Biography
Bob studied history and then theology at Peterhouse. His completed his PhD at Sidney Sussex in 2018 in early medieval history under the supervision of Rosamond McKitterick and is now the Chaplain at Christ’s College.
Research
Bob’s research focuses on the relationship between theology and society in the early medieval west, especially in the Carolingian Empire of the eighth and ninth centuries. He is currently working towards a monograph, based on his PhD research, about how Carolingian historians wrote about God, as well as a translation of Florus of Lyons' Exposition on the Eucharist.
Publications
“Words that bring valour”: God, warfare, and the rhetoric of persuasion in Carolingian history writing’, in Matthew Rowley and Natasha Hodgson (eds), Miracles, Political Authority and Violence in Medieval and Early Modern History (Routledge, 2021).
‘Christian language and the Frankish ‘minor’ annals: Narrative, history, and theology in the late eighth century’, The Medieval Chronicle 14: Special Issue – the Frankish Minor Annals, ed. Sören Kascke and Bart van Hees (2021).
(With Rosemond McKitterick), ‘A Carolingian Epitome of Orosius from Tours: Leiden VLQ 20’, in Rutger Kramer, Helmut Reimitz, and Graeme Ward (eds), Historiography and Identity III: Carolingian approaches (Turnhout, 2021), pp. 123–53.
‘A secular shift in Carolingian history writing?’, in Early Medieval Europe 29: Special Issue – Sacred and Secular in the Early Middle Ages, ed. Conor O’Brien, 29 (2021), pp. 36–54.
‘God’s judgement in Carolingian law and history writing’, in Studies in Church History, vol. 56: The Church and Law (Cambridge, 2020), pp. 61–77.
‘“Instructing readers’ minds in heavenly matters”: Carolingian history writing and Christian education’, in Studies in Church History, vol. 55: The Church and Education (Cambridge, 2019), pp. 56–71.
‘Christian hermeneutics and narratives of war in the Carolingian Empire’, Transformation: An International Journal of Holistic Mission Studies 34 (2017), pp. 150–63.
Teaching
Bob teaches the following undergraduate papers:
• Theology, Part I, A4: ‘Making Christians in the Roman Empire’.
• Theology, Part IIA, B6: ‘Christianity in Late Antiquity’
• History, Part I Paper 13: ‘European history, 31BC-900AD’.
• History, Part II Historical Argument and Practice: Religion / Medieval historiography.
Bob has also supervised undergraduate and postgraduate dissertations on various aspects of late antique and early medieval religious thought and is open to students wishing to undertake projects in those areas.
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