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Connected Communities in early medieval Europe

Objective

The Connected Communities project aims to re-evaluate the traditional image that, after the collapse of the Roman state in the West, a united and interconnected Europe disintegrated into a fragmented continent divided into a series of ethnic kingdoms. The image created by the writers of Late Antiquity and the early Middle Ages still determines much of what is thought about the post-Roman ‘migration period’. Yet these writers belonged to the political and intellectual elite of the population, writing with an agenda on their mind in the interests of this group. This project is vital because there is another early medieval Europe too: that of the major part of the population. It is present but undervalued, although clearly visible in the archaeological record. These early medieval Europeans are seen in their burials, of which huge numbers have been excavated across the continent. The staggering number of objects recovered from the graves as well as shared ways of caring for the dead shows a highly connected world. Ancient DNA research corroborates this at a fast pace now. This project will go 'beyond DNA and genetic relations by making visible how these connections were created and maintained, to present a new image of early medieval Europe. It analyses what was shared in early medieval Europe rather than what separated. We boldly suggest that these connections of the 'common people' were as crucial to the post-Roman development of Europe as the heroic deeds of kings, aristocrats, bishops and saints recounted in the written sources. We will analyse the connections by using specific material categories and their distribution over Europe, intensively using scientific analyses to establish their origins and modes of circulation. We will investigate how and why ideas, such as modes of care for the dead, came to be shared across Europe, and the ways that different kinds of ‘meeting places’ facilitated the negotiation and transfer of ideas, knowledge and artefacts.

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

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Keywords

Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)

Programme(s)

Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.

Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

HORIZON-ERC-SYG - HORIZON ERC Synergy Grants

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Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) ERC-2025-SyG

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Host institution

UNIVERSITEIT LEIDEN
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 3 612 933,00
Address
RAPENBURG 70
2311 EZ Leiden
Netherlands

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Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
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Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 3 612 933,00

Beneficiaries (8)

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