Medieval Catalonia Research Articles

Charity and Welfare: Hospitals and the Poor in Medieval Catalonia

Hospitals were broadly conceived in the Middle Ages as establishments that received pilgrims and travelers, tended to the poor, and, with the professionalization of medicine, increasingly came to provide care to the sick and dying. In Charity and Welfare, James Brodman surveys the networks of hospitals and charitable institutions in medieval Catalonia that gave food to the hungry, dowries to indigent women, shelter to the homeless, and palliative care to the ill. The book shows how, just as contemporary society struggles with the issues of welfare reform, managed health care, and assistance to the elderly, so did the people of the Middle Ages deal with questions of who to help and what criteria to use to make those decisions. In their assessments, they made a clear distinction between charity, aid given gratuitously and indiscriminately to others, and welfare, assistance targeted toward certain groups for particular, desired ends. The author concludes that Catalan hospitals depended upon the close collaboration of church and state, a mixture of voluntary and public funding, and a combination of religious and secular values.

The Lancelot-Grail Cycle: Text and Transformations

The Lancelot-Grail Cycle is a seminal work in the development of the European medieval literatures right down to the Renaissance. For this reason, this volume will be compulsory reading for a wide audience interested in medieval matters, history, linguistics and belles lettres, and literary criticism. --Carol R. Dover, assistant professor of French, Georgetown University Composed in Old French between about 1220 and 1240, the Lancelot-Grail Cycle is a group of five prose romances centered on the love affair between Lancelot and Guenevere. It consists of an immense central core, the Lancelot Proper, introduced by The History of the Holy Grail and The Story of Merlin and concluded by The Quest for the Holy Grail and The Death of Arthur. This volume brings together thirteen essays by noted scholars from the first symposium ever devoted exclusively to the Lancelot-Grail Cycle. Exploring the cycle's evolution across the literatures of medieval France, Italy, Spain, Catalonia, and England, the authors take a variety of approaches that highlight a broad range of cultural, social, historical, and political concerns and offer a comparative and interdisciplinary vision of this great romance. William W. Kibler is the Superior Oil-Linward Shivers Centennial Professor of Medieval Studies and a professor of French at the University of Texas at Austin.

Charity and Welfare: Hospitals and the Poor in Medieval Catalonia by James William Brodman

Charity and Welfare: Hospitals and the Poor in Medieval Catalonia. By James William Brodman. [The Middle Ages Series.] (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.1998. Pp. xv, 229. $39.95.) This thoughtful and well written book about public health and hospitals, social welfare, charities, and poor people in the Middle Ages focuses on Arago-- Catalunya in northeastern Spain, primarily on Barcelona but extending south to Valencia as well, from the earliest documentation in the late tenth century through more plentiful records in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. Although ostensibly attempting a broad, comparative sweep in the style of New Social History rather than old-style institutional histories in local and regional studies, the institutions still dominate rather than poor people who remain largely veiled behind their poverty with the usual anonymity. But donors emerge, and so too the occasional spokesman for the poor Thinking about so cial problems and responses, and charity as both a Christian social action and secular duty, are all addressed as Brodman explains how organized social welfare evolved in medieval Catalunya. Organizational means to aid the poor are delineated with local and regional variance, and in this book the human side of medieval welfare takes precedence over finances. In this way the study advances well beyond institutional histories or merely a synthesis of prior work. It is a welcome contribution. A decade in the making, this book builds upon the author's previous contributions in numerous articles and a book deriving from a dissertation undertaken at the University of Virginia with Charles J. Bishko. This treated another form of charity during the era of the Reconquista, namely, the ransoming of Christian captives from Muslim strongholds by the Redemptorists. Both rely on explorations in the Catalan archives and continued mining of parchments in the Archivo de la Corona de Aragon, but in this recent book such primary sources are not clearly delineated. The extensive notes (55 pages for 143 pages of text) indicate a greater reliance on published documents and a thorough integration of the secondary literature. The bibliography cites nearly 300 works, integrating documentary editions with secondary sources. Few relevant narrative sources survive from their earlier periods; later one has such commentators as Fransec Eiximenis to complement foundation charters, donations, and the like. A modest but adequate index is provided, plus one appendix listing nearly eighty welfare institutions in chronological order of their establishment (9951495), locality, their type or clientele, and the name of the founder. They range from general hospitals, alms houses, and shelters associated with cathedral chapters and orders dedicated to charity, to specialty relief agencies catering to women and children, orphans, the urban poor, travelers, lepers, the elderly, the insane, and some specializing in care for Jews and minorities. Brodman lays out his book in the preface more than just in the table of contents. Chapters progress rationally from a general consideration of poverty, with distinctions between voluntary and involuntary poverty, and in the latter between classes of paupers, kinds of charity, and the growth from individual intentions and gratuitous acts to organized social welfare targeted at recognized groups of needy people. Chapters 2-3 define the modes of assistance and the basic caritative infrastructure that developed, including the detail of establishments which were in their origins often tentative in nature and transitory. …

