Library guides: Primary sources for humanities: Medieval & Renaissance

Bischoff manuscripts collection, digitised on Monash Collections

New resource!

Medieval Family Life contains full-color images of the original medieval manuscripts that comprise the Paston, Cely, Plumpton, Stonor, and Armburgh family letter collections, along with full-text searchable transcripts from printed editions.

The Paston Family Papers have long been a subject of both literary and historical interest. They are Britain's first surviving records of private correspondence, describing everyday life in East Anglia during the Wars of the Roses. Additionally, this resource includes four other valuable collections relating to medieval families in Essex, Oxfordshire, Yorkshire, and Warwickshire, UK, ca. 1400-90.

Related Library guides

Paleology, Latin and Roman numerals

'Reading old documents'
An excellent section of the National Archives website which has a range of online tutorials on Latin and palaeography.

There are also tutorials on using Roman numerals and a currency converter

Actes royaux français, 1256-1794 = [French Royal Acts, 1256-1794]
Approximately 16,000 pamphlets covering this important period in French history are available in this collection. One of the largest collections of its kind, it offers a wealth of information on the legislative history and governance of France, as well as other aspects of French life. Dealing with the financial and political administration of France proper from the late 13th century to the end of the monarchy, nearly three-quarters of the pamphlets here are concentrated in the 18th century; a considerable number are of earlier origin ...
British history online
This digital library contains some of the core primary and secondary sources for the medieval and modern history of the British Isles. Created by the Institute of Historical Research and the History of Parliament Trust, it aims to support academic and personal users in learning, teaching and research.

Corpus Corporum
Meta-repository and tool developed at the University of Zurich, to facilitate the publishing of Latin texts online.

Early English books online
This database gives full text reproduction access to the works (over 146,000 titles) listed in: Pollard & Redgrave, Short-Title Catalogue (1475-1640) ; Wing, Short-Title Catalogue (1641-1700) ; and the Thomason Tracts (1640-1661). The works in this collection are presented as images, which may be viewed online, or downloaded in PDF format.
EHD (English Historical Documents)
Developed in collaboration with the Institute of Historical Research (IHR) in London, EHD includes primary source documents spanning from 500 A.D. to 1914, along with the previously out-of-print American Colonial Documents. Sources include treaties, statutes, declarations, government and cabinet proceedings, military dispatches, orders, acts, sermons, newspaper articles, pamphlets, personal and official letters, and diaries, covering topics from political and constitutional issues to social, economic, religious and cultural history.

English Broadside Ballad Archive
Epistolae: Medieval women's Latin letters
"Epistolæ is a collection of letters to and from women in the Middle Ages, from the 4th to the 13th century. The letters, written in Latin, are linked to the names of the women involved, with English translations and, where available, biographical sketches of the women and some description of the subject matter or the historic context of the letter.--

Europeana
Europeana.eu is a digital library containing over 30 million items, including images, texts, audio and video, from European museums, galleries, libraries, archives and audio-visual collections.
Gallica : la bibliotheque numerique.
Provides access to selected print and visual resources of the digital library of the National Library of France. Includes full text materials, of which some are searchable.

Internet Medieval Sourcebook
From Fordham University, this is an online source book of copy-permitted, although not necessarily copyright-free, source material for Medieval Studies. It is the largest online resource of medieval and Byzantine textual sources.

Brepols Cross Database Searchtool
The Brepols Cross Database Searchtool (CDS) enables users to consult and search the different full-text Latin databases of Brepols Latin: the Library Of Latin Texts (LLT, Series A and B), the electronic Monumenta Germaniae Historica (eMGH), the Archive of Celtic-Latin Literature (ACLL), and the Aristoteles Latinus Database (ALD) simultaneously.
Library of Latin texts. Series A
The Library of Latin texts. Series A, formerly known as CLCLT] contains texts from the beginning of Latin literature (Livius Andronicus, 240 BC) through to the texts of the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965). It covers all the works from the classical period, the most important patristic works, a very extensive corpus of Medieval Latin literature as well as works of recentior latinitas. The complete works of writers such as Cicero, Virgil, Augustine, Jerome, Gregory the Great, Anselm of Canterbury, Bernard of Clairvaux and Thomas a Kempis can thus be consulted. The texts have been taken from the Corpus Christianorum series and from many other leading editions.
Library of Latin texts : Series B
Primarily designed for finding Latin word forms within the works in this collection. Each search-query shows the results in the context of a sentence, but from here the user can consult the whole text of the work. Texts can also be accessed through an index of author and work references. Each work that is incorporated has been the subject of a historical and literary-critical examination by the Centre Traditio Litterarum Occidentalium (or its predecessor, Cetedoc) and is accompanied by a didactical "memento" (Background on the text) which supplies chronological, bibliographical, critical and statistical information. All relevant Clavis Patrum Latinorum entries have been fully integrated.

