The Time Traveller's Guide to Medieval England

Last updated
The Time Traveller's Guide to Medieval England: A Handbook for Visitors to the Fourteenth Century
Cover of The Time Traveler's Guide to Medieval England.jpg
Front cover of the US edition, with spelling of "Traveller" modified
Author Ian Mortimer
LanguageEnglish
SeriesTime Traveller's Guide
Subject14th century England
GenreHistory
Publisher The Bodley Head
Publication placeUnited Kingdom
Published in English
2 October 2008
Media typePrint
Pages319
ISBN 0224079948
Followed byThe Time Traveller's Guide to Elizabethan England 

The Time Traveller's Guide to Medieval England: A Handbook for Visitors to the Fourteenth Century is a handbook about Late Medieval England by British historian Ian Mortimer. It was first published on 2 October 2008 by The Bodley Head, [1] and a later edition with more pages was released on 29 February 2012. The volume debunks and explains various myths about the period. [2]

Contents

The book is confined to the 14th century in England, with passing references to the Continent. Mortimer goes into details about food, clothing, building materials, the layout of houses, but also covers things like laws, customs, travel, entertainment. It is ground-breaking in historical literature in that it is written entirely in the present tense. [3]

Illustrations

All the illustrations in the volume were provided by British Library. [4]

Reception

The book has sold more than 250,000 paperback copies in the UK, 100,000 copies in the USA, and is published in several other languages. [5]

Sue Arnold, writing in The Guardian , commented "After The Canterbury Tales this has to be the most entertaining book ever written about the Middle Ages." [6] Professor Stephen Howe, writing in The Independent , remarked that it was "Perhaps the most enjoyable history book I've read all year." [7]

A review written by Kathryn Hughes for The Guardian praised the book's different approach and abundance of trivia, adding that "It is Monty Python and the Holy Grail with footnotes and, my goodness, it is fun... The result of this careful blend of scholarship and fancy is a jaunty journey through the 14th century, one that wriggles with the stuff of everyday life... [A] deft summary of life in the high medieval period." However she found the stylistic choice of narration to be "awkward". [8] The Washington Post's short review by Aaron Leitko said it had a "Fodor's-style framework", like a travel book into the "heart of a different time zone". [9]

Tom Holland, writing for The Daily Telegraph , described the volume as an "old-fashioned study". Holland also proposed that Mortimer felt embarrassed to write about what was already "familiar to a reader in the 19th century". [10] Mortimer addressed Holland's criticism by implying that Holland had failed to understand his approach, going as far as to call Holland's review "bizarre". Mortimer believed that Holland wanted it to be "semi-fictionalised", and explained that such an approach would trivialise a work intended to be useful to students and that would stand the "test of time". [11]

Sequels

The book has spawned several sequels such as:

Various big YouTube historians—such as Raffaello Urbani ("Metatron") [15] and Skallagrim Nilsson—have produced videos about the book and endorsed it. [16]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Inn</span> Establishment providing lodging, food, and drink

Inns are generally establishments or buildings where travelers can seek lodging, and usually, food and drink. Inns are typically located in the country or along a highway. Before the advent of motorized transportation, they also provided accommodation for horses.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mary de Bohun</span> 14th-century English noblewoman

Mary de Bohun was the first wife of Henry Bolingbroke, Earl of Northampton and Hereford and the mother of King Henry V. Mary was never queen, as she died before her husband came to the throne as Henry IV.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dartington Hall</span> Historic house and country estate in Devon, England

Dartington Hall in Dartington, near Totnes, Devon, England, is an historic house and country estate of 1,200 acres (4.9 km2) dating from medieval times. The group of late 14th century buildings are Grade I listed; described in Pevsner's Buildings of England as "one of the most spectacular surviving domestic buildings of late Medieval England", along with Haddon Hall and Wingfield Manor. The medieval buildings are grouped around a huge courtyard; the largest built for a private residence before the 16th Century, and the Great Hall itself is the finest of its date in England. The west range of the courtyard is regarded nationally as one of the most notable examples of a range of medieval lodgings. The medieval buildings were restored from 1926 to 1938.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jonathan Cape</span> English publishing firm (founded 1921)

Jonathan Cape is a London publishing firm founded in 1921 by Herbert Jonathan Cape (1879–1960), who was head of the firm until his death.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guide book</span> Book about a place for visitors or tourists

A guide book or travel guide is "a book of information about a place designed for the use of visitors or tourists". It will usually include information about sights, accommodation, restaurants, transportation, and activities. Maps of varying detail and historical and cultural information are often included. Different kinds of guide books exist, focusing on different aspects of travel, from adventure travel to relaxation, or aimed at travelers with different incomes, or focusing on sexual orientation or types of diet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hose (clothing)</span> Historical mens clothing for the legs and lower body

Hose are any of various styles of men's clothing for the legs and lower body, worn from the Middle Ages through the 17th century, when the style fell out of use in favour of breeches and stockings. The old plural form of "hose" was "hosen". In German these terms remained in use and are the generic terms for trousers today. The French equivalent was chausses.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tudor Revival architecture</span> Architectural style

Tudor Revival architecture, also known as mock Tudor in the UK, first manifested in domestic architecture in the United Kingdom in the latter half of the 19th century. Based on revival of aspects that were perceived as Tudor architecture, in reality it usually took the style of English vernacular architecture of the Middle Ages that had survived into the Tudor period.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Martin Robinson</span> British architectural historian and officer of arms

John Martin Robinson FSA is a British architectural historian and officer of arms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julian Dutton</span> British comedian

Julian Dutton is an English comedy writer, and performer. He’s principally known for television and radio, whose work has won a British Comedy Award, a BAFTA, and a Radio Academy Gold Award for Best Comedy. He is the author of six books.

