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In early Medieval Western Europe intellectuals were used to indicate the external location of Slavic countries, as though outside civilization, with the term ‘the North’. The problem did not only concern nomenclature. The stereotype associated with ‘the North’ pointed at the obvious cold weather, but also the primeval nature of the land and people. This study shows the detailed image of Poland created by German authors in the earliest period of existence of the Piast state (963-1034). An important aim of this work was also to identify the wider context of written opinions. Another purpose was to gather information illustrating actions taken by the Polish rulers aimed at creating an image of themselves as civilized men and true Christians.
Rulers and Rulership in the Arc of Medieval Europe challenges the dominant paradigm of what rulership is and who rulers are by decentering the narrative and providing a broad swath of examples from throughout medieval Europe. Within that territory, the prevalent idea of monarchy and kingship is overturned in favor of a broad definition of rulership. This book will demonstrate to the reader that the way in which medieval Europe has been constructed in both the popular and scholarly imaginations is incorrect. Instead of a king we have multiple rulers, male and female, ruling concurrently. Instead of an independent church or a church striving for supremacy under the Gregorian Reform, we have a ...
A groundbreaking comparative history of the formation of Bohemia, Hungary and Poland, from their origins in the eleventh century.
Focused on the formative force of national identity for the Poles the transmission of values the book offers a tour of a huge set of primary sources from the period 966-1138 in search of the traditions of the Piasts the ruling dynasty of Poland.
This volume analyses the constructions and realities of childhood in Poland, c. 1050-1300 CE, by examining a range of texts and considering the ways in which children fit within textual frameworks and genres. These texts include two major chronicles, monastic sources, and hagiography related to five major saints. The textual sources are put into conversation with findings from archaeology. The author argues that certain common themes, such as assumed care for children, the need for education, and the puer senex trope do feature through most texts of any genre, and the book also explores how Poland was similar to and different from the situation in western Europe. See inside the book.
Written around 1112-1116, the Chronicles and Deeds is the oldest narrative source from Poland. This work tells the ancient history of Poland down to the reign of Boleslaw III.
This book analyses the role of women in the Polish Piast dynasty from c. 965 to c.1144. It discusses gender expectations and the literary topoi employed to describe rulers’ wives and daughters as well as showing their importance in religious donations, the creation of dynastic memory, and naming patterns, as well as examining Piast women’s involvement in female monasticism. Pac takes a comparative approach to these themes, analysing Polish sources alongside sources from other areas of early and high medieval Europe.
The Slippery Memory of Men analyzes how during the early fourteenth century a discourse of eternal enmity was created between the Teutonic Knights and the rulers of Poland as these former allies contended over the disputed region of Pomerania.
Ecclesia et Violentia is an interdisciplinary anthology that explores the phenomenon of violence in relation to the medieval Church, as well as within the structures of that institution. The volume provides a clearer understanding of hostile and violent acts against both religious institutions and clergy, and explores the interpersonal aggression between clergymen or forms of violent behaviour of medieval clerics. It investigates, furthermore, the role of violence in maintaining discipline within religious communities, as well as religious, legal and cultural interpretations of the aforementioned issues. However, despite the many points of view expressed here, the central question the author...
What did kingship mean to medieval Europeans - especially to those who did not wear a crown? From the training of heirs, to the deathbed of kings and the choosing of their successors, this engaging study explores how a ruler's subjects shaped both the idea and the reality of power.