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WINNER THE Nathan 2 Nathan A. Daniels definition of what it meant to be French. The presence of this emerging national identity challenges traditional notions of what nationalism means outside of modernity. If there is anything that present-day scholars of nationalism agree upon, it is that the Middle Ages played no part in its development. Nationalism is inherently caught up in the equation “nation = state = people,” and as such, it cannot exist outside of the modern nation-state.4 Eric Hobsbawm follows “most serious students” in that the idea of the ‘nation’ is a “social entity only insofar as it relates to a certain kind of modern territorial state, the ‘nation-state,’ and it is pointless to discuss nation and nationality except insofar as both relate to it.”5 Similarly, Benedict Anderson includes in his definition of the ‘nation’ that it is “sovereign”—”born in an age in which Enlightenment and Revolution were destroying the legitimacy of the divinely-ordained, hierarchical dynastic realm.”6 Under such definitions, any hint of the ‘nation’ or ‘national identity’ in the Middle Ages can be readily dismissed for lacking the essential requirement of modernity. Despite these limitations, scholars of nationalism have sought to define the elusive phenomenon in exceptionally broad terms that encourage inclusivity. Anderson has famously described the nation as an “imagined political community,” whose members are linked together by the understanding that they are somehow part of a broader culture of shared values.7 Hobsbawm provides an equally broad definition, using the assumption that a nation is “any sufficientl1 large body of people whose members regard themselves. . . as such.” Similar to Anderson’s argument, a nation exists when its members imagine its existence. Calhoun departs from these definitions, framing nationalism as a discourse, a project, and an evaluation.9 However, these three dimen sions are made up from many features of the “rhetoric of nation,” which are most commonly found as claims for nationhood. His ten features consist of: boundaries; indivisibility; sovereignty; an ‘ascending’notion of legitimacy; popular participation; direct membership; culture; temporal depth; common descent or race; and historical/sacred relations to a territory.’0 While such claims to nationhood certainly cannot be quanti
Eric J. Hobsbawm, Nations and Nationalism Since 1780: Programme, Myth, Reality (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1990), 19. Ibid., 9—10. 6 Benedict Anderson, Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism (New York: Verso, 1983), 7. 7lbid.,6. Hobsbawm, Nations and Nationalism, 8. Calhoun, Nationalism, 6. ‘° Ibid., 4—5.
ExPosrfAcTo THE PROBLEM OF FRENCH NATIONAL IDENTITY 3 fled, they nonetheless can act as a guide to the more tangible aspects of nationalism and national identity. As such, they provide a fitting point of departure for considering how some form of nationalism was developing in France during the late Middle Ages. By analyzing the portrayals of French monarchy and history through symbolism, literature, and artwork, we can see that France indeed meets some of the broader criteria for nationalism as presented by Calhoun, and that the Middle Ages are an essential part of understanding the development of the nation. One of the greatest problems facing the study of nationalism in the Middle Ages stems from a lack of interest on the part of medievalists to engage with the broader literature on the subject. Ironically, there is no shortage of scholarship coming out of the nineteenth and earlytwentieth centuries pointing to the Middle Ages as the origin of nationalism and national identity.” Looking back in the past, they wanted to see why Europe had produced separate nations at all, when the overarching presence of religion and language—Christianity and Latin—might have united the continent instead. The most important contemporary work on medieval nationalism is Joseph Strayer’s On the Medieval Origins of the Modern State.’2Examining Europe between uoo and r6oo, Strayer argued that the origin of the modern state took place within this period— especially between 1300 and 145o—based on a specific set of criteria:
the appearanceofpolitical units persisting in time and fixedin space, the development of permanent, impersonal institutions, agreement on the need for an authority which can give final judgments, and accep tance of the idea that this authority should receive the basic loyalty of its subjects.’3
While Strayer’s work is an essential starting point, all of the major contemporary work by scholars of nationalism has taken place in the forty years since, rendering much of it out of date. More recently, scholars such as Gabrielle Spiegel and Collette Beaune have advocated for the rise of French nationalism through a complex system of royal symbols and imagery, as well as the importance of creating an undisput able national history.’4While such works are also invaluable to the study
For a full account of the importance of medieval Europe in the imagination of nine teenth- and twentieth-century nationalists, see Patrick J.Geary, The Myth of Nations: the MedievalOrigins of Europe (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2002). Joseph R.Strayer, On the Medieval Origins of the Modern State (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1970). ‘3lbid., 10. 4See, forinstance, GabrielleM. Spiegel,“PoliticalUtility in MedievalHistoriography:A Sketch,”History and Theory 14(1975): 314—325; and Colette Beaune,TheBirth ofan Ideology:
