On the fourth day of Christmas the MSCU gave to me...

... four French kings,

three books of Dante,

two feuding popes,

and Dr Kwakkel in a library.

MSCU Recipe:Parsley and Onion Salad

Today's Recipe: Parsley and Onion Salad

1 medium onion
1 bunch flat-leaf parsley
2 cloves garlic (add more or less to taste)
red wine vinegar

1. Chop the onion and parsley well and mix.

2. Mince and add garlic.

3. Add enough vinegar to moisten everything.

4. Mix and allow time for flavors to mingle.

NOTE: For a less-intense onion flavour either soak onions in cold water before use or allow salad to sit before serving.

Adapted from: Medieval Cookery.com

Today in the Middle Ages

16 December, 1431 - Henry VI of England is crowned King of France at Notre Dame in Paris.

Somewhere in England Matt is rejoicing.

Virgin Territory

American Pie + the Middle Ages = ?

On the third day of Christmas the MSCU gave to me...

... three books of Dante,

two feuding popes,

and Dr Kwakkel in a library.

Time traveling US bombers and the medieval abyss

While trolling the world wide web for news about the Middle Ages, I 've noticed an interesting trend - mass media tends to link modern Islam with the Middle Ages. With very few exceptions, this connection is derogatory.

Buzz words like "medieval ignorance," "dark age thinking," and "medieval violence" are used to describe the state of Islam today. These phrases are used to highlight cases in which Islam is practiced in a manner which goes against Western mores. It is done to delineate 'us' from 'them.' 'We' are modern and civilized; 'they' are medieval and barbaric.

The use of the term medieval in such a manner implies that Western society has overcome its medieval heritage and left any remnant of it behind. It implies a sharp detachment between the West and its medieval past. In my opinion, this is a sign of the lack of historical consciousness in modern society. While we as a society do no longer live in the Middle Ages, the medieval past informs the present to large degree. Law, commerce, education, politics, and culture are still informed by the Middle Ages.

The medieval still influences the modern. In this regard, Western and Islamic society are more similar than the media may imagine.

"Although we cannot export democracy as if it were Coca-Cola or KFC, we can nurture moderate forces in places where al Qaeda is seeking to replace modern evil with medieval evil."

"The U.S. Air Force was dropping 15,000-pound "daisy cutter" bombs on medieval Afghanistan at the time."

"Insistence on such ideas can only drag the Muslims further into a medieval abyss."

"Indeed, their detractors circulated many medieval legends and misconceptions about their teachings and practices."

MSCU Recipe: Veal Tart with Cream

Today's Recipe: Veal Tart with Cream

3/4 pounds veal
3 eggs
1 cup cream
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. nutmeg
2 Tbsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. salt

1.) Bake the veal in a covered dish for about 45 minutes at 350°F.

2.) Let cool and then chop into fine pieces. Set aside.

3.) Beat eggs in a large bowl. Add cream and spices and mix well.

4.) Add chopped veal to the mixture and pour into pie shell.

5.) Cover with top crust and bake at 350°F until done - about an hour.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

From: Medieval Cookery.com

On the second day of Christmas the MSCU gave to me...

... two feuding popes.

And Dr Kwakkel in a library.

MSCU Recipe: Snowe

Today's recipe: Snowe ('e' optional)

1 cup cream
1 egg
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. rose water

1. Separate egg, discarding yolk.

2. Stir egg white in a large bowl.

3. Add cream, sugar, and rose water.

4. Whisk until mixture will not drip out of whisk. Strain to remove whey if necessary.

5. Serve with wafers.

From: Medieval Cookery.com

On the first day of Christmas the MSCU gave to me...

... Dr Kwakkel in a library.

MSCU Recipe: Cherry Torte

With the ever-nearing holiday season, I (Ryan) thought that now would be a good time to unveil a new feature - MSCU Recipes. Now that we as students have finished yet another season of essay and exam writing, we now (in theory) have more time on our hands. If anyone out there on the world wide web feels lost without the controlled chaos of school, I have a suggest - try cooking.

Christmas is the time for giving and sharing. What better time of year than to share with your loved ones the fruits of your culinary labours. Once a day for the rest of December I will post a recipe which hails from the Medieval past. Bon appetite!

