Court Studies in Russian Medieval Studies: Review of the Latest Publications

Abstract

The article presents the Russian medieval studies on the European courts in the Middle Ages and early Modern period. The review is based on the Russian materials on the history of France, England, Germany, Italy and Spain published during 2000—2020. Consideration is given to the following aspects: the role of the study of the court in the political history of the Middle Ages and the very understanding of this phenomenon; the geography of scientific centers, forms and types of publications; the boundaries of research; the topics studied within them, perspectives, special subjects; methodological and historiographical debates. Suggestions are being made regarding the reasons for active development of court studies and their transformation into an independent scientific field (associated both with the peculiarities of medieval studies itself, and with evolution of humanitarian knowledge and social context in general).