The Last Descendant of Aeneas: The Hapsburgs and the Mythic Image of the Emperor [Hardcover]

Marie Tanner (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 23, 1993 | ISBN-10: 0300054882 | ISBN-13: 978-0300054880

From antiquity to the Renaissance, rulers of Western empires inspired hero worship by proclaiming their divine origins. This book focuses on the importance of the Roman emperor's mythic image for the development of Western political thought.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Yale University Press (June 23, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0300054882
• ISBN-13: 978-0300054880
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 7.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,520,974 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating tour of history., July 21, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Last Descendant of Aeneas: The Hapsburgs and the Mythic Image of the Emperor (Hardcover)

This book focuses on the mythical elements of royal genealogy. Vergil's effort in "The Aeneid" to deify Augustus Caesar by establishing his descent from Aeneas and through him and the Trojans to the Greek gods was duplicated by all the dynasties of the Frankish kingdom and the Holy Roman Empire. From the Merovingians (Clovis was descended from Aeneas's brother) to the Carolingians to the German dynasties down to the Hapsburgs, descent from the Trojans, the kings of Judea, and the Caesars was central to their claim to world rule. The ultimate effect would be a universal empire, universal peace, and the end of the world under the Last World Emperor. Philip II of Spain, who ruled the New World, came close and took his role very seriously, as the construction of the Escorial Palace in Madrid testifies. Philip was the sovereign of the Order of the Golden Fleece, which is based on an earlier Trojan legend of the Argonauts. Note that the flagship of the battle of Lep! anto, Philip's greatest victory, was named the Argo ! The book has too many typos for a Yale UP book but the production is elegant. I would have liked the mythical genealogies spelled out rather than summarized, but that might seem to be taking the myths too seriously.