Who are you beyond death?   What can human remains tell us about the life history and death of individuals in four different battles in North-western Europe between 1400-1600s?

This thesis aims to study the use of analysis on skeletal remains in order to understand more about life histories of individuals from population in warfare during the late medieval and early modern eras. This research was done by comparing the data presented by four different literary sources. Each of them represents a collection from a specific battle and set. The sites that were used were the battle of Towton in 1461, England, the battle of Lützen in 1632 Germany, the battle of Good Friday in 1520 Uppsala, Sweden, and the Siege of Alkmaar in 1573, the Netherlands. The data on sex and age at death estimation, ante-mortem, peri-mortem and any existing stress related pathological condition was presented and later compared. The analysis and comparison done to the data reveals a majority of young adult males in these populations, they all present ante-mortem and peri-mortem trauma that correlates to the historical context of the battle as well as presenting injuries that can evidence...Show moreThis thesis aims to study the use of analysis on skeletal remains in order to understand more about life histories of individuals from population in warfare during the late medieval and early modern eras. This research was done by comparing the data presented by four different literary sources. Each of them represents a collection from a specific battle and set. The sites that were used were the battle of Towton in 1461, England, the battle of Lützen in 1632 Germany, the battle of Good Friday in 1520 Uppsala, Sweden, and the Siege of Alkmaar in 1573, the Netherlands. The data on sex and age at death estimation, ante-mortem, peri-mortem and any existing stress related pathological condition was presented and later compared. The analysis and comparison done to the data reveals a majority of young adult males in these populations, they all present ante-mortem and peri-mortem trauma that correlates to the historical context of the battle as well as presenting injuries that can evidence the extent of violence that was seen in this time period. The pre-existing stress related conditions revealed that Schmorl's nodes were the most substantial evidence and that it was predominantly seen in young adults. The results that this thesis presented when compared, show a lot of similar information across all of these sites, when added together they reveal a full picture of the extent of life of these individuals. The evidence for pre-existing conditions in young adults points to a life of hard labour, and since this is something seen in two of the collections, comparison can be made and it can be interpreted that life in these two territories was not easy. At the same time a predominant majority of young adult males correlated to what is expected to find in medieval armies, however the evidence for females and young children can reveal a new perspective to the information, seeing as how warfare could affect not only those we were in direct involvement with the military. It was later shown that in comparison to each other, all of these collections can id in the creation of a basis for further studies in the area of life histories of individuals from the late medieval and early modern North-western Europe.Show less

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Who are you beyond death? What can human remains tell us about the life history and death of individuals in four different battles in North-western Europe between 1400-1600s?