The Origins of Peasant Servitude in Medieval Catalonia (Cambridge Iberian and Latin American Studies) by Paul Freedman


The Origins of Peasant Servitude in Medieval Catalonia (Cambridge Iberian and Latin American Studies)
Title : The Origins of Peasant Servitude in Medieval Catalonia (Cambridge Iberian and Latin American Studies)
Author :
Rating :
ISBN : 0521548055
ISBN-10 : 9780521548052
Language : English
Format Type : Paperback
Number of Pages : 284
Publication : First published July 18, 1991
Awards : Premio del Rey (1992)

This 1991 book describes the history of peasants in Catalonia, the wealthiest and politically dominant part of the medieval Kingdom of Aragon, between the ninth and fifteenth centuries. It focuses on the period from 1000 to 1300, when free peasants who had held property under favourable frontier conditions were progressively subjugated by their lords. Between 1462 and 1486 Catalan peasants mounted the most successful peasants' war of the Middle Ages, and achieved the formal abolition of servitude. Professor Freedman seeks to explain both the process by which servitude was strengthened over the centuries, and its eventual weakening before a direct moral and military challenge. He addresses both the causes of enserfment and the limitations on its effectiveness. The book integrates archival evidence with the theories of society elaborated by medieval jurists. Comparisons are drawn between Catalonia and other regions, and its experience is situated within a spectrum of different social and economic conditions.

The Origins of Peasant Servitude in Medieval Catalonia (Cambridge Iberian and Latin American Studies) Reviews

  • Adam Marischuk

    Professor Freedman has produced an important (and in English rare) book on the topic of Medieval Catalan history drawing from the research of Catalan scholars (and some French and Spanish) along with ample use of, especially early Medieval, primary documents.

    In many ways the history of Catalonia is unique in the period of Medieval history with regards to the origins and development of the feudal system. Though initially on the periphery of Europe, it quickly became part of the core or centre as the frontier moved southwards from the Spanish march. Catalan peasants were relatively free a combination of internal and external events cause the gradual and at times rapid enserfment of a large portion of the population, particularly in Old Catalonia.

    Roughly speaking, Catalan peasants enjoyed a level of autonomy in the early Middle Ages which gradually gave way to noble control and repression. The mals usos and remances are indicative of gradual encroachments on the sovereignty of the peasants and their descent into serfdom. Though gradual, there were decisive moments which accelerated the noble control, much like punctuated equilibrium in evolutionary biology. Professor Freedman does a commendable (if sometimes dry) job of exploring the emerging legal framework drawing on the reintegration of Roman law into the legal system and matching the legal framework to the social situation as best is possible with the limited documentary evidence. Far from merely reflecting the legal situation, the history of law played a proscriptive role in the development of legal restrictions on the peasantry.

    Professor Freedman is at his strongest when dealing with the primary documents and the early Middle Ages and the relative freedom enjoyed by the peasantry. He is at his driest when discussing the legal development through the 12th and 13th centuries and the incorporation of legal documents and codes, including Roman, into the Usatges. However, he is at his weakest in the final few chapters dealing with the Black death and the Brenner debate. His interpretation is heavily reliant on outdated information regarding the vibrancy of the 13th century Medieval economy, relying rather on Postan and Herlihy's more negative interpretation instead of Epstein's and Livi Bacci's more nuanced approach.