Dr Robert Houghton

Senior Lecturer

School of History, Archaeology and Philosophy

Robert.Houghton@winchester.ac.uk

@RobEHoughton

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Biography

I joined the University of Winchester in 2015 as Lecturer in Early Medieval European History, having taught previously at the University of St Andrews and University of Edinburgh. I completed an MA, MLitt and a PhD on representations of collective action in the Italian proto-communes at the University of St Andrews (graduated 2013). In 2018 I was promoted to Senior Lecturer. Outside the University I have worked as a researcher for Mouseion Ltd and with Paradox Interactive and as an editor for The Public Medievalist. I also organise the annual Middle Ages in Modern Games Twitter conference and associated events and proceedings.

My teaching interests include the Italian city communes and proto-communes, Church and Empire during the Investiture Contest, and representations of the Middle Ages in modern games.

Areas of expertise

Medieval Italian cities and bishops
The Investiture Contest
The Middle Ages in modern media
History in Computer Games

Publications

Books

Houghton, R. (2024) The Middle Ages in Computer Games. Ludic Approaches to the Medieval and Medievalism (Boydell & Brewer).

Houghton, R (ed. with K. Cook and C. Kempshall), The Routledge Companion to Video Games and History (Routledge, In Preparation).

Houghton, R (ed.), Playing the Middle Ages: Pitfalls and Potential in Modern Games (Bloomsbury, 2023).

Houghton, R (ed.), Teaching the Middle Ages through Modern Games (De Gruyter, 2022).

Houghton, R (ed. with C. Heath), Conflict and Violence in Medieval Italy 568-1154 (AUP, 2021).

Houghton, R (ed. with K. Alvestad), The Middle Ages in Modern Culture: History and Authenticity in Contemporary Medievalism (IB Tauris, 2021).

Houghton, R (ed.), Playing The Crusades (Routledge, 2021).

Articles and Chapters

Against a darkening background: Dark Age mechanic, in Total War: Attila’, Rethinking History (In Preparation, Projected Publication 2025)

‘Getting into Character: Educational Mechanics and Roleplay in the Medieval History Classroom’, in: T. Gobbitt ed., Tabletop Gaming the Medieval World (In Preparation).

‘The rebellion of Mantua against Matilda of Canossa (1091 - 1114)’, Matildica (In Preparation).

There Will be a Reckoning: Galactic Apocalypse as Endgame in Stellaris’, in Lorenzo DiTommaso, James Crossley, Alastair Lockhart, and Rachel Wagner eds, End-Game: Apocalyptic Video Games, Contemporary Society, and Digital Media Culture (De Gruyter, Under Review).

‘A Violent Medium for a Violent Era: Brutal Medievalist Combat in Dragon Age: Origins and Kingdom Come: Deliverance’, Studies in Medievalism 33 (2024).

‘Awesome, but Impractical? Deeper Engagement with the Middle Ages through Commercial Digital Games’, The Open Library of the Humanities 9, 2 (2023).

With Ylva Grufstedt, ‘Christian Vikings storming Templar Castles: Anachronism as a Teaching Tool’, in Erik Champion and Juan Hiriart eds., Assassin’s Creed in the Classroom History’s Playground or a Stab in the Dark? (DeGruyter, 2023).

‘Abandoning Civilization: Breaking Genre Conventions in Medieval Strategy Games’, in R. Houghton ed., Playing the Middle Ages: Pitfalls and Potential in Modern Games (Bloomsbury, 2023).

‘The Middle Ages in Modern Games: An Adolescent Field’, in R. Houghton ed., Playing the Middle Ages: Pitfalls and Potential in Modern Games (Bloomsbury, 2023).

‘Beyond Education and Impact: Games as Research Tools and Outputs’, in R. Houghton ed., Teaching the Middle Ages through Modern Games (De Gruyter, 2022).

‘Playing the Investiture Contest: Modding as Historical Debate in the Undergraduate and Postgraduate Classroom’, in R. Houghton ed., Teaching the Middle Ages through Modern Games (De Gruyter, 2022).

‘Games in and around the Classroom’, in R. Houghton ed., Teaching the Middle Ages through Modern Games (De Gruyter, 2022).

‘I Predict a Riot: What were the Parmese rebelling against in 1037?’, in C. Heath and R. Houghton, eds, Conflict and Violence in Medieval Italy 568-1154 (AUP, 2021) pp. 265-298.

With Christopher Heath, ‘Discordant Minds and Hostile Nations’, in C. Heath and R. Houghton, eds, Conflict and Violence in Medieval Italy 568-1154 (AUP, 2021) pp. 11-61.

