"On the Edge"/My first conference

For the past two years, post-graduate researchers in the GCMS (Graduate Centre for Medieval Studies) department at Reading have organised conferences based on a central theme connected to their doctoral work.

This year, I decided to take on the role and last Saturday (21^st March), around 30 people attended “On the Edge” in Reading.  There were 12 papers in total (1 speaker was unfortunately unable to attend) arranged under four topics and the event was live-tweeted throughout the day by myself and other attendees (because I’ve always wanted to do something like that!).

All the tweets from today can be viewed on one page here: 
https://storify.com/Nunastic/on-the-edge-conference

Beginning the day, Marco Prost (Université de Lausanne) spoke on “Female cunning on the edges of chivalry in Gerbert de Montreuil’s Continuation to the Conte du Graal” before being followed Katherine Sedovic (Trinity College Dublin) “Seeking the Sacred within the Secular: A Study of the Aspremont-Kievraing Psalter’s Marginalia” and Laura Wood (Royal Holloway, University of London) “Sisters Doing it for Themselves: Vowesses, c. 1450-1540”. 

I was really pleased at how well the three papers meshed together under the session’s topic of The Edges of Gender. You can try and organise this all you want, but inevitably at conferences someone’s abstract and title doesn’t fit what they actually talk about. Thankfully, this wasn’t the case for once! 

The second session was focused upon Boundaries of Religion and the Religious with papers from Tamsin Gardner (University of Exeter) “'Room Available – Flexible Space with all mod cons': The adaptability of the spaces of the medieval Cistercian monastic infirmary”, Bridget Riley (University of Reading) “On the edge of orthodoxy; Richard FitzRalph, Archbishop of Armagh” and William Thompson (University of California, Santa Barbara ) “Churchwardens in early Tudor England: On the Edge of Sacred and Secular”. I also spoke in this session on “Prayer at the Gate of the monastery” as it was the creation of this paper (and the thesis chapter it springs from) which formed the seed of the conference. 

Tamsin is a good friend which makes it all the worse that on her name label, conference programme and on the attendee information I wrote she was from Essex, not Exeter. A time machine would be REALLY useful when organising events like this.

Lunch followed the morning sessions which gave me time to update twitter and read what others were posting as well.

The afternoon’s sessions began with Political and Geographical Borders. Julia Watson (University of Reading) led the way with “Fulbert of Chartres - a bishop with too many borders” before being followed by Katie Phillips (University of Reading) “Taking Up Alms: Royal Charity in New Borders in Thirteenth-Century France” and Mark Whelan (Royal Holloway, University of London) “On the Edge of their Empire? The German Kings and the Reich in the fifteenth century”. 

These again meshed together well although due to a mess up with lunch (and the previous session over-running by 15 minutes), many of the audience were late back. Thwarted by student catering! Another lesson learnt…

The final session was A Medieval Miscellany and consisted of two very different papers chosen to demonstrate the variety of disciplines and ideas that can be discussed under a single theme, but also to round the day off with a bit of fun. 

Margarita Vázquez Corbal (Universidade de Santiago de Compostela) spoke on “The southwestern border between Galicia and Portugal during the 12th and 13th centuries: A space for experimentation and artistic transmission” and Jessica Monteith-Chachuat (University of Reading) rounded the day off with her paper “'The Description of a Monstrous Pig' & other weird and wonderful cases of human hybridity”.

Amongst other thoughts and questions, the last paper inspired the following tweet from Tamsin Gardner as it took us on a whistle-stop tour of monsters from classical to medieval: 

 

As academics, the chance to use the word “slutshamed” is always appealing. 

A wine reception concluded the day before the conference dinner and inevitable drinks afterwards (final note to self – buy more wine next time). 

It was both a challenge and a pleasure to organise and host such an event and I found it hugely enjoyable, as well as useful, to meet so many people from far and wide and from a variety of disciplines all working on topics related to my own. Made me genuinely excited about my own work and I’m looking forward to the next challenge which is….

….publishing the conference proceedings! For the last two events, selected papers have been peer-reviewed and edited before being published in the online journal The Reading Medievalist. It’ll take about a year to get it all done (at least) but some of the papers definitely deserve to be in print.

Of course, after the conference dinner, the pub was inevitable. Here I am with Alexander Thomas and Marco Prost in The Horn in Reading sampling some well-deserved pints. 

