Have you had chance encounters with readers of your academic texts? How did it make you feel? Historian and masculinity researcher Jamie Page had this pleasure, and told us all about how he used his RCC mobility grant.
1) What was the funding used for?
The RCC gave generous funding for me to spend a week in Switzerland to present some early results from my Habilitation project, to do some vital networking, and to carry out archival research for the project’s next stages. The first stop was the University of Lausanne, where I delivered a paper on ‘Masculinity and Historical Writing in the Old Swiss Confederation’ to the late medieval research seminar.
This was the first time I had presented my work on Swiss national mythologies to a Swiss audience, who as children had grown up with stories of William Tell, and I was glad to be received so warmly (coming no less from a university in Austria - hereditary enemies of the Swiss!).
I then crossed the Röstigraben and spent a wonderful few days in Zurich, meeting contacts at the university and returning to the Staatsarchiv Zürich, which I know well from my doctoral studies. For anybody interested in late medieval cities (especially crime!) the archive is a dreamland.
2) Why did it matter?
The trip was a vital early step in my new project. The chance to network and receive direct feedback from those close to the sources has helped me to plan the next phases and sharpen my thinking on key issues. The trip also underscored the vital importance of personal contacts and physical encounters with sources.
Digital technology has brought us much in terms of networking and access to material, but so much of historical research still depends on the idiosyncratic and the unexpected.
3) What else do you remember about the trip?
When I first came to Zurich I was a timid second-year PhD student, just trying to find my way into archival work.
When I returned to the Staatsarchiv this time, the archivist recognised me after having read the book I wrote about Zurich based on that first visit - it was an emotional moment which made all the uncertainty and hard work seem worth it!
Congratulations on this, and thanks for sending this in, Jamie!
→ Find out more about the RCC funding schemes
→ Get to know Jamie Page in a podcast: “Gone Medieval”
Picture credit: Jamie Page, Interview: Johanna Stadlbauer, RCC, 26.2.2026