Category Archives: Medieval History

Considering the Multilingual Mediterranean

Posted on March 1, 2025 by briansandberg

I am enjoying participating in a Mediterranean Seminar Workshop on The Multilingual Mediterranean this weekend at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. “The Mediterranean is not only the crossroads among continents, cultures, peoples, and religions; it is also, as Suzanne … Continue reading →

Posted in Cultural History, Early Modern Europe, Early Modern World, Empires and Imperialism, Languedoc and Southern France, Medieval History, Mediterranean World, Religious History, World History | Leave a comment

Apocalypse Hier et Demain at the BnF in Paris

Posted on February 25, 2025 by briansandberg

The Bibliothèque nationale de France (Paris) has organized an exhibition on Apocalypse Hier et Demain (Apocalypse, Yesterday and Tomorrow), which is on display from February through June 2025. The exhibition explores the Book of Revelation and apocalyptic visions, before turning … Continue reading →

Posted in Art History, Atrocities, Civilians and Refugees in War, Cultural History, Early Modern Europe, Early Modern France, Early Modern World, European History, European Wars of Religion, French History, French Wars of Religion, History of the Western World, History of Violence, Italian History, Material Culture, Medieval History, Mediterranean World, Museums and Historical Memory, Reformation History, Religious History, Religious Violence, Renaissance Art and History, War, Culture, and Society, Warfare in the Early Modern World, Women and Gender History, World History | Leave a comment

Royalty, Territorial Claims, and International Politics

Posted on January 6, 2025 by briansandberg

Early modern issues of royal heraldry and territorial claims have reemerged in contemporary international politics. The King of Denmark is changing his coat of arms, provoking surprise among European political analysts and historians. The Guardian reports that “The Danish king … Continue reading →

Posted in Cultural History, Early Modern Europe, Early Modern World, Empires and Imperialism, European History, European Studies, European Union, European Wars of Religion, History of Violence, Medieval History, Monarchies and Royal States, Museums and Historical Memory, Political Culture, Political Theory, Reformation History, Renaissance Art and History, State Development Theory, Strategy and International Politics, Warfare in the Early Modern World | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Coins from the Norman Conquest of England

Posted on October 27, 2024 by briansandberg

Metal detector enthusiasts recently discovered a hoard of coins from the era of the Norman Conquest of England in 1066-1068. The New York Times reports that “the group huddled together in the farmer’s field, staring at the dozen or so … Continue reading →

Posted in European History, European Studies, French History, Material Culture, Medieval History, World History | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Silk Road and Eurasian Cities

Posted on October 23, 2024 by briansandberg

A “casual tip” led archaeologist Michael Frachetti to the discovery of “Tugunbulak, an enormous fortified city dating back to a medieval empire. He and his team would spend nearly a decade trying to map out the site, as well as … Continue reading →

Posted in Cultural History, Early Modern World, Globalization, History of the Western World, Material Culture, Medieval History, Urban History, World History | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Netherlands Returns Looted Artifacts to Indonesia

Posted on September 22, 2024 by briansandberg

The Netherlands has returned numerous looted artifacts and art objects to Indonesia in a major repatriation. This move aims to make partial restitution for historical legacies of Dutch colonialism, imperialism, and slavery in Southeast Asia. The New York Times reports … Continue reading →

Posted in Ancient History, Art History, Cultural History, Empires and Imperialism, European History, History in the Media, History of Slavery, History of Violence, Material Culture, Medieval 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

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

Pre-modern Whales and Whaling

Posted on September 16, 2023 by briansandberg

Pre-modern whaling may have contributed significantly to the decline and extinction of some species of whales, according to new research on whale bones. “Industrial-scale whaling in the 19th and 20th centuries nearly drove many whale species into extinction. Populations of … Continue reading →

Posted in Cartographic History, Cultural History, Early Modern Europe, Early Modern World, Environmental History, Food and Cuisine History, Globalization, Maritime History, Material Culture, Medieval History, Renaissance Art and History, Social History | Leave a comment

Medieval Naval Cannon Found

Posted on September 15, 2023 by briansandberg

Maritime archaeologists have found a cannon that may be the oldest naval cannon ever located in Europe. According to the University of Gothenburg, “an international research team led by maritime archaeologist Staffan von Arbin of the University of Gothenburg has … Continue reading →

Posted in Battlefield Archaeology, Early Modern Europe, Early Modern World, European History, History of Violence, Maritime History, Medieval History, War, Culture, and Society | Leave a comment