Kingship and consent in Anglo-Saxon England, 871-978 : assemblies and the state in the early Middle Ages / / Levi Roach [[electronic resource]]

• Record Nr.: UNINA9910453211203321
• Autore: Roach Levi <1985->
• Pubbl/distr/stampa: Cambridge : , : Cambridge University Press, , 2013
• ISBN: 1-139-89261-4; 1-107-70294-1; 1-316-64852-4; 1-107-70380-8; 1-139-56775-6; 1-107-59835-4; 1-107-69078-1; 1-107-66759-3
• Descrizione fisica: 1 online resource (xiv, 301 pages) : digital, PDF file(s)
• Collana: Cambridge studies in medieval life and thought ; ; 4th ser., 92
• Disciplina: 320.942/09021
• Soggetti: Anglo-Saxons - Politics and government
• Lingua di pubblicazione: Inglese
• Formato: Materiale a stampa
• Livello bibliografico: Monografia
• Note generali: Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 05 Oct 2015).
• Nota di bibliografia: Includes bibliographical references and index.
• Nota di contenuto: Introduction: Assembling consent in ninth- and tenth-century England -- Assembly attendance -- Meeting places and times of assemblies -- Royal charters and assemblies -- Legislation and consent : Law making and assembly politics -- Symbols in context: Ritual and demonstration at assemblies -- The witan and the settlement of disputes -- The "further business" of the witan -- Ritual and reality: the problem of the sources -- The role of the witan: celebration and persuasion.
• Sommario/riassunto: This engaging new study focuses on the role of assemblies in later Anglo-Saxon politics, challenging and nuancing existing models of the late Anglo-Saxon state. Its ten chapters investigate both traditional constitutional aspects of assemblies - who attended these events, where and when they met, and what business they conducted - and the symbolic and representational nature of these gatherings. Levi Roach takes into account important recent work on continental rulership, and argues that assemblies were not a check on kingship in these years, but ; rather an essential feature of it. In particular, the author highlights the role of symbolic communication at assemblies, arguing that ritual and demonstration were as important in English politics as they were elsewhere in Europe. Far from being exceptional, the methods of rulership employed by English kings look very much like those witnessed elsewhere on the continent, where assemblies and ritual formed an essential part of the political order.