Category Archives: European History

French History at the Paris 2024 Olympics

Posted on September 13, 2024 by briansandberg

The dramatic opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics featured French history and culture in a series of tableaux vivants and performances that referenced early modern French theater and court culture. Several of my colleagues in early modern French history … Continue reading →

Posted in Contemporary France, Cultural History, Early Modern Europe, Early Modern France, Early Modern World, European History, European Studies, French History, French Revolution and Napoleon, History in the Media, Museums and Historical Memory, Women and Gender History | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Appian Way and World Heritage Politics

Posted on August 30, 2024 by briansandberg

The Appian Way is often considered the world’s first highway, and now it is officially listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The New York Times reports: “Known as the “regina viarum,” or the queen of roads, the Appia was … Continue reading →

Posted in Ancient History, European History, European Studies, History of the Western World, Italian History, Museums and Historical Memory, World History | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Teaching Western History

Posted on August 30, 2024 by briansandberg

I am teaching HIST 110 History of the Western World I this fall semester at Northern Illinois and am once again revamping the readings. I have decided to go with a new interpretive essay, Josephine Quinn’s How the World Made … Continue reading →

Posted in Ancient History, European History, Historiography and Social Theory, History of the Western World, Idea of Europe, Medieval History, Mediterranean World, Northern Illinois University, The Past Alive: Teaching History, Undergraduate Work in History, World History | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

French Colonial History Online Workshops

Posted on January 29, 2024 by briansandberg

The French Colonial Historical Society is organizing two online workshops on using documentary sources at the Archives Nationales d’Outre-Mer (ANOM) in France. For additional information or to register, see the French Colonial Historical Society website. Here is the announcement from … Continue reading →

Posted in Archival Research, Contemporary France, Digital Humanities, Early Modern Europe, Early Modern France, Early Modern World, Empires and Imperialism, European History, French Empire, French History, Graduate Work in History, History of Race and Racism, History of Violence, Manuscript Studies, World History | Leave a comment

Beyond the Battlefield Released

Posted on December 22, 2023 by briansandberg

My latest essay has been published in the collective volume on Beyond the Battlefield Reconsidering Warfare in Early Modern Europe, ed. Tryntje Helfferich and Howard Louthan (London: Routledge, 2023), which is scheduled to be released today (22 December 2023). My … Continue reading →

Posted in Civil Conflict, Civilians and Refugees in War, Early Modern Europe, Early Modern France, Early Modern World, European History, European Wars of Religion, French Wars of Religion, History of Violence, Reformation History, Renaissance Art and History, War, Culture, and Society, Warfare in the Early Modern World | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Digital Mapping and Pre-Modern Violence

Posted on November 3, 2023 by briansandberg

Digital mapping projects are investigating episodes of violence in pre-modern societies in new ways. Interpersonal violence often erupted in pre-modern societies. Recent studies of late medieval England recount murders in urban centers: “A spice merchant stabbed by a fruit seller … Continue reading →

Posted in Cultural History, Digital Humanities, European History, History of Violence, Manuscript Studies, Material Culture, Medieval History, Urban History | Leave a comment

Natalie Zemon Davis and Early Modern History

Posted on October 23, 2023 by briansandberg

I deeply saddened to learn today that renowned early modern historian Natalie Zemon Davis has died. Natalie Zemon Davis was a brilliant historian of early modern French, European, Mediterranean, and global history. Natalie’s essays on unruly women, women’s honor, gender … Continue reading →

Posted in Cultural History, Early Modern Europe, Early Modern France, Early Modern World, European History, French History, French Wars of Religion, History of the Book, Languedoc and Southern France, Mediterranean World, Rare Books and Pamphlets, Reformation History, Religious Violence, Women and Gender History, World History | Leave a comment

NIU Book Lab and Printing Presses

Posted on October 11, 2023 by briansandberg

We are launching an exciting new project at Northern Illinois University to create a NIU Book Lab, which will focus on the history of the book, printing presses, and print culture! The Northern Illinois University Libraries have created a crowdfunding … Continue reading →

Posted in Archival Research, Cartographic History, Cultural History, Early Modern Europe, Early Modern France, Early Modern World, European History, European Wars of Religion, French Revolution and Napoleon, French Wars of Religion, History of the Book, Information Management, Material Culture, Mediterranean World, Museums and Historical Memory, Northern Illinois University, Political Culture, Public History, Rare Books and Pamphlets, Reformation History, Renaissance Art and History, Undergraduate Work in History, World History | Leave a comment

Among Friends and Rivals: Caravaggio in Rome

Posted on October 6, 2023 by briansandberg

The Art Institute of Chicago just opened a new exhibition on Among Friends and Rivals: Caravaggio in Rome. This art exhibition explores the theme of friendship in the Renaissance through the artworks of Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio and his contemporaries … Continue reading →

Posted in Art History, Early Modern Europe, Early Modern World, European History, Italian History, Museums and Historical Memory, Renaissance Art and History | Leave a comment

RSA Professional Development Workshop

Posted on October 4, 2023 by briansandberg

The Renaissance Society of America is sponsoring a professional development workshop on “Defining, Promoting, and Publishing Your Professional Agenda,” which will be held on 10 November from 1:00 to 2:30 pm. This is an online workshop that is free, but … Continue reading →

Posted in Careers in History, Digital Humanities, Early Modern Europe, Early Modern World, European History, Graduate Work in History, Italian History, Mediterranean World, Renaissance Art and History, Writing Methods | Leave a comment