Peasant Agency and the Supernatural

Abstract

Engaging with supernatural forces was a necessity for Carolingian peasants – Christian authorities expected this and the belief in the inevitability of these acts seems to have been widely shared by contemporaries who lived in a world far beyond their control. Miracle collections show that peasants (and others) made conscious decisions about the way in which they wanted to interact with supernatural forces. In doing this, they also took into account the networks of individuals and institutions who controlled the saints’ resting places, which could provide invaluable support for those seeking help. Others chose practices beyond what contemporary elites regarded as legitimate, such as hiring weather-makers to prevent bad weather. In some cases, peasants actively sought to enter into a saint’s dependency, either by giving themselves to the saint or by convincing their lords to hand them over to a saint and his or her shrine.