France in the Making 843-1180

Covering the centuries between the disintegration of the Carolingian empire and the rise of the French monarchy, this book traces the long period of gestation that ended with the emergence of the kingdom of France as a recognizable political entity capable of inspiring the loyalty of its peoples. The author describes the emergence in the late ninth and tenth centuries of principalities and lesser political units in which the personal qualitiesor resources of the rulers permitted them to command obedience. In the eleventh century, the threat of political fragmentation led princes to establish sounder theoretical foundations for theirauthority in legal and administrative procedures. The twelfth-century kings of France, hitherto little more than princes of the Ile-de-France, exploited the state-building activities of their princes to re-establish their own lordship over all the princes, counts, and bishops within their realm. At the same time, they contrived to identify themselves in their subjects' imaginations with the dawning sense of French community. By 1180 the kingdom of France was firmly established, both on themap of Europe and in the minds of its inhabitants.

“"Anyone interested in medieval history ought to find things to excite them in this book; anyone involved in teaching medieval French history will find it a tremendous boon."--Times Literary Supplement "[The author] brings many new insights and much freshness to her theme."--English Historical Review "Useful and thoughtful book...[A] very great help to teachers and students alike."--History”

Anyone interested in medieval history ought to find things to excite them in this book; anyone involved in teaching medieval French history will find it a tremendous boon. Times Literary Supplement

Jean Dunbabin is a Senior Research Fellow at St Anne's College, Oxford, and a Fellow of the British Academy. Her previous publications include Charles I of Anjou: Power, Kingship and State-Making in Thirteenth-Century Europe (1998) and Captivity and Imprisonment in Western Europe, 1000 1300 (2002).

Covering the centuries between the disintegration of the Carolingian empire and the rise of the French monarchy, this book traces the long period of gestation that ended with the emergence of the kingdom of France as a recognizable political entity capable of inspiring the loyalty of its peoples. The author describes the emergence in the late ninth and tenth centuries of principalities and lesser political units in which the personal qualities or resources of the rulers permitted them to command obedience. In the eleventh century, the threat of political fragmentation led princes to establish sounder theoretical foundations for their authority in legal and administrative procedures. The twelfth-century kings of France, hitherto little more than princes of the Ile-de-France, exploited the state-building activities of their princes to re-establish their own lordship over all the princes, counts, and bishops within their realm. At the same time, they contrived to identify themselves in their subjects' imaginations with the dawning sense of French community. By 1180 the kingdom of France was firmly established, both on the map of Europe and in the minds of its inhabitants.

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