Home Region:  Southern Europe (Europe)

Republic of St Peter I

D G SC WF HS PT EQ 2020  it_st_peter_rep_1 / ItStPet

Preceding:
568 CE 751 CE Exarchate of Ravenna (it_ravenna_exarchate)    [vassalage]

Succeeding:
No Polity found. Add one here.

The Papal State originated in the Patrimony of St. Peter, which initially included over four hundred estates, many of them in Sicily. These came from donations from wealthy Christians, whose philanthropy accelerated after Emperor Constantine. [1] The eighth century popes called their state "The Republic of St. Peter". The popular name "Papal States" was only used from the late middle ages. [2]
The Republic of St Peter (711-904 CE) was under nominal Byzantine suzerainty until 781 CE when the capital of the Byzantine exarchate was at Ravenna [3] which was connected to Rome by the thin strip of Byzantine territory running across the Appennines and through Perugia. The Pope was elected by citizens and the army - usually based on the choice of the clergy. Representatives would the certify the choice to the Exarch in Ravenna for imperial approval. The Exarch could make the choice himself in case of disagreement. [4]
In 781 CE Charlemagne asserted Frankish suzerainty over the region. After this time, the years of the Byzantine Emperor’s reign were no longer used for dating Papal documents or on the minting of imperial coins in the mint of Rome. [5] During the ninth century the Papacy was released from Carolingian influence as the Frankish empire began to break up. [6]
This also meant that between the end of the ninth century and the 960s, the papacy had no powerful protectors outside Italy. Political power in Rome and Lazio lay in the hands of elite families, such as the Theophylacti and other powerful Roman baronial families. [7]
Papal governmental administration was small-scale but effective and organized into departments, with separate heads for the chancery and archives. [3] Notaries were career bureaucrats with the primicerius notariorum the head of college of notaries. [8] The governance of the wider mountainous region was characterised by small countships and marquisates centered upon a fortified rocca.
The population of the polity is hard to estimate but it is likely the city of Rome lost half its population between 800 CE and 900 CE when it held a mere 40,000 people.

[1]: (Brown 2003, 206) Brown, Peter. 2003. The Rise of Western Christendom. Triumph and Diversity, 200-1000. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, Inc.

[2]: (Noble 2011, xxi) T F X Noble. 2011. The Republic of St. Peter: The Birth of the Papal State, 680-825, University of Pennsylvania Press.

[3]: (Partner 1972, 9) P Partner. 1972. The Lands of St. Peter: The Papal State in the Middle Ages and the Early Renaissance, University of California Press

[4]: (Trevor, 1869, 113) G Trevor. 1869. Rome and Its Papal Rulers, A History of Eighteen Centuries, The Religious Tract Society, London [1]

[5]: (Grierson and Blackburn 2007, 259)

[6]: (Barraclough 1968, 55) Geoffrey Barraclough. 1968. The Medieval Papacy Norwich: Harcourt, Brace & World, 1968.

[7]: (Stearns 2001 173) P Stearns. 2001. The Encyclopedia of World History. 6th Edition. James Clarke & Co Ltd. Cambridge.

[8]: (Richards 1979, 290-292) J Richards. 1979. The Popes and the Papacy in the Early Middle Ages, 476-752, Routledge & Kegan Paul

General Variables
Identity and Location
Utm Zone:
33 T  
Original Name:
Republic of St Peter I  
Capital:
Rome  
Alternative Name:
Ecclesiastical States  
Roman States  
Papal States  
Pontifical States  
States of the Church  
territorium Sancti Petri  
Temporal Bounds
Peak Years:
[850 CE ➜ 900 CE]  
Duration:
[711 CE ➜ 904 CE]  
Political and Cultural Relations
Suprapolity Relations:
nominal allegiance to [---]  
Supracultural Entity:
Latin Christendom  
Succeeding Entity:
Rome - Republic of St Peter II  
Scale of Supracultural Interaction:
17,000,000 km2  
Relationship to Preceding Entity:
vassalage  
Preceding Entity:
Preceding:   Exarchate of Ravenna (it_ravenna_exarchate)    [vassalage]  
Degree of Centralization:
nominal  
Language
Linguistic Family:
Indo-European  
Language:
Latin  
Religion
Religion Genus:
Christianity  
Religion Family:
Catholic  
Religion:
Roman Catholic  
Alternate Religion:
NO_VALUE_ON_WIKI  
Social Complexity Variables
Social Scale
Population of the Largest Settlement:
[70,000 to 100,000] people 800 CE
40,000 people 900 CE
Polity Territory:
50,000 km2  
Polity Population:
[440,000 to 1,333,000] people 800 CE
[335,000 to 1,500,000] people 900 CE
Hierarchical Complexity
Settlement Hierarchy:
5  
Religious Level:
5  
Military Level:
5  
Administrative Level:
6  
Professions
Professional Soldier:
absent  
Professional Priesthood:
present  
Professional Military Officer:
inferred absent  
Bureaucracy Characteristics
Specialized Government Building:
present  
Full Time Bureaucrat:
present  
Examination System:
absent  
Law
Professional Lawyer:
present  
Judge:
present  
Formal Legal Code:
present  
Court:
inferred present  
Specialized Buildings: polity owned
Market:
present  
Irrigation System:
present  
Food Storage Site:
present  
Drinking Water Supply System:
present  
Transport Infrastructure
Road:
present  
Port:
present  
Canal:
unknown  
Bridge:
present  
Special-purpose Sites
Mines or Quarry:
present  
Information / Writing System
Written Record:
present  
Script:
present  
Phonetic Alphabetic Writing:
present  
Nonwritten Record:
present  
Non Phonetic Writing:
absent  
Information / Kinds of Written Documents
Scientific Literature:
inferred present  
Sacred Text:
present  
Religious Literature:
present  
Practical Literature:
present  
Philosophy:
inferred present  
Lists Tables and Classification:
present  
History:
inferred present  
Fiction:
inferred present  
Calendar:
present  
Information / Money
Token:
inferred absent  
Paper Currency:
absent  
Indigenous Coin:
present  
Foreign Coin:
inferred present  
Article:
present  
Information / Postal System
Postal Station:
absent  
General Postal Service:
absent  
Courier:
present  
Information / Measurement System
Warfare Variables (Military Technologies)
Fortifications
  Wooden Palisade:
inferred present  
  Stone Walls Non Mortared:
present  
  Stone Walls Mortared:
present  
  Settlements in a Defensive Position:
present  
  Modern Fortification:
absent  
  Moat:
present  
  Fortified Camp:
present  
  Earth Rampart:
inferred present  
  Ditch:
inferred present  
  Complex Fortification:
unknown  
Military use of Metals
  Steel:
present  
  Iron:
present  
  Copper:
unknown  
  Bronze:
present  
Projectiles
  Tension Siege Engine:
unknown  
  Sling Siege Engine:
absent  
  Sling:
unknown  
  Self Bow:
present  
  Javelin:
unknown  
  Handheld Firearm:
absent  
  Gunpowder Siege Artillery:
absent  
  Crossbow:
unknown  
  Composite Bow:
present  
  Atlatl:
unknown  
Handheld weapons
  War Club:
absent  
  Sword:
inferred present  
  Spear:
inferred present  
  Polearm:
absent  
  Dagger:
inferred present  
  Battle Axe:
absent  
Animals used in warfare
  Horse:
present  
  Elephant:
absent  
  Donkey:
unknown  
  Dog:
unknown  
  Camel:
absent  
Armor
  Wood Bark Etc:
present  
  Shield:
present  
  Scaled Armor:
present  
  Plate Armor:
unknown  
  Limb Protection:
present  
  Leather Cloth:
present  
  Laminar Armor:
unknown  
  Helmet:
present  
  Chainmail:
present  
  Breastplate:
unknown  
Naval technology
  Specialized Military Vessel:
present  
  Small Vessels Canoes Etc:
absent  
  Merchant Ships Pressed Into Service:
absent  
Religion Tolerance Nothing coded yet.
Human Sacrifice Nothing coded yet.
Crisis Consequences Nothing coded yet.
Power Transitions Nothing coded yet.

