STUDYINGMEDIEVAL HISTORY

Ms McCarthy and Ms SuterBelmont High School

How do we find out about what happened in medieval times?

We can divide our sources of information about the past into two categories

• PRIMARY SOURCES• SECONDARY SOURCES

•PRIMARY SOURCES

These are things that are written or made during the time being studied.

First hand information

•SECONDARY SOURCES

These are things written or made after the time being studied.

Second hand information that is often based on primary sources

Examples of primary sourcesAll these must have come from the time being

studied

• Photos

• Artefacts

• Autobiographies

• Film/video footage

• Letters

• Speeches

• Paintings

• Drawings

• Maps

• Documents

• Bones

• Ruins

• Fossils

• Graves/tombs

• Cave paintings

• Newspapers

• Voice recordings

• Diaries/journals

• Log books

• Posters

Examples of secondary sourcesThese are usually made long after the time being studied

• Text books

• Movies

• Newspapers

• Pamphlets

• Nonfiction books

• Fiction books

• Encyclopaedias

• Websites

• T.V shows

• Models

• Replicas

• documentaries

• Teachers’ notes

• Students’ essays/assignments

• Biographies

Why are primary sources important

when studying history?

Primary sources are important when studying history because…You are seeing the original thing that has not been altered so you can make your own opinion of it. No one is telling you what to think!

Secondary sources are important when studying history because… they can explain things and give you a range of ideas about what might have happened. They are someone else’s opinion.

Are photos of primary sources counted as primary sources?

Are translations of original texts counted as primary sources?

ORIGINAL TEXT TRANSLATION

• A great mortality ... destroyed more than a third of the men, women and children. As a result, there was such a shortage of servants, craftsmen, and workmen, and of agricultural workers and labourers, that a great many lords and people, although well-endowed with goods and possessions, were yet without service and attendance. Alas, this mortality devoured such a multitude of both sexes that no one could be found to carry the bodies of the dead to burial, but men and women carried the bodies of their own little ones to church on their shoulders and threw them into mass graves, from which arose such a stink that it was barely possible for anyone to go past a churchyard.

Yes, photos of primary sources can be counted as primary sources (as students can’t visit

museums around the world to view the actual artefacts).

Yes, translations of primary sources can be considered primary sources as long as they are “word for word” translations - as far as possible. (Is the translator an expert?)

AuthenticityHow do you know the

primary source is really from medieval times?

Authenticity

To work out the source’s authenticity you have to identify its origin (when and where it came from and who created it).This can be really difficult!

If you can’t identify (find) it’s origin and you still want to use it, you need to note this in your work.For example;

This diagram shows the farming style of peasants in medieval times (origin unknown).

Another way or determining the authenticity of the primary source is evaluating the reliability of the secondary source where you found it (usually a website or a book).

Eg: a Museum website should be a reliable source, Wikipedia is not (why /why not?)

Remember CRRaP (evaluation)

Do all primary sources give an accurate picture of the past?

CONTEXT

When evaluating the reliability of primary source information consider the context in which it was created (setting, situation, background of it’s creation)

• Who created the primary source? PERSPECTIVE• Why was it created? PURPOSE• What was the knowledge or understanding of the person

who created it?

Primary sourceAn account of the black death by Michael Platiensis 1357. Translated by by C. H. Clarke 1926

Bayeux Tapestry

This is one of the most famous pieces of Primary evidence (source) from the early medieval times. It depicts (shows) the lead up to the Battle of Hastings and some of the Battle (1066) fought between the King of England and the Duke of Normandy (France).

It is actually an embroidery. It is made up of eight separate pieces of linen that were joined to make it approximately 78 metres long and ½ a meter wide. Seven to eight metres are missing. It is very lucky to have served so long and has been carefully studied by historians.

Let's have a look!

CORROBORATION

Why should you look at more than one source of information?

Source1.

Source 3

Source 2

More than one source should help with a better range of information (answering all of your specific inquiries).

CorroborationMost importantly, more than one source should also;• help you work out if the information you have found is reliable because if another

source gives the same or similar information then you can have more trust in it (one source is corroborating another).

• help you work out the most correct information. If two sources contradict each other you go to other sources.

Source 1 info

Source 3 info

Source 2 info

Source 1 & 3 corroborateSource 1 & 2

corroborate

Source 2 & 3 corroborate

All 3 sources corroborate

Black Death song

missal

What could this picture tell you about medieval times?

origin unknown

What does this picture tell you about medieval times?

origin unknown

What does this picture tell you about medieval times?

origin unknown

What does this picture tell us about medieval times?

origin unknown