PHD Medieval and Early Modern Studies/Rejecting and Reusing in Reformation Canterbury
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Kent
Department Name: Sch of History
Abstract
This proposal builds on the existing long-standing strong relationship between the Centre for Medieval and Early Modern Studies (MEMS) at the University of Kent and the Archives and Library (A&L) of Canterbury Cathedral, which sits within a Memorandum of Understanding between the University and the Cathedral. The aim is to achieve a step-change in the existing relations by adding a research element with the intention of beginning a new and sustainable tradition of shared project-working.
MEMS is well-known to CHASE, having a track record of being the home to CHASE-funded PhD students who go on to careers in the heritage sector or allied areas of the economy. It has a wide range of expertise in pre-modern studies - from late antiquity to the seventeenth century, across Europe and beyond, and across a range of disciplines - and couples that with a commitment to protecting and promoting heritage. It is known for its support in skills training for its students, its vigorous efforts to assist their employability and keenness to involve them in public engagement. Several MEMS PhD students have had placements at A&L, and this is one part of its close working with the Cathedral.
Canterbury Cathedral holds a special position in Britain's national identity. Apart from being the mother-church of the Anglican Communion, it is an inheritor of a cultural tradition of international significance. As will be discussed below, it no longer has the riches in its library that its medieval priory had - it was the largest single collection in medieval England and, coupled with the nearby monastery of St Augustine's, made Canterbury England's capital of books - but it is custodian of an important collection of materials from both the medieval and early modern period, with the medieval archive of the cathedral priory included on the UNESCO UK Memory of the World Register. This makes it an important venue for MEMS teaching, with its students being fortunate enough to have regular sessions handling its materials. In turn, the Archives benefits from the expertise at MEMS in improving the documentation, interpretation and understanding of its collections.
MEMS and A&L have collaborated on events in the recent past, including a one-day conference in 2019 focussed on the A&L's most recent acquisition, a thirteenth-century Bible which had once been within the priory's walls, and returned to Canterbury by purchase at auction. Moreover, MEMS has been engaged with elements of the Cathedral's HLF-funded 'The Canterbury Journey' project, most notably by involvement in the organization of the conference to commemorate the 850th anniversary of the martyrdom of Thomas Becket (postponed by the pandemic to 2021, and held online with Dr Emily Guerry being an organizer, ably supported by CHASE-funded PhD students).
CHASE CDA Project application form for supervisors 22-23 3
There has not, however, been a CDA linking the two bodies, and we apply to you for support because we see this as unleashing the potential for a new phase in our relationship. Our aim is to employ this as the starting-point of a long-term and intense research collaboration which will be taken forward on several fronts. The proposed project focusses on a specific pathway which speaks to the strategic priorities of both bodies.
The Cathedral takes very seriously external engagement and the opening up and sharing of its historic collections to a wide range of audiences. It aims to build on the foundations laid by The Canterbury Journey project in bringing historic collections into the experience for all visitors, from a full range of backgrounds and age groups, and also for the online 'visitor'. This project reflects that by considering the historic role of the competing impulses of iconoclasm and recycling, and highlighting their present significance. For the particular emphasis on manuscript fragments, the lead supervisor is a natural choice: Dr Rundle is known as one of the country's experts in
MEMS is well-known to CHASE, having a track record of being the home to CHASE-funded PhD students who go on to careers in the heritage sector or allied areas of the economy. It has a wide range of expertise in pre-modern studies - from late antiquity to the seventeenth century, across Europe and beyond, and across a range of disciplines - and couples that with a commitment to protecting and promoting heritage. It is known for its support in skills training for its students, its vigorous efforts to assist their employability and keenness to involve them in public engagement. Several MEMS PhD students have had placements at A&L, and this is one part of its close working with the Cathedral.
Canterbury Cathedral holds a special position in Britain's national identity. Apart from being the mother-church of the Anglican Communion, it is an inheritor of a cultural tradition of international significance. As will be discussed below, it no longer has the riches in its library that its medieval priory had - it was the largest single collection in medieval England and, coupled with the nearby monastery of St Augustine's, made Canterbury England's capital of books - but it is custodian of an important collection of materials from both the medieval and early modern period, with the medieval archive of the cathedral priory included on the UNESCO UK Memory of the World Register. This makes it an important venue for MEMS teaching, with its students being fortunate enough to have regular sessions handling its materials. In turn, the Archives benefits from the expertise at MEMS in improving the documentation, interpretation and understanding of its collections.
MEMS and A&L have collaborated on events in the recent past, including a one-day conference in 2019 focussed on the A&L's most recent acquisition, a thirteenth-century Bible which had once been within the priory's walls, and returned to Canterbury by purchase at auction. Moreover, MEMS has been engaged with elements of the Cathedral's HLF-funded 'The Canterbury Journey' project, most notably by involvement in the organization of the conference to commemorate the 850th anniversary of the martyrdom of Thomas Becket (postponed by the pandemic to 2021, and held online with Dr Emily Guerry being an organizer, ably supported by CHASE-funded PhD students).
CHASE CDA Project application form for supervisors 22-23 3
There has not, however, been a CDA linking the two bodies, and we apply to you for support because we see this as unleashing the potential for a new phase in our relationship. Our aim is to employ this as the starting-point of a long-term and intense research collaboration which will be taken forward on several fronts. The proposed project focusses on a specific pathway which speaks to the strategic priorities of both bodies.
The Cathedral takes very seriously external engagement and the opening up and sharing of its historic collections to a wide range of audiences. It aims to build on the foundations laid by The Canterbury Journey project in bringing historic collections into the experience for all visitors, from a full range of backgrounds and age groups, and also for the online 'visitor'. This project reflects that by considering the historic role of the competing impulses of iconoclasm and recycling, and highlighting their present significance. For the particular emphasis on manuscript fragments, the lead supervisor is a natural choice: Dr Rundle is known as one of the country's experts in
People |
ORCID iD |
| David Rundle (Primary Supervisor) | |
| Natalie Tolentino (Student) |