I make jewelry and am beginning to make historically accurate jewelry, and the subject of beading in history is not an easy one to research! I need leads on where to find more information. A trade route map of bead types would also be appreciated and helpful.

Thanks in Advance! :)

buboniclou @ 10:58am: The *Real* Lyrics to the Carmina Burana
I remember translating them in my medieval Latin class...this is a new one:
http://carmina.ytmnd.com/

a_chromatic_sea @ 10:39pm: New!
Name: Amy
Age: 20 (on the 6th!)
Location: Fort Collins, Colorado; History Major at Colorado State University
Do you study the period in any way? Do you do historical reenactments or role-playing of this period?: I'm planning on becoming a medievalist eventually, if only because the period is so absolutely fascinating to me. I don't do any "historically accurate" reenactments, exactly... but I've worked at the Colorado Renaissance Festival for the last five years.
What do you like about the Middle Ages?: What I like most is that it is something of a transition period... it's when we start to see the world we know now (specifically in Europe) emerge.
If you could live anywhere during anytime in the Middle Ages, where and when would it be and why?: Honestly, I have no idea. That's a tough question...


Anyway, I'm sure that I'll be posting more exciting things later on, but for now it's just nice to read through some of this stuff in between my massive amounts of homework and reading. >.< I'm so glad I found this community!

smilingplatypus @ 3:17pm: Master's programs in Canada
Clueless student here!  I have a question and would really appreciate any information/opinions/etc.

I'm planning on doing my Master's degree in medieval history or medieval studies here in Canada.  I've applied to the University of Toronto's Centre for Medieval Studies and to Dalhousie University's Department of History.  I've been accepted into both (yay!), but I know they're very different programs -- I would end up in very different research areas -- and I'd like to know if anyone here has any experience with them.

It's a tough decision for me because I *think* I know where I want to go, but the other school is offering me a huge amount of money.  So I have to consider it really carefully.    

All I know about the programs is what they say on their websites, so if anyone can give me some insight into what they are really like, I would be extremely grateful.  Really, anything is good.

Thanks!

bochierd @ 4:56pm: Calls for Papers
From ANSAX:

Call for Papers

The Heroic Age accepts papers on any topic within the geographical
(Northwestern Europe) and temporal (300-1200) boundaries of the
journal at any time. Submissions should be sent to Larry J. Swain,
haediting@yahoo.com

Below are plans for special, themed sections in upcoming issues.
The call for Issue 12 has been extended.

The Heroic Age Issue 12: Early
Medieval Languages and Linguistics
(Spring 2008)

The Heroic Age invites submissions on any aspect of Late Antique or
Early Medieval languages and linguistics. Topics may include (but
are not limited to): place name studies; vocabulary borrowed from
different languages (such as William Sayers exploration of the
borrowing of nautical vocabulary from Norse in Issue 8 of The
Heroic Age); growth of vernacular languages; the influence of Latin
on vernacular; vernacular influence on Latin; runes; ogam; editions
or translations of little known texts or inscriptions; the use or
mis-use of Greek or Hebrew.

Submissions will be received at any time, no later than February 10,
2007. Submissions should be sent to Larry Swain, haediting@yahoo.com

The Heroic Age Issue 13: Early
Medieval Manuscripts: Use and Abuse
(July 2008)

The Heroic Age invites submissions exploring the use or abuse of
Late Antique and Early Medieval manuscripts. Studies of individual
manuscripts, or the influence of disparate manuscripts on a
particular text, the peculiar travels of a manuscript(s), and other
studies are encouraged and welcome.

Submissions will be received at any time, no later than April 1,
2008. Submissions should be sent to Larry Swain, haediting@yahoo.com

The Heroic Age, Issue 14: Law and
Legal Culture in the Early Middle
Ages

Guest Editor: Andrew Rabin, University of Louisville

The Heroic Age invites submissions for a special issue on law and
legal culture in the early middle ages. We construe the subject of
this issue broadly, and we are eager to receive submissions
representing a variety of perspectives, methodologies, national or
ethnic cultures, and disciplines. Possible topics include (but are
not limited to): royal legislation, legal manuscripts, law in/and
literature, legal procedure, charters and diplomatics, writs and
wills, dispute resolution, theories of law and justice, canon law,
editing medieval law, law and philosophy, perceptions of medieval law
in later periods, law in/and art, international law, and intersections
between medieval Asian and European legal traditions. We welcome
traditional philological and historicist approaches, as well as those
informed by modern critical theory.

Prospective contributors should feel free to contact Andrew Rabin
(andrew.rabin@louisville.edu) if they have any questions.

Articles should be 7000 words including bibliography and endnotes, and
conform to The Heroic Age's in-house style. Instructions may be found
at http://www.heroicage.org/authors.html. All submissions will be
reviewed by two readers according to a double-blind policy. All
submissions should be sent to haediting@yahoo.com. The deadline for
submission is August 1st, 2008.

This issue will also include a second special section on Early
Medieval Studies and Modern Theory, title to yet be determined.
The section is being edited and compiled currently by Eileen Joy
and will include papers from members of the BABEL project.


Future Plans: Issue 15: Ten Year Anniversary Issue: The World of
Late Antique Britain

For our ten year anniversary The Heroic Age is revisiting
its first issue in a way. Our first issue dealt with the Matter of
Arthur. Issue 15 will have three sections: One section is
historical and would examine the world of Late Antique Britain,
connections with the rest of the continent in Late Antiquity, and
new views of the Adventus Saxonum. The second section will examine
Arthur and Arthurian literature. The third section will include
studies of "under studied" early medieval authors stressing the
early period and stressing Irish and British authors.


The Heroic Age is an on-line, peer-reviewed academic journal hosted by
the Memorial University of Newfoundland. It focuses on Northwestern
Europe during the early medieval period (from the late 4th through
12th centuries). We seek to foster dialogue between all scholars of
this period across ethnic and disciplinary boundaries, including-but
not limited to-history, archeology, and literature pertaining to the
period.

lorion @ 4:26pm: Hello!
If u like middle ages as i like castles of that period of time...i'd like to invite to my community all_castles.

In this community ppl post there photos from different countires where they seen castles.

u r welcome

jaysus @ 8:22pm: saints
Do you know where I can find a book about all of the Catholic saints and how they became saints? Thanks.