Roberts, Penny. (2007) The kingdom's two bodies? : corporeal rhetoric and royal authority during the religious wars. French History, Vol.21 (No.2). pp. 147-164. ISSN 0269-1191

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Abstract

The conventional discourse of the body politic assumed a peculiar resonance during the French religious wars due to the unique identification of the king with the well-being of his kingdom. The duality of this relationship was echoed in the language and imagery of corporeal rhetoric which infused the declarations of all sides during the conflict. The combined threat of heresy and civil war, and the shared imperative to defend the unity and integrity of the kingdom, lent a renewed relevance, but also a profound discord, to this rhetoric. While opinions differed about the best means to cure France's ills—the royal policy of pacification being the most controversial of them—monarchical authority was bolstered by the king's undisputed role as head of the body politic and protector of, and physician to, his realm.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Subjects:	D History General and Old World > DC France
Divisions:	Faculty of Arts > History
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	France -- History -- Wars of the Huguenots, 1562-1598, Monarchy -- France -- History -- 16th century, France -- Kings and rulers -- Influence
Journal or Publication Title:	French History
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
ISSN:	0269-1191
Date:	15 May 2007
Volume:	Vol.21
Number:	No.2
Page Range:	pp. 147-164
Identification Number:	10.1093/fh/crm002
Status:	Peer Reviewed
Access rights to Published version:	Open Access
URI:	http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/id/eprint/364

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