A kingdom of stargazers : astrology and authority in the late medieval crown of Aragon / Michael A. Ryan.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Prophecy, knowledge, and authority : divining the future and expecting the end of days -- For youths and simpletons : the folly of elite astrology -- The Iberian Peninsula : land of astral magic -- Kings and their heavens : the ceremonious and the negligent -- To condemn a king : the inquisitor and the notary -- A return to orthodoxy : the ascension of Martí I and the end of an era -- Epilogue : an unfortunate claimant : Jaume el Dissortat, the rise of the Trastámaras, and beyond the Closing of the Ecumene.

Astrology in the Middle Ages was considered a branch of the magical arts, one informed by Jewish and Muslim scientific knowledge in Muslim Spain. As such it was deeply troubling to some Church authorities. Using the stars and planets to divine the future ran counter to the orthodox Christian notion that human beings have free will, and some clerical authorities argued that it almost certainly entailed the summoning of spiritual forces considered diabolical. We know that occult beliefs and practices became widespread in the later Middle Ages, but there is much about the phenomenon that we do not understand. For instance, how deeply did occult beliefs penetrate courtly culture and what exactly did those in positions of power hope to gain by interacting with the occult? In A Kingdom of Stargazers, Michael A. Ryan examines the interest in astrology in the Iberian kingdom of Aragon, where ideas about magic and the occult were deeply intertwined with notions of power, authority, and providence. -- Book jacket.

In English.

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