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NorseInCork @norseincork.bsky.social · 7d

Published a short piece in 'The Conversation' about Kash Patel's use of the white-supremacist dog whistle 'see you in Valhalla'. For my uncensored feelings on the subject, please just see the image below.

theconversation.com/see-you-in-v...

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Caitlin Ellis @medivalist.bsky.social · 10d

Roderick Dale’s book The Myths and Realities of the Viking Beserkr. An earlier blog post by the author here: ruarighdale.wordpress.com/category/ber...

Berserkir – Berserkjablogg by Dr Roderick Dale

Posts about Berserkir written by ruarigh

ruarighdale.wordpress.com

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Caitlin Ellis @medivalist.bsky.social · 21d

The point was more to provide context on who the various contenders were before the battles

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Caitlin Ellis @medivalist.bsky.social · 21d

Cheers!

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Caitlin Ellis @medivalist.bsky.social · 21d

Thanks. Ah I should have done that! Hadn’t seen King & Conqueror yet when I wrote it to know that various characters were still around years after dying haha

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Dan Armstrong @historydan1066.bsky.social · 22d

A final reminder that the deadline for abstract submissions is the end of next week #medievalsky

Details 👇

Dan Armstrong @historydan1066.bsky.social · Jul 1

Michael Staunton and I are running a conference here at UCD in June 2026 on 'The Past, Present, and Future after Conquest: 1066, 1169'.

Details of the Call for Papers below 👇

#medievalsky #Normans @leverhulme.ac.uk

Deadline for the submission of abstracts is the 26th September

Separated by almost exactly a century, England and Ireland were conquered by Norman invaders. The years of conquest, 1066 and 1169, mark major turning points in the national historiographies of England and Ireland, with these invasions leading to the violent imposition of foreign rulers and regimes that altered the very past, present, and future of the British-Irish Isles. The violent subjugation of England and Ireland were part of a wider pattern of expansion and colonisation across eleventh- and twelfth-century Europe, a process in which the Normans played a defining role. This conference aims to consider the Norman conquests of 1066 and 1169 in parallel. Rather than treating these invasions in isolation, we will explore their similarities and differences. It will seek to understand external perspectives on these invasions, beyond England and Ireland, and will encourage comparison with other invasions and conquests of the period. Whilst the conference will examine the immediate impact of these violent and disruptive events, it will also consider how these invasions led to a rethinking of the past. The crisis of these conquests led individuals and institutions to rethink their past, rewriting history to justify their actions and establish their place in a new and uncertain world.

Applicants should submit an abstract of no more than 500 words for a 20-minute paper. When submitting a paper proposal, please nominate one or more of the following thematic strands:
• Session 1: Rewriting the Past after Conquest
• Session 2: Justifications of Conquest and Violence
• Session 3: Beyond England and Ireland: The View of 1066 and 1169 from Wales, Scotland, and Continental Europe
• Session 4: The Church, the Papacy, and Conquest
• Session 5: Society, People, and Cultural Exchange before and after Conquest

Paper proposals should be emailed to Dr Dan Armstrong (daniel.armstrong@ucd.ie) AND Professor Michael Staunton (michael.staunton@ucd.ie) by the 26th September 2025

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Caitlin Ellis @medivalist.bsky.social · 22d

Here’s my cover story in next month’s BBC History Magazine on ‘1066: Who was the rightful king?’ Out now @historyextra.bsky.social

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Greg Jenner @gregjenner.bsky.social · Sep 8

It’s fascinating how often those who appeal to history are woefully ignorant of history! “Saxon forefathers” is a classic 19th century racial dogwhistle.

Moreover, the “ancient liberties” thing is utter tosh.

Robert Hutton @roberthutton.co.uk · Sep 8

So much weird in here, but hard to disagree that the average Saxon would have recognised policies of sinking vessels you don't like the look of, and imprisoning people who look different.

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Christian Cooijmans @ccooijmans.bsky.social · Sep 4

Many thanks to everyone who has helped make this possible. Ryan is much missed, and I'm glad the Society is honouring his memory in a way befitting his own ethos of generosity and curiosity.

Scottish Society for Northern Studies @northernstudies.bsky.social · Sep 4

The Society has today launched a new funding grant in honour of Dr Ryan Foster, supporting those who have come or returned to academia later in life.

SSNS launches Ryan Foster Memorial Grant - Scottish Society for Northern Studies

The Society has launched a new funding grant to support those who have come or returned to academia later in life.

www.ssns.org.uk

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Caitlin Ellis @medivalist.bsky.social · Sep 4

My article 'Beyond Clontarf: links between Dublin and the earldom of Orkney' is out in the latest Medieval Dublin volume @fmdmedievaldublin.bsky.social covering political examples up to the Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland with a wee bit of trade and archaeology at the end

Front cover of Medieval Dublin XX edited by Seán Duffy

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Caitlin Ellis @medivalist.bsky.social · Sep 4

One last #KingAndConqueror grumble - the Godwins kept going on about Alfred in a way that presented themselves as his successor (presumably because of their association with Wessex) when really it was Edward the Confessor who was of Alfred's line

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Caitlin Ellis @medivalist.bsky.social · Aug 30

Yes all of it I think! Lots of Icelandic accents in unexpected places too

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Dan Armstrong @historydan1066.bsky.social · Aug 29

1/20 A thread about the appearance of the ‘Papal Banner’ in episode seven of #KingandConqueror. In an article that was published in 2021 in the @haskinssociety.bsky.social Journal, I expressed some scepticism about the veracity of William of Poitiers’ claim that the papacy sponsored the Norman...

