Eine habsburgische Quelle im Kampf gegen Frankreich: Vollmacht Kaiser Friedrichs III. an König Maximilian, 1493

A Habsburg Source in the Struggle against France: The Power of Attorney of Emperor Frederick III to King Maximilian, 1493This paper deals with a medieval source that has received little attention in research so far: the power of attorney of Emperor Frederick III to King Maximilian of 1493. This historical document, which calls for the punishment of the French king, is marked by years of conflict between Maximilian I and Charles VIII of France. The source provides a crucial insight into the propaganda of Frederick III and Maximilian I.

The Expulsion of Germans from the Chapter of Zagreb in 1458

In 1458, seven canons of the Chapter of Zagreb were expelled by Bishop Demetrius Čupor and his supporters. In their protest before the pope, they claimed that the only reason for that was because they were Germans. Upon examining their careers and the current political situation within the Kingdom of Hungary, it becomes clear that, although an anti-German and generally anti-foreigner sentiment was present in the country (which is apparent in the laws passed by King Matthias), the real reasons for their expulsion were political. Bishop Demetrius had spent more than a decade fighting for the bishopric against his rivals, who were protected by the Counts of Celje, the then patrons of the Diocese of Zagreb. Most of the expelled canons had been given their offices by the said family, and some of them maintained close relations with Emperor Frederick III. The fact that most of the expelled canons returned to the chapter soon after their expulsion further indicates its political background. Those who returned once again became esteemed and trusted members of the chapter. Those who did not return – three out of seven – were all in the emperor’s service, and the chapter took special steps to prevent them from reclaiming their offices.

Messer Leon, Judah (c.1425–c.1495)

Messer Leon was a philosopher, physician, jurist, communal leader, poet and orator. Ordained as a rabbi by 1450, Messer Leon was qualified to adjudicate legal cases among Jews and head an academy (yeshivah) for advanced studies in Jewish law. He also came close to embodying the Renaissance ideal of uomo universale. His learning was formally recognized in 1469, when Emperor Frederick III awarded him a doctorate in medicine and philosophy and granted him the unusual privilege of conferring doctoral degrees in those subjects on Jewish students. Messer Leon’s contribution to Jewish philosophy was in the field of logic, the art considered by him to be the key to the proper harmonization of religion and philosophy. He regarded scholastic logic to be superior to Arabic logic and wrote supercommentaries on Averroes’ logical works as well as an encyclopedia of logic, Mikhlal Yofi (Purest Beauty), in an attempt to shift Jewish philosophical education from the Judaeo-Arabic logical tradition to scholastic logic. Although his encyclopedia became a popular textbook, Messer Leon failed to mould the culture of Italian Jewry as he had intended. In particular, he could not curb the spread of Kabbalah, a tradition which he vehemently opposed because of its underlying Platonic metaphysics. Most importantly, Messer Leon composed the first manual of Hebrew rhetoric, entitled Nofet Tzufim (The Book of the Honeycomb’s Flow). Printed in 1476, this Jewish response to Latin humanism combines the Averroist-Aristotelianism tradition and the Ciceronian-Quintilian one. The appropriation of humanistic rhetoric was given a Jewish meaning when Messer Leon claimed that the Torah, rather than the writings of the pagan, classical orators, exemplified perfect speech because it was a revelation of perfect divine wisdom. By analysing Scripture from the perspective of classical rhetoric, Messer Leon legitimized the study of ancient pagan and Christian orators even as he argued for the supremacy of biblical rhetoric over all merely human eloquence.

Bernardo Giustiniani

Bernardo Giustiniani (b. 1408–d. 1489) was a prominent Venetian humanist, politician, and diplomat of the middle and late 15th century. He was tutored by Guarino Veronese and George of Trebizond before studying arts and law at the university at Padua. He was known for his numerous orations and epistolary relationships, but his reputation rests principally on his history of Venice, De origine urbis Venetiarum rebusque ab ipsa gestis historia (hereafter abbreviated De origine urbis). This text is considered a significant and modern work of Venetian historiography of the 15th century. Giustiniani also played a substantial diplomatic role for Venice in the midst of a turbulent century: he was ambassador from Venice to Emperor Frederick III, the French king Louis XII, Popes Pius II and Paul II, Naples, Ferrara, and Milan. Giustiniani was also elected by either the Senate or the Maggior Consilio to other posts; he was a ducal councilor, a member of the Council of Ten, and eventually one of the nine procurators of St. Mark—the second-highest positions in the republic, after the doge. A key humanist in his own right, he was also a significant patron of others, and altogether a major figure in late-15th-century Venetian culture, society, and politics.

Verschwender, Kriegsherr und Landesfürst. Albrecht VI. von Habsburg (1418–1463)

The follwing seminar paper is about Archduke Albrecht VI, brother to emperor Frederick III. Regarded as „villain“ in traditional historiography, which failed to value his substantial and successful efforts to improve his position as „prince without principality“, it will be shown that this assessment has its roots in his conflicts with his imperial brother. For an impartial observer, he pursued his aims with the means of a realpolitik. Although he still hast to be regarded as a minor figure in Austrian history, his expample tells a lot about the possibilities and constraints of a Late Medieval prince.