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is a THE PROBLEM OF FRENCH NATIONAL IDENTITY 5 the rules of the most holy kings Clovis, Charlemagne, and Saint Louis,as well as through certain symbols—the fleur-de-lys, given by God as the arms of the French monarch; Salic Law, which ensured that the royal bloodline would remain unbroken; and the HolyAmpulla, containing the sacred oil used to anoint kings, to name only a few. All of these contri buting elements to French nationalism can be categorized in a number of different ways, but if there were two ideas that dominated during the fourteen and fifteenth centuries, they would be a connection to France’s past, and its relationship with the English. The popularity of the Grandes Chroniques de France during the two centuries after its initial translation and publication stands as a testa ment to the importance that France gave to its own history. While its first version only contained events up to the death of Philip Augustus in 1223, it soon became the duty of the monks at Saint-Denis to act as official historiographers to the French crown. New additions to the history were written in Latin, and then translated into French. In the reign of Charles V, the duty was transferred to Paris, where the official court historiographer continued to update the Grandes Chroniques directly in the vernacular, until the tradition died out in the late l300s, during the reign of Charles VI. The emphasis on history allowed France to construct new ideas about its origins and its current identity in relation to that past. One of the primary ways in which the French emphasized their con nection to the past was through bloodline and ancestry. They were not simply a people brought together by wars and political boundaries, but were a race that had existed throughout time without any break. Their ancestors were of the “most noble stock,” and linked together the entire French region, even though languages and customs might have created barriers between them. It is not surprising then, that the French im agined their origins in the most illustrious of bloodlines: the Trojans. Colette Beaune has argued that nearly all French histories produced in this period began with the Trojans setting out from burning Troy, and that by the end of the Middle Ages, nearly every noble house had adopted a Trojan ancestor as the basis for its familytree.’7The purpose of this, she argues, was the “ennoblement of a collectivity” from a simple myth of origin.’8 Trojan blood carried extraordinary qualities, and adopting such a lineage not only cultivated the idea that France was innately exceptional, but also helped to explain its position as one of the
‘ Beaune, Birth of an Ideology, 226—244. See, for example, the Grandes Chroniques de France created for Charles V (Paris, Bibliotheque Nationale, Ms. fr. 2813), and others in Hedeman, The Royal Image, 154—165. 8 Beaune, Birth of an Ideology, 227.
VOLUME XIX 2010 6 Nathan A. Daniels most powerful kingdoms in the known world. Consequently, the Trojan myth also justified their Frankish lineage—the Franks were the “descen dants” of the Trojans—and helped to give France an inherent claim to the lands which it occupied. What the myth could not do, however, was explain the role of Christianity in the French kingdom. Such a task fell to another legend, and one that happens to be based in historical fact. Catholic Christianity first came to France at the turn of the sixth century, when the Franldsh king Clovis I was baptized by Saint Remi, the bishop of Rheims. Clovis is important for a number of reasons. After his conversion to Christianity, he went on to unify the remaining Frankish tribes in Gaul, bringing the territory under his control close to what it was during the later Middle Ages. In doing so, he encouraged the spread of Christianity through the First Council of Orleans in 511, and deterred the practice of Arianism. His broader historical impact on the development of the region cannot be overstated. But moreover, as the convert who brought Christianity to the French people, Clovis also became the subject of national myth. According to the legend, during Clovis’baptism, the heavens opened up, and the dove of the Holy Spirit descended upon him with a vial of oil in its beak, a clear parallel to the baptism of Jesus (fig. 1). This vial, which became known as the Holy Ampulla, was used to anoint Clovis as a Christian king. It would be preserved for centuries afterward, becoming an essential element in the coronation ceremony of French kings. Bythe mid-thirteenth century, the Ampulla had come to be unders tood as a symbol of God’s new covenant with the French people, and evidence not only that they were now the favored people of God,but also that their kings were divinely ordained. This latter factor is essential to understanding medieval French conceptions of identity and nation. The cathedral in Rhiems played a central role in affirming the connection between France and God, serving as the coronation site for French royalty throughout the Middle Ages. Henry I was the first French monarch to be crowned there in 1027, setting a precedent for others to follow.’9Bythe coronation of Louis VII in 1131, the tradition had become so well established that nearly every French king up until Charles X in 1825was crowned there. It was during the reign of Louis IXhowever, that the ritual for the coronation started to take on greater significance, diverging from similar rituals for kings of other realms. Louis created a new ceremony for coronation, known as the Ordo of 1250, which empha sized the importance of the Church in affirming a king’s divine ordina tion. In order for a coronation to be valid, it needed to contain three
Louis the Pious, the son of Charlemagne, was the first monarch to be crowned at Rheims in &6.
