29 May 2026, German Historical Institute in London
Organised by the German Historical Institute London and the German History Society
Programme
Commentators: Henrike Lähnemann (Oxford) & Christian Jaser (Kassel)
Convenors: Thomas Kaal (GHIL) and Marcus Meer (UCL)
9.30 Session 1 (Chair: Thomas Kaal)
- Henrike Lähnemann (Oxford): The Nuns’ Letters – Work-in-Progress
- Temitope Fagunwa (Lüneburg): From ‘‘Moors Are Not Blacks’’ to Mohr Muss Weg: Identity and Misrepresentation in Europe
- Erik Pauls (Berlin), The Typus of the ‘Heretic’ and its Function in Historical Thinking
11.00 Coffee & Tea
11.30 Session 2 (Chair: Marcus Meer)
- Christian Jaser (Kassel): Digital Edition of Medieval Accounting Records (Examples from Munich and Vienna in the Early 15th Century)
- Thomas Billard (Paris/Konstanz) Accountability: Critical Study of the recording of Accounting Documents in Urban Areas of the Southern Empire (Basel, Nördlingen, Nuremberg, 14th–15th centuries)
- Hila Manor (Jerusalem): Beyond the City Walls: Persistence and Permeability in the Expulsion of Jews from Merseburg
13.00 Lunch
14.00 Session 3 (Chair: Thomas Kaal)
- Anna Wilmore (Oxford): ‘Ich bin din gespile’: Play as Paradigm in Mechthild of Magdeburg
- Tina Druckmüller (Cologne): From Another Perspective: Hildegard of Bingen on the Origin of the Soul
15.00 Session 4 (Chair: Gabriele Passabi)
- Carolin Victoria König (Oxford): The Interrelation of Image and Text and the Popularity of Sebastian Brant’s ‘The Ship of Fools’
- Arik Solomon (Be’er- Sheva): Measured Marvels: Ingenuity and Artistic Exchange in Nuremberg around 1500
16.00 Coffee & Tea
16.30 Session 5 (Chair: Marcus Meer)
- Ole Bunte (Bielefeld): Narrating War: A Cultural History of War in 15th Century East Central Europe
- Laura Potzuweit (Kiel), The Baltic Sea as a Room of Diplomacy? The Kalmar Union, the Teutonic Order, and other Key Players as a Late Medieval Communication Network
17:30 End
19:00 Conference Dinner
Students and researchers interested in medieval German history are very welcome to attend and listen to the presentations. There is no charge for attendance, but pre-booking is essential due to limited capacity. If you would like to attend as a guest, please contact Kim König.
The Call for Papers
This one-day workshop on the history of medieval Germany (broadly defined) offers an opportunity for researchers from Europe and the wider English-speaking world to meet at the German Historical Institute in London. Participants will be able to discuss their work in a relaxed and friendly setting and to learn more about each other’s research.
Proposals for short papers of 10–15 minutes are invited from researchers at all career stages with an interest in any aspect of the history of medieval Germany. Participants are encouraged to present work in progress, highlight research questions and approaches, and point to yet unresolved challenges of their projects. Presentations will be followed by a discussion.
Participation is free of charge and includes lunch and dinner. The GHIL and the GHS will also provide a contribution towards travel expenses. Accommodation costs cannot be reimbursed. Support is available for postgraduate and early career researchers: up to £150 for travel within the UK (excluding London) and up to 300€ for an economy round trip from Europe. Please indicate your interest in travel support in your application.
We look forward to reading your proposals. Please send your submission—which must include a title, an abstract of c.2000 words, and a biographical note of no more than c.1000 words—to Thomas Kaal: t.kaal@ghil.ac.uk. Questions about all aspects of the workshop can also be sent to Marcus Meer: m.meer@ucl.ac.uk.