PUBLIC MOVEMENT

(from late Latin communa, communia - community) - in Zap. Europe in the 10th-13th centuries. free. the movement of citizens against the senior regime, the first stage of the class. struggle in the Middle Ages. city. Under the dominance of large landownership, cities arose on the land of feudal lords and therefore fell under their rule. Often the city was owned simultaneously by several. seniors, for example: Amiens - 4, Marseille, Beauvais - 3, Soissons, Arles, Narbonne, Montpellier - 2, etc. From the moment of its inception, the cities became the object of exploitation by the feudal lords. owners. At first, it was carried out by collecting dues and corvée duties from the townspeople, that is. some of them still remained in the position of serfs. With the development of cities as centers of crafts and trade, the most important tool of the feud. All sorts of duties introduced by seigneurs began to be exploited: carriage, passage, entry, exit, shipping, bridge, road, market, trade (from the seller and buyer in each transaction), coastal law, the right of arbitrary requisition, etc., duties on salt, wine, etc. The consolidation of this exploitative system, which was the core of the senior regime in the city, was served by the senior system of weights and measures, senior coin, police adm. seigneur's office, his court., military. and political power. The mainstay of the seigneurial regime was the property of the feudal lords on the land, on which the city, the houses of the townspeople, as well as their subsidiary land holders were located. plots, their communal pastures, etc.

Interested in extracting mountains. income, the feudal lords often founded cities themselves, tried to attract the population to them by providing them with various benefits: personal freedom, the abolition of corvee, the replacement of all kinds of land. requisitions fixed. den. chinshem (city free holding), etc. At the same time, the townspeople were increasingly exploited precisely as commodity producers and commodity owners.

But as handicraft and trade developed, the real ground more and more eluded the seigneurial regime in the city. The development of commodity production and circulation required the freedom of the individual and property of the artisan and merchant. Operating in the field of prom. mountain labor. the artisan, unlike the feudal-dependent peasant, was the owner of the means of production and the finished product, and in the process of production did not depend (or almost did not depend) on the lord - the landowner. This economic independence (or almost complete economic independence) of the mountains. commodity production and circulation from the feud. large landownership was in sharp contradiction with the regime of seigneurial exploitation in the city, which slowed down the economic. the development of the latter, which became intolerable for the townspeople, was the real basis of K. d., as a result, the mountains were acquired. municipal independence. This was also the root of the reasons why the largest antifeuds arose in the medieval cities. heretical movements, advanced political ideas, opposition mountains lit.

K. d. was called upon to resolve essentially non-constitutional. and legal, and economic. and social tasks: to eliminate the system of feuds. exploitation of crafts and trade, to ensure the conditions for the free functioning of commodity production and circulation. Introduction mountains. rights, mountain troops, courts, and finally, city self-government had to legally and politically ensure the economic and social gains of the townspeople.

Forms K. d. were different depending on local conditions and the specific ratio of the class. forces. The feudal lords never voluntarily renounced their privileges, they "granted" liberties to the townspeople, or suffered an open war. or political. defeat, or being forced to this economically. necessity; abandoning the old methods, the seigneur sought to find new ways to exploit the townspeople. Very often, K. d. took on the character of open arms. uprisings of the townspeople against the lords under the slogan of the commune - the mountains. independence (Milan - 980, Cambrai - 957, 1024, 1064, 1076, 1107, 1127, Beauvais - 1099, Lan - 1109, 1128, 1191, Worms - 1071, Cologne - 1074, etc.). Often (especially in Northern France and Northern Italy), the core of the uprising was a secret union (conjuratio, conspiratio) of the townspeople - the "commune". The communes aroused the fierce hatred of the feudal lords, who saw in them a revolt of rebellious serfs. Money served as an important weapon of the townspeople in the fight against seniors. Open struggle was almost everywhere combined with the redemption of individual duties, rights and municipal independence in general from the lords. In some cities, for example. in southern France, ransom was the predominant means of liberating towns, although here, too, it was combined with more or less sharp open clashes. Citizens everywhere took advantage of the political. difficulties and struggle within the class of feudal lords (for example, the Flemish cities of Ghent, Bruges, Saint-Omer, etc.), the struggle between several. the lords of the city (Amiens, Arles, Marseille, etc.), the rivalry of the kings (Rouen) or the king and his vassals (most of the cities of Northern France), lasting. struggle between german emperors and the papacy (the cities of North and Middle Italy).

The forms and degrees of communal freedom of cities were also different depending on the degree of economic. development of the city, the balance of power between citizens and seniors, general political. conditions in the country, varying from relatively limited "liberties" while maintaining dependence on the seigneur (French so-called "new cities" and "cities of the bourgeoisie") to more or less complete self-government (northern French and Flemish communes, southern - French consulates and German so-called "free cities", which still retained some dependence on the king (and sometimes on the lord)). Only the most developed cities of the North. and Wed. Italy (for example, Venice, Genoa, Pisa, Florence, Siena, Lucca, Milan, Bologna, Perugia, etc.) were able to become completely independent city-republics. Urban independence usually took on forms already worked out by previous city councils—hence the spread of definitions. types of municipal org-tion (commune, consulate) and mountains. charters (Rouen, Loris, Beaumont, etc.).

In connection with the development of commodity-den. relations in the countryside and under the influence of K. d. in the cities in the 12-13 centuries. communes also arose in villages (mainly in Italy, also in France), but the degree of their independence in most cases was much lower, and pretty soon they again fell under the rule of either seigneurs or neighboring major cities.

The KD was of great progressive importance. It opened up wide opportunities for the development of crafts and trade, ensured the personal freedom of the townspeople and serfs who fled to the city, and contributed to undermining the economic monopoly. and political the power of the feudal lords, contributed to the growth of self-awareness of the townspeople. The successes of K. d. served as one of the main. prerequisites for the transformation of cities into the most important centers of economic, ideological and cultural progress. In the most advanced Italian cities, whose development Marx considered an exceptional phenomenon, their complete political. independence and the end of feuds. exploitation contributed to an unusually intensive accumulation of wealth and the transformation of these cities in the 14-15 centuries. in the centers of early capitalist. development.

Undermining the power of the largest feuds. seniors, K. d. where there was an alliance of cities with royal power, was the most important political factor. unification of the country. It contributed to the formation of the class of townspeople, which, under favorable conditions, led to the emergence of a class monarchy as a more progressive form of feuds. state-va.

Antifeod. wrestling middle-century. townspeople usually did not go beyond the city walls and, as a rule, did not encroach on the feudal serf. the structure of the village. The limitations of the Communist Party (as well as of the Middle Ages of the burghers) were rooted in the limitations of its economics. fundamentals - free simple commodity production (craft), which covered only prom., i.e. under feudalism, it was a non-principal, subordinate sphere of labor, and, although it was in conflict with the natural-economic feudal-exploiting system, at the same time it was not absolutely antagonistic to it, since it did not require the separation of the producer from the means of production.

