3

In the South of Portugal, the study of peasant claims reveals strong particularities, both historically and from a documentary point of view. Rural communities organized in municipal concelhos were born from a convergence of interests uniting the colonists and the legal authorities. Until about 1250, conflicts were resolved through customary negotiations that left few explicit references. Later, lordly control was strengthened for financial reasons, and conflicting claims were translated into legal proceedings. It then becomes possible to observe these communities in greater detail. These turn out to be still largely homogeneous despite a clear trend toward political oligarchy and land concentration, hence their continued truculence. However, they were increasingly compelled to insert themselves within a monarchic system in order to defend their interests.