During the late first millennium AD, the Bulgarian Empire emerged in the eastern Balkans on the doorstep of the Byzantine Empire. In a bid to reconcile with—and impress—its powerful neighbour, Tsar ...Simeon I selected the fortified site of Veliki Preslav as a new capital city. Through the ninth and tenth centuries AD, the city was developed into one of the largest cities of the early Middle Ages in Europe. A fortified Inner City of palaces, churches and state buildings was accompanied by a large defended Outer City. The authors present the results of a recent geophysical survey, revealing patterning in the spatial and socio-economic organisation of the urban landscape between the ninth and fourteenth centuries AD.
Medieval cities Pirenne, Henri; Pirenne, Henri
2014., 20140721, 2014-07-21
eBook
Nearly a century after it was first published in 1925,Medieval Citiesremains one of the most provocative works of medieval history ever written. Here, Henri Pirenne argues that it was not the ...invasion of the Germanic tribes that destroyed the civilization of antiquity, but rather the closing of Mediterranean trade by Arab conquest in the seventh century. The consequent interruption of long-distance commerce accelerated the decline of the ancient cities of Europe. Pirenne challenges conventional wisdom by attributing the origins of medieval cities to the revival of trade, tracing their growth from the tenth century to the twelfth. He also describes the important role the middle class played in the development of the modern economic system and modern culture.
Featuring a new introduction by Michael McCormick, this Princeton Classics edition ofMedieval Citiesis essential reading for all students of medieval European history.
This book is a study of architecture and urban design across the Mediterranean Sea from the 12th to the 14th Century, a time when there was no single, hegemonic power dominating the area. The focus ...of the study, four cities on the Italian peninsula, and four cities in Syria and Egypt demonstrate the interconnectedness of the design and use of urban structures, streets and open space. Each chapter in turn offers a descriptive and historical analysis of the buildings and spaces used for trade, education, political display and public action. The study includes historical and social analysis of the mercantile, social, political and educational cultures of the eight cities, highlighting similarities and differences between Christian and Islamic practices. Sixteen new maps drawn specifically for the text supplement immersive descriptions of the eight cities based on the writings of medieval travelers.
In recent years, major new archaeological discoveries have redefined the development of towns and cities in the Japanese archipelago. The uncovering of the plans of major port towns such as Sakai, ...Kusado Sengen and Ichijōdani, and the revealing of early phases in the development of cities such as Kamakura and Hakata provide an important new resource in understanding the cultural and economic processes which shaped medieval Japan. This fully illustrated book provides a sampler of these findings for a western audience. The new discoveries from Japan are set in context of medieval archaeology beyond Japan by accompanying essays from leading European specialists. The global significance of Japanese medieval archaeology is assessed through comparing the development of towns in Japan and northern Europe. The medieval period in Japan and northwest Europe saw urban growth with towns not only providing centres of administration but also fostering economic development. The pressures which led to such growth, however, be they political or social, were universal in character. following basic requirements of food, shelter, security and spiritual nourishment, towns provided commercial infrastructures, transport and storage facilities, and the setting for trade, craft specialists and art. Chapters include 'The archaeology of medieval towns in Japan and europe: an introduction' (Brian Ayers and Simon Kaner); 'Permanent urban frameworks ('armature') and economic networks in northern France c.700 - c.1000' (Henri Galinié); 'Medieval urbanism and culture in the cities of the Baltic: with a comparison between Lübeck, Germany, and Sakai, Japan' (Manfred Gläser); 'The development of Hakata as a medieval port town' (Ōba Kōji); 'The establishment and transformation of Japan's medieval capital, Kamakura' (Oka Yōichirō); 'Ichijōdani: the archaeology of a Japanese medieval castle town' (Ono Masatoshi); 'Japanese medieval trading towns: Sakai and Tosaminato' (Richard Pearson); and 'Medieval ceramic production in the aegean, 1100 - 1600 AD: some considerations in an east-west perspective' (Joanita Vroom).
This book offers a new and surprising perspective on the evolution of cities across the Roman Empire in late antiquity and the early Middle Ages (third to ninth centuries AD). It suggests that the ...tenacious persistence of leading cities across most of the Roman world is due, far more than previously thought, to the persistent inclination of kings, emperors, caliphs, bishops, and their leading subordinates to manifest the glory of their offices on an urban stage, before crowds of city dwellers. Long after the dissolution of the Roman Empire in the fifth century, these communal leaders continued to maintain and embellish monumental architectural corridors established in late antiquity, the narrow but grandiose urban itineraries, essentially processional ways, in which their parades and solemn public appearances consistently unfolded. Hendrik W. Dey's approach selectively integrates urban topography with the actors who unceasingly strove to animate it for many centuries.
