Transforming the State

Marta VanLandingham, Ph.D. (1997) at the UCLA, is Assistant Professor of History at Purdue University. In addition to her work on the high-medieval royal court, she has published articles on canon law and on queenship, and is also exploring the social and cultural history of besieged communities.

Scholars of history and political science who are interested in the development of the administrative state and its legal and fiscal institutions, as well as in the social history of the medieval court.

'This is a courageous and helpful book. … All [this] is well done, with energy and clarity. But the strength of the book lies in its control of a printed documentation, primary and secondary, that is fundamental to the history of power in the medieval Crown of Aragon after about 1250.'
Thomas N. Bisson, Speculum, 2004.

List of Illustrations
Map: The realms of Aragon in the High Middle Ages
Acknowledgements
Genealogical table: The Arago-Catalan dynasty, thirteenth and fourteenth centuries

Introduction

Part One: The Chancery: The King’s Memory, Voice, Justice, and Conscience
1: The Chancellor: Office and Official
2: The Chancery: Personnel, Procedure, Innovation
3: The King’s Law: Royal Justice and Royal Administration
4: The Royal Chapel: Religious Regulations and the Ordering of the State

Part Two: The Treasury: The King’s Purse
5: Royal Finances and Financial Administration before 1283
6: The Creation of Central Financial Offices

Part Three: The Majordomo and the Household: The King’s Body
7: The High Offices and Officials of the Household
8: The Needs of King and Court: Table, Lodging, Entertainment

Conclusion

Appendices: Palatine Ordinances

Bibliography

Index