K. d. was not homogeneous. Ch. the working masses played a role in the commune, but the richest and most influential seized power in the commune. townspeople: mountains. landowners and homeowners, usurers, partly the richest merchants (the so-called patriciate). They adopted many of the extortions of the former lord, introduced all sorts of monopolies in their favor, self-servingly used mountains. income and semi-feud. methods exploited not only the peasants of the district, but also the mass of the townspeople. This caused in the 13-15 centuries. uprisings of guild artisans against the rule of the patriciate, which meant a new stage of the class. fighting in the city. In the 14-15 centuries. in the cities of France, the patriciate tried to turn the communes into a stronghold of resistance to unite. the policy of the kings, under such circumstances, the elimination of obsolete communal independence was a necessary step, dictated by the interests of the nat. development. In some cases (for example, in Italy), the hypertrophy of the municipal independence of cities (along with the separatism of petty feudal sovereigns) turned into a serious obstacle to political control. centralization.

The study of K. began fr. historian O. Thierry. Refuting the legend of noble historians about communal liberties as a gracious gift of kings, he proved that these liberties were won by the townspeople themselves in a stubborn struggle against the feudal lords ("communal revolution"). Although Thierry did not disclose the economic conditionality K. d. and could not see vnutrigor. contradictions, his view of K. d. is the most daring and deep in the bourgeois. historiography. Thierry had a huge impact on subsequent bourgeois. researchers K. d. In the 2nd floor. 19th century liberal-bourgeois. historiography retreats from the bold disclosure of class. struggle and increasingly depicts the process of liberation of the communes as a gradual and peaceful evolution of the mountains. institutions. K. d. as Ch. the core of the political and social development middle-century. cities are more and more relegated to the background (for example, among the French historians A. Giry and A. Luscher). Burzh. historians are beginning to pay more and more attention to juridical. the problem of filial mountains. constitutions and law (especially the German historians K. Nitsch, R. Zom, G. Belov, F. Koytgen, Ritschel, and others). Liberal-positivist historiography of the con. 19 - beg. 20th century (Belgian ist. A. Pirenne and his school), remaining generally idealistic. positions, sought to get closer to understanding the socio-economic. conditionality Wed-age. urban freedom (the well-known influence of Marxism also had an effect here). But even in works imbued with the bourgeois-objectivist methodology, K. d. obscured the evolution of political. and legal institutions and forms.

In the bourgeois historiography of the 20th century. purely juridical were widely used. interpretation of K. d. (French historian C. Petit-Dutailly) and denial of K. d. (Russian scientist emigrant N. P. Ottokar, Danish scientist I. Plesner, French scientist J. Letokua). Historians of the latter direction deny the existence of c.-l. contradictions between the city and the feud. system and are credited with a decisive role in the rise and liberation of the cities of the feud., landowner. elements, patriciate; they emphatically reject ist. regularity K. d. and the defining value of the class. struggle in the development of the Middle Ages. cities in general.

Owls. the historiography of K. d. is based on the ideas of K. Marx and F. Engels about the Middle Ages. city as a center of crafts and trade, about the mountains. craft as independent. small-scale commodity production, which was in conflict with the feudal-local system of exploitation, about the progressive role of the Middle Ages. cities, about the revolution. the character of K. d. Owls made a great contribution to the study of K. d. historian V. V. Stoklitskaya-Tereshkovich. The first works of Marxist historians also appeared in other socialist countries. countries (for example, in the GDR - E. Engelman).

Lit .: Marx K., Letter to F. Engels. July 27, 1854, K. Marx and F. Engels, Soch., vol. 22, M.-L., 1931; Marx K. and Engels F., German ideology, Soch., 2nd ed., vol. 3; Engels F., On the decomposition of feudalism and the emergence of nat. state-va, ibid., vol. 21; Marx K., Chronological. extracts, in the book: Archive of Marx and Engels, vol. 5, (M.), 1938; Engels F., O France in the era of feudalism, ibid., vol. 10, (M.), 1948; Smirnov A., The Commune of Medieval France, Kaz., 1873; Dzhivelegov A.K., Urban community in cf. century, M., 1901; his, Medieval cities in the West. Europe, St. Petersburg, 1902; Thierry O., Urban communes in France at cf. century, trans. from French, St. Petersburg, 1901; his, Experience in the history of the origin and successes of the third estate, Selected. op., trans. from French, Moscow, 1937; Pirenne A., Medieval cities of Belgium, trans. from French, Moscow, 1937; his, Medieval cities and the revival of trade, Gorky, 1941; Stoklitskaya-Tereshkovich V.V., Class struggle in Milan in the 11th century. and the birth of the Milan Commune, in Sat: Cf. century, c. 5, Moscow, 1954; her, The main problems of history medieval city X-XV centuries., M., 1960; Bragina L. M., Rural communes of the North-East. Italy and their submission to the city in the XIII-XIV centuries, in collection: Cf. century, c. 7, Moscow, 1955; Kotelnikova L. A., Politics of cities in relation to rural communes Sev. and Wed. Italy in the 12th century, in collection: Cf. century, c. 16, Moscow, 1959; Thierry Aug., Lettres sur l "histoire de France, P., 1827; Hegel K., Geschichte der Städteverfassung von Italien seit der Zeit der römischen Herrschaft bis zum Ausgang des zwölften Jahrhunderts, Bd 1-2, Lpz., 1847; his same, Die Entstehung des deutschen Städtewesens, Lpz., 1898; Haulleville P. de, Histoire des communes lombardes depuis leur origine Jusqu "a la fin du XIII siècle, v. 1-2, P., 1857-58; Giry A., Histoire de la ville de Saint-Omer et de ses institutions.... P., 1877; Pirenne H., Origine des constitutions urbaines au moyen âge, "RH", v. 53, 1893, v. 57, 1895; Viollet P., Les communes françaises au moyen âge, P., 1900; Kiener F., Verfassungsgeschichte der Provence seit der Ostgothenherrschaft bis zur Errichtung der Konsulate (510-1200), Lpz., 1900; Caggese R., Classi e comuni rurali nel medio evo italiano, v. 1-2, Firenze, 1907-09; Luchaire A., Les communes françaises à l "époque des Capétien directs, P., 1890, nouv. ed., P., 1911; Luchaire J., Les démocracies italiennes, P., 1915; Retit-Dutaillis Ch., Les communes françaises, P., 1947; Engelmann, E., Zurstädtischen Volksbewegung in Südfrankreich Kommunefreiheit und Gesellschaft, V., 1959.

S. M. Stam. Saratov.

Soviet historical encyclopedia. - M.: Soviet Encyclopedia. Ed. E. M. Zhukova. 1973-1982 .

