Albrecht Classen is University Distinguished Professor of German Studies at the University of Arizona, Tucson.

• IntroductionChapter One: The Medieval King, Monarchy, the Court, and Philosophical-Political Reflections. Unexpected Perspectives Toward a Critical Discourse: Political ReflectionsChapter Two: Waltharius: An Honest Warrior Fights Against an Evil King: Early Medieval Criticism of a RulerChapter Three: The Neglectful, Ineffectual, Pathetic, and Useless King: Heinrich der Glîchezâre’s Reinhart Fuchs and the Criticism of a Ruler. The Story of a Complete FailureChapter Four: Herzog Ernst and the Cruel Emperor: Criticism of an Unhinged RulerChapter Five: Disappointment about the Fictional King: Criticism of the Royal Ruler in Marie de France’s LaisChapter Six: A Tyrant King in the Viking World: Egil’s Saga and Other Epic PoemsChapter Seven: The Idealized King Proves to be a Miserable Creature: Political Criticism in the Old French Huon de BordeauxChapter Eight: The Public Discussion of the King in Boccaccio’s DecameronSacrosanct or Vile? The Banalization of Kingship in the Late Middle AgesChapter Nine: A Weak Husband, an Evil King, and a Miserable Character: The Downfall of Charlemagne in Late Medieval Prose Novels by Countess Elisabeth of Nassau-Saarbrücken and Others.Königin Sibille and the Anonymous Malagis With an Interlude Focused on the NibelungenliedEpilogueBibliographyAbout the Author

An elegant apologia for the humanities and a reminder of why history is relevant for the present. Albrecht Classen sounds a warning about the consequences of incompetence in the corridors of power. The narrative is a shrewd and scholarly interpretation of medieval perceptions about leadership models that are deficient both in honor and in character. Criticism of the Court and the Evil King in the Middle Ages is a sobering analysis of unstable and collapsing political structures that remains pertinent for the modern age everywhere.