Misfits of the Middle Ages: Persecution and Tolerance in Medieval Europe

Medieval Europe is infamous for its persecutions. In the popular imagination, the Middle Ages were a uniquely unhappy time for Jews, heretics, lepers, witches, and countless other outsiders. But what is the truth about Europe¿s ¿Dark Ages?¿ What was it actually like to be a Jew in medieval Italy, a leper in England, a heretic in France? Who carried out the persecutions, what motivated them to violence, and did they actually succeed? How do the experiences of medieval Europe¿s outsiders still inform our own notions of tolerance, human rights, and inclusion today?