The complexity of the interplay and relationships over various borders in medieval Europe is here fully teased out. The processes by which ideas, objects, texts and political thought and experience moved across boundaries in the Middle Ages form the focus of this book, which also seeks to reassess the nature of the boundaries themselves; it thus appropriately reflects a major theme of Dr Malcolm Vale's work, which the essays collected here honour. They suggest ways of breaking down established historiographical paradigms of Europe as a set of distinct polities, achieving a more nuanced picture in which people and objects were constantly moving, and challenging previous conceptions of units and borders. The first section examines the construction of boundaries and units in the later Middle Ages, via topics ranging from linguistic units to social stratifications, and geographically from the Netherlands and Scotland to Gascony and the Iberian peninsula; it reveals how much the relationship between exchange and boundaries was reciprocal. The second section considers the mechanisms by which it took place, from West Africa to Italy and Flanders, and discusses the actual exchange of people, texts, and unusual artefacts. Overall, the essays bear witness to the constant interplay and interconnections throughout medieval Europe and beyond. Contributors: Paul Booth, Maria Joao Violante Branco, Rita Costa-Gomes, Mario Damen, Jan Dumolyn, Jean Dunbabin, Jean-PhilippeGenet, Michael Jones, Maurice Keen, Frederique Lachaud, Patrick Lantschner, Guilhem Pepin, R.L.J. Shaw, Hannah Skoda, Erik Spindler, John Watts.

This series [pushes] the boundaries of knowledge and [develops] new trends in approach and understanding. ENGLISH HISTORICAL REVIEW The essays here provide a series of unusual, varying and complex perspectives on late-medieval society, with a particular focus on the European context. They show how in the north of England the Cliffords and tenants of the honourof Pontefract were forced to weigh up the advantages and disadvantages of their conflicting loyalties to local lords and distant kings; how in East Anglia the growing cult of St Margaret was reinforced by dissemination of her life-story [published here from a manuscript in the British Library]; how at Westminster the court of Henry IV was enhanced by his purchase of luxury items, and how the inept rule of his grandson Henry VI led to the "de-skilling" ofhitherto competent bureaucracies in the exchequer and chancery; how in Normandy a fine line was drawn between brigandage and movements for independence; how in Burgundy the classic ideals of chivalry, as presented in the duchy's literature, contrasted with the grim reality of military and political confrontations; and how in Florence infants were nurtured. Contributors: Frederik Buylaert, Christine Carpenter, Vincent Challet, Juliana Dresvina, Jan Dumolyn, Andy King, Jessica Lutkin, Alessia Meneghin, Sarah Rose

Flemish painter Jan Van Eyck (c. 1390-1441) towered above his contemporaries. With his unprecedented technique, scientific knowledge and unparalleled powers of observation, Van Eyck lifted oil painting to previously unseen heights and helped determine the course of Western art. In 2020 the Museum of Fine Arts Ghent will host the largest ever exhibition of Van Eyck's work. An Optical Revolution includes artworks by Van Eyck, several pieces from his studio and international masterpieces from the late Middle Ages, which makes the world of Van Eyck more tangible than ever. This tie-in exhibition catalogue unravels some of the myths that surround Van Eyck and his technique while showing his complete oeuvre and his influence in a new perspective. Central to the exhibition are the eight restored exterior panels of the Adoration of the Mystic Lamb, a highly exceptional loan from St Bavo's Cathedral in Ghent. After the exhibition the panels will return to their original place in the cathedral and never again be shown elsewhere. Including essays by leading experts from around the world, this book will be an indispensable resource for Van Eyck fans and scholars alike.

Bruges was undoubtedly one of the most important cities in medieval Europe. Bringing together specialists from both archaeology and history, this 'total' history presents an integrated view of the city's history from its very beginnings, tracing its astonishing expansion through to its subsequent decline in the sixteenth century. The authors' analysis of its commercial growth, industrial production, socio-political changes, and cultural creativity is grounded in an understanding of the city's structure, its landscape and its built environment. More than just a biography of a city, this book places Bruges within a wider network of urban and rural development and its history in a comparative framework, thereby offering new insights into the nature of a metropolis.

Rereading Huizinga: Autumn of the Middle Ages, a Century Later explores the legacy and historiographical impact of Johan Huizinga's 1919 masterwork a century after its publication. Often considered one of the most successful books in medieval European history, its reception has varied over the last hundred years, popular with non-academic readers, and appraised more critically by fellow historians and those more generally in the field of medieval studies. There is broad consensus, however, about the work's absolute centrality, and the authors of this volume assess the Autumn of the Middle Ages reception, afterlife, and continued vitality.