Hierarquias eclesiásticas em conflito na diocese de Coimbra: a dízima de São Pedro de Bruscos no século XIV

Abstract

From its inception, the ecclesiastical jurisdiction has defined a dynamic of territorial power, reinforced by the Gregorian Reform, which imposed and regulated the payment of ancestral taxes and hardened the line of authority attached to different ecclesiastical bodies, locally and regionally. The mandatory nature of the tithes illustrates the consolidation of this hierarchical structure. Analysing the payment of this universal tax, its collection systems and mechanisms, as well as its taxpayers and beneficiaries, can bring to light important information on local church structures and their real control of the territory. On the other hand, episodes of conflict and non-payment can explain the jurisdictional, ecclesiastical and financial interests in cause. The present paper addresses a case judged on an episcopal hearing in Coimbra, in the middle of the 14th century, which opposed the prior of a city-hinterland church to the church of São Cristóvão of Coimbra. Through its analysis, we will try to reflect on the ecclesiastical dialectics of parish relations under a framework defined by the diocese of Coimbra and the relational dynamics established between the city (headquarters of the diocese) and its hinterland.