Clerics and Friendship
This chapter looks at relations of friendship among clerics. Friendship was as important for religious leaders as it was for their secular counterparts. They needed faithful supporters to enact their plans. Yet, in contrast to what have been seen in secular circles, friendship continued to play an important role among the clergy for the whole of the period from the middle of the eleventh century until the end of the thirteenth. The bishops, as the key element in the church hierarchy, were very powerful political players, not least attributable to their position within the Church hierarchy, their network of friends and connections, the wealth they controlled, and the position they held in society. Therefore, it was important for the secular leaders to control the election of bishops so that their friends and kinsmen were chosen.