Ex PosT FACTO THE PROBLEM Of FRENCH NATIONAL IDENTITY 7 elements: the king must be chosen by God; his succession must be by birthright; and the Archbishop of Rheims must preside over the ceremo ny.2°It was the role of the clergy to affirm the king’s ordained status, and to grant it to him in exchange for his vow to live as an upright Christian, and to protect the Church. All of this was done through elaborate rituals and processions. The Holy Ampulla was delivered by a procession of monks from the cathedral, while the royal regalia were brought in from Saint-Denis. The new king was anointed with the holy oil, and after a full mass, took communion, processed out of the cathedral, and enjoyed a large banquet. Over the next few centuries, as this coronation ceremony was carried out, it began to enjoy the weight and significance of an ages-old tradi tion. The stories surrounding some of its origins with Clovis and the Holy Ampulla were embellished and uplifted to a point of great pride to the French people. Therein lay the origin of the French relationship with God, and the source of its divinely ordained kings. It is important to remember, however, is that like all traditions, this one was invented. According to Eric Hobsbawm, an “invented tradition” is “aset of practic es... of a ritual and symbolic nature, which seek to inculcate certain values and norms of behavior by repetition, which automatically implies continuity with the past.”2’The ritual of the Rheims coronation was no different. Through its repetition, the ceremony came to reinforce and to represent French history as well as what it presently meant to be French. As Jacques Le Goff expresses it, the imagery contained within the ceremony amounted to a “visualsummary of the whole national history that the French had invented for themselves in the Middle Ages and Renaissance.”22 Myth and ritual were not the only ways that national history was created and presented. Images, especially those in illuminated manu scripts, were also a very important part in the construction of French identity. While there are numerous examples that demonstrate such a visual link, some of the most powerful works come from the painter and illuminator Jean Fouquet. One of the most influential artists of the fifteenth century, fouquet was born in Tours around 1420, and spent considerable time in Italy. As a consequence of his travels, his style
Jacques Le Goff,“ACoronation Program for the Age of Saint Louis: The Ordo of 1250,” in János M. Bak,ed,, Coronations: Medievaland Early Modern Monarchic Ritual (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1990), 46—57. ‘ EricJ.Hobsbawm and Terrance Ranger, eds., The Invention of Tradition (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1988), 1. Jacques Le Goff,“Reims, City of Coronation.” in L.D. Kritzman, ed., Realms ofMemoiy: The Construction ofthe French Past, vol. : Symbols (New York: Columbia University Press, t988), 192.
VOLUME XIX 2010 8 Nathan A. Daniels combines the best of Italian art with the heavy influence of the Flemish style pioneered by Jan van Eyck.fouquet was patronized by those at the highest levels of French society, including kings Charles VIIand LouisXI, dukes and duchesses, and members of the growing royal administration, such as Simon de Vane and Etienne Chevalier, both of whom worked in the Treasury. For the latter, fouquet illuminated an elaborate book of hours, to which we now turn our attention.23 The Hours of Etienne Chevalier is a remarkable work—or rather, its cycle of miniatures is remarkable, as they were all cut out of the now lost manuscript some time during the eighteenth century. The forty-seven surviving miniatures come from all parts of the manuscript, and represent a diverse collection of saints, gospel scenes, and a significant devotion to the Virgin. Featuring prominently among these is Saint Etienne, Chevalier’s patron—and eponymous—saint. Most importantly, however, as is with much of Fouquet’s illumination, the entire cycle endeavors to create a visual link between the present day and Biblicalor early Church history. The cycle is also highly personalized to its patron. Etienne Chevalier himself is depicted in a double-opening miniature, along with his patron saint, kneeling and praying before the Virgin and Child, while an angelic choir and orchestra look on. In case the owner ship of the manuscript was ever called into question, nearly every miniature contains either Chevalier’s full name, or his initials “EC.” Often, they are located simply within the confines of a decorated capital, or as a placard of arms held by a cherub. In other places, his name and initials are found as architectural inscriptions, or in floor tiles and carpets. The use of architecture stands out in fouquet’s illuminations, and this is one of the primary ways in which Fouquet connected the past and the present to create historical continuity. The miniature for Terce in the Hours of the Cross depicts Jesus carrying the cross on the road to Calvary (fig. 2). In the middle of a large procession up the hill, Jesus, clothed in a (now possibly faded) purple robe, stands hunched over in the center of the image, burdened by the cross, which extends beyond the borders of the miniature. John the Apostle, clothed in red, and the Virgin, also in a blue robe, her hands together in prayer, follow behind Jesus. A Roman soldier in the procession points to the background of the image, where Judas has committed suicide and hangs from a tree, while his bowels spill onto the ground and a small demon flies off with his soul. In the fore ground, we see a depiction of the legend of the blacksmith who would not forge the nails for the crucifixion, and whose wife, identified by
The Hours of Etienne Chevalier,Chanfihly, Musée Condé, Ms. 71. Reproduced in Jean Fouquet, TheHours of Etienne Chevalier(New York: G. Braziller, 1971).