Town and countryside in northeastern Catalonia, 1267– c. 1450: the sobreposats de la horta of Perpignan

The study of the relationship between town and countryside in medieval Catalonia is still in an early stage. This article examines how Perpignan, the second most populous Catalonian town by the second half of the fourteenth century, extended its influence over the countryside of northeastern Catalonia through the sobreposats de la horta. Although they were the heads of the guild of Perpignan's agricultural labourers, the sobreposats de la horta acquired a broad jurisdiction over cases involving damage to property, and thus became responsible for protecting the rural interests of Perpignan's citizens more generally. First mentioned in 1339, the sobreposats de la horta continually encountered seigniorial and other opposition, but their powers steadily increased between their initial appearance and the 1380s, as did the control of Perpignan's consuls over them. However, the very success of the sobreposats de la horta necessitated a series of reforms, largely the work of Perpignan's consuls, from the 1380s onwards. These reforms attempted to restore the earlier efficiency of the sobreposats de la horta, to eliminate abuses of office, and even to limit the power of the sobreposats de la horta, whose growth the consuls had done so much to foster previously.

Charity and welfare: hospitals and the poor in medieval Catalonia

Charity and welfare: hospitals and the poor in medieval Catalonia

Making and keeping agreements in medieval Catalonia, 1000-1200

catalaL'autor proposa una explicacio del context diplomatic, juridic i politic de l'aparicio de la convenientia -una tipologia documental que estableix un contracte individual i privat al voltant d'una amplia diversitat d'actes juridics, a la Catalunya dels segles XI i XII. Estudia el desenvolupament del seu us social i politic com un element important d'estructura i assenyala les causes de la seva decadencia. EnglishThe author proposes an explanation of the diplomatic, judicial and political context in which the convenientia emerged -a documentary typology which establishes an individual and private agreement in Catalonia during the 11th and 12th centuries, concerning a wide variety of legal acts-, tracing a description of the development of the development of its political and social employment as an important element of structure. He also indicates the causes of its further decline.

Paul Freedman, "The Origins of Peasant Servitude in Medieval Catalonia" (Book Review)

Paul Freedman, "The Origins of Peasant Servitude in Medieval Catalonia" (Book Review)

Ancient and Medieval

The Jews among Pagans and Christians in the Roman Empire. Edited by Judith Lieu, John North and Tessa Rajak Ancient and Medieval Memories: Studies in the Reconstruction of the Past. By Janet Coleman Social Memory. By James Fentress and Chris Wickham The Archaeology and History of Glastonbury Abbey: Essays in Honour of the Ninetieth Birthday of C.A. Raleigh Radford. Edited by L. Abrams and J. P. Carley Glastonbury, Domesday and Related Studies. By S. C. Morland The Annals of St Bertin. Edited by Janet L. Nelson The Feudal Transformation,900–1200. By J. P. Poly and E. Bournazel France in the Middle Ages,987–1460. By Georges Duby English and French Towns in Feudal Society: A Comparative Study. By R. H. Hilton The Contest of Christian and Muslim Spain,1031–1157. By Bernard F. Reilly The Origins of Peasant Servitude in Medieval Catalonia. By Paul Freedman The Military Orders: From the Twelfth to the Early Fourteenth Centuries. By Alan Forey Church and Chronicle in the Middle Ages: Essays Presented to John Taylor. Edited by Ian Wood and G.A. Loud The Later Crusades: From Lyons to Alcazar,1274–1580. By Norman Housley Land and Lordship: Structures of Governance in Medieval Austria. By Otto Brunner. Translated from the fourth, revised edition of Land und Herrschaft by Howard Kaminsky and James Van Horn Melton Woman is a Worthy Wight: Women in English Society c. 1200–1500. Edited by P.J.P. Goldberg The England of Piers Plowman: William Langland and his Vision of the Fourteenth Century. By F.R.H. Du Boulay Enterprise and Individuals in Fifteenth‐century England. Edited by Jennifer Kermode The Household Books of John Howard, Duke of Norfolk. Introduction by Anne Crawford Enclosure and the Yeoman: The Agricultural Development of the South Midlands,1450–1850. By Robert C. Allen A History of Ottoman Architecture. By Godfrey Goodwin Mantegna and Painting as Historical Narrative. By Jack M. Greenstein A Renaissance Cardinal and his Worldly Goods: The Will and Inventory of Francesco Gonzaga (1444–1483). By D.S. Chambers An Island for Itself: Economic Development and Social Change in Late Medieval Sicily. By Stepban R. Epstein

