Medieval Rome: Stability and Crisis of a City, 900-1150 (Oxford Studies in Medieval European History)

Medieval Rome analyses the history of the city of Rome between 900 and 1150, a period of major change in the city. This volume doesn't merely seek to tell the story of the city from the traditional Church standpoint; instead, it engages in studies of the city's processions, material culture, legal transformations, and sense of the past, seeking to unravel the complexities of Roman cultural identity, including its urban economy, social history as seen across the different strata of society, and the articulation between the city's regions. This new approach serves to underpin a major reinterpretation of Rome's political history in the era of the "reform papacy," one of the greatest crises in Rome's history, which had a resonance across the entire continent. Medieval Rome is the most systematic analysis ever made of two and a half centuries of Rome's history, one which saw centuries of stability undermined by external crisis and the long period of reconstruction which followed. Analyses A Period Of Major Change In Rome, Looking At The City's Processions, Material Culture, Legal Transformations, And Sense Of The Past To Unravel The Complexities Of Roman Cultural Identity, Urban Economy, And Social History Across Different Strata Of Society And Regions. Grand Narratives: The Problematic ; The Problem Of Sources ; The Problem Of Historiography ; A Political Framework For Roman History -- The Countryside And The City: The Land Of Castles ; The Agro Romano ; The Vineyard Belt ; Conclusion -- The Urban Economy: The Urban Fabric ; The Urban Economy ; Macroeconomic Problems -- Urban Aristocracies: The 'old Aristocracy' And The Ancien Řgime Of Rome, 900-1046 ; The 'new Aristocracy' ; Rome's Aristocracies In An Italian Context -- Medium Elites And Church Clienteles: The Society Of Rome's Regions In The Eleventh And Twelth Centuries: Medium Elites ; Three Roman Regiones ; Social Networks In The City Of Rome: Parishes, Clienteles And Informal Associations -- The Geography Of Ritual And Identity: The Ritual Construction Of Rome ; Past And Present In Rome's Self-image -- The Crisis, 1050-1150: Fall And Rise Of A Judicial System ; The Rules Of Politics In Rome, 1050-1150 ; Political Expedients In The Crisis Decades ; The Social Origins Of The Commune. Chris Wickham. Includes Bibliographical References (pages [458]-488) And Index. "Medieval Rome analyses the history of the city of Rome between 900 and 1150, a period of major change in the city. This volume doesn't merely seek to tell the story of the city from the traditional Church standpoint; instead, it engages in studies of the city's processions, material culture, legal transformations, and sense of the past, seeking to unravel the complexities of Roman cultural identity, including its urban economy, social history as seen across the different strata of society, and the articulation between the city's regions. This new approach serves to underpin a major reinterpretation of Rome's political history in the era of the 'reform papacy', one of the greatest crises in Rome's history, which had a resonance across the entire continent. This book is the most systematic analysis ever made of two and a half centuries of Rome's history, one which saw centuries of stability undermined by external crisis and the long period of reconstruction which followed"--Back cover This book analyses the history of the city of Rome between 900 and 1150, a period of major change in the city. This volume doesn't merely seek to tell the story of the city from the traditional Church standpoint; instead, it engages in studies of the city's processions, material culture, legal transformations, and sense of the past, seeking to unravel the complexities of Roman cultural identity, including its urban economy, social history as seen across the different strata of society, and the articulation between the city's regions. This new approach serves to underpin a major reinterpretation of Rome's political history in the era of the 'reform papacy', one of the greatest crises in Rome's history, which had a resonance across the entire continent. This book is the most systematic analysis ever made of two and a half centuries of Rome's history, one which saw centuries of stability undermined by external crisis and the long period of reconstruction which followed 'Medieval Rome' analyses the history of the city of Rome between 900 and 1150, a period of major changes in the city. It takes the urban economy, the social history of the different strata of society, the articulation between the city's regions and the cultural identity of Rome as seen in its processions, its material culture, its legal transformations and its sense of the past. These are the underpinnings of a major reinterpretation of the city's political history in the era of the 'reform papacy', one of the greatest crises in Rome's history