The Celtic Middle Ages
- Course Code
- HIST 0115
- Course Type
- Tutorials
- Subject Credit
- Course Availability
This tutorial explores the western and northern areas of the British Isles during the Middle Ages; from the end of the Roman empire until the fifteenth century. This region encompasses the areas now known as Ireland, Scotland and Wales (with some attention also paid to Cornwall, and Brittany in north-western France). They are now collectively described as ‘Celtic’ areas, although this is a term was not employed in the middle ages. The tutorial examines questions of power, identity and religion in these regions. It also considers the impact of outsiders, especially the Vikings and, from the tenth century onwards, an often highly aggressive English state. Primary sources include the Gododdin, The Song of Dermot and the Earl, the Declaration of Arbroath, and the writings of Gildas, Patrick, Gerald of Wales, among others.
Sample topics
After Rome
Early medieval Christianities
The Scandinavian Impact
The kingdom of Scotland
Anglo-Norman Wales and Ireland
The First English Empire
Language and identities