Urban Diplomacy: Toulouse and Its Neighbors in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries

"Urban Diplomacy: Toulouse and Its Neighbors in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries." In the years 1202-1204, the consuls of Toulouse concluded twenty-two treaties with neighboring towns. This burst of activity is all the more interesting because it coincides with the period of ascendancy of "new men" in the town consulate. Neither the causes which led up to the conclusion of these treaties nor the arrival of this new group of citizens on the political scene have been adequately explained. This article first looks closely at the treaties to better understand the situation that produced them, and then seeks an explanation of the relationship between the treaties and the changes in the consulate's membership. A close examination of the terms of the treaties, along with an investigation into the goals and interests of the new consuls, sheds light both on this period of diplomacy and on the coming to power of these "new men."