Sham Fights and Mock Sieges: An Enduring Antiquity in the Medieval and Pre-modern Representation of War

The article examines the centuries-old relationships between the world of war and the world of spectacle. It analyses different examples of sham fights and mock sieges, which belong both to Roman times as well as the medieval and pre-modern periods. The aim of this analysis is to show how over the c...

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Main Author: Giuseppe Adami
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Firenze University Press 2020-12-01
Series:Drammaturgia
Subjects:
Online Access:https://oajournals.fupress.net/index.php/drammaturgia/article/view/12381
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author Giuseppe Adami
author_facet Giuseppe Adami
author_sort Giuseppe Adami
collection DOAJ
description The article examines the centuries-old relationships between the world of war and the world of spectacle. It analyses different examples of sham fights and mock sieges, which belong both to Roman times as well as the medieval and pre-modern periods. The aim of this analysis is to show how over the course of time these military events remained essentially unchanged, being tied by common organisational and ideological threads. The ritualised exhibition of war in the ancient and late ancient world is thus reflected in the ethos of the medieval ‘bellatores’, remaining almost entirely the same up to the emergence of the better known examples of the gentleman soldier and the official of pre-modern armies. The festive and spectacular aspects of such performances consolidated the military world’s resilience to change, surviving the countless transformations that might have questioned its identity.
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spelling doaj.art-2856eb196bab4b0eb7fec8f3ab75abf32022-12-21T20:16:30ZengFirenze University PressDrammaturgia1122-93652283-56442020-12-0116610.13128/dramma-12381Sham Fights and Mock Sieges: An Enduring Antiquity in the Medieval and Pre-modern Representation of WarGiuseppe AdamiThe article examines the centuries-old relationships between the world of war and the world of spectacle. It analyses different examples of sham fights and mock sieges, which belong both to Roman times as well as the medieval and pre-modern periods. The aim of this analysis is to show how over the course of time these military events remained essentially unchanged, being tied by common organisational and ideological threads. The ritualised exhibition of war in the ancient and late ancient world is thus reflected in the ethos of the medieval ‘bellatores’, remaining almost entirely the same up to the emergence of the better known examples of the gentleman soldier and the official of pre-modern armies. The festive and spectacular aspects of such performances consolidated the military world’s resilience to change, surviving the countless transformations that might have questioned its identity.https://oajournals.fupress.net/index.php/drammaturgia/article/view/12381Representation of WarEarly Modern Court FestivalsMartial SpectaclesSham FightsMock Sieges
spellingShingle Giuseppe Adami
Sham Fights and Mock Sieges: An Enduring Antiquity in the Medieval and Pre-modern Representation of War
Drammaturgia
Representation of War
Early Modern Court Festivals
Martial Spectacles
Sham Fights
Mock Sieges
title Sham Fights and Mock Sieges: An Enduring Antiquity in the Medieval and Pre-modern Representation of War
title_full Sham Fights and Mock Sieges: An Enduring Antiquity in the Medieval and Pre-modern Representation of War
title_fullStr Sham Fights and Mock Sieges: An Enduring Antiquity in the Medieval and Pre-modern Representation of War
title_full_unstemmed Sham Fights and Mock Sieges: An Enduring Antiquity in the Medieval and Pre-modern Representation of War
title_short Sham Fights and Mock Sieges: An Enduring Antiquity in the Medieval and Pre-modern Representation of War
title_sort sham fights and mock sieges an enduring antiquity in the medieval and pre modern representation of war
topic Representation of War
Early Modern Court Festivals
Martial Spectacles
Sham Fights
Mock Sieges
url https://oajournals.fupress.net/index.php/drammaturgia/article/view/12381
work_keys_str_mv AT giuseppeadami shamfightsandmocksiegesanenduringantiquityinthemedievalandpremodernrepresentationofwar