This article examines the transformation of local power structures in central-northern Italy during the 11th and 12th centuries, focusing on the dual role of violence as both a practical tool and a symbolic language of authority. It highlights how violence became central to the legit-imation and self-representation of rural elites, marking a shift to more militarized forms of dominance. Beyond analyzing these established dynamics, the article opens new research av-enues: it calls for a systematic comparison of how different political actors – rural lords, urban elites, and imperial authorities – used and represented violence, suggesting that their self-im-ages and legitimizing discourses diverged in nuanced ways. Furthermore, the article proposes investigating the underexplored topic of sexual violence as a structural element of lordly power, emphasizing the need to understand its representation, social memory, and the mechanisms of its omission from our sources. These new directions aim to deepen our comprehension of the interplay between violence, power, and collective memory in medieval society.
University of Turin, Italy - ORCID: 0000-0003-0983-6325
Chapter Title
Violence between legitimation and the symbolic dimension of power (central-northern Italy, 11th 12th centuries)
Authors
Alessio Fiore
Language
English
DOI
10.36253/979-12-215-1076-8.12
Peer Reviewed
Publication Year
2026
Copyright Information
© 2026 Author(s)
Content License
Metadata License
Book Title
In Search of the High Middle Ages. Change and Continuity in 11th–12th-century Italy
Editors
Alberto Cotza, Giuseppe Petralia
Peer Reviewed
Number of Pages
560
Publication Year
2026
Copyright Information
© 2026 Author(s)
Content License
Metadata License
Publisher Name
Firenze University Press
DOI
10.36253/979-12-215-1076-8
ISBN Print
979-12-215-1075-1
eISBN (pdf)
979-12-215-1076-8
eISBN (xml)
979-12-215-1078-2
Series Title
Reti Medievali E-Book
Series ISSN
2704-6362
Series E-ISSN
2704-6079