What is the value of medieval Europe in which the act of entering the bed in the same sex and nakedness meant other than sexual relations?
Sharing one bed, especially sharing a bed with a same-sex person, is an act that is strongly linked to sexual imagery, but it seems to have had another significant meaning in medieval Europe. It has turned out to be interesting, especially about the values that seem to have been shared among the people who are in high places.
Three Wise Men in a Bed: Bedsharing and Sexuality in Medieval Europe | NOTCHES
King King Richard I , who became famous in the 12th century, is also known as the King of Lions Heart committed to war and adventure, and is a person who has been honored as a knight's model, but the theory that he was homosexual in the later generations It is a person who can be cast. It is believed that the basis is the following description written in 'Chronica', which was made by the chronicler Roger of Howden around 1200.
The King of France Reiched with Philip, The King of France, who so honored him that for a long time at the same time every day at the same table and from the same dish, and at night their beds were not separate them as his own soul, and they loved each other so much that the king of England was absolutely astonished.
King Francesco Philip II and Richard I had the same table, ate the same dish, and were not divided by the bed at night. The French king loves Richard I with all his heart, and how he loves each other is astounding to King Henry II of England.
In the modern sense, the act of two men sharing a bed is strongly linked to the fact that they are both homosexuals, but John Gillingham, who wrote a book about Richard I , Steven・ According to historians such as Mr. Yeager , there are differences in sense due to differences in age.
In the Middle Ages, for a person who was in a high position, having meals and beds together has more political implications than sexual ones, and it is the same for kissing and holding hands. Said that These acts are symbolic of peace and forgiveness, and are considered to have been regarded as meaning alliances and friendship.
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Therefore, for Richard II's father and former King of England, Henry II, the act of having Richard I and King of France and Philip II sharing meals and beds, as described above, means that the son is homosexual. It is thought that it was shocking in the sense of showing a close relationship with France, which can be considered as one's own enemy, rather than being a human being.
◆ 'The three wise men of the east' who were sharing a bed
It seems that the symbolism of the act of putting the bed together can be taken from the picture of the three wise men of the East appearing in the New Testament, or the ' Magi '.
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These three wise men from the Gospel of Matthew came from the east to Bethlehem to meet Jesus, who was born as the King of the Jews. Along the way, the three wise men will meet Herod the Great, but they will receive a life from the Great King saying, 'If you find the child, let them know where you are.' After that, he was the three wise men who met Jesus, but according to the ambitions of dreams he received while sleeping, a passage was written to avoid returning to Herod the Great and return. After the Middle Ages, episodes related to this dream are well known and often depicted in churches and paintings around the world.
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Especially in the following works, it is said that values in the Middle Ages are well indicated. The picture shows the three wise men who are now kings when they hear a dream message, but the three wise men who wear the crown as a symbol of the king share one bed. , And the upper body is lying side by side with nakedness. This work, which is a picture drawn in the religion that many people support, is not merely sexual in the act of putting a bed together, and it is especially modern among the people in high position. It is a good indication that they had different meanings.
By the British Library
Given this background, a new point of view will be born to the image of 'homosexuality' who has followed Richard I. It can be said that it is a symbolic episode that leads to a more correct understanding of the flow of history by capturing historical values at the same time as the values of the time.
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