The Counts of Valentinois Beyond the Rhône: Territorial Dynamics, Power Networks and Communities of Inhabitants in Vivarais (13th-15th Centuries)

Situated at the western end of the Kingdom of Burgundy, which had been attached to the Empire since the 11th century, the Vivarais is a border territory crossed by the presence of several actors with intertwined interests. If its borders are generally defined for the early Middle Ages from those of the diocese of Viviers, the creation of a bailliage in the 14th century and then of the particular States of Vivarais in the 15th century also concerned the ultra-Rhodanian areas of the dioceses of Valence and Vienne. In this context, the County of Valentinois formed a veritable principality at the beginning of the 13th century, whose power extended to both banks of the Rhône until the Poitiers family’s extinction in 1419. Through the study of the archives of this seigniory and of the lords and communities who paid tribute to it, this work aims to understand how their authority was structured and manifested on the right bank of the Rhône. The study of the dynamics that run through this space and the political interactions between the actors involved will make it possible to question the political unity that seems to have been built up during the period with the creation of the States. This work will also draw on broad contributions in digital humanities in order to study and represent the spatial dynamics and political networks that are apparent in the study of the sources.