See what "COMMUNAL MOVEMENT" is in other dictionaries:

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communal movement- in Zap. Europe XXIII centuries. movement of citizens against seniors for self-government and independence. At first, the demands of the townspeople were limited to the restriction of feuds, oppression and the reduction of requisitions. Then there were polit, the task of finding the mountains. self-government and rights. ... ... Medieval world in terms, names and titles

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Chapter I: The Rise of Medieval Cities. Cities under the rule of seniors

§3. City under the rule of a lord

Chapter II. Forms and features of the liberation movement of cities

Conclusion

List of sources and literature

Introduction

By X - XI centuries. important changes took place in the economic life of Western Europe. The growth of productive forces, associated with the establishment of the feudal mode of production, in the early Middle Ages proceeded most rapidly in handicrafts. It was expressed there in the gradual change and development of technology and, mainly, the skills of crafts and trades, in their expansion, differentiation, and improvement. Handicraft activity required more and more specialization, no longer compatible with the labor of the peasant. At the same time, the sphere of exchange improved: fairs spread, markets developed, coinage and the sphere of circulation of coins expanded, means and means of communication developed. The moment came when the separation of craft from Agriculture: the transformation of craft into an independent branch of production, the concentration of craft and trade in special centers. Another prerequisite for the separation of handicrafts and trade from agriculture was the progress in the development of the latter. The sowing of grain and industrial crops expanded: horticulture, horticulture, viticulture, and wine-making, butter-making, and milling, closely related to agriculture, developed and improved. Increased the number and improved the breed of livestock. The use of horses brought important improvements in horse-drawn transport and warfare, in large-scale construction and tillage. The increase in agricultural productivity made it possible to exchange part of its products, including those suitable as handicraft raw materials, for finished handicraft products, which relieved the peasant of the need to produce them himself.

Along with these economic prerequisites, at the turn of the 1st and 2nd millenniums, important social and political prerequisites for the formation of a specialized craft and medieval cities as a whole appeared. The process of feudalization was completed. The state and the church saw cities as their strongholds and sources of cash receipts, and in their own way contributed to their development. A dominant stratum stood out, whose need for luxury weapons and special living conditions contributed to an increase in the number of professional artisans. And the growth of state taxes and seignioral rents until a certain time stimulated the market relations of the peasants, who more and more often had to endure not only the surplus, but also part of the products necessary for their life. On the other hand, the peasants, who were subjected to more and more oppression, began to flee to the cities, this was a form of their resistance to feudal oppression.

In the countryside, handicrafts were very limited, since the market for handicraft products there is narrow, and the power of the feudal lord deprived the artisan of the independence he needed. Therefore, artisans fled the village and settled where there were the most favorable conditions for independent work, marketing of their products, obtaining raw materials. The resettlement of artisans to market centers and cities was part of the general movement of rural residents there. As a result of the separation of craft from agriculture and the development of exchange, as a result of the flight of peasants, including those who knew any craft, in the 10th - 13th centuries. (and in Italy from the 9th century), cities of a new, feudal type rapidly grew throughout Western Europe. They were centers of crafts and trade, differed in the composition and main occupations of the population, its social structure and political organization. The formation of cities in this way

not only reflected the social division of labor and the social evolution of the early Middle Ages, but was also their result.

Medieval cities had a significant impact on the feudal society of Western Europe and played important role in his socio-political, economic and spiritual life. In particular, the emergence of a medieval city was the beginning of a stage of developed feudalism with a new economic structure, represented by small-scale crafts. The city significantly changed the structure of medieval society, giving birth to a new social force - the class of citizens. Within its walls, a special social psychology, culture and ideology was formed, which had a great influence on the social and spiritual life of society. In addition, the development of urban production was one of the factors contributing to the disintegration of feudalism and the emergence of early capitalist relations.

Having arisen on the land of a feudal lord, the city turned out to be completely dependent on its lord. This situation hindered him. further development. Thus, starting from the 10th century, a communal movement unfolded in Western Europe. The degree of city freedoms and privileges depended on the outcome of this struggle. economic development cities, as well as the political system of the urban community.

One of the main goals of the anti-seigneurial movement was to obtain the rights of self-government for the city. However, the results of this struggle in different regions and countries were different.

The degree of independence of the city depended on the freedoms and privileges laid down in the city charter, which determined its economic and political growth. Therefore, the study of the features and forms of the communal movement of the medieval cities of Western Europe is relevant.

The purpose of this work is: to reveal the essence and main forms of the communal movement of the medieval cities of Western Europe.

1) reveal the essence of the main theories of the origin of medieval cities; show the ways of their occurrence, identify the peculiarities of the position of cities in relation to seniors;

2) to show the main forms of the communal movement of medieval cities;

3) identify the main results of the communal movement.

The political and socio-economic history of the medieval cities of Western Europe has been the subject of many studies, which also reflect some of the problems of communal traffic. The issues of the development of medieval cities of Western Europe, their struggle for communal freedoms are presented in the works of such recognized medievalists as A.A. Svanidze, S.M. Stam, Stoklitskaya - Tereshkovich V.V. and etc.

From latest research the most generalizing is the collection of works of domestic urbanists "The City of the Medieval Civilization of Western Europe". The publication covers the period from the emergence of medieval cities to the end of the 15th century and covers various aspects.

L.A. Kotelnikova (city of Italy), Ya.A. Levitsky (city of England), G.M. Tushina (cities of France), A.L. Rogachevsky (city of Germany), etc.

There are very few special studies devoted to the communal movement of cities. Among them is the article by M.E. Karpacheva "Early stage of the communal movement in the medieval Carcasse", article by T.M. Negulyaeva, dedicated to the results of the struggle against the seigneurs and the formation of an urban patriciate in medieval Strasbourg.1

In addition to research, various sources were used in the work. Among them are narrative ones, such as a passage from the autobiography of Guibert of Nozhansky, in which he talks about the uprising of the townspeople of the Lana commune.

The rise of cities, the formation of urban self-government required legal regulation of both urban life and relations with feudal lords. On the basis of agreements with the latter, local customs and the reception of Roman law, city law itself is formed, reflected in city charters and statutes.

In this work, excerpts were used from the city law of Strasbourg, from the charter of the city of Saint-Omer (1168), from the city law of the city of Goslar, From the decree of Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa on the approval of rights outside the city of Bremen.

Chapter I: The Rise of Medieval Cities. Cities under the rule of seniors

§1. Theories on the origin of medieval cities

Trying to answer the question about the causes and circumstances of the emergence of medieval cities, scientists of the XIX and XX centuries. put forward various theories. A significant part of them is characterized by an institutional-legal approach to the problem. Most Attention was given to the origin and development of specific urban institutions, urban law, and not to the socio-economic foundations of the process. With this approach, it is impossible to explain the root causes of the origin of cities.1

19th century historians was primarily concerned with the question of what form of settlement the medieval city originated from and how the institutions of this previous form were transformed into cities. The "romanistic" theory (F. Savigny, O. Thierry, F. Guizot, F. Renoir), which was based mainly on the material of the Romanized regions of Europe, considered medieval cities and their institutions a direct continuation of the late ancient cities. Historians, who relied mainly on the material of Northern, Western, Central Europe (primarily German and English), saw the origins of medieval cities in the phenomena of a new, feudal society, primarily legal and institutional. According to the "patrimonial" theory (K. Eighhorn, K. Nitsch), the city and its institutions developed from the feudal estate, its management and law. The "Markov" theory (G. Maurer, O. Gierke, G. von Belov) brought out the city institutions and the law of the free rural community-mark. The "bourgeois" theory (F. Keitgen, F. Matland) saw the grain of the city in the fortress-burg and in burg law. The "market" theory (R. Zohm, Schroeder, Schulte) deduced city law from the market law that was in force in places where trade was conducted.

