Author: Edmund Curtis
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Normans
Languages : en
Pages : 606

View

Book Description

Author: Hubert Houben
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521655736
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 268

View

Book Description
Although many studies have addressed important aspects of medieval southern Italy, this was the first work for nearly ninety years to be devoted specifically to the life and reign of King Roger II, the founder of the kingdom of Sicily. The book provides a comprehensive introductory narrative of the reign and a clear, scholarly analysis of its culture and of the development of royal government. The kingdom created by the Norman Roger of Hautville in the first half of the twelfth century was a monarchy with highly developed absolutist ideas, an elaborate bureaucracy, a reasonably well-filled treasury, and a mixed cultural heritage reflected by the presence of Arabs and Greeks at court. Based on many years of research in archives and libraries across Europe, the book offers a valuable overview of one of the most striking periods in south Italian and European history.

Author: Donald Matthew
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521269117
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 442

View

Book Description
This book is an introductory account of the kingdom of Sicily established in 1130 by Roger II, a 'Norman' king, and ruled by Roger, his own son and grandsons until 1194 when the kingdom was conquered by his son-in-law, Henry VI of Hohenstaufen. The period covered does, however, extend from Charles of Anjou, a period roughly as long and as coherent as the 'Norman' monarchy of England between 1066 and 1204. Roger II's difficulties in creating an enduring kingdom needed continuous military effort. Even when these efforts were no longer required, the monarchy had still to learn how to function in lands where traditions of local government were strong. Yet when the monarchy itself faltered, the kingdom did not fall apart. Frederick II, the grandson of Roger II, showed that it could be revived and that his sons could maintain it. The ways in which the monarchy made itself indispensable cannot be traced in detail, but pointers to its success can be seen. The kingdom did not spring full-armed at birth - it took time and experience to hammer it into shape. When at last it looked capable of assuming the leadership of all Italy, its enemies combined to prevent it from doing so with the most profound consequences for Italy, the papacy and the west.

Author: Edmund Curtis
Publisher: Theclassics.Us
ISBN: 9781230238111
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 112

View

Book Description
This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1912 edition. Excerpt: ... sole advantage remained with him. The Second Crusade therefore failed at all points, and left the power of the Atabegs still unchecked. The autumn and winter of 1148 and the spring of 1149 saw numbers of the greatest princes of the West returning home by sea. In September, Conrad left Acre, and landing at Thessalonica accepted Manuel's invitation to spend the winter at Constantinople. At the same time he received with anger the news of Roger's attack upon his ally, and the failure of the Crusade inclined him all the more to seek glory in Italy for his tarnished sword. He entered, therefore, into the most binding engagement with Manuel; the Sicilian was to be overwhelmed by a double attack, and envoys were despatched to win over Pisa and Venice. In February, 1149, Conrad departed for Germany, touching only for a moment upon Italian soil at Ancona. Manuel now came in person to press the siege of Corfu; the Greeks entered the fortress, but the Norman troops retired to the acropolis, which was of such a height that "the eye could scarcely measure it"; from here they poured down great stones and showers of darts "like fire showered from heaven." The Venetian fleet, spread around the promontory, cut off aid from the sea, and the Greek archers kept up a continuous fire, "aiming their arrows almost as it were against heaven or against the clouds."1 Louis meanwhile, having spent Easter in the Holy Land, set out homewards, full of anger against the Greeks and their ally Conrad. As the latter had avoided Roger, so Louis avoided the Greeks, and set his galleys towards Southern Italy. The French King's return revived Roger's hopes. At the moment George of Antioch was with sixty ships off Corfu attempting to raise the siege. He turned south apparently...

Author: Jaume Aurell
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108840248
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 355

View

Book Description
The first systematic study of the practice of royal self-coronations from late antiquity to the present.

Author: Edmund Curtis
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Normans
Languages : en
Pages : 483

View

Book Description

Author: Edmund 1881-1943 Curtis
Publisher: Wentworth Press
ISBN: 9781362970873
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 582

View

Book Description
This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

Author: Edmund Curtis
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781535173001
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 358

View

Book Description
In 1016, the ruthlessly ambitious, but obscure, knights of the Norman House of Hauteville came to southern Italy and managed to create a kingdom of their own. Under its first king, Roger II, the Kingdom of Sicily, which included southern Italy, became the most cosmopolitan, tolerant, and enlightened state in Medieval Europe, where Muslims, Christians, Greeks, Normans, Lombards, Italians, Arabs, and Jews lived in relative harmony. By virtue of its strategic location and powerful navy it was at the center of the Mediterranean world. It was coveted by the Byzantine Empire, the Holy Roman Empire, the Roman Catholic Church, and the Almohad and the Fatimid Caliphates. Eventually, the Hauteville kings succumbed to the Hohenstauffen emperors, where the author ends his history, even though the kingdom continued on as a powerful and enlightened vassal state of the Holy Roman Empire.The author, Edmund Curtis, 1881 to 1943, was a professor of history at Trinity College in Dublin from 1914 to 1939, and an editor of Irish historical documents. His work, Roger of Sicily, covers Sicily's Norman period from 1016 to 1154.

Author: Lisa Reilly
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108863418
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages :

View

Book Description
In this book, Lisa Reilly establishes a new interpretive paradigm for the eleventh and twelfth-century art and architecture of the Norman world in France, England, and Sicily. Traditionally, scholars have considered iconic works like the Cappella Palatina and the Bayeux Embroidery in a geographically piecemeal fashion that prevents us from seeing their full significance. Here, Reilly examines these works individually and within the larger context of a connected Norman world. Just as Rollo founded the Normandy 'of different nationalities', the Normans created a visual culture that relied on an assemblage of forms. To the modern eye, these works are perceived as culturally diverse. As Reilly demonstrates, the multiple sources for Norman visual culture served to expand their meaning. Norman artworks represented the cultural mix of each locale, and the triumph of Norman rule, not just as a military victory but as a legitimate succession, and often as the return of true Christian rule.

Author: Takayama
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004476245
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 307

View

Book Description
The administration of the Norman Kingdom of Sicily has long been held up to be the most advanced government in twelfth-century Europe. However, until now there has been considerable confusion about how this bureaucracy actually functioned, whether it developed in the 12th century or retained the form given it by Roger II; whether it had regional variations, what the identity of different departments of government was, who did what within the structures of government, and what the relationship between the Greek, Arabic and Latin elements within the administration was. This work goes a long way to sorting out these problems. The author's meticulous work with chronicles and charters enable him to clear up many problems and mysteries in the administration of finance and justice and to identify such uncertainties as remain. This fundamental work forms a basic reference point for future studies of Norman Sicily and of government in the high Middle Ages.