Customary Aids and Royal Fiscal Policy under Philip VI of Valois
In 1332 Philip VI of Valois set in motion a campaign to levy traditional aids in his kingdom. Although for a number of reasons the effort failed, the episode casts significant light on the development of royal fiscal policy in France. Its importance lies chiefly in the fact that it terminated, at le...
| Authors: | ; |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
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| Published: |
Cambridge University Press
1974
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| In: |
Traditio
Year: 1974, Volume: 30, Pages: 191-258 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (JSTOR) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | In 1332 Philip VI of Valois set in motion a campaign to levy traditional aids in his kingdom. Although for a number of reasons the effort failed, the episode casts significant light on the development of royal fiscal policy in France. Its importance lies chiefly in the fact that it terminated, at least temporarily, a period of experimentation and indecision lasting since the time of Saint Louis, who had claimed as legally due to him by the general custom of the realm various traditional aids. These customary payments were fundamentally arbitrary levies which kings and other lords collected from their vassals and subjects on occasions and in amounts determined essentially by customary practice and by the extent of the lord's power over his dependents, rather than by the lord's evident and undeniable need for help. Some aids — those taken for crusading and to ransom the lord — were easier to justify than others—those collected for marrying a daughter or knighting a son, for example. The legitimacy or illegitimacy of the aids was not, however, of central importance, since custom was their chief justification, and it was long usage that Saint Louis emphasized in claiming the aids he sought. His success in implementing his demands was not great, thanks to the manipulability and vagueness of custom. Still, the conviction with which he voiced his claims was impressive. |
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| ISSN: | 2166-5508 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Traditio
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1017/S0362152900006516 |