medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
jill stevenson wrote:
>
> I am teaching a freshman writing seminar in the spring and have
> chosen the theme "Medievalisms Past and Present." A one-line
> description of the course reads: "We will explore the many ways that
> artists, writers, performers, theorists, political figures, and
> everyday people from the sixteenth century to the present have used
> the Middle Ages to reinvent the art and culture of their own time."
Isn't the sixteenth century an odd place to start? After all, Edward III
built his 'round table' at Windsor back in 1344. His next piece of
'medievalism' was founding the Order of the Garter in 1348 (Good King René
countered with the Order of the Croissant - which doesn't sound very
medieval: was the motto "Qu'ils mangent de la brioche"?) The round table at
Winchester is even older, and the Arthurian cult can, I suppose, be traced
back to the 12th century, where we meet medievalism coming the other way,
with the troubadours and trouvères. Huizinga thought that the Middle Ages
were waning in the 15th century, but in England the College of Arms (the
Heralds' College) wasn't incorporated until 1483 - just in the nick of time
really, because the Middle Ages ended two years later...
John Briggs
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