sign in sign up
<<
Home , Academy, Faculty (division), Nation (university), Rector (academia), Town and gown, University of Paris

• Student Power In Medieval

V. R. CARDOZIER

Current student power efforts have precedent in medieval universities, pri­ marily at , which was a completely student-dominated . The university government was composed of students only, except for the , a church appointee whose power was limited largely to awarding degrees. were required to abide by student-approved regulations, to swear obedience to the (student) , and to follow procedures pre­ scribed by students in conduct of classes. Either by church or royal decree, students enjoyed privileges unknown today, such as freedom from taxation and military service, often freedom from arrest and trial in civil courts, and other considerations.

URRENT A'ITEMPTS by university stu­ UNIVERSITY GOVERNMENT C dents to gain more control over their own affairs and over university govern­ Student power at Bologna evolved ment in general are not a new phenomenon. naturally from the circumstances under Their desire to influence curricula. course which the university developed. It began content, teaching methods, grading, selec­ as a collection of who practiced tion and promotion of professors, to gain essentially as independent entrepreneurs. student representation on university gov­ Although the teachers formed quite erning bodies, freedom from police inter­ early, these were informal and without vention in campus demonstrations, and power. complete self-determination of non-aca­ While almost all of the teachers were demic student life, all have precedents in Bolognese, most of the students were for­ medieval universities. eigners. To protect themselves from in­ The most complete student control of justices by the city and to provide other universities occurred at Bologna during services cooperatively, the students began the 13th and 14th centuries. Most of the in the early part of the 13th century to student control at other European uni­ form , referred to as "," versities was adopted from Bologna but at based on their places of origin (Rashdall, no other university did this control equal 1936). In order to gain public ac­ or even approach that at Bologna. ceptance, these nations were patterned after the trade guilds which shortly be­ fore had come into vogue. V. R. CARDOZmR is Visiting , Center Each of the nations elected a coun­ for the Study at Higher , University cilor who, together, elected the university of Michigan. Ann Arbor. rector. All councilors and rectors were

944 Personnel and Guidance Journal students. The rector was required to be courses to be offered, through an annual at least 24 years of age, have completed meeting of all and students. at least five years' study of , be unmar­ At , in the early 14th century, ried and be a secular clerk, i.e., bear that we find that the rector must be a , designation from the church. but he was elected by the students. Students from all of the nations con­ Students also enacted university rules but stituted the congregation of the university, had little influence upon their administra­ which established rules and regulations tion. Student rioting at Angers and Or­ that applied not only to themselves but leans during the last half of the 14th also to professors and, indeed, to the ser­ century led to increased student represen­ vants, landlords, and others who did busi­ tation in university government. But at ness with the students. Professors, who Avignon, where church influence was were not permitted to be members of the strong, riots and rebellion had little effect congregation nor to vote, opposed the during the 14th century. In 1459, how­ growth of student power but were unable ever, students prevailed on Pius II to check it. In time, the faculty came to support them, which led to their gain­ to be dominated almost completely by ing two student seats on the university's the students. ruling council. While Bologna was a student-controlled At , students who were elected university, the university of was a proctors of their nations sat with the university of masters. At Paris both teach­ faculty on the university council. The ers and students were non-Parisian, thus law students insisted on privileges com­ the masters had need for a to protect parable to those at Bologna and were per­ them from the citizens. In addition, stu­ mitted to withdraw and form a university dents at Paris were much younger-usually of their own. between 13 and 16 when they entered­ At , the Bologna pattern was than those at Bologna, who were often adopted (Kibre, 1948). The rector was well past 20 when they entered and, due a student, elected annually, who was as­ to a longer period of study, were fre­ sisted by eight student councilors elected quently near 30 when they completed by the nations. Unlike at Bologna, how­ their studies. ever, the professors had a strong guild The masters at Paris were quite young, with a prior elected by themselves. many of them about the same age as the Nevertheless, all doctors, masters, licen­ students at Bologna. In fact, many of tiates, , and students were obliged the teachers at Paris were students in to take an oath of obedience to the stu­ the superior faculties-law, , and dent rector. -while serving as masters in the In German universities, students never arts university. Thus it was the masters' commanded quite the same power found guilds that constituted the congregation in universities of other countries. Rather and the governing body of the university. early in the development of the German The university at MontpeIIier was or­ university the power of the nations was ganized much like that at Paris, but the transferred to a university council, which role of students tended to be like that at was composed of teachers. Later, about Bologna. Initially, the university govern­ the only semblance of student power left ment included two proctors selected by was the student right to elect the rector. the masters and one chosen by the stu­ Lack of student power in German uni­ dents. Later, there were also two coun­ versities was due in large measure to the cilors, one of whom was a student and fact that from the beginning professors the other a (in today's term, a were endowed rather than having to rely graduate student). Although the masters on fees, and unlike Paris and Bologna, at Montpellier substantially had complete where professors were identified with a control in the beginning, students increas­ or , German professors were ingly demanded privileges enjoyed by stu­ university teachers. dents at Bologna, and by 1340 any statute When the University of St. Andrews affecting students required their consent was founded in 1411, nations were estab­ as well. Students participated in selecting lished which included both students and