<sc>Paul Freedman</sc>. <italic>The Origins of Peasant Servitude in Medieval Catalonia</italic>. (Cambridge Iberian and Latin American Studies.) New York: Cambridge University Press. 1991. Pp. xvii, 263. $49.50

Journal Article Paul Freedman. The Origins of Peasant Servitude in Medieval Catalonia. (Cambridge Iberian and Latin American Studies.) New York: Cambridge University Press. 1991. Pp. xvii, 263. $49.50 Get access Freedman Paul. The Origins of Peasant Servitude in Medieval Catalonia. (Cambridge Iberian and Latin American Studies.) New York: Cambridge University Press. 1991. Pp. xvii, 263. $49.50. James W. Brodman James W. Brodman University of Central Arkansas Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar The American Historical Review, Volume 97, Issue 4, October 1992, Pages 1197–1198, https://doi.org/10.1086/ahr/97.4.1197 Published: 01 October 1992

Mensuration in Early Medieval Barcelona

In a study of two documents from the convent of Sant Pere de les Puelles published in 1947 together with J. M. Millas Vallicrosa, Dr. Udina made an examination of the value of the dexter in eleventh century Barcelona. Although brief, this is one of the few modern contributions to the study of linear measurement in early medieval Catalonia, for, in spite of a recent resurgence of interest in the style and production of the documents which make up the bulk of our source material for this period, there has been no detailed consideration of the subject in the last few decades. The present contribution aims to pay homage to Dr. Udina both by reconsidering the range and value of

The Diocese of Vic: Tradition and Regeneration in Medieval Catalonia. By Paul H. Freedman. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 1983. ix + 230 pp. $20.00.

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The Diocese of Vic: Tradition and Regeneration in Medieval Catalonia

The Diocese of Vic: Tradition and Regeneration in Medieval Catalonia

Paul H. Freedman, The Diocese of Vic. Tradition and Regeneration in Medieval Catalonia, New Brunswick, Rutgers University Press, 1983, VIII-230 p.

Paul H. Freedman, The Diocese of Vic. Tradition and Regeneration in Medieval Catalonia, New Brunswick, Rutgers University Press, 1983, VIII-230 p.

The Diocese of Vic. Tradition and Regeneration in Medieval Catalonia, by Paul H. Freedman

"The Diocese of Vic. Tradition and Regeneration in Medieval Catalonia, by Paul H. Freedman." Canadian Journal of History, 19(2), pp. 276–277

The Diocese of Vic. Tradition and regeneration in medieval Catalonia. By Paul H. Freedman. Pp. ix + 230. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press, 1983. $20.

The Diocese of Vic. Tradition and regeneration in medieval Catalonia. By Paul H. Freedman. Pp. ix + 230. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press, 1983. $20.

