Digital Sources
There are a number of different websites that have translated primary sources related to medieval European history. It is important that you ONLY choose sources from one of the sites listed below as I have ensured the material is academic in nature and comes from accepted translations.
See this short video for help in what to look for when choosing a source:
Internet Medieval Sourcebook http://legacy.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook.asp
This is the home page for the sourcebook and will give you an overview of what it contains. You can access both excerpts and full-text sources (you can decide what you’d like to use). Unfortunately, this site was created in the 1990s and updated until 2011. Since that time, some of the links have gone dead or the material has moved to other sites. It does categorize sources by geographical place AND by topic, so make sure you look in a variety of places in the site.
De Re Militari: Primary Sources http://deremilitari.org/primary-sources/
De Re Militari is a website developed by the Society for the Study of Medieval Military history and contains a number of different materials, including links to primary sources. These texts are all related to medieval military history in some form. The site is divided according to time period.
Epistolae: Medieval Women’s Letters https://epistolae.ctl.columbia.edu/
This site is searchable by author/recipient and letter. The database provides the title of the letter, the sender/recipient, as well as the time period. Using the “global search” function, you can search via broader topic. Each letter is translated and also includes a short overview of the context related to its creation. I would suggest using this site for any topics related to marriage, family, queenship, noblewomen, nuns/abbesses (women in religion more generally). You can also look at broader topics related to the Crusades, religious patronage, courtly love etc. as many women were connected to these topics.
Florilegium Urbanum http://users.trytel.com/tristan/towns/florilegium/flor00.html
This website is devoted to the study of medieval urban history in England. It contains primary sources related to four topics: Community, Economy, Government, and Lifecycle. The sources are grouped according to topic and include some discussion of context.
Avalon Project: Documents in Law, History, and Diplomacy “Medieval Documents”
http://avalon.law.yale.edu/subject_menus/medieval.asp
This website focused on primary sources related to the history of medieval Europe, largely connected to law and diplomacy. They cover from the late Roman period until the end of the 15th century.
Teaching Medieval Slavery and Captivity
This website provides primary sources related to the global history of slavery during the medieval period. You can search by region or time period or keyword. The website also includes a list of potential secondary sources related to each more specific topic.
eBooks and In Print Books
The books below are available via the UNBC library. Some are ebooks and others are in print books that are on reserve through the library. I’ve indicated which below.
Cultures of Piety: Medieval English Devotional literature in translation PR 1120 C85 1999
Feudal Society in medieval France: Documents from the County of Champagne DC611 C457 1993
Heresies of the High Middle Ages BT1315.2 W32 1991
Medieval Christianity in Practice BR253 M36 2009
Medieval Popular Religion BR252 M42 1997
Muslims and Crusaders: Christianity’s Wars in the Middle East from Islamic Sources D157 C474 2014
Woman Defamed and Woman Defended PR 1912.A2 W65 1992
Medieval Writings on Secular Women HQ1143 M43 2011
Medieval Disability Sourcebook ebook link
Medieval Travel and Travelers: A Reader ebook link
Medieval Warfare: A Reader ebook link
Reading the Middle Ages: Sources from Europe, Byzantium, and the Islamic World ebook link
Readings in medieval history ebook link
The Intolerant Middle Ages: A Reader ebook link
The medieval devil: A reader ebook link
The Viking Age: A Reader ebook link
The Crusades: A Reader ebook link
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