In Memory of John H. Munro: Countryside, Peasants, and Agriculture
Sponsoring Organization(s)
Medieval Association for Rural Studies (MARS)
Organizer Name
Philip Slavin
Organizer Affiliation
Univ. of Kent
Presider Name
Philip Slavin
Paper Title 1
The English Statute of Sewers (1531-32) and Its Medieval Roots?
Presenter 1 Name
John Langdon, James White
Presenter 1 Affiliation
Univ. of Alberta, Univ. of Alberta
Paper Title 2
The Seigniorial: Peasant Dichotomy in Medieval English Work-Horse Supply
Presenter 2 Name
Jordan Claridge
Presenter 2 Affiliation
Univ. of East Anglia
Paper Title 3
Keeping Up Appearances: A Study of Manorial Buildings and Their Maintenance
Presenter 3 Name
Duncan Berryman
Presenter 3 Affiliation
Queen's Univ. Belfast
Start Date
14-5-2015 1:30 PM
Session Location
Schneider 2355
Description
In December 2013, the community of medieval economic and social historians lost two eminent historians: Professors John H. Munro (University of Toronto) and Richard Britnell (University of Durham). The contribution of the two historians cannot be overstated: to a large extent, Munro and Britnell have redefined numerous paradigms and problems, setting up new and higher scholarly standards. Apart from their voluminous works, both Munro and Britnell were faithful attendants of the Medieval Congress at Kalamazoo and have presented their papers on numerous occasions there. As a modest homage, the MARS proposes to hold two memorial sessions at the 2015 congress, each celebrating the career of each late scholar. It is the understanding of the MARS organizers that efforts have been made to hold additional one or two memorial sessions in honour of John Munro; thus, the MARS will be sponsoring one of two or three memorial sessions for John Munro.
The intellectual justification for the two sessions stems mainly from two facts. First, both John Munro and Richard Britnell had an avid professional interest in late-medieval countryside, its inhabitants, institutions and developments (and they both have indeed published extensively on this subject, even though John Munro's works dealt primarily with wool production and trade and monetary history). Second, after some two decades of relative silence, the study of medieval peasant society has witnessed a sudden revival in the last few years, mainly thanks to the efforts of British medievalists. In 2014, the MARS has sponsored a session on medieval peasantry, which was met with apparent success, judging by the excellent quality of papers and the sheer number of attendants. Holding similar sessions at the 50th Congress would be a natural consequence of the previous year's success and dedicating each session to the memory of the eminent medievalist shall undoubtedly have a profound impact on the quality of the each session and the size of the audience. This will be an excellent opportunity to celebrate the illustrious careers of John Munro and Richard Britnell by their students, colleagues and fellow medievalists alike.
Philip Slavin
In Memory of John H. Munro: Countryside, Peasants, and Agriculture
Schneider 2355
In December 2013, the community of medieval economic and social historians lost two eminent historians: Professors John H. Munro (University of Toronto) and Richard Britnell (University of Durham). The contribution of the two historians cannot be overstated: to a large extent, Munro and Britnell have redefined numerous paradigms and problems, setting up new and higher scholarly standards. Apart from their voluminous works, both Munro and Britnell were faithful attendants of the Medieval Congress at Kalamazoo and have presented their papers on numerous occasions there. As a modest homage, the MARS proposes to hold two memorial sessions at the 2015 congress, each celebrating the career of each late scholar. It is the understanding of the MARS organizers that efforts have been made to hold additional one or two memorial sessions in honour of John Munro; thus, the MARS will be sponsoring one of two or three memorial sessions for John Munro.
The intellectual justification for the two sessions stems mainly from two facts. First, both John Munro and Richard Britnell had an avid professional interest in late-medieval countryside, its inhabitants, institutions and developments (and they both have indeed published extensively on this subject, even though John Munro's works dealt primarily with wool production and trade and monetary history). Second, after some two decades of relative silence, the study of medieval peasant society has witnessed a sudden revival in the last few years, mainly thanks to the efforts of British medievalists. In 2014, the MARS has sponsored a session on medieval peasantry, which was met with apparent success, judging by the excellent quality of papers and the sheer number of attendants. Holding similar sessions at the 50th Congress would be a natural consequence of the previous year's success and dedicating each session to the memory of the eminent medievalist shall undoubtedly have a profound impact on the quality of the each session and the size of the audience. This will be an excellent opportunity to celebrate the illustrious careers of John Munro and Richard Britnell by their students, colleagues and fellow medievalists alike.
Philip Slavin