All these theories were distinguished by one-sidedness, each putting forward a single path or factor in the emergence of the city and considering it mainly from formal positions. In addition, they never explained why most of the patrimonial centers, communities, castles, and even market places did not turn into cities.

German historian Ritschel late XIX V. tried to combine the "burg" and "market" theories, seeing in the early cities settlements of merchants around a fortified point - the burg. The Belgian historian A. Pirenne, unlike most of his predecessors, assigned a decisive role in the emergence of cities to the economic factor - intercontinental and interregional transit trade and its carrier - the merchants. According to this "commercial" theory, cities in Western Europe initially arose around merchant trading posts. Pirenne also ignores the role of the separation of craft from agriculture in the emergence of cities, and does not explain the origins, patterns and specifics of the city as a feudal structure. Pirenne's thesis of a purely commercial origin for the city was not accepted by many medievalists.

In modern foreign historiography, much has been done to study the geological data, topography, and plans of medieval cities (F.L. Ganshof, V. Ebel, E. Ennen). These materials explain a lot about the prehistory and initial history of cities, which is almost not illuminated by written monuments. The question of the role of political, administrative, military, and religious factors in the formation of medieval cities is being seriously developed. All these factors and materials require, of course, taking into account the socio-economic aspects of the emergence of the city and its character as a feudal culture.

Many modern foreign historians, in an effort to understand the general patterns of the genesis of medieval cities, share and develop the concept of the emergence of a feudal city precisely as a consequence of the social division of labor, the development of commodity relations, and the social and political evolution of society.

Serious research has been carried out in domestic medieval studies on the history of cities in almost all countries of Western Europe. But long time it focused mainly on the social = economic role of cities, with less attention to their other functions. Recently, the whole variety of social characteristics of the medieval city has been considered. The city is defined as "Not only the most dynamic structure of medieval civilization, but also as an organic component of the entire feudal system"

§2. The emergence of European medieval cities

The specific historical paths of the emergence of cities are very diverse. The peasants and artisans who left the villages settled in different places, depending on the availability of favorable conditions for engaging in "urban affairs", i.e. market-related business. Sometimes, especially in Italy and southern France, these were administrative, military and church centers, often located on the territory of old Roman cities that were reborn to a new life - already as feudal-type cities. The fortifications of these points provided the residents with the necessary security.

The concentration of the population in such centers, including feudal lords with their servants and retinue, clergy, representatives of the royal and local administration, created favorable conditions for the sale of their products by artisans. But more often, especially in Northwestern and Central Europe, artisans and merchants settled near large estates, estates, castles and monasteries, the inhabitants of which purchased their goods. They settled at the intersection important roads, at river crossings and bridges, on the shores of bays, bays, convenient for parking ships, etc., where traditional markets have long operated. Such "market towns", with a significant increase in their population, the presence of favorable conditions for handicraft production and market activity, also turned into cities.1

The growth of cities in certain areas of Western Europe occurred at different rates. First of all, in the VIII - IX centuries. feudal cities, primarily as centers of crafts and trade, were formed in Italy (Venice, Genoa, Pisa, Bari, Naples, Amalfi); in the tenth century - in the south of France (Marseille, Arles, Narbonne, Montpellier, Toulouse, etc.). In these and other areas, with rich ancient traditions, handicrafts specialized faster than in others, a feudal state was formed with its reliance on cities.

The early emergence and growth of Italian and southern French cities was also facilitated by the trade relations of these regions with Byzantium and the countries of the East, which were more developed at that time. Of course, the preservation of the remains of numerous ancient cities and fortresses there also played a certain role, where it was easier to find shelter, protection, traditional markets, rudiments of craft organizations and Roman municipal law.

In the X - XI centuries. feudal cities began to appear in Northern France, in the Netherlands, in England and Germany - along the Rhine and the upper Danube, the Flanders cities of Bruges, Ypres, Ghent, Lille, Douai, Arras and others were famous for fine cloth, which was supplied to many European countries. There were no longer many Roman settlements in these areas, most of the cities arose anew.

Later, in the 12th - 12th centuries, feudal cities grew up on the northern outskirts and in the interior regions of Zareinskaya Germany, in the Scandinavian countries, in Ireland, Hungary, the Danubian principalities, i.e. where the development of feudal relations was slower. Here, all cities grew, as a rule, from market towns, as well as regional (former tribal) centers.

The distribution of cities across Europe was uneven. There were especially many of them in Northern and Central Italy, in Flanders and Brabant, along the Rhine.

"For all the difference in place, time, specific conditions for the emergence of a particular city, it has always been the result of a social division of labor common to all of Europe. In social - economic sphere it was expressed in the separation of handicrafts from agriculture, the development of commodity production and exchange between different spheres of the economy and different territories; in the political sphere - in the development of statehood structures".

§3. City under the rule of a lord

Whatever the origin of the city, it was a feudal city. It was headed by a feudal lord, on whose land it was located, so the city had to obey the lord. Most of the townspeople were originally non-free ministerials (serving people of the lord), peasants who had lived in this place for a long time, sometimes fleeing from their former masters, or released by them for quitrent. At the same time, they often found themselves in personal dependence on the lord of the city. All city power was concentrated in the hands of the lord, the city became, as it were, his collective vassal. The feudal lord was interested in the emergence of a city on his land, since urban crafts and trade gave him a considerable income.

Former peasants brought with them to the cities the customs of communal organization, which had a noticeable influence on the organization of urban government. Over time, it increasingly took on forms that corresponded to the characteristics and needs of urban life.

IN early era the urban population was still very poorly organized. The city still had a semi-agrarian character. Its inhabitants carried duties of an agrarian nature in favor of the lord. The city had no special city government. It is under the authority of a seigneur or seigneurial clerk, who judged the urban population, exacted various fines and fees from him. At the same time, the city often did not represent a unity even in the sense of seigneurial management. As a feudal property, the lord could bequeath the city by inheritance in the same way as a village. He could divide it among his heirs, could sell or mortgage it in whole or in part.1

Here is an excerpt from a document from the end of the 12th century. The document dates back to the time when the city of Strasbourg was under the authority of the spiritual lord - the bishop:

"1. Based on the model of other cities, Strasbourg was founded, with such a privilege that every person, both a stranger and a local native, always and from everyone enjoyed peace in it.

5. All the officials of the city go under the authority of the bishop, so that they are appointed either by himself or by those whom he appoints; the elders define the younger as if they were subordinate to them.

6. And a bishop should not give public office except to persons from the world of the local church.

7. The bishop invests the four officials in charge of the administration of the city with his power, namely: the Schultgeis, the burggrave, the collector and the head of the coin.