A jolly good day all in all and despite the endless typos and university bureaucracy it was a brilliant day to organise.

Thank you again to all my speakers and attendees for making it what it was!

Magna Carta II

I know you've all been waiting with bated breath so here's part two of my trip to the BL last week.

So, first up. Nicholas Vincent does not possess powerpoint-fu.

But to be honest, he is a fantastic speaker and spoke without notes so a plain powerpoint was really my only criticism.
 
Vincent is a leading authority, if not THE leading authority on all things Magna Carta and has been part of the Magna Carta project for the last 3 years.
http://magnacarta.cmp.uea.ac.uk/

He began his talk by highlighting that King John never actually signed the Magna Carta.

*insert dramatic pause*

This will most likely be a QI question at some point if it hasn't been already as this is a point of general ignorance. So much so a point of general ignorance that the royal mint's commemorative £2 coin has it emblazoned across the packaging.

He certainly never signed it, he sealed it, and you can buy a replica seal in the BL gift shop (which I of course did).

He then delved into the meat of his lecture which was addressing the 'established' facts concerning the Magna Carta.

It was addressed to God. Not to the people of England, God. 

"First, that we have granted to God, and by this present charter have confirmed for us and our heirs in perpetuity, that the English Church shall be free, and shall have its rights undiminished, and its liberties unimpaired" (clause 1)

This he highlighted right at the beginning. The Magna Carta protected as well as separated the church away from the secular country of England, allowing it powers that the people of England did not necessarily have. The City of London's rights were similarly protected (clause 9) and these rights are maintained today and are partly the reason it is so hard to legislate and control the City. 

Parts of the charter that are 'well known' are in fact frustratingly vague:

"No free man shall be seized or imprisoned, or stripped of his rights or possessions, or outlawed or exiled, or deprived of his standing in any way, nor will we proceed with force against him, or send others to do so, except by the lawful judgment of his equals or by the law of the land" (Clause 39)

We all know that we should be tried by our peers, but the definition of a peer is left very vague. Is this social class to social class, or wealth to wealth. The 'law of the land' is equally unclear as the king could change the law!

He highlighted a number of other clauses including one concerning fish weirs: 

"All fish-weirs shall be removed from the Thames, the Medway, and throughout the whole of England, except on the sea coast" (Clause 33)

This was actually deceptively important as this clause was key to the navigability of England's waterways. If they're silted up as a result of fish weirs (that trap fish), travel is restricted and therefore, trade. This clause was so important that is was in fact only removed from the statue books during the 1960s.

Vincent has a very engaging style and consistently brought humour into his talk. For example he highlighted the xenophobic character of the British that has been present for centuries:
 
"As soon as peace is restored, we will remove from the kingdom all the foreign knights, bowmen, their attendants, and the mercenaries that have come to it, to its harm, with horses and arms" (Clause 51)

He then addressed the 'badness' of King John. 

A king needed to maintain or increase the lands he inherited, and keep peace in the kingdom. John failed on both counts. He lost lands in France. Fought with and possibly murdered his nephew. Most importantly for those at home, he started interfering. Previous kings had been content to rule from the southeast and leave the rest of the country to get along by itself. Allowing the barons to essentially rule themselves.

John toured his kingdom, collecting taxes and generally, by the looks of it, thoroughly putting the backs up of all his barons.

This discontent led to the creation of the Magna Carta. Despite there being similar contemporary documents granting rights such as the Statute of Pamiers (1212) granted by Simon de Montfort near Toulouse, the creation of the charter was understood to have been important as its earlier drafts were kept.

Vincent even raised the point that the number of barons who signed the document was important and references a commentary on the bible (John, chp. 6) by St Augustine in the fourth century which I've done my best to find:

"As the number five has reference to the Law, the books of Moses being five, the number five and twenty, being made up of five pieces, has the same meaning. And this law was imperfect, before the Gospel came. Now the number of perfection is six, so therefore five is multiplied by six, which makes thirty: i.e. the law is fulfilled by the Gospel. To those then who fulfill the law Jesus comes treading on the waves, i.e. trampling under foot all the swellings of the world, all the loftiness of men: and yet such tribulations remain, that even they who believe on Jesus, fear lest they should be lost."

