Vexatio Falsorum Fratrum: The Medieval Laybrother in the Order of Sempringham in Context By Nick Johnston A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Centre for Medieval Studies University of Toronto © Copyright by Nick Johnston 2017 Nick Johnston i Vexatio Falsorum Fratrum: The Medieval Laybrother in the Order of Sempringham in Context Nick Johnston Doctor of Philosophy Centre for Medieval Studies University of Toronto 2016 Abstract This dissertation examines the laybrothers and laysisters of the Order of Sempringham, otherwise known as the Gilbertines, after their founder, Gilbert of Sempringham, and with a particular emphasis on their revolt that took place in the middle of the twelfth century. The view of the revolt is entirely one-sided in historiography, and in this dissertation I ask how it should be perceived and suggest a very different take on the matter. In order to provide context to the revolt and its aftermath, it is necessary to examine both the institution of laybrotherhood and the Order of Sempringham in closer detail. In the first chapter I study the historiography concerning when and how laybrothers arose (and eventually declined to much reduced numbers) as an institution and the various ways in which the laybrothers in general have been defined. In the second chapter I introduce the Gilbertine primary sources and discuss the history of the Order of Sempringham. My third chapter concentrates on the Gilbertine laybrothers' revolt itself in context and fourth on the reputation incurred by laybrothers both generally as as institution in the Middle Ages and more specifically, those involved in the Gilbertine revolt. My fifth chapter considers the daily life of Gilbertine laybrothers and laysisters as a consequence of the revolt and suggests why no laysisters were involved in the revolt. Overall, this dissertation shows that Nick Johnston ii the Gilbertine laybrothers had good reasons for their revolt, and that rather than being rebuked and reviled, they ought to be listened to for attempting to deal with what they perceived as problems within the order. More generally, it is my opinion that medieval laybrothers have been unfairly portrayed, and this dissertation is in part an attempt to rectify that situation. Nick Johnston iii Table of Contents Introduction 1 Chapter 1: The Historiography of Laybrothers Within the Medieval Monastery 7 Chapter 2: A Brief History of the Order of Sempringham 41 Chapter 3: The Revolt of the Gilbertine Laybrothers 88 Chapter 4: The Reputation and Portrayal of Laybrothers 131 Chapter 5: The Daily Life of the Gilbertine Laybrother and Laysister 169 Conclusion 219 Bibliography 221 Nick Johnston 1 Introduction In the middle of the twelfth century, laybrothers belonging to the Order of Sempringham revolted against the founder of the order, Gilbert of Sempringham. They made several serious charges concerning discipline and morality (or lack of it) in the order's houses, but ultimately, their rebellion failed. The accusations they had made were declared to be baseless and wholly without merit, at least according to the Gilbertine canons who wrote the history of the order and to many of England's contemporary religious authorities who wrote in support of Gilbert and against the laybrothers. They were labeled as "false brothers" by the author of Gilbert's Vita, accused of being liars, thieves and even would-be murderers.1 This view of the revolt is entirely one-sided, and in this dissertation I ask how we should perceive the revolt and suggest a very different take on the matter. I intend to show that the Gilbertine laybrothers had good reasons for their actions, and that rather than being rebuked and reviled, they ought to be listened to for attempting to deal with what they perceived as problems within the order. It is my opinion that medieval laybrothers generally and Gilbertine laybrothers in particular have been unfairly portrayed, and this dissertation is in part an attempt to rectify that situation. In order to provide context to the revolt and its aftermath, it is necessary to examine both the institution of laybrotherhood and the Order of Sempringham in closer detail. In the first chapter I will examine the historiography concerning when and how laybrothers arose (and eventually declined to much reduced numbers) as an institution and the various ways in which laybrothers in general have been defined. In the second chapter I will introduce the Gilbertine primary sources and discuss the history of the Order of Sempringham. My third chapter will concentrate on the Gilbertine laybrothers' revolt itself in context and my 1 Liber Sancti Gileberti, in Book of St Gilbert, edited by Raymonde Foreville and Gillian Keir, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1987, chapter 25, 76. The chapter concerning the revolt is titled vexatio falsorum fratrum or "the disturbance of the false brothers." The laybrothers are called liars (mentientes) (78), thieves (aggregauerunt sibi proprietates furto) (78) and maligned as theoretical murderers (quia magistrum ordinis et plures canonicorum suorum…uel