93. Individual townspeople are also required to serve annually a five-day corvee, with the exception of

coiners...tanners...saddlers, four glovemakers, four bakers and eight shoemakers, all blacksmiths and carpenters, butchers and wine barrel makers...

102. Among the tanners, twelve men are obliged, at the expense of the bishop, to prepare hides and skins, as the bishop needs...

103. The duty of the blacksmiths is as follows: when the bishop goes on an imperial campaign, each blacksmith will give four horseshoes with his nails; of these, the burggrave will give the bishop horseshoes for 24 horses, the rest he will keep for himself ...

105. In addition, blacksmiths are obliged to do everything that the bishop needs in his palace, namely, regarding doors, windows and various things that are made of iron: at the same time, material is given to them and food is released for all the time ...

108. Among shoemakers, eight people are obliged to give to the bishop, when he is sent to the court on the campaign of sovereigns, covers for candlesticks, basins and dishes ...

115. Millers and fishermen are obliged to carry the bishop on the water wherever he wishes ...

116. Anglers are obliged to fish for ... the bishop ... annually for three days and three nights with all their tackle ...

118. Carpenters are obliged every Monday to go to work to the bishop at his expense ... "

As we see from this document, the safety and peace of the townspeople was provided by his lord, who "invested with his power" the officials of the city (that is, instructed them to lead the city government). The townspeople, for their part, were obliged to bear corvee in favor of the lord and render him all kinds of services. These duties differed little from the duties of the peasants. It is clear that as the city grows stronger, it begins to be more and more burdened by dependence on the lord and seeks to free itself from it.

The organization of the city arose in the process of struggle with the lord, a struggle that necessitated the unification of various elements that were part of the urban population. At the same time, the class struggle in the countryside intensified and intensified. On this basis, since the XI century. the desire of the feudal lords to strengthen their class rule by strengthening the feudal organization of the state is noticed. "The process of political fragmentation has been replaced by a tendency towards the unification of small feudal units and the rallying of the feudal world."

The struggle of cities with feudal lords begins from the very first steps of urban development. In this struggle, an urban structure is formed; those disparate elements of which the city consisted at the beginning of its existence are organized and united. The political structure that the city receives depends on the outcome of this struggle.

The development of commodity-money relations in the cities intensifies the struggle between the city and the feudal lord, who sought to expropriate the growing urban accumulation by increasing feudal rent. The requirements of the lord in relation to the city were increasing. The lord resorted to methods of direct violence against the townspeople, seeking to increase his income from the city. On this basis, clashes arose between the city and the lord, which forced the townspeople to create a certain organization to win their independence, an organization that was at the same time the basis for city self-government.

Thus, the formation of cities was the result of the social division of labor and the social evolution of the early medieval period. The emergence of cities was accompanied by the separation of handicrafts from agriculture, the development of commodity production and exchange, and the development of the attributes of statehood.

The medieval city arose on the land of the lord and was in his power. The desire of the lords to extract as much income as possible from the city inevitably led to a communal movement.

Chapter II. Forms and features of the liberation movement of cities

§1. Communal movement of medieval cities and its forms

Communal movement (from late Latin communa - community) - in Western Europe in the 10th - 13th centuries. - the movement of citizens against seniors for self-government and independence.1

Cities that arose in the Middle Ages on the land of the feudal lords found themselves under their rule. Often several lords owned the city at the same time (for example, Amiens - 4, Marseille, Beauvais - 3, Soissons, Arles - 2, etc.). corvee duties, etc.), judicial and administrative arbitrariness. At the same time, the real economic grounds for maintaining the seigneurial movement were very shaky. The artisan, in contrast to the feudal-dependent peasant, was the owner of the means of production and the finished product, and did not depend on the lord in the production process (or almost did not depend on it). This almost complete economic independence of urban commodity production and circulation from the lord-landowner was in sharp contradiction to the regime of lord exploitation, which hampered the economic development of the city.

In Western Europe from the end of the X - XI centuries. the struggle of cities for liberation from the power of the lords was widely developed. At first, the demands of the townspeople were limited to limiting feudal oppression and reducing requisitions. Then political tasks arose - the acquisition of city self-government and rights. The struggle was not against the feudal system, but against the lords of certain cities.

The forms of communal movement were different.

Sometimes cities managed to get certain liberties and privileges from the feudal lord for money, fixed in city charters; in other cases, these privileges, especially the right to self-government, were achieved as a result of a long, sometimes armed, struggle.

Very often, the communal movement took on the character of open armed uprisings of citizens under the slogan of a commune - urban independence (Milan - 980, Cambrai - 957, 1024, 1064, 1076, 1107, 1127, Beauvais - 1099, Lahn - 1112, 1191, Worms - 1071, Cologne - 1072, etc.).

The commune is both an alliance directed against the lord and an organization of urban government.

Quite often kings, emperors, large feudal lords intervened in the struggle of cities. "The communal struggle merged with other conflicts - in a given area, country, international - and was an important part of the political life of medieval Europe" .

§2. Peculiarities of communal traffic in various cities of medieval Europe

Communal movements took place in various countries differently depending on conditions. historical development, and led to different results.

In southern France, the townspeople achieved independence without bloodshed (IX - XIII centuries). The counts of Toulouse, Marseille, Montpellier and other cities of southern France, as well as Flanders, were not only city lords, but sovereigns of entire regions. They were interested in the prosperity of local cities, gave them municipal liberties, and did not interfere with relative independence. However, they did not want the communes to become too powerful, to gain complete independence. This happened, for example, with Marseille, which for centuries was an independent aristocratic republic. But at the end of the thirteenth century after an 8-month siege, Count of Provence, Charles of Anjou, took the city, put his governor at the head of it, began to appropriate city revenues, dosing funds to support city crafts and trade that were beneficial to him.1

The cities of northern France (Amiens, Laon, Beauvais, Soissons, etc.) and Flanders (Ghent, Bruges, Lille) became self-governing commune cities as a result of a stubborn, mostly armed, struggle. The townspeople chose from their midst the council, its head - the mayor and other officials, had their own court, military militia, finances, independently established taxes. These cities were freed from rent and senior duties. In return, they paid the lord a certain small cash rent, in case of war they put up a small military detachment, often themselves acted as a collective lord in relation to the peasants of the surrounding territories.

The cities of Northern and Central Italy (Venice, Genoa, Siena, Florence, Lucca, Ravenna, Bologna, etc.) became communes in the 9th - 12th centuries. One of the bright and typical pages of the communal struggle in Italy was the history of Milan - the center of crafts and trade, an important staging post on the way to Germany. In the XI century. the power of the count there was replaced by the power of the archbishop, who ruled with the help of representatives of aristocratic and clerical circles. Throughout the eleventh century the townspeople were fighting with the seigneur. She rallied all urban strata. Since the 1950s, the urban movement has resulted in civil war against the bishop. It was intertwined with the powerful heretical movement that then swept through Italy - with the performances of the Waldensians and especially the Cathars. The rebels-citizens attacked the clerics, destroyed their houses. Sovereigns were drawn into the events. Finally, at the end of the XI century. the city received the status of a commune. It was headed by a council of consuls from privileged citizens - representatives of merchant-feudal circles. The aristocratic system of the Milan commune, of course, did not satisfy the mass of the townspeople, their struggle continued in subsequent times.1

In Germany in the XII - XIII centuries. the so-called imperial cities appeared - they were formally subordinate to the emperor, but in fact they were independent city republics (Lubeck, Frankfurt - on the Main, etc.). They were governed by city councils, had the right to independently declare war, conclude peace and alliances, mint coins, etc.

