The research project Forming Europe by Overcoming Schism in the Twelfth Century welcomes applications for a four-month research start scholarship at the research centre based at Aachen
(start of scholarship: 1 April 2025).

Regarding the Alexandrine Schism (1159-1177) and its overcoming as a significant test for Latin
Christendom and the entire European continent, this long-term project identifies and systematically analyses the mechanisms that turned this schism into a formative influence on the development of Europe. The papal schism thus serves as a model case for overarching questions about phenomena of division and crisis and the dynamics and reorganisation of universal unity.

For the first time since 1888, all sources relating to the schism (charters, letters, historiography, etc.) will be systematically collected, catalogued and made accessible in the form of digital regesta. The differentiated examination and evaluation of diverse research questions (like tactics and strategies of papal self-assertion or the acquisition of supporters or fundamental communication structures in the conflict) will be rendered possible.

In the inter-academic project the two departments of history at the universities of Würzburg and Aachen are working closely together in recording, processing and analysing the source material. Furthermore, a digital research platform is also being developed in cooperation with the Cologne Centre for eHumanities (CCeH) which facilitates modern source analysis and in which regesta, key documents and their images are made available to researchers, academic teaching staff, and the interested public.

Your position

The purpose of the scholarship is to support you develop and find a topic for a project-related PhD thesis. It is divided into two phases of two months each. Within the initial phase (weeks 1-8) of the scholarship, you will explore and develop a viable PhD topic. This phase will conclude with an intermediate evaluation. If the evaluation is successful, you will enter the second scholarship period (weeks 9-16), preparing an exposé of the PhD project as a base for obtaining third-party funding.

Your profile

The scholarship is intended for graduates who have recently completed a Master’s degree or an equivalent qualification in History (e.g. Staatsexamen) or students who have submitted their final thesis. Candidates should intend to do a doctorate matching the thematic focus of the project (i.e. (the history of the Church and the Papacy in twelfth century Western Europe with a particular focus on the history of schisms).

Requirements

As scholarship holder you ought to be willing and motivated to research autonomously while actively contributing to the project by occasionally giving a paper or completing a smaller thematic task. The position will be based at the Department of History at the RWTH Aachen and will be under the direction of Prof. Dr. Harald Müller. Temporary teleworking is possible.

Foreign language skills in English and Latin are a prerequisite. Skills in other modern European
foreign languages are welcome.

We offerprofessional guidance in the intellectually stimulating environment of a major long-term research project. Scholarship holders benefit from close academic exchange and the specialist expertise of two medievalist teams at the locations Aachen and Würzburg. They will also gain insights into the close collaboration with the Cologne Centre for eHumanities as a cooperation partner for the digital humanities. In addition, the position enables you to participate in project workshops, summer schools or research colloquia as well as sharing in a wide-ranging international network in academia in the support of your own research activities.

The 4-month scholarship amounts to 5000 euros and is paid in two instalments (the point of separation being the successful intermediate evaluation).

Application

Closing date for applications: 10 January 2025

Please email the following documents in a single PDF file to the coordinator at the Aachen office,
Isabel Blumenroth (blumenroth@histinst.rwth-aachen.de):

1. Covering letter
2. 3. 4. CV (including a list of publications, where applicable)
   Outline of the dissertation project with basic literature (max. 3 pages). We
   offer a brief consultation on the compatibility of the research idea with the
   focus of the project. If required, please use the contact details given below.
   Graduation certificate (incl. final grade) or proof of the submission of the
   Master’s thesis (or equivalent)
3. Certificate of enrollment, if applicable
4. Language certificates
5. Text sample (e.g. introductory chapter of the Master’s thesis or equivalent)
   Applications can be submitted in German or English. The prerequisite for starting the scholarship
   is a Master’s degree or an equivalent qualification in History (e.g. Staatsexamen). Applicants
   who are about to complete their studies can apply, provided they can submit their official
   graduation certificate no later than 1 March 2025. Applications from doctoral students already
   doing their doctorate at other universities will not be considered.
6. Please contact
   Dr. Isabel Blumenroth, blumenroth@histinst.rwth-aachen.de, +49 241 80 26 128
   Scholarship announcement (project website)

Source : Die Formierung Europas