Abbot Bernard de Clairvaux - Asceticism, Ailment and Growth

In 1112, after living the first 22 years of his life as a member of Burgundian nobility, Bernard de la Fontaine (1090/1091 - 1153) entered the Cistercian monastery at Citeaux, accompanied by many members of his family and friends. In only three years Bernard developed as a remarkable monk. So much that in 1115 he and members of his company were entrusted by Citeaux abbot Stephen Harding with a significant mission: to establish a new Cistercian monastery at Clairvaux. How did Bernard and Clairvaux develop? A tale of hardship.

Muhammad’s Covenants and Medieval Holy Land Pluralism (1050-1300)

Between 1050 and 1300, the Holy Land was shaped by conflict yet also by enduring traditions of coexistence. Early Islamic covenants attributed to the Prophet Muhammad offered Christian communities legal protection and religious freedom, creating a framework of pluralism that persisted despite the upheavals of the Crusades.

Penance, Fear, and Redemption - The Religious Climate That Birthed the First Crusade

The Crusades quickly developed as a mass movement following Pope Urban's call. How and why could they be such a success in an age of fragmented politics and limited communication? A survey on how the effect of medieval Christian beliefs and religious motivations shaped the crusading spirit across Europe.

Sacred Space in Pattern and Paint: Templar Art at Montsaunès and elsewhere

The murals of Montsaunès do not tell sweeping crusade epics but transform the chapel through painted ashlar, rectangular panels filled with geometric patterns (checkerboards/damier, lozenges), rosettes and cosmological motifs (stars, sun-wheels), and consecration crosses. This ornamental program, typical of mid-12th to 13th-century Templar sites, sacralises the space rather than narrates events. 

Comparing Montsaunès with other Templar chapels reveals the diversity of Templar visual culture and invites a broader reflection on how the order shaped sacred space across medieval Europe.