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History of the Franks
St Gregory of Tours, tr. Dalton, 1927
nb9
1. Goiswinth. This princess had been queen of Athanagild, who died in 567. She afterwards married his brother Leuvigild, and has been earlier mentioned as ill-treating Ingund for refusing to become an Arian (V. 28 (38)). Her evident force of character and ability help us to understand the like qualities in her daughter Brunhild. She died in 589, as recorded by John of Biclar (Chron. in M. G. H., Auct. antiquiss. xi: Chron. Min. ii). He says that she plotted against the Catholics with Bishop Uldida, who was exiled by Recared.
Were welcomed with friendliness. It was natural that Brunhild, a Visigothic princess and daughter of Goiswinth, should place a less unfavourable construction than Guntram on Visigothic policy.
2. The most blessed Radegund passed away... I myself was present at her burying. For Radegund, once queen of Lothar I, cf. III. 4, 7; VI. 21 (29). Cf. also Introduction, p. 67. In G. C., ch. 104, Gregory has left a description of his visit to Poitiers after her death, of much human and historical interest. He was summoned because Maroveus, bishop of Poitiers, was away, and could not perform the obsequies. This bishop is said to have been engaged on diocesan visitation; but he never seems to have agreed with Radegund, and may have preferred not to be in Poitiers at the time of her death. Cf. S. Dill, Roman Soc. in Gaul in the Merov. Age, pp. 381-2.
3. The feast of the holy Marcellus. This was the martyr of that name, slain near Chalon on the 4th of September about A. D. 178. For works relating to him, see U. Chevalier, Rép. des sources hist.: Bio-bibliogr., col. 3008.
4. Veranus. S. Veranus (Véran), formerly an anchorite at Vaucluse and bishop of Cavaillon, 585. For references, see U. Chevalier, Rép. des sources, as above, col. 4643.
Given the name of Theuderic. This prince was the legitimate son of Childebert’s queen, Faileuba. In after years, when he and his half-brother Theudebert divided the kingdom, Brunhild favoured him for this reason. Cf. VIII. 37.
6. Hellish arts. The word nigromantia (necromancy) is used; but the sense is probably quite general.
Public Rogations. Cf. note to II. 25 (34) and Introduction, p. 339.
Lodged at the church of the holy Julian the martyr. This probably means in the ‘church house’.
Until... the light of the sun had risen high in the heavens (donec dato terris die altius solis lampas ascenderet). Gregory, as often, when reminiscences of Virgil cross his mind, here uses poetical terms.
Asking that he might be pardoned. Because the fugitive had been seized in a church.
7. Lescar. The Latin equivalent is Benarna urbs. The old town is not mentioned in documents of later date than the sixth century, and it is supposed to have been destroyed towards the end of the ninth century by the Normans or by the Saracens; modern opinion places it on the site now occupied by Lescar, chief place of a canton in the arrondissement of Pau, Basses-Pyrénées (Longnon, Géogr., p. 595). We learn from the present passage that the place was temporarily under Childebert. But Chilperic had previously occupied it, and at the Pact of Andelot it is provisionally assigned to Guntram, as guardian of the young Lothar II.
The Gascons. Cf. Introduction, p. 173.
9. Rauching leagued himself with the chief men in the kingdom of Lothar, son of Chilperic. We have here the outbreak of a plot of the Austrasian aristocratic party against the royal power, represented by the queen-mother, Brunhild. To strengthen their position, the conspirators entered into relations with the nobles of Neustria, the chief agent in the intrigue being Bishop Egidius.
With authority to travel in the king’s name. The full Roman system of relays and stages on public roads cannot have been maintained in Merovingian times. But this passage, and a formula of Marculf, seem to show that persons on the king’s business or travelling to Court were furnished by the king and his counts with letters (tractoriae) enabling them to requisition horses (veredi and paraveredi), the former belonging to the king or his counts, the latter to private persons, and provisions for their journey. Charles the Great made improved arrangements for such travelling. Cf. B. Guérard, Le polyptyque d’Irminon, i (Prolegomena), pp. 804 ff.
In a strong place in the Woëvre (Castrum Vabrense). The Pagus Vabrensis was a wide forest region, including the country now known as the Woëvre, on the right bank of the Meuse, south-east of Stenay. Various attempts have been made to establish the precise site of the castrum, but in the opinion of Longnon (Géogr., pp. 372 ff.) none can be regarded as successful.
