Medieval

Jakob von Wart taking his bath, from the Codex Manesse, Switzerland, c.1305-40. The Protected Art Archive/Alamy Stock Photo

The Flies, Fleas and Rotting Flesh of Medieval Monks

Repulsive revelations of bodily infestations were viewed by some in medieval Europe as proof of sanctity. But for most, parasites were just plain disgusting.

St. Francis of Assisi showing his stigmata in an illustrated manuscript, c. 1490.

The Death of St Francis of Assisi

St Francis of Assisi died on 4 October 1226, leaving behind the question of how we venerate a saint who resisted veneration.

Carving of medieval university students on the tomb of the scholar Giovanni da Legnano, Bologna, 14th century. Sailko (CC BY 2.5).

The Medieval University Experience

The experiences of medieval university students are familiar: they missed their mothers, asked for money and got into trouble.

Angevin family tree showing Henry II and his children. From left: William, Henry, Richard, Matilda, Geoffrey, Eleanor, Joan and John. Niday Picture Library/Alamy Stock Photo.

How Henry II Survived the Great Rebellion

In 1173 the Angevin empire looked set to fall, facing rebellion on all sides. Against incredible odds Henry II won a decisive victory, silencing kings, lords – and his own children.

Birdlore: ‘De avibus’ (On Birds), from De proprietatibus rerum (On the Properties of Things), by Bartholomaeus Anglicus, 1240.

The Meaning of Lore

How ‘lore’, a largely neglected medieval word, has found a new lease of life in fandom.

A prisoner of the Inquision in this imagined scene by Jean Louis Desprez, c. 1789. Albertina. Public Domain.

Behind Closed Doors: Women and the Inquisition

What was there to fear from a medieval inquisition? For the inquisitors, quite a lot.

Henry III depicted in stained glass, chapel of the Maison Dieu, 19th century. Photograph by Jim Linwood

Henry III by David Carpenter review

A new account of some of the most exciting, terrible and important years in English history.

Folio 153v of the Ellesmere Manuscript, illuminated manuscript of Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, 1410. Wikimedia Commons

Origins and Originality

What does it mean to be happy? For poets, medieval and modern, joy comes in many forms.

Richard III, oil on panel, late 16th century. National Portrait Gallery

Was Richard III a Bad King?

Child-murderer, arch villain, failed monarch, ‘northern’. Have efforts to redeem Richard III succeeded or is he still one of history’s worst kings?

Visionary: Henry III and the facade of Westminster Abbey, from the Chronicle of England, by Peter Langtoft, 1307-27. incamerastock/Alamy Stock Photo

Crowning Triumph

Westminster Abbey was the focus of the world during the recent coronation. How and why was it built?