LECTURE: Hiroshi Takayama

Thursday 24 October
Lecture Room - 6pm

The Norman court, well known as a cultural meeting place, where, for example, Greek and Arabic texts were translated into Latin, has been subjected to various historical interpretations. Some historians have treated it as an Oriental court by emphasizing the Byzantine absolutism of the king, as well as his harem and his special regiment of black Muslim slaves. Others have regarded it as fundamentally the same as the feudal courts of Western Europe, while still others have found in it the beginnings of modern state organization. This distinguished expert on Sicily will evaluate these interpretations and present his own views on the matter.