1st Edition

Nordic Elites in Transformation, c. 1050-1250, Volume I Material Resources

    320 Pages 6 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    320 Pages 6 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    This book, first in a series of three, examines the social elites in Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Iceland, and which social, political, and cultural resources went into their creation. The elite controlled enormous economic resources and exercised power over people. Power over agrarian production was essential to the elites during this period, although mobile capital was becoming increasingly important. The book focuses on the material resources of the elites, through questions such as: Which types of resources were at play? How did the elites acquire and exchange resources?

    Introduction

    Bjørn Poulsen, Helle Vogt, and Jón Viðar Sigurðsson

    1. Changes in the Nordic Elites’ Way of Extracting a Surplus from Landed Resources

    Tore Iversen and John Ragnar Myking

    2. From Slavery to Tenant Farming: Elite Economies in the Nordic Area c. 1050-1250
    Frode Iversen

    3. The Early Introduction of the Moldboard Plow in Denmark: Agrarian Technology and the Medieval Elites

    Lars Agersnap Larsen

    4. Inheritance and Transfer of Landed Property: The Material Fundament of the Elites

    Helle Vogt and Jón Viðar Sigurðsson

    5. Silver, Land, Towns, and the Elites: Social and Legal Aspects of Silver in Scandinavia c. 850-1150

    Christoph Kilger

    6. The Elites and Money

    Svein H. Gullbekk

    7. Customs and Toll in the Nordic Area c. 800-1300

    Carsten Jahnke

    8. Holding Royal Office and the Creation and Consolidation of the Elites in Scandinavia c. 1050-1250

    Hans Jacob Orning and Bjørn Poulsen

    9. The Social Elites and Incomes from Churches c. 1050-1250

    Jan Brendalsmo and Jón Viðar Sigurðsson

    10. The Icelandic Chieftains and Their Economic Foundation c. 1050-1250

    Jón Viðar Sigurðsson

    11. Conclusion

    Chris Wickham

    Biography

    Bjørn Poulsen is Professor of Medieval History at the School of Culture and Society at University of Aarhus.



    Helle Vogt is Professor in Legal History at the Faculty of Law at University of Copenhagen.



    Jón Viðar Sigurðsson is Professor of Medieval History at University of Oslo.