Library Guides: Medievalism (Penn State Berks): Primary Sources

Primary Sources on the Middle Ages

Primary sources are firsthand sources. They can be books, letters, treaties, literature, or other documents written by people in the Middle Ages.

Studying primary sources can help you evaluate whether modern beliefs and portrayals of the medieval period are true-to-life.

Since most medieval works are not copyrighted, you can often find primary sources through Google searches. A list of some of the best web sites offering medieval sources are below.

Internet Medieval History Sourcebook
The starting point for medieval European research.
Internet Medieval Sourcebook Selected Sources: The Crusades
Relive the battles of the Crusades!
Labyrinth
Find primary sources about Armor, Architecture & Engineering, Arthurian Studies, Chivalry, Drama, Furniture, Gardens [Biology], Gender, Alchemy [Chemistry], Math, Medicine, Theology.
Eyewitness to the Middle Ages
Read firsthand accounts of life in a monastery, Viking adventures, the Black Death, crime in the Middle Ages, torture, the Inquisition, and other topics.
Epistolae: Medieval Women's Letters
Letters by and to famous women in the Middle Ages.

Medieval and Early Modern Sources Online
British government documents of the Middle Ages.
Primary source documents. mostly covering British, Irish, and Scottish history during the years 1100-1800. Key sources include the Calendar of State Papers, Close Rolls, Fine Rolls, Acts of the Privy Council, publications from the Royal Commission on Historical Manuscripts and selected original manuscripts from the British National Archives. The documents record the political, ecclesiastical, social, and economic conditions in Britain, Ireland, and Scotland, with some coverage of Continental Europe and the American colonies.