A fascinating snapshot of medieval society, this documentary narrated by Rob Brydon uses dramatic reconstructions and original animation to reveal the clash between reason and the supernatural at the heart of the medieval mind. In 1307, the full weight of medieval justice descended on the sleepy town of Hereford. But this court wasn't summoned to prove innocence or guilt. The man on trial wasn't a murderer or a criminal. In fact, he wasn't even alive. This was a holy inquiry, called by the Church to prove whether a dead English bishop was actually a miracle-worker and should be made into a saint. His case was based on several alleged miracles, the most notorious being the spectacular resurrection of a hanged man. The man - a Welsh 'terrorist' executed by the state and hanged twice just to make sure - somehow came back to life. A papal court would use all the instruments of legal process - witness statements, forensic evidence, cross-examination - to prove whether it was truly a miracle.
One of the world's greatest authorities on the Middle Ages, Professor Robert Bartlett of St Andrew's University, investigates the intellectual landscape of the medieval world. In the first programme, Knowledge, he explores the way medieval man understood the world - as a place of mystery, even enchantment. The world was a book written by God. But as the Middle Ages grew to a close, it became a place to be mastered, even exploited. In Sex, he unearths remarkable evidence of the complex passions of medieval men and women. The Church preached hatred of the flesh, promoted the cult of virginity and condemned woman as the sinful heir to Eve. Yet this was the era that gave birth to the idea of romantic, or 'courtly' love. In Belief, the supernatural comes under the spotlight. The medieval dead shared the world with the living: the cult of the saints, encounters with the dead, and visions of the next world were all seen as proof of a two-way traffic between this world and the next. In the final programme, Power, Professor Bartlett lays bare the brutal framework of the medieval class system. Inequality was a part of the natural order: the life of serfs was little better than those of animals, while the knight's code of chivalry was based more on caste solidarity than morality. The class you were born into determined who you were.
We Brits love our cookbooks. We buy millions of them and treat our celebrity chefs like royalty. But where did it all begin? In this documentary, self-confessed medieval foodie Clarissa Dickson Wright tracks down Britain's oldest known cookbook - The Forme of Cury. This 700-year-old scroll was written during the reign of King Richard II from recipes created by his own master chefs.
A fascinating snapshot of medieval society, this documentary narrated by Rob Brydon uses dramatic reconstructions and original animation to reveal the clash between reason and the supernatural at the heart of the medieval mind. In 1307, the full weight of medieval justice descended on the sleepy town of Hereford. But this court wasn't summoned to prove innocence or guilt. The man on trial wasn't a murderer or a criminal. In fact, he wasn't even alive. This was a holy inquiry, called by the Church to prove whether a dead English bishop was actually a miracle-worker and should be made into a saint. His case was based on several alleged miracles, the most notorious being the spectacular resurrection of a hanged man. The man - a Welsh 'terrorist' executed by the state and hanged twice just to make sure - somehow came back to life. A papal court would use all the instruments of legal process - witness statements, forensic evidence, cross-examination - to prove whether it was truly a miracle.
The great cathedrals were the wonders of the Medieval World: the tallest buildings since the pyramids and the showpieces of Medieval Christianity. Yet they were built at a time when most of us lived in hovels. Architectural historian Jon Cannon explores who were the people that built them and how were they able to achieve such a bold vision.
Self-confessed medieval foodie Clarissa Dickson Wright tracks down Britain's oldest known cookbook - The Forme of Cury. This 700-year-old scroll was written during the reign of King Richard II from recipes created by his own master chefs. Clarissa unravels recipes fit for a king - sourcing authentic ingredients, discovering medieval gastronomic techniques and cooking in a period kitchen to recreate this regal fare. In doing so, she creates a historical portrait of the lush extravagance that surrounded the young king. The huge variety of dishes that Clarissa finds in the book - from venison and beaver to pike and lamprey, indicates this really was the golden age of the omnivore. As she prepares food using traditional techniques, she wonders what our modern palate will make of the unusual combinations of flavours. The King's Cookbook is a culinary journey through medieval history, reawakening recipes that have lain dormant for centuries. But equally interesting is the discovery that many dishes are still prepared and eaten the same way today.
