Bøker i Past Imperfect-serien

Geoffrey Koziol argues for the validity of a range of contradictory interpretations of the Medieval Peace of God movement.

This concise and effective synthesis investigates the role of the institution of the Church in the transformation of the Roman West from the fourth to seventh centuries.

Rather than divide the medieval Mediterranean into "Christian Europe" and "Muslim North Africa," this book presents the region as a single, mutually influenced, interconnected whole.

The election of fringe political parties on the far and extreme right across Europe since spring 2014 has brought the political discourse of "e;old Europe"e; and "e;tradition"e; to the foreground. Writers and politicians on the right have called for the reclamation, rediscovery, and return of the spirit of national identities rooted in the medieval past. Though the "e;medieval"e; is often deployed as a stigmatic symbol of all that is retrograde, against modernity, and barbaric, the medieval is increasingly being sought as a bedrock of tradition, heritage, and identity. Both characterizations - the medieval as violent other and the medieval as vital foundation - are mined and studied in this book. It examines contemporary political uses of the Middle Ages to ask why the medieval continues to play such a prominent role in the political and historical imagination today.

Grounds mythologized stories of Desert Ascetics with insights into lived monasticism and monastic archaeology in Egypt.

Alfred the Great is a rare historical figure from the early Middle Ages, in that he retains a popular image. This image increasingly suffers from the dead white male syndrome, exacerbated by Alfred's association with British imperialism and colonialism, so this book provides an accessible reassessment of the famous ruler of Wessex, informed by current scholarship, both on the king as a man in history, and the king as a subsequent legendary construct.Daniel Anlezark presents Alfred in his historical context, seen through Asser's Life, the Anglo Saxon Chronicle, and other texts associated with the king. The book engages with current discussions about the authenticity of attributions to Alfred of works such as the Old English Boethius and Soliloquies, and explores how this ninth-century king of Wessex came to be considered the Great king of legend.

An insightful account of the medieval Persian Gulf, demonstrating the deep roots of cultural and religious diversity in the region.

Describes the Almoravid transformation of western North Africa through trans-Saharan and trans-Mediterranean commerce, urbanization, and the epic encounter with the Christian, Muslim, and Jewish cultures of Iberia.