Ex PosT FACTO THE PROBLEM OFFRENCH NATIONAL IDENTITY 9
Claude Schaefer as Hédriot, completes the work instead, while a soldier inspects the two completed nails.24Between this scene in the foreground and the main image, is a historiated initial, in which Veronica stands holding up her veil, imprinted with the face of Jesus. All of the different scenes taking place in this single image provide a very detailed account of the stories taking place around the time ofJesus’ crucifixion, both the Biblical ones, such as that of Judas, and the extra- Biblical,such as the blacksmith’s wife and the veil ofVeronica. Yetby far, the most important part of the image is that which has nothing to do with the Bible. In the top left-hand corner is a walled city, surrounded by water, from which the spires of numerous buildings and churches arise. Dominating the skyline of the city isa gothic structure with a large rose window. The city is Paris, and the gothic building is a very accurate representation of the Sainte-Chapelle, standing out on the west side of the lie de la Cite. The placement of Paris inside this image does far more than simply please the patron with its familiar landscape. With the lie de la Cite in the background, the primary scene of the image is actually taking place on the Left Bank of the Seine, perhaps not all that far from where the Eiffel Tower stands today. Such a placement closely links medieval Paris with Jerusalem, just outside of which the crucifixion took place. Visually, Paris becomes the NewJerusalem, and just as the old city was the location around which important Christian events took place in the Bible, Paris is the new center of Christianity, where the ‘most Christian’ king of France, and its people reside. The French are the new chosen people of God, as evidenced by their piety, and by the deeds of their worthy kings.25 Another image from the Hours of Etienne Chevalier also illustrates God’s devotion to the French people. Titled the “Descent of the Holy Spirit,” this image accompanies the Vespers prayers from the Hours of the Holy Spirit (fig. 3). In the foreground of the image, a large group of people—clergy in stunning blue, red, and gold robes, and monks—kneel in a circle. Their hands are clasped in prayer, or raised in astonishment, as they look up to the sky. In the top of the image, the heavens have opened, and a brilliant gold shines through the opening to represent the descent of the Holy Spirit. To either side of the radiant light, winged demons flee into the edges of the image, chased away by the Spirit. Like the miniature of the road to Calvary, this scene also takes place on the banks of the Seine in Paris. The view of the city in this image is much
‘4Ibid., fig. i6. David Weiss points Outthat medieval French art also visually links French kings to Old Testament kings like Solomon and David. See David H. Weiss, Art and Crusade in theAge of Saint Louis (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998).
VOLUME XIX 2010 Nathan A. Daniels more detailed, and is likely a very accurate depiction of what the land scape looked like at the time. To the right side, is the bridge of Pont Saint-Michel. There is also a large tower as well as a number of churches that are no longer standing. The building that dominates the scene at the far end of the lie de la Cite is the unmistakable façade of the cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris, glistening in the light cast down by the Holy Spirit. The textual foundation for this image comes from the gospel of Matthew, when Jesus promises, “Butill by the Spirit of God cast out devils, then is the kingdom of God come upon you.2ó This image, then, is the fulfill ment of that promise. The heavens have opened, and the Spirit of God has come upon the French faithftil, kneeling in prayer. The kingdom of God has come upon France, as another sign that they are indeed the new chosen people, with Paris as the New Jerusalem. Just as in the image of Calvary, fouquet has connected ‘most Christian’ France to God’s favor, and reinforced its holy destiny. When considering these myths, rituals, and images, we see a pattern of identity construction closely shaped around the use of the past. All of these ideas stress a continuity throughout history that the French people and its kings occupy a special place in the eyes of God, which conse quently makes France stand apart from its European neighbors. In this, we also see a number of the elements that Calhoun uses to describe the attributes associated with the nation. Most importantly, there is an undeniable temporal depth to this rhetoric—the notion that “the nation [exists] through time, including past and future generations, and having a history.”27The sheer interest in chronicling French history attests to this, as does the importance of the origin myth with the Trojans, and the connection between kings and the coronation ritual, linking them back to Clovis. In addition, these ideas play into the view of “common des cent.” Whether or not the French had any Greek blood in them at all is irrelevant, since through a collective identity of common ancestry, “everyone—nobles and non-nobles alike, whether they were from the north or the south—was blessed with the same pure and illustrious blood.u28 As long as the French were imagining themselves as a social body connected by history and ancestry, they should be treated as such.29 While self-definition was a major aspect of French national identity, another important factor was the way that the French compared them selves to an outside social body that was distinctly not French: the English. As the Hundred Years’ War—a quarrel over dynastic succes
