Christianisation and state-formation in Northern and Central Europe c.900-c.1200

Project start date: 2002-09 Project end date: 2004-09
We analysed the connection between religious change (Christianisation) and political change (the development of centralised power) in Scandinavia, Central Europe and Rus'. In all these areas the final conversion to Christianity was initiated from above. Yet there were also significant differences between the regions in how Christianisation and monarchy were linked. We composed a detailed questionnaire and included history, archaeology and art history in our analysis. Our aims were to compare the various areas, looking at both the primary sources and the national literature. We summarised previous research, highlighting the uncertainties that pertain to the sources. Instead of creating a smooth narrative, we wished to draw attention to the tenuous nature of many previous explanations. By looking at these issues in a comparative and interdisciplinary way, we also wished to go beyond previous explanatory frameworks.
Subject domains: 
Era(s): 
Country/region(s): 
Methods usedCategory
2d Scanning and photographyData capture
Text encoding - descriptiveData structuring and enhancement
Use of existing digital dataData capture
Manual input and transcriptionData capture
Funding sources: 
Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), Medieval Studies Centre Bergen
Content types created: 
Still Image/Graphics, Text
Source material used:  
Primary sources (various editions), images, bibliographies.
Digital resource created:  
A website that contains the questionnaire that we composed, as well as responses to each question. The questionnaire formulates the research topics that all of us analyzed for each country. Each answer consists of a summary of previous research on the given topic, possible problems pertaining to the sources, and brief information on historiographical debates if any, and bibliographies. There are also images linked to relevant sections, and a bibliography in English for the use of students. The website is composed of separate sections for each country, but it is also searchable by topics. It will be hosted by the History Faculty at the University of Cambridge.
Access to digital resource:  
Open Access
Data Formats created: 
Hypertext Markup Language (HTML)
Publications:  
Christianization and the Rise of Christian Monarchy: Scandinavia, Central Europe and Rus' c. 900-c.1200, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007.

Institutions affiliated with this project: 

UK HE institutions involved:
University of Cambridge
UK HE institutions involved:
Medieval Studies Centre Bergen Norway

Project staff and expertise: 

Principal staff member:Dr Nora Berend
Other staff:Computing officer(s) / Technical supporter(s), Postdoctoral researcher(s) / Research assistant(s)
External expertise:


Metadata on this arts-humanities.net record
Author(s) of recordNora Berend
TitleChristianisation and state-formation in Northern and Central Europe c.900-c.1200
Record created2007-02-27
Record updated2011-05-11 16:31
URL of recordhttp://www.arts-humanities.net/node/2174
Citation of recordNora Berend: Christianisation and state-formation in Northern and Central Europe c.900-c.1200.
<http://www.arts-humanities.net/node/2174>
created: 2007-02-27, last updated 2011-05-11 16:31