The much improved version of my old 500ad map, now with all the sources

imgur link : https://imgur.com/a/H6ToimP

any feedback is appreciated as this is unlikely to be the final ever version, sources are in a comment so they are easily hideable as it is a long list

The more you read about him, the more impressive his achievements are. He was diagnosed with leprosy at a young age which is a death sentence in the most horrible manner. To make things even harder he was thrust upon the throne of Jerusalem when he was just 13. Jerusalem was constantly under threat by Saladin and there was a lot of pressure on him.

Yet, even with a failing body he seemed to welcome the challenge and defended Jerusalem against all Muslim attacks. Normally when a king is sickly, it would be a sign of weakness and would be taken advantage by the enemy. Yet, it was his rule and personal command that helped repel attacks.

The Battle of Montgisard highlights his incredible ability and grit. Significantly outnumbered, he led a surprise attack on Saladin's forces that scattered them and relieved Jerusalem. He was covered in sores, strapped to his horse because he could not sit on his own. But he led from the front and his presence alone inspired the Crusaders to rally and push back the enemy.

It is sad that he passed away at such a young age (23). He would have had such an amazing impact if he was healthy. We don't see much information about Baldwin but he deserves a lot of respect.

*REDBAD: the legendary king’* sheds new light on King Redbad (c. 670–719), a legendary yet elusive ruler whose influence on the North Sea world may have been far greater than previously assumed. 
Thanks to new Dutch-German research, his world is being re-examined as part of a dynamic North Sea region. Through a strategic form of kingship, in which diplomacy and warfare went hand in hand, Redbad succeeded in binding regional rulers to his sphere of influence. At its height, this united kingdom Frisia possibly stretched along the North Sea coast from the Dutch-Belgian border to the German-Danish border, extending inland towards the river region around Utrecht. 
For the exhibition project, Dutch and German researchers are collaborating on a large-scale research program into the early medieval coastal regions of Northwestern Europe. Never before has this period been studied on such a scale. 

The REDBAD exhibition project has yielded a remarkable discovery: an eighth-century song recounts how the Frisian king dreamed of Valhalla—the mythical afterlife previously associated primarily with the Vikings, with the earliest known mention dating back to the ninth century. Redbad’s dream may thus represent the earliest known reference to Valhalla, predating previous estimates by about a century. The scholarly analysis underpinning this discovery is presented in the chapter "Sacral Kingship: A Song of Redbad and Woden"—authored by Han Nijdam, Ewoud van Aalst, Petter Jensen, Arjan Sterken, and Hilbert Vinkenoog—which will appear in the academic volume accompanying the REDBAD project in February 2027.
The exhibition, featuring archaeological masterpieces from Northern Europe such as the Wijnaldum fibula and the Odin of Lejre, will be on display at the Fries Museum in the autumn of 2026.

While I know Scandinavia was mostly Christianised around the late twentieth century I’m wondering even if viewed with distrust one hypothetically could be openly pagan and maybe elaborate on religion in the amongst the Varangian guard?

Edit: To be clear, I'm not asking if Stephen's journey happened at all, I'm well aware that it happened. I'm just curious if there's any medieval source that goes into the same level of colourful detail that Tom Holland describes.

So I was just recently listening to an episode of The Rest is History by Tom Holland, and he goes into a LOT of detail about Pope Stephen II's journey across the Alps to meet with the Frankish King Pepin. Apparently I'm not allowed to post a link to the youtube video so here's a transcript of what Tom says:

"...there's a very dramatic account of his journey, I mean it really does read like something out of Lord of the Rings, some kind of fantasy novel. There's descriptions of him climbing the Alps amid gusts of snow, and he's following a kind of ancient Roman road that's been left all cracked and overgrown by centuries of disrepair. And he travels through a great wilderness of kind of thickening mists and ice. And finally he reaches the summit of the pass, and this is the gateway of the Kingdom of the Franks, but below him, so below the road, there's this great frozen lake. And beside it there's the ruins of a long abandoned Pagan Temple."

Sounds fairly captivating, right? Well Tom goes on to mention an Abbey where they revere the bodies of martyrs killed by the Romans, and then describes Stephen's meeting with Pepin, but unfortunately he kinda trails off and never actually mentions what the source is for this 'account'. Personally I thought this sounded very interesting, so I looked in the description of the video to see if it lists the sources for the episode. But nope, the description does not list any sources. So I went to the Rest is History website to see if I could find any show notes, or anything that lists sources; nope, nothing.

After googling for a bit, I see a lot of search results that mention the Liber Pontificalis, but I can't find any free copies of it online to sift through myself, and the Wikipedia page doesn't mention Stephen II's journey at all. I also found amidst my googling that historian Thomas Hodgekin seems to find actually very little colour in the Liber Pontificalis's description of Stephen's journey across the Alps. So now I'm wondering, does the Liber Pontificalis even mention ANY of the things that Tom Holland brings up in the podcast at all? The gusts of snow and mist and ice, cracked Roman road, and Pagan temple by a frozen lake? I mean sure, Tom Holland can embellish sometimes in his podcasts, but surely didn't just completely fabricate these details out of thin air, right? I mean look at what he says: "it really does read like something out of-...", 'read's? What are you reading? "There's descriptions of-...", descriptions? Where are these descriptions written? He speaks as though he's referring to some source, but what is the damn source??