June, 1968 945 faculty, all of whom participated in the deposited at the beginning of the term with election of the rector. The Bishop of Glas­ a local banker. To assure absolute surveil­ gow served as chancellor of the university lance, a committee of students was ap­ in that city but delegated his functions pointed to observe each and to to a student-elected rector. At Aberdeen, report any violations of statutes to the there were four nations of students, each rector. of which elected a proctor who together selected the rector. ACADEMIC INFLUENCE Both students and faculty enjoyed a Although student power prevailed at number of privileges from the state in the all medieval universities in varying de­ . Most of them were not grees, nowhere did student influence on new. From pre-Christian , teachers the curriculum, course content, teaching, and students had been free from taxation, and professors' behavior resemble that at free from military service, and in many Bologna. This power was based on the places free from arrest and trial by civil fee-paying system. Each student negoti­ authorities (Norton, 1909). ated directly with his professor concerning But these privileges did not automat­ fees. Any professor who failed to comply ically come to students and faculty. It with the rules and regulations passed by was because they did not enjoy the same the congregation was boycotted, thereby protection as citizens of Bologna that the terminating his income. foreign students organized themselves into In the early organization of nations, nations. When they gained power, the little attempt was made by students at students were almost insatiable in their Bologna to control academic matters. But demands. as their power grew, students came to The townspeople were cowed by the have virtually absolute control over pro­ students and the professors, both of whom fessors and their teaching. used the migration as a threat to force The university statutes regulating pro­ compliance with their wishes. Threats by fessors' teaching were detailed and lengthy. students and faculty to move to another The first required that professors take an city were by no means hollow. Migra­ oath of obedience to the (student) rector tions were quite common during the Mid­ and to abide by all regulations that might dle Ages. Most of the major universities be imposed on them. Professors were of were begun or developed by forbidden to be absent from classes, even professors and students who had become for a single day, without good excuse and unhappy at Bologna or Paris. Such mi­ then only after approval by the class, the grations were simple affairs since there councilor, and the rector. Students were were no university buildings, libraries, or pledged by oath to report any professor equipment to limit mobility. Classes were who was absent without permission. If held in professors' homes, in churches, the professor failed to attract at least five rented halls, and assorted other build­ students to a given , he was con­ ings. sidered absent himself and fined. Students gained many concessions from Student statutes also required that the the city of Bologna. Foremost was the professor start his lecture at the beginning granting to the university (student) rector of the , cover each section sequen­ authority over law violations by students, tially, and complete the book by the end including criminal acts in which both prin­ of the term. He was not permitted to skip cipals were students. In 1432, students a difficult portion, with a view to returning could be arrested only with permission of to it at the end of the term, lest it be the rector (Kibre, 1962). overlooked entirely. Student control permeated the entire In a later period the professor was re­ city. University officials inspected each quired to complete each section of the house for rental to students and set the book according to a predetermined sched­ rental rate. If the landlord exceeded this ule. If he failed to achieve the schedule rate the house was boycotted by students he was fined from a sum which he had for five years. Rates and services of trades-

