Ghij en waert noeyt goed voor de stede van Ghent ! Verbaal geweld, scheldwoorden en politiek verzet in Gent (1477-1506)

Abstract

This article examines the political discourse of urban dwellers in the late Middle Ages in particular and the public dissent of urban citizens in general. It argues that citizens who were punished for public verbal abuse were not so much criminals as stated by the city council, but rather expressed political ideas or even organized resistance. Sometimes a personal quarrel between a representative from the local authority and a city inhabitant could lead to such verbal abuse, but a systematic analysis of verbal violence addressed by city dwellers to public authority shows that many ‘ ordinary’ citizens actually questioned local power for political purposes. It is also striking that rude language in public space was the ideal instrument to question the legitimacy of the authorities. The register of exiles from the city of Ghent during the 1477 to 1506 period, has become the subject of this research. During these almost 30 years, 345 punishments recorded in the Ballincbouc pertain to persons who had expressed ‘ evil words’. The analysis of these cases shows that citizens of Ghent regularly challenged local authority by means of verbal violence.