Barbara Yorke facts for kids

Barbara Yorke is a well-known British historian. She is an expert on Anglo-Saxon history, which is the period in England before the Norman Conquest in 1066. She has written many books and articles about this time. She is currently an emeritus professor at the University of Winchester. This means she is a retired professor who still keeps her title.

About Barbara Yorke

Barbara Yorke was born in 1951. Her birth name was Barbara Anne Elizabeth Troubridge. She went to Horsham High School for Girls. Later, she studied history and archaeology at Exeter University. She earned both her first degree and her Ph.D. there.

At Exeter, she learned from important teachers. Professor Frank Barlow taught her medieval history. Lady Aileen Fox taught her archaeology. Other historians, Ann Hamlin and Mary Anne O'Donovan, helped her become interested in the early Christian church.

Her Studies and Career

Barbara Yorke started her Ph.D. studies in 1973. Her research was about "Anglo-Saxon Kingship in Practice 400–899." This work explored new ideas about how royal family trees developed. It also looked at old, often incomplete, historical records.

In 1977, she began teaching at King Alfred’s College. This college is now known as the University of Winchester. She was still finishing her Ph.D. at this time.

She became a Reader in 1993. Then, in 2001, she was made a Professor of Early Medieval History. This was a big achievement. At that time, only about 1,700 women held professor positions in the UK, compared to 11,000 men.

In 2011, she gave a special talk called the Toller Lecture. Her talk was about "King Alfred and the traditions of Anglo-Saxon kingship."

When she retired in September 2014, a conference was held in her honor. It was called Saints, Rulers and Landscapes in Early Medieval Wessex. Some of the talks from this conference were later published in a book. The book was called The Land of the English Kin. It was edited by two of her former students.

What She Studies

Barbara Yorke has made important contributions to understanding "medievalism." This is how people in later times have thought about and used ideas from the Middle Ages.

She also studies something she calls "Alfredism." This is about how the reputation and public image of King Alfred the Great have changed over many centuries. She looks at how people saw him after his time, during the Victorian era, and even today.

Important Roles

Barbara Yorke has held several important positions in academic groups. These include:

• Vice-President of the Royal Archaeological Institute
• A member of the Board of the International Society of Anglo-Saxonists
• A member of the Council of the Society of Antiquaries
• A member of the Fabric Advisory Committee for Winchester Cathedral

Her Books

Here are some of the books Barbara Yorke has written:

• Kings and Kingdoms of Early Anglo-Saxon England. London, Seaby, 1990.
• Wessex in the Early Middle Ages. Continuum International, 1995.
• Bishop Aethelwold: His Career and Influence. The Boydell Press, 1997.
• The Anglo-Saxons. Sutton, 1999.
• The Millenary Celebrations of King Alfred in Winchester 1901. Hampshire Papers 17 (Winchester, 1999).
• Nunneries and the Anglo-Saxon Royal Houses. Continuum International, 2003.
• The Conversion of Britain: Religion, Politics and Society in Britain, 600–800. Longman, 2006.