Why is the West the way it is today? Modern history explains much, but a full picture is impossible without at least knowing these early medieval history highlights. From the Christian conversion of pagan kings to the repeated sieges of Constantinople, let’s explore them. By the end you’ll see why
In this article I discuss why Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott is actually more realistic and historically-accurate than most modern story-telling mediums with medieval settings, despite it being overly criticized for being a historically-inaccurate romance novel.
While reading Conquest of Peru by William H. Prescott, I was astonished to learn that the arquebus (harquebus), a 16th-century matchlock rifle, was used very similarly, at least in terms of tactics on the battlefield, as the English longbow was used in the 14th century. I was astonished because the
Were Medieval Slaves Like Slaves in Ancient Greece? To begin, let’s first understand that slavery used to be a socially accepted part of civilization in ancient Greece. With part two of this study I’ll try to prove that slavery wasn’t as socially accepted in medieval Europe as it was in
And a History into the Origins of Hockey As a Canadian medievalist, I love hockey and I love Vikings! And it’s hard for me to think ice hockey doesn’t have some kind of medieval origin when I see the Las Vegas Golden Knights facing off against the Los Angeles Kings,
As usual, trying to answer these hypothetical questions will allow us to see a much bigger picture, and by the time you’re done reading this article you should know a lot more about medieval finance, theology and philosophy. For a skimmer’s convenience, I bolded keywords and juicy bits besides my juiciest conclusions at the end.
Usury in the Latin West and riba in the Muslim world are similar but have their differences. Essentially, they’re both interest on debts. Medieval Christians in Europe used the term “usury” unsparingly for all cases of interest while medieval Muslims in the East had several forms of riba. Different Kinds
Here’s an epic list of medieval garments and clothes from the Middle Ages in no particular order, with a bonus list of 30 Early Modern articles at the end! This glossary of medieval clothing terms will be updated yearly as new items are brought to my attention.
To understand why and how military helmets evolved in medieval England this paper will analyse key details of two helmets, namely the Benty Grange helmet, a seventh-century Anglo-Saxon artifact, and the Pembridge helmet, a fourteenth-century English artifact. Key details include construction methods, construction materials, defensive features and iconography, which if analysed together can help to explain why the design of helmets changed so dramatically over this seven hundred year gap of time.
The erotic badge from ca. 1415 Bruges of three phalli carrying a vulva on a litter has many scholars trying to answer what it symbolizes and what context it was worn in. Was it a pilgrim badge or a secular Carnival joke? Let us attempt to explain…
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