معرفی
Anne Foerster is a Scientific Associate specializing in Medieval History at the University of Paderborn, Faculty of Cultural Studies, within the Historical Institute's Medieval History I department. She has been in this position since 2017, following previous research roles at the University of Kassel (2014-2017) and the International Max-Planck-Research-School for European Legal History in Frankfurt (2012-2014).
Her educational background includes studies in Medieval History, Sociology, and Historical Auxiliary Sciences at the Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg (2004-2010), with an ERASMUS year at Trinity College Dublin (2007-2008). She has held various teaching positions including as a lecturer at the Institute for the Education of International Students in Freiburg (2011-2013).
Dr. Foerster's research focuses on power structures in the Early and High Middle Ages, with particular emphasis on gender and authority, queenship, women's and gender history, and medieval historiography. Her current major project examines the legitimation of conquests in the Frankish and East Frankish-German Empires between approximately 500 and 1150, challenging previous scholarly assumptions about medieval justifications for military expansion. She analyzes how medieval authors employed concepts of just war, barbarian warfare, religious war, and holy war to legitimize conquests, despite the expectation that medieval rulers prove themselves in battle.
Her publications reveal consistent themes exploring the intersection of gender and political power, particularly examining female regents, widowed queens, and the anxieties surrounding female rule. She has examined how female regents were evaluated in contemporary sources, particularly focusing on concerns about remarriage and potential loss of political control. Her work spans from early Anglo-Saxon England to high medieval continental Europe, with comparative studies including the Kingdom of Jerusalem.
- Since October 1, 2024: Member of DFG Network on Political Elites in Contexts of Rule and Religious Change: Transcultural Perspectives (ca. 500-1600)
- Since February 1, 2016: Member of Mediävistenverband (German Medieval Studies Association)
Dr. Foerster maintains an active research agenda with multiple forthcoming publications examining medieval warfare, historical writing, and gender dynamics. Her work bridges traditional political history with gender studies and source criticism, offering fresh perspectives on medieval power structures and their representation in historical texts.