10. Set out to meet his uncle. The place of meeting was Andelot, in the arrondissement of Chaumont, Haute-Marne. This is the Andelaus mentioned by Gregory (V. 18) and by Fredegar. Cf. note to ch. 20 below, on p. 585, where the peculiar advantages of the place for such a conference are pointed out. Andelot is now a place of small significance.
11. Dynamius and Duke Lupus, who now returned to him. Lupus had been driven from Austrasia by the violence of the aristocratic party and had taken refuge with Guntram (cf. VI. 4); now that this party, after the failure of its plot, was for the moment crushed, he was able to return in safety. Dynamius, formerly Childebert’s governor at Marseilles, had made advances to Guntram, and when Childebert obtained the whole of Marseilles, had doubtless found a protector in the king of Burgundy (cf. VI. 24 (33)). The benevolence of Dynamius is praised by Fortunatus, who also alludes to his love of letters.
Gave back Cahors to Queen Brunhild. This was one of the cities given by Chilperic to Galswinth as morgengabe, and afterwards claimed by her sister.
13. If Fredegund, by the help of men of good repute, can clear him of the charge brought against him. The king alludes to the custom of compurgation by oath. Cf. VIII. 9, 40. The text runs: Si eum cum idoneis hominibus Fredegundis ab hac actione qua impetitur, immunem fecerit. The word idoneus has the common Late Latin meaning of ‘worthy’ or ‘of good character’.
Rueil. In Seine-et-Oise; distinct from the Rueil in Seine-Inférieure, to which Fredegund was sent by Guntram (Longnon, as above, p. 360).
15. Received the sign of the blessed Cross, with unction of holy chrism (cum chrismatis unctione). Brunhild and her sister Galswinth were thus received into the Catholic Church (cf. IV. 20 (27), 21 (28); of each it is said: chrismata est. John, abbot of Biclar, gives the time as ten months after Recared’s accession (Chron., year 587, in M. G. H., Auct. antiquiss. xi: Chron. Min. ii (Berlin, 1894)). Fredegar describes the baptism of Recared as secret; he afterwards had Arian books burned at Toledo, and ordered a general baptism of the people (iv. 8). For the conversion of this king, cf. Dahn, Die Könige der Germanen, p. 162. His motives may have been partly religious, partly political. According to tradition, he was converted by Leander, bishop of Seville, the friend of Gregory the Great. This prelate had withdrawn to Constantinople to escape King Leuvigild, not returning to Spain until that monarch’s death; he was acquainted with political conditions in the Byzantine Empire and had influence in the capital. After the first announcement of his conversion, Recared had to suppress some opposition before, in 589, he could summon a great Council at Toledo to affirm the catholicity of his kingdom. His speech on that occasion was composed by Leander (Labbe, Concilia, v, p. 997), who wrote to Pope Gregory to inform him as to the proceedings of the Council. The pope’s reply is preserved (Ep. i. 41).
Athaloc. Another source states that this bishop joined with two Narbonnese counts, Granista and Wildigern, in a rebellion against Recared. Other rebellions of Arians are mentioned, such as those of the bishops Uldila and Sunna of Merida. In one of these risings Queen Goiswinth is said to have been involved. John of Biclar, Chron., years 567-90, makes mention of these movements against Recared and suggests their relation to Frankish attacks on Septimania (M. G. H., Auct. antiquiss. xi; Chron. Min. ii, pp. 207 ff.). Cf. also C. M. H. ii, p. 172.
16. That he was privy to the death of thy sister. Ingund, who died on her way to Constantinople (VIII. 18, 21, 28). This suspicion was deeply implanted in King Guntram’s heart, and was one cause of the vain attacks on Septimania, which he repeated on the ground that the Visigoths had wronged his niece.
18. Pledging themselves never again to attack the territory of those cities. Such undertakings on the part of the Bretons, as subsequent history shows, had but a short validity. Some of the Breton leaders, like Waroch in the present case, broke their own pledges; but it must be remembered that often the country was held by mutually independent chiefs, whose word was not considered binding upon their neighbours. Thus a chief not present when an agreement was signed might not hold himself bound by it.
Anianus, the confessor. Anianus (S. Aignan or S. Agnan), bishop of Orleans, arrested Attila’s advance in 451, and died in 453. For works relating to him, see U. Chevalier, Rép. des sources hist.: Bio-bibliogr., col. 68.
