Clientage during the French Wars of Religion
This article argues that there was no failure of clientage in the sense of a collapse or disappearance, even temporarily, of personal bonds of loyalty during the French Wars of Religion. Patron-client ties and networks among the provincial nobility did not disappear when religious parties were forme...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Sixteenth Century Journal Publishers, Inc.
1989
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| In: |
The sixteenth century journal
Year: 1989, Volume: 20, Issue: 2, Pages: 221-239 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Parallel Edition: | Non-electronic
Non-electronic |
| Summary: | This article argues that there was no failure of clientage in the sense of a collapse or disappearance, even temporarily, of personal bonds of loyalty during the French Wars of Religion. Patron-client ties and networks among the provincial nobility did not disappear when religious parties were formed and were not replaced by them. Provincial clienteles were absorbed into Catholic and Calvinist parties, or even sometimes created from them, and continued to operate within them and remained when these parties were disbanded. Patron-client relationships were characterized by personal loyalty but the degree of loyalty varied with the relationship. Not all clients were fideles who were loyal until death-in fact, fideles were in the minority among a patron's clients-and material interests and the amount of a patronage available to a patron for distribution to his clients helped to determine the longevity of patron-client relationships. For this reason clients switched their loyalties and deserted both Catholic and Calvinist patrons and parties during the Wars of Religion. Nonetheless, the continued existence of clienteles during a civil war in which religiously-based parties dominated politics demonstrates the vitality and overall durability of these personal bonds of loyalty. |
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| ISSN: | 2326-0726 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: The sixteenth century journal
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.2307/2540660 |