Mapping kingship : the cultivation of masculinity in the treatise of Walter de Milemete (Oxford, Christ Church MS 92)

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2017-05

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Dimartino, Caitlin Irene

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Abstract

The stages of illumination for Walter de Milemete’s De nobilitatibus, sapientiis et prudentiis regum, a mirror for princes written for the newly-crowned Edward III, bridges a politically and socially volatile period in the history of medieval England. Given the failed reign and contested masculinity of king Edward II, the subsequent deposition staged by his wife, Queen Isabella of France, and the troubling regency of the queen after the coronation of her son, Edward III, it comes as little surprise that the text of this manuscript emphasizes the importance of good governance and the virtues most important for a young king to cultivate. This didactic function of the treatise and the complementary illumination program— in which humans, animals, monsters, and hybrids pose and perform inside thick borders across almost every page — has long been stressed in studies on the visual aspects of the manuscript. Yet to be addressed is the role that medieval notions of elite masculinity, which greatly influenced the legacies of Edward I, Edward II, and Edward III, have played in the creation of both the text and image in the treatise. My thesis explores the intended reception of the Milemete treatise in relation to the political climate of the early fourteenth century, the contested masculinity of Edward II and subsequent problems that arose from his lack of manliness, and the need for Edward III to cultivate and exemplify maturity in the form of controlling himself, controlling the court and his mother, and leading successful campaigns against such enemies as Scotland, in order to succeed as king and legitimize his own rule. I argue that the illumination program was intended to condition Edward III to recognize, understand, and then embody aspects of masculinity and kingship that would ultimately help him establish himself as a chivalric, capable, and autonomous ruler. The visual landscape of the manuscript was an embodiment of Edward’s personal, internal quest to reach majority and encouraged him to conceptually “travel” through the borders’ allusions to ideal kingship and masculinity and, in the process, reevaluate his own self-identification as a virtuous and legitimate king.

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