As soon as peace is restored, we will remove from the kingdom all the foreign knights, bowmen, their attendants, and the mercenaries that have come to it, to its harm, with horses and arms - See more at: http://www.bl.uk/magna-carta/articles/magna-carta-english-translation#sthash.BsCdAsDO.dpuf

As soon as peace is restored, we will remove from the kingdom all the foreign knights, bowmen, their attendants, and the mercenaries that have come to it, to its harm, with horses and arms - See more at: http://www.bl.uk/magna-carta/articles/magna-carta-english-translation#sthash.BsCdAsDO.dpuf

Basically, 25 is the number you want if you want divine approval in your law making. The handwriting of the different charters is also argued by Vincent to have been important as it is an ecclesiastical hand, not a secular clerk's.

The church was up to its neck in the creation of the Magna Carta and this is crucial to the understanding of its creation and its continuation. The Magna Carta is not some triumph of secular rights, religion was at the heart of it.

The handwriting part appears to have been part of new research that has come to light as part of the Magna Carta as it traces one of the Magna Carta copies to a cathedral, not Dover Castle as previously thought.

Vincent's talk was passionate and fascinating and made me view this musty 'piece of animal skin' in a different light. I have a new appreciation for it's impact on England, but also the world.

The talk was also a masterclass in public speaking. No notes that I could see. Riddled with facts and wit, and thoroughly engaging from start to finish. That's how history should be.

Factual, fun and freely accessible.

Notes
Vincent, N., "Magna Carta: Old and New", British Library, London, 13th March 2015

Magna Carta coing - http://www.royalmint.com/shop/800th_Anniversary_of_Magna_Carta_2015_UK_2_pound_BU_Coin

Magna Carta quotes - http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/featured_documents/magna_carta/translation.html

Statute of Pamiers - http://www.bl.uk/collection-items/mc-the-statute-of-pamiers

St Augustine quote - http://www.catecheticsonline.com/CatenaAurea-John6.php

Fish weir image -  Dally, Frederick. Indian Salmon Weir at Quamichan Village on the Cowichan River, Vancouver Island. 1866. Library and Archives Canada, Vancouver.

Magna carta cartoon - http://www.historyextra.com/feature/magna-carta-turning-point-english-history

Magna Carta I

Yesterday I attended the first day of the Magna Carta exhibition at the British Library in London before attending Professor Nicholas Vincent's lecture "Magna Carta: Old and New" in the evening.

I'll start with the exhibition today and I'll talk about the lecture next week.

The exhibition itself is beautifully laid out although, as with other national exhibitions, there's the inevitable bottle-neck at the beginning as everyone queues dutifully to examine each item. The exhibition begins with some context and predecessors to the Magna Carta.

Beginning with Anglo-Saxon law codes, we are treated to one issued under King Cnut where the regular references to murder and the punishment are highlighted.

A wonderful family tree for King John (1199-1216) then follows and it's striking how well the colours have survived. The family tree is presented in order to highlight the need to legitimise the family tree. Bearing in mind that John's family's right to rule was one they had won at the Battle of Hastings.



Throughout the exhibition, contemporary quotes relating to John are included to give us a flavour of his character and method of ruling.

Matthew Paris for example describes John in a note beneath this famous depiction of him in his Historia Anglorum. John is pictured (bottom left) holding Beaulieu abbey and looking terribly regal and divine. The text that Matthew accompanies this depiction with however is decidedly unflattering and he describes John as "John, last of kings, principal abomination of the English, disgrace to the English nobility".

Shortly after Matthew Paris's damning description in the exhibition, the chronicler Gerald of Wales is up next to describe the king when accompanying John on his conquest of Ireland, and relates how the king pulled the beards of the Irish chieftains.

This was not a king famed for his diplomacy.

After these initial character assassinations, the exhibition continues to present John's story. Beginning with how his nephew (Arthur) in France rebelled, was captured and then went 'missing' (probably murdered is the implication). His disagreement with the church then follows when his first archbishop Hubert Walter (whose vestments are on display) died and the monks of Canterbury elected Stephen Langton without his agreement. This disagreement led to a 6 year interdict where none of the sacraments of marriage, death, baptising etc. could be properly carried out in England all because the king was quarrelling with the papacy.

At a time when the church was deep at the heart of life you can imagine how well this went down.

Further examples of John's character are hinted at with an example from Ralph of Coggeshall's chronicle which omits the papal interdict, implying that Ralph wanted to avoid the king's displeasure as surely this event would have otherwise been included.

