: Wolves threaten a flock of sheep while their shepherd sleeps, Aberdeen Bestiary c. 1200. Aberdeen University Library MS 24 f. 16v.
This course explores the environmental history of medieval Europe (c. 500-1500). It will investigate the relationship between people and their natural environment during the Middle Ages, looking in particular at epidemic and endemic diseases, climate change, animals, and changes to the natural landscape. Students will consider a wide range of primary sources, including narrative histories, economic documents, religious texts, archaeological findings and scientific studies. Together, these will allow us to uncover how medieval people thought about and engaged with the world around them, and how the natural environment shaped the social, religious, and economic landscape of medieval Europe.
