LibGuides: Medieval Studies: Find Primary Sources

Primary Source Databases

Here we have picked out some databases of primary sources. As with all these sections it's worth exploring the full a-z on the home page as well.

British History Online This link opens in a new window
British History Online is a non-profit digital library of the core printed primary and secondary sources of British history from 1100 to the mid-twentieth century, with a focus on the medieval and early modern period.
Historical Texts This link opens in a new window
Historical Texts (formerly called JISC Historic Books) contains the full text or page images of books published before 1800. The database draws together content from Eighteenth Century Collections Online (ECCO) and Early English Books Online (EEBO). ECCO is a digital collection of works published in Great Britain and its colonies during the eighteenth century. The collection includes books in English, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Latin, Spanish and Welsh. EEBO includes the scanned images and (increasingly) full-text digital versions of books published in English, Welsh, Latin and other languages up to 1700. The database also includes Nineteenth Century books from the British Library collection and the UK Medical Heritage Library (UKMHL).
Internet History Sourcebooks This link opens in a new window
The Internet History Sourcebooks provide copy-permitted historical texts for educational use.
Patrologia Latina This link opens in a new window
The Patrologia Latina Database is an electronic version of the first edition of Jacques-Paul Migne's Patrologia Latina, published between 1844 and 1855, and the four volumes of indexes published between 1862 and 1865. The Patrologia Latina comprises the works of the Church Fathers from Tertullian in 200 AD to the death of Pope Innocent III in 1216. The database contains the complete Patrologia Latina, including all prefatory material, original texts, critical apparatus and indexes. Migne's column numbers, essential references for scholars, are included.

Epistolae
Epistolae is a collection of letters to and from women dating from the 4th to the 13th century AD. These letters from the Middle Ages, written in Latin, are presented with English translations and are organized by the women participating

TEAMS Middle English Texts Series This link opens in a new window
The goal of the TEAMS Middle English Texts Series (METS) is to make available to teachers and students texts which occupy an important place in the literary and cultural canon but which have not been readily available in student editions.
Manuscrits Medievaux: France Angleterre 700-1200 This link opens in a new window
The database includes eight hundred manuscripts preserved in equal parts by the BnF and the British Library. The manuscripts have been selected for their historical significance in terms of relations between France and England during the Middle Ages. They are also of unique artistic, historical or literary interest. Produced between the eighth and the end of the twelfth century, they cover a wide range of subjects, illustrating intellectual production during the early middle ages and the Roman period.
Acta Sanctorum This link opens in a new window
The Acta Sanctorum Database is an electronic version of the complete printed text of Acta Sanctorum, from the edition published in sixty-eight volumes by the Société des Bollandistes in Antwerp and Brussels. It is a collection of documents examining the lives of saints, organised according to each saint's feast day, and runs from the two January volumes published in 1643 to the Propylaeum to December published in 1940.

Julian of Norwich & Holy Women Visionaries (Umilta website)
The Labyrinth
Gallica The Gallica pages, part of the website of the Bibliothèque Nationale de France, give access to a vast collection of digitised texts and images covering the period from the Middle Ages onwards. Subjects covered include philosophy, law, economics and politics as well as history and literature. The Web site provides chronologies of the periods alongside thematic pages with links to related works. Alternatively, you can use the online catalogue to search for particular works, or by subject. A selection of dictionaries is also available as are a number of themed collections or dossiers and some audio resources. The Web site and most of the texts are in French, but there is also a selection of texts in other languages.

Archives & Special Collections

Archives & Special Collections in Swansea

Our Archive and Research Collections web page gives links to information about the historical research collections we hold. These collections are housed in the Richard Burton Archives, South Wales Miners’ Library and in our Rare Books which are kept in the Document Supply office.

The collection of medieval manuscript facsimiles are searchable on iFind and available on request from the Library Desk at Singleton Library.

West Glamorgan Archives holds some medieval material and is well worth a visit.

You could also venture further afield still to the National Library of Wales (or check out their online collections)

Archives in the UK

Digitised Manuscripts

British Library: Treasures in Full This link opens in a new window
Treasures in Full BL - Examine every page of rare historic works; compare different editions side-by-side; choose standard or magnified view; read supporting material by our curators and other experts.