19. Bouges. This place in the arrondissement of Châteauroux, Indre, is accepted by Longnon (Géogr., p. 476) as the most probable modern equivalent of Vosagensis pagus, the latter word having here, as often elsewhere, the sense of village.
The village of Mauriopes. The place of this name was probably destroyed in Frankish times. It appears to have been situated in the diocese of Troyes (Longnon, Géogr., p. 340).
For his honour. This seems the probable meaning. He had to show that it fell to him by Frankish custom to avenge the murder of his own kinsmen at the hands of Sichar, and the affront offered to him by the latter, related in this chapter. The words are: iudicatum est ei, ut convinceret super se eum interfecisse.
20. He withholdeth... my part in the city of Senlis. The Pact of Andelot has two contradictory clauses with regard to Senlis. In the first it is provided that Childebert shall have two-thirds of the city, and Guntram one-third: this is the clause which Guntram evidently has in his mind. The second gives the whole to Childebert (ut Silvanectis domnus Childebertus in integritate teneat), but Guntram is to have, in exchange for his lost third, the Austrasian third in the territory of Ressons, which had been triply divided in the same way as Senlis after the death of Charibert.
Andelot (Andelaus). As already noted above, p. 583, this is generally believed to be Andelot in Haute-Marne. As Longnon remarks (Géogr., p. 371), the situation of this Andelot in the diocese of Toul, which was in Childebert’s kingdom, yet on the borders of the diocese of Langres, which belonged to Guntram, made it eminently suitable for a conference, for in the Middle Ages kings preferred to meet on their frontier lines between their respective dominions. The text of the Pact of Andelot is published in M. G. H., Leges, vol. i (1883), pp. 12-14.
The treaty which he made with King Sigibert of blessed memory. In 567, after Charibert’s death. The treaty has not been preserved.
As long as she shall remain in the Frankish dominions. It will be remembered that Recared the Visigoth had asked the hand of Chlodosind (ch. 16 above).
Lescar, and Cieutat (Benarno et Begorra). For Benarno or Benarna (Lescar), see note to ch. 7 above. The old identification of Bigorra with Tarbes is rejected by Longnon, who decides in favour of Cieutat (Géogr., p. 599).
Morgengabe (morganegiba). This was the gift made by the bridegroom to the bride on the morning after the marriage, and in the case of kings consisted of cities with their revenues. It was a voluntary and indeterminate gift, varying with the political importance of the bride and the intensity of the king’s affection. It is mentioned in the Laws of the Burgundians, Alamanni, and Lombards. Cf. Ducange, s. v., and see V. 26 (34) n.
Ressons. The Ressontense, or territory of Ressontois, is either Ressons-sur-le-Matz (Oise, arrondissement of Compiègne) or Ressons-le-long (Aisne, arrondissement of Soissons). The claim of the former seems preferable (cf. Longnon, Géogr., as above, pp. 416-17).
Their own trusty adherents (fideles). The word fidelis is here probably used in a wide sense.
During an interregnum (per interregna). An interregnum in Merovingian times was apt to be very short. Perhaps the minority of an infant king may be included under the term, though this is doubtful.
A free passage through the kingdom of either. The strange jumble of territory into which France was divided by the partition of the Merovingian kingdoms after the death of Charibert in 567 made the country in normal times a paradise for deserters, and at the same time a purgatory for legitimate travellers. At any moment disputes between the kings might close numerous frontiers, and isolate large tracts of country; further, certain regions formed enclaves, and could be wholly cut off at short notice. Already Guntram had closed his frontiers to Childebert’s subjects (VI. 11; cf. also ch. 32 below). The provisions in the Pact of Andelot show that Guntram and Childebert were determined, as far as their kingdoms were concerned, to remedy these evils.
Which his sire claimed in his lifetime. Sigibert is not known to have claimed conquests in Lombardy; the envoy may allude to claims giving rise to the expedition of Chramnichis, mentioned by Paul the Deacon, which advanced into the dukedom of Trent, but was soon defeated. Cf. C. M. H. ii, p. 199. For Childebert’s own expeditions to Italy, cf. VI. 28 (42); VIII. 18; X. 3, and references in the notes to those chapters.
21. A village called Octavus. Probably Saint-Symphorien-d’Ozon, Isère, at the eighth milestone on the Roman road from Vienne to Lyon (Longnon, Géogr., pp. 199 ff.).