NGA Settlements:

Year Range Republic of St Peter I (it_st_peter_rep_1) was in:
 (711 CE 903 CE)   Latium
Home NGA: Latium

General Variables
Identity and Location

Original Name:
Republic of St Peter I

"The term ’Papal State’ is a modern one, hardly used by contemporaries to refer to the papal patrimony in the long period with which this book is concerned." [1] The term "Papal States" was not adopted until around 1200. [2] "It is still a matter of contention at what period the term ’papal states’ may be used to describe those areas where the pope was traditionally overlord, but certainly by the beginning of the thirteenth century popes were great feudatories in central Italy." [3] Eighth century popes called their state "The Republic of St. Peter". Terms such as "Papal States" are anachronistic when applied to the eighth and ninth centuries. Terms such as this only appear in late middle ages. [4]

[1]: (Partner 1972, xii) Peter Partner. 1972. The Lands of St Peter. The Papal State In The Middle Ages And The Early Renaissance. University of California Press. Berkeley.

[2]: Vauchez, 356

[3]: (Rist 2009) Rebecca Rist. 2009. The Papacy and Crusading In Europe, 1198-1245. Continuum. London.

[4]: (Noble 2011, xxi) T F X Noble. 2011. The Republic of St. Peter: The Birth of the Papal State, 680-825, University of Pennsylvania Press.


The Republic of St Peter (711-904 CE) was under nominal Byzantine suzerainty until 781 CE when the capital of the Byzantine exarchate was at Ravenna. [1] Ravenna was connected to Rome by the thin strip of Byzantine territory running across the Appennines and through Perugia. However, the capital of the Republic of St Peter was Rome.

[1]: (Partner 1972, 9


Alternative Name:
Ecclesiastical States

"The term ’Papal State’ is a modern one, hardly used by contemporaries to refer to the papal patrimony in the long period with which this book is concerned." [1] The term "Papal States" was not adopted until around 1200. [2] "It is still a matter of contention at what period the term ’papal states’ may be used to describe those areas where the pope was traditionally overlord, but certainly by the beginning of the thirteenth century popes were great feudatories in central Italy." [3] Eighth century popes called their state "The Republic of St. Peter". Terms such as "Papal States" are anachronistic when applied to the eighth and ninth centuries. Terms such as this only appear in late middle ages. [4]

[1]: (Partner 1972, xii) Peter Partner. 1972. The Lands of St Peter. The Papal State In The Middle Ages And The Early Renaissance. University of California Press. Berkeley.

[2]: Vauchez, 356

[3]: (Rist 2009) Rebecca Rist. 2009. The Papacy and Crusading In Europe, 1198-1245. Continuum. London.

[4]: (Noble 2011, xxi) T F X Noble. 2011. The Republic of St. Peter: The Birth of the Papal State, 680-825, University of Pennsylvania Press.

Alternative Name:
Roman States

"The term ’Papal State’ is a modern one, hardly used by contemporaries to refer to the papal patrimony in the long period with which this book is concerned." [1] The term "Papal States" was not adopted until around 1200. [2] "It is still a matter of contention at what period the term ’papal states’ may be used to describe those areas where the pope was traditionally overlord, but certainly by the beginning of the thirteenth century popes were great feudatories in central Italy." [3] Eighth century popes called their state "The Republic of St. Peter". Terms such as "Papal States" are anachronistic when applied to the eighth and ninth centuries. Terms such as this only appear in late middle ages. [4]

[1]: (Partner 1972, xii) Peter Partner. 1972. The Lands of St Peter. The Papal State In The Middle Ages And The Early Renaissance. University of California Press. Berkeley.

