This book offers an insightful exploration of the lives of women in medieval Western Europe, delving into the stories of remarkable figures like Marie de France, Julian of Norwich, Christine de Pizan, and Margery Kempe.
Scientists have reconstructed European socio-economic cycles between 1250 and 1699 in unprecedented detail, by using the power of tree rings to reveal the exact age of more than 54,000 pieces of timber from historical buildings
A private space for us to converse and connect Today I’m announcing a brand new addition to my Substack publication: the Varangian’s Newsletter subscriber chat.
The Reign of Saint Princess Olga, “Equal to the Apostles” (East of Sweden, Pt. 2) Igor, Grand Prince of Kiev and ruler of the Rus, was a ruler of indomitable energy. His forces twice sailed on Constantinople and put it under siege, concluding a favorable treaty with his southern neighbor. Igor’s reign saw the horizons of the Rus expand dramatically. Expeditions were launched into the Caspian Sea & control of the local Slavic tribes w…
Sviatoslav's blood-drenched dream of empire Sviatoslav the Brave was cast in the mold of the old warlords; pagan, ruthless, austere, and ambitious. Sitting as he did at the headwaters of Eurasian trade, Sviatoslav dreamed of following the riverine highways south to the heady Orient, his armies sweeping all before him and forging a global superpower in his image, under the watchful eyes of Perun a…
The Byzantines End Rus Dreams of Supremacy Years of war had collapsed the Bulgarian state and Sviatoslav seemed poised to absorb the region. Sviatoslav’s domains briefly stretched from the Adriatic to the Caspian, a juggernaut was forming across Eastern Europe. Emperor John Tzimiskes, responding to Rus attacks & threats, led the Byzantine military in a lightning campaign to neutralize this emerg…
As the sultry days of August reached their culmination the capital eased into a drunken stupor. As the sultry days of August reached their culmination the capital eased into a drunken stupor. The feasts and festivals of the preceding months began to exhaust the population of their customary revelry. Parades of strange beasts with their beady eyes, eunuchs with pinched faces, priests swaying to baritone chants, the gold and silk of the imperial cit…
The many roles of the Varangian Guard The Varangian Guard was separated into several different organizations to maximize the impact of their unique attributes. Fiercely loyal, skilled sailors, and expert shock troops, the Varangian Guard filled many roles in the Byzantine Military.
The sophisticated command structure of the Byzantine Military The Varangian Guard, as the elite of the Byzantine military, had a complex and specialized rank structure. Let’s examine the Varangians’ chain of command, starting with its commander.
How Geography Has Shaped Levantine Politics On a scorching July day in Palestine Ludolf of Tournai clambered over the battlements and scattered his Fatimid foes. Ludolf fought wildly, desperately, he had endured years of suffering on behalf of his God to reach the Holy City. He had survived the arrows of Turkish horsemen as he thirsted on the Anatolian Plateau. He had braved the treacherous footp…
The Battle of Didgori and the Rise of Georgia Under the white-capped peaks of the Greater Caucasus live the Kartvelians. Jason’s Argonauts found them on the balmy shores and hills, retreating from the Black Sea as an already ancient people. Modern scholars estimate their occupation dating well into the Neolithic when the Kartvelians first made wine in
How Viking Trade Revitalized Europe In 655 AD the first Muslim fleet met the Byzantine navy off the coast of Anatolia. The rough seas forced both sides to lash their ships to one another and the two great rafts collided in a fierce battle. Soldiers and sailors jumped from ship to ship in ruthless melee combat. As the day wore on the Muslim fleet gained the upper hand. When enemies closed …
