Historical Association Webinars

Claire delivered two webinars for the Historical Association in early 2020, details of which can be found below.

Thursday 27th February 16.00-17.00 - The Normans in Britain: Conquest and Settlement 1066-1087

The year 1066 saw dramatic military success for the Normans at the Battle of Hastings and the start of a new dynasty with William I’s coronation on Christmas Day. However, the process of conquest and colonisation was a long and drawn out and did not always go smoothly. This webinar will explore how the Normans consolidated their conquest in the years after 1066 and address the political, social and cultural changes which took place in the following decades, drawing on the latest interpretations and using some of the fascinating primary sources available to us from this period.

Thursday 12th March 16.00-17.00 - The Black Death: Social and Cultural Developments in England 1348-1500

In the 14th century an epidemic disease spread throughout Europe causing catastrophic mortality and changing the face of late medieval life in ways which could not be imagined only a few decades earlier. The effects of the Black Death in England are well-recorded in a number of sources, but along with the reduction of England’s population by approximately half, there were significant social and cultural shifts. This webinar will explore the changing relationship between ‘employer’ and ‘employee’ in the post-Black Death age, the hotly debated issue of the ‘golden age’ of women and changes in art, architecture and religion which had a huge impact on the everyday lives of ordinary people from across the country.

(Image credit: Panel from the Bayeux Tapestry depicting the death of Harold, available under the Creative Commons Licence).