Si le renouveau de la paix royale au XIIème siècle est un phénomène bien connu, son essor aux XIIIème et XIVème siècles l’est beaucoup moins. La période qui sépare les règnes de Philippe Auguste à celui de Charles IV – 1180-1328 – est pourtant décisive. Durant celle-Ci, à la faveur d’un contexte très favorable à sa cause, la royauté parvient à s’ériger en éminente pacificatrice de son royaume, achevant de substituer la paix du roi à l’ancienne paix de Dieu. Le défi est pourtant immense. Plus que tout, trois méfaits ne cessent de menacer la paix, contre lesquels la couronne s’efforce de lutter : les violences sur les chemins, les associations illicites, et les guerres qui surviennent entre les sujets. Dans le combat résolu qu’ils engagent, les rois sont portés par la pensée des ecclésiastiques. Ces derniers, s’appuyant sur l’antique tradition carolingienne, ne cessent de rappeler aux rois que leur devoir est d’œuvrer pour la tranquillité du royaume. La renaissance aristotélicienne renforce considérablement cette rhétorique : à la lumière d’Aristote, les théologiens soulignent que la paix est la fin même de l’office princier. Galvanisés par ces discours édifiants, les Capétiens s’efforcent de réfréner les tumultes provoqués par les agresseurs de chemins, les fauteurs de guerre, et les sujets qui se liguent. À cette fin, ils n’hésitent pas à agir en législateurs : ils édictent de nombreuses lois, tantôt locales et tantôt générales, qui condamnent avec fermeté ces dangereux malfaiteurs. L’application de ces préceptes se heurte à de fortes résistances, et la politique royale connaît de réelles vicissitudes. Néanmoins, l’action menée par la royauté renforce sa vocation souveraine et porte des fruits concrets. Les actes de la pratique montrent que les serviteurs de la couronne entreprennent de nombreuses actions visant à sanctionner les fauteurs de troubles violant la légalité royale. Le volontarisme de la couronne est tout particulièrement évident à l’encontre de ceux qui livrent des guerres, régulièrement condamnés pour leurs entreprises devant la justice royale. En définitive, en déployant ainsi tous leurs efforts, les Capétiens parviennent à instaurer un ordre pacifique sur lequel peuvent ensuite s’appuyer leurs successeurs Valois. / If the renewal of king's peace in the XIIth century is a well-Known phenomenon, its blossoming in the XIIIth and XIVth centuries is less-Known. The period which separates the reigns of Philippe Auguste and Charles le Bel – 1180-1328 – is none-The-Less decisive. During this period, thanks to a very favourable context, kingship succeeded in setting itself up as an eminent peacemaker of its kingdom, finally replacing God's ancient peace by king's peace. The challenge is however immense. More than anything, three ravages which the crown strives to fight, keep on threatening the peace : violence on public roads, illicit associations, and wars arising between subjects. In their resolute fight, kings are prompted by the thought of the ecclesiastics who, referring to the antique carolingian tradition, insist on reminding the kings that their duty is to work for their kingdom tranquillity. The Aristotelian rebirth reinforces this rhetoric : in the light of Aristote, theologians emphasize that peace is the ultimate aim of a king's duty. Stimulated by those enlightened discourses, Capetians try to refrain the disorders generated by highwaymen, warmongers and subjects who join together. To achieve their goal they choose to act as legislators : they enact numerous laws, some local some general, which firmly condemn those dangerous criminals. Enforcing these precepts meets with strong resistances and king's policy goes through real vicissitudes. However, king's policy reinforces its sovereignty and achieves concrete results. Sources attest that the crown servants undertake numerous actions aiming at punishing troublemakers who violate the king's law. The crown determination is particularly obvious against those who take part in wars and are regularly sentenced for their wrongdoing by the king's justice. Hence by expending all their efforts and energy, Capetians succeed in establishing some peaceful order on which their successors the Valois will lean.

