At the Apex of the Aristocracy

This chapter takes the lax kingship of Stephen as an opportunity to observe the expansive nature of Anglo-Norman aristocratic lordship. Ranulf II, earl of Chester is chosen for special study. We examine the motives behind aristocratic competition and violence, relations with lesser lords and with lords of equal degree, and dispute settlement by means of conventiones. We also look at the concept of signoria as a means of understanding lordship in England, taking Coventry as an example. This is followed by a consideration of the fortunes of the Chester lordship during the resurgent kingship of the Angevins. I return here to the concept of Königsnähe. The chapter concludes with an overall assessment of the nature of the Chester lordship. Although the focus is on the policies of members of the high aristocracy, their actions reveal much of the outlook and behaviour of the aristocracy in general and of the conditions under which they lived.

The Aristocracy in ‘Carolingian’ England

Chapter 9 argues that late Anglo-Saxon England was a state of the ‘Carolingian’ type. Lordship was fully integrated into the judicial system and public authority played a major part in legitimating comital rule. Traditional historiography is complemented by the concepts of aristocrazia intermedia and ‘zonality’ employed by Cortese for Tuscany. We examine the aristocracy of some Midland counties, with Leofric earl of Mercia taken as a case study for the exercise of comital power. We follow Maitland and Baxter in emphasizing the tripartite division into personal bonds, tenurial bonds, and judicial bonds. The chapter turns then to the rank and file of the aristocracy, the thegnage, and then to the aristocratic presence in towns. Finally, the chapter looks at the direction in which this society was travelling in the eleventh century and sees an increasing degree of uncertainty, competition, and anxiety. There was a relative decline in Königsnähe and an increasing localization of power as the authority of kings weakened.

Conflict and Stability within the Tuscan Aristocracy

This chapter examines the aristocratic propensity for social violence. It looks at specific incidents of violence and at how one might account for them, and for fluctuations in their intensity. Violence was institutionalized in the form of the masnada, or armed following, and this is carefully scrutinised. The chapter shows that much of the reported violence was not anarchic but purposive. Moreover, the exercise of power and the need for security tended towards the creation of social equilibrium. It was achieved by a variety of means, including dispute resolution and the use of pacts. The content and typology of these are given close scrutiny. There were, however, moments of major fracture where equilibrium was less easily achieved. The final section will look in particular at one such fracture—the internecine conflict which affected the cities during the last decade of the twelfth century. Here I concentrate on Florence.

Reflections

The book closes by reflecting on a number of features of aristocratic society, beginning with lordship and clientage. The chapter then turns to the issue of space and to ‘landscapes of lordship’. Then there are the issues of centre and locality and public versus private. The chapter then turns to the communal dimension to aristocratic life. Collective action, however, was by no means antithetical to vertical ties; in fact they flourished together. Finally, we need to address the question of what prompted, or indeed governed, change within aristocratic society. There are three approaches here, looking to: changes that were intrinsic to the aristocratic world itself; developments within the societies which the aristocracy strove to dominate; and to exogenous factors. The separation of approaches is, however, an illusion. The reality was more complex, and few developments, if any, were totally monocausal. The attitudes and behavioural traits which have been emphasized in this book underpinned and conditioned how the aristocracies responded to the multiple stimuli.

From Knighthood to Nobility

This chapter deals with knighthood, the ‘crystallization’ of the nobility, and the relationship between the two. From a rather lowly affair, by the early twelfth century knighthood had become the chief means of social ascent in an increasingly militarized world. A detailed examination of the terminology employed in the sources shows that the references to nobility began in the late twelfth century, were relatively rare until 1220, and increased until the language of nobility became entrenched. The crystallization of the nobility, I argue, began in the highest ranks of seigniorial society and was diffused downwards in a spirit of exclusion in both the countryside and the cities. This was prompted by the social tensions arising within a commercially and demographically expanding world. The knighting ceremony would appear to be an important constituent. Opposition formed among the rich but non-aristocratic popolo. In Pisa it led eventually to a full-scale popolo regime in 1254. These developments were paralleled in other cities.