‘Scholarly History through Digital Games: Pedagogical Practice as Research Method’, in C.E. Ariese-Vandemeulebroucke, K.H.J. Boom, B. van den Hout, A.A.A. Mol & A. Politopoulos eds, Return to the Interactive Past: The Interplay of Video Games and Histories, (Sidestone, 2021) pp. 131-149.

‘If you’re going to be the king, you’d better damn well act like the king: Setting objectives to encourage realistic play in Grand Strategy Computer Games’, in K. Alvestad and R. Houghton, eds., The Middle Ages in Modern Culture: History and Authenticity in Contemporary Medievalism (IB Tauris, 2021) pp. 186-210.

With Karl Alvestad, ‘Accuracy and Authenticity: Interactions in Contemporary Media’, in K. Alvestad and R. Houghton, eds, The Middle Ages in Modern Culture: History and Authenticity in Contemporary Medievalism (IB Tauris, 2021) pp. 1-14.

‘History Games for Boys? Gender, Genre and the Self-Perceived Impact of Historical Games on Undergraduate Historians’, Gamevironments 14 (2021) pp. 1-49.

‘Crusader Kings Too? (Mis)Representations of the Crusades in Grand Strategy Games’, in R. Houghton, ed., Playing The Crusades (Routledge, 2021) pp. 71-92.

‘Playing the Crusades’, in R. Houghton, ed., Playing The Crusades (Routledge, 2021) pp. 1-11.

With Andreas Körber and Johannes Meyer-Hamme, ‘Learning to Think Historically: Some Theoretical Challenges when Playing the Crusades’, in R. Houghton, ed., Playing The Crusades (Routledge, 2021) pp. 93-110.

‘Hugh, Lothar and Berengar: The Balance of Power in Italy 945-950’, Journal of Medieval History, 46; 1 (2020) pp. 50-76.

‘Italian Bishops and Warfare during the Investiture Contest: The Case of Parma’, in R. Kotecki, J. Maciejewski and J. S. Ott, eds., Between Sword and Prayer: Warfare and Medieval Clergy in Cultural Perspective (Brill, 2018) pp. 274-302.

‘World, Rules and Play: Digital Games as Historical Research Tools’, Práticas da História, 7 (2018) pp. 11-43.

‘Reconsidering Donizone’s Vita Mathildis (again): Boniface of Canossa and Emperor Conrad II’, Storicamente, 13 (2017) Art. 15 pp. 1-24.

‘When the bishop’s away... : Absentee bishops of Parma during the Investiture Conflict’, in M. Penman, F. Lachaud and M. Brown, eds., Absentee Authority across Medieval Europe (Boydell and Brewer, 2017) pp. 56-77.

‘Where did you learn that? The self-perceived educational impact of historical computer games on undergraduates’, Gamevironments 5 (2016) pp. 8-45.

‘The vocabulary of groups in eleventh century Mantua’, Early Medieval Europe, 24;4 (2016) pp. 448-477.

‘Reconsidering Donizone’s Vita Mathildis: Boniface of Canossa and Emperor Henry II’, Journal of Medieval History, 31;4 (2015) pp. 388-408.

Conference Proceedings

Ed., The Middle Ages in Modern Games: Conference Proceedings, Vol. 3 (2022).

Ed., The Middle Ages in Modern Games: Conference Proceedings, Vol. 2 (2021).

Ed., The Middle Ages in Modern Games: Conference Proceedings, Vol. 1 (2020).

Multimedia credits

Crusader Kings III (Paradox Interactive, 2019-Present).

The Public Medievalist (2014-Present).

Crusader Kings II (Paradox Interactive, 2012-2019).

Analysis of Carole Hillenbrand’s The Crusades: Islamic Perspectives (Macat International, 2017).

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Research interests

My research falls into two main strands:

The first concerns relationship networks and socio-political structures in Northern Italy c.950-c.1122. In particular, I have worked on projects to map and investigate the political connections of various relationship networks including those surrounding the Italian kings of the tenth century, the imperial papal candidates of the late eleventh century (Cadalus of Parma and Guibert of Ravenna), and Matilda of Canossa. I am interested in how these figures were able to establish and maintain their positions in a complex and changing environment.

I am also interested in the ways in which modern games can be used to represent, explore, and debate the Middle Ages. My work considers the development stronger teaching techniques through games and their potential as outputs and tools for the study of history. My current project engages with the presentation of the Middle Ages within computer games and considers the interaction between ludic and medievalist tropes to create a particular vision of the period.

Supervision of research students

I welcome proposals for postgraduate research. My areas of supervision are: Italian cities and bishops: Investiture Contest; Middle Ages in modern media; History in computer games.