Making of the modern world
Works of literature that track the development of the modern, western world through the lens of trade and wealth. Sources published from 1450 through 1850.
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Medieval travel writing
Provides an extensive collection of manuscript materials for the study of medieval travel writing. The core is a collection of medieval manuscripts dating from the 13th to the 16th centuries. The main focus is accounts of journeys to the Holy Land, India and China. The manuscripts are from the British Library; Bodleian Library; Bibliothèque Nationale de France; Cambridge University Library; Trinity College, Cambridge; Universitätsbibliothek Heidelberg and others...
MEMSO : medieval and early modern sources online
A collection of digitized editions of texts concerning the study of Britain and its place in the world during the medieval and early modern period (c. 1100-1800). Covers economic, political, legal, and ecclesiastical history, such as treasury accounts, chronicles, papal registers, etc. Most are from England, Ireland, and Scotland, although some are from Milan and the New World. Includes both printed sources and digitized versions of original manuscripts.

Monash University image databases guide
Monash University Library subscribes to ARTstor which contains more than 1,000,000 digital images covering many time periods and cultures, and documents the fields of architecture, painting, sculpture, photography, decorative arts. The Library also subscribes to Bridgeman Education, Oxford Art Online as well as numerous others. This resource is very useful for locating images from particular collections and time periods.
Monumenta Germaniae Historica
"The Monumenta Germaniae Historica (frequently abbreviated MGH in bibliographies and lists of sources) is a comprehensive series of carefully edited and published primary sources, both chronicle and archival, for the study of German history (broadly conceived) from the end of the Roman Empire to 1500". (Wikipedia.)

Parliament rolls of medieval England
To access: click on "Your Profile" link, then on the parliament book, and then on the chapters in the menu [right hand site of the screen]

Contains searchable full text and translation of the meetings of the English parliaments from Edward I to Henry VII, covering the years from 1275 to 1504, together with a general introduction, separate introductions for each parliament, and appendices containing supplementary materials. Also includes over 100 specimen images of the original rolls.

Royal Archives Georgian Papers Programme
This catalogue contains descriptions and digitised images of material dating from the reigns of George III to William IV, including personal letters, diaries, account books and records of the Royal Household.

State papers online : early modern government in Britain and Europe
State Papers Online offers original historical materials from high level international politics and diplomacy to the charges against a steward for poisoning a dozen or more people. The correspondence, reports, memoranda, and parliamentary drafts from ambassadors, civil servants and provincial administrators present a full picture of Britain from the period of Henry VIII to the reign of George III.
Witchcraft in Europe and America
Witchcraft in Europe and America is a comprehensive collection offering a wide range of writings on the subject of witchcraft. As such, it affords scholars an invaluable opportunity to explore this intriguing historical phenomenon from a variety of perspectives. Included are many rare and fragile manuscripts containing eyewitness accounts and court records of the trials of witches, including harrowing original manuscript depositions taken from the victims in the torture chamber ... Spanning the 15th to 20th centuries, the majority of texts are in Latin, English and German

Isabella d'Este Archive
A scholarly website for the study of the Italian Renaissance through the correspondence, music, and collecting of Isabella d’Este (1474-1539). Isabella d’Este left a legacy of over 29,000 letters which address topics ranging from art collecting and fashion to governing and diplomacy, from food and animals to health and travel.

Acta sanctorum : the full text database
The Acta Sanctorum Database is an electronic version of the complete printed text of Acta Sanctorum, from the edition published in sixty-eight volumes by the Socit des Bollandistes in Antwerp and Brussels. It is a collection of documents examining the lives of saints, organised according to each saint's feast day, and runs from the two January volumes published in 1643 to the Propylaeum to December published in 1940. The Acta Sanctorum Database contains the entire Acta Sanctorum, including all prefatory material, original texts, critical apparatus and indices. Bibliotheca Hagiographica Latina reference numbers, essential references for scholars, are also included.
Defining gender
Provides access to original British source material 1450-1910 which supports the study of history, literature, sociology and education from a gendered perspective. Includes ephemera, pamphlets, commonplace books, diaries, periodicals, letters, ledgers, manuscript journals, poetry, receipt books and conduct and advice literature. Key topics that are addressed include advice, appearance, anatomy, beauty, balls, birth, children, diet, dress, education, etiquette, entertaining, domestic service, fashion, games, health, marriage, medicine, midwifery, parents, recipes, religion, sexuality, sport, speech and theatre. Sections include: Conduct and politeness, Domesticity and the family, Consumption and leisure, Education and sensibility, The body.
Medieval family life
Medieval Family Life contains full-color images of the original medieval manuscripts that comprise the Paston, Cely, Plumpton, Stonor, and Armburgh family letter collections, along with full-text searchable transcripts from printed editions... The Paston Family Papers have long been a subject of both literary and historical interest. They are Britain's first surviving records of private correspondence, describing everyday life in East Anglia during the Wars of the Roses. Additionally, this resource includes four other valuable collections relating to medieval families in Essex, Oxfordshire, Yorkshire, and Warwickshire, UK, ca. 1400-90. There are also a variety of further resources, including family trees, an interactive map, and a wide range of visual sources.

