At the end of the 10th century the first Swedish town Sigtuna was founded, which can be recognized as the beginning of urbanization in the Mälaren valley. Christianity was growing strong and the administrative power was probably concentrated to a few magnates gathered around a king. Though, Sigtuna played an important religious and political role, the time of prosperity was short and at the end of the 13th-early 14th century the importance of the town declined. The ambition with the present thesis has been to investigate the demography of the human skeletal material excavated in Sigtuna during the period 1983-1999. The skeletons from 528 individuals from six cemeteries dated to the end of 10th century to the early 16th century have been analysed. The material was subdivided into three chronological development phases synonymous with the establishment, the peak of prosperity and the decline of the town. Well-recognized anthropological techniques were applied together with a health index and chemical tests such as stable isotopes and trace elements. The main aims were to investigate: 1) differences in the material between contemporary inhabitants in Sigtuna, 2) differences in the material between the different chronological phases, 3) differences between the osteological results achieved from Sigtuna and results from other skeletal materials and 4) if the results can be connected to the indications of urbanization. The results showed that: - Some differences between contemporary cemeteries are discernable. Variations in stable isotopes suggest dietary differences between the women at different cemeteries. Furthermore, differences in age- and sex distribution, and mean stature are discernable between some of the contemporary samples and even within a cemetery. The discrepancies may be related to prevailing social structures in Sigtuna. - A decline in health through time is demonstrated. The negative trend is particularly marked for women. In addition demographic changes suggest an increased migration of adults to Sigtuna. The health deterioration may be connected to e.g. increased population density and an increased risk of infections. - In comparison with other materials the anthropological results, including the health index, suggests that the inhabitants in Sigtuna showed an urban pattern and that the quality of life, at least in the initial phase, was relatively good. - The sex distribution shows a generally male dominance possibly caused by selective excavations except at the oldest site without an adherent church. The uneven sex distribution may, alternatively, be a result of the urban character of Sigtuna i.e. a Christian and political administrative centre. The osteological results are in line with the archaeological and historical data. It is suggested that the consequences of urbanization such as immigration, deterioration of health and social ranking, implied by several osteological parameters and the chemical analysis, acted differently through the gender lines. / <p>Revised 2014.</p>

One of the unfortunate corollaries of poststructuralist theorizing about literary texts has been the equation of a skepticism concerning language with a skepticism concerning meaning. The menace of unrestrained relativism has tended to polarize the critical community into proponents of a 'logo-diffuse' onto-epistemology and proponents of a 'logo-centric' one, and critical practice has followed this lead. The critic who attempts to situate literature within the parameters of such a debate is likely to fail unless he or she appeals to a much more extensive discourse, one which antedates the provincial contours of the current discussion. Medieval mysticism is a significant entry in the lineage of influence which comprises the western tradition. This thesis looks at the apophatic or negative strategies of mystical texts in order to locate meaning in the interplay of negation and affirmation with which they are concerned.

Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal

One of the great paradoxes of the medieval period is the Albigensian Crusade (1209-1225), in which monks of the Cistercian Order took an active and violent role in campaigning against the heretics of the Languedoc. Why, and how, did this order officially devoted to prayer and contemplation become one of the prime orchestrators of one of medieval Europe’s most gruesome affairs? This thesis seeks to answer that question, not by looking at the crusading Cistercians themselves, but at their predecessor Bernard of Clairvaux, who—I will argue—made the Albigensian Crusade possible by making it permissible for monks to intervene in the world outside the cloister. The logic of this thesis is as follows. Bernard of Clairvaux lived in a world in which monastics had a certain spiritual authority that granted them special privileges over ecclesiastics (Chapter II). The Cistercian Order itself, even before Bernard became their prime mover and shaker, used these privileges to cultivate contacts beyond monastic borders (Chapter IV), and once Bernard became a prominent abbot himself, his desire to do good and criticisms of the outside world (Chapter VI) led him to intervene in various endeavors (Chapter V). These interventions drew backlash from other monastics and ecclesiastics, which then required justification in order to reconcile the vita passiva and Bernard’s active lifestyle (Chapter VII). These justifications, along with Bernard’s justifications of violence (Chapter VIII), came to more broadly characterize the Cistercian Order as a whole (Chapters I, IV), and thus the ideological material to justify monastic holy war was all present in eloquently defended and rapturously accepted form by the time Henry of Clairvaux took a castle during his 1281 preaching mission turned mini-crusade (Chapter IX). With all of this built into the Cistercian DNA, Arnaud Amaury found it very easy to lead a crusade in 1212. Could he have done this without Bernard’s example paving the way and ingraining such lessons in Cistercian thought? It is my contention that he could not have.

The Order of Fontevraud, founded in 1100 by the hermit/preacher Robert of Arbrisssel was the only twelfth-century women's order incorporating into its structure a group of chaplains and lay brothers whose specific role was to serve the nuns. This thesis examines the origins of the order and demonstrates that the English foundations were a stage in its development, closely linked to its Angevin connections. Each of the two houses established in England c.l 150 was founded and patronised by supporters of Henry Plantagenet. Westwood, founded by the de Say family, lesser barons from Herefordshire, received a modest endowment. Nuneaton, founded by the magnate Robert, earl of Leicester, was richly endowed. Twenty years later Henry II expelled the Benedictine community from Amesbury replacing it with a group from Fontevraud, thus founding the third house. A fourth, Grovebury, is not treated; it was never a foundation for women. I have studied the process of endowment and shown that the wealth and status of the founder in no small measure determined the future prosperity of the foundation. The internal organisation of the Fontevraud houses has been explored, in particular the balance between local autonomy and dependence on the mother house. As well, I have examined recruitment and shown that this, too, reflected on the circumstances of foundation. My main focus has been on the economy of these three houses, their income and expenditure and the exploitation of their assets. The nuns are seen as a group of women who were dynamic and creative in managing their affairs. This has not precluded an investigation into the spiritual, and in particular, the liturgical dimension of life in the English foundations. Fundamentally the Order of Fontevraud is presented as an opportunity for noble women of England in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries to live religious life in a new order, one renowned for its strict interpretation of the Rule of St Benedict and for the prayerfumess of its members, and one in which women were manifestly in control of their own destinies.

Visitatio, however, is driven by the same forces that drive equally dramatic liturgical commemorations year-round, climaxing in but not exclusive to the period around Easter. Beginning with an account of late Anglo-Saxon baptism, I examine the liturgy for the high festivals from Christmas to Ascension Day. For each chapter, I describe the liturgical forms for the day and their intended relationships with the participants, focussing on the establishment of dramatic associations between the celebrants and certain figures in the commemorated events. I then compare the liturgical forms with vernacular treatments of a particular festival, looking both for overt instruction and more subtle influence of the liturgy on the preaching texts. Anglo-Saxon preachers and homilists openly assumed the themes and symbolic images of the dramatic ritual in their attempts to make their congregations understand and take on Christian imperatives. Recursively, vernacular preaching helped solidify the meanings of the symbolic elements of the dramatic ritual and their significance to the lives of Christians. Anglo-Saxon appreciation of the dramatic potential of the liturgy was realized both in creative expansion of the liturgy and in the vernacular preaching texts that identified and enhanced this dramatic dynamic.

No description available.

Thesis (doctoral)--Ecole des hautes études en sciences sociales, 1995. / Cover title. Includes bibliographical references (p. 527-554) and index.

The author's Habilitationsschrift, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg. / Includes bibliographical references (p. [265]-290) and index.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität, Frankfurt am Main, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references (p. [447]-477).