The Construction of Episcopal Identity: the Meaning and Function of Episcopal Depictions Within Latin Saints’ Lives of the Long Twelfth Century
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1 The Construction of Episcopal Identity: The Meaning and Function of Episcopal Depictions within Latin Saints’ Lives of the Long Twelfth Century Submitted by Matthew Michael Mesley to the University of Exeter as a thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in History, September 2009. This thesis is available for Library use on the understanding that it is copyright material and that no quotation from the thesis may be published without proper acknowledgement. I certify that all material in this thesis which is not my own work has been identifie d and that no material has previously been submitted and approved for the award of a degree by this or any other University. Matthew Michael Mesley ........................................................................................ 2 3 Abstract My PhD offers a reassessment of the representation of English bishops within episcopal vitae composed between 1093 and 1214. It argues that the depiction of episcopal sanctity was shaped by the expectations of the community for which these texts were written and the hagiographer’s specific causa scribendi (reasons for writing). Through an investigation of four distinct Latin episcopal saints’ lives, I investigate the relationship between hagiographical function, episcopal identity and patronage by setting each text within its specific institutional and historical context. The vitae I have selected are: Faricius of Arezzo’s life of Aldhelm (c.1093-1099), William Wycombe’s life of Robert Bethune ( c.1148-1150) and Gerald of Wales’s lives of Remigius ( c.1198-1199) and Hugh of Avalon ( c.1210-1214). One aim of my thesis has been to establish the precise hagiographical function of each text . As such, each chapter begins by providing a textual history of the particular vita in question, and situates the source within its historical and cultural environment. By reflecting upon the local circumstances surrounding the production of these texts, we establish how different twelfth- century religious communities sought to interpret the episcopal office in the light of their own spiritual values and concerns. The thesis also demonstrates that these texts were all written for a particular purpose, including didactic instruction, propaganda, and to construct the way a community remembered its past and/or to promote an institution’s cult. Yet, we also show how each author employed different techniques and hagiographical models to achieve his objective. By investigating the ways in which episcopal vitae were composed in their specific 4 localities and how bishops were represented in these texts, we can look afresh at the wider religious environment of the twelfth century. 5 Acknowledgements I am grateful to many people for their help, both direct and indirect, for assistance in writing my PhD. It is my greatest regret, therefore, that I do not have space here to thank them all, so I must start by offering my apologies if I inadvertently omit anyone to whom special acknowledgement is due. First and foremost my thanks go to the AHRC and the IHR for a Scouloudi Award, without whose generous financial support this thesis would not have been possible. By no means less influential has been the steady guiding hands of my supervisors, Drs Sarah Hamilton and Julia Crick. Both have demonstrated a remarkable degree of patience and kindness and furnished me with much invaluable advice. I very much appreciate both their management and support. I could not continue without also thanking my fellow students and closest friends. A number of friends have looked over drafts of this thesis, including Helen Birkett, Jennifer Helen Davey, Atsushi Iguchi and Aisling O’Donnell. Others have provided accommodation during research trips, notably Alison Carrol, Tamsin Rowe, Caitlin McDonald and Maddy Morgan. On a final note, I would like to particularly thank my partner, Christopher Bonfield. His constant and continuous support has helped me stay the course. He knows the degree to which I appreciate everything he has done and the extent to which I hope to redress the balance. 6 Contents Page Abbreviations 9 Introduction: 11 I. An Approach to the Issues: Miles Crispin’s Vita Lanfranci 11 II. Historiography 17 (a) Work on English Bishops 19 (b) Approaches to Historiography 29 (c) Identity 34 III. Methodological Approach 43 IV. Sources Considered 45 V. Structure 48 Chapter 1: Vita Sancti Aldhelmi 50 I. Faricius’s Vita Sancti Aldhelmi 51 (a) The Text: Manuscripts, Editions, Recensions and Date 51 (b) The Author 56 II. William of Malmesbury’s Account of the VSA 60 III. Approaches to the VSA 63 IV. William of Malmesbury’s Treatment of the VSA 66 V. The Use of Oral Sources in the Work of William of Malmesbury and Faricius of Arezzo 71 (a) Malmesbury’s Hagiographical Traditions 71 (b) Compositional Methods 72 (c) Faricius: An Outsider? 