Western Michigan University
1903 W Michigan Ave
Kalamazoo MI 49008-5334 USA
- Ph.D., History, Harvard University, 1997
- M.A., History, Harvard University, 1990
- B.A., History, Cornell University, 1988
- Medieval France and England, 900-1200
- Historical writing, forgery, lordship, law and society
Dr. Robert Berkhofer is an associate professor of medieval history at Western Michigan University.
Courses he teaches include:
- HIST 1000: Early Western World
- HIST 3600: The Medieval World, Introduction to Middle Ages – a core course of medieval studies minor
- HIST 3606: Transformation of the Medieval World, 1000-1500
- HIST 4495: Power and Society in Medieval Europe
- HIST 5501: Medieval Proseminar – a core course for the medieval studies M.A.
- HIST 6120: Rulers and Regions in Medieval Europe, 900-1300
- HIST 6120: Medieval France
Also included are topical research seminars (HIST 6820) such as Medieval Historians and Their Histories and Writing and Reckoning in Medieval Europe.
He advises graduate students in medieval history and medieval studies interested in the central Middle Ages in Northwestern Europe, power, literacy, and historical writing.
Berkhofer’s research emphasizes the transformations in writing and power, including record-keeping, notions of authenticity, legal ideas, and how literate practices changed rule and wealth, as well as their broad effects on society. He has often focused on archival documents of monastic scriptoria and princely chanceries, and how to evaluate them as evidence of mentality.
His books include:
Day of Reckoning: Power and Accountability in Medieval France. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2004. University of Pennsylvania Press.
The Experience of Power in Medieval Europe, 950-1350. Co-edited with Adam Kosto and Alan Cooper. Aldershot: Ashgate, 2005. Ashgate now at Routledge.