What will I be studying?
The certificate is taught over three termly units, via remote delivery.
Unit A: The Political Culture of Medieval England
Rather than a chronological narrative of the period, the emphasis of this unit is on contemporary assumptions and how they changed, if indeed they did, across time. It makes extensive use of primary sources. Topics for study include the role of the king; the interplay between the three major political ‘classes’ (crown, nobility and gentry); the role of the royal household; the place of law and legal theory; the ‘rise’ of parliament; the impact of war; and the balance of local and central government. The course spans what have traditionally been seen as three major shifts in the English ‘state’, all of which are still keenly debated: the Norman Conquest; the transition from feudal to post-feudal; and the end of the middle ages.
Unit B: Art and Architecture in Medieval England
The period from 1000-1530 saw a flowering of all the arts of painting, sculpture and architecture as well as new and original art forms such as narrative stained glass. This unit traces the rise of Romanesque and Gothic architecture and its associated sculptural decorations, the rich local resources of paintings and all kinds of liturgical fittings such as metalwork, embroidery and ivory carving. We shall make full use of Ely Cathedral and, hopefully, College and Museum collections.
Unit C: The Landscape Archaeology of Medieval England
The unit demonstrates how English social and economic history can be traced in medieval settlements, fields, pastures and other aspects of the landscape. The first part of the course takes the period from 1000 to 1350; the second focuses on the later Middle Ages until about 1500. It begins with an examination, through the landscape, of the impact of the Norman Conquest on landholding and settlement; it moves on to explore the influence of rapidly-increasing populations and international markets on settlements, field patterns and non-arable land-use; the final sessions of the course critically compare the relative influences on the landscape of the Black Death and shifts in economic emphasis in attempting to explain the character of later medieval landscapes.
Please note that the units detailed above will not necessarily be run in this order.
What can I go on to do?
The Institute offers two 60 credit complementary one year Certificate courses about Early Medieval and Medieval England which are taught and awarded at first year undergraduate level (FHEQ 4). The Certificates are currently taught in alternating years and can be studied independently of each other, and in any order.
Students who have successfully completed the Undergraduate Certificate in the Study of Medieval England (60 credits at FHEQ level 4) and the Undergraduate Certificate in the Study of Early Medieval England (60 credits at FHEQ level 4, planned for the academic year 2023/24) can apply to be awarded the Undergraduate Certificate of Higher Education in the Study of Early Medieval and Medieval England (120 credits at FHEQ level 4).
Credit awarded by the Institute can also be transferred into the degree programmes of other higher education providers. However the amount of credit which can be transferred into degree programmes varies from institution to institution and is always at the discretion of the receiving institution.
