'tis but a scratch: fact and fiction about the Middle Ages

Send us Fan Mail The life of Sir William Marshal reads like a medieval story book. Starting out as a landless squire whose only possession was family connections, Marshal rose from household knight to become one of the wealthiest and most powerful nobles in early thirteenth century England. Ultimately, he was chosen by his peers to be the guardian and regent of a boy king, during a French invasion...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode Richard distinguishes between the popular modern conception of chivalry, which originated in the romantic movement of the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and became the code of the gentleman, and medieval chivalry. Richard and his co-host, his wife Ellen, explore what medieval chivalry entailed, the role it played in protecting the social status of knights...

Send us Fan Mail The quest for the Holy Grail is among the most famous stories about King Arthur and the Round Table. This episode explores the origins and development of the idea of the Holy Grail in medieval romance and examines how the Grail was reconceived in modern times by Nazis, amateur historians, and novelists to support pseudo-historical conspiracy theories. Listen on Podurama    https:/...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Richard explains why there are so few movies set in the Middle Ages that are historically accurate, and gives examples of a good film (Eric Rohmer's "Perceval le Gallois"; a bad film, Ridley Scott's "The Kingdom of Heaven"; and a not so bad medieval film, Ridley Scott's most recent blockbuster, "The Last Duel."  Richard...

Send us Fan Mail The title of our podcast ‘Tis But a Scratch: Fact and Fiction about the Middle Ages” is a tribute to one of Richard’s favorite “medieval” movies, “Monty Python and the Holy Grail.” Richard was incredulous when Carol told him that she had never seen the movie.  After she watched it, she was incredulous that he actually used parts of it in his medieval history classes.  In this epis...