Fabrizio Ricciardelli, ‘Late Medieval City-States and the Origins of Modern Democracy’, in Regional History as Cultural Identity, ed. by Kenneth J. Bindas & Fabrizio Ricciardelli (Rome: Viella, 2017), pp. 71-89. (original) (raw)

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This chapter explores the political evolution of late medieval city-states in Italy, emphasizing their unique republican structures and the emergence of self-governance in contrast to the feudal monarchies of central and northern Europe. It traces the transition from consular to podestà-led governments, highlighting the limited yet significant political participation of citizens and the role of prominent civic figures in shaping a political culture that laid the foundations for later democratic ideals. While acknowledging the instability of these city-states and their eventual shift towards seigneurial rule, the chapter argues that their experiences contributed to the intellectual legacy influencing modern democratic thought, particularly in the context of limits on political power and the accountability of rulers to their communities.

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The ‘Feudal Revolution’ and the Origins of Italian City Communes

Transactions of the Royal Historical Society, 2014

ABSTRACTThis article takes two major moments of social change in central medieval Europe, the ‘feudal revolution’ in France and the origins of Italian city communes, in order to see what they have in common. They are superficially very different, one rural one urban, and also one whose analysts focus on the breakdown of political power and the other on its construction or reconstruction; but there are close parallels between the changes which took place in France around 1000 or 1050 and those which took place in Italy around 1100. The contrast in dates does not matter; what matters is that in each case larger-scale political breakdown (whether at the level of the kingdom or the county) was matched by local recomposition, the intensification or crystallisation of local power structures which had been much moread hocbefore, and which would be the basic template for local power henceforth. In Italy, the main focus of the article, the different experiences of Pisa and Genoa are compared...

Peace and War, Repression and Liberty: Urban Autonomy and Princely Expansionism in the Medieval Holy Roman Empire, in: Edad Media. Revista de Historia, [S.l.], n. 19, p. 74-113, may 2018. ISSN 2530-6448. Disponible en: https://revistas.uva.es/index.php/edadmedia/article/view/2002

Edad Media. Revista de Historia: Entre la competencia y la cooperación. Modelos de relación ciudad-nobleza a fines de la Edad Media , 2018

Resumen: El Sacro Imperio Romano Germánico se caracteriza, en la Edad Media, por complejas interacciones entre las ciudades y sus aliados y adversarios nobles. Al menos durante un cierto tiempo, en el nivel regional se constata un cierto grado de colaboración entre los miembros urbanos y nobles de las confederaciones con el objetivo de preservar la paz (Landfriedensbünde), la seguridad y el orden público. Sin embargo, por la misma época, algunos príncipes poderosos intentaron, con éxito, restringir la autonomía urbana, logrando llevar adelante una política expansionista y de consolidación de sus propios territorios. Así, en sus relaciones con la nobleza, las ciudades se vieron obligadas a mantener un peligroso equilibrio entre la cooperación y la confrontación. A veces, como evidencian las crónicas, los registros de diversos tipos de asambleas y la correspondencia y obras literarias, el precio a pagar resultó muy elevado, debiendo incluso participar en la represión de algunas revueltas. Palabras clave: Sacro Imperio Romano Germánico, ciudades, ligas, preservación de la paz, príncipes, nobleza. Abstract: The medieval Holy Roman Empire saw complex interactions of towns and their noble partners and enemies. On a regional level, working together in leagues of peace (Landfriedensbünde), urban and noble members cooperated and struggled for the preservation of peace and against the general insecurity. But, at the same time, striving to restrict urban autonomy, powerful princes successfully led an expansionist policy and consolidated their territories. Chronicles, documents from assemblies, letters and literary works show that in their relations with nobility, towns were forced to keep a dangerous balance of co-operation and confrontation. Sometimes they had to pay a high price and even had to take part in the repression of revolts.

"State Formation Through the Lens of Local Religious and Civic Authorities In Early Modern Europe"

Henry Kamen has argued that the evolution of nation states was a central characteristic of the western civilization; however, the early nation states did not identify themselves with the interests of their subjects. Instead, in the gradual formation of the central state power, it was the local elites and authorities, which consented to the central rule of the newly developed nation states. Contrary to Kamen’s view, this paper argues that in the early stages of state formation, the central government needed support from the local elites and religious clergy in order to maintain peace and order in the regional territories. It was important for the state to co-operate with the local authorities in order to gain the community’s support, which was essential for the state’s political and economic stability. My aim in this paper is to discuss this relationship between the local powers, specifically religious authorities and the central state in Germany, France and England. State formation in the early modern Europe was a gradual and slow process. The states and the local religious authorities had a symbiotic relationship through which the central state was able to enforce royal laws and the clergy negotiated their position in favour of the regional cultural values.

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