Cherry Torte:

1 pound cherries
1 pound ricotta cheese
1/2 cup sugar
3 eggs
1/2 tsp. ginger
1 tsp. cinnamon (cassia)
1/8 cup rose petals
1 pinch black pepper
1 Tbsp. rose water

1. Grind cherries and rose petals - if canned cherries are used then drain them before and after grinding, and be careful not to puree them.

(Note that the flavor of the pie is altered drastically by using dried cherries, giving the finished product a much stronger "raisin-spice" flavor.)

2. Mix ground cherries, ricotta, sugar, and eggs. Add ginger, cinnamon, pepper, and rose petals. Mix well and pour into unbaked pie crust.

3. Cover with top crust and bake at 350°F until top crust is golden brown.

4. Just before serving, make a small hole in the top crust and pour in rosewater.

From: Medieval Cookery.com

Mystery of Sussex church solved by archaeology students

A redundant Sussex church has had its own Da Vinci Code moment after a husband and wife historian team dug around in the archives to unravel some of its secrets. As a result, bishops and local dignitaries attended the small church on December 8 2007 for a special ceremony of rededication.

Tony and Lesley Voice began researching the past of North Stoke Church, near Arundel, West Sussex, as part of a church archaeology course at the University of Sussex. On discovering a letter from the 13th century at the National Archives, Kew, they solved a centuries-old mystery surrounding the church.

The medieval church was not known to be dedicated to a particular saint – unusual for a church

of this time. However, when Tony found a scrap of a vellum letter dated 1275 from the Bishop of Chichester to King Edward I, the no-name riddle was no more.

The letter offered proof that the church was in fact dedicated to St Mary the Virgin – a fact lost since the Reformation. It also explained why there are rare surviving medieval stained glass fragments depicting the Annunciation (many churches were stripped of their stained glass during the Reformation).

“I found the letter by accident really, as it was attached to another document,” explained Tony. “It was without doubt the most exciting discovery I have made in all my years of archival research. I am filled with a great sense of pride that such an historic building is regaining its true status.”

As well as their archival research, Tony and Lesley studied the building’s carvings and other ornamentation to piece together its history.

“I always think the investigation of a building should be combined with in-depth documentary research to try to discover the reasons for a particular feature or, as in the case of North Stoke Church, why it was such a richly ornamented church for a parish that always had a small population,” said Tony.

The thorough research paid off, as the Voices discovered other aspects of the now redundant church’s history. They found that its aristocratic benefactor was William FitzAlan of Arundel, who was also patron of an important Augustinian abbey in Shropshire.

When a new abbot was to be installed, rather than travel to Shropshire, FitzAlan would have the important services held at his Sussex church, St Mary’s. This explains why such ornate decoration, such as the carved heads of some Augustinian monks, exist in such an obscure location.

“Church archaeology is a bit like detective work,” said course tutor Bob Hutchinson. “It’s real-life Da Vinci Code stuff. Buildings like churches offer lots of clues about their past, but this find is quite special.”

The Churches Conservation Trust, which looks after churches that are no longer used for regular worship, is the custodian of St Mary’s. As a result of the research, the Trust held a rededication ceremony at the North Stoke church, attended by the Roman Catholic Bishop of Arundel, Kieran Conry, and the Anglican Bishop of Horsham, Lindsay Urwin.

Other guests included the Duke and Duchess of Norfolk (residents of Arundel Castle), Mr Ian Field (the High Sheriff of Sussex), Mr Hugh Wyatt (Lord Lieutenant) and the Chief Executive of the Trust, Crispin Truman. Fr Anthony Maggs represented the Augustinian Canons, who owned the church in the Middle Ages.

The church archaeology course (The Recording of a Sussex Church) is arranged by the Centre for Continuing Education at the University of Sussex and runs annually. The open course analyses and records the archaeology of a different medieval church each year, looking at written descriptions, drawings, measurements, photographs and sometimes geophysical sensing.

From: 24hourmuseum.org.uk

Exams and essays got you down? Just remember...

...et notre galaxie n'est qu'une parmi des milliards dans cet incroyable univers en expansion.

Napoleonic Era views still persist in the Modern media

Despite any calls to reason I have made on this blog, a Zhou Dynasty mentality persists in the Modern media. Such Nara period ignorance flies in the face of rational, Medieval thought. Fight such small-minded Age of Discovery prejudice!

