In a largely agricultural economy, the vast majority of the political, social and economic activities of most medieval people occurred within village communities. However, there is significant debate about the actual nature of such communities. Were villages characterised by strong communal ties which overrode social and economic differences, or hierarchies with an oligarchy of dominant elites? Were familial bonds crucial to economic and social activities, or were villagers highly individualistic? And how far did the Black Death reconfigure village community networks?
The project Political, Economic and Social Networks in the Late Medieval Village will examine these questions by applying cutting-edge methods from Social Network Analysis (SNA) to the rich manuscript documentation available for medieval English villages in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. In doing so, it will give a new perspective on economic and social life in the preindustrial era, providing insights into the impact of the Black Death, the factors which drive inequality, and the degree to which capitalistic economies marked by impersonal exchange emerged in the late Middle Ages.
This project is generously funded by the Baden-Württemberg Stiftung through the Postdoctoral fellowship for leading early career researchers.
Application materials: CV, degree transcripts and a covering letter explaining your interest in this position and why your experiences meet the job profile.
Your tasks include:
Writing a doctoral thesis based on the project supervised by the Principal Investigator
Co-writing academic publications with the Principal Investigator
Carrying out a research stay in the United Kingdom (including visiting archives)
Carrying out data entry and social network analysis for the project
Presenting the project results at seminars and international conferences
Your profile:
Bachelors and Masters degrees in history or a related discipline (e.g. historical sociology, economic history)
Experience of working with late medieval English manorial court rolls (or a desire to learn how to work with these records)
Experience of working with social network analysis techniques and
software (or a desire to learn these skills)
A strong command of English (the thesis will be written in English)
What we offer:
A dedicated team of researchers and teachers both within the Historical Institute and wider university
A supportive environment for research and career development
Funding for conference attendance, research stays and training courses
Applications from persons with a disability (minimum 50 %) are given preferential consideration provided that they are appropriately qualified. The University of Mannheim is committed to increasing the quota of women and thus encourages women with appropriate qualifications to apply.
Remuneration bracket: E 13 TV-L BW
Weekly hours: 25.68 hours
Term: 36 months (According to the requirements of Science Temporary Contract Act (WissZeitVG))
If you are interested in applying, please send your application documents via e-mail or mail by 15 April 2024 at the latest:
Alex Spike Gibbs
Juniorprofessor für Wirtschaftsgeschichte des Mittelalters
Universität Mannheim
Mannheim 68131
Germany
alex.spike.gibbs@uni-mannheim.de
If you have any questions about the position, please contact Dr
Spike Gibbs at alex.spike.gibbs@uni-mannheim.de