[2]: Vauchez, 356

[3]: (Rist 2009) Rebecca Rist. 2009. The Papacy and Crusading In Europe, 1198-1245. Continuum. London.

[4]: (Noble 2011, xxi) T F X Noble. 2011. The Republic of St. Peter: The Birth of the Papal State, 680-825, University of Pennsylvania Press.

Alternative Name:
Papal States

"The term ’Papal State’ is a modern one, hardly used by contemporaries to refer to the papal patrimony in the long period with which this book is concerned." [1] The term "Papal States" was not adopted until around 1200. [2] "It is still a matter of contention at what period the term ’papal states’ may be used to describe those areas where the pope was traditionally overlord, but certainly by the beginning of the thirteenth century popes were great feudatories in central Italy." [3] Eighth century popes called their state "The Republic of St. Peter". Terms such as "Papal States" are anachronistic when applied to the eighth and ninth centuries. Terms such as this only appear in late middle ages. [4]

[1]: (Partner 1972, xii) Peter Partner. 1972. The Lands of St Peter. The Papal State In The Middle Ages And The Early Renaissance. University of California Press. Berkeley.

[2]: Vauchez, 356

[3]: (Rist 2009) Rebecca Rist. 2009. The Papacy and Crusading In Europe, 1198-1245. Continuum. London.

[4]: (Noble 2011, xxi) T F X Noble. 2011. The Republic of St. Peter: The Birth of the Papal State, 680-825, University of Pennsylvania Press.

Alternative Name:
Pontifical States

"The term ’Papal State’ is a modern one, hardly used by contemporaries to refer to the papal patrimony in the long period with which this book is concerned." [1] The term "Papal States" was not adopted until around 1200. [2] "It is still a matter of contention at what period the term ’papal states’ may be used to describe those areas where the pope was traditionally overlord, but certainly by the beginning of the thirteenth century popes were great feudatories in central Italy." [3] Eighth century popes called their state "The Republic of St. Peter". Terms such as "Papal States" are anachronistic when applied to the eighth and ninth centuries. Terms such as this only appear in late middle ages. [4]

[1]: (Partner 1972, xii) Peter Partner. 1972. The Lands of St Peter. The Papal State In The Middle Ages And The Early Renaissance. University of California Press. Berkeley.

[2]: Vauchez, 356

[3]: (Rist 2009) Rebecca Rist. 2009. The Papacy and Crusading In Europe, 1198-1245. Continuum. London.

[4]: (Noble 2011, xxi) T F X Noble. 2011. The Republic of St. Peter: The Birth of the Papal State, 680-825, University of Pennsylvania Press.

Alternative Name:
States of the Church

"The term ’Papal State’ is a modern one, hardly used by contemporaries to refer to the papal patrimony in the long period with which this book is concerned." [1] The term "Papal States" was not adopted until around 1200. [2] "It is still a matter of contention at what period the term ’papal states’ may be used to describe those areas where the pope was traditionally overlord, but certainly by the beginning of the thirteenth century popes were great feudatories in central Italy." [3] Eighth century popes called their state "The Republic of St. Peter". Terms such as "Papal States" are anachronistic when applied to the eighth and ninth centuries. Terms such as this only appear in late middle ages. [4]

[1]: (Partner 1972, xii) Peter Partner. 1972. The Lands of St Peter. The Papal State In The Middle Ages And The Early Renaissance. University of California Press. Berkeley.

[2]: Vauchez, 356

[3]: (Rist 2009) Rebecca Rist. 2009. The Papacy and Crusading In Europe, 1198-1245. Continuum. London.

[4]: (Noble 2011, xxi) T F X Noble. 2011. The Republic of St. Peter: The Birth of the Papal State, 680-825, University of Pennsylvania Press.

Alternative Name:
territorium Sancti Petri

"The term ’Papal State’ is a modern one, hardly used by contemporaries to refer to the papal patrimony in the long period with which this book is concerned." [1] The term "Papal States" was not adopted until around 1200. [2] "It is still a matter of contention at what period the term ’papal states’ may be used to describe those areas where the pope was traditionally overlord, but certainly by the beginning of the thirteenth century popes were great feudatories in central Italy." [3] Eighth century popes called their state "The Republic of St. Peter". Terms such as "Papal States" are anachronistic when applied to the eighth and ninth centuries. Terms such as this only appear in late middle ages. [4]

[1]: (Partner 1972, xii) Peter Partner. 1972. The Lands of St Peter. The Papal State In The Middle Ages And The Early Renaissance. University of California Press. Berkeley.

[2]: Vauchez, 356

[3]: (Rist 2009) Rebecca Rist. 2009. The Papacy and Crusading In Europe, 1198-1245. Continuum. London.

[4]: (Noble 2011, xxi) T F X Noble. 2011. The Republic of St. Peter: The Birth of the Papal State, 680-825, University of Pennsylvania Press.


Temporal Bounds
Peak Years:
[850 CE ➜ 900 CE]

Under nominal Byzantine suzerainty until 781 CE. In the early eighth century Charlemagne (reign 800-814 CE) added three cities to the holdings of the Papal State (Imola, Bologna, Ferrara; the details of which are given in the Vita Hadriani of the Liber Pontificalis). [1] However, the late eighth and early ninth centuries was the highpoint politically and in terms of construction and the economy. [2] The papacy lost power and prestige during the ninth century, despite its gradual emancipation from Carolingian domination as the Frankish empire began to break up. [3] Between the end of the ninth century and the 960s, the papacy had no powerful protectors outside Italy. Political power in Rome and Lazio lay in the hands of the Theophylacti and other powerful Roman baronial families. [4]

[1]: (Woods 1921, 54)

[2]: Partner, 53

[3]: Barraclough, 55

[4]: (Stearns 2001 173) Wickham (2015) is now the definitive account of Rome and its territory from 900-1150


Duration:
[711 CE ➜ 904 CE]

There is no clear beginning or end to this polity. There are, however, major turning points in coherence of the polity and its self-governance. See general description below.