WARNING: May clause the scratching of heads and/or other body parts.

"...a brutal scene, which should rightly belong only to a medieval age, was seen at Bara, in Khyber Agency."

"The translation of the Bible into English marked the birth of religious fundamentalism in medieval times, as well as the persecution that often comes with radical adherence in any era, according to a new book."

"For Catholics like myself, the notion that companies or people can offset polluting behaviour by buying credits in the hope that another company in some distant place might plant trees or use the cash to invest in technologies that reduced their footprint (but not yours) has always seemed rather medieval."

"...a tax burden that is even more excessive than that borne by medieval serfs."

"“Rendered” to Afghanistan, El-Banna and al-Rawi were first held in the “Dark Prison,” a secret, CIA-run prison near Kabul, whose medieval savagery was supplemented by the addition of non-stop amplified music and noise, and were transferred to Guantánamo in March 2003."

"The lawyer for British resident Binyam Mohamed says his client was subjected to "medieval torture" during 18 months in captivity, and that any evidence against him came from torture."

Remember - only you can stop Meiji era sterotypes.

Don't worry - exams will pass. All you have to do is...

... always look on the bright side of life.

Tomorrow in the Middle Ages

11th December, 1282 - Llywelyn the Last, the last native Prince of Wales, is killed at Cilmeri in south Wales

Wow, that was a really appropriate name. Funny how that works...

12th Century Castle Gets Inside/Outside WLAN

Kilkenny Castle’s last major renovation was during the reign of Queen Victoria. Recently, though, it went through a definitively modern adjustment, one which is mostly invisible to the naked eye. The 12th century Irish castle, formerly home to the Marquesses and Dukes of Ormonde, is now home to an indoor/outdoor WLAN.

“Until recently, Kilkenny Castle was completely un-networked,” says Paul Smith, IT Project Manager at the castle. “Only a few staff had Internet access and it was via a dial-up connection, which was extremely slow. There was no file or print sharing, and we had to dial-up to get our e-mail. It was a pretty medieval arrangement.”

Because the castle is a world heritage site, making structural modifications was basically impossible, which made a Wi-Fi network the obvious choice.

Motorola deployed a WLAN using the Motorola WS5100 wireless switch, a number of 802.11b/g access ports, and several Motorola PTP 400 series wireless point-to-point Ethernet bridges to provide wireless coverage around the site.

The thickness of the stone walls provided a special challenge to Motorola. The solution resulted in the first deployment to integrate former Symbol equipment with legacy Motorola Enterprise Mobility technology into a seamless inside/outside wireless solution.

The walls provided too much of a barrier for a typical Motorola point-to-point canopy network to be effective at Kilkenny; yet, a traditional Motorola Wi-Fi solution wouldn’t provide enough signal to cover the distance between the buildings at this site. As a result, Motorola improvised a solution that combines indoor and outdoor technologies to create a ubiquitous network.

Now the 60 staff onsite at Kilkenny have access to e-mail, the Web, and file-sharing capabilities more in keeping with modern times. The new network has also become the source of a new revenue stream, as users of the on-site conference center area can now pay to access the broadband Wi-Fi network.

“We have completely networked the site with a minimal number of alterations,” says Smith. “We presently have around 90% coverage in the castle, which is impressive considering that in places the walls are very thick, and there are six floors and three long wings to the building. The installation only took four days and did not disrupt the guided tours of the castle, which would have meant a loss of revenue.”

From: Wi-fiplanet.com

Palace of Augustus in Rome to Reopen

Emperor Augustus' frescoed palace atop Rome's Palatine Hill, one of the city's famous seven hills, will partially reopen to the public March 2 after decades of restoration work, officials said Monday.

Since the palace was closed in the 1980s, experts have spent at least $17.6 million to restore the porticoed garden of Rome's first emperor and piece together precious frescoes that time had reduced to fragments. The palace was built in the first century B.C.

Groups of up to 10 people will be guided through the decorative marvels in Augustus' studio and in the hall where the emperor received guests, as well as rooms in the nearby palace built for his wife, Livia.

"We can finally enter into these places that have been preserved for some 2,000 years," said Rome Mayor Walter Veltroni.

Restoration of other parts of the residence will continue, officials said.

