14
Academic Venues
Conference in shining armour
A degree of history for the University of Leeds
as it hosts the International Medieval Congress 2019
n 2019, the International
Medieval Congress visited the
University of Leeds for its 26th
time. The annual event, which
brings medieval experts together for
a series of discussions,
demonstrations and debates, was
hosted at the conference facilities at
the university, showcasing the wide
portfolio of venues available at the
academic institution. The Congress
featured over 135 exhibitors,
including local and national craft
sellers, food producers, historical
and archaeological societies,
publishers, as well as second hand
and antiquarian booksellers. In
addition to the exhibitors, 750
sessions took place in over 50 rooms
across the University of Leeds’ city
centre campus, covering a range of
subjects from Art and Architecture
through to Theology and Biblical
Studies.
The team behind the Congress
have held the event in Leeds since
its inception and continue to return
to the University of Leeds due to the
specific requirements of an event
Organiser:
Institute for
Medieval Studies
at the University
of Leeds
Venue:
The University
of Leeds
Event:
International
Medieval Congress
this size, and the support available
from the team at MEETinLEEDS, the
conferencing facilities at the
university. The Congress is now the
largest humanities Congress held in
the EU, and the largest in medieval
studies in the world, and therefore
required a venue with a room
portfolio which allowed for multiple
sessions to take place at one time,
and the outdoor space to create an
open day on the final day; where a
medieval market serving historically
inspired street food, a full medieval
craft fair and medieval
demonstrations were all created
within the grounds of the university.
The position of the university
within the city is also key, as the city
needed to have the infrastructure to
support the event, with capacity to
accommodate international
delegates for a multi-day Congress.
The transport links allowed delegates
to travel to and from the city with
ease, and provided a wide range of
delegate experiences for attendees
to enjoy when not attending the
Congress.
MEETinLEEDS assist with venue
choice across the university room
Delegates:
2,800 from
59 countries
The Congress
featured over
135 exhibitors,
including
local and
national craft
sellers, food
producers,
historical and
archaeological
societies,
publishers,
and second
hand and
antiquarian
booksellers.
www.conference-news.co.uk
portfolio, and help the organisers
with catering, accommodation
booking and wider organisational
elements.
Axel Muller, director of the
International Medieval Congress,
commented: “We were thrilled with
the success of the Congress this year
and are delighted to see it attract
more medievalists as it continues to
grow. We were very grateful for the
support of the team at
MEETinLEEDS, who yet again have
been instrumental in the
organisation and smooth running of
the event.
“The Congress is unique in its
scope, and also in the way that the
faculty team from the Institute of
Medieval Studies work collaboratively
with MEETinLEEDS to ensure that the
Congress will be a success, both for
delegates attending from all over the
world, and for the public who were
able to experience medieval marvels
in the university grounds on the final
day of the Congress. We are already
starting preparations for next year’s
event and are looking forward to
returning for our 27th year.”