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IMC 2021: Sessions

Session 210: Interpreting the Political Climate, II: Justifying Authority through Political Language

Monday 5 July 2021, 14.15-15.45

Organiser:Daniella Gonzalez, Centre for Medieval & Early Modern Studies (MEMS), University of Kent
Moderator/Chair:Gwilym Dodd, Department of History, University of Nottingham
Paper 210-aJustifying Female Royal Rulership: Political Language in Royal Heiresses' Claims to Medieval Thrones, 1109-1328
(Language: English)
Anaïs Waag, Department of History, King's College London
Index terms: Charters and Diplomatics, Gender Studies, Political Thought, Women's Studies
Paper 210-bAuthority and Power in Late Medieval London: Nicholas Brembre and John of Gaunt's Political Language - A Case Study
(Language: English)
Daniella Gonzalez, Centre for Medieval & Early Modern Studies (MEMS), University of Kent
Index terms: Local History, Political Thought, Rhetoric
Paper 210-cThe Language of Power and the Construction of Royal Authority in Early Tudor England
(Language: English)
Rebecca Wheddon, Department of History, University of Nottingham
Index terms: Political Thought, Politics and Diplomacy, Rhetoric
Abstract

This panel focuses on political language and how it was used to negotiate political climates. The study of political language and discourse is vital in understanding the cultural, historical, social and political contexts of the late medieval world. The first of these papers explores how political language was strategically utilised when making a claim to a throne by royal heiresses, the second the way that two key political figures within medieval London utilised political language and ideas to justify their civic power, and the third examines the early Tudor Age, analysing how Henry VII constructed his royal authority. These papers show how political language was employed when claims and authority could be justified in challenging situations.