1992/01/01 by Sharon Kettering
Arts and Humanities · Economics, Econometrics and Finance · #European Political History Analysis #Historical Economic and Social Studies #Historical Art and Culture Studies
paper · doi:10.2307/286830
What is patronage? The French word denotes a superior's protection and support of an inferior, as does the English word. But in addition, the English word has a whole series of meanings that never existed in, or have disappeared, from the French. in English may mean a kindness done with an air of superiority or condescension, the power to make appointments to office, a mode of recruitment to officeholding, that is, offices distributed on the basis of patronage, and the offices so distributed. It also meant, historically, a system of personal ties and networks that was pervasive politically and socially in early modern Europe. Used in that sense here, the English word patronage denotes an individual relationship, multiple relationships organized into networks, and an overall system based on these ties and networks. Another English word for this system is clientelism.' Patronage relationships are probably most visible and easily documented, and thus most frequently analyzed, in a political context.