Flocel Sabaté – författare

The death penalty was unusual in medieval Europe until the twelfth century. From that moment on, it became a key instrument of rule in European society, and we can study it in the case of Catalonia through its rich and varied unpublished documentation. The death penalty was justified by Roman Law; accepted by Theology and Philosophy for the Common Good; and used by rulers as an instrument for social intimidation. The application of the death penalty followed a regular trial, and the status of the individual dictated the method of execution, reserving the fire for the worst crimes, as the Inquisition applied against the so-called heretics. The executions were public, and the authorities and the people shared the common goal of restoring the will of God which had been broken by the executed person. The death penalty took an important place in the core of the medieval mind: people included executions in the jokes and popular narratives while the gallows filled the landscape fitting the jurisdictional limits and, also, showing rotten corpses to assert that the best way to rule and order the society is by terror.

This book utilises previously unpublished archival sources to present a unique study on the death penalty in late Medieval Europe.

The death penalty was unusual in medieval Europe until the twelfth century. From that moment on, it became a key instrument of rule in European society, and we can study it in the case of Catalonia through its rich and varied unpublished documentation. The death penalty was justified by Roman Law; accepted by Theology and Philosophy for the Common Good; and used by rulers as an instrument for social intimidation. The application of the death penalty followed a regular trial, and the status of the individual dictated the method of execution, reserving the fire for the worst crimes, as the Inquisition applied against the so-called heretics. The executions were public, and the authorities and the people shared the common goal of restoring the will of God which had been broken by the executed person. The death penalty took an important place in the core of the medieval mind: people included executions in the jokes and popular narratives while the gallows filled the landscape fitting the jurisdictional limits and, also, showing rotten corpses to assert that the best way to rule and order the society is by terror.

This book utilises previously unpublished archival sources to present a unique study on the death penalty in late Medieval Europe.

Los procesos de intercambio cultural han marcado durante siglos el devenir de las numerosas culturas que entraron en contacto por diversas razones. El intenso proceso de globalización de hoy es el final de un largo camino que comenzó con los desplazamientos de larga distancia. Rutas que permitieron la transferencia de objetos, personas e ideas, iniciando una transculturación que hoy en día puede ser estudiada. Entrados ya en el siglo XXI, las miradas al pasado fijan su atención en los acontecimientos que se desarrollaron en los primeros años del siglo XVI en América, de los que se cumplen quinientos años desde que acontecieron. Esto nos permite reflexionar sobre las verdaderas dimensiones de los acontecimientos que tuvieron lugar en aquellos territorios. Este libro reúne las reflexiones de un grupo de profesores de las Universidades de Granada y Barcelona sobre la verdadera dimensión del proceso de descubrimiento americano. Son un conjunto multidisciplinario de trabajos alrededor del mismo objeto, la presencia de lo hispano en el contexto americano y asiático, como reflejo de una huella cultural que habla de un acontecimiento histórico que duró más de trescientos años.