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: Hardback
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 geographically distinct areas, 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 serve as evidence of the enduring influence exerted by a mentality originating from a small minority of individuals—the courtiers and knights—in central positions of leadership and power. Knights at Court is an invaluable resource for scholars and students engaged in the study of civilization.

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, a commemorative initiative that celebrates the University of California Press's commitment to identifying and nurturing the most brilliant minds and providing 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 and essential contribution to the field of medieval studies.

Weight: 953g
Dimension: 234 x 156 x 33 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780520371118