The Enserfment Process in Medieval Catalonia: Evidence from Ecclesiastical Sources

The Enserfment Process in Medieval Catalonia: Evidence from Ecclesiastical Sources

"Cum Multimodi Curiositatis": A Musical Treatise from Eleventh-Century Catalonia

Previous articleNext article No Access"Cum Multimodi Curiositatis": A Musical Treatise from Eleventh-Century CataloniaKristine T. UtterbackKristine T. Utterback Search for more articles by this author PDFPDF PLUS Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail SectionsMoreDetailsFiguresReferencesCited by Speculum Volume 54, Number 2Apr., 1979 The journal of the Medieval Academy of America Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.2307/2854974 Views: 3Total views on this site Copyright 1979 Mediaeval Academy of AmericaPDF download Crossref reports no articles citing this article.

Recent Literature on Spanish Economic History

A HISTORIAN dipping into some of the major works in the bibliography that follows this survey-for example, Guichard on Muslim Spain (84), 1 Ladero on the royal finances of the fifteenth century (ioi), Perez or Gutierrez Nieto on the Comunidades (I42, 86), Anes on the eighteenth-century agrarian scene (i i), and Fontana or Tortella on the complexities of nineteenthcentury capitalism and government policies (6o-I, I 9o) -would surely conclude that the study of the economic and social history of Spain is in a healthy state. He would not be entirely wrong, and it is the purpose of this article to give some account of studies, in languages other than English, which have appeared in recent years. The survey, of course, is selective: for example, it does not attempt to cover the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries, it excludes the history of economic thought, and in the case of some particular areas of study, such as that of the desamortizaciones, the reader is referred to recent review articles for further information. The fundamental introduction to the demographic history of Spain is the short study by Nadal (I30). Although it covers only the modern period, the book is a masterpiece of succinct analysis, the main themes of which are provided by contrasts: the Spanish experience is compared to a European model, and an ancien regime cycle is contrasted with the new demographic cycle of growth which, while lagging behind the European model, began in the eighteenth century. Within this framework Nadal also manages to include much data on related themes, such as diseases, epidemics, the regional distribution of population, migrations, and expulsions. It is against the background of Nadal's book that comments on recent studies must be set. Is there an area of medieval Europe which presents so many problems for the history of demography as Spain? Firstly, there are the variables of documentation. The fogatges and libros defuegos of late medieval Catalonia and Navarre, for example, have to be set against an almost complete absence of similar evidence for the kingdoms of Castile and Granada. Secondly, there is the intractable problem posed by the moving frontier. What were the different patterns of repopulation during the various stages of the Muslim conquest and Christian reconquest? How many settlers were attracted to reconquered lands and how many of the enemy were expelled or assimilated? The difficulties can perhaps be best illustrated by looking at thirteenth-century Castile in terms of the Malthusian scissors. Even if we knew the rate of population growth, we would still be left with the problem that the kingdom of Castile doubled in size during the thirteenth-century reconquest and that many of the Muslims who were at first assimilated were later expelled. In terms of Castile and the Malthusian scissors,

Some Examples of Catalan Medieval Stamped Sheet-metalwork

In medieval Catalonia, or perhaps in the neighbouring province of Valencia, the manufacture of certain objects made of wood covered with thin sheets of brass bearing designs in relief seems to have formed a flourishing industry. The brass sheets employed, which covered practically the whole visible exterior surface and gave the appearance of articles of solid metal, were embossed by means of moulds into which the thin sheets were forced, so that their outer surfaces reproduced the designs of the mould. The process used is one which seems to have been in more or less general employment in medieval Europe; and many examples of it, frequently carried out in the precious metals, are to be found upon book-covers and caskets, and upon crosses, reliquaries, and other articles for ecclesiastical use. Long before the objects which I am about to describe were made, Rhenish, French, Italian, and Spanish craftsmen were using the process. Writing probably about the first half of the eleventh century, the monk Theophilus describes the process, especially in its application to silver and to copper gilt. He says that the stamps should be made of iron ‘thick as the size of a finger, wide as three or four fingers, in length one (foot)’, on which stamps, ‘in resemblance of seals,’, the designs are sculptured, not too deeply, ‘but moderately and carefully’. The metal to be used should be thinner than for ordinary relief-work. A sheet (in the case of silver), after having been cleansed with finely pulverized charcoal and polished with scraped chalk, is to be laid between the stamp (which rests face upward on an anvil) and a thick sheet of lead, and the lastmentioned is to be beaten strongly with a hammer. A sheet longer than a stamp can be moved so as to expose a fresh portion when one or more portions have been stamped.