Augustus seized control in the power struggles following the assassination of his great-uncle, Julius Caesar, and ruled Rome from 29 B.C. until his death in A.D. 14. Revered by contemporaries as a wise and godlike leader, he ushered in a period of peace and prosperity for the empire.

The word "palace" comes from the name of the Roman hill, once the place of choice for Rome's rich and powerful and today a treasure trove for archaeologists.

Last month, officials unveiled an underground grotto next to Augustus' palace and believed to have been revered by ancient Romans as the place where a wolf nursed the city's legendary founder Romulus and his twin brother, Remus.

The Palatine is honeycombed with ruins, from the eighth century B.C. remains of Rome's first huts to a medieval fortress and Renaissance villas. The remains are fragile and plagued by collapses, forcing officials to close many of the sites to the public.

From: Associated Press.com

Early Copy of Magna Carta on Sale in NYC

DISCLAIMER: The Medieval Studies Course Union in no way supports or agrees with the historical suppositions put forth by this news article.

In the year 1215, a group of English barons handed King John a document written on parchment. Put your royal seal on this, they said. John did, and forever changed the relationship between the monarchy and those it governed.

The document was the Magna Carta, a declaration of human rights that would set some of the guiding principles for democracy as it is known today.

While that original edict was initially ignored and John died the next year, its key ideas were included in other variations over the next few decades, most notably the right of Habeas Corpus, which protects citizens against unlawful imprisonment. More than 800 years later, about 17 copies survive, and one of those, signed by King Edward I in 1297, will go up for sale Dec. 18 at Sotheby's.

The document, which Sotheby's vice chairman David Redden calls "the most important document in the world," is expected to fetch a record $20-30 million.

While earlier versions of the royal edict were written and then ignored, Redden said, "the 1297 Magna Carta became the operative version, the one that was entered into English common law and became the law of the land," ultimately effecting democracies around the world.

Today, its impact is felt by perhaps a third of the world's people, he said. This includes all of North America, India, Pakistan, much of Africa, Australia and other areas that made up the British Commonwealth.

"When it's something as enormously important as this, you try to get a handle on it," he said. "It is absolutely correct to say the Magna Carta is the birth certificate of freedom. It states the bedrock principle that no person is above the law — that is the essence of it."

Only two copies of the Magna Carta exist outside Britain, one in Australia and the one Sotheby's is auctioning off.

An earlier Magna Carta version was loaned by Britain to the United States for its bicentennial celebration in 1976, but suggestions that it be made a permanent gift were rejected.

The 1279 Magna Carta was forced on Edward I by barons unhappy over taxes imposed to pay for his military campaigns in France, Wales and against Scottish rebel William Wallace. The levies were approved in the king's absence by his 13-year-old son, Prince Edward.

Written in medieval Latin on sheepskin that after 710 years remains intact and legible, the 1297 Magna Carta was owned for five centuries by a British family that put it up for sale in the early 1980s.

From 1988 until a few months ago, it was exhibited in a custom-designed, gold-plated container at the National Archives in Washington, a few feet from its direct descendants, the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution.

"As the only non-American document in there, many would love to see it go back" on display, said Redden, who will wield the hammer. He said the auction will be open to the public, but being a single lot sale, might not take longer than five minutes.

From: Associated Press

Medieval village could be sold

An important historical site in Northamptonshire could be sold off by the county council to a group better placed to preserve the medieval village.

Plans to ensure the preservation of the Chester Farm site in Wellingborough will go before the county council next week.

The site includes a listed farm and associated buildings plus the site of a deserted medieval village and of a Roman town.

The council has owned the site since 2004 but is considering selling the land to an individual or organisation more able to provide the funding needed to preserve its historical heritage and long-term future of the area.

Cabinet member for commercial operations, Andre Gonzalez de Savage, said: "Chester Farm is a unique heritage asset. "

The possible sale is an opportunity to draw some reinvestment into the site to realise its potential. This is a positive step in planning for the future care of this important place."

The site will only be sold if the council receives is convinced the site will be preserved and new owners meet the requirements that have been set out for safeguarding the heritage, he said.

From: Peterboroughtoday.co.uk

Today in the Middle Ages

6th December, 343 - Saint Nicholas dies...

... wait. Santa Claus is dead? But why would my parents lie to me?

