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IMC 2013: Sessions

Session 1021: Rewriting History in the Central Middle Ages, I: Appropriating the Past for the Present and the Future

Wednesday 3 July 2013, 09.00-10.30

Sponsor:Battle Conference on Anglo-Norman Studies / Haskins Society for Anglo-Saxon, Anglo-Norman, Angevin & Viking History
Organisers:Chris Lewis, Institute of Historical Research, University of London / Department of History, King's College London
Emily A. Winkler, Jesus College, University of Oxford
Moderator/Chair:Chris Lewis, Institute of Historical Research, University of London / Department of History, King's College London
Paper 1021-aFrom Transient Memory to the Permanence of History: William of Malmesbury and the Augustinian Tradition of Memory
(Language: English)
Sigbjørn Olsen Sønnesyn, / Centre for Medieval Studies, Universitetet i Bergen
Index terms: Historiography - Medieval, Language and Literature - Latin, Philosophy, Rhetoric
Paper 1021-bRecapitulation: The Evolution of the History of the First Crusade
(Language: English)
Steven Biddlecombe, Department of History, University of Exeter
Index terms: Crusades, Historiography - Medieval
Paper 1021-cHistory Instructing the Prince - To Do What?
(Language: English)
Jaakko Tahkokallio, Department of History, University of Helsinki
Index terms: Historiography - Medieval, Learning (The Classical Inheritance), Philosophy, Political Thought
Abstract

Four sessions seek to elicit patterns both in current scholarship and in the writing of history in medieval Europe. Papers explore how medieval writers of history across a range of genres shaped their understanding of the past, including recent events, and the history of more distant times. The sessions are especially concerned with how existing historical writings were refashioned to suit current purposes. Last year’s sessions focused on England and Normandy; this year we widen the geographical scope to include historical writing in multiple languages across the expanse of Europe. The sessions are explicitly comparative: a supplementary goal is to examine differences in modern historiographical approaches. The final session ends with a response to all papers and discussions in the earlier sessions.