Harmiscara and Elites in the Carolingian age

Abstract

　In recent years, the constitutional history of early and middle medieval Europe has seen many studies on ritual and symbolic communication. One of the pioneers in this field is G. Althoff, but he and his colleagues have shown little interest in harmiscara. This article analyzes Carolingian capitularies and sources that have not been used by previous studies in order to elucidate the meaning of harmiscara in the Carolingian era. J. M. Moeglin suggests that harmiscara was related to public penance. He further proposes that public penance was considered to be a matter of God's vengeance. He emphasizes the place of vengeance on victims of both harmiscara and other forms of public atonement.
　Referring to the recent studies of M. De Jong and C. M. Booker, the present author supports the accuracy of Moeglin's hypothesis about harmiscara in the year 829, but contends that the changes to the meaning of hamiscara took place after the year 853. In most cases of harmiscara after this year, the emphasis of harmiscara shifted away from vengeance and strongly concentrated on the reintegration of delinquents into the lordship of Carolingian kings, in exchange for a ritualistic act. The delinquents who were reintegrated into the lordship by harmiscara during the Carolingian era were not poor freemen but elites, ranging in social stratum from political leaders to those who were not exempted from serving in the war. Kings in the late Carolingian era were also forced to reintegrate middle class freemen into the order of the kingdom by harmiscara. The conclusion of this article expresses close relevance to the condition of the Carolingian monarchy, which, as M. Innes has elucidated, was forced to rule in cooperation with local elites.