Free Republic

Arguably no period in European history is as misunderstood as the Middle Ages, which stretched from the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the fifth century CE to the rise of the Renaissance roughly 1,000 years later. The myths surrounding this fascinating period of kingdoms and peasants are so prevalent that they led medieval historian Winston Black to write, “The first thing to understand about the Middle Ages… is that they do not actually exist.” The popular perception of life in feudal Europe (exacerbated by Hollywood depictions) is that it was prudish, brutish, and excessively foul, but society was...

The Persian conquest of Palestine in 614 CE is described in historical sources as a most violent military raid that dramatically affected the political and administrative stability of Byzantine Palestine, involving large scale damage to churches and a mass killing of the local Christian population. Common view has it that the conquest marked a turning point in the history of the Near East and was one of the causes for the rapid Early Islamic conquests, twenty years later. Although the Persian domination - lasting only 14 years (614-628), was a very brief episode in the long historical sequence of Palestine,...

A new study, published in the journal Numismatic Chronicle, suggests that the village of Vindelev in Jelling, Denmark, likely had connections to a network of European elite.In 2020, one of the largest gold hoards ever found in Denmark was discovered at Vindelev by a metal detectorist.The hoard consists of 23 gold objects dating to the Migration Period during the Germanic Iron Age (a period seen by some researchers as a prelude to the actual Viking Age), which includes: 13 gold bracteates from the 5th century AD, a granulated gold fitting from a sword or knife, and four mounted Roman medallions...

Nine gold pendants with rare horse symbols, ten gold beads, and three gold rings from the 6th century were recently discovered by a metal detectorist in Southwestern Norway. Erlend Bore just wanted a hobby. So just before this summer, he bought a metal detector. To get him off his couch and go treasure hunting. He was searching around the shore of the island Rennesøy in Stavanger, in Southwestern Norway, when the metal detector started to beep. In a lump of soil, he saw something that looked like gold coins. “At first I thought I’d found chocolate money with a gold...

Researchers have discovered that an ancient gold disc found in southern Denmark includes the earliest written reference to the Norse god Odin, revealing that he was worshiped up to 150 years earlier than previously thought, according to a report. The piece of jewelry — which dates to the 400s AD — was uncovered in Vindelev in central Denmark in 2020 amidst a treasure trove that included Roman coins. For years it was publicly displayed at a museum near the site before academics had the opportunity to study it, according to NBC News. A runic inscription with a reference to Odin,...

A chance discovery is shedding new light on early Norse history, after two old school-friends, armed only with a metal detector stumbled across a gold treasure trove.More than 20 gold artefacts, weighing almost a kilo, were found buried in a field in the Danish village of Vindelev. Hidden for almost 1,500 years, the treasure includes Roman medallions and ornate pendants called 'bracteates' - some as large as a saucer.There are mysterious inscriptions and never-seen-before runes, which researchers think are some of the earliest references to Norse gods.So could Vindelev have been the seat of power for a previously unknown Iron...

The Huns were nomadic warriors who terrorized much of Europe and the Roman Empire in the 4th and 5th centuries A.D. They were impressive horsemen best known for their astounding military achievements. As they plundered their way across the European continent, the Huns acquired a reputation for being ruthless, indomitable savages.

An amateur metal detectorist in Denmark has unearthed a rare gold ring that may have belonged to a previously unknown royal family with ties to the Kingdom of France.Lars Nielsen discovered the large, ornately decorated gold ring, set with a red semiprecious stone, while exploring Emmerlev, a parish in Southern Jutland, Denmark, according to a translated statement. The ring dates to the fifth or sixth century...Researchers at the National Museum of Denmark determined that the piece of jewelry has much "historical significance" and may have belonged to local royalty connected to the Merovingians, a dynasty of Frankish kings who ruled...

What has been found at the site?·70 graves are estimated to have been dug into the bedrock.·There are two rings of perimeter ditches.·Of the 18 graves excavated, four contain crouching skeletons.·The researchers have also found fragments of glass from Bordeaux and pottery from North Africa.·They believe that they may find evidence of a church or monastic site.In particular, the archaeologists are interested in fragments of fine glass from Bordeaux and pottery that may have come from as far as North Africa.This suggests that the people buried in the cemetery were of a high status within society and that the site...

The Iraqi State Board of Antiquities and Heritage (SBAH) has announced the discovery of the boundaries and various structures of the ancient city of Jalula.Professor Ali Obeid Shalgham, Director-General of the Directorate of the Iraqi State Board of Antiquities and Heritage (SBAH), stated that the exploration process lasted several months and was overseen by researcher Ahmed Abdul Jabbar Khamas from the Antiquities and Heritage Inspection of Diyala.Determining the limits of the ancient city of Jalula, which is situated north of the Diyala province and was the site of the well-known battle between Muslims and Sasanian Persians, was the primary objective...

