Het doel van deze scriptie betreft het bijdragen van kennis over de aard van voorburchten in het graafschap Holland en Zeeland tussen het jaar 1000 en 1573. Dit is van belang omdat er weinig bekend...Show moreHet doel van deze scriptie betreft het bijdragen van kennis over de aard van voorburchten in het graafschap Holland en Zeeland tussen het jaar 1000 en 1573. Dit is van belang omdat er weinig bekend is over voorburchten aangezien er in beperkte mate relevante archeologische en historische bronnen beschikbaar zijn. Daarnaast betreffen voorburchten binnen onderzoek naar kastelen een onderbelicht aspect omdat de focus vaak ligt op de hoofdburcht. Onderzoek naar voorburchten is relevant aangezien het bijdraagt aan een vollediger en accurater beeld van de functie, bouw- en bewoningsgeschiedenis van kastelen in Nederland. Tijdens het onderzoek is er nagegaan of bepaalde eigenschappen van in totaal 7 voorburchten in verband konden worden gebracht met het type kasteel, de functie van het kasteel, de sociale status van de eigenaren en de operationele periode van de voor- en hoofdburcht. De resultaten van het onderzoek lagen gedeeltelijk in lijn de met het gedane onderzoek naar voorburchten door bouwhistoricus Taco Hermans. Zo werd de voorburcht gebruikt voor defensieve, agrarische, huishoudelijke, religieuze en woongerelateerde functies. Verder zijn de vorm en oppervlakte en de oriëntatie van de voorburcht ten opzichte van de hoofdburcht en de toegangsweg onderzocht.Show less
In June of 1673, the French king Louis XIV, The Sun King, lay siege on the Dutch city of Maastricht and conquered it in only 13 days as part of his campaign in the Franco-Dutch war. After that,...Show moreIn June of 1673, the French king Louis XIV, The Sun King, lay siege on the Dutch city of Maastricht and conquered it in only 13 days as part of his campaign in the Franco-Dutch war. After that, during the French occupation of Maastricht between 1673 and 1678, famous military engineer Sebastién le Prestre de Vauban made alterations to the fortifications of Maastricht. The events leading up to the siege, the siege itself and the aftermath of the siege are most intensively studied by historical sources. This results in the fact that the current state of spatial knowledge about these events is limited. This study aims to expand on the current state of knowledge about the preparations, execution and aftermath of the siege of Maastricht in 1673 by including cartographic and archaeological sources. By comparing these three types of sources, and investigating whether they confirm, complement or contradict each other, the current state of knowledge on the topic is expanded.Show less
In this research the location of Merovingian cemeteries in the landscape of Northern Gaul is studied using GIS. While Merovingian cemeteries have been studied for over a century, most studies have...Show moreIn this research the location of Merovingian cemeteries in the landscape of Northern Gaul is studied using GIS. While Merovingian cemeteries have been studied for over a century, most studies have focused on the grave goods found in the graves, while little research has been done on the location of the cemeteries. The locations of cemeteries are often explained by very rational or economic reasonings, which state that cemeteries were located on land that was unsuitable for agriculture. However, the locations of cemeteries were likely the result of deliberate choices. The grave goods in graves and other parts of the burial ritual indicate the importance of the ritual, and the burial location will have been just as important as the other parts of the ritual, if not even more important. In this thesis, the locations of 190 Merovingian cemeteries are analysed in Geographical Information Systems (GIS), using three different variables: slope, aspect and (relative) elevation. The comparison of these variables for each cemetery gives a general idea of the location characteristics of Merovingian cemeteries. By using accurately dated cemeteries for the analyses, it is also possible to see changes in the location characteristics through time and between different parts of the Merovingian period. The results of the analyses are in line with earlier research on the locations of Merovingian cemeteries. They show that Merovingian cemeteries are generally located on gentle slopes, with no clear preference for a certain direction. However, the cemeteries that are located on steeper slopes, are more often found on south-facing slopes. Furthermore, most cemeteries are found at medium elevations, neither at the highest, nor at the lowest elevations in their surroundings. Through time, lower elevations seem to have become more suitable for cemeteries, as a larger proportion of the cemeteries is located at low elevations during the later periods. The research presented in this thesis shows the potential of using GIS-based methods to analyse the location of Merovingian cemeteries. The results are coherent with the findings from earlier studies, while also showing indications for the changes that took place during the Merovingian Period. All in all, this study can form a starting point for further GIS-based analyses of Merovingian cemetery locations, which could be improved by including more cemetery sites, and incorporating many more additional variables into the analyses.Show less