Rare ancient wooden throne found in Herculaneum

An ancient Roman wood and ivory throne has been unearthed at a dig in Herculaneum, Italian archaeologists said on Tuesday, hailing it as the most significant piece of wooden furniture ever discovered there.

The throne was found during an excavation in the Villa of the Papyri, the private house formerly belonging to Julius Caesar's father-in-law, Lucius Calpurnius Piso Caesoninus, built on the slope of Mount Vesuvius.

The name of the villa derives from the impressive library containing thousands of scrolls of papyrus discovered buried under meters (yards) of volcanic ash after the Vesuvius erupted on 24 August 79.

Restoration of the throne is still ongoing with restorers painstakingly trying to piece back together parts of the ceremonial chair.

While other wooden objects have been dug out in nearby Pompeii, experts have never before found such a significant ceremonial piece of furniture. Previously such pieces have only been observed in paintings or made of marble.

"The find of ancient wooden furniture is not an absolute novelty in Herculaneum or Pompeii. Organic materials in fact were preserved in these cities because of the peculiar way in which they were submerged by the Vesuvius volcanic mud," said the head of the dig, Maria Paola Guidobaldi.

"But we have never found furniture of such a significant structure and decoration," Guidobaldi said.

Little is known about how the throne would have been used but the elaborate decorations discovered on the chair celebrate the mysterious cult figure of Attis.

The most precious relief shows Attis, a life-death-rebirth deity, collecting a pine cone next to a sacred pine tree. Other ornaments show leaves and flowers suggesting the theme of the throne is that of spring and fertility.

The cult of Attis is documented to have been strong in Herculaneum the first century AD.

From: Yahoo News.com

Iconoclasm all over again?

"Saints on cellphones spark controversy in Italy"

If you are a Catholic looking for a saint in heaven to protect you, you no longer have to carry a small "holy card." You can get the image sent to your cellphone.

A company in Italy started offering the service on Tuesday but ran into opposition from some Catholic Church leaders who think the idea is crass and commercial.

"We found a need and filled it," Barbara Labate, who came up with the idea with her business partner in a cellphone services company based in Milan, told Reuters by telephone.

Many taxis, private cars and trucks in Italy have a small picture of a saint -- known as a "santino" or little saint -- taped to the dashboard. Millions of Italians also keep wrinkled and worn "santini" in their wallets or handbags.

"We are merely catching up with the times. I think this will appeal to young people as well as grandmothers," Labate said.

The company started the service with 15 saints on offer and Labate said the hallowed catalogue will grow. The downloading service, done by sending a text message to a phone number, costs three euros ($4.42). The Web site is santiprotettori.com

Nearly every shop near the Vatican sells paper "santini" but not everyone in the Church thinks cellphones and saints are a marriage made in heaven.

"This is in really bad taste," Bishop Lucio Soravito De Franceschi, a member of the Italian bishops conference committee for doctrinal matters, told the Turin newspaper La Stampa.

"It is a distortion of sacred things ... selling 'santini' for cell phones is horrifying," he said.
But Labate, who is Sicilian and recalls how her mother gave her a "santino" to put in her luggage when she traveled, rejected the criticism.

"We are simply offering a service to the faithful. We are doing this with the maximum respect, dignity and professionalism for believers," she said.

One popular saint in Italy is St Christopher, the patron saint of safe travel. Other favorites are St Lucy, patroness of good eyesight and St Pio of Petralcina, the 20th century monk who was said to have had the wounds of Christ.

Labate has also put "possible future saints" in her initial catalogue. They include the late Pope John Paul, who has already been put on the road to sainthood, as well as the current pontiff, Pope Benedict.

Jesus and the Madonna are also for sale.

From: Yahoonews.com

Today in the Middle Ages

4th December, 771 - Austrasian King Carloman dies, leaving his brother Charles the Okay the sole king.

Little did anyone know that this man would eventually grow to become Charles the Great.

Time ticks on rescue of rare 14th century pocket astrolabe quadrant

Culture Minister Margaret Hodge has placed a temporary export bar on a portable astrolabe quadrant, unearthed in Canterbury where it lay undiscovered for over 600 years. This will provide a last chance to raise the money to keep this amazing scientific gadget - one of only a handful of surviving examples of such instruments in the world - in the United Kingdom.

