Introduction

Alongside the judicial settlements we discussed in the previous seminar, other forms of resolutions were widespread in early modern Europe. These include mediation, reconciliation, feuding, and dueling. We will examine these processes in this seminar.

Seminar Questions

How were mediation and reconciliation used in early modern Europe?

What were the forms and nature of feuds and duels in early modern Europe?

Required Reading

Each student should read Stephen Cummins and Laura Kounine, eds, Cultures of Conflict Resolution in Early Modern Europe (Farnham, 2015), IntroductionLink opens in a new window AND two articles or book chapters from the items below:

Boes, Maria R., Crime and Punishment in Early Modern Germany: courts and adjudicatory practices in Frankfurt am Main, 1562-1696Link opens in a new window (Farnham, 2013)

Brown, Keith M., Bloodfeud in Scotland 1573-1625: Violence, Justice and Politics in an Early Modern Society (Edinburgh, 2003)

Carroll, Stuart, 'Revenge and Reconciliation in Early Modern ItalyLink opens in a new window', Past & Present 233/1 (2016),101–142.

Cronin, John Jeremiah, 'Honour, Duelling and Royal Power in Exile : a case-study of the banished Caroline Stuart Court, c.1649-c.1660Link opens in a new window', Crime, History and Societies 17/2 (2013), 47-69.

Hughes, Steven C., 'Soldiers and Gentlemen: The Rise of the Duel in Renaissance ItalyLink opens in a new window', Journal of Medieval Military History 5 (2007), 99–152.

Kiernan, V.G., The Duel in European History: Honour and the Reign of AristocracyLink opens in a new window (Oxford, 1988)

King, Emily L., Civil Vengeance : Literature, Culture, and Early Modern RevengeLink opens in a new window (Cornell, 2019)

Mantecon, Tomas A., 'Justice and the Confines of the Law in Early Modern Spain', in Griet Vermeesch, Manon van der Heijden, and Jaco Zuijderduijn, eds, The Uses of Justice in Global Perspective, 1600-1900Link opens in a new window (London, 2019), pp. 165-182.

Muir, Edward, Mad Blood Stirring: Vendetta in Renaissance ItalyLink opens in a new window (Baltimore, 1998), Chapters Five and Six.

Peltonen, Markku, The Duel in Early Modern England: Civility, Politeness and HonourLink opens in a new window (Cambridge, 2003)

Schwerhoff, Gerd, 'Early Modern Violence and the Honour Code : From Social Integration to Social Distinction?Link opens in a new window', Crime, History and Societies 17/2 (2013), 27-46.

Taylor, Scott K., Honor and Violence in Golden Age SpainLink opens in a new window (New Haven, 2008)

Weinstein, Donald, The Captain’s Concubine: Love, Honor, and Violence in Renaissance TuscanyLink opens in a new window (Baltimore, 2000)

Further Reading

Anglo, Sydney, The Martial Arts of Renaissance Europe (New Haven, 2000)

Astarita, Tommaso, Village Justice: Community, Family, and Popular Culture in Early Modern Italy (Baltimore, 1999)

Brown, Keith, M., Bloodfeud in Scotland 1573-1625: Violence, Justice and Politics in an Early Modern SocietyLink opens in a new window (Edinburgh, 1986)

Frevert, Ute, ‘The Taming of the Noble Ruffian: Male Violence and Dueling in Early Modern and Modern Germany’, in Pieter Spierenburg, ed., Men and Violence: Gender, Honor, and Rituals in Modern Europe and AmericaLink opens in a new window (Columbus, OH, 1998), pp. 37-63.

Manning, Roger B., Swordsmen: the Martial Ethos in the Three KingdomsLink opens in a new window (New York, 2003)

Spierenburg, Pieter, ‘Knife Fighting and Popular Codes of Honor in Early Modern Amsterdam’, in Pieter Spierenburg, ed., Men and Violence: Gender, Honor, and Rituals in Modern Europe and AmericaLink opens in a new window (Columbus, OH, 1998), pp. 103-27.