Diplomatics (Medieval)

This article offers a study about how local societies are presented in the charters from the former archive of the monastery of Oseira produced before and after its foundation (1025-1199). Starting from the analysis of Oseira’s diplomatic and graphic traditions alongside the historical interpretation of its written sources, this study confirms the existence of a monastic filter that pervades those charters in which the monastic community is seen intervening directly. Moreover, it is highlighted how this filter operates even in the various aspects that conform the process of documentary production (from the materiality of the charters to the composition of their contents and their diplomatic structure). Likewise, various case studies are provided to highlight how the information about local societies is relegated once the interests of the monastic institution are established. The corpus selected for this study, which includes both pre- and post-foundation documents, confirms that the aforementioned filter is found mainly, though by no means exclusively, in the charters produced after Oseira’s foundation.

This article offers a study about how local societies are presented in the charters from the former archive of the monastery of Oseira produced before and after its foundation (1025-1199). Starting from the analysis of Oseira’s diplomatic and graphic traditions alongside the historical interpretation of its written sources, this study confirms the existence of a monastic filter that pervades those charters in which the monastic community is seen intervening directly. Moreover, it is highlighted how this filter operates even in the various aspects that conform the process of documentary production (from the materiality of the charters to the composition of their contents and their diplomatic structure). Likewise, various case studies are provided to highlight how the information about local societies is relegated once the interests of the monastic institution are established. The corpus selected for this study, which includes both pre- and post-foundation documents, confirms that the aforementioned filter is found mainly, though by no means exclusively, in the charters produced after Oseira’s foundation.

When and where was a charter written? Whether the scribe prepared it before, during, or after a transaction, on the spot or elsewhere, conditions its standing as historical evidence. They are basic questions for understanding how the written record relates to the communities whose actions it reveals. This article seeks answers in the corpus from the kingdoms of Asturias-León and Navarra down to 1031. Attention to the writing and content of the documents points to a variety of scenarios, the most common being: for the scribe to attend the transaction with a prepared template to be integrated into the execution of the transaction, or for the scribe to take notes at the transaction on the essential details to form the basis for later drafting its record. Both scenarios presume the real presence of the scribe as well as the reading aloud of the final text to participants, which together functioned as controls on the written word to ensure its integration into society.

A magyar írásbeliség kialakulásának az idejéből, a 11. századból mindössze négy eredetiben fennmaradt hiteles oklevelet ismerünk. Ez a kedvezőtlen forrásadottság teszi indokolttá tehát, hogy a korszak nem hiteles, illetve nem eredeti, azaz bizonytalan kronológiai státuszú okleveleinek a nyelvi anyagára is ráirányítsuk a figyelmünket. Ezek az oklevelek azonban a hiteles oklevelekre kidolgozott módszerek segítségével nem foghatók eredményesen vallatóra. Tanulmányomban a bizonytalan kronológiai státuszú oklevelek vizsgálatát segítő speciális módszertani elveket mutatom be, és ezek alapján teszek megállapításokat Szent István négy hamis (a Bakonybéli, a Pécsváradi és a két Zalavári) oklevelének nyelvtörtneti forrásértékével kapcsolatban.

I registri di imbreviature tardo medievali conservati presso l’Archivio di Stato di Piacenza contengono un grande numero di raffigurazioni di carattere araldico, di solito mescolate a prove di penna di ogni genere e prive di un qualsiasi carattere programmatico. Si tratta tanto di stemmi isolati o riuniti in serie più nutrite, talvolta accompagnati da ornamenti esterni (cimieri, tenenti, lambrecchini), quanto di più semplici riproduzioni delle figure principali di insegne celeberrime come quella viscontea. In un contesto come quello italiano in cui le attestazioni araldiche tardomedievali restano relativamente poco numerose e, soprattutto, poco note per l’assenza di lavori sistematici d’inventario, i disegni dei notai piacentini rappresentano uno strumento prezioso per la conoscenza degli stemmi al tempo impiegati nella città emiliana, per riflettere sulla circolazione del sapere araldico nella società medievale, per indagare il ruolo giocato dagli uomini di legge nella sua conservazione, trasmissione e utilizzo.

