Een repliek op Hans Cools, 'Boekbespreking: Frederik Buylaert, Eeuwen van ambitie. De adel in laatmiddeleeuws Vlaanderen'

Seigneurial governance and the state in late medieval Guelders (14th–16th century)

“…Throughout the late medieval Low Countries, the possession of a seigneurie with high justice was also one of the few guarantees of membership to the regional nobility. 54 And so, despite its relatively high maintenance cost, the right to a seigneurial tribunal remained a desired privilege in Guelders. 55 The clear stability in the survey bears this out, for one thing.…”

Noblemen in an urbanised society: Zeeland and its nobility in the late Middle Ages

“…Overall, at least 69 ennobled families in this period had urban backgrounds. 84 This particular pattern of ennoblement did not apply generally, for the Low Countries as a whole, but it was linked to the size of the Flemish cities and the strong noble component among its ruling elites. These noble networks were absent in the towns of Holland and Zeeland, making the chances of gradual ennoblement in these places slight.…”

Noble Identity and Culture. Recent Historiography on the Nobility in the Medieval Low Countries III

“…In Flanders, for example, lineage was mostly defined as descent through the paternal line, probably also because feudal law in this region acknowledged the right of primogeniture, while noble families in Holland emphasised both their paternal and maternal ancestry. 32 The variations in family consciousness among the nobility still need further scholarly attention. Some members of the upper nobility developed a genuine dynastic ideology, supported by humanists and chroniclers, in which the old age of their lineage was blended with regional histories in support of their contemporary sociopolitical goals.…”