In this Book

summary
Anne’s Bohemia is the first general book in English to introduce the little-known riches of medieval Bohemian culture. Alfred Thomas considers the development of Czech literature and society from the election of Count John of Luxembourg as king of Bohemia in 1310 to the year 1420, when the papacy declared a Catholic crusade against the Hussite reformers. This period is of particular relevance to the study of medieval England because of the marriage of Richard II to Anne of Bohemia, the figure around whom this book is focused.

Anne’s Bohemia provides a social context for the most important works of literature written in the Czech language, from the earliest spiritual songs and prayers to the principal Hussite and anti-Hussite tracts of the fifteenth century. The picture that emerges from Thomas’s close readings of these texts is one of a society undergoing momentous political and religious upheavals in which kings, queens, clergy, and heretics all played crucial roles. During the reign of Charles IV (1346-78), the Bohemian Lands became the administrative and cultural center of the Holy Roman Empire and Prague its splendid capital. Comparing and contrasting the situation in Bohemia with the England of Richard II, Anne’s Bohemia charts the growth and decline of the international court culture and the gradual ascendancy of the Hussite reformers in the fifteenth century. Expert but accessibly written, the book offers an engaging overview of medieval Bohemian culture for specialist and nonspecialist alike.

Table of Contents

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  1. Cover
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  1. Title Page, About the Series, Copyright, Dedication
  2. pp. i-v
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  1. Frontispiece
  2. p. vi
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  1. Contents
  2. pp. vii-viii
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  1. List of Illustrations
  2. pp. ix-x
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  1. Foreword
  2. David Wallace
  3. pp. xi-xiv
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  1. Acknowledgments
  2. pp. xv-xvi
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  1. Abbreviations
  2. pp. xvii-xviii
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  1. A Note on the Use of Czech Proper Names
  2. pp. xix-xx
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  1. Introduction: Anne’s Bohemia: Toward a Comparative Study of Medieval Czech Literature
  2. pp. 1-19
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  1. 1. Prologue: Literature in Old Church Slavonic, Latin, and Czech before 1310
  2. pp. 20-32
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  1. 2. A Literature of Their Own: Women Readers and Writers in Medieval Bohemia
  2. pp. 33-49
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  1. 3. The War of the Bohemian Maidens: Gender, Ethnicity, and Language in The Dalimil Chronicle
  2. pp. 50-62
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  1. 4. Alien Bodies: Exclusion, Obscenity, and Social Control in The Ointment Seller
  2. pp. 63-76
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  1. 5. A Bohemian Imitatio Christi: The Legend of Saint Procopius
  2. pp. 77-87
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  1. 6. The Radiant Rose: Female Sanctity and Dominican Piety in the Czech Life of Saint Catherine
  2. pp. 88-109
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  1. 7. Bohemian Knights: Reflections of Social Reality in the Czech Epic and Verse Romances
  2. pp. 110-124
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  1. 8. From Courtier to Rebel: Ideological Ambivalence in Smil Flaška’s The New Council
  2. pp. 125-133
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  1. 9. Writing and the Female Body: The Weaver, The Wycliffite Woman, and The Dispute between Prague and Kutná Hora
  2. pp. 134-148
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  1. 10. Epilogue: Continuity and Change in Fifteenth-Century Czech Literature
  2. pp. 149-152
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  1. Notes
  2. pp. 153-170
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  1. Bibliography
  2. pp. 171-184
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  1. Index
  2. pp. 185-193
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  1. Other Works in the Series
  2. p. 194
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  1. About the Authors
  2. p. 195
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