I’m a cook who doesn’t have central air conditioning in her home, so I’ve frequently relied on my gas grill for making as many meals as I can when the weather gets hot and steamy. As the years have gone by, however, I’ve turned to my backyard firepit as another option. There’s just something fun and a little adventurous about cooking over a live fire. It can also feel a bit intimidating if you’re used to the controlled world of induction burners and the quick turn of a knob, but it’s easy to get the hang of campfire cooking once...

Excavations were on behalf of HS2 (the purpose-built high speed railway line) near the town of Wendover in Buckinghamshire, England, revealing one of the largest Anglo-Saxon burial sites in Britain that dates from between the 5th and 6th century AD.Most of the burials have been described as containing high-status grave goods, suggesting the site was the final resting place of a wealthy Anglo-Saxon community nearby. The site contains 138 graves, with 141 inhumation burials and 5 cremation burials, in addition to evidence of Neolithic, Bronze Age, Iron Age and Roman activity.Many burials were found to contain two brooches in the...

The house at Butser Ancient Farm, based on archaeological remains from Chalton, has taken nearly four years to complete after work started in 2018.Now thanks to the hard work of volunteers and staff, under the expert leadership of Darren Hammerton, the ancient house has now thrown open its doors – with Time Team’s Dr Harding present to mark the occasion.All timber used in the construction came from within a 10-mile radius of Butser Ancient Farm, with a combination of English oak, sweet chestnut and hazel used in the construction. The roof was thatched with water reeds.The settlement at Church Down...

A new study published in the Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland has identified the likely burials of up to 65 British Kings and senior royals... Prior to the study, only one post-Roman burial of an indigenous British monarch from the Dark Ages has been identified (although nine Anglo-Saxon royal graves have been found on previous excavations).Archaeologists now suggest that 20 probable royal burial complexes each containing up to five graves (with a further 11 burial complexes under consideration) have been identified that appear to date from the fifth and sixth centuries AD.During this period, the east...

As of this writing, the year is 2020. But what if the year was ACTUALLY 1722? What if hundreds of years ago there was a conspiracy by a few European noblemen to change the modern calendar? This may sound crazy, (and, admittedly, it is a little crazy), but is it possible? Stranger things have happened. It all has to do with the Holy Roman Empire, the Pope, and (maybe) the Byzantine Empire circa AD 1000 (that’s important for later). There's this weird theory called Phantom Time Hypothesis suggests that Dark Ages (614-911 A.D.) never happened...The Phantom Time Hypothesis was first...

Archaeologists have found what they have described as a "breathtaking engineering project" in Lincolnshire. Almost 60 miles of medieval canals, possibly built by monks to ferry stone, have been identified in the Fens. Although the canals were up to 40ft wide they have filled up with silt and are now only visible from the air. Experts said the network of waterways represented an achievement not matched until the Industrial Revolution 300 years later. Viking raiders Martin Redding, of the Witham Valley Archaeology Research Committee, discovered the canals using aerial photographs. "They have been completely infilled by later deposits that have...

Roman Britons after 410The ‘end of Roman Britain’ is a myth. Roman culture survived right through the Anglo-Saxon period. Martin Henig explainsThe 'story' of Roman Britain, as told to generations of schoolchildren, is a very simple one - AD 43, the Roman legions march in; AD 410, they march out again. Barbarity beforehand, barbarity afterwards, civilisation in between. In an earlier issue of this magazine (BA, September 1998) I suggested that the Roman 'conquest' of AD 43 was not all that it seemed to be, and that Britain's southern rulers - if not those in the north - were Romanised...

Francis Pryor examines the relics of the Dark Ages to build a fuller picture of this much-maligned era. Popular belief has always held that the departure of the Romans led to barbarism in Britain, but archaeological finds have shed light on a cultured, literate society that embraced the growing Romanised Christian religion and embarked on a profitable trading relationship with the Byzantine Empire.Sheep-farming archaeologist, Francis Pryor, presents a brand new historical series which explores Britain A.D, the British national character and the ultimate British icon King Arthur.Finding new and previously unexplained evidence, Francis Pryor overturns the idea that Britain reverted...

It is a common these days to hear folks opine about how the glories of ancient science were snuffed out ignominiously by triumphalist, fanatical Christians sometime in the Dark Ages. Normally, specific instances of this destruction are not called out, save for the case of Hypatia of Alexandria who has been elevated by modern audiences to a sort of proto-feminist demi-goddess of science for her slaying at the hands of a Christian mob. Yet, for those who maintain the trope that Christianity was responsible for the destruction of centuries of amazing scientific advancements wrought by Greco-Roman civilization, please allow me...

Archaeologists in Sweden have discovered nearly two dozen gold foil figures that have engravings of couples embracing each other.The figures, which date back about 1,300 years, were found in the remains of a great hall on a platform mound, a human-made structure, at the site of Aska in Sweden. The researchers are still trying to piece together the broken figures to uncover more about them."Our best estimate is that we have 22 foil figures. The exact number is not quite clear because most are fragmented, and there is some uncertainty as to which fragments go together," Martin Rundkvist, an archaeology...