In the period from 1590 to 1600, changes took place in the State army. Prince Maurits carried out reforms together with Willem Lodewijk. They studied sources from Classical Antiquity on, amongst...Show moreIn the period from 1590 to 1600, changes took place in the State army. Prince Maurits carried out reforms together with Willem Lodewijk. They studied sources from Classical Antiquity on, amongst others, Roman military strategies and the construction of Roman army camps. They used this knowledge as a source of inspiration and they applied many elements from the Roman army to the State army. For example, think of the introduction of command language. The most important introduction was the drill of soldiers, which required a lot of training and discipline. The introduction of training and discipline ensured that the State soldiers were well trained and that they knew better what do to during a combat. The result was that the State army won more regularly and that they could win in smaller units. Discipline therefore was very important in the reformed State army and that is why this research is also referred to as a discipline revolution. It is to be expected that these organizational reforms can also be recognized in State siege camps. Before the reforms were introduced, the State army camps had no fixed form, organized structure or fixed elements. Due to the introduction of discipline and changes in war strategy, it may be expected that changes have occurred within the camps of the State army. Many studies have been carried out in recent decades about the State army and the changes in their strategy, for example. However about the life of a State soldier (such as the food supply within the army) and how the structure of State siege camps changed after the introduction of the organizational reforms has hardly been researched. In this research, State army camps (before the organizational reforms) and State and Spanish siege camps (after the organizational reforms) are examined and compared with each other. The period after the Twelve Years' Truce (1621-1648) was chosen to study the State and Spanish siege camps. As already mentioned, it may be expected that State army camps differ from the later State siege camps in the implementation of organizational reforms. In addition, Spanish siege camps will not have a fixed structure or fixed elements, because during the Eighty Years' War (1568-1648) no organizational reforms took place within the Spanish army. To compare this, historical (siege) maps have been analysed and in addition the archaeology of the (so far) only two archaeologically excavated State siege camps has been analysed. Additionally, the changes in the logistics of food supplies in the State army as a result of the organizational reforms are studied as well.Show less
The early modern period, spanning from c. 1500-1750 A.D., is a turbulent era for the maritime trade and the maritime landscape as a whole. Developments in shipbuilding techniques and international...Show moreThe early modern period, spanning from c. 1500-1750 A.D., is a turbulent era for the maritime trade and the maritime landscape as a whole. Developments in shipbuilding techniques and international economics means that already existing trade-routes expand and the rise of intercontinental trade and large conglomerates. The increasing importance of maritime trade is also visible in the archaeological record which shows a steady rise in the amount of shipwrecks during this period. Advances in modern technology and an ever increasing amount of fishing vessels means that these wrecks also get uncovered at a higher rate than ever before. Researching this ever growing amount of maritime archaeological sites with limited means has proven to be a challenge and many ships remain unpublished when they eventually degrade. Furthermore, when ships do get researched they are often treated as single individual sites with an outdated view of what a shipwreck assemblage actually is. Often the intangible aspects and the bigger picture are ignored. This thesis therefore aimed to research the trade-route for a large number of shipwrecks by looking at their assemblage. At the same time, the aim was to research these assemblages as efficiently as possible by using the classification system created by Reinders in the 80’s. The results show that researching trade-routes via shipwreck assemblages gives a much more detailed view of each ship’s trade-route. It is important though to first research each aspect individually to prevent any bias, before combining the results to come to a conclusion. Furthermore, the importance of the intangible aspects of a shipwreck’s assemblage becomes clear during the scope of this thesis as the information gained from this is often even more valuable than that gained from the tangible. The results also show that using the functional classification system created by Reinders makes researching shipwreck assemblages far easier and more efficient. It is even possible to link the categories from this system to specific trade-route identifying features. However, the classification system would benefit further defining its categories.Show less
This research deals with the appearance and charasteritics of sleeve attachtment of late medieval chainmail armours from Europe and the Middle-East. The first step of the research was to collect...Show moreThis research deals with the appearance and charasteritics of sleeve attachtment of late medieval chainmail armours from Europe and the Middle-East. The first step of the research was to collect data from historical chainmail armours. For this purpose the chainmail armours in the collection of the National Military Museum in Soest (NL). From this research it could be concluded that 4 distinct types of sleeve attachment were present in the dataset. These types are: a sleeve with a patern that continues in the patern of the body, a sleeve with a pattern that was perpendicular to the patern of the body, a sleeve with a patern continuing in the patern of the body but with an extra rectangle fixed in the armpit and a sleeve with a continuing patern and an extra rectangle in the armpit that is perpendicular to the