The Verbruggen Prize
Named in honour of Jan F. Verbruggen, one of the foremost scholars in the field of medieval warfare, De Re Militari has created the Verbruggen Prize, given annually for the best book on medieval military history.
Rules:
1. The prize will be offered annually for the best book on medieval military history, broadly conceived, published within the prior three years (e.g. books published 2001-2003 will be eligible for the 2004 prize.) Authors or publishers may nominate a book, but for the book to be eligible one copy of it must reach each of the three committee members by 30 December of the year preceding the award.
3. The Award Committee will base their selection on the following three criteria, in descending order of importance: Importance and originality of the contribution to the field of medieval military history; Quality and depth of scholarship; Clarity and quality of prose.
4. Committee members will serve two-year terms. The committee chair will nominate a new committee slate at the DRM annual meeting.
5. The prize committee will choose the winner by majority vote by 15 March. If there is a three-way tie, the President of De Re Militari will cast the tie-breaking vote. The prize, a framed certificate, will be awarded at the De Re Militari Special Session at Kalamazoo.
Current Committee:
- John France (University of Swansea) (chair: [email protected])
- John Hosler (Command and General Staff College)
- Craig M Nakashian (Texas A&M University- Texarkana)
The Gillingham Prize
Named in honor of English scholar, John Gillingham, De Re Militari has created the Gillingham Prize, to be given annually to the best article by a member to appear in the preceding issue of the Journal of Medieval Military History.
Rules:
Selection of the winner will be made by the editors of the journal, who may also award honorable mention to other articles. At their discretion, the editors may name other members of DRM to participate in the decision. Those who wish to compete for the Gillingham Prize should note the following: to be eligible for the Gillingham Prize, the author/s of an article must be a current member/s of the Society for Medieval Military History. Consequently, it is recommended that authors whose articles have been accepted for publication and who wish to compete for the prize make certain that their membership is current. (The special annual Kalamazoo lecture, which is regularly published in the following year’s issue of the JMMH, will not be eligible for the prize).
Current Committee (editors of the JMMH):
- Clifford Rogers (Military Academy at West Point) (chair)
- Kelly DeVries (Loyola University of Maryland)
- John France (University of Swansea)
The Bernard Bachrach Prize for Distinguished Service to the Discipline of Medieval Military History (“The Bernie”)
Named for the dean of American historians dealing with medieval military affairs, Bernard S. Bachrach, this award will be conferred upon an individual whose career is judged to have substantially contributed to the study of our discipline. Winners will be determined by a committee appointed by the chairman of the prize committees with the approval of the Executive Committee. Distinguished service to the discipline shall be broadly defined, with scholarly publication constituting only one of the possible qualifications. Other qualifications for which the prize may be awarded include promoting and/or raising the visibility of medieval military studies, mentoring students and junior scholars in the field, supporting and promoting organizations devoted to medieval military history, etc. This prize will ordinarily be conferred biennially.
