CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2025
| Author | Miljan, Sanja |
|---|---|
| Title | Beyond Poverty and Charity: Organization and Activities of the Franciscans of Dalmatia Before the Division of the Order |
| Summary | From the 13th century onwards, mendicant orders signified an important change in the perception of religious orders by urban communities. Opposing previous religious regulations, these orders moved from isolated places into cities, first just outside the city walls, and then inside them. In towns, their location was mainly at the city gates, which affected their overall status and role within urban communities. In this thesis, I examined these processes in relation to the Franciscans of the Province of Dalmatia, which was an area theoretically stretching from Trieste in Italy to Durrës in Albania. Due to insufficient preservation of source material, this research focused only on the friaries located in present-day Dalmatia. Thus, the thesis examined the organization of the friars in Dalmatia and their activities within and outside their Province, whether they were performing their duties within the Order, other ecclesiastical authorities or services serving urban communes or royal families. The thesis aimed to enlighten the position and connections between the Franciscans and various groups or layers of society in urban Dalmatian milieu, and how these connections were being presented or represented. The justification for such an approach was confirmed by the fact that these networks of support were presented in literally all social structures with the support of everyone (from the highest ecclesiastical and regnal milieu to the lowest social strata). The implication of such support is also connected to the nature of the order, thus showing different patterns from previous religious communities of the earlier period. This implication can be regarded also to a broader level, since the analysis was not done for other provinces yet. Furthermore, this dissertation will set grounds for further research of other orders, not only mendicants, in the area of Dalmatia and the Adriatic and the Mediterranean. The thesis is divided into four larger sections, in eleven chapters. The introductory part, after offering a general introduction to the topic, deals with primary sources and historiography. With their main sources scarce and fragmented, the key information about Franciscans can be found in testaments of inhabitants of Dalmatia, or documents attesting to their execution of testaments or other types of records such as notarial instruments. Additional information was extracted from normative and narrative sources, which provided both institutional and ceremonial grounds. How I researched these materials to answer my research questions was elaborated in chapter three. Besides quantitative, qualitative and comparative analyses, majority of research questions were addressed using prosopography, which proved to be the most important methodological approach. Chapter four, “Presence of the Franciscans in Dalmatia, Foundation of the Friaries and the Province,” examines the historiographical debates which troubled modern historians, but not exclusively because some debates are still lasting. Furthermore, I also wanted to reflect, but briefly, on the political events which shaped the 14th-century Dalmatia. This context was imperative for clarifying the conditions which the Franciscans faced during their establishment in cities and the impact which these events had on the Order itself. The topography of certain friaries in Dalmatia was possible to present in the case of the friaries in Zadar, Trogir, Dubrovnik, Krk and Senj, showing some common trends and patterns in terms of their spatial organization outside and inside of city walls. With this sub-chapter ended the introductory part of the thesis. The second part, “Organization of the Franciscans in Dalmatia,” covered a wide array of topics, from organization of life in the friaries, mobility and services and concept of property. Thus, chapter five, “Organization of life in the friaries of the Province,” discusses the structure of friaries in Dalmatia. Due to available sources, the emphasis of the chapter was more on the friaries of Zadar and Dubrovnik, starting from the end of the 13th century to the end of the 14th century. Analysis showed that the individual friars followed the patterns of three-year periods, and when possible, friars were identified according to place of origin, or, when lucky, belonging to certain families more precisely. Chapter six, “Mobility within the Province, offices and services of friars,” examines the wide range of topics, since the friars had many roles within the friaries and in the communal society. The starting point was the mobility of friars within the Province in general, then focusing on various offices and services of friars in more detail. Every office of the Order was connected with certain obligations, which dictated where a certain friar could be located or relocated. Some offices required more mobility than others, as was that of the Minister Provincial or that of a custos. On the other hand, friars were not only holding offices within their Order but were a part of broader ecclesiastical structures. This is especially true for institutions and higher dignitaries – archbishops and bishops of Dalmatian (arch)bishoprics. The appointment of Franciscans to these functions further improved the position and reputation of the Order within the urban community of particular city communes. Some types of