Abstract

Inquisition legislation devoted a significant amount of attention to the division and distribution of confiscated property. Although this expectation was built into it by the late twelfth-century episcopal anti-heretical measures, it took on particular significance in the context of the impoverished dioceses of southern France. The involvement of the regional episcopate in the early heresy tribunals provided them with an opportunity to shore up their position and authority, and control of goods was a central part of that. This helped cement confiscation as a tool in anti-heretical action, not only as a straightforwardly coercive measure, but also as way to express the authority behind that coercion.