The late-medieval registers of imbreviature kept at the State Archives of Piacenza contain many heraldic drawings, usually mixed with pen proofs of various kinds and devoid of any programmatic character. These are both isolated coats of arms or assembled in series, sometimes accompanied by external ornaments (crests, holdings, mantlings), as well as simpler reproductions of the main figures of famous insignia such as the Visconti one. In the Italian context, where late-medieval heraldic attestations are relatively sporadic and, above all, little known due to the absence of systematic inventory works, the drawings of the notaries of Piacenza represent a precious tool for knowledge of the coats of arms used in the Emilian city in the late Middle Ages, to reflect on the circulation of heraldic knowledge in medieval society, to investigate the role of lawmen in preservation, perpetuation and use of coats of arms.

This thesis examines the career of Hubert Hall (1857–1944). Hall began work at the Public Record Office in 1879, ending his career there as an Assistant Keeper in 1921. At the same time, and until 1939, he was heavily involved with many organizations and institutions, most notably the Royal Historical Society, the London School of Economics and the Royal Commission on Public Records. His numerous activities as a 'historical worker' were aimed at the 'promotion of historical enterprise(s)'. Before 1900 his writing, on historical topics, and his editorial work were carried out primarily independently. After that date much of his published work derived from his teaching work (most successfully from seminar-based collaborations); this included works which addressed archival science and archival management. The shift in the type of work produced can be attributed to the furore, orchestrated by John Horace Round, surrounding his edition of The Red Book of the Exchequer, a ...

The article concerns four charters intended for Brauweiler Abbey: one issued in the name of Queen Richeza, dated as 1054, one issued by Archbishop Egilbert of Trier, from 1088, and two by Hermann III, the archbishop of Cologne, from 1090 and 1099. The authenticity of all four sources has been questioned; recently, however, the majority of scholars have accepted the opinion of Erich Wisplinghoff, editor of the Brauweiler charters, who claims that the three archbishops’ charters are authentic
while the one issued by Queen Richeza may be a copy. Although Wisplinghoff’s argumentation is convincing, the author of this article poses a number of questions. The first is linked with the fact that none of the documents is mentioned in the narrative sources written in Brauweiler during the last quarter of the eleventh century and the first quarter of the twelfth century: the so-called Fundatio monasterii brunwilarensis and Vita Wolfhelmi, although both mention a dispute about the Klotten estate, resolved by the charter issued by Hermann (1090). In addition, an observation made by Wisplinghoff, namely, that the archbishops’ documents contain different formulas than those in acts issued by the prelates because they were probably produced by the chancery of the recipient, i.e. Brauweiler Abbey, should make us suspicious about their authenticity. The list of the testators of Egilbert’s charter is also somewhat untypical. Finally, all the documents are sealed with counterfeit seals, which would be difficult to explain in the case of authentic charters. The forged seal on Richeza’s document renders Wisplinghoff’s concept that the charter was produced as a copy implausible. The seal was used to attest to the document’s professed authenticity, and therefore the charter issued by Richeza should be seen simply as a forgery.

This article aims to study the transmission of names and coats of arms of the Portuguese curial aristocracy at the end of the Middle Ages. Names and coats of arms played a key role as a symbolic discourse encompassing several important elements in defining hierarchies within the aristocracy. The system was mainly, but not exclusively, structured around the transmission of paternal names and coats of arms, which is perfectly consistent with the male predominance in this society. Nevertheless, a substantial number of transmissions pass through the maternal side or other ascendants, thus forming a structural part of the system. A division is made in the aristocratic kinship: the elders, as successors, use the names and coats of arms of the father, while the perimeter formed by the younger men and women is the preferential space for circulating the