6 Matthew 12:28 (Douay-Rheims Version). Calhoun, Nationalism, . Beaune, Birth of an Ideology, 226. See note eight.
Ex Por FACTO THE PROBLEM OF FRENCH NATIONAL IDENTITY 11 sion—began, and dragged on, the common experience of war forced France to find new ways to define its own identity—through the legiti macy of the past, and through its own understanding of the God-given superiority of the French over the English. These ideas are expressed in a number of ways, but again we find that image and literature are an essential element to defining what it means to be French. When Jeanne d’Evreux, the third wife of the late Charles IV, gave birth to a daughter in 1328, France faced an unprecedented dynastic dilemma. The three sons of Philip IV—Charles IV being the last of them—had all died without producing a living male heir, and his daughter, Isabelle, had been married to Edward II, the king of England. White the line of succession had always passed through male heirs, no law specifically prohibited it from passing through Isabelle to her young son, Edward III. However, the French found the threat of England obtaining their throne extremely undesirable. Rather than grant Isa- belle’s claims to the throne for her son, the royal line was traced back to the closest direct male heir, Philip of Valois—grandson of Philip Ill and cousin of Isabelle—who was crowned as Philip VI, “the fortunate,” bringing the Capetian dynasty to an end. Within ten years, Edward III would challenge the right to Philip’s succession, invading France and beginning the Hundred Years’War. With the abrupt exclusion of Edward IIIfrom the throne of France, it quickly became necessary to justify such an action, and this was done simply by citing the “customs of the kingdom” to pass the throne to the closest male relative.30It was only during the reign of Charles V,with the war still going on, that a more suitabte justification was finally found. The answer came through the law codes of the Salian Franks, one of the Germanic tribes whose territory had been consolidated by Clovis. The laws, written down between the fifth and eighth centuries, had been preserved, and one in particular, entitled De allodis, specifically con cerned material inheritance within a familyclan.3’One version ofthe text reads, “Concerning Salic land, no part of it may go as an inheritance to a woman; but rather all hereditary land passes to the heirs of the male sex.”32The Salic Law, as it became known, quickly became an essential part of the defense against English claims to the throne of France, as contemporary historiographers and jurists began to include it in their writings. However, Salic Lawwas not simply used as a newly discovered justification. Rather, it was included as part of the History of France,as if it had always been the reason that French succession passed to the male
° Beaune, Birth of an Ideology, 246. ‘ Ibid., 245. Quoted in ibid., 246.
VOLUME XIX• 2010 12 Nathan A. Daniels heir. It was integrated into the stories and the mythology as something that was inherently a French quality, passed on from the reign of Clovis, if not before. Like the Holy Ampulla, Salic Law was thought to be given by God, and functioned as a timeless tradition, not directly related to current affairs, but part of a national collective identity. Despite its permeation through French culture, Salic Law did not end the Hundred Years’ War, nor was it the only way that the French asserted their superiority over the English in the matter. While the dynastic question always remained an issue, other disagreements and conflicts bubbled beneath the surface. The French monarchy again used images to assert its national identity and superiority over England. The manuscript that is most relevant in this case is a copy of the Grandes Chroniques, also illuminated by Jean Fouquet, and very likely produced for Charles VII during the late 145os.33While the war may have been over by the time the manuscript was produced, certainly the animosity between France and England had not faded. On June 5, 1286,the English king came to France to pay homage to Philip IV. Since Edward I held the title of Duke of Aquitaine, he was technically a vassal to the king of France, and such fealty was required— albeit hardly expected. Edward’s homage was not quickly forgotten. When Edward III came of age, he too agreed to travel to Paris and give homage to his distant cousin, Philip VI, whom he had never met. This meeting however, was more charged. Although Edward had not made any formal claims to the French throne, he was certainly aware that he could make a legitimate claim, and as a result was wary of pledging his full allegiance to Philip. Jean Froissart described this meeting in his Chroniques, writing:
King Edward did homage byword of mouth alone, without putting his
hands between those of the King of France. . . But by the advice of his council, the Kingof England would proceed no further with his homage without going back to England to examine such precedents as would clarify the whole question of homage and of what was due from the King of England to the King of France.34
Once Edward did lay claim to France, the homage of his grandfather would come back to haunt him, as the French were more than happy to remind him of its significance.
