Kingship, Rebellion and Political Culture: England and Germany, c.1215 - c.1250

Kingship, Rebellion and Political Culture offers a new take on the political culture of thirteenth-century Europe, based on an exploration of the revolt led by Earl Richard Marshal against King Henry III in England (1233-4), and that led by King Henry VII against Emperor Frederick II in Germany (1234-5). Approaching medieval politics from a comparative perspective, it covers the ideals and norms of political behaviour, the role of violence and the public nature of medieval politics. It draws particular attention to the relationship between the framework of politics and ideals of secular power and its purposes, but also to the numerous tensions and debates that defined politics in this period. In the process, the book sheds new light on social groups, and on the means and mechanisms often ignored by historians of medieval politics.