81 VI. Faricius’s Treatment of the VSA 83 (a) The Audience for the VSA 84 (i) The Significance of the Dedication to Osmund, Bishop of Salisbury 84 (ii) Osmund, Bishop of Salisbury 86 (iii) The Cult of the Saints at Salisbury 89 (iv) Bishop Osmund’s Relations with Malmesbury 94 VII. The Depiction of Aldhelm as Bishop: A Comparison 100 VIII. Conclusion 111 7 Chapter 2: Vita Roberti Bethune 113 I. Introduction 113 II. The Composition of the VRB 117 (a) Date 117 (b) Manuscripts Containing the VRB 118 (c) Editions 122 III. The Structure of the VRB and its Intended Audiences 122 (a) Structure 122 (b) The Prologue as Evidence for External Audiences 125 (c) An Internal Audience? The Significance of the Foundation of Lanthony Secunda 128 IV. Pastoral Models in the VRB 134 (a) The VRB : The Portrait of Robert Bethune as ‘Bonus Pastor’ 134 (b) The VRB : The Depiction of Robert as Prior 137 (c) The VRB : Robert’s Elevation to the See of Hereford 144 (d) The VRB : The Depiction of Robert as Bishop 146 V. Asceticism within the VRB 149 (a) Background 149 (b) Foundation of Llanthony 152 (c) Asceticism with the VRB and the Influence of Augustine and the Rule of Augustine 157 (d) Flagellation within the VRB 168 (e) The Bishop and His Community: The VRB in Context 172 VI. Conclusion 176 Chapter 3: Vita Sancti Remigii : 178 I. Introduction 178 II. The Date and Structure of the Text 181 (a) Date 181 (b) Manuscript 183 (c) Editions 184 III. The Sources Used by Gerald to Represent Lincoln’s Past 189 (a) Earlier Scholarship 189 (b) Gerald’s Sources 191 IV. Gerald’s Hagiography 196 V. The VSR 200 (a) The Proemium to the VSR 200 (b) The Preface to the VSR 202 (c) The Life and Death of Remigius 208 (d) Remigius’s Successors at Lincoln 218 8 (e) De episcopis Angliae tergeminis 223 (i) Earlier Scholarship 224 (ii)The Re-use of DEAT in Gerald’s Other Works 226 (iii) View of Episcopal Office 226 (iv) The Liberty of the Church 237 VII. Conclusion 239 Chapter 4: Vita Sancti Hugonis : 241 I. Introduction 241 II. Manuscript and Text 244 (a) Composition of the VSH and MS CCCC 425 244 (b) The Proemium to the VSH 246 (c) Manuscript Context and Editions 248 (d) Audience for the Manuscript 250 III. Audience 253 (a) Stephen Langton 253 (b) Hugh of Wells, Bishop of Lincoln 254 (c) Roger of Rolleston & the Lincoln Cathedral Chapter 259 IV. The Miracles Within the VSH 262 (a) Role of Chapter in the Cult 262 (b) Role of Other Elites 267 (c) The Identity of the Chapter 271 V. Depicting Episcopal Identity 273 (a) Gerald’s VSH : Hugh’s Earlier Life 274 (b) Textual Models of the Depiction of Hugh in the VSH 278 (c) Thomas Becket as a Model for the VSH 282 (d) VSH : Hugh as Model for Delivery of Pastoral Care 302 VI. Summary 315 Conclusion 316 Bibliography 326 9 List of Abbreviations ANS Anglo-Norman Studies BHL Bibliotheca Hagiographica Latina : antiquae et mediae aetatis , 3 Vols. (Brussels, 1898-1911) BL British Library, London Council and Synods Councils and Synods with Other Documents Relating to the English Church. Vol.1, pt. 2: 1066-1204 , ed. D.Whitelock, M.Brett, C.N.L.Brooke (Oxford, 1981) DAA ‘De Abbatibus Abbendoniae’ in Chronicon monasterii de Abingdon , ed. J. Stevenson, 2 Vols. (London, 1858), Vol.2, Appendix I, pp. 268-94 DEAT De episcopis Anglicae tergeminis (in VSR , chapters 27-29) Du Cange C.Du Fesne, Sieur Du Cange, Glossarium ad scriptores mediae et infirmae latinitatis , 3 Vols. (Paris, 1678); supp. (Lyon, 1688); new extended ed. G.A.L.Henschel, 7 Vols. (Paris, 1840-1850) EEA English Episcopal Acta (London, 1980, -) GCO Giraldi Cambrensis Opera , ed. J.S.Brewer, J.F.Dimock and G.F.Warner, 8 Vols. (London, 1861-1891) GE Gerald of Wales, Gemma Ecclesiastica , trans. J.Hagen (Leiden, 1979) GP William of Malmesbury, Gesta Pontificum Anglorum : The History of the English Bishops , ed. and trans. M.Winterbottom and R.M.Thompson, 2 Vols. (Oxford, 2007) GR William of Malmesbury , Gesta Regum Anglorum : The History of the English Kings , ed. R.M.Thomson and M.Winterbottom, 2 Vols. (Oxford, 1998-1999) HEA Historia Ecclesie Abbendonensis : The History of the Church of Abingdon , ed. and trans. J.Hudson, 2 Vols. (Oxford, 2002-2007) LAC Corpus of British Medieval Library Catalogues: Volume 6: The Libraries of the Augustinian Canons , ed. T.Webber and A.G.Watson (London, 1998) 10 MVSH Adam of Eynsham, Magna Vita Sancti Hugonis : The Life of St Hugh of Lincoln , ed. and trans. D.L.Douie and D.H.Farmer, 2 Vols. (Oxford, 1985) Niermeyer J.F.Niermeyer, Mediae Latinitatis lexicon minus: a Medieval Latin- French/English Dictionary (Leiden, 1954-1955) PL Patrologiae cusus completus. Patres ... ecclesiae latinae , ed. Jacque-Paul Migne , 217 Vols. (Paris, 1844-1855) SCH Studies in Church History SE GCO , Vol.