Adam J. Kosto
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199651702
- eISBN:
- 9780191741999
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199651702.003.0006
- Subject:
- History, European Medieval History
This chapter builds on the superb documentation for some of the most well-known cases of hostageship in the Middle Ages, namely hostages granted for the ransom and release of captive kings: Baldwin ...
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This chapter builds on the superb documentation for some of the most well-known cases of hostageship in the Middle Ages, namely hostages granted for the ransom and release of captive kings: Baldwin II of Jerusalem and Richard I of England in the twelfth century, Louis IX of France and Charles II of Naples in the thirteenth, David II of Scotland in the fourteenth, and James I of Scotland in the fifteenth. These case studies offer a density of detail that is often missing in other contexts. Draft treaties, lists of hostages, and safe conducts allow for a careful reconstruction of the social, political, and financial networks that underlay royal authority, and on which opponents knew how to draw in shaping guarantees.Less
This chapter builds on the superb documentation for some of the most well-known cases of hostageship in the Middle Ages, namely hostages granted for the ransom and release of captive kings: Baldwin II of Jerusalem and Richard I of England in the twelfth century, Louis IX of France and Charles II of Naples in the thirteenth, David II of Scotland in the fourteenth, and James I of Scotland in the fifteenth. These case studies offer a density of detail that is often missing in other contexts. Draft treaties, lists of hostages, and safe conducts allow for a careful reconstruction of the social, political, and financial networks that underlay royal authority, and on which opponents knew how to draw in shaping guarantees.
JOANNA SUMMERS
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199271290
- eISBN:
- 9780191709586
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199271290.003.0003
- Subject:
- Literature, Early and Medieval Literature
This chapter examines the captivity of James I of Scotland, and discusses how the ‘I’ voice of The Kingis Quair may be read as James I's autobiographical identity. It examines how the identity James ...
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This chapter examines the captivity of James I of Scotland, and discusses how the ‘I’ voice of The Kingis Quair may be read as James I's autobiographical identity. It examines how the identity James I sculpts for himself is linked to the specifics of his actual situation, and how James's political self-portrayal often rests upon his redeployment of other texts. The chapter also discusses how the Quair borrows from Gower's Confessio Amantis, an influence that has been ignored in the text's critical history. The Quair's reference to Gower and Chaucer is not merely a mock-modesty topos, but has a political basis. The chapter examines how James presents his successful love-suit in dual form: as the conclusion to his imprisonment in England; and as the culmination of his reaching self-governance and maturity, as James appears to have read Gower's text within the 'governance of princes' tradition.Less
This chapter examines the captivity of James I of Scotland, and discusses how the ‘I’ voice of The Kingis Quair may be read as James I's autobiographical identity. It examines how the identity James I sculpts for himself is linked to the specifics of his actual situation, and how James's political self-portrayal often rests upon his redeployment of other texts. The chapter also discusses how the Quair borrows from Gower's Confessio Amantis, an influence that has been ignored in the text's critical history. The Quair's reference to Gower and Chaucer is not merely a mock-modesty topos, but has a political basis. The chapter examines how James presents his successful love-suit in dual form: as the conclusion to his imprisonment in England; and as the culmination of his reaching self-governance and maturity, as James appears to have read Gower's text within the 'governance of princes' tradition.
Joanna Summers
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199271290
- eISBN:
- 9780191709586
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199271290.001.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, Early and Medieval Literature
Boethius's Consolation of Philosophy has long been taken as one of the seminal works of the Middle Ages, yet despite the study of many aspects of the Consolation's influence, the legacy of the figure ...
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Boethius's Consolation of Philosophy has long been taken as one of the seminal works of the Middle Ages, yet despite the study of many aspects of the Consolation's influence, the legacy of the figure of the writer in prison has not been explored. A group of late-medieval authors — Thomas Usk, James I of Scotland, Charles d'Orléans, George Ashby, William Thorpe, Richard Wyche, and Sir Thomas Malory — demonstrate the ways in which the imprisoned writer is presented both within and outside the Boethian tradition. Each of these writers inscribes himself and his imprisoned situation within his text. This book examines, therefore, whether each text invites a reading as autobiography. In many of the texts there are clear signs of intertextual reference; this book questions whether such reference to contemporary discourse or literary authority is incorporated for the purposes of a politically-motivated self-presentation as opposed to a concern with literary aesthetics or formal or philosophical considerations. It examines whether the self-presentation of each writer has a motivation of self-justification or self-promotion, leading to a manipulation of historical evidence for political ends, as the persuasion of the audience, whether this is envisaged as coterie, patron, heretical sect, or opponent is effected through the manipulation of these devices. Late-Medieval Prison Writing also questions whether the group of texts constitutes a genre of early autobiographical prison literature in its own right.Less
Boethius's Consolation of Philosophy has long been taken as one of the seminal works of the Middle Ages, yet despite the study of many aspects of the Consolation's influence, the legacy of the figure of the writer in prison has not been explored. A group of late-medieval authors — Thomas Usk, James I of Scotland, Charles d'Orléans, George Ashby, William Thorpe, Richard Wyche, and Sir Thomas Malory — demonstrate the ways in which the imprisoned writer is presented both within and outside the Boethian tradition. Each of these writers inscribes himself and his imprisoned situation within his text. This book examines, therefore, whether each text invites a reading as autobiography. In many of the texts there are clear signs of intertextual reference; this book questions whether such reference to contemporary discourse or literary authority is incorporated for the purposes of a politically-motivated self-presentation as opposed to a concern with literary aesthetics or formal or philosophical considerations. It examines whether the self-presentation of each writer has a motivation of self-justification or self-promotion, leading to a manipulation of historical evidence for political ends, as the persuasion of the audience, whether this is envisaged as coterie, patron, heretical sect, or opponent is effected through the manipulation of these devices. Late-Medieval Prison Writing also questions whether the group of texts constitutes a genre of early autobiographical prison literature in its own right.
