Steven Vanderputten

Steven Vanderputten is a professor of history at Ghent University. He conducts scholarly research into our medieval society and culture, with a predilection for the period from the 9th to the 12th century – a period he is definitely does not wish to call ‘the dark Middle Ages’.

Professor Steven Vanderputten poses in front of St. Peter's Church on St. Peter's Square in Ghent

  • Are these the bones of Judith, the first countess of Flanders?

    If you visit St Peter's Abbey today, take note of the commemorative stone plaque behind the bike rack. In it are chiselled the names of the first Margraves (counts) of Flanders and all are said to be buried in the abbey church: Baldwin Iron Arm, Baldwin the Bald, Arnulf I & II... There is no mention of Judith, the first countess, even though she in particular may have lain only a few metres from that location.
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    Bones of woman found during excavations of St. Peter's Square in Ghent

  • A naive teenager, a shrew or a feminist ... who was Judith of Flanders really?

    The Carolingians, the Treaty of Verdun and the invasion of the Vikings: for most of us, the 9th century consists of nothing more than vague echoes from our third year in secondary school, and is therefore a period we're particularly keen to forget about. But once you realise that the people back then were also human beings made of flesh and blood, that's when history actually becomes rock-and-roll. And that's especially true in the case of Judith, the first countess of Flanders.
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    Professor Steven Vanderputten points to a painting of Judith, the first countess of Flanders