Some particles of the fringe upon his royal mantle (abruptisque clam regalis indumenti fimbriis). Gregory’s other works contain many references to miracles wrought by the prescription of water in which bits of fimbriae or borders of altar-cloths and shrine-coverings were steeped. Cf. Introduction, pp. 5-7, 322, and previous examples in the History itself, e. g. VII. 22.
22. The holy Victor. Victor, a native of Marseilles, served in the Roman army, but was arrested during the persecution of Diocletian and beheaded on the 21st July 303; the famous abbey of S. Victor at Marseilles was built in his honour. For references to him, see U. Chevalier, Rép. des sources hist.: Bio-bibliogr., col. 4659. The basilica of S. Victor is now represented by Notre-Dame du Mont (Longnon, Géogr., p. 449).
23. Abbot of Autun. He was abbot of Lérins, and of S. Symphorien at Autun. He held the see of Arles for twenty-two years, dying in 610. For works relating to him, see U. Chevalier, as above, col. 4695.
24. To whose place Pronimius was appointed. An episode in the life of Pronimius (or Phronimius) is recorded in V. P. viii. 9.
25. When they asked his sister in marriage. Chlodosind had in fact been promised by Childebert to Authari (or ‘Aptachar’, as Gregory calls him in X. 3), king of the Lombards, but the Frankish king broke his promise when Recared became a Catholic. Authari afterwards married Theudelind, daughter of Garibald, duke of Bavaria (Paul the Deacon, Hist. Lang. iii. 30), but died at Pavia in 590.
Such was the slaughter... days. The next invasion was also disastrous (X. 3).
26. The cathedral of Tours and the church of the holy Martin. Again we have the distinction between ecclesia, used for the great church, and basilica used for other churches.
By deeds of enfranchisement she freed many serfs (multus per catholicas liberus derelinques = multos per chartulas liberos derelinquens). Manumission per chartam or chartulam seems to have been equivalent to that per tabulas (cf. Introduction, p. 393, and note to X. 9).
One daughter married to the son of a certain king in Kent (quam in Chancia regis cuiusdum [filius] matrimonio copulavit). This terse statement, in which no name is given either of the royal husband or his bride (cf. IV. 19 (26)), illustrates the lack of intercourse between Gaul and England in the later days of Saxon heathenism. The prince in question was Ethelbert; the Frankish bride was Bertha or Adelberg. The fine character of Bertha’s mother should be noted, no less than the most unsatisfactory character of her sister Berthefled (ch. 33 of the present book). Cf. Introduction, p. 557.
27. The church of the holy Marcellus. Cf. ch. 3 above; V. 28; and G. M., ch. 53. Marcellus was martyred near Chalon about A. D. 178.
28. A shield. This object, styled clipeus, was probably a decorative object, an ornate disk or salver, like the group of ‘votive shields’.
29. Momociacus. Probably a town not far from Strasbourg (Longnon, Géogr., pp. 620-2).
30. King Childebert sent... Florentianus, his mayor of the household, and Romulf... to prepare new tax-lists. The mayor of the household (cf. VI. 9 n.) had charge of the royal revenues and was, therefore, the natural person to send. The lists were for the poll-tax, the incidence of which was upon the Gallo-Romans. In V. S. M. iv. 6 and Fortunatus (Carm. x. 12, 14, 15) the presence of these two officials of Childebert at Tours is again mentioned.
31. There fell in this place about five thousand men. John of Biclar (Chron., year 589) says that Recared’s victorious general was Claudius, duke of Lusitania, who had barely three hundred men; he destroyed about sixty thousand Franks, a feat ascribed to the conversion of Recared to orthodox belief. John compares Claudius to Gideon (M. G. H., Auct. antiquiss. xi: Chron. Min. ii (1894)). Cf. Fredegar, iv. 10.
33. A nunnery in the atrium of the holy Martin. This nunnery, under the later name of S. Maria de Scriniolo, stood until the eleventh century, but was afterwards removed nearer to the city of Tours. Various houses seem to have adjoined the atrium, used as temporary retreats by various personages: Clotild, queen of Clovis, and Wiliachar, father-in-law of Prince Chramn (IV. 11 (17), 13 (20)).
The Nicene Council. Gregory really cites the fourteenth canon of the Council of Gangres. For the case of Berthegund, see C. Galy, La famille à l’époque mérov., pp. 99 ff.
