Power and Property in Medieval Germany: Economic and Social Change c.900-1300
Benjamin Arnold
Abstract
This book takes a fresh look at the problems posed by power and property in a medieval society, in this case the German kingdom. In a series of interrelated studies covering the period 700–1500, but concentrating on the 10th to 13th centuries, it explores the social and economic changes that influenced the real lives of people living in Germany. A number of themes are examined, including the kind of society that emerged along the Rhine and to the east of it in a period when it was hard to identify a Germany; the complex relationship between peasant and lord; the finances and resources of the G ... More
This book takes a fresh look at the problems posed by power and property in a medieval society, in this case the German kingdom. In a series of interrelated studies covering the period 700–1500, but concentrating on the 10th to 13th centuries, it explores the social and economic changes that influenced the real lives of people living in Germany. A number of themes are examined, including the kind of society that emerged along the Rhine and to the east of it in a period when it was hard to identify a Germany; the complex relationship between peasant and lord; the finances and resources of the German crown, the largest single landowner; the social and economic impact of the urban milieu with its towns large and small; and the entanglement of Church and aristocracy. While medieval people did not share mercantilist or post-Adam Smith concepts of economic forces at work in society, this book fruitfully applies the ideas and rationalisations of modern economics to medieval evidence, leading, at times, to unexpected conclusions.
Keywords:
medieval period,
economic change,
social change,
Germany,
power,
property,
finances,
Church,
urban milieu,
aristocracy
Bibliographic Information
| Print publication date: 2004 |
Print ISBN-13: 9780199272211 |
| Published to Oxford Scholarship Online: January 2010 |
DOI:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199272211.001.0001 |