patern in the sleeve and body.Two of these types of sleeve attachments have an European origin and two types of sleeve attachments have a Middle-Eastern origin. All of these chainmail armours date from the late middle ages (1400-1800). Following this study of the historical material experiments have been done to gain an insight in two important charasteristics of the different typesd of sleeve attachment. The charasteritics that have been examined are freedom of movement and offered protection. To be able to do experiments with these different sleeves two riveted chainmail armours have been constructed, each with two of the four types of different sleeve attachments that appear in the dataset. The first experiment was the freedom of movement experiment. For this experiment the chainmail armour were worn by a testsubject which moved the arms upward. During this movement the maximum unhinderd height the arm could be lifted was documented as the limit of free movement. To be able to accuratly measuring the maximum height the experiment was done in front of a board of numbered lines. The conclusion of this experiment is that there is a major difference in freedom of movement. The sleeve with the patern continuing in the patern of the body and no extra rectangle perfomed best in this experiment. The second experiment was the protection experiment. For this experiment the chainmail armours were put on a dummy made of wood and PU foam. Three different attacks were tested on each sleeve attachment, a stab with the point of a poleaxe in the armpit, a stab with a langes-messer in the armpit and an attack called the half-sword technique, also aimed at the armpit. The conclusion of this experiment is that there is a difference in the protection that the chainmail offers to attacks. The sleeve with the extra rectangle in the armpit that has a patern perpendicular to the patern of the sleeve performed best in this experimentShow less
This thesis discusses the development of medieval house cellars in urban context. This will be done through the study of three Dutch towns ('s-Hertogenbosch, Arnhem and Deventer). The questions...Show moreThis thesis discusses the development of medieval house cellars in urban context. This will be done through the study of three Dutch towns ('s-Hertogenbosch, Arnhem and Deventer). The questions addressed in this study concern their characteristics (such as vaulting types, visible chronology and city specific types) and their functions (such as fire-safe spaces and general functions of medieval districts). The conclusions will highlight which characteristics are distinguishable. Primarily, that the 15th century is the appropriate era for cellars and that there is a large local variation with city-specific cellars, which is particularly the case in Deventer. An overview of the dimensions of all the investigated cellars is given. Cellars were not only used as storage, but also as a workshop or living space. They might also be related to city fires and the demand for fire-safe areas. Finally, cellars can only contribute to a limited extent to the identification of the functions of urban districts.Show less
The ‘Harvest of Malta’ report by Cleijne analysed the foundation methods of late-medieval buildings in ten cities in The Netherlands. Excavations in Kampen between 1987 and 2014 have revealed...Show moreThe ‘Harvest of Malta’ report by Cleijne analysed the foundation methods of late-medieval buildings in ten cities in The Netherlands. Excavations in Kampen between 1987 and 2014 have revealed sixteen timber foundations of late-medieval timber and timber-framed buildings, some of which appeared to be fairly uncommon. Kampen was not part of the ten selected cities in the ‘Harvest of Malta’ report, therefore the uncommon foundation methods found in Kampen did not undergo an extensive analysis. The research in this thesis analyses the sixteen timber foundations in Kampen. This will be done by studying the date, dimensions, foundation type and foundation methods, interior layout and characteristics of the superstructure of the timber and timber-framed buildings of Kampen. Furthermore, the research will analyse how the sixteen timber foundations of Kampen associate with soil type and building size. Brick foundations are left out of the dataset deliberately. All the results of the analysis are put into a table. Seven foundation types could be distinguished in the archaeological dataset of Kampen. These foundation types were categorized as KFT1 – KFT7. The foundation types included earthfast pile foundations (KFT1), pad foundations (KFT2, KFT3 and KFT6), strip foundations (KFT7) and the uncommon ‘strip and pad’ foundation (KFT4 and KFT5). This foundation type consisted of multiple layers of long horizontally placed sapling poles with stacks of wooden blocks on top. KFT3 was the most prevalent in Kampen and dated from 1300-1375. No relation between a particular foundation type and soil type could be established out of the archaeological dataset of Kampen. Furthermore, the sample size of the timber foundations was too small to establish a relation between timber foundations and building size. Narrow-fronted buildings were the most prevalent building shape in Kampen. Only townhouses were found in Kampen. Most buildings of the archaeological dataset of Kampen were free-standing at the time of construction. One-aisled buildings were the most prevalent in the archaeological dataset of Kampen. 25% of the buildings from the archaeological dataset of Kampen had hearths in comparison with the 5% of the ten cities studied in the ‘Harvest of Malta’ report. Lastly, Cleijne states in the ‘Harvest of Malta’ report that the order of steps of the ‘verstening’ process is not fixed. The archaeological dataset of Kampen shows that the first step in the ‘verstening’ process can also be the hearth instead of the foundation. It is clear that the timber buildings and timber-framed buildings in Kampen have uncommon characteristics and subsequent research could contribute more to our understanding of the ‘verstening’ process in Kampen. Show less
