The Plow, the Pen and the Sword by Künzel Rudi; & Claire Weeda

Author:Künzel, Rudi; & Claire Weeda
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Group
Published: 2017-08-13T00:00:00+00:00

The source: the Gesta abbatum Trudonensium

In the years 1114–1115 Rudolph, an educated monk who in 1108 became Abbot of Sint-Truiden, wrote a chronicle of his monastery, The Deeds of the Abbots of St. Trudo (Gesta abbatum Trudonensium), made up of seven books.15 The title is well-chosen, for the abbots take centre stage in this book. If we are to believe Rudolph, they held responsibility for the fortunes of the monastic community and all who depended on it. Yet he also repeatedly devotes considerable attention to events occurring within the urban community. This is quite exceptional for a clerical writer, and therefore requires an explanation.

Several factors may underlie this attention: Rudolph’s personal experiences, but also the political situation at the time of his abbacy and in the period just preceding it. Gislebertus, the so-called first continuator, who in 1136–1137 in the first sequel to Rudolph’s historical narrative described his life and abbacy,16 informs us that Rudolph came from the village of Moustier-sur-Sambre and that his parents were plebei, ‘commoners’, who belonged to the familia of the nunnery located there.17 Unlike many other abbots of his day, Rudolph was not a member of the nobility. Still, his parents must have been village notables, given that they could afford to send him to school. Rudolph entered the monastery upon turning 18.18 Prior to this, he had the opportunity to gain experience of the world outside the monastery. Rudolph’s biographer tells us that he lived in the city of Liège for a while in order to gain an education.19 At that time he would have dealt directly with urban dwellers, which may have contributed to his ability to observe and describe the population with discernment.

And then there was the political situation in Sint-Truiden during his abbacy (1108–1138) and the preceding decades. Even if he desired otherwise, still he could not afford to close his eyes to the fact that both the abbot’s appointment (his main protagonist) as well as the abbacy itself were, from the middle of the eleventh century, constantly subjected to external interference. In this period the influence of bishops and regional rulers repeatedly made itself felt in the monastic community. Internally, another rift was brewing. Services provided by villeins increasingly were supplanted with monetary payments. Members of the familia began to usurp the monastery’s property and income or tried to conceal their servile status. The mood of the townspeople and their willingness to act emerged as significant factors that the abbot of Sint-Truiden now had to take into account. Rudolph’s historical work reflects this relative openness to the world outside the monastery, necessitated by changing circumstances.

In the course of time, various sequels to Rudolph’s historical work materialized. Giselbertus, the first continuator, was Rudoph’s friend and pupil.20 In 1136–1137, he produced a description of Rudolph’s abbacy, recorded in Books 8 and 10–13 of the Gesta abbatum Trudonensium.21 At the end of the twelfth century the second continuator described the history of the abbacy from 1138 to 1180.22

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