iam eiecissent a domibus ordinis uel neci tradidissent) (142-144). See chapter four for more such attacks on Gilbertine laybrothers. Nick Johnston 2 fourth on the reputation incurred by laybrothers both generally as an institution in the Middle Ages and more specifically, those involved in the Gilbertine revolt. My fifth chapter will consider the daily life of Gilbertine laybrothers and laysisters as a consequence of the revolt and suggest why no laysisters were involved in the revolt. Unless otherwise stated, all translations have been done by myself. Although the institution of laybrotherhood still exists within modern monasticism, for the purposes of my research I am focusing on the period between the inception of laybrotherhood in the eleventh century and the early thirteenth century, when it started its decline and changed quite radically, especially in numbers.2 It is this period which provides context to the revolt of Gilbertine laybrothers and allows us to explore the immediate aftermath of the revolt on the Order of Sempringham. Since the order was unsuccessful in establishing a presence outside of England, the geographical borders of my research are also effectively defined, though I will use examples of continental European monasteries on occasion to provide further context, comparisons or contrasts. Laybrothers and laysisters (often known as conversi and conversae respectively) inhabited a special niche within the medieval monastery. The laybrother was neither lay servant nor choir monk (or canon, in the case of the Gilbertines) though his role in the monastery (and outside it) combined elements of both. The laybrothers were full members of religious communities distinct from choir monks or regular canons as they spent less time in the church and more time outside of the claustral range. Laysisters were in a similar position, often playing an inferior role to the nuns, which will be discussed more at length in chapter five. The fact that at least one lay servant entered the monastery of Watton as a laysister when the ladies of the gentry whom she had previously served entered as nuns muddies the water and makes it appear that laysisters were simply continuing their previous 2 For insight into more modern laybrothers, see Blessed Ambiguity: Brothers in the Church, edited by Michael Meister, Landover, MD: Christian Brothers Publications, 1993 and Who are my Brothers? Cleric-Lay Relationships in Men's Religious Communities, edited by Philip Armstrong, New York: Fathers and Brothers of the Society of St Paul, 1988. See also Conrad Greenia, "Cistercian Laybrothers in the 12th and 20th Centuries, Cistercian Studies 27.4 (1992), 341-351. I will discuss the decline in numbers of laybrothers at length later in my thesis. Nick Johnston 3 occupation as handmaids to their former employers, but this does not seem to have been the case.3 Some scholars assert that many of the men joining the monastery as laybrothers were simply agricultural workers who continued their occupations after making their professions. Most notable among these scholars is Constance Berman who suggests in Medieval Agriculture that Cistercians in Southern France would buy existing settled and farmed land, and that "once dominium was acquired, the Cistercians either transformed those tenants into conversi, or removed them from their tenancies."4 Isabel Alfonso argues along the same lines as Berman, and considers that Cistercian laybrothers were almost entirely of the peasant class.5 In contrast to Berman's suggestion that laybrothers were effectively ex-serfs or peasants, however, other scholars disagree. Janet Burton notes that Cistercian laybrotherhood "provided an outlet for both peasants and men of higher social status."6 Others such as Charles Higounet claim that it would be dangerous to suggest this was the norm. Higounet argues that some areas acquired by a new Cistercian foundation were typified by deforestation and draining of marshland, a point also argued by Colin Platt, who talks about Cistercian monasteries being built far from settled areas and where land was "unencumbered," and on the margins of society, though in more recent years the claim of the medieval Cistercians to have chosen "deserts" away from human occupation has been brought into question.7 Certainly the Cistercian monasteries in the north of England support Platt's description however, being based around sheep farming on otherwise desolate moorland rather than large latifundia-style croplands, even though there too, population 3 Brian Golding, Gilbert of Sempringham and the Gilbertine Order c.1130 - c.1300, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1995, 120. Golding gives the example of Agnes Engayne, who becomes a nun along with her two daughters and brings with her to the monastery her maid who joins as a laysister. Golding suggests this "probably represents a frequent scenario." This is the only such case I can find though, so I am not convinced that it was as frequent as Golding suggests, and there is nothing to suggest that the maid continued to serve Agnes after becoming a laysister.