Looking Back at Medieval History
Dateline: 12/31/97
The most common complaint I hear about learning history is: "I can never remember all those dates." Friends have told me they avoid history altogether because they don't know when anything happened, and finding out can be a real chore. Adding to the complexity of dealing with dates is the fact that different cultures have used different calendars at different times in their history. Unless the dates get converted, they won't really be correct. Numbers are bad enough in math -- why must we drag them into history, too?
The truth is, most of the time dates are not important. They're more a matter of passing interest than significant facts we should memorize by heart. What's really important is what happened and why. History is the story of our past, and not merely a collection of numbers.
Having said that, I'd like to point out that dates can be crucial in the study of our past. Learning history is often like solving a mystery: we have to know when an event took place down to the very day and know where all the suspects were when the event happened in order to know who was really involved.
But dates can be fun, too. Wouldn't you like to know what historical figures of long ago share your birthday? Who died 500 years ago last week? What significant event happened in the past on this very day? I for one really enjoy finding out those pieces of trivia. But I've noticed that although there are many "this date in history" sources in newspapers and electronic media, nearly all of the information available concerns events that happened after 1700.
So,I decided to provide a "this date" resource for medieval history buffs. After some research, I discovered to my chagrin that this was not nearly as easy as it sounds. (And lets be honest: it doesn't really sound that easy to begin with!) I thought that because the medieval era encompasses such a vast stretch of time -- more than a thousand years, by any definition -- I'd be stumbling over dates every time I turned around.
Nothing could have been further from the truth.
Most of the information dealing with dates will state the year an event took place and, usually, the month. But the actual day is another matter. Contemporary chroniclers often recorded events according to what Saint's day they fell on or near, or how far it was from an equinox or solstice. Sometimes an event would be described as occurring on the same day as (or the day after, or the fortnight before) another event that was well-known at the time but has now fallen into obscurity. It's enough to make a well-meaning medievalist tear out her hair.
But I perservered, and I collected enough information to start our new regular feature: This Date in Medieval History. I am pleased to present it to you as we stand on the verge of a brand new year -- a perfect time to look back as well as ahead.
In order to make this a useful resource, each date is checked and double-checked against reputable sources such as Britannica Online. Links to other informative websites are included whenever appropriate pages are available. I'm building the project week by week, and you should always be able to find information on the current date and look a little ahead, as well. In the future, there will be a link to "This Date" on the main page of our site.
I hope you find this new resource fun, helpful, and easy to use. To learn more about what you'll find on the calendar, the sources I've used, finding a particular date, and how you can be part of this project, please see "About This Date in Medieval History."
Or jump right in and find out what happened today, December 31, in Medieval History.
