Religion

In this section religions, religious belief and many elements of religiosity are explored and discussed. Early pagan beliefs in Britain and Ireland to the worship of gods across Europe are explored as are the religious changes that monotheism introduced. How religion affects themes of power, individuality and architecture are debated as are key historical movements such as the Reformation and the crusades.

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  • The impact of the Reformation on Jewish-Christian Relations

    Podcast

    In this podcast Professor Miri Rubin of Queen Mary University of London looks at the impact of the Reformation on Jewish-Christian relations?

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  • Tudor Rebellions

    Podcast

    In this series of videos, produced by Royal Holloway, University of London, staff and students examine the origins, course and outcome of the Lincolnshire Rising and the Pilgrimage of Grace, the largest popular uprising in Tudor England. The playlist also includes a two-part case study looking at the fortunes of...

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  • Virtual Branch Recording: Assassins and Templars

    Article

    In this talk, Steve Tibble discusses the Assassins and Templars, two of history's most legendary groups. One was a Shi’ite religious sect, the other a Christian military order created to defend the Holy Land. Steve Tibble traces the history of these two groups from their origins to their ultimate destruction showing how they survived...

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  • Virtual Branch Recording: Crusader Criminals

    Article

    The religious wars of the Crusades are renowned for their military engagements. But the period was witness to brutality beyond the battlefield. More so than any other medieval war zone, the Holy Land was rife with unprecedented levels of criminality and violence. In the first history of its kind, Steve Tibble explores...

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  • Virtual Branch Recording: Locating and Mapping the Jews of Medieval Lincoln

    Article

    As part of a project to identify and write biographies of all of the Jews of the medieval Lincoln Jewry, Natasha Jenman, Luka Liu, and Josh Outhwaite have been working on records of Jewish property ownership in the city across the thirteenth century. This allows them to identify those individuals who will be...

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  • Virtual Branch Recording: Poet, Mystic, Widow, Wife

    Article

    What was life really like for women in the medieval period? How did they think about sex, death and God? Could they live independent lives?  Few women had the luxury of writing down their thoughts and feelings during medieval times. But remarkably, there are at least four who did: Marie de France,...

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  • Virtual Branch Recording: Shylock's Venice

    Article

    This is the story of the Venice Ghetto, the corner of the city where Jews were exiled; free to walk the streets by day, locked behind gates and walls at night. Yet, gates and walls notwithstanding, from its establishment in 1516 until the fall of Venice in 1798, the ghetto...

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  • Virtual Branch Recording: The Fall of the English Republic

    Article

    Oliver Cromwell’s death in 1658 sparked a period of unrivalled turmoil and confusion in English history. In less than two years, there were close to ten changes of government; rival armies of Englishmen faced each other across the Scottish border; and the Long Parliament was finally dissolved after two decades.  Why...

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  • What was the Byzantine Empire?

    Podcast

    In this podcast Dr Dionysios Stathakopoulos covers the basics: name, dates, geography, origins in the Late Roman Empire, and how the Byzantine Empire fits with Medieval History, East and West in general.

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  • Witchcraft, Werewolves and Magic in European History: on-demand short course

    Multipage Article

    This self-guided short course provides an introduction to European witchcraft history from the fifteenth century to the present. Using a range of primary sources, the course explores important themes and questions relating to witchcraft history, examining how witchcraft has been imagined and understood at different times and in different places, and why...

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  • Women & Religion in Ancient Greece & Rome

    Podcast

    In this podcast Dr Richard Hawley of Royal Holloway, University of London looks at the role and position of women in Ancient Greece and Rome.

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