But sometimes the liberation struggle of the cities was very long. For more than 200 years, the struggle for the independence of the northern French city of Lana lasted. His lord (since 1106), Bishop Godri, a lover of war and hunting, established a particularly difficult regime in the city, up to the murder of citizens. The inhabitants of Lan managed to buy from the bishop a charter granting them certain rights (a fixed tax, the destruction of the right of the "dead hand"), paying the king for its approval. But the bishop soon found the charter unprofitable for himself and, having given a bribe to the king, obtained its cancellation. The townspeople rebelled, plundered the courts of aristocrats and the episcopal palace, and Gaudry himself, who hid in an empty barrel, was killed.

In one of the first memoirs of medieval literature, the autobiography of Guibert of Nozhansky "The Tale of own life", provides vivid evidence of the uprising of the townspeople of the Lanskoy commune.

Guibert of Nozhansky (lived in the 11th - 12th centuries) was born into a French knightly family, became a monk, received an excellent literary (partially philosophical) and theological education in the monastery for that time. Known as a theologian and historian. His historical works are especially interesting. Possessing the talent of a writer, Guibert describes events vividly and colorfully.

Protecting the interests of the church and standing guard over the feudal system as a whole, Guibert was hostile to the rebellious townspeople. But at the same time, he openly exposes the vices and crimes of individual representatives of the ruling class, speaks with indignation about the greed of the feudal lords and their excesses.

Guibert Nozhansky writes: “This city has long been burdened by such misfortune that no one in it was afraid of either God or the authorities, and everyone, in accordance only with their own strengths and desires, carried out robberies and murders in the city.

... But what can I say about the situation of the common people? ... Seniors and their servants openly committed robberies and robberies; at night the passer-by did not enjoy security; to be detained, captured or killed - that's the only thing that awaited him.

The clergy, archdeacons and lords... seeking all sorts of ways to extort money from the common people, entered into negotiations through their intermediaries, offering to grant the right, if they paid a sufficient amount, to form a commune.

... Having become more accommodating from the golden rain that fell on them, they made a promise to the people, having sealed it with an oath, to strictly observe the concluded agreement.

… inclined generous gifts commoners, the king agreed to approve this agreement and secure it with an oath. My God! Who could tell about the struggle that flared up when, after the gifts were accepted from the people, and so many oaths were given, these same people began to try to destroy what they swore to support, and tried to return the slaves to their former state, once liberated and delivered from all the burden of the yoke? Unbridled envy of the townspeople, in fact, consumed the bishop and the lords ...

... Violation of the treaties that created the Lansk commune filled the hearts of the townspeople with anger and amazement: all the persons who held positions ceased to perform their duties ...

... not anger, but the fury of a wild beast seized the people of the lower class; they formed a conspiracy, sealed by mutual oath, to kill the bishop and his like-minded people ...

... Numerous crowds of citizens, armed with swords, double-edged axes, bows, axes, clubs and spears, filled the temple of the Blessed Virgin and rushed into the bishop's courtyard ...

... Not being able, in the end, to repel the bold attacks of the people, the bishop dressed in the dress of one of his servants, fled to the cellar under the church, locked himself there and hid in a wine barrel, the hole in which was plugged by one faithful servant. Gaudry thought he was well hidden.

... the townspeople managed to find their victim. Godri, although a sinner, but God's anointed, was pulled out of a barrel by the hair, showered with many blows and dragged, in broad daylight, into a narrow monastery lane ... The unfortunate man prayed in the most miserable terms for mercy, promised to take an oath that he would will be their bishop, offered them large sums of money and undertook to leave the fatherland, but all with bitterness answered him only with insults; one of them, Bernard, raising his double-edged ax, fiercely cut this albeit sinful, but sacred ... man.

The above document paints a vivid picture of the struggle of the citizens of the city of Lana with the lord-bishop Gaudry, a typical representative of his class. It follows from the document that the townspeople of Lan, already possessing some material strength, legally remained in the same dependence on their feudal lord as before. The senor still could

rob and oppress them, mock their dignity. Therefore, an uprising breaks out in the city, as a result of which the Lana commune was destroyed. The King of France, Louis VI, who recognized the commune, treacherously broke his promise.

The king, with an armed hand, restored the old order in Lahn, but in 1129 the townspeople raised a new uprising. For many years there was then a struggle for a communal charter with varying success: now in favor of the city, then in favor of the king. Only in 1331 did the king, with the help of many local feudal lords, win the final victory. Its judges and officials began to manage the city.

Cities located on royal land, in countries with a relatively strong central government, could not achieve full self-government. This was almost a general rule for cities on royal soil, in countries with a relatively strong central authority. True, they enjoyed a number of privileges and liberties, including the right to elect self-government bodies. However, these institutions usually operated under the control of an official of the king or other lord. So it was in many cities of France (Paris, Orleans, Bourges, Lorris, Nantes, Chartres, etc.) and England (London, Lincoln, Oxford, Cambridge, Gloucester, etc.). Limited municipal freedoms of cities were characteristic of the Scandinavian countries, many cities of Germany, Hungary, and they did not exist at all in Byzantium.

Thus, communal movements in different countries took place in different forms, depending on the concrete - historical conditions.

Some cities managed to get liberties and privileges for money. Others won these liberties in a long armed struggle.

Some cities became self-governing cities - communes, but many cities either failed to achieve full self-government, or remained entirely under the authority of the seigneurial administration.

Chapter 3 The results of the liberation struggle of cities. City law "liberties"

§1. Socio-economic and political results of the liberation struggle of cities

In the process of urban development, the struggle of townspeople with seniors in the urban environment in feudal Europe, a special medieval estate of townspeople took shape.

In economic terms, the new estate was most of all associated with trade and craft activities, and with property based not only on production, but also on exchange. In political and legal terms, all members of this estate enjoyed a number of specific privileges and liberties (personal freedom, jurisdiction of the city court, participation in the city militia, in the formation of the municipality, etc.), which constitute the status of a full citizen. Usually the urban estate is identified with the concept of "burghers".

The word "burgher" in a number of European countries originally denoted all city dwellers (from the German Burg - a city, from which the medieval Latin burgensis and the French term bourgeoisie, which also originally denoted townspeople, came from). Later, the term “burgher” began to be used only to refer to full-fledged citizens, who could not include representatives of the lower classes who were excluded from city government.1

The struggle of cities with seniors in the overwhelming majority of cases led to the transition, to one degree or another, of urban management into the hands of the townspeople. But in their midst by that time there was already a noticeable social stratification. Therefore, although the struggle against the seigneurs was fought by all the townspeople, only the top of the urban population made full use of its results: homeowners, including those of the feudal type, usurers and, of course, wholesale merchants engaged in transit trade.