friars’ services extended beyond the Province, such as services that the friars provided for the Crown or their missionary work in Bosnian territory. This is a particularly complex issue, both regarding historiography and sources as well. The presented problematics occurred even before the establishment of the Vicariate of Bosnia (1339/1340). It should be emphasized that in Bosnia, the Franciscans came into conflict with the Dominican Order, who had been present there before them, however, the reception of the order of preachers was not so well received. Chapter seven, “The property of the Franciscans in Dalmatia,” questions whether the Franciscans could (and would) have an immovable property, since this was forbidden in their Rule. To address this issue, I compared regulations of urban statutes from various city communes, showing a difference in their approaches to this matter. From this analysis, my impression is that until the beginning of the 15th century, there is no written trace that the friars of Dalmatia had any objections or concerns about having an immovable property, regardless of certain prohibitions in the statutes. In practice, friars even rented out some of their immovables for annual income. However, as was seen with some other research questions, it cannot be excluded that their attitude in fact would change only with the stronger presence of the observant movement in the 15th century, when they will adhere more strongly to the vow of poverty and renunciation of all material possessions. The third section of the thesis, “Relations and Networks of the Franciscans,” covers again wider range of topics regarding the relations of Franciscans in both local urban milieu and their higher reach in the Kingdom of Hungary. Chapter eight, “Living of charity of others: donations and bequests for everyday life and in the service of spiritual economy,” categorized various types of donations and bequests given to friars according to their needs: food and nourishment, clothing and household, pro opere and pro laborerio, as a form of spiritual exchange, liturgical items, and pilgrimage voyages. Chapter nine “From the highest to the lowest echelon of society supporting the Franciscans,” examines the supporters of Franciscans of (and in) Dalmatia from the highest to lower layers of society, as the title indicated. For the royal families of Anjou, and Louis I of Hungary in particular, to his wife Elisabeth Kotromanić of Bosnia, strong Franciscans influence is visible on many levels. For Louis I the Great and his wife Elisabeth the inclination was most visible through the spread of the cult of St Louis of Toulouse in Dalmatia. This was not solely a pious manifestation, but like many more, had a political component as well. The peak was the choice of the place where the Treaty of Zadar will be signed, meaning precisely in the friary in the sacristy of the church of St Francis, at the altar dedicated to St Louis. Royal agenda also included the court in Hungary. Individuals from Dalmatian prominent families had their places in the structure of the royal court, as their loyal royal knights. In Dalmatia, the agency of King Louis’ royal knights from Zadar and Trogir showed that they supported not only the Dalmatian friars, but Bosnian ones as well. Furthermore, the two aristocratic families, the counts of Bribir (the Šubići) and the counts of Krk, also stand out for their preferences towards the Franciscans, as do several other prominent families from Dalmatia too. This agency was also manifesting in the cases of procurators of friars who were laymen and usually members of Dalmatian patriciate. Medieval society was not only practical. It was also a world of rituals, gestures and solemn activities. To provide an overview of participation of friars in solemn activities involving almost the entire city community, it was necessary to include narrative sources, which vividly pictured funerals and various other processions. Chapter ten, “Outreach and relations of Franciscan outside of the Province of Dalmatia,” examines the Order’s educational aspects, namely how the community supported the friars’ departure to various study centers, mainly in Italy, where they eventually served and what were the career paths of these well-educated friars. The fourth and last section concludes and rounds the topic of organization and activities of the Franciscans of Dalmatia. While one cannot neglect the fact that the order has been in the scope of Croatian historiography, the systematic research of my thesis, focusing especially on the Franciscan Province of Dalmatia, will, I believe, lay grounds for further research. In general, it shed more light on how the friars of this (one) Province functioned in practice. Thus, it can be taken as a basis for comparative analysis of other provinces of the Mediterranean. But before that, it showed how the influence of friars affected various layers of the local society and vice versa. Thus, as was said, the thesis will set a starting point for future research, that will aim at comparing the Franciscans of the Province of Dalmatia with those who served in other Order’s Provinces or broadening the chronological scope of the topic into the 15th century, with which also incorporating the first stages of the observant movement, which only started to grow roots during the period covered by my dissertation. |
| Supervisor | Klaniczay, Gábor |
| Department | Historical Studies PhD |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2025/miljan_sanja.pdf |
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