Institute for Medieval Studies

Session	705
Title	Loyalty in the Central Middle Ages, I: The Loyalties of Women and Their Menfolk
Date/Time	Tuesday 5 July 2022: 14.15-15.45
Sponsor	Haskins Society / Battle Conference on Anglo-Norman Studies
Organiser	Chris Lewis, Institute of Historical Research, University of London
Moderator/Chair	Alice Hicklin, Department of History, University of Sheffield
Paper 705-a	People, Kin, or King?: Mercian Loyalties in the Early 10th Century (Language: English) Morn D. T. Capper, School of History & Archaeology, University of Chester Index Terms: Gender Studies; Mentalities; Social History
Paper 705-b	Women, Families, and the Making of Loyalty in Time and Space: The Kin of Ealdorman Byrhtnoth (Language: English) Berenice Wilson, Institute for Medieval Studies, University of Leeds Index Terms: Gender Studies; Mentalities; Social History
Abstract	Two sessions seek to establish the utility of taking a broad definition of loyalty in the Central Middle Ages. Loyalty covers more than the bonds of men and lords, and subjects and rulers. It can be seen as working up, down, and across social ranks and can encompass group loyalties as well as other forms of dyadic loyalty. Medieval people had loyalties to social groups and kindreds as well as to individuals, and to places and institutions as well as to people, living and dead. The round table will focus on the languages of loyalty, in the words used in Latin and the vernacular to convey feelings and acts of loyalty, and in the discourses of loyalty.