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A risk society? Environmental hazards, risk and resilience in the later Middle Ages in Europe

Gerrard, CM; Petley, D

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Authors

D Petley



Abstract

Modern society is said to have restructured in reaction to contemporary hazards with the aim of improving its management of risk. This implies that pre-industrial societies were somehow fundamentally different. In this paper, we challenge that hypothesis by examining the ways in which risks associated with environmental hazards were managed and mitigated during the Middle Ages (defined here as the period from 1000 to 1550 AD). Beginning with a review of the many case studies of rapid onset disasters across Europe, we draw upon both historical and archaeological evidence and architectural assessments of structural damage for what is a pre-instrumental period. Building upon this, the second part of the paper explores individual outlooks on risk, emphasising the diversity of popular belief and the central importance of Christianity in framing attitudes. Despite their religious perspectives, we find that medieval communities were not helpless in the face of serious environmental hazards. We argue instead that the response of society to these threats was frequently complex, considered and, at times, surprisingly modern.

Citation

Gerrard, C., & Petley, D. (2013). A risk society? Environmental hazards, risk and resilience in the later Middle Ages in Europe. Natural Hazards, 69(1), 1051-1079. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-013-0750-7

Journal Article Type Article
Publication Date Oct 1, 2013
Deposit Date Apr 18, 2012
Publicly Available Date Sep 6, 2013
Journal Natural Hazards
Print ISSN 0921-030X
Electronic ISSN 1573-0840
Publisher Springer
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 69
Issue 1
Pages 1051-1079
DOI https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-013-0750-7
Keywords Hazard, Risk, Medieval, Europe, Archaeology.

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