Historical Studies on the Feud in the Latter Middle Ages of Germany

Research Project

Project/Area Number	11620008
Research Category	Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
Allocation Type	Single-year Grants
Section	一般
Research Field	Fundamental law
Research Institution	Kumamoto University
Principal Investigator	WAKASONE Kenji Kumamoto University, Faculty of Law, Professor, 法学部, 教授 (40039970)
Project Period (FY)	1999 – 2000
Project Status	Completed (Fiscal Year 2000)
Budget Amount *help	¥2,800,000 (Direct Cost: ¥2,800,000) Fiscal Year 2000: ¥1,400,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,400,000) Fiscal Year 1999: ¥1,400,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,400,000)
Keywords	feud / seizure / vengeance / feudal law / territorial states / cities / princes / honor and status / シュトラースブルク / リューベック / 傭兵 / 領邦君主 / 楽市・楽座 / 都市同盟 / 血讐 / 復讐断念誓約 / 和解契約 / 神の平和運動 / 騎士社会 / 中世都市 / 公共性
Research Abstract	On the feuds between knight and citizen in the Middle Ages of Germany worked the violence of their emotions ; we must give attention to the mentality of medieval peoples who were highly sensible to status and honor. The appearance of the feuds was, on the other hand, surrounded with various factors ; this turns necessarily historians from view of isolation to view of the interrelation of knight and citizen. Studies on the peace and war of Medieval Japan are effective in inquiring into the European feuds : specially a point of view of monopolization of the right to the feud by the superior authorities. On the other side, we will have an eye not only upon similarities, but also differences between Europa and Japan. From the outside of cities the knight has strived with the citizen for taking part in the wealth which was accumulated in the cities of the Latter Meddle Ages ; the feuds were a lawful way for that purpose, in other words : a title, which has justified the use of violence by knights against citizens. On the other hand, we can hardly read from documents of the Latter Meddle Ages grounds and reasons that seem to have given the knight the title in favor of war ; this might demonstrate that he himself has held his feuds in opposition to the citizen to be doutful or lawless. A revolution of law and society comes soon : Consolidation of the power of the princes in their territories.