The Aristocrazia Consolare

Chapter 4 turns to the urban aristocracy, the aristocrazia consolare, with an in-depth study of the aristocracy of Pisa, a city chosen for the richness of its sources and the power of its historiography. It begins with the growth and topography of the medieval city and moves on to discuss the establishing of the commune and the context in which this took place. The characteristics of the aristocrazia consolare are discussed in detail, including the range of their material interests. Some attention is given to the aristocracy and the sea. Their individual domination of various areas of the city is examined in detail together with their habitations (torri) and the contribution they made to the growth of the city. City politics are examined and particular attention is given to interpreting the judgement or lodo of Archbishop Daiberto. Cooperation and competition within aristocratic life in the city are given equal attention.

The Contextual Framework

Chapter 2 deals with the contextual framework for the study of Tuscany under three headings. These are: the Italian context, concentrating on the decline of the kingdom of Italy during the iron century which provides a backdrop to this study; public and private authority; patrimonialization and the localization of power; the Tuscan context, concentrating on its geography and its broad history, including the march of Tuscia; the role of bishops, and castles; and the historiography of Tuscany, introducing key scholars and the grand narrative which centred on the binary distinction between the city as the site of progress and the backward-looking feudal countryside. Key terminology will be discussed: signoria, incastellamento, libellus, pievi, contado, consorteria.

The Structure and Articulation of Aristocratic Society in Anglo-Norman England

This chapter employs the Italian approach to feudalism where the feudo-vassalic relationship is one among many varieties of lord–client bond. It turns to the tenurial relationship and to the question of the honour. The perspective of the honour is complemented by Cortese’s concepts of zonal and multi-zonal aristocracy, aristocrazia intermedia, and minor aristocratic families. Warwickshire is taken as a case study revealing Anglo-Norman society as a dynamic one in which families appear and rise or fall. We examine religious benefaction, family structure and strategy, local lordship, and the protection of estates, before moving to tournaments and proto-chivalry. We pay close attention to the men described as milites, and to the survival of Englishmen as sub-tenants and the like. It was from the ensuing mix that the militaristic minor aristocracy of twelfth-century England sprang. Finally, the chapter examines the interlocking of public and seigniorial courts. Tension and uncertainty persisted, despite a new equilibrium being established after the massive shock of the Norman Conquest.

The Aristocracy of Southern Tuscany

In this chapter we look at the aristocracy of southern Tuscany, where the signoria territoriale was more widely diffused and the dependence of the peasantry more general. Here we encounter the Aldobrandeschi, the southern equivalent of the Guidi. Beginning with their contention with the monastery of Monte Amiata and its subjection, we trace the family’s long process of transformation from imperial functionaries to a territorial dynasty. We look closely at their clientele, part of which was feudo-vassalic, and at the multiple functions of southern castles, including mineral extraction and industrial use. From these we turn to the minor aristocracy, the lambardi, whom Cortese calls ‘puntiform’, that is to say nuclear or local. We look at their consorterie, their control of natural resources, and their capacity for enterprise. Their residences within castles will also be examined. Finally the chapter looks at the fortunes of these signori in terms of the forward march of the city of Siena.

Introduction

Chapter 1 defines the term ‘aristocracy’. It functioned in a militarized society where property was accompanied by physical power, the decline of public institutions, the rise of seigniorial power, and the prominence of vertical social relations. Aristocracy denotes a way of life and a sense of social superiority. Aristocracy is an historian’s construct, and there is a tension between the terms ‘aristocracy’ and ‘nobility’, the latter being a term of medieval usage. In this work ‘aristocracy’ is deployed to include all levels of the secular elite, while the use of ‘nobility’ is reserved until its crystallization in the late twelfth century. The word ‘aristocracy’ can be modified to describe levels within the elite and qualified according to social level, function or lifestyle, time and place, or origins. One can speak, therefore, of an urban aristocracy as well as a rural one.