Great Minds of the Medieval World

The Middle Ages was a time of major advances in many fields of knowledge, from theology and philosophy to science, medicine, art, literature, and education. Owing to the work of an astonishing range of visionary thinkers, this fascinating period was the era in which the foundations of the modern Western world were laid. In the medieval era's great minds we find the roots of many aspects of today's world - from the religious/philosophical thought of Augustine, Ambrose of Milan, and Thomas Aquinas to the scientific innovations of Avicenna and Alhacen, the enlightened statesmanship of Charlemagne and Lorenzo de Medici, and the literary creations of Dante and Chaucer. In these 24 lectures, Professor Armstrong leads you on an enthralling journey into the lives of the seminal thinkers of the Middle Ages. In this gallery of extraordinary minds, you'll encounter the leading lights of a world-shaping era, including figures such as Maimonides, Hildegard of Bingen, Bernard of Clairvaux, Peter Abelard, and Francesco Petrarch. Professor Armstrong goes to great lengths to bring these historic figures to life, revealing both the great intellectual contributions and the personal strivings, challenges, and triumphs of some of history's most remarkable human beings. These compelling lectures take you deeply into the heart of one of civilization's most dynamic and impactful eras.

All Lectures:
1. Augustine of Hippo
2. Ambrose, Jerome, and Gregory the Great
3. Boethius and the Consolation of Philosophy
4. Isidore of Seville and the Etymologies
5. The Venerable Bede
6. Alcuin, Charlemagne, and Alfred the Great
7. Avicenna and the Golden Age of Islam
8. Alhacen and the Scientific Method
9. Averroes and Aristotelian Philosophy
10. Maimonides and Jewish Law
11. Rashi and Biblical Interpretation
12. Saladin and the Defeat of the Crusaders
13. Hildegard of Bingen
14. Bernard of Clairvaux
15. Abelard and Héloïse
16. Peter Lombard and the Sentences
17. Thomas Aquinas
18. William of Ockham and John Duns Scotus
19. Geoffrey Chaucer and Dante Alighieri
20. Francesco Petrarch
21. Lorenzo de' Medici
22. Christine de Pisan
23. Sir Thomas Malory and Le Morte Darthur
24. William Caxton and the Birth of Printing