Political and Cultural Relations
Suprapolity Relations:
nominal allegiance to [---]

During the first half of the eighth century, Rome was technically a Byzantine Exarchate, but in practice the area was autonomous, and increasingly left to its own devices for defence. [1] The Byzantines appeared to abandon Liguria, the Lazial and Tuscan Maremma in the 640s CE which left Rome on the extreme periphery of Byzantine Italy. [2] Formal recognition of nominal Byzantine authority persisted until 781 CE, when Charlemagne asserted Frankish suzerainty over the region. After this time, the years of the Byzantine Emperor’s reign were no longer used for dating Papal documents or on the minting of imperial coins in the mint of Rome. [3]

[1]: (Noble et al. 2008, 229)

[2]: Marazzi, 386

[3]: (Grierson and Blackburn 2007, 259)


Supracultural Entity:
Latin Christendom

Area of Latin Christendom needs to be defined - do we include the Eastern Orthodox world, even though this distinction did not exist then, or the maximum reach of Christianity in Latin language?


Succeeding Entity:
Rome - Republic of St Peter II

* There was no major break between this polity and the next.


Scale of Supracultural Interaction:
17,000,000 km2

km squared. Latin Christendom was roughly equivalent to the maximum extent of the former Roman Empire? The rough limits of Christianity in this period: the area that is now northeastern Germany would be converted by force under Charlemagne, while the area south of Rome, in particular Calabria, Puglia, and Basilicata, was as much part of the Eastern Orthodox world as that of Latin Christendom, although these distinctions did not exist then.


Relationship to Preceding Entity:
vassalage

This needs a bracket, to reflect the extraordinarily tentative hold the Byzantines had on Rome from the early eighth century on; by the beginning of the polity period, the papacy was effectively independent, or at least left to its own devices for defence, due to the Byzantine focus on defending Constantinople from Arab attacks, especially before the last Arab siege of Constantinople, in 717-718 CE. [1]

[1]: For this see Brown, 318-19.


Preceding Entity:
Exarchate of Ravenna [it_ravenna_exarchate] ---> Republic of St Peter I [it_st_peter_rep_1]

This needs a bracket, to reflect the extraordinarily tentative hold the Byzantines had on Rome from the early eighth century on; by the beginning of the polity period, the papacy was effectively independent, or at least left to its own devices for defence, due to the Byzantine focus on defending Constantinople from Arab attacks, especially before the last Arab siege of Constantinople, in 717-718 CE. [1]

[1]: For this see Brown, 318-19.


Degree of Centralization:
nominal

The archbishops of Ravenna resisted papal claims to suzerainty long and well. [1] The territories of the Papal States were mountainous which made it difficult for the Popes to exercise its sovereignty, so the region preserved its old system of government, with many small countships and marquisates, each centred upon a fortified rocca. Reference needed

[1]: Partner, 61


Religion



Alternate Religion:
NO_VALUE_ON_WIKI


Social Complexity Variables
Social Scale
Population of the Largest Settlement:
[70,000 to 100,000] people
800 CE

Inhabitants.
[100,000-125,000]: 711 CE; [70,000-100,000]: 800 CE. Estimate for Rome. [1] Like all pre-modern population numbers, this is an approximation. Last estimate in Modelski: 125,000 in 600 CE. By the latter 8th Century, 20,000 - 30,000 able-bodied men living within Rome’s walls. [2] Can we use this last estimate for 800 CE (+ women, children, old)?
Rome. 40,000: 900 CE [3]

[1]: (Modelski 2003)

[2]: (Barach 2013, 170)

[3]: Bairoch, Batou, Chèvre, 47

Population of the Largest Settlement:
40,000 people
900 CE

Inhabitants.
[100,000-125,000]: 711 CE; [70,000-100,000]: 800 CE. Estimate for Rome. [1] Like all pre-modern population numbers, this is an approximation. Last estimate in Modelski: 125,000 in 600 CE. By the latter 8th Century, 20,000 - 30,000 able-bodied men living within Rome’s walls. [2] Can we use this last estimate for 800 CE (+ women, children, old)?
Rome. 40,000: 900 CE [3]

[1]: (Modelski 2003)

[2]: (Barach 2013, 170)

[3]: Bairoch, Batou, Chèvre, 47


Polity Territory:
50,000 km2

KM2. The Papal State originated in the Patrimony of St. Peter, which originally included over four hundred estates, many of them in Sicily. [1] These came from donations from wealthy Christians, which accelerated after Emperor Constantine. [1]

[1]: Brown, 206


Polity Population:
[440,000 to 1,333,000] people
800 CE

Inhabitants. [1] Estimated from McEvedy and Jones "Italy" which had 4,000,000 in 800 CE and 4,500,000 in 900 CE. [1] Figures divided by three to roughly approximate population ruled by this polity would be 1,333,000: 800 CE; 1,500,000: 900 CE. The "Latium: Medieval Era (500-1500 CE)" coding page currently estimates the population of the Latium region only as: 265000: 650 CE; 385000: 750 CE; 440000: 800 CE; 445000: 850 CE; 440000: 867 CE; 335000: 904 CE. These estimates support the magnitude of the crude estimate based on the McEvedy and Jones figures given that this polity covered only major two city regions, Ravenna and Rome, and what was in between.

[1]: (McEvedy and Jones 1978, 107)

Polity Population:
[335,000 to 1,500,000] people
900 CE

Inhabitants. [1] Estimated from McEvedy and Jones "Italy" which had 4,000,000 in 800 CE and 4,500,000 in 900 CE. [1] Figures divided by three to roughly approximate population ruled by this polity would be 1,333,000: 800 CE; 1,500,000: 900 CE. The "Latium: Medieval Era (500-1500 CE)" coding page currently estimates the population of the Latium region only as: 265000: 650 CE; 385000: 750 CE; 440000: 800 CE; 445000: 850 CE; 440000: 867 CE; 335000: 904 CE. These estimates support the magnitude of the crude estimate based on the McEvedy and Jones figures given that this polity covered only major two city regions, Ravenna and Rome, and what was in between.

