Charlemagne am Renaissancehof. Die Darstellung Karls des Großen in Paolo Emilios De rebus gestis Francorum
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Maike Priesterjahn
Abstract
The influence of an historian’s social and political context on his portrayal of princes can be seen quite well in the national history of the Franks (De rebus gestis Francorum) written by the Italian humanist Paolo Emilio. In this work, commissioned by several French kings in the early sixteenth century, Charlemagne enjoys a place of prominence. The way Emilio deals with this figure, who was closely tied to Frankish traditions, sheds light on the way medieval rulers were portrayed in humanist historiography and the function such portrayals had. Emilio relies partially on ancient narrative strategies and medieval catalogues of virtue but adapts them in a way that resonated with his humanist training and the expectations of the court. Thus he strips Charlemagne of unattested, mythical, and other elements unsuited to historiography and gives greater weight (than had been given in earlier depictions) to those qualities that were more immediately relevant for a French ruler in the early sixteenth century, such as courage, military strength, and prudence; furthermore he updates Charlemagne’s physical description to accord with current tastes. By projecting qualities thought necessary to the French kings of his own time onto the medieval construct of Charlemagne, Emilio not only describes the contemporary ideal ruler in theory but also portrays him as an historical individual.
Abstract
The influence of an historian’s social and political context on his portrayal of princes can be seen quite well in the national history of the Franks (De rebus gestis Francorum) written by the Italian humanist Paolo Emilio. In this work, commissioned by several French kings in the early sixteenth century, Charlemagne enjoys a place of prominence. The way Emilio deals with this figure, who was closely tied to Frankish traditions, sheds light on the way medieval rulers were portrayed in humanist historiography and the function such portrayals had. Emilio relies partially on ancient narrative strategies and medieval catalogues of virtue but adapts them in a way that resonated with his humanist training and the expectations of the court. Thus he strips Charlemagne of unattested, mythical, and other elements unsuited to historiography and gives greater weight (than had been given in earlier depictions) to those qualities that were more immediately relevant for a French ruler in the early sixteenth century, such as courage, military strength, and prudence; furthermore he updates Charlemagne’s physical description to accord with current tastes. By projecting qualities thought necessary to the French kings of his own time onto the medieval construct of Charlemagne, Emilio not only describes the contemporary ideal ruler in theory but also portrays him as an historical individual.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Frontmatter I
- Contents VII
- Introduction 1
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I. Virtues
- Der Herrscher und die gute Ordnung. Das Bild Karls VII. in der französischen Historiographie am Übergang von der tradierten zur humanistisch geprägten Historiographie 17
- Charlemagne am Renaissancehof. Die Darstellung Karls des Großen in Paolo Emilios De rebus gestis Francorum 39
- Guter König, schlechter König? Die Darstellung Heinrichs V. und Heinrichs VI. von England in Polydor Vergils Anglica historia 65
- Alfonso ›the Magnanimous‹ of Naples as Portrayed by Facio and Panormita: Four Versions of Emulation, Representation, and Virtue 95
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II. Cultural and Political Pretensions
- Illyrian Trojans in a Turkish Storm: Croatian Renaissance Lords and the Politics of Dynastic Origin Myths 121
- Personelle Serialität und nationale Geschichte. Überlegungen zu den Herrschergestalten in Franciscus Irenicus’ Germaniae Exegesis 157
- Riccardo Bartolinis Austrias (1516) oder: Wie ein Herrscher zum Feldherrn gegen die Türken wird 193
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III. Models Ancient, Medieval, and Modern
- Der Herrscher als zweiter Salomo. Zum Bild König Roberts von Anjou in der Renaissance 217
- Pier Candido Decembrio and the Suetonian Path to Princely Biography 237
- Die Cosmias des Giovanni Mario Filelfo (1426–1480) 271
- Einhard reloaded. Francesco Tedeschini Piccolomini, Hilarion aus Verona, Donato Acciaiuoli und die Karlsbiographik im italienischen Renaissance-Humanismus 287
- Auf den Spuren Paolo Giovios? Herrscherdarstellung in Jacobus Sluperius’ Elogia virorum bellica laude illustrium 307
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IV. Method
- Princes between Lorenzo Valla and Bartolomeo Facio 337
- Juan Páez de Castro, Charles V, and a Method for Royal Historiography 363
- Picturing the Perfect Patron? Francesco Filelfo’s Image of Francesco Sforza 391
- Verbis phucare tyrannos? Selbstanspruch und Leistungsspektren von zeithistorischer Epik als panegyrischem Medium im 15. Jahrhundert 415
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V. Critical Summary
- The Description Makes the Prince: Princely Portrayal from the Perspective of Transformation Theory 445
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Indices
- Index of Names 463
- Index of Places 485
- List of Contributors 491
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Frontmatter I
- Contents VII
- Introduction 1
-
I. Virtues
- Der Herrscher und die gute Ordnung. Das Bild Karls VII. in der französischen Historiographie am Übergang von der tradierten zur humanistisch geprägten Historiographie 17
- Charlemagne am Renaissancehof. Die Darstellung Karls des Großen in Paolo Emilios De rebus gestis Francorum 39
- Guter König, schlechter König? Die Darstellung Heinrichs V. und Heinrichs VI. von England in Polydor Vergils Anglica historia 65
- Alfonso ›the Magnanimous‹ of Naples as Portrayed by Facio and Panormita: Four Versions of Emulation, Representation, and Virtue 95
-
II. Cultural and Political Pretensions
- Illyrian Trojans in a Turkish Storm: Croatian Renaissance Lords and the Politics of Dynastic Origin Myths 121
- Personelle Serialität und nationale Geschichte. Überlegungen zu den Herrschergestalten in Franciscus Irenicus’ Germaniae Exegesis 157
- Riccardo Bartolinis Austrias (1516) oder: Wie ein Herrscher zum Feldherrn gegen die Türken wird 193
-
III. Models Ancient, Medieval, and Modern
- Der Herrscher als zweiter Salomo. Zum Bild König Roberts von Anjou in der Renaissance 217
- Pier Candido Decembrio and the Suetonian Path to Princely Biography 237
- Die Cosmias des Giovanni Mario Filelfo (1426–1480) 271
- Einhard reloaded. Francesco Tedeschini Piccolomini, Hilarion aus Verona, Donato Acciaiuoli und die Karlsbiographik im italienischen Renaissance-Humanismus 287
- Auf den Spuren Paolo Giovios? Herrscherdarstellung in Jacobus Sluperius’ Elogia virorum bellica laude illustrium 307
-
IV. Method
- Princes between Lorenzo Valla and Bartolomeo Facio 337
- Juan Páez de Castro, Charles V, and a Method for Royal Historiography 363
- Picturing the Perfect Patron? Francesco Filelfo’s Image of Francesco Sforza 391
- Verbis phucare tyrannos? Selbstanspruch und Leistungsspektren von zeithistorischer Epik als panegyrischem Medium im 15. Jahrhundert 415
-
V. Critical Summary
- The Description Makes the Prince: Princely Portrayal from the Perspective of Transformation Theory 445
-
Indices
- Index of Names 463
- Index of Places 485
- List of Contributors 491
