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The Rise of the University in Medieval Europe
How the university emerged around 1200 as a self-governing guild of masters and students, and why it took root in towns like Bologna, Paris and Oxford.
Life and Learning
Universities, Oxford and Cambridge
How universities arose and how Oxford and Cambridge took shape.
The Rise of the Universities: Centers of Learning in Medieval Europe
A regional map of the major medieval universities on the Continent, from Bologna and Paris to Salamanca and Prague, and what each was best known for.
The Rise of the University of Cambridge
How Cambridge began in the early 13th century, the traditional story of scholars leaving Oxford in 1209, and the first colleges such as Peterhouse.
The Rise of the University of Cambridge: A Center of Learning in Medieval Europe
Tension between Cambridge scholars and townspeople, the 1381 attack on the university, rivalry with Oxford, and the royal colleges of King's and Queens'.
The Rise of the University of Oxford
How Oxford grew from teachers gathering in the town in the 12th century into a chartered university, and how its early colleges and halls developed.
The Rise of the University of Oxford: A Center of Learning in Medieval Europe
Who studied at medieval Oxford and what they learned, from the arts course to theology, including the friars and scholars like Grosseteste, Bacon and Ockham.
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Learning and Science Schools, universities, stars and maps. Food and Drink What people ate and drank, from peasant pottage to noble feasts. Dress, Festivals and Folklore Clothing, holy days, customs and legends. Literature and Legends Poems, sagas and tales told across the Middle Ages. Music and Entertainment Songs, dance, jesters and court amusements. Science and Technology Alchemy, astronomy, ships and the tools that changed work. Women in Medieval Society Work, law, family and religious life for medieval women. Poets and Authors Writers of the medieval world and those who shaped how it is remembered. Medieval Lives Typical lives of a peasant, a knight and a monk. Courtly Love and Ideals Love, chastity and etiquette in noble circles. Elements, Humors and Senses Medieval theories of matter, the body and perception. Medieval Worldview How medieval people thought about time, seasons, life stages and fate. Everyday Life Details Homes, hygiene, childhood, marriage and death in ordinary medieval lives.