Historia Ecclesie Abbendonensis: The History of the Church of Abingdon [1] 9780199299379 [PDF]

OXFORD

MEDIEVAL

TEXTS

General Editors J. W.

BINNS

IWZSICSBIPATROERS

LORTA THE

ECCLESIE

D'AVRAY

LOVE

ABBENDONENSTS

THES HES DOR Y OF CHURCH OF ABINGDON

HISTORIA ECCLESIE ABBENDONENSIS THE HISTORY OF THE CHURCH OF ABINGDON Volume I

EDITED AND TRANSLATED JOHN HUDSON

CLARENDON

PRESS

: OXFORD

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PIVE RAGE

SIR FRANK STENTON, on the first page of his Early History of the Abbey of Abingdon, commented of the Rolls Series edition of the Chronicon Monasteru de Abingdon that ‘in 1858 little work had been done upon Old English diplomatic, and it would not be expected that the editor’s criticism of the land-books in the series should have value at the present time. It is more serious that he cannot be trusted implicitly to give the exact reading of his texts . . . The whole plan of the edition, by which the latest MS. was adopted for the text, is faulty.' The present volume, along with its companion published in 2002, seeks to remedy these faults. My edition and translation of the History appear soon after Susan Kelly's edition of the Abingdon Anglo-Saxon Charters, published by the British Academy in 2000-1. Her work has been invaluable to me; she is in many ways the coeditor of the present volume. The other debts accumulated in twenty years of working on the History would shame the most extravagant of medieval abbots. I have seen off many OMT series editors. Particular thanks are due to John Blair, whose knowledge of the local history 1s incomparable and whose advice and encouragement have been invaluable. Rosalind Love worked through text and translation of this volume at the stage when it was most helpful to me. James Binns and Michael Lapidge have also given guidance, particularly with Latin. And Barbara Harvey provided the initial inspiration for me, and continued to give advice, particularly on monastic food, long after she ceased to be a general editor of OMT. Christine Rauer and Rob Bartlett at St Andrews worked through the whole text and improved it greatly. Simon Keynes answered queries, shared unpublished work, and provided me with a printout from microfilms of the manuscripts. Julian Harrison shared his knowledge of the manuscripts with me very generously. Thanks are also due to, amongst others, Julia Crick for help on Geoffrey of Monmouth and many other matters, Susan Reynolds for comments on the use of *vassallus', Julia Smith, Michael Winterbottom, Martin Brett, Magnus Ryan, Barbara Rosenwein, Tessa Webber for improvements to my manuscript descriptions, Richard Sharpe,

PREFACE

Katie Lowe, Simone Macdougall, Bob and Betty Kerr, Clare Brown for advice on matters medical and the miraculous, Alex Woolf for leads concerning Abbán/Aben, David Dumville, Stephen Baxter, the late Patrick Wormald, and James Campbell. The library staff at the British Library, Corpus Christi College Cambridge, Corpus Christi College Oxford, Lambeth Palace, the Bodleian, and St Andrews—in particular the Inter-Library Loan staff—have been extremely helpful. John Ball of the St Andrews IT staff saved me during crises small and enormous. Berta Wales, the secretary of the Mediaeval History Department at St Andrews, has helped in a myriad of ways. Anne Gelling at OUP has always been encouraging and patient, Bonnie Blackburn a marvellous copy-editor. Visits to Libraries in Oxford and London were made easy and enjoyable by Paul and Vanessa Brand. My younger daughter, Anna, is yet to share her older sister's delight in the swings now on the abbey grounds at Abingdon, but to her and to my wife Lise this volume is dedicated. J.G.H.H. St Andrews

August 2006

CONTENTS

ABBREVIATED REFERENCES

x XV

INTRODUCTION I. COMPOSER, TITLE, AND PURPOSE 1. Composer 2. Title and purpose

XV XV xvil

II. COMPOSITION OF THE HISTORY (a) MS C 1. Possible precursors of the History 2. Sources for the composition of Book I 3. Style of narrative sections of the History (b) MS B I. Sources for the revision 2. Purposes of revision III. OTHER

SOURCES

RELATING

TO THE

ABBEY

xxil xxii xxii xxvi xxxiii xxxvii XXXIX xlix

OF ABINGDON

UP TO IO7I 1. Abingdon sources 2. Other sources 3. Omissions from the History’s account IV. STRUCTURE OF THE HISTORY UP TO 1071 1. MS C 2. MS B 3. Foundation history 4. Perceptions of the past in the Abingdon Histories V. PARTICIPANTS IN THE HISTORY UP TO 1071 1. Abbots of Abingdon 2. Monks of Abingdo 3. Kings 4. Others

VI. ENDOWMENT, ADMINISTRATION, AND LAW UP TO IO71 1. Abingdon’s estates 2. Estate administration 3. Law and disputes

lvi lvi ]xiv Ixvi ]xix Ixx Ixxiv Ixxxi — xci xcii xcili cvii cvii Cxxi

cxxvi Cxxvl clin clvii

Vill

CONTENTS

VII. MONASTIC BUILDINGS AND LIFE UP TO 1071 1r. Dedication 2. Buildings

clxv clxv clxvi

3. Monastic life

clxx

VIII. MANUSCRIPTS clxxvii 1. MS C: London, British Library, Cotton Claudius Grix clxxvii 2. MS B: London, British Library, Cotton Claudius B. vi clxxxv IX. EDITIONS AND TRANSLATION

cxc

APPENDIX: ANGLO-SAXON CHARTERS 1. Charter production 2. Authenticity 3. Dating of forgery

Cxcv CXCV cxcix CCIV

MANUSCRIPT SIGLA

CCIx

TEXT AND TRANSLATION

APPENDIX: TEXT AND TRANSLATION OF MS B

23T

CONCORDANCES MS C

377 377

MS B INDEX

OF BIBLICAL

GENERAL INDEX

380 AND

CLASSICAL

QUOTATIONS

AND

ALLUSIONS

387

389

MAP

1. TRE Abingdon estates named in Domesday

clii

ABBREVIATED

REFERENCES

Accounts of the Obedientars Anglo-Saxon Charters, ed. Robertson Anglo-Saxon Wills, ed. Whitelock Anglo-Saxon Writs, ed. Harmer ANS ASG ASE Barlow, Edward the Confessor Barlow, The Godwins Bede, Ecclesiastical History

Accounts of the Obedientiars of Abingdon Abbey, ed. R. E. G. Kirk (Camden Soc., Ns li; 1892) Anglo-Saxon Charters, ed. A. J. Robertson (2nd edn., Cambridge, 1956) Anglo-Saxon Wills, ed. D. Whitelock (Cambridge, 1930) Anglo-Saxon Writs, ed. F. E. Harmer (Manchester, 1952) Anglo-Norman Studies Anglo-Saxon Chronicle Anglo-Saxon England F. Barlow, Edward the Confessor (London, 1970)

Berkhofer, Day of Reckoning

R. F. Berkhofer, Day of Reckoning: Power and Accountability in Medieval France (Philadelphia, 2004) M. Biddle, G. Lambrick, and J. N. L. Myres, ‘The early history of Abingdon, Berkshire, and its abbey’, Medieval Archaeology, xii (1968), 26-69 Bishop Athelwold: His Career and Influence, ed. B. Yorke (Woodbridge, 1988) J. Blair, Anglo-Saxon Oxfordshire (Stroud, 1994)

F. Barlow, The Godwins (Harlow, 2004) Bede, Ecclesiastical History of the English People, ed. B. Colgrave and R. A. B. Mynors (OMT,

1969)

Biddle et al., ‘Early history’

Bishop A:thelwold, ed. Yorke Blair, Anglo-Saxon Oxfordshire Blair, ‘Minsters of the Thames’

BM Facs.

J. Blair, “The Minsters of the Thames’, in J. Blair and B. Golding, eds., The Cloister and the World: Essays in Medieval History in Honour of Barbara Harvey (Oxford, 1996), pp. 5-28 Facsimiles of Ancient Charters in the British Museum, ed. E. A. Bond (4 vols., London,

1873-8) Chaplais, ‘Royal AngloSaxon “‘chancery”’’

P. Chaplais, “The royal Anglo-Saxon “‘chancery” of the tenth century revisited', in H. MayrHarting and R. I. Moore, eds., Studies in Medieval

ABBREVIATED

REFERENCES

History presented to R. H. C. Davis (London,

Charters of Abingdon Abbey Charters of the Early West Saxon Kingdom, ed. Edwards Chatsworth

Chronicon abbatiz Rameseiensis

Clarke, English Nobility Clayton, Cult CMA

Councils and Synods

DMLBS

Dodwell, Anglo-Saxon Art Domesday Geography of South-East England, ed. Darby and Campbell Dumville, ‘Annalistic writing at Canterbury’ Dumville, English Caroline Script Edward the Elder, ed. Higham and Hill

1985), pp. 41-51 Charters of Abingdon Abbey, ed. S. E. Kelly (2 vols., Oxford University Press for the British Academy, 2000-1) The Charters of the Early West Saxon Kingdom, ed. H. Edwards (British Archaeological Reports, British Series cxcviii, 1988) Chatsworth cartulary, in Two Cartularies of Abingdon Abbey, ed. C. F. Slade and G. Lambrick (2 vols., Oxford Historical Society, NS xxxil, xxxili, 1990—2) Chronicon abbatie Rameseiensis, ed. W. D. Macray (London, 1886) P. A. Clarke, The English Nobility under Edward the Confessor (Oxford, 1994) M. Clayton, The Cult of the Virgin Mary in Anglo-Saxon England (Cambridge, 1990) Chronicon monasteru de Abingdon, ed. J. Stevenson (2 vols., London, 1858) Councils and Synods with other Documents relating to the English Church: I. A.D. 871-1204, ed. D. Whitelock, M. Brett, and C. N. L. Brooke (2 vols., Oxford, 1981) Domesday Book seu Liber censualis Wilhelmi Primi Regis Angliae, ed. A. Farley and H. Ellis (4 vols., London, i-ii, 1783; iii-iv, 1816) Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources, ed. R. E. Latham et a/. (London and Oxford, 1975- ) C. R. Dodwell, Anglo-Saxon Art: A Nem Perspective (Manchester, 1982) The Domesday Geography of South-East England, ed. H. C. Darby and E. M. J. Campbell (Cambridge, 1962) D. N. Dumville, ‘Some aspects of annalistic writing at Canterbury in the eleventh and early twelfth centuries', Peritia, 11 (1983), 23—57 D. N. Dumville, English Caroline Script and Monastic History: Studies in Benedictinism, A.D. 950-1030 (Woodbridge, 1993) Edward the Elder, 899-924, ed. N. J. Higham and D. H. Hill (London, 2001)

xil

ABBREVIATED

EHD

EHR EPNS Fleming, ‘Christ Church Canterbury’s AngloNorman cartulary’

REFERENCES

English Historical Documents, i: c.500-1042, ed. D. Whitelock (2nd edn., London, 1979); i: 1042-1189, ed. D. C. Douglas and G. W. Greenaway (2nd edn., London, 1981) English Historical Reviem English Place Names Society R. Fleming, ‘Christ Church Canterbury's Anglo-Norman cartulary’, in C. W. Hollister, ed., Anglo-Norman Political Culture and the Twelfth-Century Renaissance — (Woodbridge,

1997), pp. 83-155 Gelling, Early Charters of Thames Valley Gerchow, Die Gedenküberlieferung Gesetze, ed. Liebermann Gransden, "Traditionalism and continuity’

Gretsch, Intellectual Foundations Handbook of British Chronology Heads of Religious Houses

Henry of Huntingdon, Historia Anglorum Hudson, ‘Abbey of Abingdon’ John, Orbis Britanniae John of Worcester, Chronicle Keynes, Atlas of Attestations Keynes, Diplomas

M. Gelling, The Early Charters of the Thames Valley (Leicester, 1979) J. Gerchow, Die Gedenkiiberlieferung der Angelsachsen (Berlin, 1988) Die Gesetze der Angelsachsen, ed. F. Liebermann (3 vols., Halle, 1903-16) A. Gransden, ‘Traditionalism and continuity during the last century of Anglo-Saxon monasticism’, Journal of Ecclesiastical History, xl (1989),

159-207 M. Gretsch, The Intellectual Foundations of English Benedictine Reform (Cambridge, 1999) Handbook of British Chronology, ed. E. B. Fryde, D. E. Greenway, S. Porter, and I. Roy (3rd edn., London, 1986) The Heads of Religious Houses: England and Wales, i: 940-1216, ed. D. Knowles, C. N. L. Brooke, V. C. M. London (2nd edn., Cambridge, 2001) Henry, archdeacon of Huntingdon, Historia Anglorum, ed. D. E. Greenway (OMT, 1996) J. G. H. Hudson, *The abbey of Abingdon, its Chronicle and the Norman Conquest’, ANS, xix (1997), 181—202 E. John, Orbis Britanniae (Oxford, 1966) John of Worcester, Chronicle, ed. R. R. Darlington and P. McGurk (3 vols., OMT, 1995- ) S. D. Keynes, Atlas of Anglo-Saxon Attestations (Dept. of Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic, Cambridge, 1995) S. D. Keynes, The Diplomas of King Athelred ‘the Unready’ 978—1016 (Cambridge, 1980)

ABBREVIATED Keynes, * *Dunstan B" charters’ Keynes, ‘Studies’

Lapidge, */Ethelwold as scholar and teacher’ Lapidge, Cult of St Swithun Lawson, cnu*t Liber Eliensis

Liber Vitae, ed. Keynes

Lyell

REFERENCES

xiil

S. Keynes, "The “Dunstan B" charters’, ASE,

xxiii (1994), 165-93 S. D. Keynes, ‘Studies on Anglo-Saxon Royal Diplomas’, unpublished fellowship dissertation (2 vols., Trinity College, Cambridge, 1976) M. Lapidge, */Ethelwold as scholar and teacher’, in Bishop /Ethelmold, ed. Yorke, pp. 89—117 M. Lapidge, The Cult of St Swithun (Winchester Studies 4.11, Oxford, 2003) M. K. Lawson, cnu*t: The Danes in England in the Early Eleventh Century (Harlow, 1993) Liber Eliensis, ed. E. O. Blake (Camden Society, 3rd Ser. xcii; 1962) The Liber Vitae of New Minster and Hyde Abbey Winchester, ed. S. D. Keynes (Early English MSS in Facsimile, xxvi; Copenhagen, 1996) Lyell cartulary, in Two Cartularies of Abingdon Abbey, ed. C. F. Slade and G. Lambrick (2 vols., Oxford Historical Society, NS xxxii, xxxiii,

1990-2) Maitland, Domesday Book and Beyond Miller, Ely

NMT OMT Oxford Dictionary of Popes Oxford Dictionary of Saints PL Porter, */Ethelwold's bowl’

Regularis Concordia Robinson, Times of St Dunstan Salter, ‘Chronicle roll’ Sawyer

F. W. Maitland, Domesday Book and Beyond (Cambridge, 1897) E. Miller, The Abbey and Bishopric of Ely (Cambridge, 1951) Nelson's Medieval Texts Oxford Medieval Texts The Oxford Dictionary of Popes, ed. J. N. D. Kelly (Oxford, 1986) The Oxford Dictionary of Saints, ed. D. H. Farmer (Oxford, 1978) Patrologia Latina D. W. Porter, '/Ethelwold's bowl and The Chronicle of Abingdon’, Neuphilologische Mitteilungen, xcvii (1996), 163—7 Regularis Concordia, ed. T. Symons (NMT, 1953) J. A. Robinson, The Times of Saint Dunstan (Oxford, 1923) H. E. Salter, ‘A chronicle roll of the abbey of Abingdon’, EAR, xxvi (1911), 727-38 P. H. Sawyer, Anglo-Saxon Charters: An Annotated List and Bibliography (London, 1968; rev. S. E. Kelly, http://www.trin.cam.ac.uk/ chartwww/esawyer.99/ esawyer2.html)

xiv

ABBREVIATED

Scott, Early History of Glastonbury Stenton, Early History Thacker, */Ethelwold"

TRE VCH William of Malmesbury, Gesta pontificum William of Malmesbury, Gesta regum Williams, ‘Princeps Merciorum gentis

REFERENCES

J. Scott, The Early History of Glastonbury (Woodbridge, 1981) F. M. Stenton, The Early History of the Abbey of Abingdon (Reading, 1913) A. Thacker, ‘/Ethelwold and Abingdon’, Bishop AEthelwold: His Career and Influence, ed. B. Yorke (Woodbridge, 1988), 43-64 Tempore regis Edwardi (in the time of King Edward) Victoria County History William of Malmesbury, De Gestis pontificum Anglorum Libri Quinque, ed. N. E. S. A. Hamilton (London, 1870) William of Malmesbury, Gesta regum Anglorum, ed. R. A. B. Mynors, R. M. Thomson, and M. Winterbottom (2 vols., OMT, 1998-9) A. Williams, ‘Princeps Merciorum gentis: The family, career and connections of /Elfhere, ealdorman of Mercia, 956-83’, ASE, x (1982),

143-72 Wormald, */Ethelwold and his Continental counterparts’ Wormald, ‘Lawsuits’ Wulfstan, Life of Asthelwold

P. Wormald, */Ethelwold and his Continental counterparts: Contact, comparison, contrast’, in Bishop /Ethelpold, ed. Yorke, pp. 13-42 P. Wormald, ‘A handlist of Anglo-Saxon lawsuits’, ASE, xvii (1988), 247-81 Wulfstan of Winchester, Life of St /Ethelwold, ed. M. Lapidge and M. Winterbottom (OMT,

1991)

INTRODUCTION

COMPOSER,

TITLE,

AND

PURPOSE

THE History of the Church of Abingdon in its first surviving version traces the development of the abbey and its estates from its reputed foundation just before the time of King Ceadwalla of Wessex (685-8) until the abbacy of Walkelin (1158-64). Given that the death of Walkelin is not mentioned, composition probably ceased before his demise. It seems plausible that the first manuscript now surviving, London, British Library, Cotton Claudius C. 1x, was also the first fair copy, written probably in the r160s.! 1. Composer

The composer of the History is anonymous.” Sir Frank Stenton argued that ‘an examination of Claudius C ix shows conclusively that it is a copy of a work written by one who was an inmate of Abingdon monastery before the year 1117"? He based this argument on two key passages. The first concerns events following the death of Abbot Faritius: Moreover, we were without an abbot for four years, but had every abundance of provisions and clothing. Indeed, a venerable man from amongst us, named Warenger, had charge of this house. He had enjoyed the office of prior from the time of Abbot Reginald, ruled us vigorously, and always tended us as single-mindedly as the kindest mother.*

Here the first person plural could be used in an impersonal sense, just as it is stated that ‘when King /Ethelstan was holding the monarchy of ! See below, vol. ii. p. xviin., for completion before the coronation of Henry II's son, the Young King, in June 1170, and for a passage in the main hand, following the text of the History, written after 1166. On writs included in the History which have sometimes been dated later than 1164 on the basis of witnessing by John of Oxford, see vol. ii, p. xvii n. 1. Cross-references to whole chapters in the present volume are by chapter number, to more specific passages by page number. References to vol. ii are by page number. ? I choose to call him composer rather than, say, author or compiler, in order to emphasize that his work involved both original composition and the gathering of existing material. 3 Stenton, Early History, p. 4. ^ Vol. ii. 224. Stenton, Early History, p. 5, states that "interpreted strictly, this passage would mean that the writer was a member of the house of Abingdon already before the death of abbot Rainald in 1097’.

xvi

INTRODUCTION

the principality of the whole of England, that is in the year 930 from : . . $ 5 the Incarnation of Christ, we received Cynath as abbot of Abingdon’. Stenton’s second passage, however, is more persuasive. Again it concerns Faritius: ‘We saw him buy more than sixty silk cloths.’ Unless the first person plural here is simply copied from a preexisting note, it almost certainly indicates that the composer actually witnessed events in Faritius's time. This would mean that the monk who composed the History had been in the abbey, or at least witnessed some affairs of the abbey, for forty-five to fifty years by the time of the completion of the History. Whilst quite an impressive twelfth-century lifespan, this duration is far from impossible. It would make the composer an approximate contemporary of Robert earl of Leicester (1104—68). The History, therefore, is the work of a man who had lived through the events at least from the time of Abbot Faritius, and who may well have known monks present in the abbey in 1066. We cannot date his death, only note that the History ceases before that of Walkelin on 10 April 1164. Given that Book II of the History has no explicit, whereas Book I does, it is plausible that the composition of the History ended when the composer died.? The composer's role in the monastery is not certain, but he may well have had a connection to the sacristy. This is plausible because of the connections between that office, documentation, and relics, the last being another of the History’s concerns. Whilst the History > See below, p. 34. * Vol. ii. 72. Such uses of the first person plural are quite characteristic of the composer's style; see below, p. xxxvi. 7 Robert provides an interesting warning about relying on memory even for events within a lifetime. According to Orderic, whom we may presume to be accurate, he was born in 1104, when Henry I was king of England; The Ecclesiastical History of Orderic Vitalis, bk. xi, c. 6, ed. M. Chibnall (6 vols., OMT, 1969-80), vi. 46. The Abingdon History, however, reports that in the time of Henry II, Robert ‘testified that he had seen a full market [at Abingdon] in the time of King Henry [I], and, what's more, when he was still a boy and was being raised at Abingdon in the time of King William [presumably Rufus| vol. ii. 312. This extension of Robert's life need not necessarily be confusion or distortion by the compiler of the History; on the remembering of age and the tendency of the old to have presented themselves as still older at least in numerical terms, see K. Thomas, “Age and authority in early modern England’, Proceedings of the British Academy, \xii (1976), 205—48, esp. pp. 234-5. * See below, p. clxxx, for the arrangement of folios by the scribe as the work came to its close. ? See vol. ii, p. xviii; also CMA ii. 375. See Keynes, Diplomas, p. 152, for a glossarist at Abingdon linking the office of scriniarius (custodian of relics) with that of cancellarius; the gloss is from the first half of the r1th century; for words of caution on the significance of this, see Chaplais, “Anglo-Saxon “chancery” of the tenth century revisited’, p. 42. Note also the combination in one manuscript of document and liturgical work at Sherborne in

COMPOSER,

TITLE,

AND

PURPOSE

xvii

displays no especial interest in lands and rights associated with the sacristy, particularly significant is the leading role which Richard the sacrist plays towards the end of the work.'? This may only indicate Richard's importance in the affairs of the whole abbey, but taken with the other indications, reinforces the likelihood of a connection between the composer and the sacristy. This would be a connection he may have shared with his Peterborough counterpart as historian of church and estates, Hugh Candidus."! 2. Title and purpose I have adopted as the title of the work that given at the start of Book II in this first manuscript, the ‘History of this church of Abingdon’. Book I had described itself in both incipit and explicit simply as ‘Book I of the lands of this church of Abingdon'. Similar works survive from various other monasteries during the twelfth century, with titles that vary between manuscripts of the same text, and between texts. From Ramsey there is a ‘Liber benefactorum’, from Ely the ‘Historia Eliensis insule’, from Battle the ‘Liber de situ ecclesie Belli et de

possessionibus EC a rege Willelmo et ab aliis quibuslibet datis?."? Such texts are linked to cartularies and to the Gesta abbatum tradition

that in England goes back to Bede. Volumes combining narrative and document had previously existed in Francia," and emerge from the mid-12th century, as discussed by F. Wormald, ‘The Sherborne “‘Chartulary”’’, in D. J. Gordon, ed., Fritz Saxl 1890-1948: A Volume of Memorial Essays from his Friends in England (London, 1957), pp. 101—19; at p. 106 he suggests that the binding of the Sherborne manuscript indicates a book for the sacristy. 10 Vol. ii. 280-90. The original of one of the bulls of Eugenius III survives with the annotation *Memoriale magistri Galfridi trenchebise’. The hand is quite similar to that of the History, but certain letter formations are different. The person responsible for the annotation presumably had a role in the keeping of documents. However, the differences in the script prevent any confident association of the annotator with the scribe of the History and any identification with the composer of the History would have to be simply speculative. ! J. A. Paxton, ‘Charter and Chronicle in Twelfth-Century England: The HouseHistories of the Fenland Abbeys’, Ph.D. diss. (Harvard University, 1999), p. 96. For parallels in France, see Berkhofer, Day of Reckoning, pp. 36, 47. V Chronicon abbatiae Rameseiensis, p. 3 (note, however, that this title is present only in a 14th-century manuscript, not a 13th-century one); Liber Eliensis, Prologue, ed. Blake, p. 1; The Chronicle of Battle Abbey, ed. E. Searle (OMT, 1980), p. 66. '3 See e.g. J.-P. Genet, ‘Cartulaires, registres et histoire: L’exemple anglais’, in B. Guenée, ed., Le Métier d'historien au moyen age: Etudes sur Vhistoriographie médiévale (Paris, 1977), T4 95—129; M. Sot, Gesta episcoporum, gesta. abbatum (T'ypologie des sources du moyen áge occidental, xxxvii; Turnhout, 1981); E. M. C. van Houts, Local and Regional Chronicles (Typologie des sources du moyen áge occidental, Ixxiv; Turnhout, 1995). ^ F. L. Ganshof, ‘L’Historiographie dans la monarchie franque sous les mérovingiens et les carolingiens’, in La storiografia altomedievale (Settimane di studio del Centro Italiano

xviil

INTRODUCTION

the late eleventh-century in England.” The multiplication of charter histories and their particular prevalence in England in the twelfth century can be explained by a variety of possible reasons, such as the desire for written evidence, the impact on church landholding of the events of King Stephen's reign (1135-54), and the formulaic nature of English charters, which required background to be provided by additional narrative. The various texts differ in some instances significantly in both form and content, for example the extent to which they reproduce charters or the interest they show in the miraculous.' However, they are linked by shared themes and purposes. Such themes are sometimes made explicit when the work has a Preface, as for example at Ely, Ramsey, and Battle. Then the emphasis is on elements such as preservation of information in writing, protection of rights, and the desire to gather documents into one book." sull'alto medioevo, xvii; Spoleto, 1970), pp. 631—85, at 657—9; R.-H. Bautier, ‘L’Historiographie en France aux X^ et xf. siécles’, ibid., pp. 793—850, at 809-22 and esp. pp. 817— 20; P. J. Geary, Phantoms of Remembrance: Memory and Oblivion at the End of the First Millennium (Princeton, 1994), pp. 81-133; Berkhofer, Day of Reckoning, pp. 10-89. See also e.g. Chronique de l'abbaye de Saint-Riquier (Ve siécle-1104), ed. F. Lot (Paris, 1894). 7 Hemingi Chartularium Ecclesiae Wigorniensis, ed. 'T. Hearne (2 vols., Oxford, 1723); N. R. Ker, ‘Hemming’s cartulary: A description of the two Worcester Cartularies in Cotton Tiberius A. xiii’, in R. W. Hunt, W. A. Pantin, and R. W. Southern, eds., Studies in Medieval History Presented to Frederick Maurice Powicke (Oxford, 1948), pp. 49-753 Fleming, ‘Christ Church Canterbury's Anglo-Norman cartulary'. We know of at least one pre-Conquest estate history in England, although not one including full documents, that is, the Old English version of the Libellus ZEthelmoldi concerned with /Ethelwold's acquisitions for Ely; see Liber Eliensis, ed. Blake, pp. xxxiii-xxxiv, 72—117, 395-9. A new edition and translation is promised by Simon Keynes and Alan Kennedy. The statement in Chronicon abbatiae Rameseiensis, Pref., ed. Macray, p. 4, that part of the composer's purpose was to bring diverse documents together in one place strongly suggests that he at least was not reliant on an earlier cartulary. See also Hemingi Chartularium, ed. Hearne, i. 285, on Wulfstan ordering the gathering of records into volumes. '© Unfortunately, we know little about the ways in which these histories were used, for example whether they were consulted, read from beginning to end, studied by individuals, or read aloud to a wider audience. A hint that the works may at times have been read from start to finish is given in B286: *Moreover, we have carefully placed in the proper places each charter of each king reigning in succession and also of all others conferring their endowments on this house. But if indeed any mortal man wonders about the above lands and possessions, now given, now taken away, but now recovered and possessed, let him read the books in order, and he will find nothing contrary there which ought justly to lead his mind to doubt.’ A suggestion, although possibly formulaic, that the works might be heard as well as read comes in the Preface to the Ramsey Liber benefactorum; Chronicon abbatie: Rameseiensis, Pref., ed. Macray, pp. 4-5. '7 Liber Eliensis, Prologue, ed. Blake, p. 1; Chronicon abbatiz Rameseiensis, Pref., ed. Macray, pp. 3-5; Chronicle of Battle Abbey, ed. Searle, p. 32. See also Geary, Phantoms of Remembrance, p. 86, who argues that the motivation of the compilers of Traditionsbücher was threefold: legal, historical, and sacral.

COMPOSER,

The Abingdon

TITLE,

AND

PURPOSE

XIX

History has no Preface and so the composer's

purpose must be abstracted from the text. The desire to record events, rights, and claims for those in the future is clear both in the subject matter and in occasional statements within the narrative: I have spoken for this reason, so that some day, through a man given by God, the just resumption of the other part [of a disputed church] should occur that much more swiftly, because the unjust seizure is found recorded in writing.'?

Past experience is said to have taught the value of written record, as when the monastery fell into neglect in the tenth century: despite the impact of such unforeseen evils, the books of deeds [i.e. documents] containing the possessions of the church were preserved— assuredly by God's foresight—so that the restorers of the possessions and afterwards their successors could have evidence of times of old.'?

Outside events might be recorded, but mainly if they affected the abbey's own position, for the prime subject of record was the lands and rights of the abbey.”° Of particular interest may have been early material which could be included or constructed on issues or places which were matters of dispute in the twelfth century. Thus an early narrative, developed from a forged charter, mentions the oppressions of the king’s huntsmen and the links between Abingdon and the estate of Sutton. In the twelfth century disputes occurred with the men of the royal manor of Sutton and the abbey obtained from Henry I a writ forbidding Nigel d'Oilly and all his huntsmen and marshals of the court from lodging at Abingdon’s land of Wheat-

ley.?' Late in Book I it is emphasized that Sparsholt ‘has remained to this day in the fee of the church’, whilst Book II shows it later being disputed.” It was also wished that the abbot should be elected by the convent, free of outside interference and in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict. Such a right of election according to the Rule is included in

pre-Conquest diplomas which appear in the History," and also '8 Vol. ii. 258. See also e.g. vol. ii. 292.

1? See below, p. 46.

20 For outside events being recorded largely for their own sake, see e.g. cc. 109, 118; vol.

ii. 16. ?! See below, p. 14; vol. ii. 120, 166—72. 2 See below, pp. 212—14; vol. ii. 52, 182-6. De abbatibus describes the land as a

reacquisition by Abbot Faritius in the early 12th century; CMA ii. 288. Note also disputes concerning Leckhampstead, cc. 120, 136; vol. ii. 56-8, 196-8; and renders of herrings, c.

141; vol. ii. 174-6.

?5 See below, pp. 62, 96, 146.

INTRODUCTION

features in some narratives. According to the History, Edward the Confessor had to persuade the abbey to accept the aged Bishop Rodulf as their abbot:

So that the monks would, out of respect both for God and himself, receive and treat honourably Rodulf, inasmuch as he was already of ripe old age, the king gave them permission rather to elect as his successor whomsoever they wished from amongst themseives when Rodulf died. The king was obeyed. Submission of due reverence was fittingly paid by the brethren to Rodulf. But the royal promise by no means deceived them thereafter."

