The Church in Fourteenth-Century Iceland: The Formation of an Elite Clerical Identity

Description

In 'The Church in Fourteenth-Century Iceland', Erika Sigurdson provides a history of the fourteenth-century Icelandic Church with a focus on the the social status of elite clerics following the introduction of benefices to Iceland. In this period, the elite clergy developed a shared identity based in part on universal clerical values, but also on a shared sense of interdependence, personal networks and connections within the framework of the Church. 'The Church in Fourteenth-Century Iceland' examines the development of this social group through an analysis of bishops' sagas, annals, and documents. In the process, it chronicles major developments in the Icelandic Church after the reforms of the late thirteenth century, including its emphasis on property and land ownership, and the growth of ecclesiastical bureaucracy. Acknowledgements and Spelling Conventions List of Tables List of Abbreviations Introduction Ecclesiastical History in a Scandinavian Context Historiography and the ‘Boring’ Fourteenth Century Methodology and Approaches 1: Iceland in the Fourteenth Century Iceland and the Kings of Norway The Aristocracy in Iceland and the Administration of Iceland The Icelandic Church 1264–1300 Defining the Period 2: Sources and Authorship: The Intellectual Milieu Contemporary Sagas in a Fourteenth-Century Context Bishops’ Sagas 'Árna saga' 'Guðmundar saga D' ('Guðmundar saga Arngríms Brandssonar') 'Jóns þáttr Halldórssonar' and Exemplary Material Annals 'Skálholtsannáll' 'Brot af Skálholtsannáll' 'Lögmannsannáll' 'Flateyjarannáll' 'Gottskálksannáll' Documentary Sources Authorship and Intellectual Milieu 3: The Icelandic Church after 1264 Parish and Local Structures 'Staðir' Monasteries Jurisdiction Church Officials within Iceland Iceland and Niðarós Foreign Bishops 4: Elite Priests in Iceland Staðir, Church Centres, and Benefices Elite Priests in the Norwegian Age (1269–1400) 'Staðir' and Clerical Income Elite Clerical Social Networks Archiepiscopal Benefices Elite Identity: Clerical Identity Clerical Concubinage, Fostering, and the Children of Clerics Clerical Violence and Conflict Conclusion 5: Norway and Elite Icelandic Clerical Identity Iceland and Niðarós: Introduction Icelandic Clergy in Norway Icelandic Perceptions of Norway and Niðarós Conclusion Conclusion Appendices Appendix 1: Bishops of Skálholt and Hólar, 1056–1550 Appendix 2: The 'officiales' and 'ráðsmenn' of Skálholt and Hólar Bibliography Index