A rare, original royal charter from the first year of King John’s reign has been discovered in Durham by a medieval historian from the University of Bristol. The document, which was not previously known to have survived, carries the seal of King John and is dated 26 March 1200, issued in York, exactly 819 years…
In today’s lesson we are joined by author Wayne Bartlett to discuss Richard the Lionheart! Wayne’s new book Richard the Lionheart: The Crusader King of England is available through Amberley Publishing. It’s an excellent biography and the first biography of Richard the Lionheart in over 40 years! Wayne and I discuss Richard’s upbringing, the Crusades…
Canterbury Castle © Tim Stubbings The ruined Norman castle, which was begun by William the Conqueror in 1070, is one of the most ancient in Britain. The castle became a ruin in the 17th century after it was constructed as one of the three royal castles in Kent in the reign of Henry I (1100-1135)….
The Middle Ages Unlocked: A Guide to Medieval England, 1050-1300, a comprehensive guide to life in Medieval England, is now available in North America! Written by historian Dr. Gillian Polack and archaeologist Dr. Katrin Kania The Middle Ages Unlocked explores all aspects of medieval life law, religion and education as well as the tools and…
King John of England, best known as the wicked King who ruled England in the Robin Hood legends. Was he really as bad as he’s portrayed in the legends? Well, he may have been worse! As the fifth son of King Henry II, John was a long shot to become the King. But the earlier…
This year marks the 800th anniversary of the Magna Carta. The medieval King responsible for the document is King John of England. He didn’t create it, but it was his turbulent reign that caused the Barons to create the document. King John put his seal on it in June 1215 and then refused to abide…
There are a few milestones this year relating to the Middle Ages, but none hold the weight of the Magna Carta. It was 800 years ago this June the Barons in England forced King John to sign* the Magna Carta. England and the World is gearing up for a summer dedicated to the Magna Carta….
A historian has questioned the accuracy of a new £2 coin showing the signing of the Magna Carta, saying King John would have not have used a quill. Dr Marc Morris, an expert in the Middle Ages, said experts at the Royal Mint made a “schoolboy error”. The Magna Carta would have been ‘endorsed’ by…
Award-winning journalist, best selling author and Historian Dan Jones joins the Medieval Archives Podcast to talk all things Plantagenets! His first book on the subject The Plantagents: The Kings Who made England covers the first two centuries of Plantagenet Kings from Henry II to Richard II. In his latest book Wars of the Roses(Hollow Crown,…
Ironclad II: Battle for Blood is the sequel to 2011’s Ironclad. Starring Tom Austen(The Borgias), Michelle Fairley(Game of Thrones), Roxanne McKee(The Legend of Hercules), Danny Webb(Henry V) and Andy Beckwith(Game of Thrones). According to IMDb.com Ironclad: Battle for Blood hit UK theaters in March, there isn’t a US release date. For the US Ironclad: Battle…
The purpose of this Feature of the Month is to bring attention to a little-known text of the confirmation of Magna Carta made by Henry III, in March 1265. The text survives in the form of an inspeximus of the 1225 issue of Magna Carta and Charter of the Forest and includes a witness list…
Listen to the episode now People in the Middle Ages had their share of diseases. But unlike today they didn’t have vaccinations or antibiotics to help them out. Today we are going to look at medieval diseases and the cures that did or in most cases did not work. We’ll see if getting sick in…
French King Louis VIII who as a young Prince invaded England with the support of the English barons with the hope of taking the throne from King John. He would rise to King in France and take part in the Albigensian Crusade to gain back his lands in Southern France. In this episode we’ll look…
Plans for a new multimillion-pound visitor attraction celebrating the legend of Robin Hood have been announced in the UK. Nottinghamshire County Council is seeking to build a STG13 million ($A20 million) visitor attraction called Discover Robin Hood in Sherwood Forest, complete with medieval castle and fortified ramparts. If the plans are approved, the 17-hectare attraction…
Today we have a guest post by Andy Gaunt. Andy is a professional archaeologist in Nottinghamshire and an expert on Medieval Sherwood Forest, its landscape, people and administration. His information is below the post. Thanks Andy for the great article! ~The Archivist Archaeology and History of medieval Sherwood Forest http://sherwoodforesthistory.blogspot.com Sherwood Forest is the most…