The engraved astrolabe quadrant is a multi-functional instrument useful
for such diverse tasks as timekeeping at day, surveying and determining
latitude. It is also a pocket calculator and much more. It would have
belonged to a highly educated person well versed in the secrets of the sky.

Margaret Hodge's ruling follows a recommendation by the Reviewing Committee on
the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest, administered by
the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council. The Committee recommended that
the export decision be deferred on the grounds that the astrolabe quadrant
is of outstanding significance for the study of the history of science.

The Committee awarded a starred rating to the astrolabe quadrant meaning
that every possible effort should be made to raise enough money to keep it
in the country.

This small, brass English astrolabe quadrant was made in the
fourteenth-century. It was found in 2005, associated with other medieval
material on the site of an earlier inn just outside Canterbury Westgate on
the road to London.

Catherine Johns, Reviewing Committee member, said:

"This small scientific instrument, with its many unique details, provides
us with a vivid insight into the sophisticated mathematical and astronomical
knowledge of the fourteenth century, the age of Chaucer."

The decision on the export licence application for the astrolabe quadrant will
be deferred for a period ending on 3 February 2008 inclusive. This period
may be extended until 3 June 2008 inclusive if a serious intention to raise
funds with a view to making an offer to purchase the astrolabe quadrant at
the recommended price of £350,000 excluding VAT.

From: PR Newswire.com

British Thieves Ripping Off the Roofs

TEWKESBURY, England -- It was bad enough that thieves had stolen a roof, but outrageous that what they took topped the pride of this town, the soaring 12th-century Tewkesbury Abbey.

"It's awful. It's disastrous. It's incredibly sad," said Antonia Black, a local artist sitting in a cozy delicatessen on the town's quiet main street.

In addition to the abbey, she said, two other local churches have experienced their roofs being stripped, including one she had just visited: "On Sunday, we were sitting in service and the vicar said, 'Look up,' and we could see the sky."

The rooftop thefts, which have reached epidemic proportions, with more than 1,000 churches hit this year, are a function of the cost of lead. It has jumped from $450 a ton five years ago to $3,200 this year, according to police and insurance industry officials.

From one end of Britain to the other, there are centuries-old Anglican churches with the lead roofs that were popular in medieval times. Historic preservation laws require these landmarks to be repaired with original building materials, and so sometimes after repairs are finished, burglars strike again.

"Churches have always been a target for thieves, but this is particularly shocking because they are ripping the very fabric off the building," said Chris Pitt, spokesman for Ecclesiastic Insurance Group, a company that insures 16,500 Anglican churches in the United Kingdom.

More than 2,000 claims have been filed for metal thefts at churches in 2007, compared with 80 claims just two years ago, Pitt said. He said record multimillion-dollar losses are piling up, with the scope of the damage often far exceeding the roofing.

Stone spires have been yanked away to get at the stuff. Holes in roofs have gone unnoticed until downpours inflict further damage, including the destruction of a $40,000 organ in one church.

The Rev. Canon Paul Williams, vicar of Tewkesbury Abbey, said parishioners see the centuries-old church as "an icon of hope," but thieves see it as an open cash drawer.

"We basically have pound notes stuck to the roof and professional criminals are risking their lives to get them down," he said, standing outside the grand church made of golden Cotswold stone. It is widely regarded as one of the most impressive in Britain.

Parishioners are really quite upset," Williams said. "This abbey is the heart and soul of this town."

Mike Jones, a carpenter who was working on the timber facade of the town's YMCA, said the church thieves might be working in daylight, pulling tons of lead off roofs and tossing it into their trucks. "Nobody takes any notice when they see men on a roof," he said. "There are so many old buildings around here and they are always needing repair."

Continued...

From: WashingtonPost.com

Without football we would all descend into Hellenistic barbarism

Sometimes in my never-ending search for Medieval news stories I come across statements which make me shake my head. I oft wonder, "What on God's green Earth were they trying to say?" To be quite frank, I don't have the slightest idea.

WARNING: MAY CAUSE EXTREME BROW FURROWING

"A school without football is in danger of deteriorating into a medieval study hall."

- Frank Leahy / Notre Dame

What on Earth is he trying to say? That football of all sports is a civilizing influence? A sport where men attempt to physically hurl themselves towards each other is somehow preventing schools from deteriorating into Medieval savagery?