[1]: (McEvedy and Jones 1978, 107)


Hierarchical Complexity
Settlement Hierarchy:
5

1. Large cities: Rome and Ravenna
Rome and Ravenna were most likely the largest settlements within the Duchy/Republic, although reliable population figures do not exist for this period.
2. Cities of duchies e.g. PerugiaUntil 756 CE, under the Exarchate of Ravenna, the Italian polities subscribing to a nominal Byzantine suzerainty were organized into city-based Duchies (Duchy of Rome, Duchy of Venetia, Duchy of Calabria, Duchy of Naples, Duchy of Perugia, Pentapolis, Lucania etc).
After 756 CE, the duchies were officially controlled from Rome through Papal government administration. Every major city had a bishop. Regional governors. Bishops in joint session with provincial magnates elected the governor of each province and helped choose city officials. [1]
Cities such as Perugia, an important garrison town securing the route between Ravenna and Rome, would have had a population of at least a few thousand people. [2]
3. TownsAgrotowns and surviving Roman-era towns, such as Tres Tabernae or Centum Cellae (now Civitavecchia).
4. Villages, fortified settlements, rocchethese ranged from scattered houses with only vague association to quasi-military encampments. The first castles (castra, castella) began appearing in the tenth century. Fortified settlements, the predecessors of these castles, were walled towns such as Albano, Ariccia, and Tuscolo. [3]
5. Villages, fortified settlements, rocche

[1]: (Woods 1921, 48)

[2]: Noble,

[3]: Wickham (2015), 42


Religious Level:
5

levels.
At time of Concordat of Worms (1122 CE). "Now the clergy were organized in a hierarchical line under the direction of the pope, who could trump the power of local custom, tradition, and even episcopal power. Below the pope stood the bishop. Responsible for maintaining clerical discipline and for overseeing the property of the church, he was answerable only to the pope. Only he could perform all the sacraments; he alone performed the sacrament of confirmation and by the sacrament of ordination passed on his power to others. Theoretically, canon law held that he would be elected by the clergy and people of his diocese. In practice, he was elected only by the canon priests attached to the cathedral. Considered high clergy, the canons aided the bishop in furthering his agenda, administering the diocese and performing rituals at the cathedral church. At their head was the dean, the highest officer in the diocese. A diocesian chancellor supervised the cathedral school and issued licenses allowing clerics to teach and preach in the diocese. A treasurer oversaw finances, while a precentor managed the choir and organized the cathedral’s musical program. Each diocese was divided into administrative districts, over which presided the archdeacons. Practically, these were powerful men; they were the bishop’s legates, charged with enforcing discipline among the lower clergy, and therefore they were often quite unpopular. ... The parish priests were answerable to them." [1]
1. Pope

2. Archdeacon, of a dianocal collegeArchdeacons became popes, Archpriests did not. [2] Following the 1059 decree Decretum in Nomine Domini, only cardinals could elect a new pope. [3] . Furthermore, only cardinals could become popes. Silvester IV (1105-1111), an anti-pope, was the last pope who was not a cardinal before his elevation. [4]
3. Deacons, of a dianocal collegeThere were seven regional deacons of Rome. [5]
4. Subdeacon, of a college of subdeaconsThere was a college of subdeacons. [2] Regionary sub-deacons. [6]
5. AcolytesRome’s ecclesiastical structure contained a diaconal college with seven regional deacons of Rome, possessing in turn a staff of subdeacons and acolytes. These subdeacons dealt with property and relief for poor. The number increased as responsibilities of Papacy increased. 19 by Gregory I. [5]
2. Archpriest, of a collegePapal administration was collegiate: priests formed a college, headed by the archpriest, which was less important than dianocal college headed by archdeacon. Archdeacons became popes, Archpriests did not. [2]
3. Priests, of a college
2. Metropolitan see"Santiago was in 1120 made a metropolitan see by the pope." [7]
Metropolitan had authority over a province [8]
3. Bishops in diocese
4. Dean
5. Canon priests attached to cathedral
5. Diocesian chancellor
6. Diocesian clergy"After 2015 ... cathedral chancellors were required to furnish their diocesan clergy with some instruction in theology." [9]
5. Treasurer
5. Precenter
4. Archdeacons of administrative districts
5. Priests in ParishThere were multiple parishes in each episcopal diocese, and dozens or hundreds in larger dioceses such as the city of Rome.
"by the year 1000 it was the priest who really emerged as the religious and even educational leader of the local church." [10]
_Proprietary Churches_
"In 1000 CE ... western Europe had not yet been clearly divided into well-defined territorial parishes with resident priests chosen, ordained, and supervised by the local ordinary, who was in turn directed by the papacy. Indeed, the parish in the year 1000 was far from that ideal, ordered, hierarchical model. Instead, many different (often competing) churches, structures, and people overlapped in the organization of local religious life." [11] "Actually, the most common type of church in the year 1000 was one founded - and governed - by a local lay lord rather than a bishop. ... It is impossible to calculate precisely how many of these churches there were, but they surely numbered in the tens of thousands. Indeed, they far outnumbered the Baptismal churches controlled by the bishops (many of which had passed into the hands of lay lords). ... Because of the force exerted by the ancient, hierarchical, episcopal Roman tradition, this model, which was based on German property law, never took root in central and southern Italy. ... Proprietary churches served very small communities, encompassing perhaps a village or two." [12]

[1]: (Madigan 2015, 144-145)

[2]: (Richards 1979, 290-292)

