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Medieval Myths & Mysteries

By: Dorsey Armstrong, The Great Courses
Narrated by: Dorsey Armstrong
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Summary

Was King Arthur a real person? What about Robin Hood? Is the Holy Grail a cup, or something else, altogether? Did Europeans really burn millions of people at the stake for witchcraft, in the past? These are just a few of the questions you will explore with the help of medieval scholar Dorsey Armstrong as she reveals the truth about the stories we continue to tell about the medieval period. Some contain nuggets of truth, others are wholly fabricated, but all of them can tell us something about the past.

From films like Braveheart and Excalibur to literature such as Ivanhoe and Morte d’Arthur, the years between 500 and 1500 have generated amazing stories of knights and damsels, superstitions and magic; some of these stories even made it into our grade school history curriculum. But what were those years really like? Known, somewhat inaccurately, as the “Middle Ages,” this period was not merely a transition from Roman antiquity to the Renaissance, but a vibrant time full of people just as curious, innovative, malicious, joyful, confused, ambitious, complex - in other words, just as human - as in any other period of history.

The 10 enlightening (and often humorous) lectures of Medieval Myths and Mysteries will show you how far from the “dark” times of legend these centuries were. Uncover the facts about the Knights Templar. Reveal the truth behind the tales of legendary creatures like the Questing Beast and the unicorn. Trace the events of the Black Death and the ways it altered the world in its wake, and much more.

With Professor Armstrong, you will dig deep into the ways that later generations reshaped the narrative of the medieval years and perpetuated the myths of a simpler and less civilized age, which was, in fact, much richer and more complex than many of us have been led to believe.

©2019 Audible Originals, LLC (P)2019 Audible Originals, LLC.
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What listeners say about Medieval Myths & Mysteries

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What a great listen!

Don't know what I was expecting, perhaps something a little dry and dusty but Ms Armstrong's approach to medieval history and it's myths is anything but. I thoroughly enjoyed both the approach taken and the delivery. Armstrong is both informative and IMO accurate. Her narrative is bright with humour and you can tell she enjoys her subject: it's infectious. I will happily be listening to this again soon.

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Historically accurate yet super entertaining

Professor Dorsey Armstrong gives a show performance with very interesting historical facts full of vivid accounts of facts, myths and mysteries!

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loved it.

I liked this book alot more than I thought I would. I thought ''ok, it might be interesting, let's give it a go''. I loved it, extremely interesting, going from the knights templars to game of thrones, the holy grail to the black death was captivating, I couldn't stop listening and the narrator has a nice, easy to listen to voice which makes all the difference when it comes to audiobooks.

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Enthralling

This series of lectures is addictive. I could not stop listening. Just brilliantly explained, really educational and totally entertaining

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This was awesome

I was expecting a dry march through history, but this was thrilling! The author(s) clearly have a passion for the period which comes through in every syllable. Lots of compelling insights throughout.

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5 Star - Fascinating Course

This series of lectures explores the mystery, romance and myths of the Medieval period in a scholarly and engaging way. I was thoroughly captivated from the start. The lecture on the Black Death in particular shed new light on this pandemic. I will certainly now listen to the lecturer's course on The Black Death and The Medieval World to learn more. The lecturer's passion and enthusiasm is infectious, her commentary objective and, although inevitably speculative at times, is always grounded on the historical record.

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Great stuff

A very interesting and well put together series of lectures, informative and very entertaining, perfect amount of detail so it never becomes boring

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Excellent introduction to medieval literature, mythology and modern relevance

Thanks Dorsey Armstrong for an informative and simplified course, which I think very many will enjoy as I do.

For students or potential students of history or anyone alive who wants to stop and think, “Oh that’s what that means.”

Well, that’s my experience of this enjoyable introduction, which I will listen to again, deepen this foundation and enjoy.

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Very informative!

This was a great listen and so much interesting information in a short series. Highly recommended!

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So entertaining!

Such a good listen either just great energy and enthusiasm as topic that I usually haven’t engage with that much is now of great interest

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