Entstehung und Entwicklung kleinerer Städte

198 R . Flilckiger-Seiler
founded upon an extremely weak basis : an unfavourable location within the
network of trade routes, little economic activity, a minimum of political
independence and the lack of citizens' rights are the key-words characterizing
these towns . The urban foundations after 1285 are mostly attributed to the
competitive impulse or individual founder dynasties or to the last efforts of
the declining aristocracy. The boom of towns-foundations observable around
Bulle at the beginning of the 14th century (three towns in the immediate area
of Bulle, namely Vaulruz, La Tour-de-Treme and Corbieres II) is unique in
Switzerland.
However, not all of these comparatively numerous ten towns, crowded
together within a small area, possessed all the elements that constitute a
medieval town, and only a few assumed a central role as market-town in the
region . In Basse-Gruyere a total of seven different dynasties were active as
town founders within a very limited area . In addition, three different
jurisdictional circuits overlapped . The most important political power fighting
for predominance between Freiburg and Lausanne from the 12th century to
the 14th century existed in Basse-Gruyere .
The decline of this medieval town landscape began as early as the 14th
century. Around 1350 ten towns struggled for their right to exist in Basse-
Gruyere within a distance of barely 18 km . This agglomeration limited the
market and thereby greatly restricted the basis of living for each of them ; the
reasonable relationship necessary for the economy had completely gone .
Therefore, it is hardly surprising that a radical degeneration process started in
the late 14th century. Following decades of economic difficulties, this process
was decisively accelerate by the outbreak of plague shortely before 1350 . The
evidence revealing that this first outbreak of the plague acted as a great
turning-point in the development of Basse-Gruyere is striking . In almost all
towns a rapid population decrease is demonstrated by the known land
registers . The direct results of this economic shock are remarkable : most of the
densely-crowded small towns lost their function and some disappeared from
the map forever, whereas others became rural villages . This process of change
from a town into a village may be divided into two directly interdependent
phases : firstly, the structural change of the original society and secondly, the
spatial change from a closed to an open system of construction .
Literatur
Abel, Wilhelm : Die Wüstungen des ausgehenden Mittelalters . In : Quellen und Forschungen
zur Agrargeschichte, Bd . 1 . Stutgart 1976
Ammann, Hektor: Über das waadtländische Städtewesen im Mittelalter . In : Schweizerische
Zeitschrift für Geschichte 1953, S . 1-87 .
Ammann, Hektor: Das schweizerische Städtewesen des Mittelalters in seiner wirtschaftlichen
und sozialen Ausprägung . In : Receuils de la societe Jean Bodin, tome
VII . Bruxelles 1956 .
Beresford, Maurice Warwick : New Towns of the Middle Ages - Town Plantation in
England, Wales and Gascony . London 1967 .