Conflict, Language, and Social Practice in Medieval Societies

Isabel Alfonso is one of the finest scholars on the rural and political history of the European Middle Ages. She is widely known for her contributions to the study of the peasantry, social conflict, and political discourses. Her research has transcended the boundaries of medieval studies, incorporating insights from disciplines beyond including legal anthropology, philology, and discourse analysis, among others. Over her academic career Isabel Alfonso has made a continued effort to make the work of international scholars known in Spain and to communicate advancements in Spanish historiography to international audiences; and yet most of her own research has only been published in Spanish. As a means to acknowledge her long-standing commitment to bridge different historiographies and overcome national boundaries, this unusual Festschrift offers a selection of her most relevant publications, many of which appear in English for the very first time. Each paper is preceded by commentaries by leading scholars that discuss the enduring relevance of Isabel Alfonso’s work, its richness and complexity, and its potential to inspire further research along a vast array of lines.

Commentaries by Jean Birrell, François Bougard, Warren Brown, Peter Coss, Wendy Davies, Chris Dyer, Ros Faith, François Foronda, Paul Freedman, Piotr Gorécki, John Hudson, André Evangelista Marques, Jesús Rodríguez-Velasco, Phillipp Schofield, Stephen D. White, Chris Wickham.

Abbreviations, Foreword

Introduction: Dealing with the Past, Dealing with the Present: Yet another talk with Isabel Alfonso

Part I: Medieval Minds: Language and Concepts

Chapter 1: On Friendship, with a Commentary by François Foronda
Amicitia: Early Writings, a Revelation, and the Identity of a Historian
On Amicitia in Medieval Spain: A Document that Merits Study

Chapter 2: On the Language and Practice of Negotiation, with a Commentary by Wendy Davies
Commentary
The Language and Practice of Negotiation in Medieval Conflict Resolution (Castile-León, Eleventh-Thirteenth Centuries)

Chapter 3: On Judicial Rhetoric and Political Legitimation, with a Commentary by John Hudson
Justice, Power, and Legitimation
Judicial Rhetoric and Political Legitimation in Medieval León-Castile

Chapter 4: On Memory and Identity, with a Commentary by Piotr Górecki
Words, Again…
Memory and Identity in Judicial pesquisas in Medieval Leon-Castile

Chapter 5: Two Approaches to Justice and Vengeance, with a Commentary by Stephen D. White
Commentary
Vengeance, Justice, and Political Struggle in Castilian Medieval Historiography
Vengeance and Justice in the Poem of the Cid

Part II: Community Ties and Social Differenciation

Chapter 6: On Social Differentiation in Rural Communities, with a Commentary by Christopher Dyer
Middlemen and Intermediaries in Medieval Village Society
Local Power and Internal Differentiation in the Rural Communities of Galicia

Chapter 7: On Social Differentiation within Rural Communities, with a Commentary by Phillipp R. Schofield
Commentary
Exploring Difference within Rural Communities in the Northern Iberian Kingdoms, 1000–1300

Part III: Conflict and Competition: from Local Disputes to Political Struggles

Chapter 8: On Violence, with a Commentary by André Evangelista Marques
The Social Logic of Vengeance: Towards a Reading of Isabel Alfonso’s Work on Conflict Resolution
Death without Vengeance? The Regulation of Violence in Local Settings (Castile-León 13th c.)

Chapter 9: On Peasants and the Law, with a Commentary by Paul Freedman
The Historiography of Peasant Resistance to Seigneurial Authority
Peasants and the Law: Legal Avenues in their Struggle (Castile and León, 10th-13th Centuries)

Chapter 10: On Rural Churches and Peasant Struggles, with a Commentary by Chris Wickham
On Rural Churches and Peasant Struggles
Rural Churches in the North of Castile: A Religious Dimension to Peasant Struggles during the Middle Ages

Chapter 11: Two Anthropological Approaches to Peasants and Lords, with Commentaries by Jean Birrell and Rosamond Faith
A Commentary on ‘Peasant Opposition to Labour Services’ and ‘The Rhetoric of Seigneurial Legitimation’
Pacts, Conventions and Contracts between Lords and Peasants in Anglo-Norman England
Peasant Opposition to Labour Services in Castile and León. Forms and Symbolic Significance
The Rhetoric of Seigneurial Legitimation in the Fueros of León (11th to 13th centuries)

Chapter 12: On Punishment and Exemplary Violence, with a Commentary by Warren C. Brown
Commentary
Corpus Delicti and Exemplary Violence

Chapter 13: On Disputes and Wrongdoings, with a Commentary by François Bougard
Written Disputes: Just the Tip of the Iceberg
Land Disputes and malfetrías among the Medieval Nobility in Castile and León

Chapter 14: On Revolting Noblemen, with a Commentary by François Foronda
Questioning the Evidence: Political History and Social Mentality
Desheredamiento and Desafuero, or the Alleged Justification of a Revolt of the Nobility

Part IV: Historians’ Minds. Concepts, Language and Debates

Chapter 15: On Cistercians and Feudalism, with a Commentary by Peter Coss
Commentary
Cistercians and Feudalism

Chapter 16: Three Review Articles, with a Commentary by Jesús Rodríguez Velasco
How to Read
Continuity and Documentary Revelation, or Mutation and Feudal Revolution?
Historical Discourse as History
Naming Violence and Controlling its Legitimation

Appendix: Full List of Publications by Isabel Alfonso