Although the History records that /Ethelwold was appointed by King Eadred, acting ‘by the counsel of his leading men and especially the advice of his mother Eadgifu’, it clearly states that he had been

appointed canonically.? Such an issue may have been of immediate concern in the time of Walkelin, whom the History presents as Henry IPs nominee, whilst another Abingdon text, De abbatibus, states that Henry gave him the abbey on the intervention of his queen. The History is careful to present the two abbots as enthusiastic restorers of

the abbey’s possessions and thus fitting abbots.”° The History is also concerned with the protection of the abbey and monks against bad or weak abbots. This was particularly important under Walkelin given Abbot Ingulf’s recent alienations of property, alienations condemned by the History. It is even possible that the History was written in response to a more pro-abbatial account of the abbey’s affairs presented by another Abingdon text, De abbatibus, if, asis plausible, a version of that text was completed in Ingulf's time." Concern with conventual rights would also fit with the likely origin of the History within the sacristy, one of the obediences or specially endowed offices of the monastery.”* Obvious to the audience of the History may have been parallels between recent figures and earlier ones, for example between Ingulf and the late tenth-century abbot Eadwine, whose abbacy was said to have involved considerable losses, or between Walkelin and Abbots Wulfgar and /Ethelwine as restorers of property^? ?* See below, p. 198.

?5 See below, p. 48.

?* The writing of the History in MS C coincided with the Becket dispute, itself partly caused by the nature of Becket's appointment and by conflicts over the resumption of church lands.

27 See below, p. lvi.

8 See vol. ii, pp. Ixxxv-Ixxxvii.

? Eadwine c. 96; Wulfgar c. 97; /Ethelwine c. 111; Ingulf vol. ii. 290-6; Walkelin vol. ii. 296-8. Note the explicit comparison of Faritius with /Ethelwold and Wulfgar in vol. ii. 66. Not just recent events but old documents could be recorded to make the convent’s case. An Anglo-Saxon charter's anathema against future alienation of the land given could

COMPOSER,

TITLE, AND

PURPOSE

xxi

The History, therefore, has as a further concern the recording of the deeds of abbots, providing exempla of good or bad pastorship. Protection and acquisition of lands remains the central issue, but other matters, such as the church buildings, ornaments, and relics, also merits mention." In the most important cases character sketches, brief or in rare instances extended, are added to descriptions of deeds.?! The moral and exemplary purpose of the History extended beyond its treatment of abbots. A small number of miracle stories illustrating

monastic virtues appear in Book L7 The fate of evil laymen is described, at times with relish. Take the case of Froger, sheriff of Berkshire in the wake of the Norman Conquest and oppressor of Abingdon: afterwards the vengeance of God, the Governor of all things, punished the ungoverned advances of that powerful man over those whom he had oppressed, so that royal justice took away from him the tyrannical right by which he was raised up, and as long as he lived it was changed into universal contempt by his neediness and stupidity. In these his afflictions, he presents a clear model for those to come that a place dedicated to the guardianship of the Queen of Heaven and consecrated in memory of the holy men who founded it and inhabited it should be revered rather than ravaged.?

Most important of all in the History’s depiction of relations with the outside world is the position of the king.** Right from the start of the History instances are given of the benefit of good relations between king and monastery.?? The problems of the breakdown of such relations are illustrated by other cases, such as those of Alfred and William Rufus.? Examples are also given of kings who turned from antagonism to

patronage: Ine, Coenwulf, and in particular /Ethelred."" Above all, easily be read to apply to the abbot, bound as he was by his abbatial oath to protect and regather the abbey's property. See vol. ii, p. xl on the abbot's oath. 3° See below, pp. clxvi-clxxvii; vol. ii, pp. ci-civ. Building work receives less attention in Book I of the History than in Book II. 3! The extended character sketches are devoted to the dominant figures of each book, /Ethelwold and Faritius; see cc. 24, 27; vol. ii. 64-6. 9? cc. 29, 30; see also below, p. 218. See vol. ii. 32 for the prior, ‘inspired by divine prompting’, saving the monks from the collapse of the church tower. 33 See below, p. 228. See also e.g. vol. ii. 104-6. 34 Note also the link to the papacy established by the references to Pope Leo III, a link which was to be particularly important in Stephen's reign; see below, pp. 14, 18, 64, 96, 146; vol. ii. 264—80. 35 See below, pp. 2—6; also e.g. 56 (feasting with the king at Abingdon). 36 See below, p. 32; vol. ii. 60-2.

? cc. 3-7, 9, 97.

xxii

INTRODUCTION

there are the exemplary relations enjoyed with kings by the two heroes of the History, Abbots /Ethelwold and Faritius. The History helped to form in monks’ minds their image of their house's past and of the community of monks and associated benefactors. It may have been intended to record the names of donors for their liturgical commemoration. Such a link is made more explicit in the preface of the equivalent text from Ramsey, which certainly by the fourteenth century was entitled Liber benefactorum.?? At least in the late eleventh century there seems to have been a different text at Abingdon fulfilling this purpose, as shown by Earl Hugh of Chester's demand that in return for his gift 'I may be your brother, and my wife and father and mother be in your prayers, and . . . we all be written in the Book of Commemorations'. Whether the existence of such a text should be seen as reducing the liturgical significance of the History is uncertain; at Canterbury in the late eleventh century cartulary and obituary list co-existed and were closely related in material and probably purpose.??

II. COMPOSITION OF THE (A) Ms C

HISTORY:

l. Possible precursors of the History London, British Library, Cotton Claudius C. 1x preserves the first surviving text of the History, but did the composer of this text rely heavily on an earlier version? It has been suggested that he must have ‘used some now lost abbatial history, possibly a pre-Conquest one’. Evidence for this view comes from comparison of various postConquest chronicles, and the detail in some, such as the Abingdon History, on pre-Conquest matters compared with the vagueness of others. Charters and oral tradition might explain this precision, but the detailed quality of the account of mid-eleventh-century events, together with ‘the precise detail and vivid touches in some of his narrative’, have been taken to suggest an extended narrative source.” An alternative view is that ‘the collection in Claudius C 1x seems 95 See Chronicon abbatize Rameseiensis, Pref., ed. Macray, pp. 3-4. ? Vol. ii. 24-6. For obituary lists containing notes of donors and donations, see R. Fleming, ‘Christchurch’s sisters and brothers: An edition and discussion of Canterbury obituary lists’, in M. A. Meyer, ed., The Culture ofChristendom: Essays in Medieval History in Commemoration of Denis L. T. Bethell (London, 1993), pp. 115-53; id., ‘Christ Church Canterbury’s Anglo-Norman cartulary’, pp. 103-6.

* Gransden, ‘Traditionalism and continuity’, p. 193.

COMPOSITION

OF THE

HISTORY

xxiii

originally to have been compiled in the 1130s, though the manuscript

itself was probably written in the 1160s’.!

Given that no earlier texts survive, conclusions on this point must be cautious. The absence of a Preface is a further problem. It might either have referred to an earlier work, or have specified the need to assemble diverse documents into a single book, thus implying the lack of a prior version. The History does include references to earlier texts, but these appear to be specific documents referring to lands, not more extended narratives. Given such references, the silence on narratives may, but need not, be significant. There are mentions of the gesta of individual abbots, but these need only be references to sections of the *' Keynes, Diplomas, p. 10 n.12; id., ‘Studies’, i. 70-5. Keynes's argument rests primarily on the relationship between the History as in MS C and the additions made at the abbey to the Chronicle of John of Worcester and preserved in Lambeth Palace Library 42. At p. 72, Keynes places considerable emphasis on the statement in the Lambeth manuscript that the writer knew nothing certain concerning the period between the death of Hrathhun and the reign of /Ethelstan (see John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 610); ‘This remark has no parallel in C ix, and indeed we find in that work a considerable amount of information about the history of Abingdon in the later ninth and early tenth centuries.’ In fact there is very little in MS C concerning Abingdon in this period, although this is rather concealed by Stevenson's edition, which relies on MS B. The treatment of the Danes in c. 14 has no information concerning Abingdon. It is followed by two charters, neither of which concerns gifts directly to Abingdon. There is then a very short narrative concerning Alfred, which does not fit well with John of Worcester's picture of that king. Next, in c. 18, comes another charter recording a gift not directly to Abingdon, followed by very brief mention in c. 19 of the death of Edward the Elder and the accession of /Ethelstan. There follows a mention of Abbot Cynath and then charters of /Etbelstan. The Abingdon addition to John of Worcester shows knowledge both of Cynath and of three of the four estates that /Ethelstan gave; the fourth estate could quite easily have been omitted by accident. At p. 75, Keynes suggests that History’s ‘account of events occurring during the reigns of Stephen and Henry II is somewhat confused’. This is not the case; rather the writer has, for example, sometimes kept together his accounts of particular disputes, an arrangement confused by the reviser of the History, who favoured a more strictly chronological arrangement. As suggested below, p. xxv, this very integration of material of different periods creates problems for Keynes's argument. At p. 75, Keynes also suggests that the work had been compiled in the 1130s *with a few additions relating to the reigns of Stephen and Henry II’. Even setting aside the post-1135 material integrated into the sections of the History devoted to the period before 1135, these ‘few additions’ from the accession of Stephen amount, in the present edition, to at least sixty-two pages (ii. 260— 321—the date of events in ii. 254-61 is not certain but in part these pages cover events certainly after 1135). The section from the death of Faritius in 1117 to that of Henry I in 1135 amounts to thirty-cight pages (ii. 224-61), but some of these concern cvents after the accession of Stephen and indeed after that of Henry II. There is thus no reduction in the proportionate amount of space devoted to the later period. The exceptional period is that of the abbacy of Faritius, 1100-17. The arguments on the development of the History put forward in F. Langer, Zur Sprache des Abingdon Chartulars (Berlin, 1904), esp. pp. 12-16, notably for earlier versions being compiled in 1054 x 1100 and in Henry II's reign, are not convincing.

XXIV

INTRODUCTION

History on the deeds of specific abbots, not to separate and preexisting texts." Moreover, the extent of pre-Conquest memory is not all that great. Setting aside the exceptional case of /Ethelwold, the increase in narrative only really starts about fifty years before the Conquest, and even then the treatment of abbacies is considerably less detailed than for those after 1071 and particularly after 1100. There is no equivalent to the very detailed treatment of /Etheric, bishop of Dorchester (1016—34), in the Ramsey history, let alone the activities of /Ethelwold in the Liber Eliensis, which certainly was based on an earlier text surviving in Latin as the Libellus /Etheloldi.? There are other possible explanations for the relatively good chronology of the Anglo-Saxon period and its growing detail and colour in the eleventh century: these include use of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, the probable existence of notes of individual events and transactions, the certain existence of a Book of Commemorations at least in the late eleventh century, and above all the interpretation of a large body of charters, some of which themselves display an interest in history.^ Can it be shown that the composer in the 1160s was responsible for putting together the whole History, rather than just being responsible for the period after, say, 1130 or the death of Faritius in 1117? Although no abbacy is again treated at such great length as that of Faritius, there is no major shift in the form of the History, with its combination of narrative and document. Rather there is general

consistency from the first half of the eleventh century onward.* All references to ‘the present day’ or equivalent phrases could refer to * See below, p. 222; vol. ii. 78, 308. Likewise, there is no shift in form or style after 1130; see below, pp. Xxxili—xxxvii. 5 Chronicon abbatiz Ramesciensis, cc. 70-82, ed. Macray, pp. 120-48. See Gransden, "Traditionalism and continuity’, p. 194: ‘the great detail of these passages and their lively tone suggest that the chronicler copied them from some now lost Life of /Etheric'. For the Libellus ZEthelmoldi, see above, n. 15. “ Ifa Book of Commemorations, with only brief notes of donors and perhaps gifts, was an important source, the process in relevant instances would bc one of fresh composition rather than rewriting. Note Fleming, ‘Christ Church Canterbury’s Anglo-Norman cartulary’, p. 92. The same would apply concerning any type of list of donors, whether or not connected to commemoration; see the suggestions in Stoke by Clare Cartulary, BL Cotton Appx. xxi, ed. C. Harper-Bill and R. Mortimer (3 vols., Suffolk Charters, iv—vi; 1982-4), iii. 51-3. 5 See below, p. Ixxii, for a possible increase in pre-existing short texts concerning disputes and transactions, together with a decline in the number of diplomas, causing the change at that point. On the structure of Book II in MS C, sce vol. ii, pp. xxx-xxxvii.

COMPOSITION

THE

HISTORY

XXV

Walkelin’s time, although they need not do so.*° The rare occasions on which the History seems to display factual error may also be significant. There may be confusion between Rufus and Henry I in a dispute involving a knight named Rainbald at the end of the eleventh and the start of the twelfth century. Such confusion seems more explicable in a text composed in the 1160s than in one written some

decades earlier.*’

It can moreover be demonstrated that certain sections of the History were at the very least rewritten and possibly composed some time after the events they describe. A few Anglo-Saxon matters, particularly concerning landholding, are explained for a later audience. A chapter dealing with matters of /Ethelred's reign looks forward to William of Normandy’s conquest of England.*? Rufus’s treatment of vacancies is presented as a past evil: At that time there was an unspeakable custom practised in England, that if any person among the prelates of churches departed life, the church honour was assigned to the royal treasury. And this was done with the church of Abingdon, as with others.”

Furthermore, the extensive account of a long-running dispute over Marcham involving the king’s dispensers and stretching from the reign of Rufus to that of Henry II, although dispersed in Book II, has a coherence as a whole.?! Cross-references within the text reinforce this impression.°” Such features demonstrate that any earlier narrative materials had at least been significantly rewritten. Interventions in the first person plural may also be significant, 4© See below, pp. 28, 114 (referring to monks in general rather than those individuals introduced by /Ethelwold), 182, 198, 212, 218; vol. ii. 52, 54, 244, 258.

^7 See vol. ii. 58 and n. 138. ^5 See esp. below, p. 208: ‘for he who had in his possession such writing could thereby dispute more confidently for any land’. See also pp. 212, 218, and note vol. ii. 6 for a reference to ‘those known as thegns' See below, p. clvii, for anachronistic language concerning Anglo-Saxon land-holding and lordship. *? c. 109. Note also e.g. vol. ii. 16 referring to Henry son of William I as ‘then a youth’; vol. ii. 62 referring to Robert count of Meulan as ‘the elder’. °° Vol. ii. 60. : ?! Vol. ii. 52-4, 234-44, 306-8. Note also an account of a dispute of Stephen's reign which mentions ‘King Henry the younger, who reigned after Stephen’, vol. ii. 282; similarly the reference to ‘Ingulf—then abbot of the church’, vol. ii. 280. Reference such as that at vol. ii. 174 to ‘the time of Abbot Faritius’ may indicate that the passages were written after the abbacy of the abbot named. See also below, pp. xxxvi, lxxi. 3? See below, n. 126, for such cross-references in the first person plural; also e.g. pp. 48, 190, 208, 222; vol. ii. 2, 58, 306.

XXVi

INTRODUCTION

although they do not prove that the same composer was intervening each time. A passage dealing with events in Abbot Walkelin's time looks back to matters which *we recorded above, among the deeds of the venerable Abbot Vincent’. This refers the reader back to a passage which itself begins with a reference back to the vacancy after the death of Faritius ‘as we have recorded above’. Whilst necessarily somewhat impressionistic, other aspects of stylistic consistency also suggest a single composer. There is some consistency of vocabulary, in terms of certain words and phrases being used frequently, and of

less frequently used words appearing far apart)! Given that the composer

was drawing on earlier written texts, rewriting did not

necessarily produce absolute stylistic consistency. Occasional sentences interrupt the narrative flow, suggesting possible interpolation

in earlier short texts. However, any such stylistic variations or awkward interpolations work at the level of individual chapters and are not indications of an extended History pre-existing that preserved in our earliest manuscript. The most plausible view of the composition of the History is, therefore, that MS C does indeed preserve the first extended Abingdon text combining charter and narrative, that it was being composed in the time of Abbot Walkelin, and that it drew on a variety of sources, including relatively short and specific texts recording events and transactions. 2. Sources for the composition of Book I What, then, were the sources that the composer used for his Book I? Let us deal first with narratives. Matters concerning, for example, royal succession were probably drawn from a version of the AngloSaxon Chronicle. It could be that the Chronicle of John of Worcester was the source, but it should be noted that the dating of the council of Kirtlington to Easter is present in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle and the 3 Vol. ii. 234, 308. * See below, e.g. ‘callidus’ p. 196, vol. ii. 280; ‘in articulo temporis! p. 140, vol. ii. 82;

note also vol. ii. 6 ‘tali in articulo huius fortune’. See further, below, pp. xxxiii-xxxvii. 55 It is, for example, interesting to see that a word such as manerium is not introduced into the text dealing with events before the mid-11th century: below, pp. 198, 212; cf. p. 244 in the revised version of the History. °° For example, in dealing with Stigand’s machinations concerning lands in Gloucestershire when he was bishop of Winchester, it is mentioned that William I later imprisoned him for life, a statement of no immediate relevance to the passage; below, p. 196. The final sentence of the chapter also seems somewhat detached and obscure.

COMPOSITION

THE

HISTORY

xxvii

History, but not in John of Worcester." An Abingdon manuscript of John of Worcester, in the same hand as the History, does survive, and includes various additions specifically concerning Abingdon, most of which also appear in the text of the History. The best explanation of the shared Abingdon passages and of the lack of influence of the core text of the Worcester Chronicle on the History is that the scribe came

to John of Worcester after he had completed the History.*® The composer of the History appears to have known Wulfstan of Winchester's Life of St Athelwold. However, he did not choose to copy passages from it in the way that some authors did, for example

William of Malmesbury in his Gesta pontificum.? Most notably there is not the copying which appears in the Abingdon manuscripts of

John of Worcester's Chronicle or in the later version of the History. Rather, the earlier manuscript of the History includes two miracle stories which also appear in the Life. In both cases, the History's version is distinct from the Lzfe’s, probably best taken as new

composition based on material in the Life.°' The closest to direct verbal copying comes in the History’s chapter ‘Concerning Queen Eadgifu’, where it is mentioned that ‘at the start of the construction of the monastery [King Eadred] measured the foundations of the work with his own hand [ipse fundamenta faciendi operis propria metiretur manu] . In the Life, one of the shared miracle stories had taken place on a day when the king visited the monastery to oversee the building works and *with his own hand he measured all the foundations of the monastery [mensusque est omnia fundamenta monasteri propria manu|’. The verbal parallels are close enough both to establish the composer of the History’s knowledge of the Life and to confirm that elsewhere he deliberately chose not to copy from it. 57 ASC, ‘B’ and ‘C’, s.a. 977; below, p. 136; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 428. Likewise the account of Harthacnu*t's death, below, p. 186, does not use information available from John of Worcester, Chronicle, ti. 532-4. 8 John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 609—15, iii. 307-8; see below, pp. 4, 14, 46, 52, 54, 116, 138, 176, 178, 186, 194, 198, 220; vol. ii. 64, 70, 224, 228. The treatment of JEthelwold in c. 24 is related to, though lengthier than, the Abingdon addition in John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 610. See below, pp. lviii-lix, on the relationship of the manuscripts; below, p. xli, on MS B's use of John of Worcester. °° See Wulfstan, Life of Ethelwold, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, pp. cxliii-clxvii, 99 See below, pp. xli, lviii. esp. clviii—clix.

9! See cc. 29 and 32, Wulfstan, Life of Zthelwold, cc. 12 and 14, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, pp. 22-8; cf. below, p. lviii, on MS B's direct quotation from the Life of A:thelwold. See below, p. 56; Wulfstan, Life of Ethelwold, c. 12, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom,

p. 22.

xxviii

INTRODUCTION

Rather than extended narratives, it is documents and above all charters or diplomas which are the major written source for the History. 'The version in MS C contains seventy-four pre-1066 documents, five of which appear only in that manuscript. All relate to lands which were either part of the endowment in 1066 or were claimed as having been once part of the endowment. ‘Twentyone, largely from the mid-tenth century, are in favour of individuals, and most appear to be genuine documents that came to the abbey when the lands concerned passed to it.°* The remaining documents all explicitly concern grants which the History presents as having been made to the monastery. 'The majority are royal diplomas from the period 930—1054. There are also charters supposedly from the earliest years of the house, but probably related to a minster at Bradfield, and some other spurious charters from the eighth and ninth centuries. Whereas at Glastonbury an early cartulary was available for the composition of a history in the twelfth and early thirteenth centuries, it would appear that the composer of the History was working from originals.© Of one document the History states that ‘we have found what follows written in English in almost worn-away letters’.°’ The originals almost all survived to be consulted again by the reviser of the History, and minor difference of order of documents between the two versions of the History may suggest slight shuffling of documents within bundles. The documents were probably kept in chests, as is $$ For what follows, see below, Concordance 1. Those appearing only in MS C are cc. 5, 6, 10, 25, 113; see below, p. xlvi, on their omission from MS B. My figure of seventy-four does not include c. 2, and counts cc. 3 and 4 as a single document. 5*5 See also Keynes, Diplomas, pp. 10-11, 33—4. There are no instances like those at St Augustine's, Canterbury, where the lay beneficiary's name was simply changed to that of the church in order to record the transfer; see Charters of St Augustine’s Abbey, Canterbury, and Minster-in- Thanet, ed. S. E. Kelly (Anglo-Saxon Charters, iv; Oxford, 1997), pp. ciii civ. * For Bradfield: cc. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7; other 8th- and gth-century charters: cc. 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 18. Blair, *Minsters of the Thames’, p. 22, suggests—on the basis of Susan Kelly's inferences—that Bradfield was perhaps originally founded as early as the 660s and was the centre of a familia of daughter houses; ‘this may therefore have been a minster of very considerable importance, but there is no indication in the later history of the church that it remained of any account in the late Anglo-Saxon period and after".

°° See Scott, Early History of Glastonbury, pp. 6, 19; L. Abrams, Anglo-Saxon Glastonbury: Church and Endowment (Woodbridge, 1996), pp. 14—18, 31—4, on the early Glastonbury cartulary, the precise dating of which is difficult. She points out, p. 17 n. 44, that we cannot be sure that the relevant passages in the Glastonbury De antiquitate were the work

of William of Malmesbury rather than interpolations. On the development of the De antiquitate, see Scott, Early History of Glastonbury, pp. 34-9. 57 See below, p. 136. See below, p. clxxxiv, on the collection of boundary clauses.

$$ See below, pp. xliv-xlvii.

COMPOSITION

OF THE

HISTORY

XXIX

revealed by the story of the will of Archbishop /Elfric being found in one of the abbey’s chests in the late eleventh century.” Such chests may have been kept in the sacristy, and perhaps have been associated with the church's relics. 'The range of charters that appears in MS C is the product of a process of selection, linked to the establishment of Abingdon's landed endowment.” To take one example, the composer knew that King /Ethelred had given his thegn Beorhtric eight hides at Leverton, which Edward the Confessor later gave to Abingdon. He may have learnt of this from a note associated with Edward's charter, but it is more likely that he knew of /Ethelred's charter, which would later be included in the revised History." However, the composer of the earlier version chose to include only the Confessor’s charter for Abingdon, presumably considering this sufficient evidence of title. Indeed, in no case does MS C include both a charter recording the gift of land to Abingdon and an earlier charter recording that single piece of land being given to an individual.7 Only when there was no charter recording the transfer to Abingdon did he include the most recent of the charters transferring land to an individual; presumably the assumed subsequent transfer of that charter to the monastery was deemed sufficient title. When copies in MS C can be compared with surviving originals, they are generally revealed as of good quality.? The proem was on $9 Vol. ii. 50. 7 See also Keynes, Diplomas, pp. 10-11. See below, p. cxxxi, for the possibility that the existence at Abingdon of more than one storage chest might help to explain differences between the selection of documents included in MS C and in MS B. Cf. Robinson, Times of Saint Dunstan, p. 78, on relics being stored in chests at Glastonbury, and the production of two relic lists, one arranged by chest, the other by subject. Chroniclers elsewhere likewise did not necessarily use all the documentation available to them; see Berkhofer, Day of Reckoning, pp. 54-5, on Hariulf at Saint-Riquier. 7! cc. 134-5, B228. Note also the omission of the charter recording the Confessor’s grant of Sandford to Earl Godwine, B271; cf. the inclusion of the charter in his name granting land there to Abingdon, c. 132, on which see also below, p. cxix; the omission of the charter recording /Ethelred granting five hides in Chilton to Byrhtwold bishop of Ramsbury, B239; cf. the inclusion of the charter in the Confessor's name granting land there to Abingdon, c. 133. See also Keynes, Diplomas, p. 12. 7 Note, however, the will of Archbishop /Elfric recording his grant of Dumbleton to Abingdon, and the charter concerning Dumbleton in the preceding chapter; cc. 104, 105. Note also the mention of various estates in two charters in King Coenwulf’s name, below,

COSTOS DE. 75 Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, pp. lvi, Ix, states that MS C has less of a tendency to modify personal names and Old English words than would be displayed in the later revision. Note also that Latin readings in charters in MS C which differ from those in MS

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INTRODUCTION

several occasions omitted, particularly perhaps when it repeated the formulae of a nearby charter." On the other hand, some lengthy proems were retained, whilst shorter ones often reiterate the utility |

of writing for the preservation of memory.”° In addition, boundary clauses were routinely omitted, but the same manuscript includes a

quire of boundary clauses, copied in the same hand as the History." Usually witness lists were considerably abbreviated; the longer of the witness lists in this version may indicate charters of particular importance, especially the privilege of /Ethelred and to a slightly

lesser extent that of Edgar." Charters were also sources for narrative passages in the History. 'The comment that Alfred, in taking away from the abbey the place in which it was situated, was ‘rendering inappropriate compensation to the victorious Lord for the victory that he had enjoyed', derives from

a charter in Eadred's name." Elsewhere charters were a source of information rather than phraseology. The very first chapter of the History states that we have learnt from a record of bygone events which man of old was the original founder of this monastery: that Cissa king of the West Saxons gave the site for the monastery to be built for the worship of almighty God to a certain Haha, a man of the religious life and abbot, and also to his sister, named Cilla, and that very many endowments and possessions were conferred on it by royal gift, for the necessities of life of those living therein.??

The ‘record of bygone events’ is probably the charters which immediately follow. The chapter concerning Abbot Hrethhun and B are sometimes supported by the 16th-century copies; see e.g. below, p. 38, for ‘adaugeat’ rather than ‘adaugebat’, p. 66 ‘sit’ rather than ‘ait? (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 22, 52). Cf. the treatment of Anglo-Saxon charters noted by Fleming, ‘Christ Church Canterbury’s Anglo-Norman cartulary’, pp. 93-6. See below, p. 36, for MS C taking what was in fact a capital P to be an Anglo-Saxon wynn. Note also the number of scribal errors in cc. 129-30, and see below, p. xxxi, on the translation of /Elfric's will. ™ cc. 16, 22, 60, 61, 69, 77, 81, 83, 85, 98 (where the omission makes the start of the charter somewhat awkward), 135.

(EUER

76 e.g. cc. 8, 20.

7 See below, p. clxxxiv. 75 cc. 60 and 98, the latter of which omits the thegns who witnessed; cf. the much abbreviated witness list to c. 37, Eadwig's privilege. Note also c. 20.

7 See below, pp. 32, 50. 9! Stenton, Early History, pp. 16—17, notes that ‘the form Hean, which alone appears in Abingdon documents, merely represents an oblique case of this name [Hzha], treated as a nominative by scribes to whom the declensions of Old English had become unfamiliar’.

COMPOSITION

THE

HISTORY

xxxi

his protection of the abbey from the oppressions of King Coenwulf’s servants almost certainly arises from the relevant charter in Coenwulf's name; a story of a specific episode has been used to explain what is in fact a not unusual immunity clause.?! /Ethelred's charters suggested oppressions suffered by the house whilst those from

/Ethelwold's time gave an early version of the house’s history. Other types of documents too acted as sources for the History. Only one will specifically making a grant to Abingdon appears in the History, that of Archbishop /Elfric of Canterbury.? It appears in MS C only in a Latin version, whereas the revised History also includes the Old English. The Latin text omits some details, makes some errors of translation, and omits the exact terms of an agreement involving St Albans and a layman, presumably of little interest to Abingdon.** Further grants may have been known from wills that do not appear in the History. They may have been lost, or excluded from the History because they were in the vernacular or because they were less impressive documents than diplomas. Alternatively, if Abingdon was not the main beneficiary, it may not have received or recorded the entire will but only a short statement of the relevant gift. Vernacular documents may have recorded other gifts, such as that of Chalgrave and Bulthesworthe, which is accompanied in the History by a list of witnesses. There is a Latin summary of a vernacular text recording Abbot /Ethelwold and Bishop Brihthelm’s exchange of Kennington and Curbridge, a text which appears in full in the later

manuscript. Such vernacular charters and records of individual 3! cc. 9, 11, on which see also Charters p. 14n. 47. Gransden, ‘Traditionalism and the Confessor could underlie the History’s Queen Edith (c. 121) 83 c. 105. /Elfric's will may have come there; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 613. Bradfield.

of Abingdon Abbey, pp. cxcv—cxvi, and below, continuity’, p. 198, suggests that a charter of account of how Lewknor was acquired from 82 See cc. 37, 60, 98, 99, 102. to Abingdon because he was initially buried The ‘testament’ of Abbot Haha, c. 7, concerns

84 See K. A. Lowe, ‘Latin versions of Old English wills’, Journal of Legal History, xx (1999), 1-24, at pp. 5-6, who concludes that it ‘is salutary to note the carelessness with which the translator handled details of less importance to the foundation [i.e. Abingdon] while on the face of it giving a full and accurate account of the will's contents’. 85 See e.g. cc. 107, 108; also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 579-83. Lowe, ‘Latin versions of Old English wills’, p. 4, notes that such incorporation of material from wills into Latin narrative also occurs at Ely and Ramsey. 39 See below, p. 76. There may also have been boundary clauses with an existence separate from diplomas; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. xlvi. In addition, the Latin account of a gift by Ceadwalla at the start of the History translates a vernacular text that came to be appended to a diploma; c. 2 and n. 5; see also Gelling, Early Charters of the Thames Valley,

no. 142.

xxxii

INTRODUCTION

bequests can be grouped with the type of short memoranda and notes that may underlie other passages of the History." Very occasionally such reliance on earlier memoranda can be proved. Thus the History’s section concerning the acquisition of Kingston from Ealdorman /Elfhere translates a vernacular text preserved in the quire of MS C devoted to boundary clauses. Elsewhere reliance on earlier short texts, Latin or vernacular, can only be suggested on less definitive grounds. Forms of dating by solar cycle or concurrents, unique

within the History, may be one indication. Vocabulary choice or phraseology may be suggestive," but in general the process of rewriting from any earlier notes seems to have been quite thorough. Whatever their precise nature, and whatever their relationship to the text of the History, it seems very likely that an increase in the number of pre-existing notes contributed to the change in form of the History from the first half of the eleventh century, with increased narrative

and the appearance of accounts of disputes.?! In addition, the composer of the History could have heard accounts of some events that had taken place late in the period covered in Book I from old monks who had either experienced the events themselves or in turn heard them from their elders." When Abbot Adelelm (1071-83) was seeking to establish the abbey’s rights, one of his greatest helpers was /Elfwig, priest at the royal vill of Sutton Courtenay and a Domesday tenant of the abbey. Amongst /Elfwig's qualities was excellent memory of past events. In 1091 x 1094, the church of Sutton Courtenay was given to the abbey, and it was arranged that /Elfwig was to be succeeded by his son, should the son *7 [n general, see the various non-royal vernacular documents collected in Anglo-Saxon Charters, ed. Robertson. For a different way of using such notes, see Fleming, *Christ Church Canterbury's Anglo-Norman cartulary’, pp. 91-2. 85 c. 93; see also below, p. lxi, for attempts to associate this text with a ‘house narrative’. 8° Vol. ii. 18, 108. °° For unusual vocabulary, see e.g. the use of ‘datio’ in the account of a gift by Henry d'Aubigny; vol. ii. 146. This is the only use of the word in the History, although it could, of course, be a slip for ‘donatio’. The list of relics compiled on the order of Faritius uses the word ‘contestor’ with reference to St Malo; vol. ii. 222. The word does not appear in DMLBS, although R. E. Latham, Revised Medieval Latin Word-List from British and Irish Sources (rev. edn., London, 1980), s.v. ‘contest/atio litis’, does include ‘contestator’ with a reference to the ninth century. The relic list may have been wrongly copied into the History, or may include an otherwise extremely rare form. *! See below, p. Ixxii, for this change of form. See also below, p. xxxvi, on verses being copied into the History ?? See above, p. xv, on the possible date of the composer's entry to the monastery; see also vol. ii, pp. xx-xxi.