Erik Inglis, “Jean fouquet as Painter of National History” (PhD diss., Institute of fine Arts,New YorkUniversity,1998), 171. Jean Froissart,Chronicles, trans. GeoffreyBrereton(Harmondsworth:PenguinBooks, 1978), 55.
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In this context, we can look at an image that speaks directly to dy nastic controversy and royal legitimacy. Fouquet’s illumination of Edward I’shomage to Philip IV can be viewed as a clear work of propa ganda supporting French legitimacy (fig. 4). In this image, a crowned Philip Sits on his throne, holding the French royal regalia in his hands— the scepter in the right, and the main-de-justice in his left. A book, likely a Bible, sits open on his lap. Kneeling at his feet is Edward I, occupying the center of the image, and placing his hands on the book on Philip’s lap. While he does not place his hands in between Philip’s as described by Froissart, the gesture indicates that he is still doing more than giving homage by word of mouth. The scene takes place before Philip’s court, some of whom watch with interest, while others casually look on. There are two particularly striking aspects of this image, the first of which is the placement of Edward. While it is surprising that he occupies the central position, the fact that he is kneeling before Philip negates any prominence. The image leads visually upward following Edward’s hands to the pointed regalia held by Philip. The central placement draws attention to Edward, but in the end subordinates him to the French monarch. The second notable feature of the image is the overwhelming use ofthe color blue. The floor, the walls, the ceiling, and Philip himself are covered with goldenfleur-de-lys on a deep blue background, the arms of the king of France.35 In contrast to the field of blue is Edward, whose red robes contain the golden lion that is the arms of the king of England. There is little question that the French arms are “winning,” as they surround those of England on all sides. While this should be viewed as an assertion of French authority over England, it also serves as a visual
35Thefieur-de-lys is extremely important in and of itself, as it came to be another symbol central to the French monarchy. While the actually use of the lily-on-blue as the arms of France was a gradual process, it came to represent the divinely ordained status of France in much of the same way that the Holy Ampulla did. In fact, although it was widely adopted by Louis IXfor his building projects—the Sainte-Chapelle and the cathedral at Chartres, for example—a mythical origin grew around the symbol, eventually linking it to Clovis, as another gift from God representing his favor toward the French. A poem from around the turn of the thirteenth century, entitled Beautful Helen of Constantinople, describes this mythical origin: To [ClovisJJesus who made heaven and dew Sent an angel blessed with his resounding glory Who in an instant transformed his buckler
It had been three toads figured in gold But God did not want him to carry such arms And so sent him a miraculous set Of three gold lilies on a field of azure blue An emblem delivered to him by Jesus. (Quoted in Beaune, Birth of an Ideology, 215)
VOLUME XIX 2010 14 Nathan A. Daniels reminder of the English Duchy of Aquitaine, surrounded on all landed sides by the realms of France—and that it is indeed in a weaker position. Another image from the same manuscript—Pope Urban IIpreaching the first Crusade—presents France and England as opposites in terms of the virtue of their kings, though very subtlety (fig. 5). Here, Urban II stands prominently at the pulpit of the church at Clermont in 1095, imploring secular leaders to take up arms and free the Holy Land from its Muslim oppressors.6 The French king, Philip I, sits directly below the pulpit, regalia in hand, wearing a blue robe covered in goldfleuc-de-lys.37 To Philip’s right sit the cardinals of the church, and to his left, other nobles. A large crowd is gathered in the background, trying to get a better view of the scene before them. What makes the image especially interesting is what goes on outside of the church, in the background forest scene. Here, William II ‘Rufus’of England is killed by an arrow in a hunting accident in uoo. In contrast to the pious Philip I, listening intently to the Pope, William had fought with his brother, Robert, over control of the duchy of Normandy, and while Robert was on crusade, used the duchy to launch an attack into French territories. fouquet visually relegates the