Includes bibliographical references and index.

Preliminary Material -- Introduction / Andreas Hellerstedt and Stefano Fogelberg Rota -- The Late Ancient Development of a Notion of Heroic Virtue / Erik Eliasson -- Heroic Virtue in Medieval Liturgy / Nils Holger Petersen -- Aristotle’s Heroic Virtue and Medieval Theories of Monarchy / Biörn Tjällén -- The Gem and the Mirror of Heroic Virtue: Emanuele Tesauro and the Heroic at the Court of Savoy / Kristine Kolrud -- Anti-Protestant Heroic Virtue in Early Modern Rome: Queen Christina (1626–1689) and Senator Nils Bielke (1706–1765) / Stefano Fogelberg Rota -- The King’s Virtues in Swedish Mirrors for Princes c. 1300–c. 1600 / Tania Preste -- The Absolute Hero: Heroic Greatness and Royal Absolutism in Sweden 1685–1715 / Andreas Hellerstedt -- The Enlightened Hero: Virtue, Magnanimitas and Glory in Panegyric Poetry on Gustavus iii 1771–1792 / Jennie Nell -- Index.

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In his Nichomachean Ethics (VII.I.I), Aristotle suggests the possibility of a perfection of virtue so extreme that it could be characterized as “heroic” or “divine”. In Shaping Heroic Virtue , eight scholars from different fields of the humanities explore the reception of this notion within a broad range of artistic, political and religious contexts and map its enduring importance in the self-fashioning of monarchs and political elites. The case studies included in the volume span from Late Antiquity to the 18th century and include material from different parts of Europe, with a particular emphasis on Scandinavia. Contributors include Erik Eliasson, Stefano Fogelberg Rota, Andreas Hellerstedt, Kristine Kolrud, Jennie Nell, Nils Holger Petersen, Tania Preste and Biörn Tjällén.