During the 13th and 14th centuries, medieval Castile produced some of the liveliest, most sophisticated vernacular reworkings of narratives inherited from classical and late antiquity, including those about Alexander the Great, the Trojan War, or Apollonius of Tyre. This study recovers the overlooked tradition of the Castilian romances of antiquity, showing how these works offered a nuanced reflection of the relationship between cultural memory, the media through which memory is shaped and transmitted, and Castileâs imperial ambitions. Clara Pascual-Argente restores a genre of great cultural and political importance to its rightful place in Castilian and European literary history.
Clara Pascual-Argente, Ph.D. (2010), Georgetown University, is Associate Professor of Spanish at Rhodes College. She has published many articles on the creative transformations and political significance of classical narratives during the Iberian Middle Ages.
Acknowledgements
List of Illustrations
Introduction
â1 The Castilian Romances of Antiquity in Their European Context
â2 Cultural Memory and the Romances of Antiquity
â3 Alexanderâs Heirs
1 Mirroring Monuments: Reflecting on the Media of Memory in the Libro de Alexandre and the Libro de Apolonio
â1 Monumental Memory in the Libro de Alexandre
ââ1.1 The Persian Tombs: Erasing Representational Friction
ââ1.2 Word, Image, and Mise en Abyme in Achillesâs Sepulcher
ââ1.3 Historia and Figura
â2 Memory, Identity, and Visuality in the Libro de Apolonio
ââ2.1 A Monumental Frame
ââ2.2 Metanarrative Proliferation
ââ2.3 From Memory to Written Record?
2 Remembering (for) Empire in the Libro de Alexandre and Its Literary Lineage (Poema de Fernán González, Poema de Alfonso Onceno)
â1 Remembering (at) Troy in the Libro de Alexandre
â2 Trojan Lessons in the Poema de Fernán González
ââ2.1 Trojan Past, Iberian Past
ââ2.2 A Monastic Troy
â3 Fulfilling Promises in the Poema de Alfonso XI
4 From Empire to Exile: Troy in 14th-century Castile
â1 Alfonsoâs Imperial Troy
ââ1.1 Castilian Empire, Greek Heroes
ââ1.2 Marinids as Trojans
â2 A Turning Point: Pedroâs Troy
ââ2.1 Empire: The Historia troyana de Pedro I
ââ2.2 Exile: Galician Troys
â3 Catalinaâs Troy: A Restoration?
ââ3.1 Two Trojan Compilations: Sumas de Historia Troyana and Confisión del Amante
ââ3.2 Troy and Petrismo in El Victorial
Conclusion
Appendix
Bibliography
Scholars and students interested in Castilian and European literary and cultural history, the reception of classical antiquity in medieval culture, or the cultural politics of medieval monarchies.