COMPOSITION

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xxxiii

survive him. If we assume that the son did outlive /Elfwig, he may well have lived into the time when the composer of the History was at Abingdon, giving the composer a potential link to the late AngloSaxon past, its events, and its traditions.”

3. Style of narrative sections of the History Finally, in this consideration of the work of the composer of the first version of the History, let us briefly examine the style of the narratives for which he was responsible. In general, the prose is clear and quite

simple. Slips or infelicities of grammar do occur but are few.?* The historic present is sometimes employed for quite extended passages, sometimes for just part of a sentence.” There are only occasional minor flourishes, such as the juxtaposition ‘just’ and ‘unjust’ in the

phrase ‘sed non patitur Deus sicut iusta sic iniusta diu subsistere’.”° No clear literary model is used for the initial laudatory depiction of Faritius, for example, and we have already seen that the composer avoided direct derivation from the Life of /Ethelpold.?" If there is a major influence on his style, it is the mass of charter material that he has digested. Some preference for classicizing or, perhaps more accurately, Romanizing vocabulary is displayed. Imperium and related words are common. Sometimes employed to mean order or command, imperium is most commonly used to mean kingship, dominion, or

reign,” as it also is in Anglo-Saxon charters.'°° It is also used in adjectival form as an impressive alternative to regius or regalis.'°' cnu*t is said to have ruled Denmark, Norway, and England ‘imperialiter’ in a passage which also mentions his visit to Rome and his giving of laws.’ The phrase ‘res publica’ is used to refer to public or royal

property, ?to the common good in need of protection,* and also to the public or worldly affairs and property of the monastery. The ?3 Vol. ii. 4, 36-40. ?* See below, p. 178 (Hec uero nominata . . . ex ea genuit); p. 188 (Abbendoniam requisitum abbatem ueniunt"). ^ ,

?5 See below, e.g. pp. 136-8, 174; vol. ii. 22.

?6 Vol. ii. 240.

See above, p. xxvii; vol. ii. 64-6. . 98 e.g. below, pp. 138, 224; vol. ii. 6, 16, 182. ?? e.g. below, pp. 10, 32; vol. ii. 26, 58, 174, 180 (‘ante suscepti imperii monarchiam"). See e.g. below, p. 18, for ‘anno imperii nostri". 101 See below, p. 196, vol. ii. 4, 50, with reference to the crown or to orders. 102 See below, p. 184. The title Pasileus, which I translate as ‘emperor’, appears only in charters in the History, not in narrative sections.

103 See below, p. 4. 104 Vol. ii. 6.

105 Vol. ii. 4, 104.

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INTRODUCTION

adjective publicus is used not only in the sense of ‘open’ or ‘public’ in a formal context! but also of ‘official’ or even ‘state’: letters were sent ‘ad comprouinciales publicarum administrationum exactores [to the

local officials of public administration |", and there are references to ‘publica moneta [public money]. There are also occasional uses of vocabulary from Romano-canonical private law. Thus a grant is made ‘de proprio fratrum fructuario", rather than the more common phrases such as ‘a dominio mon-

achorum’.!°? However, whilst such words are on occasion used, they do not seem to carry any strict technical sense. Likewise, the terms possessio and proprietas feature in the text, but are not contrasted in the way that was becoming significant in legal thinking in England at this

very time, to distinguish between

possession and ownership.''?

Proprietas barely figures in the text, although it is once used in the sense of right or ownership disputed between two parties.!!! Possessio appears considerably more often but is largely used in the narratives

to refer to physical possessions,'" rarely to the enjoying of possession.'? Even in this latter case, possession is probably not being consciously contrasted with ownership." The composer was willing to use words unknown or not common in classical Latin. In the latter category come, for example, the words '06 See e.g. vol. ii. 56 ‘publico eis interminato maledicto', 172 ‘publico in conspectus iterare", 220 ‘nisi publica satisfactione et restitutione penituerint'. See also vol. ii. 22, 30, for ‘ratiotinatione publica’ and 'ratiocinatu publico". Cf. e.g. below, p. 16, vol. ii. 4, for use of publice. '07 Vo]. ii. 144; note also vol. ii. 62, particularly on Hugh of Buckland being sheriff and *publicarum iusticiarius compellationum', which may mean something like *pleas of the crown’.

Ie aVOliiinaOssos ' Vol. ii. 56; it is probable ‘proprio’ is here an adjective, ‘fructuario’ a noun, although this cannot be certain. Occasionally a phrase is used that is neither common in contemporary English law nor a term from learned law, but perhaps had a certain learned ring; see vol. ii. 62 for *delegatio commendaticia'. I would like to thank Magnus Ryan for his help on this point. ! M. G. Cheney, 'Possessio/ proprietas in ecclesiastical courts in mid-twelfth-century England’, in G. S. Garnett and J. G. H. Hudson , eds., Lam and Government in Medieval England and Normandy (Cambridge, 1994), pp. 245-54. !! See below, p. 210.

"2 See below, e.g. pp. 2, 14, 46, 92, vol. ii. 4, 6, 26. !5 See below, p. 190. Charters also sometimes use ‘possessio’ in a more abstract sense, but not in contrast to ownership; e.g. below, p. 36. Note also charters using phrases such as ‘in eternam possessionem": e.g. below, pp. 68, 86. !* Cf. the background in learned law of Thomas of Marlborough, author of the equivalent History of Evesham; Thomas of Marlborough, History of the Abbey of Evesham, ed. J. E. Sayers and L. Watkiss (OMT, 2003), pp. xv—xxvii.

COMPOSITION

"infortunium" and ‘commanipulares’,

THE

HISTORY

XXXV

both used in the account of

oppressions of the church by William Rufus.'? Likewise, the chapter introducing

Abbot

Faritius twice uses the extremely uncommon

comparative of the quite rare word *procurate'.!^ Post-classical vocabulary also features in legal terminology, for example ‘inuestitura’, with reference both to possession of the abbey and possession of land. In the latter sense it is once glossed with another medieval term

‘id est saisitionem [that is, seisin]’.!!” The writer sometimes states that he is introducing vernacular usages with reference to place and personal names. He mentions the watercourse at Botley ‘quem uulgo “‘Lacche” appellant’ and a man

‘“Scalegrai” uulgariter nominatus’.''® He also occasionally refers to common usage in other contexts. Once he explains the words *quadraginta manipuli [forty bundles|', with the gloss ‘quos uulgo

garbas uocant [commonly called sheaves]’.'!? Likewise he interestingly glosses the phrase ‘in capite’, referring to land held directly

from the lord, with the words ‘ut uulgo loquatur’.'”° As already noted, the writer does not favour rhetorical flourishes, and nor does he make much use of recurrent phrases. Those that are used often come as warnings or notification to men of the future to pay attention to what has been described, for example ‘let men in future see what should be guarded against concerning this’ and ‘so let all guard against the frauds of a perjurer, and guard against sending a

letter to the friend of fraud by such a representative'.?! Likewise, allusions to other texts are rare within the narratives. There are very !5 Vol. ii. 60; for infortunium, see also below, pp. 46, 138, 222. I translate the words as ‘misfortune’ and ‘barrack-mates’ respectively. 16 Vol. ii. 66; vol. ii. 70 uses ‘procurate’. !7 See below, pp. 32 (possession of abbey), 198, 224, vol. ii. 10, 88 (with gloss).

115 Vol. ii. 20, 286. See also below, pp. 32 ‘que uulgari onomate Abbandun dicitur’, 2092 ‘que Sandford uulgo uocitatur’, 212 ‘qui uulgo mons Albi Equi nuncupatur’, this last of course being a Latin rendering; see also vol. ii. 246 ‘qui uulgariter Mora dicitur’. Cf. the common practice in Anglo-Saxon charters of including a phrase such as ‘qui uulgariter uocitatur’ with reference to a place or another name; e.g. below, pp. 36, 50 (‘uillam que uulgari onomate Aebbandun dicitur’).

BY Vols *i34: 120 Vol. ii. 100. Historians now normally confine the phrase ‘in chief’ to reference to those holding directly of the king. Regarding the vernacular, note also the significant use of vernacular words in the list of entitlements of monastic servants that appears in the continuation of the History in MS B. Several are Old French, but the term ‘scepinga’, meaning allotment, may be a Latinized form relating to the OE ‘scyp’, meaning a patch of cloth and by analogy a patch of land; vol. ii, Appendix II. 7! See below, p. 210 ‘uideant posteri quid inde cauendum sit’, vol. ii. 106 *caucant ergo omnes periuri fraudes, caueantque tali legato mittere breue fraudis amico’.

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INTRODUCTION

occasional biblical allusions, and a phrase such as ‘there is no | medicine against death’ sounds proverbial.'” As for use of verse, it | is possible, although uncertain, that the composer of the History was responsible for the brief metrical obituary of Abbot Wulfgar. He was quoting rather than composing the inscription on the reliquary given by cnu*t to Abingdon, and probably also a verse obituary of Aubrey

and William de Ver.'? In general, however, the text is unornamented by allusion or quotation, even compared with other fairly similar and undecorated texts such as the Book of the Foundation of the Monastery of Walden.'* More characteristic of the text are first-person interventions, in

singular and plural. Some of these are within cross-references’”° or brief explanations such as ‘lest I delay with many details’,'”’ or slight flourishes such as ‘let us turn our pen to . . .'.? Further instances of narratorial interventions are statements that matters are recounted as a warning to men in future and comments on the purpose of

writing. Others still are comments on the source or extent of the writer's knowledge: ‘we have learnt from a record of bygone events’; *as to what caused the evil of this misfortune, nothing true has come to my notice’; ‘likewise, concerning the same land, we have found what follows written in English in almost worn-away letters’; ‘I saw the perpetrators of the damage which was inflicted suffer equal 7? Vol. ii. 82. For biblical quotations and allusions, see below, p. 387, and vol. ii. 400. 73 See below, pp. 176-8; vol. ii. go; the introductory phrase ‘Horum itaque sepultorum epitaphium hic annexuimus' strongly suggests that this is a quotation rather than a composition by the compiler of the History. It is possible that the obituary might have been carved on a tomb; cf. below, p. xli, for the obituary of Ceadwalla, and see R. J. Bartlett, England under the Norman and Angevin Kings (Oxford, 2000), p. 598. Professor Richard Sharpe (personal communication) comments that the style ‘is competent but the amount of rhyme between caesura and end of line fits in with twelfth-century decadent taste in hexameters’.

7* The Book ofthe Foundation of Walden Monastery, ed. D. Greenway and L. Watkiss (OMT, 1999), pp. Ixvi-lxvii, 207. 75 Note also other forms of narratorial comment, for example a linking of peace with evil behaviour, below, p. 220: ‘now peace was bestowed following the excessive and longlasting oppressions of the Danes, those distresses were forgotten and everyone rushed to commit improper and presumptuous deeds’. "6 See above, p. xxv; also e.g. below, pp. 48, 162, 208, 222, vol. ii. 58, 306. Note also the use of the first person plural to refer to the monks or monastery as a whole: below, p. 34 (‘we received Cynath as abbot’), vol. ii. 146, 224, 238.

77 See below, p. 192. See also e.g. below, pp. 76, 94, 194. 73 Vol. ii. 8, 72. "9 eg. vol. ii. 46, 106; also above, p. xxxv. Cf. vol. ii. 6-8 for what seems to be a deliberate attempt, through a certain allusiveness of style, not to accuse particular individuals of wrongdoing.

COMPOSITION

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Xxxvii

misfortune at a later time’; ‘this Giralmus was afterwards led astray by I know not what cause’.'*° Finally some instances combine these various purposes, whilst aiming to reinforce trust in the writer: ‘I have related these matters concerning a man now dead, and no one will suspect me of wishing to flatter ashes. Let us pass hence to other matters. P?! Very occasionally the writer uses the second person, as when he says that a few years after the restoration of the abbey in the midtenth century *you might see the whole monastery honourably built and richly endowed". ^He rarely employs direct speech, exceptions being miracle stories deriving from the Life of St /Ethelwold, the story concerning Queen Edith and the grant of Lewknor, and some words

of Faritius.? The impression of a general avoidance of stylistic device in the first version of the History will be confirmed as we now turn to the work of the reviser, preserved in London, British Library, Cotton Claudius B. vi. (B) Ms

London, British Library, Cotton Claudius B. vi comes from the second quarter or perhaps the middle of the thirteenth century. The version of the History which it preserves comes from after the death of Abbot Hugh in 1221, since he is referred to as ‘uir bone memorie’, ‘a man of blessed memory’. Although a passage in Book I of the History appears to allude to his building works at the abbey, the only one of his deeds explicitly mentioned is his journey overseas and

acquisition of a confirmation charter from Richard I in 1190."* The possibility thus arises of at least one intermediate manuscript, written soon after that date and only very slightly revised when transcribed in MS B. The textual relationship of MSS C and B gives no definitive answer to this question. Some errors in MS B do suggest that it derives from MS C, but the derivation could be via an intervening manuscript in which the errors had appeared.'* Likewise internal 130 See below, pp. 2, 46, 136, vol. ii. 60, 284. See also vol. ii. 70-2 on matters the compiler had heard from others or seen himself. 131 Vol. ii. 290. 132 See below, p. 56. See also vol. ii. 64.

133 See below, pp. 52, 54, 192, vol. ii. 218. 134 See below, p. 360, vol. ii. 370-2. For the date of Hugh’s death, see Heads ofReligious Houses, pp. 25, 241. 35 See below, pp. 114, 156, 182, 222, vol. ii. 24, 92. Corrections within the revised version’s new sections need not indicate an intervening manuscript but only copying from notes, wax, or a draft: see e.g. below, p. 268.

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INTRODUCTION

references within the passages that MS B added to the original | version of the History do not make it clear whether it is the first | revised manuscript. For example, references to ‘the present day’ give |

no help with specific dating." ^ Events and documents which one |

might have expected to be included, for example Abbot Hugh's | inclusion in a group of King John’s messengers to Rome in 1200, and _ the obtaining of a confirmation bull from Innocent III, are not

mentioned." On the other hand, there are also very significant omissions in the continuation up to 1190, including various bulls of Alexander III.? These omissions show that silences after 1190 need not indicate that the History was originally revised soon after that date. Marginalia in MS C in the hand that was used to give guidance to the rubricator of MS B show that at the very least the reviser made

direct use of MS C.'? This does not rule out the existence of an intervening manuscript but reinforces the sense that it is unnecessary to posit such a lost text. Again there is no surviving Preface to help us with regard to the identity or background of the reviser, or his purpose, although the now lost first folios of the manuscript may have included such a

Preface.'*® The reviser was presumably a monk of Abingdon. Apart from the continuation from the time of Walkelin to the confirmation by Richard I, the main changes that he made were for the period before the late tenth and early eleventh centuries. The first complete chapter of narrative shared by the two manuscripts concerns Osgar,

abbot from 963 to 984,'*' although the reviser had earlier drawn on MS C's narratives without reproducing them at length.'*? The next shared narrative also concerns Osgar, and thereafter there is a fair amount of common material and common order, with additional charters and some changes to the narrative appearing in MS B.!? However, it is only from the description of a dispute over Leckhampstead in the time of Edward the Confessor that MS B really becomes a 86 See below, pp. 268, 282, 328, 356. 77 Roruli Chartarum in Turri. Londinensi Asservati, 1199-1216, ed. T. D. Hardy (London, 1837), p. 99. Lyell, no. 25, issued on 7 Mar. 1200. '88 Lyell, nos. 19-22; Chatsworth, no. 87; CMA ii. 313—14; vol. ii. 398-9. 79 See below, p. clxxxiii. ' The missing start of the text likewise prevents us knowing whether it was given a title by the reviser; the incipit and explicit of the individual books provide no help.

I4! c. 71, B209.

Ve.

eC 36 BEDS

!5 c. 93, Bz13. The charter in the preceding chapter in MS C appears as B211, with another charter as B212. B214 and B215 draw on cc. 95 and 96. B 216 and B 217 are copies of cc. 97 and 98.

COMPOSITION

OF THE

HISTORY

XXXIX

simple copy of MB. C with minor textual variations and very occasional additions.'^* Consistency of style indicates that the revision was the work of one

person.'? Descriptions of the coming of the Anglo-Saxons, of the Danes in the ninth century, and to an extent of their successors under Swein at the end of the tenth and the start of the eleventh, show similarities."5 The same allusions from Vergil and from the Bible appear in additions early in the History and in the continuation after

the death of Walkelin.'*” Use of words such as ‘magnate’ and ‘baron’

with reference to the Anglo-Saxon period suggest at least a thorough rewriting of any early sources and probably new composition, as also does routine employment of the phrase ‘in pure and perpetual alms’

with reference to any lands given to the abbey.!*? 1. Sources for the revision

The reviser of the History treated the narratives in the earlier version in various ways. Some were omitted. Although it may have appeared in the lost folios at the start of MS B, MS C’s opening passage on the site and foundation of the monastery was probably omitted as part of the provision of a new foundation story. Omission of other passages is harder to explain, notably the miracle stories associated with

/Ethelwold.'*? With one exception in Edward the Confessor’s time, all the short passages prefacing charters were cut or replaced with

new passages.^? In other cases, too, MS B replaces the passages in MS C with an alternative passage on the same matter, as with the death of Harthac-

nut.?! However, with the exception of confusion over two narratives 4 c. 120, B259. 45 See below,

multa?’

pp.

liii-lv; note

especially

the consistent

use

of the phrase

‘quid

46 See below, pp. 236, 266, 354.

17 See below, p. 276 and vol. ii. 354, for ‘dum adhuc uitales carperet auras’; below, p. 250 and vol. ii. 344, for ‘uiscera misericordie". 55 Magnates: below, pp. 262, 276, 292, and also vol. ii. 328 (‘magnatuum hominum"); barons: below, pp. 252, 282; ‘in puram et perpetuam elemosinam": below, pp. 246, 248,

252, etc. 149 cc. 29-33. Note also c. 94. 150 The exception is c. 134, B274. 15! c. 118, B256. Note also the different narratives concerning Bishop Hrethhun; c. 9, B17. For Hrathhun there is a third version in the Abingdon additions to the Worcester Chronicle; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 610, as well as a brief account in De abbatibus, CMA ii. 274. Note also that the account of Thomas of Hurstbourne and the vacancy after the death of Abbot Roger in the History in MS B is very different from that in MS C, fo. 179, added after the History in a different hand, probably of the end of the 12th century; see vol. ii. 358-70, CMA ii. 297—9 respectively.

INTRODUCTION

concerning Robert d'Oilly, such complete replacement of narratives

ceases in the mid-eleventh century.'?? There are also passages where the reviser draws on the phraseology of MS C, but rewrites to varying degrees. There is one instance of this before the tenth century, where a few words are shared.'? Then both limited and more extensive

sharing occurs for passages from the late tenth century,?*and there is some very extensive common wording in chapters relating to the time of the Norman Conquest.^? Besides such replacement or rewriting, MS B also adds narratives

for which there was no equivalent in MS C.P What were the sources for such narratives? !?? If, as I would argue, a version of the Abingdon text now known as De abbatibus existed prior to the revision of the History, it may well have suggested matters requiring discussion."? Most notable is the lengthy treatment of developments concerning King Coenwulf, his sisters, and Culham, more extensive and elaborate than the short passage in De abbatibus. There are some verbal parallels but these are very limited.? The Frankish embassy to /Ethelstan’s court that contributed to Abingdon’s relic collection does not appear in MS C, but does appear in De abbatibus and MS B.'? Both mistakenly refer to Hugh, duke of the Franks and count of Paris, as Hugh Capet, king of France, but other verbal similarities are small. For the reviser of the History, De abbatibus may have been a

source of material and subjects, but not of words.!*! 1? Vol. ii. 32-4, 326—30. 153 See below, pp. 28, 266. 5* B214, Bars cf. cc. 95, 96, show sentences in common. See B243, cf. c. 109, for a section with some verbal parallels as well as some differences of subject matter; it also has some verbal parallels to B37. See also B245, B248, B249, B250.

55 B28s. B29o. 55 B13, B174, 57 53

Apart from brief introductions to gifts, the new narratives in MS B are B1-B8, Br1— Bi5—B16, Big, B21, B25, B27, B29, B31, B38-B39, B46, B62, B63, Br12-Br13, B207-B208, B233, B252, B289, B291, vol. ii, Appendices I and II. For the period after 1071, see vol. ii, pp. xxxviii-xl. See also below, p. Ixxxvii, on Aben or Abben, the founder of Abingdon in De

abbatibus and in the revised History. However, it is uncertain whether the Abben story would have appeared in any early version of De abbatibus, sce below, p. Ixxxv, for the suggestion that knowledge of Abben may have arrived at Abingdon in 1180. Compare also c. 14, B37, and CMA ii. 276 on the degree of destruction attributed to the Danes by MS C, MS B, and De abbatibus respectively. ' B16, CMA ii. 274. De abbatibus uses the phrase "liberam et quietam ab omni seculari seruicio'; the History uses "liberam ab omni humano seruitio et seculari exaccicne’.

160 Boz, CMA ii. 276-7. 19! Tn the account of Helenstow, verbal parallels again are very scarce, but note CMA ii. 269, *quarum ipsa mater et abbatissa extitit’, below, p. 244, ‘quarum in posterum mater extitit et abbatissa". For comparison of the History and De abbatibus, see also vol. ii. 344—6; cf. CMA ii. 291-2.

COMPOSITION

OF THE

HISTORY

xli

The reviser preferred rather more literary sources, and for the early period of Abingdon’s History he drew upon two. One was Geoffrey of Monmouth’s Historia regum, short passages of which appear at the start of his account.’ The other is Bede's Ecclesiastical History, which is a possible source of information for the first two surviving chapters of the revised History and certainly provides information and some words for the next three chapters, including the text of Ceadwalla's epitaph. For further information on national matters, the reviser drew on the Chronicle of John of Worcester. The two texts share the error of calling Offa of Mercia's son Ecgberht rather than Ecgfrith, and both

state that the Danes came from the Danube.'™ The reviser drew on John of Worcester not just for material but actual words in his praise for Edgar, and in his accounts of /Ethelred's consecration, Edward the Confessor's anointing, and William the Conqueror's coronation.'^^ He may well have been using the copy of John of Worcester by the scribe of MS C, although he did not include any of the additional Abingdon passages that appear in the John of Worcester manuscript but not in MS C of the History. Unlike the compiler of MS C, the reviser drew verbatim on Wulfstan of Winchester's Life of Ethelwold for his account of /Ethelwold’s restoration of Abingdon, and more briefly for a passage concerning /Ethelwold's building of his church, although not for his account of the saint’s early life.!* He explicitly referred to the Passion 162 See below, p. 232, for quotation from Geoffrey, pp. 234, 242, for knowledge derived from Geoffrey; also below, p. liii.

163 See below, pp. 250, 266 (cf. c. 14), John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 226, 280. Neither feature of MS B could derive from any existing version of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. 164 See below, pp. 328, 346, 362, 370. 165 Tt is possible that the reviser used the work of William of Malmesbury and/or Henry of Huntingdon, which could have provided him with the names of the Viking leaders Hinguar and Ubba, below, p. 266. A text of Henry of Huntingdon for the period 1132-54 may have been copied at Abingdon, although this depends on the questionable argument that there was a second Abingdon manuscript of John of Worcester, Cambridge, Corpus Christi College 92; see below, p. lviii, and Henry of Huntingdon, Historia Anglorum, ed. Greenway, pp. cxxvi-cxxvii. It is conceivable that the reviser’s notion that Siward was made bishop of Rochester was derived from William of Malmesbury's Gesta pontificum, but it is equally likely that William and the reviser independently came to the same erroneous explanation of an episode that must have seemed very confusing to later eyes; sce below, p. ciii. There are also parallels to De antiquitate Glastonie ecclesie, notably in the story of King Lucius and Pope Eleutherius and in the mentions of Pope Leo and King Coenwulf, but there is no clear evidence for direct borrowing; see below, pp. cxii, 232, and also Scott, Early History of Glastonbury, pp. 27-8. Overall, there is no compelling reason to believe that the reviser used William of Malmesbury or Henry of Huntingdon.

106 B84, B207; cf. c. 24, B83.

xlii

INTRODUCTION

Edward's relics to Abingdon, although the surviving texts of the

Passio do not mention the translation.'*

Further narratives may derive from notes and memoranda.'^ 'There is no obvious source for the account of Wulfric Spot's foundation of Burton. It is possible that Abingdon had a copy of his will, although the provision for the payment to the king | mentioned in the History differs from that in his surviving will; perhaps a related document or a summary note was in Abingdon's

possession.9? The account of /Ethelwold's works as abbot states that the reviser learnt ‘from the witness of ancient books [//brorum]' about a gift of a gold chalice and perhaps about his giving other ornaments. These ‘books’ could resemble the surviving Old English account of

/Ethelwold's gifts to Peterborough." Another set of notes may have concerned miracles, notably concerning disputes over the meadow at Berry and over the mill at Cuddesdon, and the dreams of Abbot

Siward and— somewhat later—Robert d'Oilly."' However, even if these stories do have earlier textual bases, they are consistent in style

with the rest of the revision and with one another." It is best to take them as new compositions, with a textual or oral basis. Oral traditions and sources are occasionally revealed in the revised 17 See below, p. 358. There is an outside possibility that the same text may have influenced the reviser's treatment of Edward's death. B214 states that ‘Edwardo rege Anglorum dolo /Elfthripe nouerce sue ad celestia per martirium translato'. The relevant passage in the existing version of the Passio also uses the words ‘nouerce sue’ and 'dolo', but they are some sentences apart, and any suggestion of influence must be extremely tentative; C. E. Fell, Edmard King and Martyr (Leeds, 1971), p. 4 line 17, p. 5 line 2. The focus on /Elfthryth might also come from John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 428. 155 Note, however, that the routine passages prefacing royal charters to individuals and stating that the recipients passed on the gift to Abingdon display no knowledge of documents beyond that shown in MS C; see also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. cxxxv— CXXXVI.

!? B233; see also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 98. The form of the word *Chantuarie? might suggest copying from a written text. Note also B168, which records a gift without including a charter. Various explanations are possible. The charter may have been lost, the gift recorded in some form of note rather than a charter, or even—if the gift really was made on the same day as that recorded in B167—a note made on the same piece of parchment as the record of the other gift. Note also the knowledge of a dispute in Abbot Ingulf's time for which no documentation is included; vol. ii. 344. "7? See below, p. 338; Anglo-Saxon Charters, ed. Robertson, no. 39.

"7 B63, B252, Bzgr, vol. ii. 326-30. Note also the dream of the boy Nicholas in De abbatibus, CMA ii. 285. '2 Note the presence of Romano-canonical language below, p. 256, resembling that at p. 284. Note also the use of the phrase ‘a sompno expergefactus’ in the story of Siward’s dream, ‘expergefactus a sompno’ in that of Robert d’Oilly’s dream; below, p. 360, vol.

ii. 330.

COMPOSITION

OF THE

HISTORY

xliii

History. Differing oral traditions, rather than texts, may emerge in the account of the finding of the Black Cross at Helenstow: ‘it was not, as some say, deposited there by Constantine the Great, who was made emperor in that area. It is more plausible that it was sent there by his well-wishers, the Britons, whom he had taken with him when setting

out for Rome.''? Dunstan was ‘reputed’ to have made two bells with his own hands." The reviser had learnt of the size of cheese provisions going back to /Ethelwold's time *from the testimony of aged men'.'? Oral tradition probably also preserved knowledge of JEthelwold's drink provision, which had merited the composition of a

riddle early in the eleventh century." Discussions about the abbey's past, including its foundation, may have stimulated the reviser's thoughts in other ways. He was aware that the quite low-lying position of the abbey is hard to reconcile with a place-name ending in the English Zuz, and that this problem would disappear if the place-name element were the Irish Zn: ‘For we have learnt from our contemporaries that, according to the language of the Irish, Abingdon is interpreted “house of Aben"; but according to the language of the English, Abingdon commonly means “the hill of Aben’’.’ Although this is of course invention, linked to a foundation story involving the Irish monk Abben, James Campbell has pointed out that the speculation ‘is chiefly interesting for what it suggests about its author’s possibly having Irish contacts, perhaps such as might have put

him onto the possibilities that St Abbán might offer to Abingdon’.'” It may even be that the contact can be identified. In 1180 Lawrence O"Toole, archbishop of Dublin, spent three weeks at Abingdon before following Henry II to Normandy. Amongst his disciples, and perhaps a companion at Abingdon, was Albinus O'Mulloy. Albinus may later have been author of the Life of Abbán, a Life that would mention that saint's coming to Abingdon. It is possible that Lawrence's visit was the occasion when the story of Abben, Aben, or Abbán began to enter the Abingdon foundation tradition, and perhaps when Abingdon entered

the Irish stories of St Abbán."* U5 See below, p. 242.

4 See below, p. 338.

7% Porter, */Ethelwold's bowl". 75 See below, p. 340. 77 See below, p. 234. J. Campbell, ‘The debt of the early English Church to Ireland’, in P. Ni Chathain and M. Richter, eds., /reland and Christendom (Stuttgart, 1987), pp. 332—

46, at 340.

US Vitae Sanctorum Hiberniae, ed. C. Plummer (2 vols., Oxford, 1910), i. 12-13; R. Sharpe, Medieval Irish Saints’ Lives: An Introduction to the Vitae sanctorum Hiberniae

(Oxford, 1991), pp. 352-3.

xliv

INTRODUCTION

Even when drawing on the above sources, therefore, the revised version of the History contains a significant amount of new com- | position. Indeed, some of the new narratives did not copy existing | texts even when they were available. Thus the treatment of /Ethel- | wold's early life could have been, but was not, copied from the Life of

St ZEthelwold.? In other cases, the new compositions deal with |

matters not discussed elsewhere, and were most likely constructed | to explain current concerns. The account of Abbot Siward's con- | templation of rebuilding the church and the dream that persuaded him against this course of action was probably inspired by matters of importance in Abbot Hugh’s time.'^? Before assessing further the motivation for, and character of, such new or rewritten narratives, we must deal with the reviser’s other | main set of sources, charters. MS B contains approximately twice as many pre-Conquest documents as MS C.'?! The texts in the great majority of cases include the type of material excluded or much reduced in MS C: proems and expositions, boundary clauses, witness

lists.'8* The reviser appears to have sought out the full charters wherever possible.'5? When the reviser simply copied from the earlier version of the History, it may well be because no original had survived. !** There are signs that the copying of charters into MS B was undertaken with some care. This is apparent in the accuracy of transcription and the common orthography displayed, for instance, in King Eadwig’s charter concerning Milton, and also in more complicated matters. For example, Oswald appeared as a witness to a charter immediately after the archbishop of Canterbury and thus in the position appropriate to the archbishop of York. However, the charter is dated 968 and Oswald only became archbishop in 970. The 179 Bg3.

ui B252, and see below, pp. l-li. See also B207 and vol. ii. 332-8 concerning food provision.

