Death and the Prince Memorial Preaching before 1350 [Hardcover]

This is a fascinating study of attitudes towards death and the afterlife in medieval Europe. Based on fourteenth-century unpublished sermons in memory of kings and princes, it examines the relationship between kingship and death, in a period when a genuinely secular political consciousness existed alongside other-worldly priorities. David D'Avray mixes political history with the history of mentalites to produce a unique look at funeral preaching during this era.

Taking the reader through the translated texts, he reveals their beautiful economy. The same quality imbues this book. Every part does its job perfectly, and the whole is more than the sum of these parts....In the sense that matters, this is a big book. --American Historical Review

[The author] has opened up for us the nearly untouched field of memorial sermons for princes. --Speculum

Thanks to [D'Avray's] impressive scholarship, the medieval transition from Roman to humanist funeral rhetoric can now be fully appreciated. --The Journal of Religion