General Medieval Index Pages
These specialised link pages were once the best way to access information on the web. They are now battling to keep up with the ever-expanding range of material available. However, there is some expectation of quality in sites which are linked from these. It is worth looking at several, as they each have their individualities. The numbers of comprehensive general link sites is apparently decreasing. The Argos search engine has been removed, and I have deleted references to the WWW Virtual Library sites as, despite their significance to web history, they are no longer properly maintained, at least in the medieval history area, and there are too many dead links.
NetSERF has the best name of any link page on the web and maintains a very respectable set of links under various topic headings. It has a useful hypertext medieval glossary and also maintains an interesting series of links to news items of medieval interest, so well worth an occasional visit to see what's going on the the medieval world. It is certainly worth a cruise around for any medieval topic, but it doesn't cover everything. (Nothing does!)
This page was once devoted specifically to medieval art sites, but it expanded its area of interest, providing links to a range of resources of medieval interest, including Catholic church history, documentary sources and saints. It now includes his own version of a hypertext Book of Hours, a psalter text and a calendar of saints' days, and links to other similar resources. A monument to one teacher's dedication and enthusiasm.
This is a general humanities link page from Oxford University, superseding what was called the Humbul Gateway from that university. It appears to be greatly expanded and well maintained, with a natty new interface and multiple types of browse as well as search capabilities. A review is provided for each site. This is a good place to look for specialised material.
This is a general link page for western European studies. There is a Medieval and Renaissance category as well as various national sections. Give it a try. It has been given a recent makeover, and is apparently updated regularly.
This link site from the British Academy has expanded since it was first launched, but ends to provide unsorted lists in very general subject categories. Possibly useful for a serendipitous browse.
This vintage site, in web terms, from Georgetown University, was once the place where you could find most medieval sites of value. The database has not been updated from some years, and now it seems that Georgetown's own medieval resources have been removed. Strangely, it still ranks high on Google searches for medieval topics, but its coverage is now scanty and inaccurate. It is included here only as a bit of medieval web history.
This link site from Manchester University Press is a free site which complements their subscription only full text site. Sites are listed under a range of topic headings. Many are selections from other large collections such as ORB or the Medieval Sourcebook, and there are rather a lot of dud links, but you might find just the thing you are looking for.
This is a series of link pages organised hierarchically by category. It includes links to discussion groups and databases as well as various web pages. It seems to have a lot of scope, for example it has an excellent Medieval Science link page. Unfortunately, it has not been updated since 2001, and in web terms that is ancient history. Very many new sites have appeared since then, and there are masses of 404s among those that are listed.
This German language link site now has an English front end, which gets you into the lists of sites which are listed each in their own language. The main bulk of the descriptive part of the site is German, but perfectly usable by an Anglophone. It has useful lists of sites by topic area in various languages.
Tennessee
Bob's Famous French Links
This is a very long, plain text listing for all manner of things French. It may be getting a bit out of date, as I am not sure how well it is maintained, but he manages to fossick out sites that might not be included in other general lists.
If you actually read French, or enough to get you into the right subject headings, this French language general medieval link site contains many refereed links in a range of medieval subject areas. You might get a different cultural perspective. Not all the linked sites are French language. The site is currently undergoing a rebuild so there is a bit of confusion, but that just means somebody still loves and is maintaining it.
You can get to this section by simply clicking your way through the various nested topics in the venerable and respected Yahoo directory listing, but to save time and your clicking finger bookmark the above address. Yahoo has now grown so enormous that not all sites of medieval interest are listed in this category, but may be spread around other specialised areas. Yahoo listings tend to concentrate on commercial rather than academic sites, but you never know your luck.
