ABSTRACT
The Habsburgs provide a unique example of the rise of a noble family in medieval Europe, as they not only enlarged their dominions in a quite spectacular way, but also managed to lay claim to the royal crown. This chapter focuses on the various practices that helped to accumulate, concentrate, fix and stabilise power within the Habsburg lands. The development of the Habsburg dominion became a success story in the time of King Rudolf I. Within the complexes of Habsburg control, monasteries, castles and, in particular, towns served as anchor points to fix power spatially, each in a different way. The foundation of monasteries allowed bonds to different religious orders to be established, and increasingly, from the second half of the thirteenth century onwards, to the mendicant orders. The early rulership of the Habsburg counts and Austrian dukes was experienced in a wide variety of activities, performed at various places.