In a dispute about property. Bertram, bishop of Bordeaux, son of Ingitrude and brother of Berthegund, died without direct heirs while his father’s estate was still undivided, his own share falling to his mother, Ingitrude. But his sister Berthegund and the children of his dead brother had a right to fixed shares in the paternal estate, which was now finally divided between Ingitrude, Berthegund, and Ingitrude’s grandchildren. See Galy, as above, pp. 300 ff.
Referendary. For referendaries, cf. V. 3, 45; VI. 20 (28); VIII. 39; IX. 23, 38; X. 19.
34. Declaring that she was the real mistress. Perhaps because Fredegund had begun life as a palace maid, whereas she herself was of royal blood, being a king’s daughter.
35. Beretrude... named her daughter as her heir. Beretrude was the wife of Duke Launebod, and together they had built the church of S. Saturninus at Toulouse (cf. Fortunatus, Carm. ii. 12).
36. The town named Strasbourg (urbis quam Strateburgum vocant). We may compare X. 19, where the ancient Argentoratum is described as: Argentoratensis urbs, quae (quam) nunc Strateburgum vocant. These are the oldest mentions of the later name of the town.
Some of the more powerful citizens of Soissons and Meaux. Meaux had been occupied by Childebert after his uncle Chilperic’s death (cf. VII. 4), and it is possible that Soissons had been annexed to Austrasia at the same time, though we are not told so, and Meaux was specially secured to Childebert by the Pact of Andelot.
Counts, domestics, mayors, tutors. For the officers of Merovingian Courts, cf. Introduction, pp. 200 ff. If the word nutricius is here, as it sometimes is, an alternative for nutritor, it would mean ‘governor’ or ‘tutor’; the years of Theudebert were sufficiently tender to justify the appointment of such an officer.
37. Sorcy (apud Sauriciacum villam). Cf. Longnon, Géogr., pp. 402 ff.
38. Referendary. Cf. V. 3, 45; VI. 20 (28); VIII. 39; IX. 23, 33; X. 19.
Stretched upon the rack (extensi inter stipites). One of the forms of torture by stretching the limbs, the exact nature of which is not quite clear; perhaps some kind of ‘spread-eagling’. For stretching by rope and pulley, cf. above, V. 49.
In the gynaeceum (in genicio). The word, as applied to part of a palace, usually meant a work-place for women, usually those occupied in spinning, weaving, or dyeing garments. Cf. Introduction, pp. 400, 405.
Property which they held of the domain (res quas a fisco meruerant). The domain really meant the king, who conferred lands at will. Such gifts of lands were for the recipient’s life, and were distinguished from those received as absolute gifts or acquired through inheritance or purchase.
39. Clotild... daughter of King Charibert. She was half-sister of Bertha, queen of Ethelbert of Kent. As her mother, whether Merofled or Marcovefa, had been a handmaid of Queen Ingoberg (IV. 19 (26)), her remarks about ‘the offspring of low serving-women’ appear to be out of place. The mother of her fellow rebel Basina, Audovera, first queen of Chilperic, was also not of high birth.
The scandalum at the monastery of the Holy Cross remains perhaps unparalleled by the most disorderly outbreaks in later times on the part of rebellious nuns. Cf. Introduction, pp. 360 ff. Fortunatus, still only a priest, was evidently at Poitiers when the rebellion began, for he wrote two letters to Gregory, imploring his assistance in restoring order, and appealing to him in the name of the dead foundress, their common friend (Carm. viii. 16, 17). The first, which is metrical, begins:
Repsit quale nefas intra pia septa synaxis.
The second, in prose, was carried by a fellow priest (conservus meus presbyter), who was to tell the whole story to Gregory by word of mouth. Both letters are very short.
From the same region whence... the holy Martin journeyed hither. Martin came from Pannonia (cf. I. 36). Radegund’s own home was Thuringia (III. 4).
