Rituals of Royalty: Power and Ceremonial in Traditional Societies

by David Cannadine (Editor)

Heads of state today mark their rites of passage with splendid ceremonial, from Reagan's inaugural to Andropov's funeral. Such spectacles continue to be a prominent part of modern political systems, of varied ideological hue, but their precise meaning and importance often remain unclear. These specially commissioned essays address the central problem in the understanding of royal rituals, the relation between power and ceremonial. These contributions, from historians and anthropologists, examine a wide range of societies.

364 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1987

About the author

Sir David Cannadine FBA FRSL FSA FRHistS is a British author and historian, who specialises in modern history and the history of business and philanthropy.

Reviews

[Ben Haines]

added for: "the detailed, at once symbolically complex yet magnifi-
cently explicit account of the making of a Ghanaian king
as described by Michelle Gilbert, ‘The Person of the King:
Ritual and Power in a Ghanaian State’." from Aztecs: An Interpretation