33! See Concordance 2, Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. xlviii. : '82 See Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. lx, for the reviser's habit of tidying up witness IStS.

'83 See Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. xlviii, Ix. The reviser may also have had access to alternative abbreviated versions from those that appear in MS C. Br8 has better placename forms than c. 11, although no witness list. It remains possible that the place-name forms may have come from some further source.

'** B28, B49, Bso. These charters were presumably lost between the composition of the earlier version of the History and its revision. Given that such losses are exceptional, the composition of the History was clearly not regarded as making the originals redundant. 135 c. so (Br39); see also c. 55 (Br27).

COMPOSITION

OF THE

HISTORY

xlv

title that followed his name in MS B has been erased, presumably to remove the anomaly.'*° On the other hand, copies in MS C can on

occasion give readings preferable to those in MS B.'*’ In addition,

some of the rearrangement of the order of charters in MS B in fact worsens the chronological pattern of the History. Thus a charter of /Ethelbald of Mercia is wrongly reassigned to /Ethelbald of Wessex, King /Ethelred of Wessex and King Eadred are confused, and the Myton charter of cnu*t that specifically mentions Abbot Siward

appears in the context of his predecessor, /Ethelwine.'5? Some readings in /Ethelred's great charter of 993 may give an indication of the reviser's varied working method, or at least that of his scribe. MS C gives the readings "iusta! and ‘renouande’, the original charter ‘iuste’ and ‘renouate’. MS B gives ‘iusta’ corrected to

*juste', ‘renouande’ corrected to ‘renouate’.'®’ Given that these are two corrections of the same type, this seems to be more than a matter of simple scribal slips. Rather in this charter, for these readings at least, the revision seems to have worked from MS C and corrected

from the original charter rather than starting with the original.'?? Such a procedure seems different from that employed when he was copying Eadwig's Milton charter, for example. As already noted, sixty-nine pre-Conquest documents appear both in MS C and MS B.'"?! Of these, a small number appear twice in MS B. In some cases, these are charters that MS B includes in full in their correct chronological place and then copies from MS C in a shortened 1355 Bro6 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 107). There are no witnesses in the version in MS C, c. 9o.

137 See above, p. xxix. 155 B30, B32, B89, B93, B246; cf. cc. 8, 16, 113. Also leading to confusion was the decision by the reviser to change the order of two charters in /Ethelstan's name, concerning Sandford-on-Thames and Swinford. An error arose, in that MS C’s version of the Swinford charter stated that the bounds were to be found in a charter for Cumnor; MS B left this statement in its version of the Sandford charter, but it makes no sense in the context of that estate; see cc. 20-2, B48-Bs50, Charters of Abingdon Abbey, nos. 25—7. 19 See below, pp. 146, 148, Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 124. Other readings cited in the"apparatus criticus also show the proximity of MS B to MS C rather than to the original in the case of this charter. 199 See also a charter of King /Ethelred of Wessex that appears in two versions in MS B; c. 16, B32, B89 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 15). At one point the fuller version in MS B gives the reading ‘principi’ altered to ‘principe’, the latter being the reading in the abbreviated version of the charter in MS C; the abbreviated version in MS B gives ‘principi’, which is also the better reading grammatically. It may be that the full version was checked against the short version in MS C. Alternatively, this may be a simple scribal slip, not caused by copying. 191 See above, p. xxviii.

xlvi

INTRODUCTION

version in the context of a later discussion of the land. Confusion

over kings’ names helps to explain other repetitions.'? Elsewhere, the reviser may simply have failed to realize that the full text that he had | before him in the original was soon after to appear in MS C. MS B leaves out a very few charters that appear in MS C. Two of | the four charters involving Abbot Hzha are omitted. This may be a

matter of choice.'?> However, folios are missing early in MS B and these could have included the charters concerned. This explanation would involve some chronological awkwardness, as both charters that appear only in MS C are in the name of Ine, and the missing folios would more logically contain documents in the name of King Ceadwalla. This likelihood is reinforced by the text in MS B following the missing folios referring to Ceadwalla granting ‘the goods enumerated above’, although no such enumeration of goods

survives.'”° However, it remains possible that the missing folios could have referred to grants by Ceadwalla as well as including the missing charters. It is even possible that those charters would have appeared in Ceadwalla’s name, given that the two manuscripts differ in their attribution of a further charter to Ceadwalla or Ine.?? That MS B once contained versions of the two Hzha charters on folios now lost remains the most plausible explanation of their apparent omission. One of the charters in King Coenwulf's name is omitted in MS B. In MS C it is rather awkwardly positioned between the narrative concerning the king's oppressions of Abingdon and his charter of confirmation prohibiting such oppressions. The reviser may simply ' See the charters concerning Sparsholt and Whitchurch, cc. 139-140, B184, B238, B279-B280. That the duplicate short versions in MS B are copied from MS C is shown, for example, by variant readings and shared witness lists in c. 139 and B279, cf. B184 (Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, no. 97). 75 See c. 137 and B277, a short version in King Eadwig’s name of a charter that appears in a full version in King Edmund's name in B72. The full version appears in the chronologically correct place, the short version in the context of the dispute over Leckhampstead. MS B repeats in fuller form a charter of King /Ethelred of Wessex because the reviser mistook the king's name for Eadred; c. 16, B32, B89.

™ See c. 135, B257 (full version), B275, where the confusion may be explained by the omission of the proem and exposition in the shortened version. See also c. 133, B258 (full version), B288, although in this case confusion is less explicable because both versions start at same place. 5 See Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. lxi-lxii, 4, at the last of which Kelly argues that ‘it can probably be assumed that he deliberately edited out these two documents, perhaps because they were so much concerned with Bradfield rather than Abingdon, perhaps because the information they contained tended to contradict in detail the material in [Charters of Abingdon, no. 4], the longest and most impressive of the four documents’.

' See below, p. 244.

UP Aseo By,

COMPOSITION

OF THE

HISTORY

xlvii

have chosen to omit the intrusive charter to improve the narrative flow, or have set it aside and then unintentionally failed to include it. He may well have omitted a charter in King Edmund's name concerning Culham because it seemed to question the continuing

attachment of that land to Abingdon.'?? It should, however, also be noted that this charter just precedes MS C's record of the death of Edmund. It is with Edmund's death that MS B splits MS C's Book I into two books. The division between Book II and Book III in MS B certainly caused confusion in its text, and it is possible that confusion

also occurred here, leading to unintentional omission of the charter.?? MS C and MS B each contain a charter of cnu*t concerning Myton,

but they are different charters.?! It may be that the reviser had an original for his version of the charter, but not for that which had appeared in MS C, and therefore chose to include just the former. However, apart from such speculation, there is no obvious explana-

tion for the manuscript differences in this case.”” MS B contains seventy-one documents that had not appeared in

MS C, two of which are included twice.?? Besides the Myton charter, just two further diplomas recording grants to Abingdon appear only in MS B, whilst an Old English record of an exchange appears in full in the vernacular in MS B, only in Latin summary in MS C.?* Both the diplomas are of King /Ethelred, and both could well have appeared on a folio now missing from MS C.?5 It may well be that the reviser added no further diplomas directly in favour of Abingdon. The great bulk of the additional charters are to lay grantees. Of the eight charters of Edmund in MS B recording grants not to Abingdon, only two appear in MS C. Of these two, one appears in the context of the later dispute concerning Leckhampstead and there only in King TE TES (OY 199 c. 25; see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. \xii, 47. Note that the charter in c. 10 also included Culham amongst the lands it granted 200 See also below, p. cxiv, on confusion in MS B's revision of the treatment of Edmund.

201. 6. 0135)B246. 202 The omission of two writs of King Stephen in MS B is most likely a simple error; vol. ii. 262-4. : 203 See Concordance 2. The swift repetition of the narrative and charter concerning Padworth appears to be a simple error; B151, B152, B156, Br57. The two versions of Eadwig’s grant of Hanney to /Elfric display some significant differences; B133, Br6r, Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 55. 204 c. 44, B142 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 76). ?5 B219, B231. The boundaries of the former but not the latter appear in the quire of MS C devoted to boundary clauses. B231 is oddly placed amongst charters concerning lands that passed indirectly to Abingdon.

xlviii

INTRODUCTION

Eadwig’s name. The other also has textual problems and in MS C is |

wrongly positioned, after King Eadwig’s charters.” It is hard to |

establish the criteria that the reviser used to decide which additional | charters to include. It does appear he chose to omit some, in that | two diplomas in favour of laymen but associated with other | Abingdon documents survive as sixteenth-century copies of origi-

nals, not in the History." In general, though, the impression is that the reviser wished to include as many additional documents as possible. Approximately half of these additional diplomas for laymen, nearly all dating from the 940s and 950s, have a link to

Abingdon

through the estate history.” There

are often later

documents for these estates appearing in both MSS of the History, the composer of the earlier version having apparently considered that a single later document, often in favour of the abbey itself, was a sufficient title-deed."? The earlier documents would have been deposited at Abingdon when the estate passed to the abbey. Very occasionally MS B includes a charter for an estate to which no reference is made in Book I of MS C, but which was an Abingdon possession in Domesday Book? Given that other, non-Domesday evidence for an Abingdon connection can sometimes be very slight but persuasive, in the case of some further estates for which MS B includes charters there may have been a connection to Abingdon for which no evidence survives." However, it is probable that the reviser of the History also included many diplomas concerning lands

that had no connection with the monastery.?" The inclusion of such documents, whilst unusual, was not unique.?? The reason for their 206

cc. 58, 137. One other charter, c. 25, only appears in MS C. 2°7 Charters of Abingdon Abbey, nos. 43, 62. One is a grant to /Ethelmzr praeses of land in Chetwode and Hillesden, Buckinghamshire, and the other a grant to Brihthelm, bishopelect, of lands in Church Stowe, Northamptonshire; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, nos. 43, 62 respectively. It is just possible that these charters had come to be wrongly associated with Abingdon documents after the time of the History. Abingdon did have an interest in lands in Hillesden, but there is no known link to Chetwode or Church Stowe. 208 See Concordance 2, and below, pp. cxxvi-cxlix, on the charter evidence for the development of the endowment. 20 See above, p. xxix.

10 e.g. Garford, B66, and Benham, B137; it should be noted that the latter may well have been a post-Conquest acquisition; see below, p. cli n. 818. ?! eg. Bultheswrthe, on which see c. 106, Bss. ?? See below, pp. cxxvi-cxxxi; Concordance 2; Keynes, Diplomas, pp. 12-13.

?5 See Keynes, Diplomas, p. 13n.21: ‘Besides the compiler of B vi, the only cartularists prepared to admit a number of apparently “unrelated” diplomas into their collections were the compilers of National Library of Wales, Peniarth 390, and B. L. Add. 15350, from Burton and the Old Minster Winchester respectively; there are, however, isolated examples of such diplomas preserved from other archives.’

COMPOSITION

OF THE

HISTORY

xlix

preservation at Abingdon will be considered further in the context of the abbey’s endowment.”!* 2. Purposes of revision

Two main problems arise in seeking to explain the purpose of the revision of the History. First, there is no surviving Preface in which the reviser explains his position. Second, there is the problem of telling when the main process of revision occurred. Was it soon after 1190, when the history recounted ceases, or was it later, perhaps following the death of Abbot Hugh? Given this uncertainty it is necessary to proceed with caution, in particular when looking outside the form, style, and content of the text. First, one may set the rewriting of the History in the context of disputes from the 1160s to the time of the writing of MS B. Some of these concerned the external rights of the church. A dispute in 1223 over the liberty of the church and its hundredal jurisdiction may well

have caused renewed attention to be paid to the History.?? Continuing conflict between the men of Culham and the men of Sutton, which reached the king’s court in 1212, may explain the still greater attention paid to those two estates in the later version of the

History.^'* In addition, during Hugh's abbacy there were major internal problems within the monastery, concerning, amongst other matters, the rights of obedientiaries, the allowances of servants, and matters relating to food and drink. According to the bishop of Salisbury, the settlement, concerning servants and their stipends,

had involved investigation in ancient books." Such disputes and such investigations fit well with the concern displayed in the revised History with food and drink allowances,?? with the inclusion of a list

of stipends as established by an investigation in the late 1180s,”'? and 214 See below, p. cxxvi. 755 Curia Regis Rolls (in progress, HMSO 1922 to the present), xi. 189 (no. 941); it begins ‘Abbas de Abendon’ queritur quod Henricus de Scaccario vicecomes contra libertatem ecclesie sue, qua ecclesia sua a conquestu Anglie usque nunc usa est, injuste vexat eum . . .'. Note also Henry III’s confirmation issued in 1230 concerning Hormer hundred; Lyell, no. 102; Chatsworth, no. 350; MS C, fo. 178"*. 715 Curia Regis Rolls, vi. 390—1. For increased attention to Culham and Sutton in MS B, see Br1 (establishing that Sutton had once been an Abingdon holding), B16 (privileges of Culham), B64 (establishing continuing ownership of Culham). 277 L yell, no. 167 (p. 106); see generally Lyell, nos. 166-8.

218 B207, vol. ii. 332-8. 79? Vol. ii. 358—70.

]

INTRODUCTION

with the copying in the same hand as the revised History of a tract on

the offices of the monastery.^^?

Another concern may have been the paying for privileges, including that obtained from Richard I, and the suggestion that Abbot Hugh had acquired the abbacy in improper fashion. Gerald of Wales wrote of an abbot of Abingdon who dating shows must have been Hugh that he ‘had been promoted to his abbacy from the post of | kitchener, through a bribe of 1500 marks which he had given to a

prince’.””! Sensitivity concerning payment to the king may come out in the History's treatment of the purchase of a privilege from King Coenwulf. The earlier version states: “Therefore Bishop and Abbot Hrathhun, thinking that the king was a man to be approached through money rather than swayed by prayers, offered him £120 besides one hundred hides at the royal vill of Sutton, situated near Abingdon."?? In the later version this expands to the following: To do this more confidently, he took with him gold and silver to the value of £120, judging that this would provide for him the most powerful persuasion and the greatest salve in obtaining the king's love. When this was done, he offered the king for the good of peace that tiny amount of silver and gold [illud tantillulum argenti et auri], and in addition one hundred hides situated at the royal vill of Sutton, close to Abingdon.^?

The substantial payment of £120 thus becomes a ‘tiny amount of silver and gold’. Thirdly there is the rebuilding of the church, which was a feature

of Hugh’s abbacy."7* This probably underlies the long story of Siward’s plan to replace /Ethelwold's church, /Ethelwold’s advice to Siward in a dream: ‘it is not for your time to demolish my work may display greater faith in my sayings, wait future father and shepherd of this monastery will demolish this work and begin a new one;

and in particular

or build another. So that you very diligently, that a certain will come from overseas, who but he will not complete this.

220 CMA ii. 336-417. *21 Gerald of Wales, Speculum ecclesiz, dist. ii. c. 29, in Opera, ed. J. S. Brewer et al. (8 vols., London, 1861-91), iv. 92. Identification of the anonymous abbot as Hugh is certain because he appears in Gerald as a contemporary of Roger abbot of Evesham, 1190-1213. 222 See below, p. 14. 3 See below, p. 256. 4 See e.g. De abbatibus, CMA ii. 293; Salter, ‘Chronicle roll’, p. 729; Chronicle of the Monastery of Abingdon, 1218-1304, ed. J. O. Halliwell (Berkshire Ashmolean Society, Reading, 1844), p. 1; Biddle et al., ‘Early history’, p. 48.

COMPOSITION

OF THE

HISTORY

[Abbot Reginald] After this man, indeed, there will also come two other men likewise shepherds of the monastery, who—greatly needed—will busy themselves doing many good deeds both about building and about other matters relating to this monastery. [Faritius and Vincent] When they yield to death, for a very long period of time there will be no future pastor and abbot in this monastery who will in similar fashion strive to increase this monastery with good deeds. In most recent times, indeed, there will likewise be a future abbot of this monastery who will embrace this monastery in “the bowels of Christ” with such emotion that piling good things on good, destroying buildings and rebuilding them for the better, adorning the church, preserving the ordered life, diminishing nothing of the customs but rather augmenting them, God-fearing, strong in behaviour, outstanding in holiness of life, a pious father and worthy of being called shepherd, in peace of heart will await the peace of eternity. [Hugh]?

The replacement of earlier church buildings, even the discussion of which had—according to De abbatibus—brought Abbot Adelelm to a painful end, was an issue that required careful legitimation both in

dream and in writing.””° Let us move from the necessarily speculative relationship with outside events to the reasons for rewriting that can be found within the text of the History. Some have already been discussed. There was the desire to include a mass of charters that the reviser knew had been excluded, and to supply linking passages explaining their relevance by the fact that the lands concerned had become part of the church’s

endowment.””” Likewise, the reviser dealt with material found in other narrative sources, such as De abbatibus??? Partly on the basis of these additional sources, the reviser chose to

add further detail to the History’s account.” Such details might refer to chronology,” to the names of participants,”*’ to the course of events,? or to the accumulation of lands or wealth./?? Earl 25. B252.

226 For Adelelm's fate, see CMA ii. 284. 227 See above, p. xliv. For a lengthier than usual explanation of the relevance of a charter to a grantee other than Abingdon, see Br3. 23 See above, p. xl. Note also the insertion of miracle stories; B38, B63, B291, vol. ii. 326—30. ?? Note also e.g. below, p. 294, on /Ethelwold's illustrious stock, p. 354 on Dunstan S prophecy. The additions are not always accurate; see below, p. 362, for the reviser mistakenly naming Rochester as the see to which Siward was appointed. 230 See below, pp. 254, 266, 294, 368; cf. 14, 28, 44, 220 respectively. ?31 See below, p. 266; cf. p. 28.

?? See below, p. 292; cf. p. 48. 233 See below, p. 356; cf. p. 178; /Ethelwine's gift of a cross added.

INTRODUCTION

Godwine’s role in the move of Siward from Abingdon to Canterbury is specified, Godwine's death and the succession of Harold noted, and the nature of Harold's claim to the throne outlined.?* Sometimes the reviser made explicit the link between general and Abingdon history, as when he specified that the Danes destroyed the abbey in the ninth century, or associated the fate of Abbot Eadwine with the later return of the Danes.^? Sometimes, however, detail was cut. The specific accusation that King Coenwulf dined at the expense of the inhabitants of Abingdon

possessions was removed,"^ as was the statement

that Eadred

‘canonically’ appointed /Ethelwold abbot of Abingdon, although the later version did carefully mention Dunstan’s consent to the royal

action.”*” In the account of the late tenth and early eleventh centuries, there is an occasional tendency to cut material unrelated to Abingdon, notably an outline of the Norman claim to the English throne and a description of cnu*t’s wide rule.* More notable than differences in narrative detail, however, are changes in structure, terminology, and style. The division between the early history of the church and the tenth-century reform is emphasized by MS C’s Book I being split into two books in MS B. The basis for the arrangement of Edgar's charters is made explicit,

presumably to help the reader.’ New narratives bring out links between pre- and post-Conquest history, notably with reference to building and food arrangements." Phraseology is improved in the terms of the reviser’s times, with a new reference to the ‘freedom of

the English Church," and with repeated and anachronistic use of the phrase ‘in pure and perpetual alms’ with reference to grants made

before the Conquest.”” 34 See below, pp. 362, 364, 368. ?5 See below, pp. 268, 346; cf. pp. 28, 138. ?* See below, p. 254; cf. p. 14; the reviser’s reformulation seems also to play down the criticism that the king could be swayed by money.

^" See below, p. 48; cf. p. 296. The later version does not repeat the statement at p. 44 that King /Ethelstan commended /Ethelwold to Bishop /Elfheah of Winchester. This is the more surprising given the importance of /Elfheah in Wulfstan, Life of /Ethelmold, cc. 7-9, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, pp. 10-14. *38 See below, pp. 172, 184. Note also below, p. 138; cf. p. 346.

ZAR IGA.

49 B207, B252, vol. ii. 66, 72, 332-40, 344. *41 See below, p. 254. Vol. ii. 346 seems to use the phrase "libertas ecclesiastica! in the general sense of ‘ecclesiastical liberty’ rather than just with reference to the freedom of Abingdon. #2 For use in MS B, see above, n. 148; in MS C Book I does not use phrases based on ‘in elemosina’.

| | | | | | | |

COMPOSITION

OF THE

HISTORY

lin

More generally, the reviser seems to have regarded the earlier version of the History as too plain in style. Take as a first example the treatment of Abbot Hrethhun’s dealings with King Coenwulf. The chapter in MS B, but not in MS C, contains an allusion to Juvenal’s Satires. The reviser also widens the vocabulary used by employing

phrases that occur in learned law, such as ‘dilatory exceptions" 7? And it is in this section that the reference to the ‘freedom of the English Church' appears. This chapter reflects stylistic elaborations made more widely by the reviser. As already noted, he drew on a variety of written sources. Above all, he may have desired to use Geoffrey of Monmouth to link the story of Abingdon to the longer history of Britain.2“ In addition there were changes in vocabulary choice. It is not simply that the reviser preferred some words that do not appear in the earlier version,

or are unusual within it, such as ‘memoratus’ and ‘quamplurimus’.”*° Rather, the reviser’s vocabulary is deliberately wider, introducing

words such as ‘magnatus’ and ‘gaza’.”*° Some inspiration was drawn from charters for less usual vocabulary, such as ‘pincernarius’.”*” The reviser also had a range of recurring phrases.”*** Some refer to the process of writing or address the reader concerning the narrative: ?9 See below, p. 254, ‘nunc blandiciis cauillatoriis, nunc fulminantibus minis, quasi excepcionibus dilatoriis’; cf. p. 14; see also below, p. 284, ‘de aliquibus exceptionibus dilatoriis aut cauillatoriis uel obscuris placitis subterfugiis’. Cf. Peter of Blois, Sermon no. 65, PL ccvii. 774: ‘non cavillationibus argues, non dilatoriis exceptionibus ages’.

?** Note also the Galfridian matter at the start of De abbatibus, prior to the section printed by Stevenson; London, British Library, Cotton Vitellius A. xm, fos. 83'—84'. The Geoffrey-related material there is more extensive than that which appears in MS B of the History, but the opening of the revised History is lost. It is hard to tell at what date the Galfridian material entered De abbatibus, and therefore the question of the influence between that text and MS B cannot be answered. Stories such as that in Geoffrey of the derivation of the name Britain from its founder Brutus may have encouraged Abingdon to seek a founder with an appropriate name. 245 Hor the very occasional appearance of ‘memoratus’ in MS C, see below, p. 222 and vol. ii. 238. Below, p. 318, provides the only use of the word ‘mansatus’ to appear in the DMLBS, in the form ‘mansatorum’. One may suspect that the scribe confused ‘mansarum’

and ‘cassatorum’. 74 See below, pp. 262, 274, 276, 292, vol. ii. 328. 47 See below, p. 324, ‘pincernarius’, deriving from ‘propincernarius’ in B170 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 79). Sce also p. 310, ‘[architec]tandum’, deriving from the relevant charter at p. 74; the mistaken form in the narrative may indicate that the scribe was unfamiliar with the word. 48 See e.g. below, pp. 296, 344, for ‘uita angelica’; pp. 236, 272, 360, for a recurrent use of ‘accumulare’; pp. 254, 338, 368, 370, for ‘quoad’ with a comparative adverb and ‘posse’; pp. 260, 268, 272, 326, 354, 358, vol. ii. 344, for ‘quid multa? (cf. in MS C ‘quid plura’ in a charter of King Ecgberht of Wessex, p. 24). Note also repeated use of the phrase ‘as was then the custom’.

liv

INTRODUCTION

‘Now it remains for us to turn our pen, which moves back and forth, to King Ceadwalla’s successors, and to describe succinctly both their bad and their good deeds, according to the extent of our knowledge.7*? Pairs of words are linked to rhetorical effect, for example ‘tam effectiuum quam affectiuum'.^? Particularly notable are circumlocutions for death: *de carnis exuto ergastulo [left the prison of

the flesh|,?' *uiam uniuerse carnis ingresso [gone the way of all flesh]??? *cessit in fatum [yielded to death].^? Such phrases are part of the reviser's process of adding biblical, liturgical, and literary allusions to the text.?^ Certain important passages, such as the description of /Ethelwold's early career, are

particularly rich in allusion.^? Not surprisingly, the Bible was the reviser's favoured source, although some passages described, for example, as ‘the word of the Lord’ are not direct biblical quota-

tions.?^ Amongst classical writers, he quoted only from Juvenal’s Satires and Vergil’s Aeneid; in neither case need he have direct knowledge of the full work." Likewise, phrases derived from or See below, pp. 244, 272, 370.

See below, p. 308.

51 See below, pp. 232, 238, 262.

See below, pp. 234, 250, 272, 276, 284, 294, 338, 344, 356, vol. ii. 354. See below, pp. 250, 252, 260, 264, 326, 354, 360, vol. ii. 370. See pp. 254 (cf. p. 14), 268 (cf. p. 28), 326 (cf. p. 94), 354 (cf. p. 172), vol ii. 326-30 (cf. ii 32-4). ^5 B83. One problem that arises is the close parallels with a Life of Mary Magdalene and Martha, attributed to Hrabanus Maurus but now regarded as a 12th-century Clairvaux production. The parallels seem too great to be accidental; B83 ‘Iste uero /Epelwoldus non solum genere illustrem uerum etiam titulo spectabilem et omni sanctitate plenam /ineam traxit nobilitatis. Vigebant autem in ipso ingenii pariter et industrie bona acceptabilia, adeptaque in puerilibus annis plena litterarum scientia, nature institucionum bona uenustissime accumulauit honestas. Inueniebantur etiam in eo corporis miranda uenustas, morum acceptissima gratia, eloquiorum gratissima. luculentia, adeo ut et species et mores et gratia in adolesce(n)te /Epelwuoldo uiderentur ad inuicem emula sibi probitate. certare; Life of Mary and Martha, c. 1, PL cxii. 1433, ‘Pater eius Theophilus, natione Syrus, non solum genere illustrem,

verum

etiam titulo spectabilem et administratione

clarissimam

nobilitatis lineam

traxit. ... Vigebant in iis tribus ingenium, simul et industria bona, et adepta in puerilibus annis litterarum Hebraicarum plena scientia. Bona nature, industriamque atrium, cumulauit honestas, in singulis enim inuentebatur corporum miranda uenustas, et morum acceptissima gratia, et eloqutorum gratissima luculentia; adeo ut uiderentur ad inuicem et specie, et moribus, et gratia, aemula sibi probitate certare. However, there is no other evidence for a copy of the Life of Mary and Martha being known at Abingdon, and I have been unable to trace a common source for the two passages. On the Life, see V. Saxer, ‘La “Vie de sainte Marie Madeleine" attribuée au pseudo-Raban Maur, oeuvre claravalienne du xm siécle’, in Mélanges Saint Bernard (Dijon, 1954), pp. 408-21; The Life of Saint Mary Magdalene and ofher Sister Saint Martha, trans. D. Mycoff (Kalamazoo, 1989).

ei See below, pp. 294, 340.

See below, pp. 254, 276, vol. ii. 328, 332, 354.

COMPOSITION

THE

HISTORY

influenced by learned law, such as ‘ius merum',"? or the tag 'attestante lege qua dicitur mortuo mandatore, respirat mandatum"? were used to enrich the text's style, although they need not reflect any great legal learning. Some further narratorial interventions appear, for example at the

close of MS B's Book I,” and in exposition of miracle stories such as that of a speaking crucifix: For it is not to be doubted that an image may speak, nor does it merit wonder if God, who takes back and bestows, who created everything from nothing (that is, not from pre-existing matter), should bring forth from an inanimate creation a ringing voice, as if brought forth from the windpipe, who once wondrously assigned Balaam to an ass so that at first it kicked back against the prophet and then with a living voice admonished him not to go further on

the way. These are your works, good Jesus, to whom praise and glory .?9! A further characteristic direct speech. The reader of God, the discussions leading to the foundation the dreaming Siward, the d'Oilly's nightmare, and

is the much greater use of various types of hears King Ceadwalla’s internal addressing between King Coenwulf and his sisters of Helenstow, /Ethelwold's persuasion of conversations within and following Robert debate over Faritius's provisions for the

monks.?” Not all is a matter of elaboration.?9? There is no newly composed verse.” The miraculous element is removed from the story of the coming of St Edward the martyr’s relics to Abingdon./? Some statements are clarified in terms of grammar or phraseology.”© Yet overall, the reviser’s intention is clear: not so much to change the core themes and purpose of the work as to render more impressive a relatively plain text. 58 259 of the 60 261

See See one See See

below, p. below, p. ordering, below, p. below, p.

284, 256, the 292 272.

‘undiluted right’. ‘in accordance with the law whereby it is said that with the death order breathes its last’. (cf. p. 46).

262 See below, pp. 238, 250-2, 358-60, vol. ii. 328-30, 332-6. Note also the brief statements 63 The increasing 264 See verses are

at pp. 248, 284. ^ praise of King Alfred’s learning, below, p. 48, does not appear in MS B, the consistency of the negative portrayal of Alfred. below, p. 240, for the copying of Ceadwalla's epitaph. In B245 and B249 brief cut from the equivalent passages in c. 111.

265 Baro.

266 See e.g. B37; cf. c. 14 for simplification of grammar; B243; cf. c. 109 for some clarification of phraseology.

lvi

INTRODUCTION III.

OTHER

SOURCES

RELATING

ABINGDON

THE

ABBEY

IO7I

1. Abingdon sources

The evidence of the History can be supplemented from other sources, some from Abingdon, others from elsewhere. Of the texts closely | associated with Abingdon the most helpful is the text known as De | abbatibus Abbendonie, although its heading in the thirteenth-century manuscript is ‘Excepciones Simonis de primis fundatoribus Abbendoniz et de abbatibus Abbendonie que etiam bona queve mala fecerunt [Simon's extracts concerning the first founders of Abingdon,

the abbots of Abingdon, and their good and bad actions] 7^ It starts

‘In principio erat Verbum', and goes on to treat Brutus and his coming to Britain. Only after dealing with other matters, such as the invasion by Julius Caesar, does it come on to the foundation of | Abingdon by Abben. It then deals with the abbots up to and including Hugh (1189/ 90—c. 1221). In its existing form, the text may well come from the Abingdon daughter house at Colne, Essex, the affairs of which are treated at length in its final chapter. In general, De abbatibus

has been regarded as a later, less significant, work than the History.^9 However, such a position may need modification. It is arguable that the surviving text contains an earlier core, going back at least to the mid-twelfth century. The text's final chapter differs in certain ways from the rest of the text in its material, notably in its focus on Colne, and in its manuscript form, particularly its use of frequent, usually alternating, red and green initials. Furthermore, Abbots Faritius, Vincent, and Ingulf all have sections with headings in the form *Concerning Abbot N. and the goods he conferred on us'. Whilst there is a similar heading for Abbot Hugh, the abbots of the period 1158—89/ 9o are briefly treated in a section headed ‘Concerning abbots after Ingulf’. It seems plausible that a text that once ended with Ingulf has been extended during the time of Abbot Hugh.”” It may well be that other material, for example concerning Brutus and Abben, was also incorporated in the late twelfth or early thirteenth *67 Given the contents of the tract, the use of the word ‘excepciones’ in the title should not be taken to indicate that the work is simply a set of extracts from other Abingdon histories.