This study discusses the history of the Arabs of north Arabia in later pre-Islamic times. This study provides an in-depth discussion of Arab ethnicity, which contributes to the improvement of our knowledge regarding this controversial issue. This study argues that the Arab nation is, in fact, a very old one of great importance, but the Arabs themselves had no consciousness of their unity and did not leave inscriptions proclaiming their identity as Arabs or claim to be the rightful proprietors of specific territories. An examination is made of the reasons behind the emergence of kingship in different communities through the course of history, in order to determine the general features of kingship. This study demonstrates that kingship in north Arabia had almost every feature of kingship as it appeared in other places. Particular attention is paid in the study to delivering a full and coherent account of the history of Qedar. Although, some scholars have tried to write the history of Qedar, their works remain fragmentary or inconsistent. Basing the examination not merely on most of the previous works, we subject those works to a comparison with the Assyrian inscriptions. By so doing, it has proved possible to critique the previous works and clarify many ambiguous issues in Qedarite history. Moreover, this study contributes to the improvement of our knowledge regarding Nebaioth and Na-ba-a-a-ti and their relationship with the Nabataeans. This study finds that the Nebaioth and Nabataeans were different, contemporary groups living during the sixth century BCE, even though the first direct and uncontested evidence of the Nabataeans of Petra comes from the late fourth century BCE, when the Nabataeans made their first clear appearance in Diodorus Siculus in connection with the expansion of the Seleucid Empire (312 BCE). The main settlement centres in north Arabia are discussed in depth in Chapter Five. This study traces the history of Tayma, Adummatu and Dedan, establishing the importance of those oases and their relationship with Mesopotamia. The discussion of those oases produces useful results, which contribute to improving our knowledge and assist in our understanding of issues relating to the history of those sites.

I investigate why gendered images of Hatshepsut influenced androgynous images of Nefertiti in New Kingdom Egypt and how Nefertiti and Akhenaten used their images in the promotion of their monotheistic religion; through a contextual, stylistic and feminist examination of the images. Hatshepsut cultivated images of herself to legitimize her rule in relation to canonical kings before her. Similarly, Nefertiti represented herself as a figure indiscernible from Akhenaten, creating an image of female co-rulership. Although the visual representations of both Hatshepsut and Nefertiti differ, the concepts behind each are analogous. They both manipulated androgyny to create images displaying powerful women equal in status to male Egyptian kings.

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The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls has provided an opportunity to reexamine the formation of the Gospel of John. This study will utilize Dead Sea finds coupled with other Second Temple literature to examine how the Gospel of John portrays Jesus as being a king. The approach of this study to use a narrative approach that builds on the Gospel of John as a finished text. The contribution of a source critical approach is not disparaged but the narrative approach will allow the Johannine community to be seen in the context of the immediate post-Second Temple era. The limited literacy of the probable first audience of this text suggests that a narrative approach will best be able to understand the background to the formation of the Gospel of John. A central contention of this study is that the Gospel of John was composed after the Jewish Revolt and after the Synoptics. Thus it deserves the appellation of the Fourth Gospel and is called such in this study. The Fourth Gospel was composed at a time when Roman interest in anything connected to Judaism was sure to attract special interest. Thus the portrayal of Jesus as the Davidic Messiah needed to be handled carefully. The imagery of the new David found in 4Q504 compared with the imagery of Jesus being the Good Shepherd becomes an important part of the argument of this study on whether this Gospel portrays Jesus as being the Davidic Messiah. Jesus as the Good Shepherd showed Jews that Jesus is the Davidic Messiah without overtly offending Roman sensibilities. Furthermore evidence from Christian and Jewish sources indicates that an interest in a Third Temple was still stirring between the Jewish and Bar-Kochba Revolts. The Fourth Gospel shows Jesus as the Davidic Messiah who replaces the Temple because the Good Shepherd was the perfect sacrifice. / New Testament / D. Th. (New Testament)

This thesis explores the impact of Rome upon Anglo-Saxon politics, religion, and culture in the ninth century. From the Gregorian mission onwards, Rome helped shape the ecclesiastical and devotional contexts of Anglo-Saxon Christianity and occupied a central place in the imaginations of early English writers. Yet the extent to which these links continued into and throughout the ninth century remains obscure, with scholarship about religion and culture often treating the period as a hiatus. In political narratives, the ninth century is treated as a crucial period, and Roman involvement is most visible in this sphere. By redressing the imbalance between religion and politics, this thesis achieves a thorough appreciation of the part played by Rome in these various fields of experience, as well as showing how Anglo-Saxon writers located themselves and their pasts in relation to the city. It does so over the course of five thematic chapters, which progress from an analysis of the most fundamental issues to more imaginative ones. Chapter one examines contact and communication between England and Rome, arguing that the two areas were closely and constantly connected across the century. The second and third chapters explore the impact of Rome on religion and kingship respectively, finding that while Roman influence on the church was most pronounced in the first half of the century, in political terms the city played a significant and changing role throughout the period. Chapters four and five consider the position of Rome in Anglo-Saxon historical thought and geographical understanding, examining how writers continued to define their position in a wider Christian world with reference to the city and its past. This thesis argues that, in the ninth century, Rome continued to play an important role in English life, while also influencing Anglo-Saxon thought and experience in new and dynamic ways.

