Catherine A. M. Clarke is a British academic. She serves as the

Chair A chair is a type of seat, typically designed for one person and consisting of one or more legs, a flat or slightly angled seat and a back-rest. It may be made of wood, metal, or synthetic materials, and may be padded or upholstered in vario ...

in the History of People, Place and Community at the

Institute of Historical Research The Institute of Historical Research (IHR) is a British educational organisation providing resources and training for historical researchers. It is part of the School of Advanced Study in the University of London and is located at Senate Hou ...

, School of Advanced Study,

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

, where she is Director of the Centre for History of People, Place and Community and Director of the

Victoria County History The Victoria History of the Counties of England, commonly known as the Victoria County History (VCH), is an English history project which began in 1899 with the aim of creating an encyclopaedic history of each of the historic counties of Englan ...

. She is a specialist in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

and has published on power, place and identity in medieval Britain.

Education

Clarke received her BA from the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

in 1998 and her MA from the

University of Reading The University of Reading is a public research university in Reading, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1892 as the University Extension College, Reading, an extension college of Christchurch College, Oxford, and became University College, ...

in 1999. She earned her PhD in 2003 from the Department of English at

King's College, London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...

. Her doctoral thesis was titled ''The Locus Amoenus in Old English: Guthlac A and its Cultural Context''.

Clare Lees Clare A. Lees is professor of medieval literature and history of the language, and Director of the Institute of English Studies, University of London. Education Lees earned her Bachelor of Arts and master's degree at the University of Leeds bef ...

and

Jane Roberts Dorothy Jane Roberts (May 8, 1929 – September 5, 1984) was an American author and poet, who claimed to be psychic and a spirit medium channeling a personality who called himself "Seth." Her publication of the Seth texts, known as the '' Set ...

served as Clarke's doctoral supervisors.

Career

Clarke taught at

Swansea University Swansea University () is a public university, public research university located in Swansea, Wales, United Kingdom. It was chartered as University College of Swansea in 1920, as the fourth college of the University of Wales. In 1996, it chang ...

and

University College, Oxford University College, formally The Master and Fellows of the College of the Great Hall of the University commonly called University College in the University of Oxford and colloquially referred to as "Univ", is a Colleges of the University of Oxf ...

, and was appointed to a personal chair at the English Department of the

University of Southampton The University of Southampton (abbreviated as ''Soton'' in post-nominal letters) is a public university, public research university in Southampton, England. Southampton is a founding member of the Russell Group of research-intensive universit ...

in 2012, where she remains a

visiting professor In academia, a visiting scholar, visiting scientist, visiting researcher, visiting fellow, visiting lecturer, or visiting professor is a scholar from an institution who visits a host university to teach, lecture, or perform research on a topic fo ...

. She was appointed chair at the Institute of Historical Research, University of London, in 2019; within this role she is Director of the

, a national project founded in 1899 to write the history of English counties. Clarke has led major

Arts and Humanities Research Council The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), formerly Arts and Humanities Research Board (AHRB), is a British research council, established in 1998, supporting research and postgraduate study in the arts and humanities. History The Arts a ...

-funded projects on medieval places and their interpretation, such as "City Witness: Place and Perspective in Medieval Swansea". Her project "The St Thomas Way" developed a new heritage route from

Swansea Swansea ( ; ) is a coastal City status in the United Kingdom, city and the List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, second-largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of ...

Hereford Hereford ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of the ceremonial county of Herefordshire, England. It is on the banks of the River Wye and lies east of the border with Wales, north-west of Gloucester and south-west of Worcester. With ...

, inspired by medieval pilgrimage. In 2016 Clarke delivered the Denys Hay Lecture at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

: 'Place machines: memory, imagination and the medieval city'. She is the Director of CARMEN: The Worldwide Medieval Network, and programme coordinator for Anglo-Saxon Studies at the annual

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

International Medieval Congress The International Medieval Congress (IMC) is an annual academic conference held for scholars specializing in, or with an interest in, the study of the European Middle Ages (c. 300–1500). It is organised and administered by the Institute for Med ...

. She previously held a Visiting Fellowship at the

Lilly Library The Lilly Library, located on the campus of Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana, is an important rare book and manuscript library in the United States. At its dedication on October 3, 1960, the library contained a collection of 20,000 bo ...

Indiana University Bloomington Indiana University Bloomington (IU Bloomington, Indiana University, IU, IUB, or Indiana) is a public university, public research university in Bloomington, Indiana, United States. It is the flagship university, flagship campus of Indiana Univer ...

. Clarke has written for ''

The Conversation ''The Conversation'' is a 1974 American neo-noir mystery thriller film written, produced, and directed by Francis Ford Coppola. It stars Gene Hackman as a surveillance expert who faces a moral dilemma when his recordings reveal a potential ...

'' and appeared on

Channel Four Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded entirely by its commer ...

historical documentaries.

Bibliography

* ''The St Thomas Way and the Medieval March of Wales: Exploring Place, Heritage, Pilgrimage,'' edited by Catherine Clarke (ARC Humanities Press, 2020) *''Medieval Cityscapes Today'', edited by Catherine Clarke (ARC Humanities Press, 2019) * ''Writing Power in Anglo-Saxon England: Texts, Hierarchies, Economies'' (Woodbridge: Boydell Press, 2012) * ''Mapping the Medieval City: Space, Place and Identity in Chester c.1200–1600'' (Cardiff: University of Wales Press, 2011) * ''Literary Landscapes and the Idea of England, 700–1400'' (Cambridge: D. S. Brewer, 2006)

References

External links

Website

Profile at the Institute of Historical Research

Profile page for the National Co-ordinating Centre for Public Engagement
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clarke, Catherine Living people British women literary historians British women medievalists Historians of English literature 20th-century British women writers 21st-century British women writers Year of birth missing (living people) Alumni of the University of Oxford Alumni of the University of Reading Alumni of King's College London Academics of Swansea University Fellows of University College, Oxford Academics of the University of Southampton Academics of the University of London Academics of the Institute of Historical Research Contributors to the Victoria County History Fellows of the Royal Historical Society