Land and Privilege in Byzantium : The Institution of Pronoia

"A pronoia was a type of conditional grant from the emperor, often to soldiers, of various properties and privileges. In large measure the institution of pronoia characterized social and economic relations in later Byzantium, and its study is the study of later Byzantium. Filling the need for a comprehensive study of the institution, this book examines the origin, evolution and characteristics of pronoia, focusing particularly on the later thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. But the book is much more than a study of a single institution. With a broad chronological scope extending from the mid-tenth to the mid-fifteenth century, it incorporates the latest understanding of Byzantine agrarian relations, taxation, administration and the economy, as it deals with relations between the emperor, monastic and lay landholders, including soldiers and peasants. Particular attention is paid to the relation between the pronoia and Western European, Slavic and Middle Eastern institutions, especially the Ottoman timar"-- Provided by publisher Cover 1 Title 4 TABLE of CONTENTS 8 Maps 12 Figures 19 Tables 20 List of Major Sources 22 Acknowledgments 31 A note on transliteration, pronunciation, and dates 32 Abbreviations 34 Glossary 42 List of rulers 49 Introduction 52 1 - The non-technical senses of the word pronoia 65 2 - Pronoia during the twelfth century 83 3 - Choniates’ “gifts of paroikoi” 115 4 - Origins 163 5 - Pronoia during the period of exile (1204–1261) 222 6- Pronoia during the era of Michael VIII Palailogos 292 7 - Terminology, late thirteenth and fourteenth centuries 334 8 - The nature of pronoia, ca. 1282–ca. 1371 387 9 - Pronoia in the later fourteenth and fifteenth centuries 601 10 - Pronoia and timar 630 Conclusion 648 Appendix 1 - Chrysobull of Michael VIII Palaiologos for the church of Hagia Sophia (1267-71) 665 Appendix 2 - A translation of the praktikon of Pergamenos and Pharisaios for Michael Saventzes (13021) 669 Appendix 3 - A translation of the praktikon of the protokynegos John Vatatzes for the eparchos Michael Monomachos (1333) 671 Appendix 4 - A note on fiscal privileges 675 Appendix 5 - The chrysobulls for Dragon and for Manuel Angelos Patrikios 682 Bibliography of works cited 685 Index 711 Machine generated contents note: Introduction; 1. The non-technical senses of the word pronoia; 2. Pronoia during the twelfth century; 3. Choniates' 'gifts of Paroikoi'; 4. Origins; 5. Pronoia during the Period of Exile (1204-1261); 6. Pronoia during the era of Michael VIII Palaiologos; 7. Terminology, late thirteenth and fourteenth centuries; 8. The nature of pronoia, late thirteenth and fourteenth centuries: a handbook in three parts; 9. Pronoia during the later fourteenth and fifteenth centuries; 10. Pronoia and timar; Conclusion; Appendices.