946 Personnel and Guidance Journal men were also monitored and transgres­ also privileged not to be moved from Paris sions were punished by withholding stu­ to testify at trials; the trials had to be dent business. A university-appointed moved to Paris if they were to testify. committee of four student officials ex­ At Vienna, students enjoyed many privi­ amined and approved money lenders and leges. If accused of capital crimes, they regulated the rates of interest that could were tried before the chancellor of the be charged students for money bor­ university, rather than before civil authori­ rowed. ties, and for lesser offenses, before the rec­ The many demands and harsh sanctions tor. The students were also privileged to placed upon the city and its people re­ demand lodgings of their choice in a par­ sulted in almost continuous conflict be­ ticular section of the city and at rates set tween the students and the citizens of by arbitration. Although students at Bologna. Vienna had more privileges than those at At Paris there were difficulties between Paris, Vienna was nonetheless a university students and the citizens throughout most of masters. of the Middle Ages. Frequently the young At , difficulties between town and masters of arts were involved alongside gown were similar to those at Paris. The the students; this gave the latter more citizens were frequently abused by stu­ power in their threats to migrate. Most dents and found little comfort in either reported incidents of "town and gown" the church or crown in seeking relief. In trouble at Paris and Oxford began in tav­ 1355 the people of the town of Oxford erns. killed several students of the university in In 1200 a battle in a tavern at Paris a brawl that started in a tavern. The king resulted in several students being slain by not only punished the offenders, but estab­ police. The king, fearing the students lished a law virtually subjecting the town would migrate, condemned the police and to the rule of university officials. The ordered the burning of the homes of the chancellor was given jurisdiction over pri­ citizens who had fought the students. He vate citizens in any case where one of the also decreed that in the future police must principals was a student. hand students over to the church for pun­ ishment, and required that Parisians take IN LOCO PARENTIS an oath not to harm students and to re­ The principle of in loco parentis was port anyone seen harming a student. almost unknown in the early Middle Ages. The best known battle of students and In German universities, then as now, stu­ townspeople at Paris occurred in 1229. dents were expected to arrange their own A group of students, drinking at a sub­ lodgings and to be completely responsible urban tavern, assaulted the tavern keeper. for their own activities and behavior. He called for assistance and with the help A secondary purpose of the nations of neighbors retaliated by beating the stu­ organized at Bologna was to make it pos­ dents severely. The following day the sible for students to acquire houses for students returned with reinforcements and lodging and to operate them as coopera­ virtually destroyed the tavern. When the tives. Such arrangements were solely the police went to a playing field to arrest responsibility of the students. The fact the students, a battle ensued in which sev­ that they were older than students else­ eral students were killed. This brought where was undoubtedly a factor in the about serious conflict between town and kind of independence they enjoyed. gown and was the basis of several migra­ At Paris, students had to shift for them­ tions of students and teachers-to Oxford, selves in the beginning. Later, to make Orleans, Toulouse, and others. it possible for poor students to study at the Again, because of student and faculty university, charitable organizations and threats, King Philip issued a proclamation persons purchased and endowed houses in 1306 stating that all university teachers for them. These were known as hospices and students at Paris were under special and later as . Initially the stu­ guardianship and should be free from an­ dents operated the hospices themselves noyances, injury, oppression, and violence but soon a was placed in by citizens. Students and faculty were each house, which led to increased control

June, 1968 947 over students' hours, behavior, and activi­ and by 1381 there were 23 chairs in the ties. university underwritten by the city. At Oxford and , students As the number of chairs and the city's tended to be quite young, like those at financial contributions increased, gradually Paris. They were very likely to be little the city came to have more influence on the if any older when they received the B.A. university. A board of governors, com­ than today's high seniors. In the posed of citizens, was established which early years of Oxbridge, students enjoyed assumed responsibility for the selection of considerable freedom. Student residence professors to fill the chairs. This led to halls were presided over by a , replacement of the autonomy of the na­ elected from their numbers. The arriving tions by university authority. Student student customarily took lodging for a power was on the wane, even though the night or two at a local inn while deciding post of rector continued to be filled by an which residence hall and master to choose. elected student up to 1796 when Napo­ Often emissaries visited him to recruit leon's troops captured Bologna and dis­ him for a master. persed the university. When the univer­ Until the beginning of the 15th century, sity was reformed in 1798, the position of Oxbridge students were relatively free from rector was filled by a professor. university restrictions. During that cen­ We have seen how the institutionalizing tury, however, marked changes occurred, of lodging with faculty supervision laid and at the end of it the pattern was virtu­ the foundation for the concept of in loco ally reversed. Masters came to serve as parentis at Oxford and to a lesser extent principals of the residence halls, students at Paris. By the beginning of the 16th were required to be in their lodgings by century a pattern of student life and fac­ an early hour in the evening, and by the ulty control had been established at Ox­ turn of the century floggings were not ford and Cambridge that was to prevail uncommon. From that time, stringent for the centuries to come. These institu­ rules were instituted and governed the lives tions served as models for the colleges of Oxbridge students for the centuries to established in the American colonies dur­ come. ing the 17th and 18th centuries. It was, therefore, inevitable that the English pat­ LOSS OF POWER tern, coupled with a strong Puritan ethic, Students at Bologna were unwittingly would foster a high degree of faculty con­ a party to the tempering of their own trol in American colleges up to and includ­ power. The extremes of student control ing part of the 20th century. became increasingly irritating to professors, especially the unpleasant task of negotiat­ REFERENCES ing and collecting fees. It was not un­ KmRE, P. The nations in the mediaeval uni­ common to find a famous professor en­ versities. Cambridge, Mass.: Mediaeval gaged in undignified bargaining with a of America, 1948. student about fees. Professors appealed to KmRE, P. Schowrly prioileges in the Middle the city of Bologna to provide endowed Ages. Cambridge, Mass.: Mediaeval Academy of America, 1962. chairs. The first two chairs were estab­ NORTON, A. O. Readings in the history of lished in 1230, and since the students were education: mediaeval universities. Cam­ to select the two professors to fill the chairs bridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, each year, the students eagerly assisted in 1909. RASHDALL, H. Universities of Europe in the appeals for additional chairs. The idea of Middle Ages. (2nd ed.) : salaried professors continued to develop , 1936.

948 Personnel and Guidance Journal