La frontière en partage. Conflit, coopération et co-gouvernement entre Luxembourg, Metz et le Barrois (1257–1508)

Abstract: „At the end of the Middle Ages, the Duchies of Luxembourg, Bar and Lorraine were part of the Holy Roman Empire. In this area, which can be described as Lotharingian, the powers were not yet states: independent lordships, free cities and principalities coexisted. Borders were simply jurisdictional boundaries, often intertwined. Some territories were jointly administered, such as the Terres communes (‘Common Lands’) between Bar and Luxembourg. Certain powers were shared, such as coining money. The absence of a state also allowed the nobles to manage the public peace themselves and to be involved in cross-border cycles of violence and negotiation. Cross-border cooperation was therefore necessary before the existence of the modern state, which emerged at the same time in the kingdom of France. After the Burgundian Wars (1475–1482), René II of Anjou-Lorraine was the first to attempt to build a state border between his principality and Maximilian of Austria's Duchy of Luxembourg. He outlined territorial control through taxation, the fortification of the frontiers and the fight against smuggling. However, state reforms did not permanently challenge this traditional territoriality, which was based on what Ducan Hardy has termed an “associative political culture”.“