Vol. 84 (2017): Vorträge und Forschungen: Die mittelalterliche Thronfolge im europäischen Vergleich

During the last few years, our approach to the Middle Ages has changed altogether. Thus the European Middle Ages are rather regarded as a self-contained era instead of simply as a prelude to Modernity. In a way, this can be referred to as an anthropological turn in Medieval Studies with a major impact on Constitutional History. Current research increasingly focuses on personal relations. However, it is controversial as to what extent contemporaries already distinguished between the king’s public function as a permanent representative of a community and his condition or quality of being human and thus mortal. This volume focuses on different dimensions of royal succession – such as the queen’s role, the function of the ruler’s sacred status and the phenomenon of disputed royal successions – as crucial aspects to the constitution of medieval realms.