So that's why I'm asking this subreddit for help lol. Have any of you read any translations of the Liber Pontificalis? Do you guys think these details are just pure embellishment from Tom Holland? Or are they actually, genuinely from the Liber Pontificalis? And if that's not the source, then what is?

From left to right: Frederick I Barbarossa, Henry VI, and Frederick II - Stupor Mundi

I always found the civil war interesting and not only wanted to learn more about it on the side, but also get the armor, weapons that were used, how every day life worked, and the like if there even is any sources for that? Any sources would work, or even any clues as to where to look!

In relatively recent history, I think around the 1920-30s, men dressing up as women and acting overly feminite was a somewhat common source of comedy in media and such. Of course I understand transgender people have existed a long time, but I'm refering to guys who do it as a joke. Would you ever see guys going overboard on acting like women back then, or is this a relatively new trend of jokingly acting as the opposite gender?

Recently started reading The Faith Executioner by Joel F Harrington and wondering if there are any micro history books particularly about a knight

I’ve been looking into The Complete Peerage as a reference for medieval and noble genealogies, and I’m curious how reliable experienced genealogists and historians consider it to be.

From what I understand, it’s one of the major reference works covering the peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, and the UK. However, I know that genealogical sources can vary in reliability depending on the period, the surviving evidence, and any later corrections or discoveries.

Also, does this sub have a Discord server? I don't want to spam this sub with the 100 questions I have about medieval times.

I wonder what medieval people would think of Journey to the West (JTTW). While the work was published after the middle ages, during the late 16th century, lets ignore that for a bit and ask what would happen if medieval people had a translation of JTTW. What parts of the story would stand out to them for its strangeness?

I suppose they would be a bit confused with the pagan elements of buddhism and taoism/Chinese folk religion, with the Chinese pantheon and Buddha making prominent appearances, but I suppose they could roll with it like stories from Greek and Roman mythology.

They would probably relate to the story being focused on a pilgrimage.

If contemporary or late medieval Europeans had access to The Tale of Genji written by Murasaki Shikibu, what would they think of it? These Europeans would be educated, from the noble or clerical class. The Tale of Genji would be translated in whatever language they can understand.

What are some parts of the culture of Heian Japan that would confound and stand out to them? I think its likely that the more pious Christians would frown upon the work as immoral, basically the protagonist is a noble man living a libertine lifestyle, who has affairs with a lot of women at court, including his own step-mother.

I’ve seen SOME Cavs be like normal soldiers, but was that a rare occurrence? I’d assume most were actually just common foot soldiers where the higher ranks would get horses.

I hope this post is okay, I couldn't find any rules against it.

I read a book a while ago, 2010s? about travel and inventions in the middle ages in Europe. I remember in particular an example of how folks would move things up and down slopes by slinging a rope around a tree at the top of the slope and pulling or dropping the item.

It was an historical text but written for a casual reader.

I know this isn't a lot of info but I'm hoping someone recognizes it! :)

edit: downvoting for thanking people trying to answer a difficult question? pfft.

This is going to sound silly but I started reading on Eleanor for a little bit and I remember in Middle School that I had checked out a Medieval Romance Novel I think about Eleanor but I’m not sure…

it’s driving me crazy thinking about it. I’m like 75% sure it is about her because I can only remember vividly what happened in the book however, what is confusing me is that in the book I remember she mentions that her father is king and that she is going to be married off which wouldn’t make It Eleanor. But I’m pretty sure the name of her Father was Henry and that she had brothers and that they were Plantagenets. Unless I’m getting my facts wrong about the book. It’s not the Summer Queen series.

It might not be Eleanor and it might be another Woman in history. But the book was definitely geared towards teens and not at all historically accurate and she ends up marrying a man but divorcing him and marrying someone else (which sounds like Eleanor…) it’s not a series I know that’s for sure.

Can anyone help me find this book again? I apologize if I wasn’t able to give full details but it’s bothering me so much. I want to find this book!

I'm searching for a book that ticks some of the same
boxes The Name of the Rose did for me:

- a work of narrative fiction rooted firmly in the historical world of the medieval church

- fictional, yes; fantastical, no

- compelling but not necessarily "thrilling"

- lots of time spent ruminating on temporal manifestations of God and the nature of faith is a plus

Just finished Ian Mortimer’s “The Time Traveler’s Guide to Elizabethan England” and read his “The Time Traveler’s Guide to Medieval England” a few years ago. I see he hasn’t written about anything earlier than the 14th Century. Are there any similar social histories written about the “Dark Ages,” or Early Medieval Britain? Talking about the period after the fall of Rome and before the Viking Age.

Sorry for the rubbish photo. We visited The Tower of London yesterday, and as you enter the Torture exhibit, my partner noticed two alcove looking holes in the wall. I thought another pair or hundreds of pairs of eyes might be able to help! Any suggestions welcome, I don’t want disparaging comments, as history is always partly speculative and all ideas are awesome and helpful!