South English legendaries are compilations of versified saints' lives written in southern dialects of Middle English from the late 13th to 15th centuries. At least fifty of these manuscripts survive, preserving nearly three hundred hagiographic works.

Adam Orleton was an English churchman and royal administrator.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Villein</span> Type of social status in medieval Europe

A villein is a class of serf tied to the land under the feudal system. As part of the contract with the lord of the manor, they were expected to spend some of their time working on the lord's fields in return for land. Villeins existed under a number of legal restrictions that differentiated them from freemen, and could not leave without his lord's permission. Generally, villeins held their status not by birth but by the land they held, and it was also possible for them to gain manumission from their lords. The villeinage system largely died out in England in 1500, with some forms of villeinage being in use in France until 1789.

Ian James Forrester Mortimer is a British historian and writer of historical fiction. He is best known for his book The Time Traveller's Guide to Medieval England, which became a Sunday Times bestseller in paperback in 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hand in Hand Fire & Life Insurance Society</span>

The Hand in Hand Fire & Life Insurance Society was one of the oldest British insurance companies.

<i>A History of English Food</i> 2011 non-fiction book by Clarissa Dickson Wright

A History of English Food is a 2011 non-fiction book, a history of English cuisine arranged by period from the Middle Ages to the end of the twentieth century, written by the celebrity cook Clarissa Dickson Wright and published in London by Random House. Each period is treated in turn with a chapter. The text combines history, recipes, and anecdotes, and is illustrated with 32 pages of colour plates.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas Dawson (cook)</span>

Thomas Dawson was an English author of cookery and housekeeping books.

<i>The Good Huswifes Jewell</i> 1585 English cookery book by Thomas Dawson

The Good Huswifes Jewell is an English cookery book by the cookery and housekeeping writer Thomas Dawson, first published in 1585. It includes recipes for medicines as well as food. To the spices found in Medieval English cooking, the book adds herbs, especially parsley and thyme. Sugar is used in many of the dishes, along with ingredients that are uncommon in modern cooking like violets and rosewater.

Bruce Mortimer Stanley Campbell, FBA, MRIA, MAE, FRHistS, FAcSS is a British economic historian. From 1995 to 2014, he was Professor of Medieval Economic History at Queen's University Belfast, where he remains an emeritus professor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John FitzWalter, 2nd Baron FitzWalter</span> Early 14th-century English baron and gang leader

John FitzWalter, 2nd Baron FitzWalter was a prominent Essex landowner best known for his criminal activities, particularly around Colchester. His family was of a noble and ancient lineage, with connections to the powerful de Clare family, who had arrived in England at the time of the Norman Conquest. The FitzWalters held estates across Essex, as well as properties in London and Norfolk. John FitzWalter played a prominent role during the early years of King Edward III's wars in France, and at some point, FitzWalter was married to Eleanor Percy, the daughter of Henry, Lord Percy.

Ann Wroe FRSL is an English author and columnist who has been the obituaries editor of The Economist since 2003.

References

  1. Mortimer, Ian (2008). The time traveller's guide to medieval England: a handbook for visitors to the fourteenth century. Bodley Head. OCLC   495415230 . Retrieved 15 January 2021.
  2. Mortimer, Ian (29 February 2012). The Time Traveller's Guide to Medieval England: A Handbook for Visitors to the Fourteenth Century. Random House. ISBN   9781448103782.
  3. "Review: The Time Traveller's Guide to Medieval England". Magic Writer.
  4. Mortimer, Ian (29 February 2012). The time traveller's guide to medieval England : a handbook for visitors to the fourteenth century. Bodley Head. p. 318. ISBN   978-1448103782.
  5. "The Official Time Traveller's Guides website". timetravellersguides.com.
  6. Arnold, Sue (17 April 2009). "Review: The Time Traveller's Guide to Medieval England". The Guardian . Retrieved 2024-04-01.
  7. Howe, Stephen (28 November 2008). "History: Global tales of deals and steals from Columbus to the credit crunch". The Independent . Retrieved 2024-04-01.
  8. Hughes, Kathryn (24 October 2008). "Plague Ahoy". The Guardian .
  9. Leitko, Aaron (14 February 2010). "Book review: 'The Time Traveler's Guide to Medieval England' by Ian Mortimer". The Washington Post . Retrieved 25 November 2018.
  10. Holland, Tom (10 October 2008). "Review: The Time Traveller's Guide to Medieval England by Ian Mortimer" . The Daily Telegraph .
  11. Mortimer, Ian. "What was new in 2008?". Ian Mortimer website.
  12. Mortimer, Ian (1 March 2012). The Time Traveller's Guide to Elizabethan England. Random House. ISBN   9781409029564.
  13. Mortimer, Ian (6 April 2017). The Time Traveller's Guide to Restoration Britain: Life in the Age of Samuel Pepys, Isaac Newton and The Great Fire of London. Random House. ISBN   9781448191970.
  14. Mortimer, Ian (2020-11-12). The Time Traveller's Guide to Regency Britain. Random House. ISBN   978-1-4735-4798-8.
  15. "Medieval Towns, Houses, Population And Life Expectancy". YouTube. Retrieved 23 October 2017.
  16. "Being a Time Traveler in the Middle Ages - Probably Sucks!". YouTube. Retrieved 30 November 2017.