Following the institution of Caesarius, bishop of Arles. S. Caesarius (470 or 471-542) was a native of Chalon-sur-Saône, and became a monk of Lérins, where he suggested reforms in a community which had somewhat degenerated from its former high standards. In 503 he became metropolitan of Arles, thus holding the most distinguished position in the Gallican Church, and from this point of vantage issued Rules for monasteries and nunneries destined to introduce system into the somewhat vague governance of monastic houses in Gaul. Foremost among the conditions exacted by him were the Rule of absolute poverty, hitherto by no means universal, and the Rule of permanence of abode. It is the second of these which was most flagrantly transgressed by the recalcitrant nuns of Poitiers. The leaving of monasteries without other cause than caprice or petulance was a frequent scandal, especially among persons of high birth, who were restive under the slightest correction. Caesarius was particularly anxious to check this abuse, and the case of Poitiers shows how great was the need for his reform. Caesarius was the first to draw up a special Rule for nuns. There was much laxity among communities of women before his time; there were occupations of a worldly nature, too many visits from friends in the outer world, vanities of dress, excessive hospitality, indiscipline, and other abuses. The Rule of Caesarius was strict, but enforced no unbearable rigours. It compelled equal service on the part of all; established the authority of the abbess and prioress; and insisted that the vows once taken, the nun must remain in her monastery until she died. He provided for the election of the abbess by the community, and restricted episcopal interference. The bishop was to have no voice either in the election of the abbess or in the government of the house; his functions were chiefly confined to the benediction of the abbess on her election, and to occasional performance of services in the church or oratory. But he had one duty of great importance, which was to intervene in cases of gross breaches of discipline.
The Rule of Caesarius, based upon the usage of Lérins, the Rule of Cassian, and prescriptions of S. Augustine, was primarily drawn up for Arles. But it was soon adopted in the Rhône valley, and, as this chapter of Gregory shows, in central France. Its high reputation induced Radegund to choose it for her monastery at Poitiers, the fact being mentioned both by Fortunatus (Carm. viii. 6: De Virginitate), and by the nun Baudonivia in her Life of the queen. It was in general use until displaced by that of S. Benedict. Caesaria, sister of Caesarius, as abbess at Arles, used the Rule drawn up by her brother. The Life of Caesarius is published in M. G. H., Script. rer. Merov. iii (1896), pp. 433 ff.: Vita Caesarii Episcopi... Libri Duo, ed. by B. Krusch. For other works relating to Caesarius, see U. Chevalier, Rép. des sources hist.: Bio-bibliogr., cols. 841-3.
40. And duly returned with the relics. At Constantinople they received from the Emperor Justin and his consort Sophia a portion of the wood of the True Cross, set in a gold triptych enriched with enamel and inlaid stones. The arrival of this precious relic at Radegund’s monastery is celebrated by Fortunatus in several hymns (Carm. ii. 1-7), the most famous of which is that beginning: Vexilla Regis prodeunt. Baudonivia the nun, who was in the monastery during Radegund’s life, says that the saint asked King Sigibert’s sanction for her petition to the Emperor Justin. She says that its direct arrival in Poitiers was prevented by the devil, who seduced the Bishop Maroveus and the people (At ubi lignum ubi salus mundi pependerat Pictavus civitatem... advenit, et pontifex loci cum omni populo devote hoc vellet excipere; inimicus humani generis per satellites suos egit ut pretium mundi repellerent, nec in civitatem accipere vellent (Vit. S. Rad. ii. 16, in M. G. H., Script. rer. Merov. ii)). The enamelled central portion of this triptych, with the relic, is still at Poitiers in the present convent of the Holy Cross. It is a small, almost square, gold panel (2·3 in. × 2·1 in.), covered with a scroll design in cloisonné enamel, a cruciform cavity in the middle containing the wood. (Cf. W. M. Conway, The Antiquaries Journal, 1923, pp. 1-12 and coloured plate.)
With the abbess whom she had appointed. This was Agnes, her protégée, under whom she henceforward lived contentedly until her death. Fortunatus, who frequently enjoyed their hospitality, has left several short poems addressed to the queen, among the most natural and human of his poetical efforts (Carm. viii. 9-14; xi. 2, 3). Other poetical letters are addressed to Agnes (xi. 5-9). Carm. xi. 4 is written as a joint letter by Fortunatus and Agnes to Radegund. Other poems (xi. 11-13) describe entertainment given to the writer in the monastery, and gifts sent by him to the queen and abbess. Cf. Introduction, p. 84.
The passing of the blessed Radegund. This was in 587. Cf. above, ch. 2.
41. Their apostolic seats. The adjective ‘apostolic’ is applied elsewhere to ordinary episcopal sees. Cf. note to IV. 19 (26). This usage was common down to the ninth century.
42. The most excellent lord King Lothar. The character of Lothar I was far from excellent (Introduction, p. 48), but he appears to have treated Radegund with consideration after she left him, and contributed with generosity to the accomplishment of her designs.
The lady Agnes, my sister. The word ‘sister’ is not literally used Agnes is called sister in the religious sense.
The world runneth to its end. Cf. Introduction, p. 28.