Page 264 - Girona, de Carlemany al feudalisme (785-1057). El trànsit de la ciutat antiga a l’època medieval (II)

alta edad media, como la decadencia de las posesiones condales en provecho de las reli-
giosas o la estabilidad de algunos linajes laicos en el gobierno del territorio.
Vegueria y Valle en el condado de Gerona. Continuidad y cambio de las estructuras
territoriales y de su gobierno entre la antigüedad tardía y el siglo XL En gran medida,
las estructuras territoriales intermedias existentes en la época carolingia —la villa y el Valle
o vicaría—, experimentaron crisis y transformaciones en provecho de la parroquia y el
castrum a partir del siglo XI. Se trata de un estudio particularmente interesante porque
hace referencia a un nivel intermedio que nos informa sobre el protagonismo creciente
de la nobleza territorial.

Girona from Charlemagne to feudalism. the transition of an

ancient city to the medieval era (785-1057). (Second part)

If the reader had the opportunity and the patience to read the first volume of this
book, he would have found a text organized into six chapters. The first is a specifically
historical one —a history of the city over three centuries—, while the five following ones
focus on territorial and urban development issues —firstly the suburbs, the valls and the
interior of the city, and tiren moving on to the towns within its sphere of influence. There
is no doubt that this work has helped us to unravel many of the keys to the develop-
ment and the transformation of a city in the Early Middle Ages, between the eighth and
eleventh centuries.
But it is also certain that as we progressed through this study a series of aspects and
concepts were revealed, which were marginalized or limited due to the very nature of the
study. Institutions, lineages and characters, social, economic, and political events, or admi-
nistrative units and structures that appeared only occasionally and tangentially in the first
volume, and always in relation to the general approach of the text, progressively acquired
a greater relevance; it became clear that a more specific development was necessary.
On the other hand, it turned out that the very elaboration of the first volume opened
up new reflections and perspectives on general aspects of the period that were not envi-
saged when we carried out the initial general plan. For example, the study of local admi-
nistrative bodies, such as Celrà and Fornells —once they were integrated into the gene-
ral evolutionary framework of the whole territory—, offered the possibility to go into
more depth on certain questions. In the case of Celrà, there was the evolution of the
administrative and tax regime towards the feudal estates, while in the case of Fornells it
was the formation of castral domains. Likewise, an analysis of the principal religious ins-
titutions, such as the joint episcopal headquarters of Saint Mary's and Saint Felix's, could
be enriched with a more specific study, especially in the second case. Thus its constitu-
tion as a canonical abbey could be clarified with the contributions obtained from some
of the results of the first volume. We could also go into more depth on the conflicte and
changes in the power relationships between the institutional figures that participated in
the government, such as counts and bishops, or on a second rung, the noblemen, abbots
and canons. As for the consequences for the city per se, a knowledge of the territorial
units has made us aware of its administrative boundaries. Similarly, the analysis of the
new structures born out of what became known as the "feudal revolution" of the mid-
eleventh century has allowed for the clarification of those characteristics of new forms
of power that were articulated at that time. Neither can we forget the key years at the
end of the eighth century, when Girona was situated on the border of the Christian and
Moslem worlds, with all that this implied for topographical and geostrategic changes.