This thesis offers a reassessment of the political culture of Scotland in the later fifteenth century, from c. 1440 to c. 1490, through an examination of communitarian discourses and practices. It argues that the current understanding of political relations is limited by too great a focus upon personal relationships. While these were undoubtedly important, it is necessary also to consider the structures of law and governance which framed political interactions, and the common principles and values which underpinned action, in order to gain a fuller picture. In particular, it is argued that the current model, which assumes a more or less oppositional relationship between crown and ‘political community', ought to be replaced with a public domain in which claims to authority were asserted and contested. This approach allows the familiar political narrative to be firmly connected to the ideas expressed in contemporary advice literature, while also situating political authority spatially, by asking how it was experienced as well as how it was projected. The focus upon language and space allows for clear parallels to be drawn between different local political cultures, and allows connections and contrasts to be made between those cultures and the norms of kingship and lordship. It argues that reforms to civil justice made during James III's reign have played a far more important part in the turbulent politics of the time than has been appreciated, that both royal and aristocratic authority could be presented as acting both for the common good and for the interests of the crown, and that Scotland's towns not only had a vibrant political culture of their own, but were an important part of the politics of the realm.

Cette étude porte sur la notion de « secret » dans le cadre spécifique de la royauté en Égypte ancienne, ses modalités, ses formes et ses implications structurelles, entre le début de l'Ancien Empire et la fin du Nouvel Empire. Une recherche linguistique des termes égyptiens se traduisant par « secret » et « privé » ainsi que leurs synonymes  les plus usités étant (s)StA, waaw, Dsrw, jmn et HAp  complétée par une étude prosopographique a permis de déterminer quelles catégories d'individus avaient accès aux « secrets » et aux affaires privées de la royauté et dans quelles situations la préservation de ces « secrets » était exigée. Ce privilège se discerne alors au travers des services effectués auprès du monarque, que ce soit l’accomplissement de certains rites ou une affaire qui requiert simplement de la discrétion. Les titres et épithètes mentionnant un ou plusieurs de ces termes à connotation confidentielle, et notamment ceux qui sont introduits par Hry-sStA « le préposé aux secrets », témoignent du rôle de leurs titulaires auprès du roi, son culte et sa politique. Certains individus avaient également accès aux parties les plus secrètes du palais, que ce soit pour une consultation privée concernant une affaire d'État ou l'accomplissement de rites spécifiques associés à la personne royale. Chacune de ces situations révèle la volonté des dignitaires proches du souverain de préserver le caractère sacré de la fonction royale. L'étude de ces espaces confidentiels permettent ainsi de mieux comprendre l'organisation de la vie ritualisée du souverain afin d'obtenir une meilleure perception du fonctionnement du pouvoir dans l'Égypte ancienne. / This study deals with the concept of « secret », in the specific context of kingship in Ancient Egypt, focusing on its requirements, its forms and its structural implications, from the beginning of the Old Kingdom until the end of the New Kingdom. A linguistic research on the Egyptian terms translating as « secret » and « private » and their synonyms  (s)StA, waaw, Dsrw, jmn et HAp being the most common , which is complemented by a prosopographic study, enabled us to pinpoint the different categories of individuals who had access to the « secrets » and private affairs of the Egyptian kingship and what conditions were required to maintain secrecy. Then this privilege must have implied a real participation in the personal tasks performed for the king, whether these were rituals or affairs calling for discretion. The officials’ titles involving secrecy and knowledge of specific private rules, in particular the Hry-sStA title « he who is in charge of secrets », indicate the field of responsabilities and of activities of their holders in the king's entourage, in the king’s cult and in state administration. Some individuals could access to the restricted areas of the royal apartments, for a private consultation related to state affairs or in order to perform rites or ceremonies associated with the king. Each of these situations displays the determination of these officials, close to the king, to preserve the sanctity of the royal office. Studying these areas of confidentiality allows a better understanding of the pharaoh’s personal and ritualized life, in order to improve our perception of the functioning of royal power in Ancient Egypt.