British Library - Catalogue of Illuminated Manuscripts
Find and view descriptions and images of medieval and Renaissance manuscripts in the British Library.
British Library - Digitised Medieval Manuscripts
Digitised copies of manuscripts and archives in the British Library’s collections, with descriptions of their contents. Highlights are: the St Cuthbert Gospel, the Harley Golden Gospels, Beowulf, the Silos Apocalypse, Leonardo da Vinci’s Notebook, the Petit Livre d’Amour and the Golf Book. Selected images of illuminated manuscripts can be found in the Catalogue of Illuminated Manuscripts.
Digita Vaticana
The Vatican Apostolic Library is undertaking a project to digitise over 4,000 ancient manuscripts
DMMapp - Digitized medieval manuscripts app
The DMMapp (Digitized Medieval Manuscripts App) links to more than 500 libraries in the world. Each one of these contains medieval manuscripts that can be browsed for free. The DMMapp is developed by the Sexy Codicology Team.

Domesday book : Britain's finest treasure.
In 1085 William the Conqueror commissioned a survey to discover the resources and taxable values of all the boroughs and manors in England. He wanted to discover who owned what, how much it was worth and how much was owed to him as King in tax, rents, and military service. The result was the Domesday Book. The Domesday Book survives as two volumes, Little Domesday and Great Domesday, and both can be searched on this site. Searching can be by names of places or people, or by folio reference, and scanned images can be downloaded, along with a modern English translation.
Eighteenth century journals : a portal to newspapers and periodicals, c1685-1815.
Portal to newspapers and periodicals c1685-1815. It brings together rare journals printed between c1685 and 1815, illuminating all aspects of eighteenth-century social, political and literary life. Topics include: the writings of Sir Isaac Newton; the French Revolution; reviews of literature, the theater, and fashion throughout Europe; the origins and rise of Romanticism; political debates; gender, religion, influence of the press, and coffee house gossip and discussion.

Guide to finding Medieval manuscripts and old books
Library Guide from the University of Helsinki library
Medieval Manuscripts on the Web
SagaNet : Icelandic medieval literature.
This is a database of digital images of manuscripts and books covering the entire range of Icelandic sagas. The manuscripts are nearly all in Old Norse or Icelandic. Books can be in any European language, as a number of saga translations are included. Germanic/Nordic mythology (the Eddas), the history of the Norwegian kings, contemporary sagas and tales from the European age of chivalry, Icelandic ballads, poetry and epigrams are also included. ...

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Works are from the collections of the National and University Library of Iceland, the Fiske Icelandic Collection at Cornell University, and the Árni Magnússon Institute.

Selden Society Publications and the History of Early English Law
Includes searchable PDF versions of publications from the Selden Society and Harvard's Ames Foundation as well as the English Reports ( 1220-1694), the Statutes of the Realm (1235-1713), and collections of early English legal classics and scholarly law review articles on the subject.

The Wolsey Manuscripts
The Gospel and Epistle Lectionaries commissioned by Cardinal Thomas Wolsey in the final years of the 1520s. The Wolsey Manuscripts site uses the latest in web design and digitisation technology to provide a platform to view these two manuscripts side-by-side, how they were originally intended to be.

World Digital Library
The World Digital Library (WDL) is a project of the U.S. Library of Congress, carried out with the support of the United Nations Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization (UNESCO), and in cooperation with libraries, archives, museums, educational institutions, and international organizations from around the world.

The WDL makes available on the Internet significant primary materials from all countries and cultures. Content on the WDL includes books, manuscripts, maps, newspapers, journals, prints and photographs, sound recordings, and films. Each item on the WDL is accompanied by an item-level description that explains its significance and historical context. Additional information about selected items is provided by curator videos. Other features include advanced image-viewing, timelines, interactive maps, and in-depth thematic sections on selected topics.