The interdict is broken however at last when John requires papal help when invasion threatens from France and the letter from the pope is presented in all it's glory along with the papal signature which in itself is worth seeing.

After all this, we get to the heart of the exhibition, the creation of the Magna Carta itself where draft copies of it are displayed and an interesting visual accompanies the drafts, demonstrating the different clauses in the charter and its successors and when they were removed.

The original Magna Carta only lasted a couple of weeks before it was repealed, but John's successor Henry III (1216-1220) reissued it upon ascending the throne to secure the support of his barons during his minority (he was only 9 years old when his father died). The original Magna Carta had been a coerced out of John who was facing serious discontent at home and the charter itself is described in the exhibition's leaflet as "a practical solution to a political crisis",

So, by this stage in the exhibition you're well and truly convinced that John was not a particularly good king and that he probably deserved the alleged death by poisoning he received at Swineshead Abbey in Lincolnshire in 1216.

What then follows is, I suppose, the legacy of King John and of Magna Carta. You have unflattering depictions of John including some 19th century footage showing his death scene in Shakespeare's King John.

It's effect in America is also demonstrated and there are some lovely copies of the declaration of Independence and the Bill or Rights.

As a resident of Runnymede, I was mildy saddened to learn that there was discussions on the 100th anniversary of the Glorious Revolution to erect a monument to Magna Carta at the place of its signing. The place was deemed to wet to build upon however (it is a flood plain) so all we have is the plan.

Just before the unveiling of the magna cartas, its relevance around the world is demonstrated through its themes that have made it into the Universal Declaration of Human Rights among other important documents.

Nelson Mandela dock speech "I am prepared to die" even references the document "The magna carta, the Petition of Rights and the Bill of Rights, are documents which are held in veneration by democrats throughout the world".

Today only 3 of the original 37 clauses are still in law following various purges from the Statutes of the Realm when they were deemed obsolete. For example in 1863, 17 were repealed as they referred to defunct medieval tolls or services.

The original  clauses agreed to on the 13th June, 1215 are in all their glory revealed on a curved wall at the end of the exhibit right before the four magna cartas themselves. It's a lovely feature and well worth taking a moment to admire as the blown up text in white upon a grey background is very impressive.

So there we go, a quick run down on the exhibition itself but if you're interested, do go along as I've only touched on most of the items displayed in the exhibition. There's much more to see.

It's open until the 1st September, tickets are available here: http://www.bl.uk/whats-on



Notes
Statue - BL exhibition website

Family tree - MS, BL Royal 14 B vi, membrane 6

Four kings - MS, BL Royal MS 14 C VII, http://tinyurl.com/of7m549

Papal signature - ruthless pinched from wikipedia via google.

King John - 'Herbert Beerbohm Tree as King John in King John by William Shakespeare', painted by Charles A Buchel (1900)

Nelson Mandela speech - http://www.bl.uk/magna-carta/articles/magna-carta-in-the-modern-age

Magna Carta: old and ne!

Magna Carta: old and new

Healing the burn

Due to being a bit of a klutz, I've managed to give myself a spectacular burn in the crook of my elbow in the past week. It's a special talent of mine, what can I say.

Everyday is a learning day so what treatment could I have expected in the eleventh century?

I could start by applying the Pentafilon plant (creeping cinquefoil/buttercup) or some Greater Celandine (another type of buttercup) which I should pound together with some goose grease before applying this to the burn.



Not keen on this treatment so far due to the fact I'll be smelling like prepped roast potatoes.

   

Next up, a suggestion that I take wild thyme, a stalk of verbena, an ounce of silver shavings (which I of course have at hand at all times) and 2 ounces of roses. I need to pound these together with some wax before adding half a pound of bear and deer grease.

I should then simmer this before applying it on the burn.


Again, not keen. My local Tesco doesn't sell bear grease.



Finally, it is suggested I pick the roots of Alkanet (type of borage, used as a red dye) during March and soak them in oil before adding was to make a poultice. Applied to the burn, this will apparently "heal it in a wonderful manner".

As it's a dye, I suspect I won't know if the burn is healing or not as the whole area will be stained red.





I think I'll stick to Germolene for now, but more or less the treatment has changed very little. Keep the wound clean, cover it with a grease that promotes healing, and Bob's your uncle.

Notes

Arsdall, A., Medieval Herbal Remedies, The old English herbarium and Anglo-Saxon medicine (London, Routledge: 2002)
pp. 120, 194, 222