The King Embodies the Word: Robert d'Anjou and the Politics of Preaching

Robert d’Anjou, King of Naples (1309-1343), was a lay preacher. With his sermons, he expressed his piety and erudition, but most importantly, he preached in order to extend his royal office. This study provides an important contribution to the history of lay preaching.

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Robert d’Anjou was King of Naples from 1309-1343 and preached throughout his reign. As a lay preacher, albeit a particularly privileged one, Robert adopted the oratorical form generally reserved to clerics in order to announce his piety and erudition, but most importantly, he preached in order to express and extend his royal office.
This book studies the sermons that Robert preached at universities, diplomatic ceremonies, and royal visitations at religious houses, including his sojourn at the papal court.
This work explores an important case study in the history of medieval lay preaching. It shows the flexibility of preaching as a form of political and personal oratory and marks an important step in the author's interest to map out the range of licit lay preching in Medieval Europe.