IMC 2026: Sessions
Session 1213: Archives and Sources, I: Finding Marriage, Divorce, and Treasure in the Archives
Wednesday 8 July 2026, 14:15-15:45
| Sponsor: | The National Archives, Kew |
|---|---|
| Organiser: | Kathryn Maude, The National Archives, Kew |
| Moderator/Chair: | Daniel Gosling, The National Archives, Kew |
| Paper 1213-a | Treasure-Hunting in the Administrative Archives of Medieval England (Language: English) Index terms: Archives and Sources, Daily Life, Manuscripts and Palaeography, Social History |
| Paper 1213-b | Divorcing the Duchess: Anne of York and Henry Holland, 1471 (Language: English) Index terms: Archives and Sources, Daily Life, Manuscripts and Palaeography, Social History |
| Paper 1213-c | Primary Sources and Historical Misconceptions: The Extinction of Ucanha's Municipality (Portugal) and Archival Loss (Language: English) Index terms: Administration, Archives and Sources, Local History, Monasticism |
| Abstract | How have single document discoveries and chance encounters changed the way historians think about their research subjects, whether biographical or thematic? To what extent do the activities of antiquarians and archivists – through calendars, publications, and editions – conceal and / or enable the process of, and potential for, discovery? Can a fresh look at established evidence provide us to draw out new perspectives on material hidden in plain sight? This panel brings together three papers exploring different aspects of stories where evidence has had to be drawn out from close readings of the archive and archival contexts, from unsorted and dispersed collections to close readings of confrontational documents. Benjamin Gibson finds treasure trove and magic in the records of the state, Hannes Kleineke finds the juicy story of a fifteenth-century divorce in church court proceedings, and Helena Reis presents on the destruction of local archives in Ucanha in Portugal. |