This MA thesis research has taken all of the available archaeological and historical research related to medieval Trellech to address the ongoing debate regarding the precise location and layout of...Show moreThis MA thesis research has taken all of the available archaeological and historical research related to medieval Trellech to address the ongoing debate regarding the precise location and layout of the original settlement, as well as investigate the exact cause and time of the decline of this town.This thesis was not able to provide a definitive conclusion to the debate surrounding the location of 13th century Trellech. However, the available archaeological evidence tips the scales heavily in favour of the theory that places the centre of medieval Trellech along Catbrook Road, rather than the current village centre. The Lost City of Trellech project has provided strong archaeological evidence for this theory, but is hampered by a lack of academic publications. Further excavation of the site is needed, but a focus on analysing the available but unprocessed archaeological data should be a high priority. The available archaeological evidence points to a hiatus of activity in the 15th century for most of the excavated areas of Trellech. The historical evidence seems to confirm this, leading to the conclusion that the 15th century was the start of Trellech’s decline from major town to the small village it currently is. Based on the available evidence, the combination of the Black Death that hit Trellech in the second half of the 14th century, combined with the revolt of Owain Glyn Dŵr in the early 15th century, seems the obvious cause of this decline, though further research is needed.Show less
The archaeological data set of 106 water facilities recovered in Amersfoort, allows for the reconstruction of the water supply within the town through the centuries. Aside from this available...Show moreThe archaeological data set of 106 water facilities recovered in Amersfoort, allows for the reconstruction of the water supply within the town through the centuries. Aside from this available archaeological data set, any historical information that could be found, has also been used. This historical data includes information about common wells and surface water use in Amersfoort, but also information about the status of water in medieval society and the role of water in medieval medicine. As further background the most studied developments in Europe are also discussed. Amersfoort counts several types of wells (tree lined, peat lined, barrel lined, and brick lined), as well as numerous indications of the use of surface water (water lifting implements along canals, archaeologically recovered water pipes, and the strict regulations on water pollution). Putting all this together we were able to compare the water supply in Amersfoort with the water supply in Haarlem and Zutphen. The very high per capita rate of wells in Amersfoort, but especially Zutphen, compared to Haarlem is striking. Six potential influencing factors were introduced - factors that might have caused this discrepancy. They are: distance to surface water; quality of surface water; ease of exploitation for alternative water sources (ground or rain water); degree of organisation (here: the existence of public or shared facilities); water needs (household or industrial use); personal finances. Based on the results so far, it seems that the distance to surface water and the quality of surface water are the strongest predictors for the amount of water facilities. Haarlem has the most surface water within easy reach, Zutphen the least. Amersfoort has less water within easy reach than Haarlem, but more than Zutphen. This seems to align with the results, Haarlem has the least facilities per capita, while Zutphen has by far the most. On an even wider scale, there appear to be more similarities between the developments in the Netherlands and the rest of Northern Europe than initially assumed. The strong influence of brewers on the water supply, in the form of protection measures meant to protect their trade or even complete mains systems or water barges organised for, and by, the brewers. It seems also that the use of surface water was a very widespread practice, especially large scale water consumers appear to have defaulted towards surface water as their preferred water source. Surface water is not the safest water source, but concerns about pollution where only present when the pollution became a noticeable nuisance. This assumption is based on the way water quality was assessed in the period before the discovery of bacteria. This method of quality assessment is based on the smell, taste, and colour of the water, if these characteristics are found to be in order, the water is viewed as safe.Show less
This thesis focuses on ceramics and glass artefacts and on bird bones that were, in the main, recovered from the cesspits of monk cells in the Carthusian monastery near Delft. The thesis...Show moreThis thesis focuses on ceramics and glass artefacts and on bird bones that were, in the main, recovered from the cesspits of monk cells in the Carthusian monastery near Delft. The thesis investigates whether the monks adhered strictly to the Carthusian rule or if they were ordered by the more lenient rules that seemed to be more common in the 15th and 16th centuries. The material culture suggests that the monks led a less sober life than what may be expected.Show less