This upper, privileged stratum was a narrow, closed group (the patriciate), which hardly allowed new members into its environment. The city council, the mayor (burgomaster), the judicial board (sheffens, eschevens, scabins) of the city were chosen only from among the patricians and their proteges. City administration, courts and finances, including taxation, construction - everything was in the hands of the city elite, used in its interests and at the expense of the wide trade and craft population of the city, not to mention the poor.

But as the craft developed and the significance of the workshops grew stronger, artisans and small merchants entered into a struggle with the patriciate for power in the city. Usually hired workers, poor people also joined them. In the XIII - XVI centuries. this struggle, the so-called guild revolutions, unfolded in almost all countries of medieval Europe and often took on a very sharp, even armed character.

“We see many cities where poor and middle people do not have a share in government, but the rich have it all, because the people of the commune are afraid of them either because of their wealth or because of their relationship. It happens that one of them, having spent a year as mayor, juror or treasurer, next year they make their brothers, nephews or other close relatives so, so that for ten or twelve years the rich have all the administration in good cities. de reported one to the other; but in such cases this cannot be tolerated, because in the affairs of the commune, reports should not be accepted by those who themselves must report, ”says the Augsburg Chronicle (1357). 1

In some cities where handicraft production has been greatly developed, the guilds have won (Cologne, Basel, Florence, and others). In others, where large-scale trade and merchants played the leading role, the urban elite (Hamburg, Lübeck, Rostock and other cities of the Hanseatic League) emerged victorious from the struggle. But even where the guilds won, the management of the city did not become truly democratic, since the top of the most influential guilds united after their victory with part of the patriciate and established a new oligarchic administration that acted in the interests of the richest citizens (Augsburg and others).

§2. City law "liberties"

The most important result of the struggle of cities with seniors is the liberation of the majority of residents from personal dependence. A rule was also established, according to which a dependent peasant who fled to the city, having lived there "for a year and one day", became free. It was not in vain that a medieval proverb said that "city air makes you free."

Let us give examples from the documents of city law, in which this rule is fixed.

In the Charter of the City of St. - Omer (1168) recorded:

"32. If the serf of any lord becomes a citizen, he cannot be captured in the city, and if any lord would like to take him to himself as his own serf, then let him bring his closest heirs, his uncles and maternal aunts for examination of this case; if he does not do this, he must set him free.

Articles 1 and 2 of the City Law, granted by Emperor Frederick the Second to the city of Goslar on July 13, 1219, read:

"1. If someone lived in the city of Goslar and during his lifetime was not caught by anyone in a slave state, then after his death no one will dare to call him a slave or reduce him to a slave state.

2. If any stranger came to live in the named city and so remained for a year and a day, and he was never put on the appearance of a slave state, they did not catch him in this and he himself did not admit it, then let him use common freedom with other citizens; and after his death, no one will dare to declare him his slave.

"If any man or woman stays unhindered in the city of Bremen within what is commonly called Weichbild (city limits) for a year and a day, and if anyone after that takes it into his head to challenge his freedom, then, by imposing silence on the complainant , let it be presented to him to prove his freedom by reference for the above term".

The city thus became a symbol of independence in the Middle Ages, and thousands of serfs rushed here, fleeing feudal oppression. Not a single feudal lord had the right to seize his former serf in the city, now a free citizen, and again turn him into a slave.

The rights and liberties received by medieval townspeople were in many ways similar to immunity privileges and were of a feudal nature.

Thus, as a result of the struggle for liberation, the population of the cities occupied a special place in the life of feudal society and began to play a prominent role in class-representative assemblies.

Without constituting a socially monolithic layer, the inhabitants of medieval cities were constituted as a special estate. Their disunity was reinforced by the dominance of the corporate system within the cities.

The most important result of the struggle of cities with seniors was the liberation of citizens from personal dependence, enshrined in city law.

Conclusion

Having considered the theories of the origin of medieval cities, the ways of their emergence, the peculiarities of the relationship between the townspeople and the lords, which led to communal movements, the features, forms and results of the liberation struggle of medieval cities, we came to the following conclusions.

Cities of a new, feudal type grew rapidly in Western Europe in the 10th and 13th centuries. as a result of the separation of handicrafts from agriculture and the development of exchange, as a result of the flight of the peasants. They were the center of crafts and trade, differed in the composition and main occupations of the population, its social structure and political organization. The specific historical paths of the emergence of cities were diverse. With all the difference in place, time, specific conditions for the emergence of a particular city, it has always been the result of a social division of labor common to all of Europe.

The medieval city arose on the land of the feudal lord and had to obey him. The desire of the feudal lords to extract as much income from the city as possible inevitably led to a communal movement - a struggle between cities and lords. At first, the townspeople fought for liberation from the most severe forms of feudal oppression, for a reduction in the requisitions of the lord, for trade privileges. Then political tasks arose: the acquisition of city self-government and rights. The outcome of this struggle determined the degree of independence of the city in relation to the lord, its economic prosperity and political system. The struggle of the cities was by no means against the lords, for ensuring the existence and development of cities within the framework of this system.

The forms of communal movement were different. Some cities managed to get liberties and privileges from the lord for money. Others of these rights, especially the right to self-government, were won as a result of a long armed struggle.

Communal movements took place in different countries in different ways, depending on the conditions of historical development, and led to different results. Many cities became self-governing city-communes. But many could not achieve full self-government. Many cities, especially small ones that belonged to spiritual lords, remained entirely under the authority of the lord.

The most important result of the struggle of cities with seniors was the liberation from personal dependence of the majority of the citizens of Western Europe.

Sources;

1. City law of the city of Goslar // Medieval city law of the XII - XIII centuries. / Under the editorship of S.M. Stam. Saratov, 1989. S.154-157.

2 . City law of the city of Strasbourg // History of the Middle Ages. Reader. In 2 hours. Part 1 M., 1988. S.173-174.

3 . Nozhansky Guibert. A story about one's own life // History of the Middle Ages. Reader. In 2 hours. Ch.1.M., 1988. S.176-179.

4. Charter of the city of Saint-Omer // Medieval city law XII - XIII centuries. / Under the editorship of S.M. Stam. Saratov, 1989. S.146-148.

Literature;

1 . The city of the medieval civilization of Western Europe / Ed.A. A. Svanidze M., 1999-2000. T.1-4.

2 . Karpacheva E.S. Early stage of communal traffic in medieval Carcasse // Medieval city. Issue 4 1978 S.3-20.

3 . Kotelnikova L.A. Feudalism and cities in Italy in the VIII - XV centuries. M., 1987.