civil-war-inducing, treacherous king of England to the dark background of the forest, to draw a sharp distinction to the French king, who is not only pious, but serves God by going on crusade. If this were not enough, Fouquet depicts the deadly arrow as piercing William’s eye—despite textual evidence to support it—a wound used symbolically as punishment for especially bad rulers.8 The contrast between England and France could not be more clear. In addition to images, French literature also brought out national sentiment in the conflict with England. In particular, the writings of Christine de Pizan speak to the idea of France as a social body, wounded in the course of war, and given redemption when Charles VII is finally crowned in 1429. Christine was raised in the court of Charles V, as her father was the king’s astrologer and physician. Consequently, she was emotionally tied to the court, and was extremely moved at the death of Charles, whom she admired greatly. As one scholar has argued, Chris-
36 Philip I was not actually present in Clermont for this event. Erik Inglis has noted that Fouquet’s use of the fleur-de-lys in this image, and in many others is entirely anachronistic, as it did not become an emblem of the frenth monarchy until the thirteenth century. Despite the fact that Fouquet himself may not have actually been aware of that fact, their use allows his images to create that indissoluble link between past and present essential to the monarchy’s understanding of itself.” Erik Inglis, Image and Illustration in Jean Fouquet’s Grandes Chroniques de France,” French Historical Studies z6 (2003): 211. Inglis, “Jean Fouquet as Painter of National History,” 218—220. A precedent for eye wounds can be found in the BayeuxTapestry, with the blinding of Harold.
Ex PosT FACTO THE PROBLEM OFFRENCH NATIONAL IDENTITY 15 tine’s biography of Charles, Lelivre desfais et bonnes meurs du sage roy Charles V, allowed her to transform her personal memories into a national history—in the manner of Primat and Einhard, the biographer of Charlemagne—as well as a vehicle for a developing collective national memory.39 In a similar manner, her Livredu corps depolicie embraces the idea of a national France, aware that it consists of many types of people, but that princes, nobles, and commoners alike have responsibilities to the well being of the nation. Yet, it is in her story of a peasant girl that Christine most clearly arti culates her love for France. The short Ditlé de Jehanne d’Arc,and also Christine’s final work, expresses the sheer joy that after years of English control of northern France, Rheims had finally been liberated, and Charles VII had been crowned. Most amazingly, France’s salvation came through the actions of the peasant girl Joan of Arc,whose incredible feats against the English armies were sure proof that she was a gift from God, and that God was indeed still on their side. 40 Christine exclaims to any doubters:
This is well worth remembering: that God has wished to bestow His grace on France—and this is true—through a tender virgin. Oh, what an honor given to the French crown by this divine proofiFor by the grace He gives it it is obvious that he supports it and that more than anywhere else He finds faith in the royal estate of which I read—and there is nothing new in this—that the Lilies of France never erred in the faith.4’
Not only does Christine connect the gift of Joan to the national identity of France as the recipient of God’s grace, she also sees the “Lilies of France”—thefleur-de-lys—as a national symbol for the collective body of the French people, whose faith did not waver in times of trial. To the English, on the other hand, Christine is vengeful, chastising them for thinking that God would not come through behind the French, and that they could think they were superior. Later in the poem, she writes:
Lori J. Walters, “Christine de Pizan, France’s Memorialist: Persona, Performance, Memory,” Journal of European Studies 35 (2005): 30—45. ° The importance of Joan of Arc as a rallying symbol for France’s divine sanction has been noted by scholars such as John Aberth, who describes Joan as the French counterpart to King Arthur: “a figure who lent a divine stamp of approval to the crown.” John Aberth, From the Brink ofthe Apocalypse: Confronting Famine, War, Plague, and Death in the Later MiddleAges (New York: Routledge, 2001), 75. “ Christine de Pizan, LeDitié dejehanne d’Arc,in Renate Blumenfeld-Kosinski, ed., The Selected Writings of Christine de Pizan (New York: W. W. Norton, 1997), 254.
