Literary Spectacles of Sultanship
Historiography, the Chancery, and Social Practice in Late Medieval Egypt
De Gruyter · Print & ebook · June 30, 2025
The so-called Mamluk sultans who ruled Egypt and Syria between the late thirteenth and early sixteenth centuries AD have often been portrayed as lacking in legitimacy due to their background as slave soldiers.
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- Who it’s for
- A study of early Mamluk biographies as literary performances and interventions in chancery life.
- Genres
- Middle Eastern Lit Crit, Egypt & the Middle East
- Published
- De Gruyter, June 30, 2025
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The so-called Mamluk sultans who ruled Egypt and Syria between the late thirteenth and early sixteenth centuries AD have often been portrayed as lacking in legitimacy due to their background as slave soldiers. Sultanic biographies written by chancery officials in the early period of the sultanate have been read as part of an effort of these sultans to legitimise their position on the throne.
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This book reconsiders the main corpus of six such biographies written by the historians Ibn ʿAbd al-Ẓāhir (d. 1293) and his nephew Shāfiʿ ibn ʿAlī (d. 1330) and argues that these were in fact far more complex texts. An understanding of their discourses of legitimisation needs to be embedded within a broader understanding of the multi-directional discourses operating across the texts. The study proposes to interpret these texts as "spectacles", in which authors emplotted the reign of a sultan in thoroughly literary and rhetorical fashion, making especially extensive use of textual forms prevalent in the chancery. In doing so the authors reimagined the format of the biography as a performative vehicle for displaying their literary credentials and helping them negotiate positions in the chancery and the wider courtly orbit.
Sultanic Biography
A study of early Mamluk biographies as literary performances and interventions in chancery life.
Come here for
- Six sultanic biographies by Ibn ʿAbd al-Ẓāhir and Shāfiʿ ibn ʿAlī
- How chancery writing shaped literary display and courtly positions
Expect
- A reconsideration of six biographies from the early sultanate
- Attention to rhetoric, chancery forms, and courtly social practice
Where it sits
| Egypt & the Middle East | 59% |
|---|---|
| Middle Eastern Lit Crit | 51% |
Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.
Publisher categories
- Middle Eastern Lit Crit
- Islam - General
- Islamic Studies
- Authors
- Gowaart Van Den Bossche
- Publisher
- De Gruyter
- Published
- June 30, 2025
- Format
- Print & ebook
- Reading lane
- Middle Eastern Lit Crit