Studying Medieval Rulers and Their Subjects: Central Europe and Beyond (Variorum Collected Studies)

This selection of articles, published for the 50th anniversary of the author's doctorate at Göttingen, opens with studies on his teacher, Percy Ernst Schramm, and his contribution to the study of the medieval state and continues with examples of state symbology from Central Europe. Questions of legitimization and representation of kings and queens through texts and Herrschaftszeichen as well as the development of 'coronation studies' are addressed in a comparative framework. The second part contains articles on social and political history mainly of the kingdom of Hungary in the fifteenth century, also attempting to place the issues into a wider context. Finally, two pieces present and discuss the 'use' or 'abuse' of the Middle Ages in the political discourse and display of our times. Cover Series Half Title Title Copyright Contents Preface Acknowledgements 1. THE STUDY OF RULERS AND RULED I Medieval symbology of the state: Percy E. Schramm’s contribution II Percy Ernst Schramm (1895–1970) on P.E. Schramm III Coronation studies: past, present, and future - thirty years later IV Serfs and serfdom: words and things V Probleme einer vergleichenden Betrachtung mittelalterlicher Eliten in Ostmitteleuropa 2 CENTRAL EUROPEAN RULERS: SYMBOLS AND FUNCTIONS VI Holy Lance, Holy Crown, Holy Dexter: sanctity of insignia in medieval East Central Europe VII Sankt Stefans Armreliquie im Ornat König Wenzels von Ungarn VIII Legitimization of rulership in three narratives from twelfth-century Central Europe IX Lists in the service of legitimation in Central European sources X Queens as scapegoats in medieval Hungary 3 HUNGARY IN THE LATE MIDDLE AGES XI A kingdom of many languages: the case of medieval Hungary XII Monarchie im Wellental: Materielle Grundlagen des ungarischen Königtums im fünfzehnten Jahrhundert XIII Sigismund and the Ottoman advance XIV Hungary and crusading in the fifteenth century XV “Good king Polish Ladislas...": history and memory of the short reign of Władisław Warneńczyk in Hungary XVI The Hungary of Matthias Corvinus: a state in ‘Central Europe’ on the threshold of modernity 4 HISTORY AND POLITICS XVII The ideology of a “millennial constitution” in Hungary (written with Anna Gara-Bak) XVIII Die Mediävisierung der Politik im Ungarn des 19. und 20. Jahrhunderts Publications of János M. Bak, 1999-2009 Index Addresses questions of legitimization and representation of kings and queens through texts and 'Herrschaftszeichen' as well as the development of 'coronation studies'. This title contains articles on social and political history, focusing on the kingdom of Hungary in the fifteenth century.