268 See e.g. Stenton, Early History, p. 1. ?? [n vol. ii, p. xxiii, I suggest that the first version of the History and a version of De abbatibus completed in Ingulf's abbacy may be seen as providing competing views of Ingulf, one from the convent’s side, one from the abbot’s.

OTHER

SOURCES

THE

ABBEY

OF ABINGDON

lvii

century, but this process cannot be securely dated.””” One therefore cannot tell when subject matter shared by De abbatibus and the later but not the earlier version of the History became current at Abingdon. De abbatibus deals with many matters which appear in the History, on occasion only in the revised version. In general it is briefer than the History, but sometimes it differs in detail or perspective and

occasionally it adds notable material" For example, it states that King Ine, having repented of his earlier seizure of Abingdon's possessions, gave 3,750 pounds of silver for building churches at

Abingdon and Glastonbury.^? Whereas the History simply mentions that King Offa gave Goosey to Abingdon, De abbatibus states that he gave it in exchange for the island of Andersey, and that his son died

on that island.^? Most notably of all, it provides descriptions of the churches built by Haha and /Ethelwold.?* There

are also several

later versions

of Abingdon

history in

diverse manuscripts."? Oxford, Corpus Christi College 255 contains extracts made by Brian T wyne in 1606 from a roll written after 1361, itself extracted from various Abingdon works including ‘le landbok’,

which appears to have been the revised version of the History.””° The list of abbots

in London,

British Library, Cotton Julius C. vu,

?? Tt has been suggested above, p. xliii, that the presence of Abben in the stories concerning the earliest history of the abbey may derive from a visit of Archbishop Lawrence O’Toole in 1180. Note also the confusion displayed in De abbatibus over the meaning of legal terms, below, p. clviii, perhaps suggesting a later date for the passage concerned. ? See below, p. Ixxxv, on the foundation of the abbey. 22 CMA ii. 272. Cf. De antiquitate Glastonie ecclesie, c. 41, Scott, Early History of Glastonbury, p. 96, for Ine giving 2,640 pounds of silver for the building of a chapcl at Glastonbury. 73 CMA ii. 273. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. cciii, states that ‘it is tempting to believe the Andersey dimension, for the island had a long history of royal association’. Such royal association might also explain the development of a story to this effect.

274 CMA ii. 272-3, 277-8. ?/5 The Chatsworth manuscript containing an Abingdon cartulary also includes a list of abbots in a 16th- or 17th-century hand, stating that Haha began to build in 685 and died in 730; Chatsworth, p. 324. Note also London, British Library, Cotton Caligula A. VI, fo. 229", for extracts ‘ex historia monasterii de Abendonia’ made by John Joscelyn in the 16th century. : 276 Note esp. the reference to Siward wishing to destroy /Ethelwold's church, but being deterred; Salter, ‘Chronicle roll’, p. 729. The reference to only one version of the History suggests that the fuller and more highly decorated MS B was the more important of the two manuscripts in the later medieval period. For the roll's other sources, sec Salter, ‘Chronicle roll’, pp. 730—1. Salter, p. 727, dates the roll to 1361, presumably on the grounds that this is the last date mentioned in it; a more cautious dating would be to the abbacy of Peter de Hanney, who was elected in 1361 and was abbot until 1399.

lviii

INTRODUCTION

fo. 305", is headed ‘ex rotulo antiquo de Abendon [from an ancient

roll of Abingdon], perhaps the same record as mentioned in the Oxford Corpus MS. There are also other fourteenth-century historical works with Abingdon entries." However, none of these late works add significantly to the History, and details in which they | differ from it may derive from misunderstanding, not additional | knowledge.”” More significant is the copying of the Chronicle of John of. Worcester at Abingdon. Two manuscripts of John’s Chronicle contain Abingdon additions, London, Lambeth Palace 42 and Cambridge, Corpus Christi College 92. The former is in the same hand as the

History and is clearly an Abingdon manuscript."^ Its additions concerning Abingdon sometimes share text with the History, sometimes are copied from the Life of St /Ethelwold, sometimes are verbally

independent.”*° Cambridge, Corpus Christi College 92 was copied

from various manuscripts, including Lambeth Palace 42. It contains most of the Abingdon additions, sometimes in the text, sometimes in

the margin.”*! It is not certain that this should be considered an Abingdon manuscript except in the sense that the Lambeth manuscript was one of its exemplars. It seems plausible that it was either copied at Abingdon for another house, or that Lambeth Palace 42 was temporarily taken from Abingdon for copying. If the text was not intended for Abingdon, this would help to explain the variable fashion in which the Abingdon additions are treated.”* The copy of the Chronicle in Lambeth Palace 42 runs to 1131, but the manuscript itself is from the later twelfth century. It contains a list of archbishops of Canterbury the last of whom is Thomas Becket, ?7 See also Cambridge, Trinity College 993; on which see M. R. James, The Western Manuscripts in the Library of Trinity College, Cambridge (4 vols., Cambridge, 1900—4), li. 414-15. 75 See e.g. Salter, ‘Chronicle roll’, p. 728, on ‘Guiatus’ (i.e. Abbot Cynath) being responsible for recovering all that Hinguar and Ubba had taken away, and being associated with the miracles mentioned in B38 and B39. ?? See John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii, pp. xli-xlv. See also below on the decoration of the two manuscripts and of Oxford, All Souls College 18. *80 John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 609-15, iii. 307-8. The extended new composition 5.4. 948 provides a short history of the house, including yet another version of the oppressions by King Coenwulf in the time of Abbot Hrethhun. There is also another version of the miracle story concerning the boy /Edmer (cf. below, c. 30) and a different account of /Ethelwold. ?' See John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii, pp. liii—lix. *8? Sce ibid. ii. 609-15, iii. 307-8. The other contents of this manuscript show only that it was later at Peterborough.

OTHER

SOURCES

THE

ABBEY

OF ABINGDON

lix

indicating that the list was composed before 1170, or at least before the election of Thomas’s successor in 1173. Likewise, the list of kings does not contain Henry the young king, son of Henry II, again pointing to a date of 1170 or before. Although the lists could have been copied later without being updated, Lambeth Palace 42 was already available for copying at the time of production of Corpus Christi College 92, which

probably predates 1181.7? It seems likely, therefore, that the Lambeth

manuscript is almost exactly contemporary with the earlier manuscript

of the History, in the period 1164—70.7** It therefore cannot be determined on manuscript dating grounds whether the John of Worcester manuscript derived material from the

History or vice versa.^?? If it is significant that the History does not use the main text of John and hence was written without access to his work, the Abingdon additions in Lambeth Palace 42 would be largely drawn from MS C^ Other additions in Lambeth Palace 42 could derive from the History without being verbatim extracts, for example $.4. 963, 984, 1048, 1049. Very occasionally additional detail is provided, perhaps because explanation was needed; for example the addition s.a. 1006 specifies that Archbishop /Elfric, having been buried at Abingdon, was moved to his own see under cnu*t. Next amongst narrative texts which may have a strong Abingdon 83 John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii, p. lviii, seems willing to take the presence of Alexander III as the final entry in a list of popes and Richard of Dover in a list of archbishops of Canterbury as evidence that the scribe was working before the death of Alexander III in 118r. 284 Cf John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii, p. xlv, where it is argued that the Lambeth manuscript of John of Worcester and MS C of the History ‘must be dated on palaeographical grounds to the late twelfth century, and this late date stands in the way of any attempt at identifying the scribe of the two manuscripts with the compiler of the Abingdon chronicle and L's Abingdon entries’. Given acceptance of a date of c. 1180 for the relevant section of Cambridge, Corpus Christi College 92, and the willingness to use final entries in lists of office holders for the dating of that manuscript, the balance of evidence points to my suggested date of c.1164—70 for MS C of the History, unless it can be established that a hand of c.1164—70 can be securely distinguished from one of ‘the late twelfth century’, including one of before 1181. ?35 Tt is possible that for at least some of the shared entries there was an carlier source. See below, p. lxi, on the recording of Sidemann's death, and note the use within it of the word ‘humatur’, a word that is not the usual one for burial in either the Abingdon History or John of Worcester. Other speculations are possible, for example that Abingdon had an earlier, now lost, copy of John of Worcester to which the Abingdon additions were made;

the additions then were used in the composition of the History and the whole John of Worcester text was copied into the manuscript now in Lambeth Palace Library. 286 Note, though, that the compiler of the first version of the History often did not copy directly from sources that it seems certain he did know, such as the Life of /Ethelmold; see above, p. xxvil.

INTRODUCTION

connection is the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. Since the sixteenth century, version C of the Chronicle has been associated with Abingdon.”*’ The exact nature, and indeed the very existence, of such a connection have, however, been a matter for debate. For example, Simon Keynes has commented that the entries for 985, 990, 1016 relating to Abingdon show only that a common ancestor of versions CDE passed through Abingdon, whilst noting that the manuscript of the

C version ‘may have come from the abbey’.”* David Dumville has commented that C was ‘probably written early in 1045 at Abingdon’, and was a derivative of an earlier version annotated at Abingdon. Abingdon's contribution to earlier composition, however, may only

have amounted to marginal or interlinear annotation./? Katherine O'Brien O'Keeffe has commented on the limited nature of the Abingdon entries, for example contrasting them with the treatment of Peterborough in version E.?? She concludes that the negative evidence against an Abingdon origin for C (its silence on the circ*mstances of its refoundation, the perfunctory mention of /Ethelwold, Osgar, and omission of some eleventh-century abbots) though not convincing on its own, tells in concert with the palaeographical and positive textual

evidence.?"! She therefore rejects the Abingdon origin of version C. The attribution of version B of the Chronicle to Abingdon rests wholly on

its relationship to version C,””” and hence O'Brien O'Keeffe's conclu*87 See The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle: A Collaborative Edition, v: MS. C, ed. K. O’Brien O’Keeffe (Cambridge, 2001), p. Ixxiv.

?55 S. D. Keynes, ‘The declining reputation of King /Ethelred the Unready’, in D. Hill, ed., Ethelred the Unready: Papers from the Millenary Conference (British Archaeological Reports, British Series lix, 1978), pp. 227—53, at 232. For other arguments, sce c.g. Gransden, “Traditionalism and continuity’, p. 192; The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle: A Collaborative Edition, x: The Abingdon Chronicle A.D. 956-1066, ed. P. W. Conner (Cambridge, 1996), pp. xxxiv-xxxvi. ?? Dumville, *Annalistic writing at Canterbury’, pp. 27-9. 2% Anglo-Saxon Chronicle: MS. C, ed. O'Brien O’Keeffe, p. Ixxviii; see also pp. lxiii, Ixxi, and esp. p. Ixvii on the modesty of version C's notice concerning /Ethelwold and on the absence of a mention of Osgar. At p. Ixxix she argues that there is no reason to take the mention under 977 of the burial of Bishop Sidemann of Crediton at Abingdon as a sign that version C is an Abingdon text. See further her comments at p. Ixxiv: ‘the second [argument for association of version C with Abingdon] accepts John Joscelyn's identification of C as an Abingdon manuscript in the list of Chronicle manuscripts he prepared between 1565 and 26 January 1567’. She points out, p. Ixxvi, that it is unclear why Joscelyn made this association, when Talbot, Leland, and Bale had not done so. ?! Anglo-Saxon Chronicle: MS. C, ed. O'Brien O'Keeffe, p. Ixxxix.

7^ The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle: A Collaborative Edition, iv: MS.

B, ed. S. Taylor

(Cambridge, 1983), p. xi. See also Dumville, *Annalistic writing at Canterbury’, p. 40.

OTHER

SOURCES

THE

ABBEY

OF ABINGDON

lxi

sions call into question version B's Abingdon link as well. At present, therefore, it is best to conclude that a version or versions of the AngloSaxon Chronicle were known at Abingdon and annotated there, but to leave open the question of whether the abbey was at any point responsible for the composition of the main entries on national history. O'Brien O'Keeffe's questioning of the attribution of version C to Abingdon is one problem with an attempt by Patrick Conner to isolate the Abingdon contribution to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle in its C version, and to link this contribution to an Abingdon ‘house narrative'.? The evidence for this house narrative rests heavily on the passage of the Abingdon History concerning the burial of Bishop Sidemann, and its relationship to the equivalent passage in the AngloSaxon Chronicle versions B and C.?* Conner notes similarities to the memorandum in the History concerning the exchange of land at Kingston with /Elfhere. This leads him to reject the obvious explanation that the History's passage derived from the Chronicle, and to conclude that If the Latin version of the Sidemann obit was based on the Old English text in MS. B or C of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, then numerous hypotheses are necessary to explain why the Old English version of the /Elfhere memorandum is similar to the Chronicle text. The circ*mstances are best explained if a ‘house-narrative’ or collection of memoranda which existed from ca 975 (or alternatively from Abingdon's refoundation in 956) was drawn on by the different persons who updated [the root manuscript of B and C], who compiled MS. Cotton Claudius C. ix, and who copied MS Cotton Claudius Du

Differences in the treatment of the death of Edward the martyr and the accession of /Ethelred in the earlier and revised versions of the 73 Anglo-Saxon Chronicle: Abingdon Chronicle, ed. Conner, pp. xi-xii: ‘My goal in this editio princeps of the Abingdon Chronicle has been to reconstruct Abingdon’s probable contribution to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. That is to say, I have tried, with the help of MSS. B, D, and E, and various kinds of textual analysis, to isolate those parts of MS. C which most probably either originated at Abingdon and were copied into the later recensions, or were altered significantly at Abingdon for inclusion in MS. C.’ At p. xvi he argues that versions B, C, D, and E ‘all contain texts from a single source, which we believe to have been comprised of a series of chronicling activities which took place in Abingdon in 956 x 978, in 1044, and at more or less regular intervals thereafter until post 1066’. 294 See below, c. 94; ASC, ‘B’ and ‘C’, sa. 977; Anglo-Saxon Chronicle: Abingdon Chronicle, ed. Conner, p. xl. ?5 Anglo-Saxon Chronicle: Abingdon Chronicle, ed. Conner, pp. xli-xlv, quotation at p. xliv; below, c. 93. See also p. xlv for comparison of ASC, ‘C’, s.a. 978, 979, with c. 95 below.

Ixii

INTRODUCTION

History also lead him to suggest that they were drawing on different segments of the house narrative.^"^ These arguments for an Abingdon ‘house narrative’ are not, however, persuasive.?/ One might, for example, have expected relevant passages to appear in Abingdon additions to John of Worcester, but apart from that concerning Sidemann they do not. It is best to see the Sidemann passage in John of Worcester as linked directly to the History; neither gives the exact date of death, which

does appear in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. Linguistic similarities to the /Elfhere memorandum appear less significant than Conner makes out. The differences in the accounts of Edward the martyr's death and /Ethelred's accession are explicable in terms of the reviser's usual

practices, not needing a lost source as explanation.?? Likewise, omissions in Anglo-Saxon Chronicle version C, for example concerning the coming of /Ethelwold to Abingdon or the abbacy of /Ethelsige, do not seem to fit reliance on a house narrative. It is, indeed, sometimes hard to see precisely what Conner means by a ‘house narrative’. If it was an extensive text, one might imagine something like the Libelius A:thelwoldi at Ely, and no such text existed at Abingdon, at least by the time of the composition of the History. If, however, the house narrative may, as Conner suggests, ‘have been no more than a series of memoranda’, this certainly fits my arguments

above on the composition of the History.*°' However, the memoranda were probably written on various single sheets, not in continuous narrative form. This certainly is the implication of the statement that the compiler of the History ‘found’ the /Elfhere memorandum

‘written in English in almost worn-away letters'.??? Let us now move from possible Abingdon narratives to charters. Nine Abingdon charters survive as medieval single sheets, of which °° 7? 28 *

Anglo-Saxon Chronicle: Abingdon Chronicle, ed. Conner, pp. xlvi-xlviii. See also Anglo-Saxon Chronicle: MS. C, ed. O'Brien O'Keeffe, pp. lxxx-lxxxix. John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 613. See above, p. xl. The phrase ‘Nec multo post . . .’, upon which Conner comments at

pp. xlvi-xlvii, occurs elsewhere in MS C of the History, below, pp. 44, 210, vol. ii. 74, and does not seem to require the special explanations sought by Conner.

9? The discussion of Siward in Anglo-Saxon Chronicle: Abingdon Chronicle, ed. Conner, pp. lix-lx, does not really explain why, for example, the putative house narrative would influence only the reviser of the History. Likewise the discussion of the annals for 1065—6 does not consider the likelihood that the composer of MS C in the 1160s derived information from a version of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle without basing his text directly upon it or upon a ‘house narrative’.

°°! See Anglo-Saxon Chronicle: Abingdon Chronicle, ed. Conner, p. lxii. 3€? c. 93; see also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 449.

OTHER

SOURCES

THE

ABBEY

OF ABINGDON

lxiii

seven are presumed originals? The two directly in favour of Abingdon and three of those in manuscripts of the History, four MS B. The selection surviving with many others being burnt in

favour of laymen appear others in favour of laymen may simply be a matter of the later Middle Ages in a

in both just in chance, dispute

between the citizens and abbey of Abingdon. Further originals,

though, did survive until the Dissolution, and Robert Talbot copied twelve at some point before 1558.75 Of these, three are found in no other source." I have found no obvious explanation why particular

originals survived when others were lost.??? The two Abingdon cartularies contain little pre-Conquest material. Both have a 1336 Inspeximus of Edward III that includes a charter in

King Coenwulf’s

name

absent from the History.

The Lyell

cartulary alone contains an extract from the same Coenwulf charter in a thirteenth-century legal document, and the writ of Edward the Confessor granting sake and soke.?'? It also includes an extract from the Quo warranto enquiries showing that in the late thirteenth century the abbey had a charter in the name of the Confessor that it produced

as evidence of its ownership of Lewknor.*"! Finally, there are Abingdon texts that tell us about the liturgical and intellectual life of the abbey. Most notable of these is Cambridge, Corpus Christi College 57, which includes, amongst other important texts, a copy of the Rule of St Benedict and a martyrology, into the

margin of which have been copied Abingdon obits.?'? There are also 95 See Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. xlvi. 9" Gifts directly to Abingdon: cc. 67 (= B206), 98 (= B217); to laymen: cc. 46 (= B131; the single sheet should possibly be dated to the 11th century), 50 (= B139), 55 (= B127), B97, B150, B186, B225 (a 13th-century copy).

95 See Stenton, Early History, p. 43. 306 Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. xlvii, lxiii-Ixv. The copying of the charters was not always accurate, and nor are the single sheets always closer in readings to the versions in MS B rather than MS C. 3°7 See below, pp. Ixvii-lxix. 308 A possible exception may be c. 98, /Ethelred's confirmation charter, a document of special importance.

99 Tyell, nos. 141, 523; Chatsworth, no. 361 (= Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 10); sce below, p. Ixviii. 310 Lyell, nos. 70, 539. 311 T yell, no. 538, Placita de Quo Warranto, ed. W. Illingworth (London, 1818), pp. 664— 5; see also c. 121 312 On this manuscript, see below, pp. clxxv-clxxvi. Note also the post-Conquest kalendar, Cambridge, University Library, Kk. i 22, fos. 1'—7'. For procedure at Abingdon, see Liber Vitae, ed. Keynes, pp. 59-60: ‘the obits were copied in the mid-eleventh century into the margins of the abbey's martyrology, presumably in connection with the approved procedure for commemoration of departed brethren in the chapter Office".

Ixiv

INTRODUCTION

shorter texts, such as a letter to a priest /Elf., almost certainly the /Elfwine who became bishop of Winchester, and a riddle concerning the drink measure for the monks." 2. Other sources

What of non-Abingdon texts? Starting with those from before 1066, there is the important vernacular account, probably by /Ethelwold, of monasticism in England up to the tenth-century reform." In a portion now lost but the contents of which are suggested by William of Malmesbury's Life of Dunstan, this very likely mentioned a visit to Abingdon by Edgar when he was young. Seeing the ruins, and learning of their background, he swore that if he ever became king he would restore the monastery, and others like it, to their original state.?? The surviving portion of the vernacular account records the refoundation of the abbey, focusing on Edgar's fulfilment of his vow and his ordering that ‘a glorious minster’ be built there within three years.?!? Also of obvious importance is the Life of /Ethelmold, written in 996 or soon after by Wulfstan, a monk and priest who became precentor of the Old Minster, Winchester." The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, besides versions B and C, provides very limited information, almost entirely about the succession to the abbacy. Lives of St Swithun by Lantfred and Wulfstan mention a Byrhtferth, prepositus (that 1s, prior) of Abingdon, who was blind for fifteen ?? ML Forster, ‘Die altenglische Glossenhandschrift Plantinus 32 (Antwerpen) und Additional 32246 (London)', Anglia, xli (1917), 94—161, at pp. 153-4; for the association with Abingdon, N. R. Ker, Catalogue of Manuscripts containing Anglo-Saxon (Oxford, 1957), pp. 2-3. Porter, *'/Ethelwold's bowl’. ?^ Councils and Synods, i. 143-54. Gretsch, Intellectual Foundations, p. 232n. 18, suggests a date in the mid-g6os for the text as preserved. Cf. Gransden, ‘Traditionalism and continuity’, p. 203n.233, for criticism of the attribution to /Ethelwold and the suggestion that ‘the narrative was at least revised after the Conquest’. For the contents of the text, see also Wormald, */Ethelwold and his Continental counterparts’, p. 40.

35 William

of Malmesbury,

Life of Dunstan,

bk.

ii, c.

2, Saints’

Lives,

ed.

M. Winterbottom and R. M. Thomson (OMT, 2002), p. 238. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. xxxviii n. 15, points out that the vernacular account ‘may represent a very early mythologising of Abingdon’s recent past’. Alternatively, the story of the visit could simply be true. ?5 Councils and Synods, i. 147-8. The focus on Edgar is increased by the statement that at his succession there had been only one monastery living in regular fashion, and that was Glastonbury, where Edmund had established monks; Councils and Synods, i. 148-0.

317 Wulfstan, Life of /Ethelwold, pp. xiii-xvi. See above, pp. xxvii, xli-xlii, on its use in the History. The Life's account of Eadred's restoration was taken on by Liber Monasterii de Hyda, ed. E. Edwards (London, 1866), pp. 151-2, and note also p. 180; see Wulfstan, Life ofAthelwold, pp. clxv—clxvi.

OTHER

SOURCES

THE

ABBEY

ABINGDON

Ixv

years. Various cures failed, and he then went barefoot as a pilgrim to the body of St Swithun at Winchester and was cured. According to Wulfstan he held his position in the time of Abbot Osgar and looked

after the abbey's estates [prouiderat . . . rura monasterii]. Particularly significant among non-narrative sources is the Liber Vitae of New Minster, Winchester. The greater part of the Liber Vitae was produced by a monk called /Elfsige, at New Minster, in 1031.7? A consolidated list in this work, rather than any Abingdonproduced source, provides most of our knowledge of the names of pre-Conquest Abingdon monks, for whom the Winchester monks

were to offer prayer?" Our knowledge of one aspect of abbots’ activity is increased

by their appearances

as witnesses

to royal

charters.*”! Finally, wills record various gifts to Abingdon, the documents presumably not being preserved at the house because Abingdon was not the main beneficiary or, as in the case of Archbishop /Elfric, the place of burial.??? As for post-Conquest sources for the Anglo-Saxon history of Abingdon, the most notable narratives are those of William of Malmesbury. His Gesta regum contains an account of the Frankish mission to /Ethelstan’s court at Abingdon,? and also mentions Abbots /Ethelwold and Siward.?* The Gesta pontificum records the foundation of the abbey, the disasters it suffered under the Danes and Alfred, and the refoundation under Eadred. After mentioning /Ethelwold and Osgar its section on Abingdon passes directly to the coming of Faritius. Elsewhere in the Gesta pontificum, William copied the Life of /Ethelwold's version of the miracle story involving the monk /Elfstan, placing it amongst the deeds of the bishops of Ramsbury, the see to which /Elfstan would be appointed. Further 318 TLantfred, Life of Swithun, c. 28, Lapidge, Cult of St Smithun, p. 316; Wulfstan, Life of Swithun, c. 11, Lapidge, Cult of St Swithun, p. 526. Neither Abingdon sources nor the New Minster Liber Vitae mention Byrhtferth. 319 Liber Vitae, ed. Keynes, p. 15.

320 Thid:, fos: 26'—27". 321 See below, pp. xciii-cvi. Note also Sawyer, no. 1425, a lease from St Albans to a widow named Tova and her son of land at Great Tew, Oxfordshire, witnessed by, amongst others, the abbot and whole congregation of Abingdon. The document can be dated to 1049 X 1052. j 32 See above, p. lix, for Archbishop /Elfric's burial at Abingdon.

95 William of Malmesbury, Gesta regum Anglorum, bk. ii, c. 135, ed. Mynors et al, i. 218; see also his Gesta pontificum, bk. v, c. 246, ed. Hamilton, p. 397. See above, p. ooo, for William's Life of Dunstan preserving matter from the vernacular account of monastic reform. Y^ Gesta regum, bk. ii, cc. 149, 197, ed. Mynors et al., 1. 242, 352.

Ixvi

INTRODUCTION

treatment of /Ethelwold appears in William's section on the bishopric of Winchester, and he also recorded in his section on Shaftesbury that

part of the body of Edward the martyr was taken to Abingdon.?? Other post-Conquest historians had less to say about Abingdon.^^ The Chronicle of John of Worcester, except for the Abingdon additions, adds little, although interestingly it does refer to Abbot Eadwine, maligned in the History, as ‘the venerable monk Ead-

wine." Henry of Huntingdon just mentioned that Edgar, on /Ethelwold's advice, built the abbey of Abingdon on the "Thames. Orderic Vitalis placed Oswald at the centre of reform, and states that *with the help of Dunstan and /Ethelwold, both holy men, he first

established regular discipline at Glastonbury and Abingdon'.?? Much more useful than the snippets in such historians is the evidence of Domesday Book, which, as we shall see, is essential to analysis of the abbey's endowment. Archaeology can be helpful, for example with regard to land use and economic development at Abingdon and in some of its estates.? Unfortunately, the 1922 excavation of the abbey site was, in Martin Biddle's words, ‘inadequate even by comparison with other amateur excavations of its day’, and can provide us with only limited help on the pre-Conquest buildings.?"' 3. Omissions from the History’s account This survey of other indicated that there Particularly notable Abingdon when he

sources for the history of the abbey has already are some omissions in the History’s account. is the absence of mention of Edgar's visit to was young." Our knowledge of /Ethelsige,

95 Gesta pontificum, bk. ii, cc. 75, 83, 86, 88, ed. Hamilton, pp. 166, 181, 188, 1912. See also Gesta pontificum, bk. 1, c. 20, ed. Hamilton, p. 32 and n. 5, for /Elfric archbishop of Canterbury, wrongly being said to have been abbot of Abingdon.

?5 Very brief mentions include e.g. the Waverley annals reference to Abingdon's foundation by Ceadwalla in 688; Annales monastici, ed. H. R. Luard (5 vols., London, 1864-9), ii. 153.

37 John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 434. At ii. 552-4 he attributes to Edward the Confessor the ejection of Bishop Spearhafoc, previously abbot of Abingdon, from the see of London.

8 Henry of Huntingdon, Historia Anglorum, bk. v, c. 25, ed. Greenway, p. 320. 39 Orderic, Ecclesiastical History, bk. iv, ed. Chibnall, ii. 242. 39? See e.g. G. Astill, ‘The towns of Berkshire’, in J. Haslam, ed., Anglo-Saxon Towns in Southern England (Chichester, 1984), pp. 53-86, at 73 (and plan on p. 74); Archaeology at Barton Court Farm, Abingdon, Oxon., ed. D. Miles (Council for British Archaeology Research Report, 1; 1984); T. G. Allen, ‘A medieval grange of Abingdon Abbey at Dean Court Farm, Cumnor, Oxon’, Oxoniensia, lix (1994), 219—447.

33! Biddle et al., “Early history’, p. 61; see also below, p. clxvi. 33? See above, p. lxiv.

OTHER

SOURCES

THE

ABBEY

OF ABINGDON

_Ikxvii

probably abbot of Abingdon between 1016 and 1018, comes from the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, not the History.?? It is strange that the burial of Archbishop /Elfric is not mentioned in the History, although it does appear in the Abingdon additions to John of Worcester's Chronicle." It is only from De abbatibus that we know of /Ethelwold constructing a new watercourse and building organs for use in church.?? Several gifts mentioned in surviving wills are not recorded in the History.**° We also know of documents that did not appear in the History, although it is very hard to tell if their omission was intentional, accidental, or a matter of survival. The abbey archive would once, and in the 1160s may well still, have included a very significant number of

Anglo-Saxon wills, leases, and writs.**” If these did survive until the 1160s, they may have been omitted because they appeared no longer relevant or because they were in the vernacular. However, the comment on the poor state of the /Elfhere memorandum may indicate that

others had not survived. Some charters too may not have survived until the composition of the History. Most notable is a statement in the Life of /Ethelmold that by Osgar's time the abbey had over 600 hides, *and it was further underpinned by the granting of privileges of perpetual liberty, written on God's and the king's authority. They are kept there to this day, sealed with gold leaves.?? Such a document may well have resembled the resplendent New Minster charter.?^? Had such a charter existed at the time of the composition of the History, the compiler would surely have mentioned it. However, we also know of charters which did survive until the time of the composition of the History but do not appear within it: these

are preserved in later copies.**' The revised version of the History 333 See below, p. c. 334 John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 613: ‘et sepultus est Abbendonie unde monachus extiterat sed regnante Kanuto rege ad sedem suam translatus'. 535 CMA ii. 278; see also below, p. clxviii, for the description in De abbatibus of 7Ethelwold’s church. 336 See below, p. cxlvii.

337 See Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. xlix.

SEcT03:

59 Wulfstan, Life of Zthelwold, c. 21, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, p. 36. See also below, c. 39, which mentions a charter of Eadwig concerning Earmundesleah, but is not followed by that charter; this could be because the charter did not survive at the time of composition. For lost documents, see further Charters of Abingdon Abbey, Appendix I. 340 Sawyer, no. 745; The Golden Age of Anglo-Saxon Art, ed. J. Backhouse, D. H. Turner, and L. Webster (London, 1984), plate iv. 341 See also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 1. Sixteenth-century copies of two grants not directly to Abingdon survive in a group with Abingdon charters; see above, p. lxiii.