[3]: di Carpegna Falconieri, 65

[4]: di Carpegna Falconieri, 64

[5]: (Richards 1979, 293)

[6]: (Partner 1972, 1)

[7]: (Madigan 2015, 333)

[8]: (Madigan 2015, 14)

[9]: (Madigan 2015, 310)

[10]: (Madigan 2015, 83)

[11]: (Madigan 2015, 80-81)

[12]: (Madigan 2015, 81-83)


Military Level:
5

1. Pope
Pope was commander of the army. [1]
Army of Rome. [2]
Army of Rome consisted of: inhabitants; small landowners in surrounding region; the magnates; the domuscultae, that is, military colonies on papal lands.
2. Superista of a DomuscultaeDomuscultae first known in Pontificate of Zacharias. Four of five domuscultae mentioned. Large agrarian estates where farmer-soldiers were responsible to a superista, a Papal official. [3]
Transformation in army structure in eighth century. (Do not have access to pages which explain what happened) [4] but presumably it changed from Byzantine structure.
2. Dukes/Post-Byzantine equivalentItalian manpower in imperial Byzantine army "raised up a new aristocracy with increasingly assertive local interests." There was secular support for the popes’ efficient administration. [5]
Within the Byzantine exarchate, dukes in theory had political and military authority in the dutchies. [6]
3. Tribunes/Counts of a numeriTribunes/Counts lead troop detachments called numeri. In practice, the armies of the separate dutchies within the exarch were autonomous. [6]
4. Militia leaders?Major cities had an urban militia of adult male citizens, who would volunteer or be pressed into service. [6]
5. Individual soldier

[1]: (Trevor 1869, 115)

[2]: (Noble 2011, 17)

[3]: (Barach 2013, 173)

[4]: (Richards 1979, 203)

[5]: (Daly 1986)

[6]: (Noble 2011, 6-7)


Administrative Level:
6

1. Exarch of Ravenna
In the early years of the period the Pope was elected by citizens and the army usually based on the choice of the clergy. Representatives would the certify the choice to the Exarch in Ravenna for imperial approval. However, the Exarch could make the choice himself in case of disagreement. [1]
1. Pope
By 781 CE (Charlemagne agreement) "what had been the Dutchy of Rome was, somewhat enlarged, recognised as St. Peter’s and the Pope’s own principality." Authority over Ravenna "shared in ill-defineded tandem." [2]
Bishop of Rome, the Pope, took responsibility for feeding Romans and refugees from Lombard war. [3]
Pope was head of the senate. [1]
Pope, sovereign and "universal bishop", symbolically crowned with tiara. [4]
_Central government (Ravenna - 781 CE)_
2.
3.
4.
_Central government (Rome)_
2. Senators?Pope was head of the senate. [1]
Rome’s governmental infrastructure was remarkably complex, a fact that Wickham attributes to the degree of continuity between 10th-century Rome and the Byzantines and of course, before them, the Roman Empire. [5]
At times during this period, it possessed three different official hierarchies, military, judicial, and clerical. [6]

2. Administrative subdivisions - Chief of Papal chancery / Papal archives etc.arcarius [7] - treasurer
Papal chancery [8]
Archives held in Lateran Palace with other paperwork. However, very important documents were kept in tomb of St Peter. [8]
High-ranking ecclesiastical officials (legates, papal representatives, etc.): The Papal state had administrative subdivisions, loosely conceived. Noble has argued that through its extensive landholding, charitable actions, and diplomatic role as a negotiator with the Lombards, the Roman Church significantly impacted most residents of Byzantine Italy. [9]
Regional elites "sought and gained grants of land and jurisdiction from the popes." [10] Described as feudal in the ninth century. [11]
3. Head of Sub-division within an administrative subdivisionSome scholars have claimed that it was the most effective government in Western Europe by the end of the seventh century (although this isn’t saying much, given how small-scale papal administration was). [12]
Lower-ranking administrative officials: A nomenclator was probably assisted by ordinator. Vicedominus was steward of the papal Lateran palace. Vicedominus more involved in central administration than a major domus. [13]
Amoner (financial controller).
Major-domo (treasurer and controller of wardrobe).
Pilgrims to the city of Rome was a source of income for the popes. [14]
4. primicerius defensorumDefensores defended "the rights of the Roman church ... and the oppressed. The formula of appointment was vague enough to allow them to undertake virtually any duty on behalf of the church." There was a college of defensores headed by a primicerius. [8]
Officials Constantine I took with him on his 710 CE visit to Constantinople included: 2 bishops, 2 priests, a deacon, a secundicerius notariorum, the primicerius defensorum, the sacellarius, the nomenclator, the scriniarius, and two subdeacons. Archdeacon, archpriest and primicerius notariorum were left behind. Other officials, vicedominus, arcarius, ordinator and abbot. [7]
5. defensorum
4. primicerius notariorum (head of college of notaries) [8] Officials Constantine I took with him on his 710 CE visit to Constantinople included: 2 bishops, 2 priests, a deacon, a secundicerius notariorum, the primicerius defensorum, the sacellarius, the nomenclator, the scriniarius, and two subdeacons. Archdeacon, archpriest and primicerius notariorum were left behind. Other officials, vicedominus, arcarius, ordinator and abbot. [7]
5. secundicerius notariorumA college of notaries headed by primicerius, later joined by college of defensores headed by primicerius, and a college of subdeacons. Notaries were the staff of the papal chancery, career bureaucrats. [8]
Clerical officers (acolytes and guardians) [15]
6. notariorumBy this period, the popes had been caring for orphans, widows, and others as part of their pastoral duties. [9]
_Regional government_
2. Regional governor of a DutchyAfter 756 CE, the duchies were officially controlled from Rome through Papal government administration. Every major city had a bishop. Regional governors. Bishops in joint session with provincial magnates elected the governor of each province and helped choose city officials. [16]
The popes became increasingly involved during this period in appointing the duke for the Dutchy of Rome. [2]
On several occasions, indeed, papal authority over the imperially-appointed dukes was demonstrated when popes had to save dukes from the irate Roman mob, or were able to defy the duke or Exarch of Ravenna with the aid of militia totius Italiae, "the entire army of Italy. [17]
Regionary guardians. Regional notaries. [15]
3. Bishop of a CityEvery major city had a bishop. Bishops in joint session with provincial magnates elected the governor of each province and helped choose city officials. [16]
Under the Lombards, a system of episcopal immunities emerged that made the bishops virtually local temporal sovereigns and enabled them to preserve the local spirit of municipal independence and organization (e.g., consuls, guilds). The urban population was free, and the town walls (often built by the bishops) were refuges. [18]
The Roman bishop administered lands of the Church and lands of Roman basilicas, classified as tituli. [19]
4. Rectors of the Patrimony (in a Diaconate?)Ecclesiastical government contained other important regional officials. Rectors of the Patrimony were appointed for each major territory. These were drawn from subordinate Roman officials: sub-deacons or notaries and guardians, among them whom could be laymen. [20]
Diaconates were established to store and distribute grain, and be centers of social welfare. [3] 5. Granary worker
5. Town / village leaderA more informal, often ad hoc, stratum but probably the most important on a day-to-day level. They included local landholders in particular. The aristocratic, land-holding stratum of Byzantine Italy emerged following Justinian’s 6th-century reconquests. [21]
By the late seventh century, many sources speaks of this stratum, which Noble has described as forming "the key social class in late Byzantine Italy." [22]
These landholders, often of eastern origin, acquired land through leasing them from bishops contractually. [22]

