World

The medieval world takes us to Byzantium to explore the continuities with the ancient world and the multi-ethnic and multi-lingual empire that endured throughout the period. Or you can discover the many reasons and arguments for the rise and spread of Islam in the sixth and seventh centuries and the formation of the Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphates. Read more

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  • The throne and the fairy tellers

    Article

    Fairy tale princesses and mysterious castles are just part of the way that historically story tellers have been connected to royalty. In this article some of the most famous story tellers are discussed with their royal patronage and experiences. Hans Christian Andersen couldn’t believe his luck. In 1854, he was...

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  • Film: Ravenna: Capital of Empire, Crucible of Europe

    Article

    Ravenna was the capital of the Western Roman Empire from 402 CE until 751 CE, then later, the capital of the immense kingdom of Theoderic the Goth and finally the centre of Byzantine power in Italy. In this talk Professor Judith Herrin explores the history of the city, its peoples...

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  • The Christian Kingdoms of Nubia and Ethiopia

    Article

    Adam Simmons draws our attention to the need for further research into the relationship between the medieval Kingdoms of Ethiopia and Nubia – a fascinating time and place in African history which is neglected in the historical archive and about which, so far, there are only limited sources. The kingdoms of Ethiopia...

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  • Film: The life and legend of the Sultan Saladin

    Article

    Jonathan Phillips’s 2020 HA Virtual Conference keynote talk on The life and legend of the Sultan Saladin reveals how a man initially branded as ‘the son of Satan’ became so esteemed in Europe and, through extensive new research, we will follow how his character and achievements have acted as a role model for...

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  • Film: Writing history - The Life & Legend of the Sultan Saladin

    Article

    In this first film from our new ‘meet the author’ series Professor Jonathan Phillips explores the memory of Sultan Saladin not just in the West but also in the Middle East, and how he researched this information in preparation for his new book. In this interview we ask questions about...

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  • Podcast Series: The Crusades

    Multipage Article

    An HA Podcasted History of the Crusades featuring Professor Jonathan Riley-Smith, Professor Jonathan Phillips of Royal Holloway, University of London and Dr Tom Asbridge of Queen Mary, University of London.

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  • Podcast Series: The Vikings

    Multipage Article

    An HA Podcasted History of the Vikings featuring Professor Rosamond McKitterick, Sidney Sussex College, University of Cambridge.

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  • Podcast Series: The Rise of an Islamic Civilisation

    Multipage Article

    An HA Podcasted History of the Rise of an Islamic Civilisation featuring Dr Caroline Goodson of Birkbeck, University of London.

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  • Medieval Trade Routes

    Article

    The subject of Medieval Trade Routes presents certain difficulties at the outset. There is no clear definition of the word ‘medieval' and, whatever period is chosen, it is obvious that trade routes within that period would be unlikely always to follow the same direction or to be of the same...

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  • Podcast Series: The Byzantine Empire

    Multipage Article

    In this podcast Dr Dionysios Stathakopoulos of King's College London looks at the history of the Byzantine Empire from its origins in the Roman Empire to the fall of Constantinople.

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  • The First Crusade

    Article

    Nine centuries after enthusiasm for pope Urban's expedition to Jerusalem swept western Europe the phenomenon of the first crusade continues to fascinate. This pamphlet examines the nature of the crusades and the motives of those who joined it, describes the hardships of the long journey to the Holy Land and...

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  • Ideas on the Shape, Size and Movements of the Earth - Pamphlet

    Article

    This classic pamphlet takes you through some of the key ideas on the shape, size and movements of the Earth as they changed over time from classical cosmology to the work of Galileo and Isaac Newton.

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  • Podcast Series: The Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphates

    Multipage Article

    In this set of podcasts Emeritus Professor Gerald Hawting of SOAS, University of London provides an introduction to the Umayyad (661-750) and Abbasid (750-1258) Caliphates.

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  • The Early Mediaeval State

    Article

    In order to define the constitution of a state, theorists and historians still apply Aristotle's categories; monarchy, aristocracy, and democracy. This method has obvious limitations; there can be no doubt that the formal sovereignty either of an individual or of a minority or a majority does not of itself suffice...

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  • The Medieval Empire

    Article

    The subject of this pamphlet is one that, by general consent, takes a central place in European history in the middle ages. The history of the Empire, it has often been said, is co-terminous with the history of western Christendom; and Lord Bryce long ago described it as a ‘universal...

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  • The Byzantine Empire on the Eve of the Crusades

    Article

    This resource is a pamphlet titled ‘The Byzantine Empire on the Eve of the Crusades’ and written by R. J. H. Jenkins in 1953. As such, some of the scholarship has been updated since then, although it can provide useful historiography. It is not strange that there should in recent...

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  • The Undergrowth of History

    Article

    We can do all kinds of things with the past - examine it analytically, or question whether it ever existed, or churn it up inside ourselves until it turns into personal experience. We can dream it as we lounge amidst a heap of ruins, or petrify it into a museum;...

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  • Diagrams in History

    Article

    One of the gifts of the social sciences to history is the use of expository diagrams; but attention is rarely given to the history of diagrams. Maps - schematized representations of locations in spatial relation to one another - can be dated back to Babylonia in the late third millennium...

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  • The Miraculous Crusade: The Role of the Mystical and Miraculous in the Morale and Motivation of the First Crusade

    Article

    The First Crusade may be considered the only really successful crusade in that it achieved its stated goal, but it demanded great courage and stamina of its participants in their journey to the Holy City of Jerusalem, fighting their way through an unforgiving hostile territory. But courage and stamina by...

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  • Upwards till Lepanto

    Article

    Ottoman society centred on the Sultan. He was lawgiver, religious official, leader in battle-and until the late sixteenth century an active field commander on campaign. The Law of Fratricide of Mehmet (Mohammed) II, 1451-81, urged each new Sultan to kill his brothers in order to produce a capable ruler and...

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