Strange Geographies: Spatial Imaginaries of Medieval Britain
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Southampton
Abstract
Throughout most of modern scholarly history, medieval geography has had a bad reputation. In 1764, antiquarian Richard Gough commented that only after the arrival of print did the English begin to know ‘the face of our own country’. Comments like these have deflected attention away from medieval geographical writings about Britain and towards the explosion of British national and regional mapping in the Renaissance.
But people in medieval Britain did engage in geography. But they did so in ways that seem strange to later scholars. Indeed, medieval minds had no problem holding the mundane and the marvellous together in ways that modern readers can find uncanny. Medieval geographical compilations, often accompanying English or British histories and chronicles, featured descriptions, verses, diagrams, and lists of towns, roads, rivers, holy or historical sites. They also included multiple versions of the ‘Marvels of Britain’ – sites whose properties challenge medieval understanding in a variety of ways – stretching from Loch Lomond to Stonehenge. Between around 1200 and 1500 multiple, highly varied geographical compilations were copied across England (and, occasionally, in Wales), and circulated in ever-changing configurations and contexts, sometimes supplemented with locally-or regionally-specific additions. These kinds of overlooked ‘strange geographies’ are a vital resource for geographical thought and practice in medieval Britain.
The project will draw on this largely untapped source base to explore how medieval people thought about Britain and its constituent parts. How did they interpret and experience the island’s man-made and natural landscapes and hydrography, alongside its religious, political and historical geography? These sources provide a way into the mental worlds and spatial identities of the people who produced and read them, allowing a complete reappraisal of existing scholarly assumptions about the history of spatial representation in medieval Britain. The project will also produce an open-access edition, translation, and interpretation of a key project text, ‘the Marvels of Britain’, accessed via an interactive, map-based website.
Beyond its academic outputs, the project will develop the potential of the mundane and the marvellous in these strange geographies to stimulate new kinds of engagement with our historic environment among a wide range of audiences, with tangible benefits for the creative and heritage sectors. Through collaborations with creative organisations and practitioners, the project will explore connections between medieval and modern modes of spatial and creative practice, facilitating site-focussed poetic and musical compositions that will engage and excite new audiences.
The project has been developed in consultation with the custodians of a range of ‘medieval marvels’, including national heritage organisations, regional landscape custodians, and local volunteer groups who manage and facilitate access. Continued collaboration will ensure it meets the need for interpretation resources to improve engagement with the medieval histories of sites primarily for their prehistoric or biocultural significance. Working collaboratively with site custodians, volunteers, and staff responsible for interpretation, we will develop the potential of the project research and creative outputs to deepen visitor understanding and broaden and enrich engagement and experience.
But people in medieval Britain did engage in geography. But they did so in ways that seem strange to later scholars. Indeed, medieval minds had no problem holding the mundane and the marvellous together in ways that modern readers can find uncanny. Medieval geographical compilations, often accompanying English or British histories and chronicles, featured descriptions, verses, diagrams, and lists of towns, roads, rivers, holy or historical sites. They also included multiple versions of the ‘Marvels of Britain’ – sites whose properties challenge medieval understanding in a variety of ways – stretching from Loch Lomond to Stonehenge. Between around 1200 and 1500 multiple, highly varied geographical compilations were copied across England (and, occasionally, in Wales), and circulated in ever-changing configurations and contexts, sometimes supplemented with locally-or regionally-specific additions. These kinds of overlooked ‘strange geographies’ are a vital resource for geographical thought and practice in medieval Britain.
The project will draw on this largely untapped source base to explore how medieval people thought about Britain and its constituent parts. How did they interpret and experience the island’s man-made and natural landscapes and hydrography, alongside its religious, political and historical geography? These sources provide a way into the mental worlds and spatial identities of the people who produced and read them, allowing a complete reappraisal of existing scholarly assumptions about the history of spatial representation in medieval Britain. The project will also produce an open-access edition, translation, and interpretation of a key project text, ‘the Marvels of Britain’, accessed via an interactive, map-based website.
Beyond its academic outputs, the project will develop the potential of the mundane and the marvellous in these strange geographies to stimulate new kinds of engagement with our historic environment among a wide range of audiences, with tangible benefits for the creative and heritage sectors. Through collaborations with creative organisations and practitioners, the project will explore connections between medieval and modern modes of spatial and creative practice, facilitating site-focussed poetic and musical compositions that will engage and excite new audiences.
The project has been developed in consultation with the custodians of a range of ‘medieval marvels’, including national heritage organisations, regional landscape custodians, and local volunteer groups who manage and facilitate access. Continued collaboration will ensure it meets the need for interpretation resources to improve engagement with the medieval histories of sites primarily for their prehistoric or biocultural significance. Working collaboratively with site custodians, volunteers, and staff responsible for interpretation, we will develop the potential of the project research and creative outputs to deepen visitor understanding and broaden and enrich engagement and experience.