Constructing the Middle Ages: Historiography, Collective Memory and Nation-Building in Luxembourg - Hardcover

by Pit P?port? (Author)

Recognising the importance of the Middle Ages as a vital point of reference in the construction of national identities, this challenging book examines the remarkable role played by the period in the grand duchy of Luxembourg. This country is representative of the close relationship between historicism and nation-building in modern Europe. Tracing the fortunes of four pivotal figures from their own lifetimes to the present, this book uncovers how they each entered collective memory and came to play a key role in a national narrative of history. The analysis includes the foundation myth of Sigefroid and Melusine, the posthumous career of Countess Ermesinde and King John of Bohemia's transformation into a national hero.
Borrowing some of its theoretical framework from the study of lieux de mémoire, this wide-ranging book crosses disciplinary boundaries and addresses not only historical writing, but also literature, the visual arts, and popular culture.

Back Jacket

Recognising the importance of the Middle Ages as a vital point of reference in the construction of national identities, this challenging book examines the remarkable role played by the period in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. Tracing the fortunes of four pivotal figures from their own lifetimes to the present, it uncovers how they each entered collective memory and came to play a key role in a national narrative of history. The analysis includes the foundation myth of Sigefroid and Melusine, the posthumous career of Countess Ermesinde and King John of Bohemia's transformation into a national hero. Borrowing some of its theoretical framework from the study of "lieux de m moire," this wide-ranging book crosses disciplinary boundaries and addresses not only historical writing, but also literature, the visual arts, and popular culture.

Author Biography

Pit P?port? is a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Luxembourg. He is co-author of Inventing Luxembourg (Brill, 2010) and has co-edited Renaissance? Perceptions of Continuity and Discontinuity in Europe c.1300-c.1550 (Brill, 2010).