New power elite emerged in medieval Iceland as the island became Norwegian

University of Gothenburg ^ | May 16, 2011 | Unknown

[decimon]

How did the local hereditary “chiefs” system differ from an aristocracy since most of them wound up as the aristocracy.

Maybe it's a matter of scale. When northern Europe had tribes, it had chiefs and subordinates. When it coalesced into nations, it had kings and aristocracies.

[SunkenCiv]

I like some of the Teaching Company stuff, but some of it is piss-poor (I’ve checked some out of the local library in the past), and it’s pricey.

[SunkenCiv]

Twins? Alright! I just hope that IMF guy’s never been in Iceland.

[AndrewB]

They were an anarcho-syndicalist commune. They took it in turns to act as a sort of executive officer for the week.But all the decisions of that officer had to be ratified at a special biweekly meeting by a simple majority in the case of purely internal affairs—but by a two-thirds majority in the case of external matters.

[Squawk 8888]

In the Icelandic Free State, the aristocrats had to compete for the allegiance of the farmers. If a farmer felt that the baron was not offering adequate protection, or was charging too much taxes, he was free to find another baron.

[Sawdring]

You win the best double post of the day contest. ;)