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The Bari charter of privileges of 1132: articulating the culture of a new Norman monarchy by Paul Oldfield

This article examines how Roger II, who in 1130 became the first king of Sicily, articulated the culture of a new monarchy to his subjects. It does so through extensive analysis and contextualization of a crucial, yet undervalued, royal charter issued to the city of Bari in 1132 (and here translated into English for the first time). Previous scholarship has overlooked key evidence within the charter and tended to emphasize conflict in royal-urban relations. Instead, it will be argued here that the monarchy promoted and upheld negotiation and reciprocity as an integral facet of this new kingdom.

 

 

 

 

Sierra_Leone_miners_panningThe art of governing contingency: rethinking the colonial history of diamond mining in Sierra Leone by Lorenzo D’Angelo

This article briefly outlines the history of the colonial diamond industry of Sierra Leone from 1930 to 1961, highlighting its contingent aspects and the bonds guiding the decisions and actions taken by local social actors in different contexts and at different times. By drawing on colonial documents and memoirs of colonial officers, it shows how the colonial government of Sierra Leone and the mining company that exercised a monopoly on diamond extraction collaborated on the establishment of a series of legislative and disciplinary devices that encompassed forms of biopolitical expertise.