The Low Countries-an area roughly embracing the present-day Netherlands and Belgium-formed a patchwork of varied economic and social development in the Middle Ages, with some regions displaying a ...remarkable dynamism. Manors and Markets charts the history of these vibrant economies and societies, and contrasts them with alternative paths of development, from the early medieval period to the beginning of the seventeenth century. Providing a concise overview of social and economic changes over more than a thousand years, Bas van Bavel assesses the impact of the social and institutional organization that saw the Low Countries become the most urbanized and densely populated part of Europe by the end of the Middle Ages. By delving into the early and high medieval history of society, van Bavel uncovers the foundations of the flourishing of the medieval Flemish towns and the forces that propelled Holland towards its Golden Age. Exploring the Low Countries at a regional level, van Bavel highlights the importance of localized structures for determining the nature of social transitions and economic growth. He assesses the role of manorial organization, the emergence of markets, the rise of towns, the quest for self-determination by ordinary people, and the sharp regional differences in development that can be observed in the very long run. In doing so, the book offers a significant contribution to the debate about the causes of economic and social change, both past and present. Available in OSO: http://www.oxfordscholarship.com/oso/public/content/history/9780199278664/toc.html
Recent developer funded projects conducted by Archaeology South-East, the contracting division of the Centre for Applied Archaeology (CAA) have, over the last decade or so, begun to fill a void in ...our knowledge of one of the most archaeologically under-researched areas in Britain. It is becoming clear that rather than being a marginal landscape beyond more habitable zones, the Weald of South-East England was actually one which experienced significant and widespread periods of colonisation. By examining the evidence from a number of sites the author is starting to explore the area’s early medieval landscape, which is beginning to show degrees of continuity from Roman and prehistoric times. This brief update is intended to highlight a revolution in our understanding of South-East England in the centuries surrounding the Roman Conquest. The ongoing research is a case study in landscape analysis and landscape regression. Results will be discussed in forthcoming articles as well as a ‘Spoilheap monograph’ due for release this year (Margetts 2018).
Cities of Medieval Iran brings together studies in urban geography, archaeology, and history of medieval Iranian cities, covering the millennium from 500 to 1500 AD, with a focus on urban actors ...themselves.
This study traces the history of urbanization in Denmark from c. 500-1350 and explores how interconnected political, religious, economic factors were instrumental in bringing about the growth of ...towns. Prior to urban development, certain specialized sites such as elite residences and coastal landing places performed many of the functions that would later be taken over by medieval towns. Fundamental changes in political power, the coming of Christianity, and economic development over the course of the Viking and Middle Ages led to the abandonment of these sites in favour of new urban settlements that would come to form the political, religious, and economic centres of the medieval kingdom. Bringing together both archaeological and historical sources, this study illustrates not only how certain cultural and economic shifts were crucial to the development of towns, but also the important role urbanization had in the transition from Viking to medieval Denmark.
Cet ouvrage est consacré aux villes méditerranéennes à l’époque médiévale, de Cordoue jusqu’à Famagouste en passant par Pechina, Aix, Marseille, Avignon, Naples, Palerme, Thessalonique, ...Constantinople et Fustat. Ces villes, qui ont le plus souvent hérité d’un long passé enraciné dans l’Antiquité, sont parfois des créations de l’époque médiévale. Certaines ont bénéficié de leur situation au croisement des routes maritimes, d’autres se sont hissées au rang de capitale royale ou impériale, d’autres encore se sont épanouies grâce à l’afflux de populations réfugiées, d’autres, enfin, ont eu un rayonnement religieux inégalé - à moins qu’elles aient connu l’ensemble de ces faveurs. Multiples facettes d’un monde méditerranéen urbain souvent troublé mais qui présente des caractères communs au-delà de la diversité : capitales où résident les souverains ; villes qui ébauchent un système communal ou jouissent d’une organisation municipale développée ; cités où le passé gréco-romain s’estompe dans le tracé urbain au fil des constructions médiévales et du développement de l’urbanisation ; ports où les marchands s’affairent, où des populations d’origines diverses se croisent, où l’industrie et la construction se développent au rythme des échanges ; villes en effervescence culturelle et artistique alimentée par le mouvement continu des voyageurs, ambassadeurs et missionnaires entre l’Orient et l’Occident ; villes en devenir ou en passe d’être frappées par les armes ; villes dynamiques parfois secouées par des crises violentes dues à un essor trop rapide, à l’inégalité sociale, l’angoisse des populations à l’aube de l’un des plus grands bouleversements géopolitiques de l’histoire méditerranéenne… Telles sont les villes que nous font découvrir les vingt-deux contributions de cet ouvrage.
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