Peter Randall
Peter Randall
Supervisors
Professor Alexandra Sanmark, Dr Hannah Burrows (University of Aberdeen) and Dr Alex Woolf (University of St Andrews)
Research Title
Places of Assembly in the Kings’ Sagas
Research Abstract
This thesis is the first comprehensive study of the public assembly (Old Norse þing) in the collection of Old Norse literary works known as the kings’ sagas (ON konungasǫgur). The þing was fundamental to societal organisation and decision-making in the Norse-speaking world of the Middle Ages and Viking Age. As such, designated þing-sites often served as points of intersection between the authority of kings and the power of rural and urban communities. The konungasǫgur provide detailed narrative accounts of the lives of Scandinavian rulers, and consequently have long been recognised crucial sources for the history of kingship in Scandinavia. However, the relationship between these works and the þing has been overlooked. Amidst their accounts of rulers, the konungasǫgur offer a fascinating amount of detail on assembly sites, procedures, and processes of negotiation at the þing.
Through an examination of þing-sites and þing-meetings in the konungasǫgur, this thesis will offer new lens with which to understand the relationship between royal and communal authority in mediaeval Scandinavian society and the narrative constructed around this relationship in the written material. This research is also interdisciplinary. Though the focus is on a collection of literary sources, these sources are considered in combination with archaeological and toponymic evaluation of potential þing-sites. Consequently, a key aspect of this project is the mapping of þing-sites named in the konungasǫgur. This aspect of the project which has the potential to provide other scholars and the public a useful resource on assembly sites across Northern Europe.
Short biography
Peter Randall is a full-time PhD student with the Institute for Northern Studies based at Perth. His project is fully funded by the University of the Highlands & Islands and the Institute for Northern Studies. Before coming to INS, Peter achieved an MLitt in Medieval Studies with Distinction from the University of St Andrews. Following his undergraduate studies at the University of Aberdeen, he was awarded an MA with First Class Honours in Celtic & Anglo-Saxon Studies and History and earned the Sybill Magee Prize in History. His research interests primarily revolve around the history and archaeology of medieval Scandinavia and Scotland, with a focus on assembly sites. He also has an interest in the Scandinavian and Celtic languages and has taken courses in Swedish, Icelandic, and Scottish Gaelic.
Peter is currently secretary for the Scottish Society for Northern Studies, an organisation promoting research into the historical and current ties between Scotland and Scandinavia.
Related links
Contact email address: 22011582@uhi.ac.uk