A Prince or a Pauper? : Staging Noble Lineage in the Coronation Order of Emperor Charles IV
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| Year of publication | 2018 |
| Type | Appeared in Conference without Proceedings |
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| Description | Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor and Bohemian King, was a capable and artful politician quick to use all kinds of public performances to promote his political aims. Having been raised in France, son of Bohemian Queen Elisabeth from the House of Premyslid and young Count of Luxembourgh, John the Blind – hence, Bohemian only from mother’s side –, he knew his “Boemitas” might be easily put into question by any begrudging adversary. Therefore, from his installation to Bohemian throne in 1346 on, Charles IV took great pains to create an image of himself as a true offspring of the ancient Bohemian House of Premyslid. Besides other things, Charles IV invented a unique liturgical performance and had it incorporated in a new coronation order of Bohemian kings that was being written under his auspices in 1940s: a meditation over bast sandals and bag that allegedly belonged to mythical founder of the House of Premyslid, Premysl the Ploughman. The ruminatio over the artefacts, which was supposed to take place the night before the day of coronation, together with visual and textual representations of the legend, were intended by Charles IV to remind the to-be king of his humble origin, and – at the same time and probably more importantly – stage in the minds of his contemporaries his own Bohemian-Premyslid origin. |
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