Knights at Court: Courtliness, Chivalry, and Courtesy from Ottonian Germany to the Italian Renaissance

Knights at Court is a comprehensive study of manners, manhood, and court life in the Middle Ages, covering three geographic areas and a range of texts from early Norman chronicles to chivalric poetry. It explores the enduring power of courtly forms and motifs over minds and hearts.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 518 pages
Publication date: 19 August 2022
Publisher: University of California Press

Knights at Court is a magnificent and comprehensive exploration of manners, manhood, and court life during the Middle Ages, unparalleled in its printed form. Written on an epic scale, this authoritative work traces the evolution of court culture and its diverse manifestations, spanning from the latter years of the Holy Roman Empire (circa A.D. 1000) to the Italian Renaissance of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.

Leading medievalist and Renaissance scholar Aldo Scaglione presents a sweeping sociological perspective of three geographical regions, unveiling a remarkable continuity of courtly forms and motifs: German romances, the lyrical and narrative literature of northern and southern France, and Italy's chivalric poetry. Scaglione delves into a wide array of texts, ranging from early Norman and Flemish baronial chronicles to the romances of Chrétien de Troyes, the troubadours, and Minnesingers. He explores the Niebelungenlied, Dante, Petrarch, Boccaccio, and numerous treatises on conduct, extending to Castiglione and his successors.

All these works and Scaglione's exceptional scholarship attest to the enduring influence over minds and hearts of a mentality that emerged from a small minority of individuals—the courtiers and knights—in central positions of leadership and power. Knights at Court is a valuable resource for scholars and students interested in the process of civilization.

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates the University of California Press's commitment to seek out and nurture the brightest minds and provide them with a platform to express their ideas, reach a wider audience, and have a significant impact. Drawing from a backlist dating back to 1893, Voices Revived utilizes print-on-demand technology to make high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again. Originally published in 1991, Knights at Court remains a timeless masterpiece of historical analysis and cultural exploration.

Weight: 771g
Dimension: 234 x 156 x 30 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780520333604