The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls has provided an opportunity to reexamine the formation of the Gospel of John. This study will utilize Dead Sea finds coupled with other Second Temple literature to examine how the Gospel of John portrays Jesus as being a king. The approach of this study to use a narrative approach that builds on the Gospel of John as a finished text. The contribution of a source critical approach is not disparaged but the narrative approach will allow the Johannine community to be seen in the context of the immediate post-Second Temple era. The limited literacy of the probable first audience of this text suggests that a narrative approach will best be able to understand the background to the formation of the Gospel of John. A central contention of this study is that the Gospel of John was composed after the Jewish Revolt and after the Synoptics. Thus it deserves the appellation of the Fourth Gospel and is called such in this study. The Fourth Gospel was composed at a time when Roman interest in anything connected to Judaism was sure to attract special interest. Thus the portrayal of Jesus as the Davidic Messiah needed to be handled carefully. The imagery of the new David found in 4Q504 compared with the imagery of Jesus being the Good Shepherd becomes an important part of the argument of this study on whether this Gospel portrays Jesus as being the Davidic Messiah. Jesus as the Good Shepherd showed Jews that Jesus is the Davidic Messiah without overtly offending Roman sensibilities. Furthermore evidence from Christian and Jewish sources indicates that an interest in a Third Temple was still stirring between the Jewish and Bar-Kochba Revolts. The Fourth Gospel shows Jesus as the Davidic Messiah who replaces the Temple because the Good Shepherd was the perfect sacrifice. / New Testament / D. Th. (New Testament)

Cette thèse porte sur l’iconographie des Rois mages du Xe au XIIe siècle à travers l’étude de son adaptation sur supports monumentaux dans l’Occident latin, pour déceler la reformulation du thème dans la « société féodale ». Pour ce faire, le premier fil conducteur est la conception du statut royal qu’acquièrent les Mages de l’Évangéliste Matthieu au Xe siècle, analysée parallèlement à celle de la figure dirigeante élaborée sur cette période et décrite par Marc Bloch dans Les Rois thaumaturges (1924) et par Ernst Kantorowicz dans Les deux corps du Roi (1957). L’optique est de définir la place des nouveaux Rois mages dans les intrications de liens « d’homme à homme » dépeintes par Marc Bloch. Le second est la notion d’espace féodal, étudiée en profondeur par Robert Fossier, autour du concept « d’encellulement », et par Alain Guerreau qui applique cette idée à l’espace sacré. La notion d’espace féodal régit à la fois le corpus des décors étudiés, leur intégration dans l’espace ecclésial et la conception de l’espace iconique lui-même. Une analyse phénoménologique fait ainsi apparaître une figure des personnages dans l’« imaginaire féodal », pleinement investis de la fonction royale et de son aura, trouvant leur place dans un système mental que l’analyse de grands ensembles iconographiques permet de définir. En tant que figures universelles abstraites, les Rois mages forment ainsi une projection claire de l’idée de groupe, modulée selon diverses consciences fédératrices, de sa cellule la plus restreinte à l’universalité chrétienne. / This dissertation deals with the iconography of the Three Kings from the Xth to the XIIth century, by means of a study of its adaptation on monumental decoration in Latin Europe, so as to unravel how it was adapted by feudal society. In order to do so, the first question is that of the new royal status acquired in the Xth century by the Magi from the Gospel of Matthew, analyzed thanks to the concept of “ruler figure” that emerged at the time and was depicted by Marc Bloch in Les Rois thaumaturges (1924) and Ernst Kantorowicz in the The King’s Two Bodies (1957). The aim is to define where the newly defined Three Kings stand in the intricate network of “ties between man and man” theorized by Marc Bloch. The second question is that of the notion of feudal space, studied in depth by Robert Fossier, with his concept of “encellulement” (1982), and Alain Guerreau, who applies this idea to the sacred space. The notion of feudal space informs the corpus of studied pictures, their integration in the ecclesial space and the conception of the iconic space itself. A phenomenological analysis reveals the features of the characters in the “feudal imaginary”, fully invested with their royal function and its aura, and finding their place in a mental system whose mode of functioning can be unveiled thanks to the study of great iconographic sets. Being abstract universal figures, the Three Kings constitute a clear picture of the notion of social group, modulated according to various unifying consciences, from the most basic unit to Christian Holism.