EARLY MODERN
HISTORY
How do Historians 'do' History?
Historians use a wide variety of means and methods to investigate, to make sense of, and to present topics in history. This site focuses on topics in the history of Europe in the early modern period, or from about 1500 to about 1700. The studies described here investigate topics ranging from antislavery in the seventeenth-century Atlantic, Mediterranean galley slavery, early modern Jews, perceptions of Ottomans, manuscripts, property in Florence, and exorcism in Renaissance Florence. These studies are based upon original sources—sources created during the early mdoern period, and all use digital techniques—digital corpora, data collation, online mapping, text mining, or data visualization—to process material and arrive at conclusions. Click on links to find final essays. To learn more about me, your author, visit the contact page .
The Devil in the Renaissance
My first monograph, The Devil in the Renaissance (Forthcoming; Brepols' Europa Sacra series), used exorcism manuscripts, spatio-geographic analysis, and text-frequency searches along with traditional historical, archival, and microhistorical analysis to outline a critical shift in the history of early modern Europe.
The exorcism manuscripts shown here were an attempt on the part of contemplative orders like the Vallombrosans to resist the onslaught of Mendicant Observance, a movement which overtook Europe by storm in the fifteenth century. In short, Observants began to perform all of the religious rituals traditionally managed by contemplatives—functions like good deaths, pastoral care, and peacemaking. Orders like the Vallombrosans fought back, becoming specialists in exorcism so as to regain social standing and visibility. The Vallombrosans tried to use exorcisms to gain the favor of Lorenzo de'Medici, win back power lost to Observants, and reinsert themselves into urban political life: but to no avail. A key outcome of the rise of Observance was the emergence of a more threatening and politically relevant concept of the devil at the beginning of the sixteenth century—a conception that in concert with the closer religious-political cooperation fostered by Observants, made possible the increased persecution of 'subaltern' groups such as witches, Jews, and peasants.
This study was based on archival manuscripts from Florence such as this one: MS 260 244-2, copied ca. 1480, at the Archivio di Stato, Firenze. Click here to see one of the full transcriptions.
As shown in this painting by the Master of S. Severino, exorcism ceremonies were common in the 15th century. I show how they were used to gain religious and political power. To see the dates of Vallombrosan exorcism miracles, click here.
The Vallombrosans exorcised people like the painter of this miniature and Florentine citizen Zanobi Strozzi, as a way of demonstrating their relevance to urban life and the citizen elite. For a list of all the people exorcised, click here.
Vallombrosans were disparaged by their urban enemies for being too rural—in particular, for having exorcised a donkey. They fought back by professing their sophistication. Click here to read this section.
Vallombrosans played on Lorenzo de'Medici's weaknesses by declaring themselves masters of the unruly Florentine hinterlands—unruly because Florence expanded so fast. Click here to see how Florence tripled in size from ca. 1430 to 1490.
This image shows a Vallombrosan exorcism from 1497. However, slightly more exorcisms were performed upon men than. on women. Click here to see the gender ratio of Vallombrosan exorcisms.