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Courses

Why Medieval History?

History 208: Society and Culture of Medieval Europe

This course examines life in medieval Europe c. 750-1250 in all its manifestations: political, religious, social, cultural, and economic. Topics to be studied include the political structures of France, Germany, and Italy, monks and monastic culture, religion and spirituality, feudalism, chivalry, courtly love and literature, the crusading movement, intellectual life and theological debates, economic structures and their transformations, and the varied roles of women in medieval life. Students will learn to analyze and interpret primary sources from the period, as well as to evaluate critically historiographical debates related to medieval history.

[Fall 2005 Syllabus]

 

History 213: Conquest and Crusade in the Medieval Mediterranean

This course examines life in the Mediterranean from the disintegration of the Roman empire in the fourth and fifth centuries through the Latin Crusades of the Holy Land in the eleventh and twelfth centuries.  Readings will focus on the various wars and conflicts in the region as well as the political, religious, and social structures of the great Christian and Muslim kingdoms.  Attention will also be paid to the cultural and religious diversity of the medieval Mediterranean and the intellectual, literary, and artistic achievements of Christian, Muslim, and Jewish communities.

[Spring 2004 Syllabus]

 

History 214: Medieval Italy

This course provides an overview of Italian history from the disintegration of the Roman empire in the fifth century through the rise of urban communes in the thirteenth century.  Topics of discussion include the birth and development of the Catholic Church and the volatile relationship between popes and emperors, the history of monasticism and various other forms of popular piety as well as the role of heresy and dissent, the diverging histories of the north and the south and the emergence of a multi-cultural society in southern Italy, and the development and transformation of cities and commerce that made Italy one of the most economically advanced states in Europe in the later medieval period.

[Fall 2005 Syllabus]

 

History 222: The Barbarian Kingdoms of Early Medieval Europe

This course examines the Barbarian successor states established in the fifth and sixth centuries after the disintegration of the Roman empire in the west. It will focus primarily on the Frankish kingdom of Gaul, but will also make forays into Ostrogothic Italy, Visigothic Spain, and Vandal North Africa. In particular, the course will look in-depth at the Carolingian empire established c. 800 by Charlemagne, who is often seen as the founder of Europe, and whose empire is often regarded as the precursor of today’s European Union. Political, cultural, religious, and economic developments will be given equal time.

[Spring 2006 Syllabus]

 

History 279: Heresy and Popular Religion in the Middle Ages

This course looks at popular religious beliefs and practices in medieval Europe, including miracles, martyrdom and asceticism, saints and their shrines, pilgrimages, relics, curses, witchcraft, and images of heaven and hell. It seeks to understand popular religion both on its own terms, as well as in relationship to the Church hierarchy. It also examines the basis for religious dissent in the form of both intellectual and social heresies, which led to religious repression and the establishment of the Inquisition in the later Middle Ages.

[Spring 2005 Syllabus]

 

History 305: Heirs of the Roman Empire: Byzantium, Latin Christendom, and Islam in the Middle Ages

This course provides a comparative framework for studying the three great medieval societies that arose out of the Roman empire, focusing on both the unity and diversity of the early medieval Mediterranean. The course will begin by examining the transformations of the late antique period (c. 300-600) that led to the division and eventual demise of the Roman empire. Next it will trace the developments of the three major successor states that arose in the early medieval period (c. 600-1000): the Byzantine empire, the Abbasid caliphate, and the Frankish kingdom. Readings will examine literary as well as archaeological sources and confront some of the most controversial debates over the economic, political, and religious structures of late antique society.

[Fall 2000 Syllabus]

 

History 330: Seminar. Medieval Europe: Revolution and Rebellion in Twelfth-Century Society

This course will examine the revolutionary changes that occurred in all facets of life in twelfth-century Europe. The twelfth century represents one of the most important eras of European history, characterized by many historians as the period that gave birth to Europe as both idea and place. It was a time of economic growth, religious reformation, political and legal reorganization, cultural flowering, intellectual innovation, and outward expansion. Yet the twelfth century had a dark side, too. Crusades and colonization, heresy and religious disputes, town uprisings and mob violence also marked the century. Students will study the internal changes to European society as well as the expansion of Europe into the Mediterranean and beyond, paying close attention to the key people behind the transformations.

[Spring 2006 Syllabus]