Ixviii

INTRODUCTION

records that ‘King Eadwig gave to Brihthelm, his kinsman, Stowe amounting to five hides, and he by the king's consent gave it to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks

serving God there, on the same terms as above'?" The closing statement suggests that the reviser had no charter available, yet a copy of a lost original was made in the sixteenth century, and one is left wondering how the reviser knew of the grant if he did not have the

charter.?? Likewise two charters directly to Abingdon exist in later copies, one in a sixteenth-century single sheet, the other an znspeximus

of Edward IIL?'* The former is a charter in King Eadwig’s name granting twenty hides at Tadmarton to Abingdon. If it was in existence by the time of the History’s compilation, it is not clear

why it was omitted.** The second charter, in King Coenwulf's name and granting land at Culham to Abingdon, was, it has been suggested, a product of the later twelfth century, and may have underlain the reviser's story of Coenwulf, his sisters, and the passing of Culham to Abingdon. If so, one might have expected it to appear in the revised History, just as Coenwulf's charter concerning demands by his officials coexisted with its related narrative. An alternative and preferable possibility would be that the charter draws on the revised History, perhaps in a process of fabrication linked to the obtaining of a bull from Gregory IX (1227—41) confirming to the abbey Culham and

its chapel.**° As we shall continue to see, the composition of history at Abingdon had long taken place in the context of documents rather

than narrative accounts." The forged Culham charter may be one 3? Bros. ?8 Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 62. Ibid., nos. 68 and ro respectively. ? Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 289, may explain the circ*mstances of forgery, but these do not explain the omission of the charter from the History. It may be that accidental omission was more likely when several documents of similar supposed date existed for one estate, as in the case of Tadmarton. 46 Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 1o. See ibid., pp. 46-8, which has some inconsistency as to dating. Cf. Gelling, Early Charters ofthe Thames Valley, p. 125, who suggests that the History’s passage ‘was presumably the main basis of the forgery’. See also Charters of the Early West Saxon Kingdom, ed. Edwards, pp. 187—9. The charter records Coenwulf’s grant of Culham to Abingdon, made at the request of his two sisters, whom it names as "Keneswyth' and ‘Burgenilde’, probably Coenswith or Cwenthryth and Burghild. Coenwulf in fact had daughters named Cwenthryth and Burghild. The former he appointed abbess of Reculver and Minster-in-Thanet, and Susan Kelly has suggested that ‘it is possible that he set up another of his offspring in a minster on the Upper Thames, perhaps at Culham or perhaps at Abingdon (or perhaps between the two, on Andersey)'; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. ccv—ccvi, 48-9. For Coenwulf and his officials, see cc. 9, 11, Br7, B18. 347 See below, p. Ixxxii.

OTHER

SOURCES

THE

ABBEY

OF ABINGDON

lxix

piece of evidence that such composition did not cease with the completion of the revised version of our History.

IV.

STRUCTURE

THE

HISTORY

1071

The earlier version of the History is divided into two books. Book I ends with the imprisonment of Ealdred, the last abbot elected before the Norman Conquest, and with the oppressions’by various invaders. Book II begins with William P's appointment as abbot of Adelelm, a monk from Jumiéges. The division thereby focuses attention on abbatial change. The revised version is divided differently. Book I is brought to an end with the ‘third destruction of the monastery’ in King Eadred's time. The earlier version has a brief summary at this point, and the revival under Eadred and /Ethelwold is marked by

large decorated initials, but there is no stronger structural division.?*? 'The change re-emphasizes the place of the successive destructions and reforms of the house in the structuring of the view of the past. Book II in the revised version stretches from the reign of Eadred to the Battle of Hastings. This shifts the focus from change in the abbey, as in the earlier version, to change in the kingdom. However, the shift to Book III is somewhat muddled. After the division he had made at Hastings, the reviser returned to events of the Confessor's reign, before dealing again with the king's death, the Conquest, and its aftermath up to the account of Ealdred's capture and the Norman oppressions, copied from MS C. He then inappropriately reproduced MS C's statement that ‘Here begins Book II of the History of the church of Abingdon', and moved on to events under Abbot Adelelm. In the earlier version of the History Book I is thirty-one folios long, Book II forty-one and a half folios. The preponderance is thus on the post-Conquest period. The introduction in particular of many more Anglo-Saxon charters changes this in the revised version of the History. Book I ends on fo. 32” by the most recent foliation, Book II runs from fo. 32" to fo. 117", Book III from fo. 117° to 177”. Therefore in the earlier version approximately three-sevenths of the text concerns the period before the appointment of Abbot Adelelm in 1071, four-sevenths the period after. In the revised version, approximately two-thirds of the text concerns the period before the appointment of Adelelm, one-third the period after. 48 See below, p. 292, cf. p. 46; for the large initials in MS C, see fo. 111.

Ixx

INTRODUCTION

'The text is further divided into sections, each normally with a rubricated heading. Use of headings is not entirely consistent. For example, in the earlier version of the History narratives prefacing charters sometimes have a heading of their own, sometimes do not. It would appear that the scribe only gradually established his practice, as use of headings in these circ*mstances becomes consistent in the

second half of Book I.**? Headings occasionally appear in the margin, perhaps as an afterthought, whilst MS B sometimes uses headings consisting only of rubricated minims.? In addition, there are sections with no heading, sometimes through the fault of the

scribe or rubricator.??? 1l. MS C Abbacies, reigns, and structure The earlier version of the History begins with a brief account of the geographical situation of the abbey, but thereafter has a largely chronological arrangement. Particularly until the time of /Ethelwold, abbacies feature less prominently in the structure of the History than they do in Book II. For example, kings’ reigns rather than abbacies predominate in the treatment of the late ninth and early tenth centuries. The discussion of /Ethelwold's youth owes its location in the text to his link to /Ethelstan, and his coming to the abbacy appears in a section headed *Concerning the restoration of this church in the time of King Eadred'.?? The organizational importance of kings no doubt stems from the preponderance of the royal charter material and the scantiness of knowledge concerning abbots. From the time of /Ethelwold, however, Book I comes to share Book II’s abbacy-byabbacy structure. The space devoted to each period and abbacy varies, as can be seen from the following table:

?9 Without heading: see e.g. cc. 18-19, 42-3, 60-1; with heading: cc. 34, 40, 45, etc.; consistent use of heading from c. 68 (although note an exception at cc. 103—5).

°° e.g. MS C, fo. 128' (cc. 106, 107), MS B, fo. 5" (Bs). 53! B276, B278, B281-B285.

3?^ See below, pp. 260, 264, 280, 316, 330, 346, 362, 368, 370. BOEINS,, OYWy 27:

d —

STRUCTURE

THE

HISTORY

Ixxi

Period

Chapters

Duration

Approx. proportion of total words of Book I

Haeha Mercian kings Wessex kings to Edward the Elder

I-7 8-11 12-18

670s-728 716-821 802—924

4% 5% 5%

924-46

6%*°4

Eadwine

27-70 71-95 96

C.954—63 963-84 985-90

29% 10% less than 0.5%

Wulfgar

97-111

990-1016

1696555

/Ethelwine Siward /Ethelstan Spearhafoc Rodulf Ordric Ealdred

III II2-IQ II9-23 124 I25 126-43 143-4

1016/18-30 1030-44 C.1044—7 C.1047—51 1051-2 1052-66 1066—71

196 4.59056 499? less than 196 less than 0.5% 1096558 3%

/Ethelstan to Eadred’s accession /Ethelwold Osgar

— 18-26

One sees immediately the centrality of /Ethelwold's abbacy to Book I of the History, although its predominance does not match that of Faritius’s rule in Book II. It is hard to see any clear principles of arrangement within accounts of abbacies. With the partial exceptions of those concerning /Ethelwold, Ordric, and Ealdred, the accounts are too brief to have allowed any clear chronological arrangement, except with regard to the

ordering of charters.*°? As we have already seen, flashbacks and anticipations help to integrate the various sections, as does the use

of cross-references.*”

354 Note that c. 24 concerns /Ethelwold. 355 I have taken into account the portion of the missing folio that can be reconstructed, but some text is still missing so the figure should be very slightly higher. 356 Note that further material concerning Siward, after his abbacy, appears in cc. 120,

122. 357 Very little of this concerns Abbot /Ethelstan himself. 355 This figure includes cc. 137, 139, 140, charters not from the time of Abbot Ordric. 359 Tn the case of Ordric, we have the first grant of privilege to the abbey associated by the compiler with the succession of a new abbot, and it appears in the appropriate place at the start of the abbacy; c. 127. 360 See above, pp. xxv, xxxvi.

Ixxii

INTRODUCTION

Documents and narrative

Whilst a few of the charters in the History contain elements

historical narrative,'^' in general the distinction between document and narrative is clear. Just under a quarter of Book I is made up of narrative, the remainder of documents. Period

Chapters

Approx. proportion narrative rather than document

Haeha Mercian kings Wessex kings to Edward the Elder /Ethelstan to Eadred's accession /Ethelwold Osgar Eadwine Wulfgar /Ethelwine Siward /Ethelstan Spearhafoc Rodulf Ordric Ealdred

I-7 8-11 12—18

179039? 1996 1896

18-26

189636

27—70 71-95 96 97-111 III 112-19 119-23 124 I25 126—43 143—4

1696 2596 100% 17% 100% 30% 9196 10096 10096 3496 100%

Thus the proportion of narrative to document varies between abbacies, but there is a significant shift in the early eleventh century. Up to the coming of Abbot /Ethelwine just under one-fifth of the text consists of narrative, from the time of Abbot /Ethelwine a little less than three-fifths. Once again, we see Book I becoming markedly more similar in characteristics to Book II.?9* In general a link is provided between related documents and narratives. This may take the form of a simple narrative prefacing the charter or a sentence following the charter. These make a 395! See c.g. pp. 4-6, 142; cf. M. Chibnall, ‘Charter and Chronicle: The use of archive sources by Norman historians’, in C. N. L. Brooke et al., eds., Church and Government in the Middle Ages (Cambridge, 1976), pp. 1—17.

36? | here take all of c. 4 as constituting document rather than narrative. 363 Note that c. 24 concerns /Ethelwold. ?9* See vol. ii, pp. xxxv-xxxvi. Note that post-Conquest charters were often shorter than pre-Conquest ones, and this affects the proportion of the text taken up by documents.

STRUCTURE

OF THE

HISTORY

Ixxiii

statement such as ‘and then the beneficiary gave it to Abingdon’.*” Occasionally there is a more developed link, notably in the case of King Coenwulf's privilege for Abingdon, which seems to have

formed the basis of an extensive narrative in the History.^ Another

more sophisticated link is provided with regard to the charters of Edgar and /Ethelred granting Sparsholt and Whitchurch respectively. These appear in the portion of the text devoted to Abbot Ordric (1042-66) and follow an explanation about monks holding

and having freedom to dispose of patrimonies.*” There are also, however,

charters that are included

without any introduction

explanation.?9? Within reigns there /Ethelstan's reign, four the others 931, and then the *senator'.?^ The one

is a logic to the order of charters. In royal charters appear, the first dated 930, a document recording a grant by /Ethelstan charter of Eadred directly to Abingdon in

MS C appears some sections before his one charter for a layman.?? Likewise for Eadwig, Edgar, and /Ethelred, their main confirmation charters come first, followed by those recording grants directly to Abingdon, and then those recording grants to individuals that are

said to have passed to the abbey.*”’ In the case of Eadwig and JEthelred the distinction between the second and third type of charter is made explicit. Take Eadwig: ‘From this point let us note briefly the following lands which were given not by that king to the abbey, but rather by those to whom he had granted the option of giving them freely to whomsoever they might wish.”*”” Within the groups, the ordering is basically chronological, although with some 365 On the reliability of these statements, see below, pp. cxxvi-cxxix. 366 cc. g and 11. See above, pp. xxx, liii, for words and phrases from charters being used in narratives.

d. evi 39-40. 365 ce) 13, 86, 117. CC. 19-23. €C.,28, 35. 371 Amongst Eadwig’s charters, c. 44 has a transitional place, as the land concerned was not given directly to Abingdon but soon passed to the church through an exchange. See below, p. Ixxviii, on MS B making explicit the arrangement of Edgar’s charters. 32 See below, p. 76. See also below, p. 162, concerning /Ethelred's charters. Cf. vol. ii. 72 on Faritius: "let us turn our pen to his deeds outside, making this distinction: each is to be arranged in order, first those things which previously were deemed to belong to others, and by his endeavour became the church's own; then those which had once been the church's own, but which had been dispersed by other less sound rulers of the monastery, and were completely alienated from the abbey's property, but were now restored by him’.

Ixxiv

INTRODUCTION

lapses.? A group of three charters of Edgar concerning grants unusually distant from the monastery appear together. The first is from 961r, the year before the preceding charter, which had concerned Hendred in Berkshire. However, chronological order is restored after this brief slip, and indeed the remaining two charters concerning more distant estates may simply be appearing in their appropriate chronological place, not being grouped for reasons of

geography."*

After

the reign

of /Ethelred,

the chronological

arrangement of charters ceases, at exactly the time when their numbers diminish and also as the proportion of narrative in the History increases. Those documents that do appear are often located in the context of a dispute to which they are relevant, even at the expense of chronology.*” Thus the History before the time of /Ethelwold lacks a significant continuous narrative. Only three pre-/Ethelwoldian abbots are mentioned, Haha, Hrathhun, and Cynath. Even into /Ethelred's reign the History is really a collection of charters, linked by sentences referring to the gifts in the charters and punctuated with very occasional further narratives, on the foundation of the house, the coming of the Danes, changes of king and abbot, and on /Ethelwold himself. Then from the time of /Ethelred, and particularly from the last sections devoted to gifts and events of his reign, the text becomes much closer in form to Book II, combining numerous and varied

narratives with a still very significant number of documents." 2. MS B Abbacies, reigns, and structure

In MS B, as in MS C, the early history of the church is structured around reigns as much as around abbacies. Moreover, whilst abbacies again become more significant from the time of /Ethelwold, viewers of the text continue to have their eyes drawn to the illustrations of kings in the text. The space devoted to each abbacy is as follows:

373

€.g. C. 52, a charter dated 957, precedes cc. 53-6, all charters dated 956. cc. 67, 69, 70; note that cc. 64, 65, were charters recording grants in Hampshire, dated 961 and 962. 374

°° The first instance is c. 137. 7 The change becomes clear particularly from c. 106.

STRUCTURE

Period

Chapters

Abben Haha Mercian kings Wessex kings to Edward the Elder JEthelstan to Eadred's accession /Ethelwold Osgar Eadwine Wulfgar /Ethelwine Siward /Ethelstan Spearhafoc Rodulf Ordric Ealdred

Br-3 B4-11 Br1-24 |B25—46

DHE

HISTORY

Duration

Ixxv

Approx. proportion of total words of Book I

uncertain

190777

670s—728 716—821 802-924

B46—-81

924-46

13%

B82-209 B209-14 B215 B216—-45 B245-51 B251-6 B256—63 B264 B265 B266—85 B285—-92

C.954—63 963—84 985—90

4596

990-1016 1016/1830

3% 6%

296 16% iS 5%

2% 2.5%

1030-44 ¢.1044-7 C.1047—51 1051-2 1052-66

1066-71

These proportions can be compared with those in MS C: Period

B total %

Abben Heha

I 2

Mercian kings Wessex kings to Edward the Elder /Ethelstan to Eadred’s accession

S 6

/Ethelwold

Osgar Eadwine Wulfgar /Ethelwine Siward /Ethelstan

C total 96

I3 45

I5 2

2.5

77 Abben: fo. 4; note that some further relevant material would have been contained in missing folios. Haha: fos. 5'—7'; note that further relevant material would have been contained in missing folios. Mercian kings: fos. 7'—11". Wessex kings: fos. 11°—18".

JEthelstan to Eadred succession: fos. 18'—32". /Ethelwold: fos. 32'-85'. Osgar: fos. 85— 87'. Eadwine: fo. 87". Wulfgar: fos. 87'—106'. /Ethelwine: fos. 106—107". Siward: fos. 107'—109". /Ethelstan: fos. 109—112". Spearhafoc: fo. 112”. Rodulf: fo. 112". Ordric: fos. 112'—117.. Ealdred: fos. 117—119".

Ixxvi

INTRODUCTION Period

B total %

C total 96

Spearhafoc Rodulf Ordric Ealdred

-— -—— 4 2

0.7 0.3 IO 3

Three major changes regarding the distribution between abbacies have been made to the earlier version of the History. First is the still greater emphasis on the period of /Ethelwold's abbacy. Indeed, material that had appeared within Osgar's abbacy in MS C appears within /Ethelwold's in MS B, markedly diminishing the proportion of the text devoted to Osgar. Second is the notable increase in space given to the reigns of /Ethelstan, Edmund, and Eadred. Third is the diminution in the proportion of the text devoted to Ordric's abbacy. All these changes of emphasis are related to the increase in the numbers of charters recording gifts to beneficiaries other than Abingdon. These particularly swell the portions of text from the time of /Ethelstan to that of /Ethelwold. They have no such effect on the account of Ordric’s abbacy, leaving it relatively diminished in comparison with earlier periods. Any chronological element remains limited in the narratives even of the abbots to whom relatively larger amounts of space are allocated. The treatment of /Ethelwold remains divided between his early life, his abbacy, and his elevation to Winchester and later death. The new sections on his building work, his gifts to the church, and his food and drink provisions are simply placed at the end of the portion of the text

covering his abbacy, and dated to the time of Edgar." Crossreferences, anticipations, and flashbacks continue to provide coher-

ence to the text.*”

75 Note vol. ii, p. xxxi on the sections concerning Faritius, Vincent, and Ingulf each ending with their endowment of the offices of the abbey. 3? See e.g. B7 (to a missing portion of the text), B4o, B83, B113, B207 (references to the Norman Conquest, Stephen's reign, and an implicit link to the later description of Faritius's provisions concerning food), B29o.

STRUCTURE

THE

Ixxvii

HISTORY

Documents and narrative Period

Chapters

Approx. proportion narrative rather than document

Abben Heha

Br-3 B4-11 Br1-24 B25-46

100% 60% 55%

B46—-81

15%

B82-209 B209-14 B215 B216—45

just below 10% 20-25% 100% slightly over 5% 15-20%

Mercian kings Wessex kings to Edward the Elder /Ethelstan to Eadred’s accession /Ethelwold Osgar Eadwine Wulfgar /Ethelwine Siward /Ethelstan

Spearhafoc Rodulf Ordric Ealdred

3 5%

B245-51 B251-6 B256—63 B264 B265 B266—85 B285-92

40-45% 40% 100% 100% 30% 85%

These proportions can be compared with those in MS C: Period

B total 96

Abben Heha Mercian kings Wessex kings to Edward the Elder /Eéthelstan to Eadred’s accession /Ethelwold Osgar

100 60 55 35 I5 just below 10 20—25 100 slightly over 5 15—20

Eadwine

Wulfgar 7Ethelwine Siward /Ethelstan

Spearhafoc Roduif Ordric Ealdred

40-45 40 100 100 30

C total 96

17 19 18

18 16

25 100

17 100 30 9I 100 100

34 100

Ixxviii

INTRODUCTION

'There is new narrative early in MS B. However, the proportion of document to narrative is even higher in MS MS C, with narrative making up just under one-fifth of the Charters with no related narrative are much more common

overall B than text. than in

MS C, particularly in the reigns of Edgar and /Ethelred.?? Again, however, narratives are often linked in a simple way to the charters, with narrative passages either introducing or following documents.^"' Narrative could also be used to improve or supplement documentary evidence in various ways. This might be in the routine inclusion of the phrase ‘in pure and perpetual alms’ in the introduction to the gift. In the case of King Edmund's grant of Culham to the royal woman /E|fhild, the mixture of narrative and document is more complicated. The heading states that the section will be the ‘Charter of King Edmund concerning Culham’, and such a charter appeared in MS C. However, in MS B, the main text of the charter is not given; instead the bounds of Culham are preceded by a narrative stating that the grant of Culham to /Elfhild was only for her life.*** The change reinforces MS B’s emphasis on the special connection between the abbey and Culham.?? The principles of arrangement of charters are largely similar to those employed in MS C. Indeed, it is now made explicit for King Edgar's charters: Now, indeed, we have thought it necessary to mention this munificent king's generous gifts towards this most sacred house of Abingdon, and also its liberties and those of the possessions pertaining to that abbey, strengthened by his authority. To be placed first is his privilege, next the charters whereby he confirmed subsequent possessions to this house, third the charters of his men who by his consent conferred charters??* on this house confirmed by Edgar's charters, which from that time until the present remain unshaken and by the grace of God will maintain their strength forever. Fourth, indeed, we place the charters both of him and of his men confirming our former possessions.9? 380 381

382

See esp. B179-B206, B217-B232. On the reliability of these statements, see below, pp. cxxvii—cxxix. B64.

55 For the vocabulary of some narratives being influenced by the charter concerned, see above, p. liii. 584 Tt seems likely that the scribe here meant to write ‘terras’ (lands) or some such word, rather than ‘cartas’ (charters). 55 Br74. The four groups are respectively Br75; B176—B183; B184-Br196; B197-B206, the last group in fact being charters of the king, not of his men.

STRUCTURE

OF THE

HISTORY

Ixxix

In /Ethelred's case, the charters recording gifts made directly to the abbey are divided from other charters by the rubricated heading “These are the lands which King /Ethelred gave to his followers, and they by the king's consent gave to the church of Abingdon.’**° Let us look, then, at the arrangement of charters of kings from /Ethelstan onwards, the period for which there are sufficient charters to allow significant analysis. The standard order until the death of /Ethelred is again (i) general privileges, where issued; (ii) charters recording grants direct to the abbey; (iii) charters recording grants to followers. For cnu*t there are no charters to his followers included, whilst by the Confessor's time the charters are much more closely integrated into the narrative. What of the ordering of charters within this basic framework? Charters from /Ethelstan's reign recording grants directly to the abbey appear in chronological order, largely following the arrangement in MS C. The earlier version of the History included no grants by /Ethelstan to his followers, but several are added in MS B. They do not appear in chronological order, with one charter in particular

interrupting any chronological sequence. There are no charters from Edmund recording direct grants to Abingdon. For the grants to followers, the reviser soon starts to provide a chronological ordering made explicit in the narratives preceding charters. His aim is largely,

although not perfectly, achieved.

No such explicit attempt at

chronology is made for Eadred's charters. Only one directly for Abingdon is included, and whilst the grants to followers in the 940s precede those of the 950s, there is no great effort at a chronological

arrangement.? For Eadwig there is again an explicit effort at chronological arrangement by year of issue, lasting throughout the grants directly to the abbey and extending into those to his followers. It is very largely successful, helped by the vast preponderance of charters issued in 956. Apparent mistakes could be through scribal omission of a final minim in some dates." Perhaps the sheer 2500B222-

387 Bsg; note also B57, which lacks a dating clause. 385 For slips, note B6g wrongly saying that B7o (a charter of 942) was issued in the same year as B68 (a charter of 940), and confusion at B76—B8o. 389 Note further the mistaken inclusion of two charters of King /Ethelred of Wessex; B89, B93. 39 For example, the anno Domini date in B123 (Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, no. 53) may be missing a minim, the presence of which would reconcile this date with the indiction and the witness list.

Ixxx

INTRODUCTION

repetitiveness led the reviser part way through the collection of Eadwig charters to abandon the statement that the grant was made in the same year as the preceding one, although it does reappear in a

narrative that unexpectedly is followed by no charter.?"! Efforts to arrange Edgar's charters are not entirely successful. MS C's largely chronological ordering of charters direct to Abingdon is not retained. Likewise, the grants to followers are not chronologically ordered. The promise ofa fourth grouping, ‘the charters both of him and of his men confirming our former possessions’, is not entirely fulfilled. The charters gathered thus are all grants by the king directly to the abbey; none are charters of his men. All the charters, or all but one, do concern lands no longer held by the abbey in the twelfth or

thirteenth centuries. However, several other charters concerning such lands had been included in the third group, grants by the king to his followers that were said to have passed to Abingdon.??? The fourth group again lacks chronological order, an order that could have been derived with relative ease not just from their dating clauses but also from their arrangement in MS C. Only two charters of Edward the martyr appear, and the one

directly in favour of the abbey precedes the one to a bishop.?* /Ethelred’s charters are then arranged with a competence not displayed in relation to Edgar's. The charters directly in favour of the church retain MS C's sound chronology, and the chronological arrangement of the charters to the king's followers is largely

successful? As with MS C, efforts at chronological arrangements thereafter cease, as charters play a reduced part in the History and the form of its organization changes. The revised History thus provides more narrative in its early stages than had MS C. Information from Geoffrey of Monmouth, for example, together with a different foundation story, shape the work's opening, and are followed by fuller accounts of kings, including the long narrative concerning Coenwulf and his sisters. Thereafter, the revised History comes to be dominated by charters, generally linked by short narratives concerning the gifts. A group of narratives deals with events relating to the Viking attacks of the S BRE: ?? Of the places mentioned in those charters, only in Hendred did Abingdon have lands in the 12th or 13th century; see B202, B203, vol. ii. 388. However, the later lands may not be those that Edgar granted to Abingdon; see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 224-5.

95 eg. Br85, B188. ?5 B227 appears to be wrongly positioned.

5^ Barr, B212.

STRUCTURE

OF THE

HISTORY

Ixxxi

later ninth century," but this does not mark a lasting shift in form. Rather, charters continue to dominate, their increased numbers also raising the proportion of the text devoted to the period from /Ethelstan to /Ethelred. There are only occasional narratives not related to the charters, most notably the sections concerning /Ethelwold. The shift to a form much closer to that in MS B's Book III occurs in the first half of the eleventh century. This is the same point at which the change occurs in MS C, as is logical since this is the very time when MS B becomes an only slightly modified copy of MS C. 3. Foundation history To bring these considerations of sources and structure together, it is helpful to undertake a case study of the use of sources on a particularly difficult and not necessarily typical issue, the foundation of the abbey. I will deal first with the medieval development of the foundation legends and then consider modern analyses of the same

subject.??" Development of the foundation legends Medieval writers, like modern historians, faced a particular problem for Abingdon: Bede made no mention of Abingdon, whereas he did refer to Ely and to Medehamstead, as he called what would later be Peterborough.?* Nor do other early sources fill the gap, as at

Glastonbury, which is mentioned in St Boniface's letter collection??? Also lacking were famous relics or impressive remains of build-

ings.^? It is, indeed, only from /Ethelwold's time that we can begin to identify the various strands of the Abingdon foundation legends. 99 B37—B40. 37 For comparative purposes, see e.g. A. G. Remensnyder, Remembering Kings Past: Monastic Foundation Legends in Medieval Southern France (Ithaca, NY, 1995); Paxton, ‘Charter and Chronicle’. 9$ Note, however, Miller, Ely, pp. 8-9, on the limits of Bede as a source for later tradition at Ely; he comments that the composer of the Liber Eliensis ‘desired to establish a venerable antiquity for the privileges enjoyed by his church in his own day; and to vindicate for those privileges some sort of continuity from St Etheldreda’s day’. 39 See Monumenta Germanix Historica: Epistolarum tomus iii (Berlin, 1892), p. 388 (no. 101). 409 The legends of the Black Cross seem to begin in the time of /Ethelwold; sce below, p. Ixxxvi. See above, p. lxiv, on Edgar seeing the ruins of Abingdon. Note that the Life of "Ethelmold does not mention the remains of any great church buildings.

Ixxxil

INTRODUCTION

JEthelwold displayed a considerable interest in the history of monasticism in general and of certain monasteries in particular.*°' The former is most obvious in the vernacular account of the monasticism in England of which he appears to have been author, the latter most clearly displayed in charters. His interests included the decline of monasticism since the golden age of Bede, and the associated fate of monastic property and privileges. Ethelwold sought historical backing for his efforts to restore and accumulate monastic lands and liberties. At Abingdon, this project manifested itself in three groups of charters. One was the forgery, quite probably in /Ethelwold's time, of supposedly pre-tenth-century charters for Abingdon. These may have been based on early records, but were assembled in a way that seems to reveal /Ethelwold's

concerns.*” Thus one of the charters in King Coenwulf’s name talks of Abbot Hrathhun redeeming lands ‘from servitude established by the hands of strangers [a manu extraneorum] ,a notion of central importance to /Ethelwold.*? It may also be in /Ethelwold's time that a second group of records, in this case concerning a foundation at Bradfield, were assimilated into Abingdon traditions, providing a seventh-century origin and the name of a first abbot, Haha, and a founding king, Cissa. However, it should be noted that these named individuals appear in other accounts of the foundation only in the twelfth century.^?* Perhaps significantly, their names are not present in the third relevant group of charters, the major privileges in the names of Eadwig, Edgar, and /Ethelred. Whilst the authenticity particularly of the first two of these 1s controversial, it is reasonable to take their account of Abingdon's past as that developed in the time of ?" See Wormald, "/Ethelwold and his Continental counterparts’, pp. 39-40; also Charters of the Abbey ofAbingdon, p. clxix. *? See below, p. cxxv, on links between Coenwulf, Pope Leo III, and privileges relating to churches. See also Charters of the Abbey of Abingdon, p. 26, on c. 8, a charter recording grants by King /Ethelbald of Mercia and King /Ethelheard of Wessex: ‘The transformation of such a document into a full-scale statement about Abingdon's early holdings could perhaps be considered against the background of /Ethelwold's campaign to reconstruct the ancient endowment.’ *5 See below, p. 16. Note the use of ‘extraneorum’ in the Orthodoxorum charters, below, pp. 62, 96, 146. "* On these charters and their place in the History, see Stenton, Early History, pp. 15— 16, who suggests that ‘provisionally, at least, we may fairly look to Malmesbury as the immediate source of the early formulas employed in the first charters of the Abingdon series’; Charters of the Early West Saxon Kingdom, ed. Edwards, pp. 168—77, 195—6; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. cxcvi. On the dating of their composition, see below, pp. cciv—cev.

STRUCTURE

OF THE

HISTORY

Ixxxiii

/Ethelwold." Four key points emerge. Ceadwalla is the earliest king mentioned, and to him is attributed the gift of land at Abingdon *to our Lord and His mother Mary'. Secondly, the abbey had been freed ‘of every yoke of earthly service . . . by our Catholic predecessors, that is by St Leo the Pope and by Coenwulf the Catholic king, as is

contained in the old privilege obtained by Abbot Hrethhun’.*” Thirdly, the kings’ predecessors ‘(deceived by diabolical avarice) had unjustly built themselves a royal building’ on the site of the abbey. And, finally, it was King Eadred who ‘restored to the church of God the land called Abingdon’ and ‘forbade that any king seek hospitality therein or ever construct a building’ there. The Life of Zthelwold, written c.1000, does not concern itself with the abbey’s foundation. It states only that at Abingdon ‘there had of old been a small monastery’, which by King Eadred’s time had

become ‘neglected and forlorn’.*” No further evidence on foundation legends emerges until the twelfth century. It is in William of Malmesbury's Gesta pontificum, written in the 1120s, that Cissa appears, wrongly identified as the father of Ine: ‘Cissa father of Ine, and soon Ine himself, king of the West Saxons, and many kings from the start established [fundauerunt| the monastery of Abingdon. This statement appears in simplified form in John of

Worcester: *Cissa father of Ine established Abingdon.” The tradition became well established, with, for instance, Ralph Diceto naming Cissa as the founder of Abingdon in his list of pre-Conquest founders of churches.*!° 405 For the authenticity of the charters, see below, pp. cxcix—cciv. For historical material in charters from Thorney and Ely, see Sawyer, nos. 779, 792, and Thacker, */Ethelwold',

P. 54.

46 Charters of Abingdon Abbey, e.g. p. cxciii, accepts the possibility that /Ethelwold was here making ‘reference to ancient documentation, in the form of a privilege of immunity in the names of Pope Leo III and King Coenwulf of Mercia’. 407 Wulfstan, Life of /Ethelmold, c. 11, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, p. 18. It is difficult to tell what significance should be attached to the use of the diminutive ‘monasteriolum’ in this context, given the chronological vagueness of the reference to the past and the desire to magnify /Ethelwold's achievement. ^5 William of Malmesbury, Gesta pontificum, c. 88, ed. Hamilton, p. 19r. 4° John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 538, and see ii. 538n. 1 on the relationship to William of Malmesbury. Probably drawing on the History, the Abingdon manuscripts of John of Worcester provide a brief addition under the year 688: King Ine ‘completed [perfecit] the monastery called Abingdon, which the noble man Cissa and King Ceadwalla had begun’; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 609.

#10 Ralph de Diceto, Opera historica, ed. W. Stubbs (2 vols., London, 1876), ii. 211; Ralph describes Edgar as the endower of the monastery.

