Titone refutes established historiographic interpretations in a
long-term analysis of urban institutional and social
transformations in Sicily during the Late Middle Ages and shows how
distinct chronological divisions do not apply to these local
governments characterized by both marked experimentation and
striking continuity. The urban communities’ social and
institutional deformities are brought to light along with the fact
that intense communication among cities could produce common
results. The pivotal role consistently played by the universitates
in the affairs of the kingdom can be seen in the process of
defining urban autonomy which often involved sovereign and
community in interrelated decision making. Cities frequently
oriented royal policy and this explains a unique feature of
Sicilian pactism: a community might not implement a
sovereign’s concession even though it ensued from municipal
solicitations. The period of validity for a privilege when
requested by only certain groups was linked to maintenance of the
local status quo. Opposition from excluded parties and a shift in
the balance of power originally underlying royal assent to a
petition often meant the concession would not be put into effect
with no further central government involvement necessary.
Fabrizio Titone is currently a post-doctoral Mellon Fellow
at the Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies. His research
interests focuses on the urban history of the Aragonese
Crown.