Article

Name: THE KNIGHTS OF MALTA IN HANDWRITTEN FICTION OF THE FIRST HALF OF THE 18TH CENTURY

Authors: L. A. Kurysheva

Institute of Philology of the Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk, Russian Federation

In the section

Abstract: The article is devoted to the issue of historical authenticity and a pragmatic component of the image of the Maltese knights in Russian narratives. At the beginning of the 18th century, the Russian man, from a representative of the nobility to the man reading the fiction, was well aware of the military reputation of the Maltese knights. The diary entries of the European travels of B. P. Sheremetyev and P. A. Tolstoy (both visited Malta in 1689) represent the Maltese as experienced and successful warriors as defenders of the Christian world in the European-Turkish conflicts of the 16th–17th centuries. Information about the Maltese knights Russian reader of the first third of the 18-th century. could be found in the books of A. Schonebeck and R.-Au. de Vertot. Russian manuscript fiction has preserved the reputation of the Maltese knights as glorious and recognized by all Europe knights, although they do not appear in it in their «historical» mission. Concerning the translated stories, this can be an indicator of the time of their creation, the original ones by the factor of following the literary tradition and the desire to «inscribe» their fictional history in this tradition. In some stories the mention of the Maltese cavaliers is on the periphery of the plot. However, there are cases of greater involvement in the plot of the Maltese knights. Like the heroes of knightly novels, the Maltese knights in these novels embark on individualistic adventures for the sake of love and glory (The Franzel Venetian’s Story, The George’s and Flarent’s Story). In two other stories, the involvement in the fictional events of the Maltese knights is related to the recognition of the outstanding military qualities of the hero or his moral superiority. In the Story of the Russian Knight Alexander, the recognition by the Maltese knights of the military prowess of the main hero confirms Russia's entry into the league of European states. In the later Story of Ephrodite and Maxion, Russian chivalry overshadows Maltese knights. These cultural shifts in fiction, of course, are associated with the view of the average citizen of the increased role of Russia in the world arena and, perhaps, reflected the historical extinction of the military activity of the Maltese by the middle of the 18th century.

Keywords: russian literature of the 18th century, handwritten fiction, manuscript books, maltese cavaliers, knights of malta

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