Ixxxiv

INTRODUCTION

This brings us to the version of the History in MS C. Cissa again appears as the founder, but with much more detail: Cissa king of the West Saxons gave the site for the monastery to be built for the worship of almighty God to a certain Haha, a man of the religious life and abbot, and also to his sister, named Cilla, and . . . very many endowments and possessions were conferred on it by royal gift, for the necessities of life of those living therein. Both Haha and Cilla were ennobled by royal lineage.

Following Cissa's death, he was succeeded by Ceadwalla, who gave twenty hides to Abingdon. The subsequent chronology is somewhat uncertain, in part because of a lack of clarity in the History as to the

role of particular individuals." The foundation came under threat from Ine, successor of Ceadwalla, who took away the endowment before a monastery had been built, but then changed his mind and gave back the land to Haha and Cilla. Hzha too reportedly vacillated in his devotion to the monastery: But now, less than five years after taking these vows, and desiring to change and be released from his decisions, he has taken King Ine as his helper regarding the inheritance that he has claimed back. I have willingly yielded regarding these matters, and restore in full that land and the monasteries which, as I have said, we built. . . . Moreover, I have undone and mercifully remitted the monk's vow that he had sworn me, in the presence of the venerable Bishop Hedde, and Abbot Aldhelm, and Wintra, and all our

familia in the church.*? This portion of the text ends with the "Testament? of Abbot Hzha, granting land to Cilla, and with the departure of King Ine for Rome. The compiler has thus sought to combine the association with Kings Cissa and Ine, which we have seen in William of Malmesbury, with

the importance given to King Ceadwalla in the Abingdon charters.*'? He has then struggled to integrate these kings with documentary material to form a coherent narrative. That documentary material is primarily concerned with a foundation at Bradfield but crucially has been taken to provide the name of a founding abbot and evidence for an early landed endowment. *!! Note the discrepancy between c. 3 and Bg as to whether the charter is of Ceadwalla or Ine.

*!? Tt is unclear who is the narrator of this passage; one possibility is Cilla. *5 See also Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, pp. cxcvi—cxcvii. Stenton, Early History, pp. 8— 9, is no doubt right to argue that the History’s account is too incoherent for the documents to have been forged by the compiler himself.

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Ixxxv

The Abingdon De abbatibus provides a substantial and interesting

account of the foundation." However, dating its composition, and hence assessing its significance in the development of the legends, is problematic. Even if a version of De abbatibus was composed in the 1150s or 1160s, as suggested above, it was clearly rewritten and extended in the thirteenth century, and this rewriting may have involved not just continuation but the introduction of new material earlier in the text. It is therefore just possible that the version in De abbatibus is very slightly earlier than that in MS C of the History. It is much more likely to be later than MS C, and could even be later than the version in MS B. It begins with Abben, the son of a noble, who escaped a slaughter of great men carried out by Hengist at Stonehenge, a slaughter in which Abben's father died. Terrified, he lived for a while with the wild animals in a wood in southern Oxfordshire, eating small plants (herbis) and roots. Having nothing to drink, he prayed and God gave him a spring that could still be seen at the time of writing. Men heard of his holiness and flocked to him. Then they built him a small dwelling and chapel in honour of St Mary. To escape the company of men, Abben left and set out for Ireland, where he died a good death. The hill where he lived received the name Abingdon, and is the hill situated next to Bayworth and Pinsgrove, both of which are in Sunningwell parish. Then, under Centwine, king of the West Saxons (676—?685), there was a noble man and sub-king (regulus) named Cissa, who was lord of Wiltshire and most of Berkshire. His *metropolis', or royal centre, was at Bedwyn, Wiltshire, and he built a fortification to the south of there called, from his own name, Cyssebui (probably in the place now

called Chisbury Camp).*? Haha and Cilla were Cissa’s nephew and niece. When he heard it preached that it was easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter heaven, Haha turned from earthly to heavenly things. He went to his uncle and asked to be granted a place to build a monastery and gather brothers. Cissa agreed to his request, and the place Haha found for his ^^ CMA ii. 268-73. ^5 Stenton, Early History, p. 18, argues that 'the fact that the inventor of this identification found it necessary to travel fifty miles before he could find a place with which the name of Cissa could be brought into relation shows conclusively that his personality was not inferred from local nomenclature nearer home’. He was therefore willing to believe that *the Abingdon tradition has preserved a trace of authentic fact, and that in the traditional Cissa the true name is recorded of one of the obscure sub-reguli whose rule in Wessex is attested by the evidence of Bede’.

Ixxxvi

INTRODUCTION

monastery was that which Abben had left. There he built a monastery in 675. Cissa gave many gifts and possessions to that place, and Hacha granted to it a part of his inheritance. His sister, with the king's consent, used part of her inheritance and built a nunnery next to the

Thames at Helenstow, where she was abbess.*'? She had a cross made which incorporated part of a nail of the Lord, to be placed on her chest after her death. This was the Black Cross which would be found

in /Ethelwold's time.*!” Out of reverence for that cross, the nunnery was dedicated in honour of the Holy Cross and St Helen. After Cilla’s

death, the nuns were moved to Wittenham or perhaps Wytham,*"* and then because of the war between Offa of Mercia and Cynewulf of Wessex were again dispersed, the writer knew not whither. Hezha’s initial efforts to build a monastery and domestic buildings for the monks at the aforesaid site of the hill of Abingdon proved unsuccessful, as repeatedly what was built one day fell down the next. Then a hermit who lived in the wood of Cumnor recounted to Haha a vision he had experienced which advised that the monastery should be built elsewhere, at Sewekesham.*'? Haha obeyed the advice, and moved to the new site next to the Thames, five years after having begun work. During that time Cissa had died and been buried at the first site, but was moved to the new one. He was succeeded by Ceadwalla, from whom Heha successfully requested that he grant the place that Cissa had bestowed for the building of the monastery. The king also ordered that the place be called Abingdon for ever more. Ine took away all of Cissa and Ceadwalla's grants, but repented and restored them and more, as well as giving 3,750 pounds of silver to build churches at Abingdon and Glastonbury. Hzha died in the time of Ine's successor, /Ethelheard (726—?740), and was succeeded by Abbot Conan.*? See also below, p. clxx.

^7 CMA ii. 269—70. *3 The place-name evidence here is not certain. De abbatibus uses the form ‘Wittheham’, the version of the story in MS B uses ‘Witham’; CMA ii. 269, below, p. 244. The latter is the form used for Wittenham below, p. 264. See VCH, Berkshire, iv. 427, for the name of the Harcourt family house, ‘Wytham Abbey’, being taken as linked to the story that the nuns of Helenstow went to Wytham. Note, however, that p. 244 states that ‘a fort was then built on the hill at Witham, on account of which the nuns withdrew from that place’; see e.g. VCH, Berkshire, iv. 381, for a hill-top fort at the Wittenham Clumps.

* See Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. cxcviii: ‘The place-name Seouecesham has not been preserved . . . but its first element, a personal name Seofoca, is also found in Seacourt in Wytham (Seofecanmyrth, *Seofoca's homestead”)’.

*? There follows the description of Hacha's church, on which see below, p. clxvi.

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Ixxxvii

The account in MS B of the History is unfortunately mutilated. After missing folios, the surviving text begins with the conversion of Lucius king of Britain, before moving on to the foundation of Abingdon. Again this is put down to Aben, or Abben, but here he

is not a British noble but an Irish monk.?' MS B states that

after some time passed, moreover, this man came to the court of the most distinguished king of the Britons, where he was received in praiseworthy fashion and magnificently honoured by everyone, and he became so privileged in the king's love that the latter rejoiced that he had discovered in Abben another Joseph. Furthermore, in response to his prayers, that Abben obtained from the king of the Britons most of the region of Berkshire, within which, by the consent of the king and the counsel of the kingdom, he happily founded a monastery on which he conferred the name Abingdon, alluding either to his own name or that of the place. For we have learnt from our contemporaries that, according to the language of the Irish, Abingdon is interpreted ‘house of Aben’; but according to the language of the English, Abingdon commonly means ‘the hill of Aben’. . . . The venerable man Abben gathered there a plentiful multitude of monks, that is three hundred monks or more who served God there in constant devotion; he was not merely in charge of them as prior and abbot but rather benefited them all in every respect, striving according to the Rule of St Benedict rather to be loved than feared. Indeed in his final days, when he was white-haired, the holy man Abben followed in the footsteps of Christ, and, spurning the glory of the world for the love of Him and taken by the sweetness of his native soil, sought Ireland. There, by the disposition of divine clemency, he ended his life in holy religious living.*”

The monastery was situated between two streams, just beyond Sunningwell, and survived until the coming of the Saxons. Two folios are then missing, and next we are flung into the reign of Ceadwalla. Following an account of his visit to and death in Rome, we are given a description of ‘Sewekesham, afterwards called Abingdon’: Here was a royal seat, to this place people gathered when the important and difficult business of the realm was discussed. From the earliest times of the Britons it was also a place of religion, in the time both of pagan religion and #21 Cf the Irish monk Maildubh who, according to the Gesta pontificum, founded Malmesbury; William of Malmesbury, Gesta pontificum, bk. v, c. 189, ed. Hamilton, pp. 333-5; see also Bede, Ecclesiastical History, bk. v, c. 18, ed. Colgrave and Mynors, p. 514. It is notable that Faritius in his Life of Aldhelm had mentioned *Meldun? as founder of Malmesbury, but no link can be constructed between this reference and the development of the story of Abben; PL lxxxix. 69. 2 See below, p. 234, on which note above, p. xliii.

Ixxxvill

INTRODUCTION

of Christian. Also in this city was considerable evidence of Christianity from the religious life of the ancient Britons, as mentioned above, for crosses and images, which were found buried in various places in this village, provide

proof of this.*?

There follows an account of the Black Cross different from that in De abbatibus." We first hear of Haha and Cilla in the context of Ceadwalla’s favour to the nunnery Helenstow. The later fate of the nunnery is similar to that related in De abbatibus, with the additional information that ‘a fort was then built on the hill at Witham, on account of which the nuns withdrew from that place’. Cissa is mentioned for the first time in the context of King Ine’s actions: ‘At first he [Ine] decreed to make void the gifts and endowments of his predecessors Cissa and Ceadwalla and also the greatest part of the inheritance of Haha the abbot particularly to the monastery of Abingdon, but afterwards he returned to his senses and repented

his deed.*? Ine’s grant is said to have taken place in Hzha’s presence. Ine’s charter of restoration follows, and itself is followed by the ‘Testament’ of Abbot Hzha granting land to Cilla. The lost folios make very difficult the interpretation of this account, let alone full analysis of its relationship to those in MS C and De abbatibus. Cissa, Heha, and Cilla had presumably appeared in those folios, as may those charters only surviving in MS C. Likewise there is no explicit reference to the shift of site, although Abben’s foundation is said to have been near Sunningwell, the later foundation at Seuekesham. Nevertheless, the sense that the story of Abben was tacked on at the start through the desire for an appropriately named founder is reinforced by the way in which the conclusion to MS B’s Book I summarizes the duration of the monastery up to its lying in ruins in the g4os. It does not look back to Abben, but states that ‘from the time, indeed, of Cissa and Ceadwalla and also Ine, kings of the West Saxons, through whose patronage that monastery was first raised and constructed, right up to this third destruction of that

monastery, 240 years are calculated to have passed’.*”° Here the key figures in the foundation legend remain those prominent in William of Malmesbury and in the earlier version of the History. We thus see a core to the Abingdon traditions, but also separate stories, some of which become joined more or less firmly to the core. *5 See below, p. 240-2.

SQ 2o "5 See below, p. 292; the figure 240 years is taken from MS C, where it refers to the time from Ine to the demise of the monastery following the death of Edmund.

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Ixxxix

Present at least from the time of /Ethelwold is the vital position of Ceadwalla. At some point Cissa becomes associated with Abingdon. This may well arise from knowledge of the Bradfield charters, although it is also possible that an existing association of Cissa and Abingdon was the reason why the Bradfield charters came to be associated with the house. With these charters come the first founder Haha and his sister Cilla. Finally, Aben or Abben, British noble or Irish monk, was made to be the founder whose personal name explains the place name of the monastery. However, his story remains prefatory to the history of the house beginning in the time of the West

Saxon kings.*”” The early history of the abbey From these various stories, and from any other evidence, can we

construct a plausible picture of the foundation of Abingdon??? The account of the Black Cross does seem to describe an early AngloSaxon artefact, probably ‘one of those open-work disc-headed pins which have been found on several sites of the late 7th and 8th

centuries, including that of Hilda's monastery at Whitby.? There had also been a pagan Anglo-Saxon cemetery nearby. Probably by chance, therefore, the reviser may have been correct in his statement that Abingdon was not merely a royal seat but ‘also a place of religion, in the time both of pagan religion and of Christian’.**° Abbot Haha too may have some historical basis. A Haha appears in a Malmesbury witness list of the early eighth century, and as this name is otherwise unique, it seems appropriate to assume that the *?7 For relevant later medieval material, see Biddle et a/., ‘Early history’, p. 32; note esp. Oxford, Corpus Christi College 255, fos. 54'-55'. The short, later medieval accounts draw on those in both versions of the History and in De abbatibus, although some make occasional additions, for example pointing out that Sevekesham was named after a pagan, Sevecus, whereas Abingdon was named after a Christian, Abben. The abbot's defence in his impeachment in 1368 mentioned Ceadwalla's original grant of Abingdon itself to the monastery. 95 Note also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. cxcviii, 5, linking the /Ebbe or /Ebba whose personal name must underlie the place-name Abingdon with the St Ebbe to whom a church in Oxford is dedicated.

*9 Biddle et al., ‘Early history’, p. 27. 430 B6. See Blair, ‘Minsters of the Thames’, p. 21: ‘recent excavation shows that the town, including both St Helen’s and the abbey, lie within the ramparts of a late Iron Age valley-fort’; Biddle et a4, ‘Early history’, pp. 26—7, on Roman and early Anglo-Saxon settlement and the pagan cemetery; P. Rahtz, ‘Gazetteer of Anglo-Saxon domestic settlement sites’, in D. M. Wilson, ed., The Archaeology of Anglo-Saxon England (London, 1976), pp. 405-52, at 408, on sunken-featured buildings of early Saxon date being recorded close to St Helen’s church.

INTRODUCTION

Abingdon and Malmesbury references are to the same man.**! Quite possibly he was abbot of Bradfield, near Reading. His presence in the Abingdon story results from the incorporation of information from Bradfield documents which had passed into Abingdon hands.** It is possible but unprovable that an early minster at Abingdon came into existence as a cell of Bradfield, and that this might explain the survival of the Haha charters at Abingdon.*? However, it should also be noted that the Heha/Cissa element does not become apparent in the foundation legends until the twelfth century, and is not present in the tenth-century documents.*** It may therefore be only during the twelfth century that the Bradfield documents came to be regarded as part of the Abingdon foundation story.*? A sceptical line may also be appropriate for the story of the shift of

site." It does not appear in the tenth-century evidence, but may not have been appropriate there. More significantly, it does not appear in MS C, which surely would have included it had it been a central part of Abingdon tradition. Because of the lost folios in MS B, we are left entirely reliant on the version in De abbatibus, with its features such as the mention of Stonehenge and the appearance of the hermit. Such features might be described as legendary, suggesting lengthy if not necessarily reliable tradition. However, they might equally be called romantic, in the sense of being shared with twelfth-century and later works written under the influence of Geoffrey of Monmouth. These influences came into play when it was felt necessary to explain the lack of an obvious hill at the monastery's site, and also to reconcile the present monastic site with the mention in an Anglo-Saxon charter 5! Sawyer, no. 245; Stenton, Early History, pp. 16—17. 9? See above, p. Ixxxii. Note also Hacha's connection to land in Bradfield in his ‘will’, below, p. 1o. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 7, speculates that the charter in c. 6 suggests three stages in the foundation of Bradfield; (1) its setting up quite soon after conquest by King Wulfhere of Mercia; (ii) confiscation of the land by Ine in the context of a West Saxon reconquest of the area; (ii) restoration by Ine when he was told, perhaps by "Theodore, that the land belonged to the church.

53 Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, pp. cci-ccii. 4 See also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. cci: ‘It seems that there is good reason to believe that one or more minster communities were established at Abingdon in the period before the first Viking Age. Whether they should genuinely be associated with Haha and his sister Cilla remains an unresolvable question.’ Cf. Stenton, Early History, pp. 18—19, who puts more trust in the account in MS C of the History. 5 On the possible date of the construction of these documents, see below, pp. cciv-ccv.

*° See Stenton, Early History, p. 3; O. G. S. Crawford, ‘Abingdon’, Antiquity, iv (1930), 487-9; M. Gelling, "The hill of Abingdon,’ Oxoniensia, xxii (1957), 54-62; R. Forsberg, ‘Review Article: An edition of the Anglo-Saxon charter boundaries of Berkshire’, Studia Neophilologica, li (1979), 139-513; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. cxcvii.

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xci

boundary clause of an Abbendun that must have been somewhere in

the north of Sunningwell parish, close to Boars Hill.?? Any puzzle-

ment at least on the first of these two issues was dealt with more economically—if not necessarily more convincingly—in the first version of the History with its statement that ‘the hill of Abingdon is situated on the north side of the river Thames, where it passes by the bridge of the town of Oxford, and from the hill the same name is

bestowed on the monastery positioned not far off?.*?

In the end, we may be best to rely on our earliest evidence giving an account of the Abbey's past, not the History in either version or De abbatibus, but the tenth-century Abingdon charters. These looked back to Ceadwalla in the second half of the seventh century as the endower of the house. He can be linked to the founding of other new minsters and is certainly a plausible candidate to have been founder of Abingdon. However, with Bede's silence on Abingdon, there is no secure proof as to who founded the abbey or when.*?

4. Perceptions of the past in the Abingdon Histories Various key points have emerged in the foregoing analyses. The first is the vital role of charters in the construction and expression of Abingdon views of the past. In the tenth century, charters had ^37 c. 28 (which does not include the boundary clause), B85, Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 51A. The charter is almost certainly not genuine. The boundary clause appears in the quire of MS C devoted to such clauses; fo. 196", Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 585 (no. 1). One may wonder whether the contact with the Irish visitors in 1180 stimulated interest in the sense of the place-name, and created dissatisfaction with the earlier explanation, and indeed the earlier version's use of the rather tautologous *Mons abbendone'. 88 See below, p. 2; also p. 4. The present site of Abingdon could be described as on the north side of the Thames, but the reference to the bridge is problematic for that site, unless it could be taken to mean the bridge of the Oxford road, which seems excessively speculative. Again the description of the position of the hill might better fit a site in the north of Sunningwell parish. My rejection of the story in De abbatibus does not mean that there was in fact no shift of site, but rather is an argument that the evidence for such a shift is insufficient. One may further wonder whether separate sites with local traditions of religious observance were being combined in a single narrative through the story of the Shift; note that the revised version of the History, below, p. 240, states that Seuekesham *was also a place of religion, in the time both of pagan religion and of Christian'. Such a combining into a single narrative would be encouraged by the fact that the reviser probably knew that such shifts of site had taken place in much more recent history, and may have known that they formed part of more recent foundation stories; note, for example, the parallels of the Abingdon foundation story in De abbatibus to the involvement of hermits and the shifts of site in the foundation story of Kirkstall; see E. Freeman, Narratives of a Nem Order: Cistercian Historical Writing in England, 1150-1220 (Turnhout, 2002),

pp. 137-46.

tris

439 On Ceadwalla as a plausible founder, see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. cxcvi.

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INTRODUCTION

recalled vital moments in the abbey's development. In the twelfth century the compiler of the History found no coherent narrative for the pre-/Ethelwoldian history, but sought to construct some narratives from charters." Even names of Abingdon abbots were lacking; when Abbot Cynath was found in a charter granting him Dumbleton, the History makes him an abbot of Abingdon, although he was probably abbot of Evesham.**! The second feature to emerge is the existence of certain structural points in the two versions of the History. 'There was the original foundation, or foundations; the destruction in the time of the Danes and King Alfred; the demise of the church in the mid-tenth century; its refoundation under /Ethelwold; the Norman Conquest and the coming of Adelelm, the first abbot appointed by a Norman king; and the abbacy of Faritius. The third feature is the use of the past to justify present situations or claims. At the same time, in internal affairs at least, the past was not entirely binding. This attitude is clearest in the revised History. Faritius was justified in his changes to /Ethelwold's food and drink allowances on the grounds that he was improving them.*? Most notable of all, whereas De abbatibus has Abbot Adelelm die an unpleasant death because he disrespectfully wished to replace /Ethelwold’s church, the revised History established /Ethelwold's miraculous advance approval for rebuilding in the twelfth and

thirteenth centuries.*? In this case, prophecy and history combine to legitimize the present. V.

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1071

My aim in this section is not to provide complete biographies of all who appear in the History, although particularly in the case of abbots I provide supplementary information from other sources. Rather, my main purpose is to examine the History’s presentation of participants, and their role within its account of the development of the abbey and its endowment. In the process the differences between the two versions of the History will be further illuminated. *9 Sec above, p. Ixxxiv; also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. xxxvi.

^! Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 98. **? Bao7, vol. ii. 332-8. Note also the neutral tone with which the revised History presents Abbot Vincent's use of the wealth stripped from St /Ethelwold's retable to secure confirmation of the liberty of the church; vol. ii. 338-40. Such action could be justified by precedents, notably in the actions of /Ethelwold himself; Wulfstan, Life of Zthelwold, c. 29, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, pp. 44-6.

^5 B2s2, CMA ii. 284.

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xciii

1. Abbots of Abingdon Abbots, with kings, are the most prominent individuals in the preConquest part of the History. The reputed founder abbots of Abingdon, Abben and Heha, have already been considered. De abbatibus states that Haha was succeeded by Conan, but gives no further information about the latter save mentioning his death.** It is possible that he should be associated with an Abbot Cumma who appears in a charter of King /Ethelbald contained in both manuscripts of the History."? However, the History tells us no more about him, and again he does not appear in the tenth-century material on the abbey’s early history. A Cumma, given no title, witnesses two eighthcentury charters, neither of which is genuine; they may, nevertheless,

give some indication of men active as witnesses in the 730s—740s.*6It is possible that the charter of /Ethelbald originally mentioned only Cumma as its beneficiary, not Abingdon. Cumma’s church need not have been Abingdon, and the transformation of the grant into a summary of Abingdon's early estates may have occurred in /Ethel-

wold’s time.**? MS C gives much more prominence to the third and final abbot who is mentioned before the time of /Ethelstan, Hrathhun. He, moreover, is the first abbot to be mentioned in the tenth-century charters that touch on the abbey's history. MS C describes him as a *most prudent man . . . [who] governed that monastery in the most secure peace as long as he lived'. In particular, he obtained papal protection from Leo III (795—816) against infringements by royal officials, and two very substantial charters from King Coenwulf (796—

821).**8 Only one of these charters calls him abbot. The other simply refers to him as Bishop Hrethhun, although associating him with the community of Abingdon. An Abbot Hrethhun witnesses two charters of 814, although his house is not specified.” It does seem plausible that he was abbot of Abingdon. Certainly he was bishop of Leicester “4 CMA ii. 272-3.

ous!

^56 Sawyer, nos. 242, 256; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. ccxii. ^7 Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 26. The charter on which this forgery in /Ethelbald's name was based could have passed into Abingdon's possession with the acquisition of Watchfield; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 103. 48 See below, pp. 14-22, CMA ii. 274; according to the revised History and De abbatibus, considerable expense was involved. See also Stenton, Early History, pp. 27-8 (although note that he does not differentiate the versions of the History); Edwards, Charters of the Early West Saxon Kingdom, pp. 185-6.

^9 Sawyer, nos. 173, 177.

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INTRODUCTION

from some point between 814 and 816. MS C tells us that he retained the abbacy of Abingdon after becoming bishop, which fits with the chronology of charter witnessing. In contrast, De abbatibus states that Hrathhun bishop of the Mercians ruled the abbey of Abingdon and afterwards was made its abbot, whilst MS B states that ‘in King Offa's time a certain bishop named Hrethhun, driven from the kingdom of the Mercians by indignities and force of enmity, renounced his bishopric and became a monk in the monastery of Abingdon, after-

wards being made abbot and father’.*°° De abbatibus seems to place his death in the time of King Coenwulf, that 1s before 821. The same text, but neither version of the History, names Hrathhun's successor as Ealhhard, and places the latter's death in Alfred's

reign (871—99), in which case he would have been extremely old.** It is possible, however, that De abbatibus had simply drawn Ealhhard's

name from a witness list of a charter of 868 preserved at Abingdon.*”” No source mentions any further abbot of Abingdon before the reign of King /Ethelstan (924—39). According to MS C, in the time of /Ethelstan *we received Cynath as abbot of Abingdon', whilst MS B recalled King /Ethelstan's generosity to Abingdon, ‘then governed by Abbot Cynath'.? Both then include that king's charter recording the grant of Dumbleton to Cynath ‘the archimandrite’. The charter does not mention Abingdon, and is not authentic in its present form.?^ In contrast to MS C, De abbatibus records that it was Edward the Elder who gave the abbey to a monk called Cynath, the latter dying in /Ethelstan's time.*? According to Stenton the name Cynath 'represents a late contraction

of an unrecorded O. E. Cynenoth'.** It should also be noted that the form looks like Old English or Anglo-Latin spellings of the Gaelic

name Cinaed (Kenneth).**” The existence of an early tenth-century 590 CMA ii. 273, below, B12. 5! CMA ii. 275-6. 452 c. 15, and see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. ccxii. 55 See below, pp. 34, 278. Cynath is also mentioned in an Abingdon addition to John of Worcester; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 610. 55 c. 19, B47, Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 22 (which gives an addition in Edgar's name surviving only in a 16th-century copy). *5 CMA ii. 276. Stenton, Early History, pp. 33-4, identifies Cynath with the Guiatus mentioned in a r4th-century Abingdon text as recovering everything that Inguar and Ubbar the Danes had seized; Salter, ‘Chronicle roll’, p. 728.

56 Stenton, Early History, p. 34. *7 See e.g. Symeon of Durham, Historia regum, cc. 48, 113, Opera omnia, ed. T. Arnold (2 vols., London, 1882-5), ii. 45-6, 130 (Cynoht, Cynoth, Kynath). I owe this point to Alex Woolf.

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Abbot Cynath at some monastery is supported by the appearance of a . © s € Kenod abba' in the confraternity book of St Gallen, in a context

linked to the visit of Bishop Cenwold of Worcester in 929.555

However, the man concerned was probably not abbot of Abingdon, the Historia simply having derived his abbacy from the charter concerning Dumbleton. Most likely he was abbot of Evesham.*?? De abbatibus names a certain Godescale [ie. Gottschalk] as Cynath's successor as abbot of Abingdon during /Fthelstan's reign. It places his death in the time of King Eadred and has him

immediately succeeded by /Ethelwold.*” King /Ethelstan, from the relics given by Hugh Capet, gave the abbot a nail from the Crucifixion, and many other things to be kept in the monastery of Abingdon. MS B mentions Godescealc abbot of Abingdon in the context of land at Culham in 940, and he also appears in the witness list of a charter of /Ethelstan. Another charter in the name of /Ethelstan, recording a gift to Abingdon for use of monks there ‘under the charge of Godescealc the priest’, appears in both versions

of the History.'*' Both charters are spurious, but it is possible that one of the Continental priests associated with /Ethelstan did have control of a secular minster at Abingdon. De abbatibus and MS B wrongly transform him into an abbot. Thus it would seem that before the coming of /Ethelwold, we may only know of one true abbot of Abingdon, that is Hrethhun. St /Ethelwold has been much studied elsewhere, and information from the History only supplements other sources, most notably the

Lives.**? /Ethelwold was from an aristocratic background and grew up 558 S. Keynes, ‘King Athelstan's books’, in M. Lapidge and H. Gneuss, eds., Learning and Literature in Anglo-Saxon England: Studies Presented to Peter Clemoes on the Occasion of his Sixty-Fifth Birthday (Cambridge, 1985), pp. 143-201, at 200. 59 Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 98; Robinson, Times of St Dunstan, pp. 35-40; see also the witness lists of Sawyer, nos. 394, 395. 400 CMA ii. 276-7. F. M. Stenton, Anglo-Saxon England (3rd edn., Oxford, 1971), p. 444,

points out that this is a German name, never current in pre-1066 England. ‘Godescealc’ was presumably one of the number of foreign churchmen living in English religious houses at this time; see M. Wood, ‘The making of King /Ethelstan's empire: An English Charlemagne?’, in P. Wormald et al., eds., Ideal and Reality in Frankish and Anglo-Saxon Society: Studies Presented to J.M. Wallace-Hadrill (Oxford, 1983), pp. 250—72, at 261—4. See also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. ccxii-ccxiii, 109; Thacker, */Ethelwold', p. 46. 4^9! cc. 20, B49 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 26), B64. 462 See esp. Bishop Z:thelwold, ed. Yorke; Wulfstan, Life of/Ethelmold, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, pp. xxxix-li; Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. ccxiv. /Ethelwold was prominent as the first abbot in the witness lists of numerous royal charters, and later attested as

bishop; see Keynes, Atlas of Attestations, tables XLIV, XLVII, XLVIII, LV. Note that he witnessed Eadwig's charters even following the division of the kingdom with Edgar.

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INTRODUCTION

in Winchester. He spent some time in the household of King /Ethelstan, and was ordained by /Elfheah bishop of Winchester. He went to the newly founded monastery of Glastonbury to study under Dunstan, first as a monk and then as prior. During Eadred's reign, according to the Life, he decided to go overseas, to get a better grounding in monastic life, but the king, persuaded by his mother,

gave /Ethelwold the monastery of Abingdon.'? Possibly during Eadred's reign he gave instruction to the future King Edgar.* In 963 he was appointed bishop of Winchester. He was a great founder and reformer of monasteries, the most famous being at Abingdon, Peterborough, Ely, Thorney, Crowland, and Winchester.*® /Ethel-

wold was a ‘very sound’ Latinist, and was the composer of the Regularis Concordia, the monastic customary for reformed houses. He was also associated with writing in the vernacular, notably the account of his acquisitions at Ely, his translation of the Rule of St Benedict, and his history of monasticism and reform in England that may have

acted as a preface to his translation of the Rule." He died on 1 August 984.99 What of the Abingdon narratives! treatment of /Ethelwold? Within the History, his abbacy is central for the Anglo-Saxon period, as that of Abbot Faritius is for the post-Conquest. MS C places its account of his youth and his appreciation by King /Ethelstan after its charters

of that king.'? It notes that /Ethelstan commended /Ethelwold to Bishop /Elfheah of Winchester, before mentioning the succession of Edmund and the destitution of Abingdon. Soon after, following the accession of Eadred, the narrative returns to /Ethelwold, recording that he took the habit at Glastonbury under Dunstan. Eadred, acting particularly on the advice of his mother, appointed /Ethelwold abbot of Abingdon. Following a charter of Eadred, it then devotes four ^5 Wulfstan, Life of /Ethelwold, cc. 10-11, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, p. 18; note also William of Malmesbury, Gesta pontificum, bk. ii, c. 75, ed. Hamilton, p. 166. His appointment cannot be dated exactly; see Wulfstan, Life of/Ethelwold, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, pp. xliu—xliv. *9* See Regularis Concordia, Prooem. 1, ed. Symons, p. 1; John, Orbis Britanniae, pp. 159-60; Lapidge, */Ethelwold as scholar and teacher’, p. 98

*5 See also Thacker, */Ethelwold', p. 58. 555 For /Ethelwold's learning, see esp. Lapidge, Ethelwold as scholar and teacher’, with comments on his Latin at pp. 90, 102n.85. For his role in the composition of charters, see below, p. cxcvii. ^7 Wormald, '/Ethelwold and his Continental counterparts’, p. 40; Gretsch, Intellectual Foundations.