4 . Levitsky Ya.A. City and feudalism in England. M., 1987

5. Negulyaeva T.M. Formation of urban patriciate in medieval Strasbourg // Medieval city. Issue 4 1978. P 81-110.

6. Rogachevsky A.L. German burghers in the XII - XV centuries. SPb., 1995.

7 . Svanidze A.A. The Genesis of the Feudal City in Early Medieval Europe: Problems and Typology // City Life in Medieval Europe. M., 1987.

8. Stam S.M. Economic and social development of the early city. (Toulouse XI - XIII centuries) Saratov, 1969.

Strasbourg. The oldest city law (end of the XII century) // History of the Middle Ages. Reader. At 2 o'clock, Part 1./ Comp. V. E. Stepanova, A. Ya. Shevelenko. M., 1988. S. 173-174.

Stam S. M. Decree Op. S. 159.

Svanidze A. A. Decree. op. S. 198.

Nozhansky Guibert. A story about one's own life // History of the Middle Ages. Reader. In 2 hours. Part 1. M., 1988S. 176-179.

City law of the city of Goslar / / Medieval city law of the XII - XIII centuries / Ed. S. M. Stama. Saratov, 1989. S. 154-157.

Cit. by: Negulyaeva T. M. Formation of the urban patriciate in medieval Strasbourg / / Medieval city. Issue. 4 1978. C 97.

By X - XI centuries. important changes took place in the economic life of Western Europe. The growth of productive forces, associated with the establishment of the feudal mode of production, in the early Middle Ages proceeded most rapidly in handicrafts. It was expressed there in the gradual change and development of technology and, mainly, the skills of crafts and trades, in their expansion, differentiation, and improvement. Handicraft activity required more and more specialization, no longer compatible with the labor of the peasant. At the same time, the sphere of exchange improved: fairs spread, markets developed, coinage and the sphere of circulation of coins expanded, means and means of communication developed. The moment came when the separation of handicraft from agriculture became inevitable: the transformation of handicraft into an independent branch of production, the concentration of handicraft and trade in special centers. Another prerequisite for the separation of handicrafts and trade from agriculture was the progress in the development of the latter. The sowing of grain and industrial crops expanded: horticulture, horticulture, viticulture, and wine-making, butter-making, and milling, closely related to agriculture, developed and improved. Increased the number and improved the breed of livestock. The use of horses brought important improvements in horse-drawn transport and warfare, in large-scale construction and tillage. The increase in agricultural productivity made it possible to exchange part of its products, including those suitable as handicraft raw materials, for finished handicraft products, which relieved the peasant of the need to produce them himself.

not only reflected the social division of labor and the social evolution of the early Middle Ages, but was also their result.

Medieval cities had a significant impact on the feudal society of Western Europe and played an important role in its socio-political, economic and spiritual life. In particular, the emergence of a medieval city was the beginning of a stage of developed feudalism with a new economic structure, represented by small-scale crafts. The city significantly changed the structure of medieval society, giving birth to a new social force - the class of citizens. Within its walls, a special social psychology, culture and ideology was formed, which had a great influence on the social and spiritual life of society. In addition, the development of urban production was one of the factors contributing to the disintegration of feudalism and the emergence of early capitalist relations.

Having arisen on the land of a feudal lord, the city turned out to be completely dependent on its lord. This situation hindered its further development. Thus, starting from the 10th century, a communal movement unfolded in Western Europe. The degree of city freedoms and privileges, the economic development of the city, as well as the political structure of the city community depended on the outcome of this struggle.

The purpose of this work is: to reveal the essence and main forms of the communal movement of the medieval cities of Western Europe.

1) reveal the essence of the main theories of the origin of medieval cities; show the ways of their occurrence, identify the peculiarities of the position of cities in relation to seniors;

2) to show the main forms of the communal movement of medieval cities;

3) identify the main results of the communal movement.

Of the latest studies, the most generalizing is the collection of works by domestic urbanists "The City of the Medieval Civilization of Western Europe". The publication covers the period from the emergence of medieval cities to the end of the 15th century and covers various aspects.

L.A. Kotelnikova (city of Italy), Ya.A. Levitsky (city of England), G.M. Tushina (cities of France), A.L. Rogachevsky (city of Germany), etc.

Chapter I: The emergence of medieval cities. Cities under the rule of seniors

§1. Theories on the origin of medieval cities

Trying to answer the question about the causes and circumstances of the emergence of medieval cities, scientists of the XIX and XX centuries. put forward various theories. A significant part of them is characterized by an institutional-legal approach to the problem. The greatest attention was paid to the origin and development of specific city institutions, city law, and not to the socio-economic foundations of the process. With this approach, it is impossible to explain the root causes of the origin of cities.1

German historian Ritschel at the end of the 19th century. tried to combine the "burg" and "market" theories, seeing in the early cities settlements of merchants around a fortified point - the burg. The Belgian historian A. Pirenne, unlike most of his predecessors, assigned a decisive role in the emergence of cities to the economic factor - intercontinental and interregional transit trade and its carrier - the merchants. According to this "commercial" theory, cities in Western Europe initially arose around merchant trading posts. Pirenne also ignores the role of the separation of craft from agriculture in the emergence of cities, and does not explain the origins, patterns and specifics of the city as a feudal structure. Pirenne's thesis of a purely commercial origin for the city was not accepted by many medievalists.

Serious research has been carried out in domestic medieval studies on the history of cities in almost all countries of Western Europe. But for a long time it focused mainly on the social = economic role of cities, with less attention to their other functions. Recently, the whole variety of social characteristics of the medieval city has been considered. The city is defined as "Not only the most dynamic structure of medieval civilization, but also as an organic component of the entire feudal system"

§2. The emergence of European medieval cities

The concentration of the population in such centers, including feudal lords with their servants and retinue, clergy, representatives of the royal and local administration, created favorable conditions for the sale of their products by artisans. But more often, especially in Northwestern and Central Europe, artisans and merchants settled near large estates, estates, castles and monasteries, the inhabitants of which purchased their goods. They settled at the intersection of important roads, at river crossings and bridges, on the shores of bays, bays, etc., convenient for parking ships, where traditional markets have long operated. Such "market towns", with a significant increase in their population, the presence of favorable conditions for handicraft production and market activity, also turned into cities.1

The distribution of cities across Europe was uneven. There were especially many of them in Northern and Central Italy, in Flanders and Brabant, along the Rhine.

“For all the difference in place, time, specific conditions for the emergence of a particular city, it has always been the result of a social division of labor common to all of Europe. In the socio-economic sphere, it was expressed in the separation of craft from agriculture, the development of commodity production and exchange between different spheres of the economy and different territories; in the political sphere - in the development of statehood structures.

§3. City under the rule of a lord

In the early era, the urban population was still very poorly organized. The city still had a semi-agrarian character. Its inhabitants carried duties of an agrarian nature in favor of the lord. The city had no special city government. It is under the authority of a seigneur or seigneurial clerk, who judged the urban population, exacted various fines and fees from him. At the same time, the city often did not represent a unity even in the sense of seigneurial management. As a feudal property, the lord could bequeath the city by inheritance in the same way as a village. He could divide it among his heirs, could sell or mortgage it in whole or in part.1