An encyclopedia covering the political, social, intellectual, religious and cultural history of the German- and Dutch-speaking medieval world, between 500 and 1500. Entries cover individuals and their deeds as well as broader historical topics.

Medieval archaeology is a relatively young discipline. It relies heavily on and contributes to the neighbouring disciplines of history and geography as well as certain of the natural sciences. The kinds of sources investigated in the context of medieval archaeology also cast light on many aspects of life in later centuries. The main sources used are: graveyards, churches and churchyards; castles and fortifications; rural and urban settlements; technical production sites and routes of communication. Closely allied to these are the numerous finds of small objects of everyday life, from cutlery and tools to animal remains and grain. This book is a comprehensive discussion of what can be established from the use of such materials about the culture and daily life of medieval Germany. Each subject is augmented with the use of many illustrations. Besides methodological questions, the author considers what can be learnt about the history of settlement and architecture, of technology, of economic and social matters, of churches and missions, and of population, diet and vegetation.

A primer on medieval justice, this book focuses on France, Germany and England and covers the thousand years between the transformation of the Roman world in Western Europe, which took place around the 4th and 5th centuries, and the European Renaissance of the 14th and 15th centuries. It highlights key elements in the intricate, overlapping legal systems of the Middle Ages and describes a wide range of contemporary laws and cases. A discussion of the modern legacies of medieval law is included, as are a brief overview of the Inquisition, the 27 articles of Joan of Arc and useful commentary on many other topics. Illustrations range from the earliest known depictions of English courts and illuminations of torture to pictures of important sites, events, and instruments of punishment in medieval law.

Innovations, transmissions and transformations had profound spatial, economic and social impacts on the environments, landscapes and habitats evident at micro- and macro-levels. This volume explores how these changes affected how land was worked, how it was organized, and the nature of buildings and rural complexes.

Feudal military practices, which are as varied as those of modern times, are surveyed here for the first time. The author treats in detail the bases on which feudal service was exacted, the mustering and composition of armies and their subsequent operations in the field, and the qualifications of their commanders. He discusses military feudalism as it originated and developed in the Frankish kingdom of the Carolingians and as it operated during the early Capetian period in the Ile de France and the feudal principalities of northern France. He then follows feudal developments, in roughly chronological order, in those states where feudalism was consciously imported—lower Italy and Sicily, England, and Crusader Syria. He finally treats lands in which the military structure revealed some feudal characteristics but where institutions were never more than superficially feudalized—Southern France, Christian Spain, central and northern Italy, and Germany—describing how such factors as native military institutions, the pattern of landholding, economic structure, and manpower problems worked to modify feudal military institutions and practices. This book will illuminate for specialist and lay reader alike a strangely neglected aspect of feudal life.

Fiefs and Vassals has changed our view of the medieval world. It offers a fundamental challenge to orthodox conceptions of feudalism. Susan Reynolds argues that the concepts of the fief and of vassalage, as understood by historians of medieval Europe, were constructed by post-medieval scholarsfrom the works of medieval academic lawyers and tha they provide a bad guide to the realities of medieval society.This is a radical new examination of relations between rulers, nobles, and free men, the distillation of wide-ranging research by a leading medieval historian. It has revolutionized the way we think of the Middle Ages.

Medieval Germany, 500-1300 is an interpretation of the foundation of Germany based upon the three most outstanding characteristics of the medieval polity: its division into several distinct peoples with their own customs, dialects, and economic interests from whom the later 'Germans' would be drawn; the imperial ambitions to which the successive German dynasties aspired; and the structure of German kingship, which was a military, religious, and juridical exercise of authority rather than a meticulous administration based upon scribal institutions.

This book describes and explains the conditions and changes happening in Germany from 1050-1200.

Germany is a Western European country with a rich and varied history, diverse culture, and vibrant economy. It is home to over 83 million people, making it the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany’s capital city is Berlin, and its other major cities include Hamburg, Munich, Cologne, and Frankfurt. Germany has a highly industrialized economy, with a strong focus on the manufacturing and export sectors. It is a leading producer of cars, machinery, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals, among other products. Germany has a long and complex history, with many notable achievements and darker periods. It is known for its significant contributions to the fields of philosophy, literature, music, and science, including the work of notable figures such as Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Ludwig van Beethoven, and Albert Einstein. However, Germany is also remembered for its role in World War II and the atrocities committed during the Holocaust. Today, Germany is a stable democracy and a leading member state of the European Union, with a commitment to fostering international cooperation and upholding human rights.