Medievalists.net

Where the Middle Ages Begin

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Home
  • Features
  • News
  • Online Courses
  • Podcast
  • Patreon Login
  • About Us & More
    • About Us
    • Books
    • Videos
    • Films & TV
    • Medieval Studies Programs
    • Places To See
    • Teaching Resources
    • Articles

Medievalists.net

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Home
  • Features
  • News
  • Online Courses
  • Podcast
  • Patreon Login
  • About Us & More
    • About Us
    • Books
    • Videos
    • Films & TV
    • Medieval Studies Programs
    • Places To See
    • Teaching Resources
    • Articles
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
Articles

The Women of Papal Avignon. A new Source: The Liber Divisionis of 1371

by Medievalists.net
October 14, 2010

The Women of Papal Avignon. A new Source: The Liber Divisionis of 1371

By Joëlle Rollo-Koster

The Journal of Women’s History, Vol. 8 (1996)

Introduction: The history of southern French women during the late medieval period is still to be written. Luckily, a variety of sources such as notarial, judicial, and civil records, testaments and livres de raison, are preserved in the archives. In addition, and more specifically with an eye on Avignon, the administrative progress of the Avignonese papacy and historical fortune have preserved quantities of documents in the local departmental archives of the Vaucluse as well as the Vatican. One such document, the Vatican’s Liber Divisionis of 1371, which survived the many peregrinations of the papacy to and from Rome and the Great Schism, offers some of the best evidence regarding the composition of the Avignonese population during the late fourteenth century, and therefore, can throw light on the role that women played in this large international city.

When the papal curia settled permanently in Avignon in 1316, a mass of immigrants flooded the city. The core of the Avignonese population, some five to six thousand natives, was augmented by thousands of newcomers. By the 1370s the total population approximated 30,000 people. The arrival of the Roman court introduced the city to a new demographic reality which was reflected in the vocabulary designating the various segments of the Avignonese population. In addition to the citizens (cives) native to Avignon, contemporary documents add qualifiers such as “inhabitant”, “resident”, or “follower of the Roman court” to denote persons who were not citizens. The noncitizens belonged to a more loosely defined group, the cortisiani (courtiers). The term encompassed all persons who arrived in Avignon specifically in the wake of the pope and his entourage. But any immigrant entering the city for the first time was automatically classified as a courtier.

The different segments of the Avignonese population were allocated to different courts of justice coexisting in the city during the papal residency, based on their status. For instance, Avignonese citizens and the Jewish community depended on the temporal court, headed by a vicar. The papal court of the marshal of justice administered justice to lay courtiers and curialists, who were not members of the pope’s cardinals’, or chamberlian’s households.

Click here to read this article from Academia.edu

 

Subscribe to Medievalverse




Related Posts

  • From Prostitutes to Brides of Christ: The Avignonese Repenties in the Late Middle Ages
  • The Politics of Body Parts: Contested Topographies in Late-Medieval Avignon
  • Mortuary Rolls as a Source for Medieval Women's History
  • Pope in Captivity : Historic Centre of Avignon
  • A Crisis of Faith: The Western Schism and its Effect on the Lay Piety Movement
TagsFourteenth Century • Medieval France • Medieval Social History • Medieval Women • Papacy in the Middle Ages

Post navigation

Previous Post Previous Post
Next Post Next Post

Medievalists Membership

Become a member to get ad-free access to our website and our articles. Thank you for supporting our website!

Sign Up Member Login

More from Medievalists.net

Become a Patron

We've created a Patreon for Medievalists.net as we want to transition to a more community-funded model.

 

We aim to be the leading content provider about all things medieval. Our website, podcast and Youtube page offers news and resources about the Middle Ages. We hope that are our audience wants to support us so that we can further develop our podcast, hire more writers, build more content, and remove the advertising on our platforms. This will also allow our fans to get more involved in what content we do produce.

Become a Patron Member Login

Medievalists.net

Footer Menu

  • Privacy Policy
  • Do Not Sell My Personal Information
  • Copyright © 2025 Medievalists.net
  • Powered by WordPress
  • Theme: Uku by Elmastudio
Follow us
  • Facebook
  • Twitter