[1]: (Trevor, 1869, 113)

[2]: (Daly 1986)

[3]: (Partner 1972, 9)

[4]: (Noble 2011, xx)

[5]: Wickham (2015), 4

[6]: Wickham, 4

[7]: (Richards 1979, 275)

[8]: (Richards 1979, 290-292)

[9]: Noble, 1984, 10

[10]: (Kleinhenz 2004)

[11]: [2]

[12]: (Partner 1972, 9

[13]: (Richards 1979, 298)

[14]: (Trevor 1869, 115)

[15]: (Partner 1972, 1)

[16]: (Woods 1921, 48)

[17]: Noble, 1984, 18

[18]: (Stearns 2001 173)

[19]: (Partner 1972, 6)

[20]: (Partner 1972, 8)

[21]: Noble, 5-6

[22]: Noble, 1984, 7


Professions
Professional Soldier:
absent

Army of Rome consisted of farmer-soldiers from the domuscultae. [1] Major cities had an urban militia of adult male citizens, who would volunteer or be pressed into service. [2] Neither of these are professional soldiers.

[1]: (Barach 2013, 173)

[2]: (Noble 2011, 6-7)


Professional Priesthood:
present

Churches, convents, monasteries. [1]

[1]: (Woods 1921, 47)


Professional Military Officer:
absent

The commanders were aristocrats.


Bureaucracy Characteristics
Specialized Government Building:
present

Hospitals, orphanages, hospices for pilgrims. [1] Archives held in Lateran Palace with other paperwork.

[1]: (Woods 1921, 47)


Full Time Bureaucrat:
present

Notaries were career bureaucrats. [1]

[1]: (Richards 1979, 290-292)



Law
Professional Lawyer:
present

Consilarius, a non-papal job, was a legal adviser. [1]

[1]: (Richards 1979, 299)


Civil judges. Bishops were a court of appeal, their decision final. [1]

[1]: (Woods 1921, 48)



Court:
present

Rome had its own magistracy. [1]

[1]: (Trevor, 1869, 113)


Specialized Buildings: polity owned

Irrigation System:
present

Paulinius’ ? aqueduct also irrigated crops. [1]

[1]: (Squatriti 2002, 14)


Food Storage Site:
present

"Huge quantities of corn ... were shipped from the southern estates of the Church and stocked in her Roman granaries - not only corn but all manner of food." [1]

[1]: (Partner 1972, 6, 43)


Drinking Water Supply System:
present

Water channels used for fresh water in Early Medieval Italy. However, not necessarily built by state. "From the fourth century onward, in fact, water evergetism in the peninsular survived by assuming new forms. Much as was the case in ninth-century Le Mans, in late antique Italy bishops replaced secular builders of aqueducts. Indeed, by Aldric’s day, Italy had developed a distinguished tradition of episcopal involvement in urban water supply. [1] In 770s CE Pope Hadrian restored four ancient aqueducts [2] Aqueduct waters made available outside church compound. Rome, Benevento, Milan benefited from aqueducts in eighth century. Byzantine Ravenna and Naples had maintained aqueducts to eighth century. [3] Aqueduct maintenance became a Papal responsibility by end of seventh century. [4]

[1]: (Squatriti 2002, 13) Paolo Squatriti. 2002. Water and Society in Early Medieval Italy, AD 400-1000. Cambridge University Press.

[2]: (Squatriti 2002, 14)

[3]: (Squatriti 2002, 14-16)

[4]: (Partner 1972, 9)


Transport Infrastructure

Papal revenue was spent on maintenance. [1]

[1]: (Woods 1921, 47)


Importation of corn into Rome. [1]

[1]: (Partner 1972, 6)


Fossa Augusta. Inland to coast, Ferrara-Padua. Was it still maintained?


