Rewriting History and the Myth of the French Nation
Title
Rewriting History and the Myth of the French Nation
Subtitle
The Hagiography of Radegund of Poitiers from Medieval to Modernity
Price
€ 141,00 excl. VAT
ISBN
9789048559152
Format
Hardback
Number of pages
324
Language
English
Publication date
Dimensions
15.6 x 23.4 cm
Table of Contents
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Introduction: Rewriting Radegund of Poitiers
Chapter 1: Laying the Foundations for Radegund’s Legacies
Chapter 2: Hildebert of Lavardin's Life of Radegund: New Institutional Identities for Women in Authority in the Twelfth Century
Chapter 3: Becoming a Patron Saint of France: Mythologizing Radegund and French
Chapter 4: Radegund at the Intersection of Hagiography, Memory, and History in Post-Reformation France: Soldier of Christ and Model for Women's Tridentine Spirituality
Chapter 5: Mother of the Fatherland: Nationalism and French Identities from the Revolution to the Fin-de-siècle
Chapter 6: French Exports: Radegund and Defining French Identities at Home and Abroad from Medieval to Modernity
Conclusion: Radegund Today: "At the Root of Our History"
Appendices
Bibliography
Index

Anna Katharina Rudolph

Rewriting History and the Myth of the French Nation

The Hagiography of Radegund of Poitiers from Medieval to Modernity

This multidisciplinary analysis of the cult of Radegund of Poitiers, from the sixth century to the twenty-first, illuminates the roles saints play at the intersection of gender and politics. No other medieval saint was so politically charged or had such an astonishing range of constructed personae. The many “Radegunds” encountered in this study – virgin, wife, mother, royalist, republican, colonizer – can all be interpreted as responses to contemporary political events, shifting spiritual trends, and changing attitudes towards women’s role in society or the Church. The long trajectory of Radegund’s meanings and functions over the centuries suggests that saints have played a more significant ideological role in state formation, nationalism, and identity politics than is typically recognized. To “rewrite” Radegund is thus to rewrite the history of the French nation, and this ground-breaking study shows how powerful medieval hagiography has been and continues to be in the emergence of nationalism and the “Myth of the French Nation.”
Author

Anna Katharina Rudolph

Anna Katharina Rudolph is a medieval historian whose work examines how the sacred intersects with the political to redefine gender expectations for women in authority in pre-Modern France. She holds a Ph.D. in History from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and is the author of “From Runaway Wife to Sainted Queen: Scandal and the Model of Saintly Queenship in the Early Middle Ages.”