Anneke van Baalen, HIDDEN MASCULINITY, Max Weber's historical sociology of bureaucracy. 1994
Chapter 7 The city: new fraternities of patriarchs
119
6. The occidental city as a breach with patrimonial domination; the establishment of
administration by honoratiores
In order to achieve autonomy the citizens had to struggle hard against the patrimonial lords,
whose power and prestige also depended on the market. The lords could monopolize trade
or the profit from it by exacting taxes, tolls, escort moneys and other 'protection' fees.
34
They
could also use the city market as a source of income for themselves by sending their slaves
and serfs to it in order to earn money in return for a fixed body rent.
35
In most parts of the
world the patrimonial rulers were able to defend their interests because they also owned the
army - not only managing it, but also feeding it from their own stores. In their towns the
citizens 'were the non-soldiers'. Only their financial power could force the rulers to negotiate
with them in case of financial need; but they had no possibility 'to unite and to offer a military
check to the lord.'
36
In the occident the rich swore to revolt against the rulers; they founded and maintained the
city as a more or less autonomous political community. The 'coniurationes' forced the mass
of the burghers - those qualified by landownership - to join them; in the long run the
'coniurationes' elected their own officers, and established their own courts and their own
law.
37
The rich not only monopolized the market; they also curbed the financial claims of the
patrimonial ruler and expanded the military and economic power of the city. The
revolutionary usurpation of power resulted in most cases in the domination of rich, in Italy
also noble, families: thus in 'Geschlechterherrschaft', 'lineage charisma'
38
, the rule of the
'patriciate'.
The 'patriciate' ruled in a personal, informal way, through drinking clubs - remember the
importance of the orgy in magic -, through monopolizing access to the colleges of
honoratiores and to the offices of the city, and through personal unions between men who
held important offices and positions.
39
Only in exceptional cases did the guilds - generally
only the trading guilds, not those of the crafts - share in the power of the city. The guilds
were an effect of the city, not a cause.
40
The city patriciates consisted of rentiers. Access to their estate was at first determined by
lifestyle, which had to be knightly
41
; it was not primarily determined by descent. In this way a
certain fusion of nobles and commoners was possible, since merchants could purchase a
noble holding, and knights could participate in mercantile enterprises
42
. But a third revolution
had to be fought before the entrepreneurs were admitted into the city colleges.
34
ES p. 1214, WG p. 728; inverted comma's mine.
35
ES p. 1238, WG p. 742.
36
ES p. 1262, WG p. 757.
37
ES p. 1253, 1258, WG p. 751, 754.
38
See also ES p. 1135, WG p. 671 ff. and above Ch. 4,7.
39
ES p. 1256, WG p. 753.
40
ES p. 1257, WG p. 753/4.
41
ES p. 1292, WG p. 772 (it. Weber).
42
2ES p. 1293/4, WG p. 772/3.
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