Bridge:
present

Papal revenue was spent on maintenance. [1]

[1]: (Woods 1921, 47)


Special-purpose Sites

Information / Writing System
Written Record:
present

Liber Pontificalis [1] Constitutum Constantini imperatoris (known as "Donation of Constantine", fictional historical document created to justify paper rule). [2] 817 CE Ludovicianum, example of Frankish-Papal treaty which assured military protection for the Papal state. There were earlier ones. [3]

[1]: (Partner 1972, 6)

[2]: (Partner 1972, 23)

[3]: (Kleinhenz 2004)



Phonetic Alphabetic Writing:
present

Nonwritten Record:
present

Liber Pontificalis [1] Constitutum Constantini imperatoris (known as "Donation of Constantine", fictional historical document created to justify paper rule). [2] 817 CE Ludovicianum, example of Frankish-Papal treaty which assured military protection for the Papal state. There were earlier ones. [3]

[1]: (Partner 1972, 6)

[2]: (Partner 1972, 23)

[3]: (Kleinhenz 2004)


Non Phonetic Writing:
absent

Information / Kinds of Written Documents
Scientific Literature:
present

In Latin Christendom, this was the era of Alcuin who was based in Carolingian France and Leo the Mathematician who was the archbishop of Thessalonica, and the Irish churchman Vergilius of Salzburg (a geographer). Adelberger of Lombardy (daughter of the last king of the Lombards) was a known medical women who was a student of Paul the Deacon.



Religious Literature:
present

Paulinus II of Aquileia (born c726 Premariacco). However, outside boundaries of Papal State, within Carolingian Empire. Was a priest and the patriarch of Aquileia.


Practical Literature:
present

Philosophy:
present

In Latin Christendom, this was the era of Alcuin who was based in Carolingian France, Leo the Mathematician who was the archbishop of Thessalonica. In Italy, there was Paul the Deacon. [1] Born, Fruili Italy 720 CE, he was the first important medieval historian. A member of the Lombard nobility. [2]

[1]: (Bowersock et al. 1999, 547)

[2]: (Stearns 2001 173)


Lists Tables and Classification:
present

History:
present

In Italy, there was Paul the Deacon. [1] Born, Fruili Italy 720 CE, he was the first important medieval historian. A member of the Lombard nobility. [2]

[1]: (Bowersock et al. 1999, 547)

[2]: (Stearns 2001 173)




Information / Money


Indigenous Coin:
present

Papal and Papal-Imperial coins 735-980 CE [1]

[1]: (Grierson and Blackburn 2007, 259)


Foreign Coin:
present

inferred present for Exarchate of Ravenna for same region.



Information / Postal System

General Postal Service:
absent

Courier:
present

The papacy had its own specialist couriers [1]

[1]: (Richards 1979, 291)


Information / Measurement System

Warfare Variables (Military Technologies)
Fortifications
Wooden Palisade:
present

General reference for Western Europe 11th and 12th centuries CE: fortifications typically consisted of earth ramparts and timber palisades which were generally surrounded by dry ditches (rather than water-filled for a moat). In the early 12th century CE stone began to replace earth-and-timber defences for walls and for castles (previously often wooden). [1] Since palisades are a very ancient form of fortification we could code inferred present for the period earlier than the 12th century (when it is known they were still used).

[1]: (Jones 1999, 171-172) Richard L C Jones. Fortifications and Sieges in Western Europe, c.800-1450. Maurice Keen. ed. 1999. Medieval Warfare: A History. Oxford University Press. Oxford.


Stone Walls Non Mortared:
present

Stone Walls Mortared:
present

Maintenance of Rome’s walls became a Papal responsibility by end of seventh century. [1] . City wall restoration after 708 CE [2]

[1]: (Partner 1972, 9)

[2]: (Kleinhenz 2004, [3])


Settlements in a Defensive Position:
present




Earth Rampart:
present

General reference for Western Europe 11th and 12th centuries CE: fortifications typically consisted of earth ramparts and timber palisades which were generally surrounded by dry ditches (rather than water-filled for a moat). In the early 12th century CE stone began to replace earth-and-timber defences for walls and for castles (previously often wooden). [1] Since earth ramparts are a very ancient form of fortification we could code inferred present for the period earlier than the 12th century (when it is known they were still used).

[1]: (Jones 1999, 171-172) Richard L C Jones. Fortifications and Sieges in Western Europe, c.800-1450. Maurice Keen. ed. 1999. Medieval Warfare: A History. Oxford University Press. Oxford.


General reference for Western Europe 11th and 12th centuries CE: fortifications typically consisted of earth ramparts and timber palisades which were generally surrounded by dry ditches (rather than water-filled for a moat). In the early 12th century CE stone began to replace earth-and-timber defences for walls and for castles (previously often wooden). [1] Since ditches are a very ancient form of fortification we could code inferred present for the period earlier than the 12th century (when it is known they were still used).

[1]: (Jones 1999, 171-172) Richard L C Jones. Fortifications and Sieges in Western Europe, c.800-1450. Maurice Keen. ed. 1999. Medieval Warfare: A History. Oxford University Press. Oxford.



Projectiles
Tension Siege Engine:
unknown

Use unknown but we know that catapults could be used to throw fire, diseased men or animals over walls. [1]

[1]: Michael Mallett (2009) Mercenaries and their Masters: Warfare in Renaissance Italy. Pen & Sword Military. Barnsley.







Gunpowder Siege Artillery:
absent

Certainly being used in the 15th CE but it is perhaps too long a time gap to infer presence at this time: “In the Papal States Spoleto had developed a considerable arms industry and supplied crossbow bolts, shields and lances to the army.” [1]

[1]: Michael Mallett (2009) Mercenaries and their Masters: Warfare in Renaissance Italy. Pen & Sword Military. Barnsley.




Handheld weapons

Code for Lombard Kingdom.


Code for Lombard Kingdom.



Code for Lombard Kingdom.



Naval technology
Specialized Military Vessel:
present

Small Vessels Canoes Etc:
absent

Merchant Ships Pressed Into Service:
absent


Human Sacrifice Data
Human Sacrifice is the deliberate and ritualized killing of a person to please or placate supernatural entities (including gods, spirits, and ancestors) or gain other supernatural benefits.
- Nothing coded yet.
- Nothing coded yet.
Power Transitions