IMC 2016: Sessions
Session 516: Myth and Identity in Medieval Britain: Nation, History, Politics
Tuesday 5 July 2016, 09.00-10.30
| Sponsor: | Medieval & Early Modern Research Initiative, Cardiff University |
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| Organiser: | Victoria Shirley, School of English, Communication & Philosophy, Cardiff University |
| Moderator/Chair: | Melissa Julian-Jones, School of History, Archaeology & Religion, Cardiff University |
| Paper 516-a | Gerald of Wales and the Trojan Britons in Ireland (Language: English) Index terms: Historiography - Medieval, Language and Literature - Latin |
| Paper 516-b | Hengist and the Foundation of England in the Galfridian Chronicle Tradition (Language: English) Index terms: Historiography - Medieval, Language and Literature - Comparative |
| Paper 516-c | Macduff, Thane of Fife, and the Mythologisation of the Scottish Past in Andrew of Wyntoun's Orygynale Cronykil (Language: English) Index terms: Historiography - Medieval, Language and Literature - Other |
| Abstract | This panel will consider how myths were used to construct different national identities in medieval Britain. The first paper will address how Gerald of Wales represents the Britons as Trojans in his Expugnatio hibernica, demonstrating how this classical myth was used to legitimate the English conquest of Ireland in the late 12th century. The second paper will examine how 13th- and 14th-century chroniclers assimilated the story of Hengist and the foundation of England into a wider narrative of 'British' history. The final paper will consider the role of Macduff in Andrew of Wyntoun's Orygynale Cronykil, discussing how the murder of Macbeth and the ascension of King Malcolm were re-written during the 15th century from a localized perspective that emphasized the political agency of the Thane of Fife. |