In this post, co-authors Christophe Gillain, Laura Incollingo, Arthur der Weduwen, Barnaby Cullen and Paweł Pietrowcew  introduce their new article — 'The Voice of the Law: The Town Crier as an Agent of State Communication in Early Modern Europe' — published in 'Transactions of the Royal Historical Society'. Town criers were ubiquitous civic officials in early modern Europe. This article provides the first European-wide survey of the early modern town crier, drawing on archival evidence from across the continent. It argues that the growing use of paper and print in this period did not diminish the importance of orality in state communication but in fact led to a greater reliance on criers by authorities. Framing the town crier as a crucial actor in the process of state communication helps shed new light on the importance of orality in early modern legal and political cultures, and on the role of this urban professional in strengthening the bond between rulers and ruled. This new article is now available, Open Access, in Transactions via CUP’s FirstView.

In this post, Wendy Davies describes a recent meeting of fellow historians to discuss their research on the everyday lives of ordinary working people in the early middle ages. The group has met and shared research over a number of years, with members in turn hosting weekend meetings. The historians who come together share an interest in the strategies by which early medieval people maintained food, shelter and health, communicated knowledge, and interacted with the world beyond the local. And, as Wendy describes here, the main purpose of this year’s gathering was to debate and plan a book, 'Making and Moving Consumables in Early Medieval Europe: From the Local to the Wider World'. The project is one of six networks of historians supported by the award of an RHS Workshop Grant in 2026. The latest call for this programme, which funds group meetings by historians, is now available and runs to 15 January 2027.

In this post, Gillian Jack introduces her new book — 'Prostitution, Repentance and Social Welfare in Renaissance Florence. The Monastery of Sant’Elisabetta delle Convertite' — which is published in October 2026 as part of the Society’s ‘New Historical Perspectives’ series with University of London Press. From the fourteenth century, prostitutes in Florence were encouraged to leave their profession and spend their lives in repentance at the monastery of Sant’Elisabetta delle Convertite. Gillian’s is the first book-length study to put Sant’Elisabetta into its full historical context. 'Prostitution, Repentance and Social Welfare in Renaissance Florence' is the 27th title in the Society’s New Historical Perspectives series for early career historians. Gillian's book, and all other titles in the series are published free, Open Access, and in paperback print.