Preface: The Medieval City

The Illinois Medieval Association held its twenty-fourth annual meeting on February 23-24, 2007, at Eastern Illinois University. The conference theme was "The Medieval City" with C. David Benson giving the plenary address, "Some Medieval Poets' Tours of London: Varieties of Literary Urban Experience." Twenty seven papers, representing seven states and three countries, were scheduled for presentation. The essays in this volume of Essays in Medieval Studies were selected from those read at the conference, and in most cases they have been revised and expanded for publication.

The Executive Committee of the IMA met on February 23, 2007. The officers for 2007-2008 are Francine McGregor, Eastern Illinois University, President; Christian Sheridan, Saint Xavier University, Vice-President; and Mark Johnston, DePaul University, Executive Secretary. Counselors for 2007-2008 are Mark Amos, Southern Illinois University; Anne Clark Bartlett, DePaul University; Raymond Clemens, Illinois State University; Anita Riedinger, Southern Illinois University; David Wagner, Northern Illinois University; and Edward Wheatley, Loyola University. The IMA is indebted to the following departments and persons at EIU for supporting the conference: Dean Jim Johnson and Associate Dean Jeffrey Lynch of the College of Arts and Humanities; the Departments of Art, English, Foreign Languages, History, Music, and Philosophy; the Honors College; the School of Continuing Education; and the committee for the Medieval Studies Minor—David Raybin, Timothy Shonk, Rosemary Buck, Bonnie Irwin, Jan Marquardt, Shelley French, Grant Sterling, Joshua Birk, Stephen Canfield, and Luminita Florea. Special thanks to Collegium Musicum for their performance at the reception. The IMA would also like to thank Dr. Hilary Attfield of the West Virginia University Press for her kind help with this issue of EMS.