Financing Cathedral Building in the Middle Ages

Wim Vroom is former director of the Department of Dutch History at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. He was also professor by special appointment of Dutch Cultural History at the University of Amsterdam.

• Preface, Introduction, Part One the sources of income for cathedral building in the middle ages Chapter One Managing the cathedral church: the cathedral fabric Chapter Two Sources of income for the building works 1 Short-term diocesan collections 2 Long-term diocesan collections: the mendicatoria Part Two The Financing of Cathedral Building in the Middle Ages Chapter 3 The financing of the building works at Utrecht Cathedral: a case study 1 Contributions from the chapter 1525 2 Gifts and bequests 3 Devotional and indulgence monies offered in Utrecht Cathedral 4 Episcopal mendicatoria and synodal statutes 5 The reportationes sancti Martini 6 The quest monies 7 Income from property: rents and annuities 8 Financing transactions: the cathedral fabric as lender and borrower 9 The sale of building materials and church treasure Chapter 4. A survey of construction financing at several cathedrals, Notes, Appendices, Archives, Bibliography, Index of place-names, Illustration credits.

"The book ... is likely to become the standard point of reference for anyone interested in its subject. But it is much more than that, as it gives invaluable insights into the financial realities of some of Europe's major religious institutions, and opens a windo on important aspects of medieval culture." - P.S. Barnwell, Kellogg College, University of Oxford "What he has given us is a masterly piece of fine scholarship, describing and clarifying many difficult questions of institutional history with respect to cathedral building in the late Middle Ages. From this point of view, the book will remain a classic. It will be a precious and necessary basis for further research about problems of structural change in the period concerned" -- Prof.em. Herman Van der Wee, Anthony Van Dyck Chair, U.C.L.A. "[...] deze monumentale , schitterend gedrukte, en erudiete, maar steeds even vlot leesbare [...] economische analyse , die haar kracht ontleent [...] aan de voortdurende verwijzing naar andere domeinen en dimensies van de geloofsbeleving'" -- Prof. Dr. Willem Frijhoff, Emeritus professor of Early Modern History, VU University "[...] Depuis quelques années des études importantes telles celles de Duby [...] ont démontré à juste titre la nécessité de replacer [...] les cahtédrales non seulement dans leur cadre culturel et artistique, mais aussi dans leur contexte social, économique et administratif. L'étude de W.H.Vroom [...] s'insère parfaitement [...] dans le genre de travaux aussi bien pas ses buts que par ses qualités" - Prof.em.dr. Frans Verhaeghe