Kingship And Propaganda: Royal Eloquence And The Crown Of Aragon C. 1200-1450 Hardcover

Suzanne F. Cawsey

In the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries the Crown of Aragon was a rapidly expanding and powerful political unit with an original form of representative government. Throughout this period a series of energetic and talented rulers sought to maintain royal authority and govern their realms effectively. Their persuasive rhetoric, and that of their advisers, is preserved in the archives of the Crown of Aragon in Barcelona, which provide a rich and under-exploited vein of source material for historians. There are long letters to their subjects, historical works, and the proceedings of the cortes, where the kings and queens perusaded their reluctant subjects to grant taxes and to support their decisions. Suzanne F. Cawsey examines the tradition of royal eloquence, thereby illuminating the nature of political discourse and persuasion in medieval Aragon and exploring the key ideas shared by the king and the political classes of the kingdom.

9780199251858

English

Oxford University Press

29 Aug 2002

200

Makes good use of comparative material from other countries, especially Naples. * J. N. Hillgarth, University of Toronto (Emeritus) * ... splendid ... there is much to be learned here for the literary scholar in terms of the pragmatic dimensions of literacy. * Medium AEvum *