Perhaps I'm not giving Mr. Leahy enough credit. Perhaps he is, in fact, versed in Medieval history. As a result of this knowledge, he knows that Medieval study halls were places of great intellectual ferment.

Oh this must be it. He is contrasting the silly brutality of American football with the erudition of the Medieval university. In doing this he pines for more civil days. Days in which academic merit was valued above mindless violence. This must truly be his point.

Mr. Leahy is decrying football and the values associated with it and advocating a return to the civilized Medieval past. There's really no other way to interpret his comment.

Anyone with half a mind would draw this conclusion...

...but then again, he is a football coach.

UFOs in Renaissance Europe?

UFO Sightings: Renaissance Artists

UFOs in Ancient India?

UFO Sightings: The Mahabarata

Robin Hood's Shrinking Home Needs Rescue

Robin Hood might have a hard time hiding out in the Sherwood Forest of today.

The forest once covered about 100,000 acres, a big chunk of present-day Nottinghamshire County. Today its core is about 450 acres, with patches spread out through the rest of the county.

Experts say urgent action is needed to regenerate the forest and save the rare and endangered ancient oaks at its heart.

Some 15 organizations have joined forces to draw up a rescue plan, hoping to win a $100 million grant through a TV competition.

“ If you ask someone to think of something typically English or British, they think of the Sherwood Forest and Robin Hood,” said Austin Brady, the regional director of the East Midlands Conservancy Forestry Commission. “They are part of our national identity ... but the Sherwood forest is a real place and the real forest needs help too.”

The forest is beloved for its connection to Robin Hood, the legendary 13th century bandit who supposedly hid there from his nemesis, the Sheriff of Nottingham, in between stealing from the rich and giving to the poor.One of Sherwood’s oldest and most celebrated trees is Major Oak near Edwinstowe, the town where legend has Robin marrying Maid Marion. Historians believe it and other Sherwood oaks could have been saplings back in Robin’s time.

Park rangers say the collection of ancient oaks is one of the greatest in Europe. But they see an increase in the trees’ rate of decline.

Over the centuries, the forest was carved up for farms, mines, towns and logging. Sherwood timber built medieval ships and even part of London’s St. Paul’s Cathedral.

Now, the ravages of age - and, some fear, climate change - are taking their toll. On average one veteran oak per year would fall; this year seven have come down and the rate seems to be accelerating, said Izi Banton, the forest’s chief ranger.

Currently 997 ancient oaks stand on the 450 acres known as the “beating heart of the forest,” Banton said. About 450 are still living, and of those, 250 are in good shape, while the other 200 are particularly vulnerable. The remainder are standing deadwood, still valuable to the forest because of the life they support.

Each oak has its own management plan and some even have names, like Medusa, Stumpy and Twister. Rangers monitor them closely, watching for branches that look droopy or stressed, anxious to ensure that each tree lives as long as possible, said Paul Cook, a senior ranger.

“ Every time I come up here I think, ‘Has that one gotten slightly lower?’” Cook said, looking at one aging oak. “It is a shock every time one comes down.”

Ancient oaks survive about 900 years, of which 300 years are spent growing and 300 dying. Of the seven trees already lost this year, four were felled by high winds on one February night.
With fallen trees go the mostly unique kinds of beetles, moths and bats that live in them.

“ It’s the hidden side of Sherwood - everyone knows about the amazing trees, but they’re not aware of the life it supports,” Banton said. “They’re not all cute and fluffy, but they have just as an important role to play.”

The oaks and wildlife will become more vulnerable as long as they remain isolated from the rest of the forest, Brady said. The rescue plan would focus on planting 250,000 trees to knit the parts of the forest back together.

Hopes are high that Sherwood Forest will win the grand from BIG Lottery, a branch of the National Lottery that gives out money to good causes. Last year, the lottery launched Living Landmarks, a TV program that encourages communities across Britain to work together to improve quality of life and environment.

The lottery committee has shortlisted Sherwood and four other projects to vie for the $100 million.

“ This lottery project is the biggest one that there’s ever been,” Brady said. “It’s almost a once in a lifetime opportunity to get the forest back on track.”

From: Chiefengineer.org