This is a classic myth and misconception about history and its epochs and one I’m sure many people realise. The Renaissance, the rebirth of classical learning made new by writers and scholars such as Michaelangelo and Petrarch, did not start after the Middle Ages, it was actually a phenomenon that started probably in the late [...]

An interesting bit of medieval trivia for a Friday. During the Peasant’s Revolt of 1381 Flemings in the City of London were particularly targeted by Londoners involved in the revolt – they weren’t too keen on foreign merchants from Flanders coming over and disrupting their livelihood – some things in Britain never change unfortunately! And [...]

I just added a new page in the Magic in the Middle Ages section: Cases of Magic in Medieval England This contains a couple of cases mentioned by Henry Charles Lea in his famous History of the Inquisition of the Middle Ages. It is interesting to note that magic was fairly rare as an offence [...]