Spišians and Hungary. The Chronicle from Spišská Sobota and the Collective Identity of Spiš

0509047 - FLÚ 2020 RIV CZ eng J - Journal Article
Bažant, Vojtěch
Spišians and Hungary. The Chronicle from Spišská Sobota and the Collective Identity of Spiš.
Studia Mediaevalia Bohemica. Roč. 9, č. 2 (2017), s. 237-250. ISSN 1804-0977
R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GBP405/12/G148
Institutional support: RVO:67985955
Keywords : The Chronicle from Spišská Sobota * Kingdom of Hungary * Medieval Historiography * Collective Identities
OECD category: History (history of science and technology to be 6.3, history of specific sciences to be under the respective headings)
Method of publishing: Metadata only

The paper examines the Chronicle from Spišská Sobota (Szepesszombat, Georgenberg, Mons Sancti Georgii/Forum Sabathi), written in German in the middle of the 15th century. It argues that the chronicle is not merely an annalistic record, but forms a narrative on the inhabitants of the Spiš region. The unknown author adapted motifs from Hungarian chronicles to promote the rights and legitimacy of the Spišian community. He intentionally linked historical and legal arguments. For the chronicler, the Spišians are participants in state-formation and simultaneously the beneficiaries of royal privileges. While constructing the collective identity of the Spišians, the author of the chronicle also concealed conflicts within that community, and identified “enemies” in agreement with the narrative of the chronica hungarorum.
Permanent Link: http://hdl.handle.net/11104/0299849