author
Edgar Holmes McNeal
1874–1955
Best known for helping readers step directly into the Middle Ages, this American historian co-edited a widely used collection of primary documents that made medieval Europe feel vivid and accessible. His work blends scholarly care with a clear teaching voice.
1 Audiobook
A Source Book for Mediæval History Selected Documents illustrating the History of Europe in the Middle Age
by Oliver J. (Oliver Joseph) Thatcher, Edgar Holmes McNeal
About the author
Born in 1874 and later a professor of European history at The Ohio State University, Edgar Holmes McNeal built his reputation as a historian of medieval Europe. The surviving reference material found for him is brief, but it consistently identifies him with university teaching and historical scholarship.
He is most closely associated with A Source Book for Mediæval History, co-edited with Oliver J. Thatcher and first published in 1905. That volume gathered translated documents from across the Middle Ages, giving students and general readers direct access to important historical texts rather than only secondhand summaries.
Library and archival records also connect him with other historical work, including Europe in the Middle Age. McNeal died in 1955, and his legacy rests mainly in the classroom-minded books that helped generations of readers explore medieval history through original sources.