Papal Banner depicted in the BBC series King and Conqueror

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Dr Cath Feely @cathfeely.bsky.social · Aug 30

I have successfully collaborated with scientists but that's key. We collaborated. They included historians from the beginning of the project. I wasn't hostile to their methods because they listened to and respected mine. The Nature article wasn't interdisciplinary - it excluded the other discipline.

UKRin @ulrich-k-roessler.bsky.social · Aug 29

Reactions by historians here indicate that barriers for interdiscplinary work are robust, even may reflect hostile attitudes. Although they seem more rooted in different styles of thinking and communicating, rather than ideological differences.

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Caitlin Ellis @medivalist.bsky.social · Aug 29

Wow and what an impact you have had on the field (and I'm sure on the university too!)

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Caitlin Ellis @medivalist.bsky.social · Aug 29

The online version of my article for BBC History Magazine '1066: who was the rightful king?' is available to subscribers ‪@historyextra.bsky.social‬. www.historyextra.com/membership/1... (written before the broadcast of #KingAndConqueror)

1066: who was the rightful king?

Which of four main contenders for the English throne had the strongest claim? Was it the Anglo-Saxon strongman, the Norman duke, the ‘Thunderbolt of the North’ or a callow teenager? Caitlin Ellis size...

www.historyextra.com

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Caitlin Ellis @medivalist.bsky.social · Aug 29

I love Iceland but its landscape is known for being quite distinctive I would say

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Merle Eisenberg @merleeisenberg.bsky.social · Aug 29

Finally, collaboration. If you want to do a history-focused project to try new stuff (which is great as an idea!), then you have to design the project with a historian from day one. A historian would have said using a 90 year old book as your data source misses swaths scholarship. 5/

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Caitlin Ellis @medivalist.bsky.social · Aug 29

And as if no measuring/counting/calculating of things is involved in history or archaeology...

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Caitlin Ellis @medivalist.bsky.social · Aug 28

England had such lovely lava fields in the eleventh century #KingAndConqueror

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Dr. Nick Posegay @nposegay.bsky.social · Aug 27

There will be many casualties from UChicago ending ('pausing') PhD admissions in Humantities, but one which I am keenly aware of: this is close to a death sentence for teaching cuneiform in the United States (esp. Sumerian, Hittite, Elamite, Eblaite, Luwian) and it will affect the whole world.

Annette Yoshiko Reed @annetteyreed.bsky.social · Aug 27

“Chicago has long helped to keep alive tiny fields & esoteric areas of humanistic study... Without the univ’s support, & the continued training of grad students who can keep these bodies of kn going, entire spheres of human learning might eventually blink out.” www.theatlantic.com/culture/arch...

If the University of Chicago Won’t Defend the Humanities, Who Will?

Why it matters that the University of Chicago is pausing admissions to doctoral programs in literature, philosophy, the arts, and languages

www.theatlantic.com

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Dan Armstrong @historydan1066.bsky.social · Aug 25

After the release of #KingAndConqueror, it seems an opportune moment to remind you that the deadline for the submission of abstracts for 'The Past, Present, and Future after Conquest: 1066, 1169' is the end of next month.

#medievalsky #Normans @leverhulme.ac.uk

Dan Armstrong @historydan1066.bsky.social · Jul 1

Michael Staunton and I are running a conference here at UCD in June 2026 on 'The Past, Present, and Future after Conquest: 1066, 1169'.

Details of the Call for Papers below 👇

#medievalsky #Normans @leverhulme.ac.uk

Deadline for the submission of abstracts is the 26th September

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Caitlin Ellis @medivalist.bsky.social · Aug 25

Other issues have been pointed out with #KingAndConqueror but my pet peeve right now – how did a sword end up under a cart wheel? Why would someone leave behind such an expensive item?

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Apardjón Journal for Scandinavian Studies @apardjon1.bsky.social · Aug 25

CFP REMINDER!

Just a reminder that there is one week left until our deadline for Volume 4 of Apardjón - 1 September 2025. We are especially interested in interdisciplinary approaches within the field of Viking and medieval Scandinavia. Full details are in our CFP. #MedievalSky

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amy brown @amybrown.xyz · Aug 22

this iconic advertising copywriter named Kathy Hepinstall Parks died over the weekend and I wanted to share something from her website I thought Bluesky would like

Why should I write better when a machine can do it for me?
Because actually no one can do it for you, because your voice is unique among all the people on earth. Siri never petted a horse's neck. Alexa has never been ghosted by the captain of the football team. But you have lived, your heart is beating, you have suffered, and you have something important to say. It's a human's job, to use words, and whatever job you give to a machine, that part of your brain goes dark. Maybe it's worth it when it comes to remembering phone numbers and directions, but when that part of your brain that uses words goes dark, that's a vast area that's very close to your soul. Don't let some internet platform convince you that what you have to say and create isn't worthwhile. Words are the echo of your soul. Honing that echo matters.

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