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Don’tyou realize,youblindpeople,that Godhas a hand in this?Those who don’tsee this are truly stupid,for how couldthis Maidhavebeen
sent to us in thisway,shewhostrikesallofyoudowndead?. . . Hasshe not led the kingwith her hand to his coronation?Greaterthingswere not done beforeAcre.Thereaswell,were manyobstacles.Butin spite of everyonehe was receivedthere gloriouslyand duly anointed, and there he heard mass.4Z
Here, Christine clearly associates Joan’s victories as led by the hand of God, so that France and its rightful king may endure. This passage is also striking for its other references. In describing Acre, Christine associates the defeat of the English, with the rousing victory of the Third Crusade, led by Philip Augustus—along with Richard the Lionheart—defeating Muslim forces and recapturing the city of Acre in u91. The images of the great French crusader kings, such as Saint Louis, come immediately to mind. The other reference is to the coronation ceremony that took place for Charles VII in Rheims. As described in the Ordo of 1250 discussed above, the king was anointed with oil from the Holy Ampulla, and after a full mass, the ceremony was completed. Although Christine de Pizan was surrounded by the luxuries of the French court, there is no reason to doubt that the voice in her writings is authentic. She may not have been the peasant maid who was inspired to take up arms and fight for the freedom of her homeland, but Christine nevertheless captured the essence of the emerging French nation, whose collective identity felt the pain of English captivity, and likewise ex pressed joy at its God-given victory and the restoration of a divinely chosen monarch. fouquet’s images and Christine’s writings speak directly to Calhoun’s argument that nations have indivisibility, sove reignty, and a popular motivation to participate in collective affairs. This leads us back to the problem of the nation in the Middle Ages. Despite the arguments of Calhoun, Anderson, and Hobsbawm that nationalism is inherently linked to the modern nation-state, there is clear evidence—by their own definitions—for the existence of an emerging national identity in late medieval France. Calhoun’s three dimensions of nationalism can all be seen in some form or another. The discourse of nationalism existed throughout the vast vernacular historio graphies of France, linking contemporary life to a distant past, and encouraging the view that the collective body of society shared a com mon ancestry, and common goals. The project of nationalism existed through created myths and rituals like the Ordo of 1250, the integration of Salic Law, and the gift of the fleur-de-lys, all of which helped to
Ibid., z6o.
Ex POSTFACTO THE PROBLEM OFFRENCHNATIONALIDENTITY promote France’s interests by grounding it in an indisputable past that was richly imbued with meaning for its populace. Finally, nationalism as an evaluation was manifest clearly in the Hundred Years’War, as France mobilized for war against the English, protecting its territory, all the while participating in a propaganda war that pitted virtuous French kings against corrupt and tyrannical English ones, and portrayed the French people as chosen by God to be superior and undefeatable. The concept of ‘nation’ for France in the late Middle Ages referred to far more than simple ethnic divisions, as people came together to imagine themselves with a shared history, and a shared future. One could argue, however, that despite all of these events, the king dom was nevertheless an oppressive monarchy that catered to the privileged few, and that the imagined France was a community of the nobility, not of the general population. Christopher Allmand highlights how difficult it was, even during times of war, to recruit from the general populace for an army to defend the far-reaching lands of the kingdom from the English.43While there is no doubt that this is true, there is also no sense in trying to argue that medieval nationalism was somehow the exact equivalent to modern nationalism. Indeed, medieval France was not a modern nation-state. Yet, these developments in national senti ment cannot be overlooked or set aside for the sole reason that they existed in the Middle Ages. Rather, it seems that in order to trace the development of the nation-state, the model needs to be broken down into its constituent parts—the nation and the state—two concepts with widely different origins, histories, and at some point, an intersection. While the state may be a product of modernity, it is clear by now that the nation—nationalism included—is not. Instead, it experienced a signifi cant period of growth during the Middle Ages, certainly in France as we have seen here, and in other parts of Europe as well. The history of nationalism should emphasize its development over time, rather than attempt to pinpoint an exact location where it began. Only in this context can the national identity of medieval France truly begin to be understood.
Nathan Daniels earned his BAin Medieval Studies and Music Histary from Oberlin Collegein 2007, and he is currentlyfinishing his MAin His tory at SFSU.In the fall of 2010, he willbejoining the History PhD pro gram at the Johns Hopkins University, where he plans tofocus on the social and cultural history of Europe in the MiddleAges.
° Alimand, TheHundredYearsWar,136—150.
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Figure i. The Baptism of Clovis from the Grandes Chroniques de France. Paris, Bibliothéque Nationale, Ms. fr. 2813, fol. 12v.
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figure 4. Edward I pays homage to Philip IV from the Grandes Chroniques de France. Paris, Bibliothëque Nationale, Ms. fr. 6465, fol. 3olv.
VOLUME XIX 2010 22 Nathan A. Daniels
Figure 5. Pope Urban II preaches the First Crusade from the Grandes Chroniques de France. Paris, Bibliotheque Nationale, Ms. ft. 6465, fol. 174.
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