*5 Wulfstan, Life of Ethelwold, c. 41, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, p. 62. *99 c. 24; this section does not appear in MS B.

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chapters to events within the monastery during his abbacy."? In

particular, it notes how he sent his monk, Osgar, to Fleury to be instructed in its monastic customs; how his holy reputation attracted men to the stricter way of life at Abingdon; and how he summoned skilled men from Corbie, whom his own monks were to imitate in reading and chanting. Thereafter for his abbacy it provides only short narratives as an accompaniment to charters, referring to his acquisition of privileges and lands. A chapter is devoted to his election to the bishopric of Winchester, his replacement of clerics there with monks, and his establishment of new monasteries, which he propagated as

shoots from the fertile vine of Abingdon.*”! Finally, it mentions his death in King /Ethelred's reign, when his protection for churches was

particularly needed.*” The later version gives an independent account of /Ethelwold's youth, praising in hagiographical fashion his birth, disposition,

appearance, and abilities."? Drawing on the Life of /Ethelwold, it then mentions his move to Glastonbury under Dunstan. Next it turns to King Eadred’s favour for /Ethelwold, and again draws upon the Life for its account of his foundation of Abingdon."^ Following accounts and charters recording various gifts, a further independent narrative mentions the continuing favour /Ethelwold enjoyed under

Eadred's successor Eadwig, and the privilege he obtained.*” After further records of gifts, another independent narrative comments that King Edgar, ‘instructed by the blessed St Dunstan and by St ZEthelwold', provided great support and patronage for the monastic

reform of the Church.*” Following further charters, MS B then devotes a lengthy chapter to Abingdon under /Ethelwold."7 It mentions his building of the church there, his dispatch of Osgar to Fleury, his enrichment of the abbey with texts and ornaments (some made by himself), and his arrangement concerning food and drink allowances. It then gives his prayer for the protection of the house, before reproducing MS C's chapter on his elevation to the bishopric of Winchester." Its record of his death is also drawn from MS C.*” The account in De abbatibus of /Ethelwold's abbacy gives markedly 40 cc. 29-32. See above, p. xxvii, on their relationship to the Life of /Ethelwold.

FTN

craigs

175 B83t 476 See below, p. 326-8.

42 See below, p. 138. 17:0 B84

NRBIS 172. B207.

478 B208-Bz2o9. The latter is the first chapter that the reviser copied in full from the earlier version of the History. ^? See below, pp. 138, 346.

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INTRODUCTION

more prominence to his building work, notably including a descrip-

tion of the church that he had constructed.**° It records the discovery of the Black Cross, found when work was going on in the Thames

next to the monastery.**' Like MS B, it describes the ornaments that he made for and gave to the church, and his provisions concerning food and drink. It also mentions his foundation of monasteries elsewhere and his imposition upon them of Abingdon customs. It states that ‘he made the Rule of St Benedict come from the monastery of Fleury’, and in further chapters mentions his election to Winchester and his death.**” Finally, it should be noted that the Abingdon manuscripts of the Chronicle of John of Worcester contain, under the year 948, a lengthy entry concerning /Ethelwold not present in the other texts of John’s Chronicle. 'This draws significantly upon passages from Wulfstan's Life of /Ethelpold, and shares passages with the History. However, it also includes independent narrative, notably providing another account of Abbot Hrathhun and his dealings with the officials of

King Coenwulf.*? Much more briefly, under 963, the same manuscripts mention that /Ethelwold brought Abingdon monks to the Old Minster at Winchester, and include the same passage as the History concerning Abbot Osgar's succession and the consecration of the church at Abingdon.*** Osgar (963/4—84) has already been mentioned as a monk whom /Ethelwold brought from Glastonbury to Abingdon and sent to Fleury. Neither version of the History gives a strong impression of his abbacy, the earlier version’s account of his death only calling him

‘of pious memory’.*® De abbatibus—with no apparent shame states that in his time monks of Abingdon stole the relics of St Vincent, the head of St Apollinaris, and many other relics from the monks of Glastonbury."^ Osgar was a frequent attestor of royal charters in Edgar's reign and in the first two years of /Ethelred's, when he appears as first witness." However, he does not appear as a witness to any of the five charters of King Edward the martyr. William of 480

CMA ii. 277-80. See below, p. clxviii, for /Ethelwold's building work. See above, p. Ixxxvi. On the copy of the Rule brought from Fleury, see also below, p. clxxvi.

John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 609—13.

84 Tbid., ii. 613.

See below, pp. 114, 138, 346. CMA ii. 280; for general background, see P. Geary, Furta Sacra: The Theft of Relics in the Central Middle Ages (rev. edn., Princeton, 1990).

487 Keynes, Atlas ofAttestations, tables LV, LXI.

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Malmesbury briefly mentioned him in the Gesta pontificum as completing the work of his master, /Ethelwold.*5 The Abingdon version of John of Worcester’s Chronicle places his death in 984.*? The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle version E places in 984 the installation of the next abbot, Eadwine, whereas version C and John of Worcester place it in 985, suggesting a vacancy after the death of Osgar.*”? De abbatibus completely ignores Eadwine, perhaps because of the means whereby he came to the abbacy. It was bought for him

by his brother, Ealdorman /Elfric, probably /Elfric Cild.?! Without explicit personal criticism of Eadwine, both versions of the History present his abbacy as a time of considerable losses. It should, however, be noted that a later chapter attributes to his time a

grant to Abingdon of land at Chalgrave and Bulthesworthe.? He also witnessed several royal charters.?? After almost six years as abbot he died on 17 April 990.?* According to the History, Eadwine's successor Wulfgar (990—1016) brought the king to favour Abingdon, notably leading to a reversal of losses of land and a confirmation of privileges. It describes him as ‘a perspicuous man of the greatest probity, and needed for the restoration of the church's liberty in that threatening crisis’, and comments that the ‘alertness of Abbot Wulfgar's industry’ helped Abingdon to avoid losses during the Danish invasions of /Ethelred's reign. This contrasts with the comment in De abbatibus that in /Ethelred’s time the Danes destroyed all of England and especially

obliterated Abingdon.*”° Wulfgar regularly witnessed royal diplomas between 993 and 1016, and may have acted as a draftsman for royal

documents in favour of Abingdon.?/ He died on 18 September ^5 William of Malmesbury, Gesta pontificum, bk. ii, c. 88, ed. Hamilton, pp. 191-2. 489 John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 613. He died on 24 or 28 May; Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. ccxiv. ^9 John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 434, where Eadwine is referred to as a *uenerabilis monachus'. ?! See below, p. 138 (also John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 613), for reference to ‘maior domus regie /Elfricus quidam prepotens’. MS B includes this passage but changes the name to Eadric; below, p. 346. On the problem of identity, see below, p. cxxiii. The purchase by Ealdorman /Elfric is also mentioned in a charter of /Ethelred, below, p. 144.

Q2xcaT06; ^93 Keynes, Atlas of Attestations, table LXI. ^* For the day of death, see Gerchow, Die Gedenküberleferung, p. 337. 495 cc. 97, 110. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle notes his succession in 99o. See also vol. ii. 66. ^6 CMA ii. 280. On the reliability of this statement, see below, p. cxliv. 497 Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. ccxv, Keynes, Atlas of Attestations, table LXI; see below, p. cxcvii.

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INTRODUCTION

1016.5 Whilst the later version of the History states only that he went the way of all flesh, the earlier records that ‘the devoted flock that piously treated and loved him performed his funeral rites in

mourning’.*”? Wulfgar is also mentioned by Wulfstan in his Life of St Swithun. Wulfstan speaks of him as the current ruler of Abingdon, known to everyone through his outstanding and kindly virtues by the nickname Niger, but who as Wulfgar is radiant of mind and handsome in appearance; he watches over the flock entrusted to him with his admonitions and prayers, and he rejoices in the Lord through the increase of his goodly

sheepfold.*” The succession to the abbacy then becomes confusing. According to both versions of the History and De abbatibus, Wulfgar was

succeeded by /Ethelwine.?! However, the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle versions C and E give /Ethelsige as Wulfgar’s successor." Version E alone mentions /Ethelsige’s death in 1018, and the succession of /Ethelwine. Given the date at which they were written, these entries probably should be preferred to the History as sources on abbatial succession. Yet problems remain, in that an Abbot /Ethelsige

witnessed four royal diplomas between 1018 and 1026. This of course could be a different man from the one recorded in AngloSaxon Chronicle version E as dying in 1018. Other possibilities must be entirely speculative, for example that /Ethelsige was not made abbot in 1016 but given custody of Abingdon until an abbot was appointed. /Ethelsige then continued elsewhere as an abbot. AngloSaxon Chronicle version E would then have misinterpreted his departure from Abingdon as his death; version C knew that he did not die in 1018, and here has the support of the witnessing pattern. 8 Heads of Religious Houses, p. 24; his death is also noted in an Abingdon addition to John of Worcester; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 614. 9 See below, p. 176.

°° Wulfstan, Life of St Swithun, c. 11, Lapidge, Cult of St Smithun, p. 526. No other source mentions Wulfgar's nickname, and the New fo. 26", simply calls him *Wulfgar abbas’.

Minster

Liber

Vitae, ed. Keynes,

°°! See below, pp. 176, 356, CMA ii. 280. See below, p. 182, and Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 542—3, for a grant to the abbey by a man named /Ethelwine, who could be, but probably is not, the abbot of that name. *? See also Dumville, *Annalistic writing at Canterbury’, pp. 27-8, who explains the differences in terms of the copying of marginal or interlinear annotations made at Abingdon; Anglo-Saxon Chronicle: MS. C, ed. O'Brien O'Keeffe, pp. Ixvii-Ixviii, agrees that differences result from the copying of annotations but sees them as evidence that MS C of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle was not written at Abingdon.

55 Keynes, Atlas of Attestations, table

LX VIL.

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The two versions of the History agree on the assertiveness of /Ethelwine with regard to justice, and on his closeness to King cnu*t, a view expanded upon in one of the Abingdon manuscripts of John of Worcester's Chronicle. Notably he made a reliquary for saints’ relics, along the lines of and almost as large as one that cnu*t had made for

the relics of St Vincent." Royal charters between 1019 and 1032

record Abbot /Ethelwine as a witness, but it cannot be told when this

is the Abingdon /Ethelwine or a namesake from. Athelney.? The Abingdon /Ethelwine died on 24 or 25 February 1030.95 /Ethelwine's successor, Siward, had been a monk of Glastonbury. One of the Abingdon manuscripts of John of Worcester records that Siward succeeded to the abbacy in 1030. He witnessed royal diplomas

with the title abbot between 1032 and 1045 or slightly later, and in the case of one Abingdon charter in MS C his attestation includes the statement that he had composed the document [‘presentem scedulam gaudens composui'].5 The History praises him for his ‘vigour in both worldly and ecclesiastical matters', but the later version adds that he contemplated replacing the church built by St /Ethelwold

before coming to his senses on the subject."? In 1044, however, according to versions C and E of the AngloSaxon Chronicle, Archbishop Eadsige [of Canterbury] resigned the bishopric because of his infirmity, and consecrated to it as bishop Siward, abbot of Abingdon. He did this with the permission and by the advice of the king and of Earl Godwine. Otherwise it was known to few people before it was done, because the archbishop suspected that somebody else would ask for it, or purchase it,

whom he less trusted and favoured, if more people knew about it.^' 39* c. 111, B245, B249. See also John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 614, with words shared with the History italicized: ‘Quem rex Kanutus pro laudabilis uite merito secretorum suorum conscium efficiens a noxiis sese retrahere ac recta appetere eius suasionibus studebat. Hinc et cenobium Abbendonense a rege diligitur et muneribus eius cumulatur, nam inter alia sua donaria capsam de argento et auro parari fecit in qua sancti Vincentii leuite et martiris reliquie collocarentur. °° Keynes, Atlas ofAttestations, table LXVII. 50 For the year, see John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 614; for 24 Feb., see Gerchow, Die Gedenküberlieferung, p. 336; for 25 Feb., sce Cambridge, University Library, Kk. i 22, fo. 2". 507 Keynes, Atlas ofAttestations, tables LX VII, LX XIII; the latest charters are Sawyer, nos. 1011 and 1471. 908 c. 117, on which see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 552-3-

39 See below, pp. 178, 358-60.

510 On the obscure allusiveness of this passage, see N. P. Brooks, The Early History of the Church of Canterbury (Leicester, 1984), pp. 299—300.

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INTRODUCTION

In royal charters of 1045-8, with Eadsige absent Siward witnesses as

archbishop, taking precedence over the archbishop of York.°!’ When Eadsige does appear, Siward witnesses as bishop, and does not take precedence over the archbishop of York.?'^ Likewise, two vernacular documents were witnessed by ‘Archbishop Eadsige and Bishop Siward’, and bishop is his title in a writ concerning the Leckhampstead dispute.?" Later writers seem on occasion to have been perplexed by this situation, improper as it would have appeared to them. William of Malmesbury in his Gesta regum gave a quite similar account to that of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle.°'* In his Gesta pontificum he added that Siward was ungrateful to Eadsige, even depriving him of necessary food, and so lost his position as successor designate. To lessen his shame and loss, he was given the bishopric of Rochester.?? John of Worcester did not mention Siward’s appointment in 1044, although the main text of his Chronicle does record his death, entitling him

‘corepiscopus’ of Archbishop Eadsige.?' This passage is omitted in the Abingdon copies of John’s Chronicle, which replace it with the statement that Siward, who had been performing the duties of the archbishop (‘archiepiscopi uices moderans’), fell ill, was taken from Canterbury to Abingdon, and, after two bed-bound months, died and

was buried there." As for Siward’s appointment at Canterbury, a passage common to the Lambeth Palace manuscript of John of Worcester and to the earlier version of the History is not entirely clear to us in its treatment of the matter. It states that Eadsige, with the consent of the king and the leading men of the realm, ‘pontificatus decorauit apice, ac patriarchatus sui uice ipsum fungi instituit".?!? *Pontificatus! might mean bishopric or archbishopric; if the former, it might still mean Canterbury, or just ‘a bishopric’. The phrase ?!! Keynes, Atlas of Attestations, table LXXII.

?? Sawyer, no. 1010, Siward witnesses as bishop, following Eadsige as archbishop of Canterbury and /Elfric as archbishop of York; Sawyer, no. 1014, Siward witnesses as bishop, after Archbishop */Eti' (presumably Eadsige), Archbishop /Elfric, and Eadnoth bishop of Dorchester.

*?5 Anglo-Saxon Charters, ed. Robertson, nos. 102, 103 (= Sawyer, nos. 1472, 1473); c. 120. ?^ William of Malmesbury, Gesta regum, bk. ii, c. 197, ed. Myers et al., i. 352. ?5 William of Malmesbury, Gesta pontificum, bk. i, c. 21, ed. Hamilton, p. 34. ?^ John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 552; note R. A. L. Smith, ‘The place of Gundulf in the Anglo-Norman Church’, EHR, lviii (1943), 257—72, at p. 261.

?7 John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 614. 55 See below, p. 186; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 614.

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‘patriarchatus sui uice fungi’ might mean that Siward was to be Eadsige’s successor, or to just to undertake his duties. When recounting the dispute over Leckhampstead, the History refers to

Siward as ‘bishop’, as in the writ concerning the same dispute.*!? The

later version of the Abingdon History refers to Siward being ‘consecrated as bishop of Rochester"??? The Abingdon De abbatibus keeps much to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, stating that, with Edward the Confessor’s consent, Siward was made archbishop of Canterbury.??! What are we to make of this? To treat Siward simply as coadjutor to Eadsige is to downplay his position, given that both the AngloSaxon Chronicle and royal charters make it clear that in Eadsige's

absence he was treated as archbishop.” However, the witness lists also make it clear that when Eadsige was present, Siward was his subordinate and bishop. Later writers could concentrate on this subordinate position, rather than explicitly treat the irregularity of Siward’s substitution into the archbishopric. The association of Siward with Rochester in the Gesta pontificum and the revised Abingdon History may stem from confusion with an Abbot Siward

of Chertsey who became bishop of Rochester.?? In the end, Eadsige outlived Siward, who in 1048 fell ill, resigned his position at Canterbury, and returned to Abingdon, where he died within two months, on 23 October. He left to the abbey Wittenham and the furnishings of

his chapel.°”* When Siward moved to Canterbury, he was replaced by the sacrist, JEthelstan.?? The History praises him, notably for his charity during a famine.?* He witnessed royal charters in 1044-5, but died on 29

March

1047 or 1048.’ Following /Ethelstan's death the king

appointed as abbot a monk of Bury St Edmunds called Spearhafoc, 3? See below, p. 188.

39 See below, p. 362.

?! CMA ii. 281, which may, of course, draw on the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. See also Brooks, Canterbury, p. 300.

35 See ASC, s.a. 1058; it does not mention the house of which Siward had been abbot. 9^ c. 122. See also John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 614; ASC, ‘C’, s.a. 1048. Siward's burial at Abingdon is also mentioned by Gervase of Canterbury in his Actus pontificum: The Historical Works of Gervase of Canterbury, ed. W. Stubbs (2 vols., London, 1879-80), c

119. De abbatibus mentions only that he was Siward's successor; CMA ii. 281.

$26 See below, p. 194-6. 57 c. 123. Keynes, Atlas of Attestations, table LXXIIL For the day of his death, Gerchow, Die Gedenküberlieferung, p. 336; for the day and year, see ASC, ‘C’, s.a. 1047 but with the indication that the death took place in 1048, John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 614, which places the death in 1048.

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INTRODUCTION

a name meaning Sparrowhawk. The History, the Abingdon manuscripts of John of Worcester, and De abbatibus comment on his skills as a gold- and silver-smith.* This view is supported by Goscelin's Historia translationis S. Augustini, which recounts a miracle in which he lost a precious ring belonging to Queen Edith, wife of Edward the Confessor. At St Augustine’s, Canterbury, he prayed to St Liudhard, whose relics were there, and the ring was found. The writer notes that Spearhafoc ‘fashioned statues of immense size and beauty . . . of Liudhard and his venerable queen, Bertha, which he solemnly erected

over the saint’s tomb. As abbot, Spearhafoc leased South Cerney, Gloucestershire, to Stigand, then bishop of Winchester, but was unable to resume the land.?? During his abbacy, he witnessed only one royal charter, in 1050.??! Spearhafoc's abbacy came to an end in 1051 when, according to the History, he was promoted by the king to be bishop for the city of London. Then, at a time when he had, by the king's allocation, plenty of gold and chosen gems acquired for fashioning the imperial crown, he stuffed money-bags full with riches from the bishopric, left England in secret, and did not appear again. God's vengeance brought such ends for those by whose trickery the Church was diminished for their own profit.*”

De abbatibus states that the king entrusted [commisit] the bishopric of London to Spearhafoc, but he left England secretly and never reappeared."? John of Worcester attributed to King Edward the ejection of Spearhafoc from London; interestingly, there are no additions concerning Spearhafoc peculiar to the Abingdon manuscripts of John’s Chronicle.?* The *C' version of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle also mentions Spearhafoc's appointment to London, whilst the *D'" version goes on to say that ‘it was taken from him before he was consecrated’. The *E? version gives a considerably fuller account. Following the promotion of Robert de Jumiéges, Edward the Confessor gave London to Spearhafoc. On Robert's return from Rome, where he had been to collect his pallium, 75 For his abbacy, see c. 124; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 614; CMA ii. 281. For succession in 1048, see also ASC, *E^; the Waverley annals follow the ASC, but add that his abbacy lasted two years, Annales monastici, ii. 183.

°° Goscelin, Historia, miracula et translatio S. Augustini, c. 32, PL clv. 46. c. 124; see also below, p. clxiii. Keynes, Atlas ofAttestations, table

LX XIII, Sawyer, no. 1022.

See below, p. 196. John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 552—4.

535 CMA ii. 281.

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THE

HISTORY

Abbot Spearhafoc met him . . . with the king's writ and seal to the effect that he was to be consecrated bishop of London by the archbishop. But the archbishop refused and said that the pope had forbidden it him. Then the abbot went to the archbishop again about it and asked for ordination as bishop, and the archbishop refused him resolutely and said that the pope had forbidden it him. Then the abbot went back to London and occupied the bishopric that the king had given him; he did this with the king's full permission all that summer and autumn.

The Chronicle then tells of the coming of Eustace of Boulogne to England, the fall of the Godwine family, and the king's putting away of the queen, Earl Godwine’s daughter, before stating that ‘Abbot Spearhafoc was expelled from the bishopric of London, and William the king's priest was consecrated to it’. Spearhafoc was replaced as abbot by Bishop Rodulf, a royal kinsman. The History describes him as aged and long a bishop in

Norway.?? He was probably a Norman, the bishop who participated in Olaf Haraldson's missionary work in Norway." Again the king seems to have imposed his nominee on the abbey, but according to the History Edward had to make a concession, that after his death they might 'elect as his successor whomsoever they wished from amongst themselves'. Rodulf died within two years of his appoint-

ment, and was succeeded by Ordric, an Abingdon monk.**” This may suggest that, at least in the short term, the royal promise about election held. Certainly he was welcome to the monastery: a man of middle age and charming affability, a monk of the church of Abingdon, was received by them as abbot, with the king’s approval, and to the immense joy of everyone. Since he was greatly loved by the king, he obtained affirmation by his edict of very many things necessary for the liberty of the church.

The History also praises him at the time of his death: after he had honourably governed the house entrusted to him, and had returned home from the shrine of the princes of the apostles (to which he had 535 See below, p. 198; see also De abbatibus (CMA ii. 281), the Abingdon addition at John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 615, ASC, ‘E’, s.a. 1048 (rectius 1051). 536 See L. Abrams, ‘England, Normandy and Scandinavia’, in C. Harper-Bill and E. M. C. van Houts, eds., 4 Companion to the Anglo-Norman World (Woodbridge, 2003), pp. 43— 62, at 56—7; T. Graham, ‘A runic entry in an Anglo-Saxon manuscript from Abingdon and the Scandinavian career of Abbot Rodulf (1051-2), Nottingham Medieval Studies, xl (1996), 16-24, who pays particular attention to a runic addition in Cambridge, Corpus

Christi College 57. 537 See below, p. 198; also John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 615.

cvi

INTRODUCTION

gone for the sake of devotion), he was worn out by a long-lasting illness and was allotted his final day.***

Like the History, De abbatibus reinforces the impression of a successful abbacy by recording various acquisitions in Ordric’s

time.*? Ordric witnessed royal charters between 1050 and 1065.°*° He died early in 1066, probably on 23 January?! 'The final abbot appointed before the Norman Conquest, during

the reign of Harold II, was Ealdred?" He had been provost or perhaps prior of the abbey. He accepted the Conquest and swore oaths of loyalty to King William. He protected the abbey's mill at Cuddesdon against the threat from the men of the bishop of Lincoln. With considerable effort he regained certain lands which had been forfeited to the king by the abbey's man, the priest Blecmann, and—says the History—‘he might also perhaps have extricated others which had passed from the lordship of the church to the right of another, had he not incurred the king's anger, to his

own and the church's misfortune'.?** The men of Abingdon unsuccessfully supported a rising against William: The king's anger was so directed against their lord, that is Abbot Ealdred . . . that by the king's order he was immediately placed in captivity at Wallingford castle. A little while later he was taken from that place and for safekeeping committed into the hands of Bishop Walkelin of Winchester, with whom he remained as long as he lived.^*

De abbatibus states that it was mentioned to King William that Ealdred was plotting against him with the Danes." Ealdred died in 1071.

538 See below, p. 220.

5? CMA ii. 281-2.

?9 Keynes, Atlas of Attestations, table LXXIII. ?! 23 Jan. is the obit in Cambridge, University Library, Kk. i 22, fo. 1°; Heads of Religious Houses, pp. 24, 241. Cambridge, Corpus Christi College 57, fo. 44", records the burial [depositio| of an abbot *O' on 23 Jan.; Gerchow, Die Gedenküberlieferung, p. 335. B287, and a dry-point addition in the margin of MS C, fo. 135", dates his death to ‘around the feast of St Vincent’, that feast falling on 22 Jan. His death is also recorded in the Lambeth Palace manuscript of John of Worcester; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 615. ?*9 cc. 143-4. He was also called Brihtwine; see below, p. 227 n. 517. According to De abbatibus, it was in Ealdred's time that Queen Edith gave Lewknor for the boy monks, but this differs from the History’s account; CMA ii. 283, cf. c. 121.

43 B2gr. 4 See below, p. 222. See also p. 372, where it is said he was kindly received by King William.

555 See below, p. 226.

46 CMA ii. 283.

PARTICIPANTS

IN THE

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cvii

2. Monks of Abingdon

Very

few monks

History?"

Besides

of Abingdon

are mentioned

those who became

by name

in the

abbot, we learn of two,

/Edmer and /Elfstan, through miracle stories from the time of /Ethelwold.*5 We also learn that /Elfric, archbishop of Canterbury

from 995 to 1005, had been a monk of Abingdon.?*? The later version

of the History draws on the Life of St Athelwold to name ‘certain clerics in minor orders’? who followed /Ethelwold to Abingdon, namely Osgar (the future abbot), Foldbriht, and Frithegar from and from Winchester, Ordbriht Glastonbury, Eadric from

London.?? Foldbriht’s identity is uncertain, although he may well have become abbot of Pershore.?! Frithegar too may have become an abbot, possibly of Evesham, whilst Ordbriht certainly became abbot

of Chertsey and later was bishop of Selsey.?^ Of Eadric it is only known, from the Winchester Liber Vitae, that he was a priest.^? Finally, we hear of two monks in the Confessor's reign, Godric and Leofric, who had inherited lands at Sparsholt and Whitchurch

respectively.??* 3. Kings Throughout the Anglo-Saxon and the post-Conquest periods, Abingdon was closely associated with kings. Its location may have made it a suitable place to shift from road travel in Wessex to river travel along the Thames. Abingdon's role as a royal meeting place and 47 See also below, p. clxxi. See above, p. lxiv, for Wulfstan’s Life of St Swithun mentioning a prior named Byrhtferth; p. Ixv, for the Winchester Liber Vitae. /Ethelgar, who became abbot of New Minster, Winchester, in 964, and was later bishop of Selscy, had probably been a monk of Abingdon; see Liber Vitae, ed. Keynes, pp. 26-32. 958 cc. 29, 30. For the story involving /Elfstan, see Wulfstan, Life of Zthelwold, c. 14, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, pp. 26-8; William of Malmesbury, Gesta pontificum, bk. ii, c. 83, ed. Hamilton, p. 181. /Elfstan went on to become abbot of Old Minster, Winchester, and then bishop of Ramsbury. 59 See below, p. 166; also William of Malmesbury, Gesta pontificum, bk. i, c. 20, ed. Hamilton, p. 32, who wrongly says that /Elfric had been abbot of Abingdon; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 613.

°° See below, p. 298. 531 Heads of Religious Houses, pp. 58, 252; sec also below, p. cciii. 5? Heads of Religious Houses, pp. 38, 244. On Frithegar, see Williams, 'Princeps Merciorum gentis, pp. 169—70. 553 Tiber Vitae, ed. Keynes, p. 95. He appears as the sixth name in the Abingdon list, straight after the abbots, suggesting that he held a position of some prestige within the abbey; Liber Vitae, fo. 26".

ANGEEIAR:

cvili

INTRODUCTION

residence is particularly prominent in the later version of the History. This states of Sewekesham, afterwards called Abingdon, that ‘here was a royal seat, to this place people gathered when the important and difficult business of the realm was discussed'.?? It was at Abingdon that /Ethelstan received messengers from Hugh, duke of the

Franks.?? The later version of the History also tells us that in King Eadred’s time the neglected church had only forty hides at Abingdon,

the royal estate being one hundred hides.?" The king then gave his hundred hides ‘with excellent buildings’ to the abbot and monks. Likewise a charter in Eadwig’s name states that Eadred had restored to the church the land called Abingdon, ‘on which our predecessors (deceived by diabolical avarice) had unjustly built themselves a royal

building? It sounds as if, just before Eadred gave Abingdon to /Ethelwold, a royal meeting place and building were coupled with a minster closely associated with the king. Such a close association remained when the minster became a reformed monastery.??? It is uncertain whether the meeting place or royal building were the same as, related to, or separate from a royal residence at Andersey, an island between two branches of the Thames close to the abbey. According to De abbatibus, King Offa came to Andersey, liked the look of it, and ordered that royal houses [domus]| be built there. In exchange he gave the monks Goosey.?9? The same source notes the problems caused by the royal huntsmen and others staying in the king's houses on Andersey during the time of King Coenwulf. Abbot Hrethhun gave the king Sutton and 120 pounds of silver to be free of such oppression. The king accepted the arrangement, and ordered

that the monks have the place in perpetuity.??! The two versions of the History tell similar stories of oppressions by Coenwulf’s men, and the subsequent settlement, but neither the narratives nor the related °° See below, p. 240.

55 B62, William of Malmesbury, Gesta regum, bk. ii, c. 135, ed. Mynors et al., i. 218. See Sawyer, no. 552a, for a charter of Eadred issued at ‘the royal vill of Abingdon’ in 950. The grant was in favour of Barking, and was witnessed by three abbots including Dunstan; it does not mention /Ethelwold. Note also charters issued close to Abingdon, for example at Sutton Courtenay; Sawyer, nos. 338a, 993 (= c. 117, B254). °°7 See below, p. 296. 555 See below, p. 64, on the authenticity of which see below, pp. cxcix—cciv; see also cc. 60, 98. The same charters prohibited that any future king construct a building there. *9? See below, p. 56, for a claim that Eadred was accustomed to come to the church at Abingdon, and for him feasting there. See also Thacker, */Ethelwold', pp. 56-7. Cf. the close association of monastery and palace at Winchester.

300" CMA ii. 273.

*! CMA ii. 274.

1 |

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cix

charter make any specific mention of Andersey.?? The reason for, and significance of, De abbatibus’s focus on Andersey must remain unclear. Certainly, despite the grant mentioned in De abbatibus, the association of Andersey with kings continued. De abbatibus reports King /Éthelstan staying there at the time of the mission from Hugh, duke of the Franks.?? At the end of the Anglo-Saxon period it had been obtained by a priest called Blecmann, who built a church there.*°** However, when Abbot Ealdred regained control of various of that priest's lands from William I, part of Andersey was excepted and

‘that place lasted until Abbot Faritius's time as a royal haven’.°® In the post-Conquest period it was described as ‘crammed on all sides with sundry small buildings’, although by the start of the twelfth

century at least Blaecmann's foundation was in decay.? Sir Frank Stenton analysed the importance of Abingdon and Abingdon evidence to the eighth- and ninth-century struggles between Mercia and Wessex.?? Here my interests are more limited, looking simply at what the narrative sections of the History tell us about kings and about Abingdon views of the past. The place in the Abingdon foundation stories of Cissa, described in the History as king

of the West Saxons, has been discussed above.?9* The earlier version of the History refers to Ceadwalla, king of Wessex between 685 and 688, succeeding Cissa. It also mentions his grants to the abbey, and his departure for Rome.*” The later version of the History treats his conversion and his baptism at Rome at considerably greater length,

including the epitaph inscribed on his tomb.?^? The two versions of the History give separate descriptions of the decision by Ceadwalla's successor, Ine, first to annul earlier grants and then to restore and indeed increase the endowment.?"! The later version specifies that he Bez ecrO DIS Br7, BLS: 965 OMA it. 277. 564 c. 136. It is unclear whether Blaecmann's acquisition of Andersey had any connection with his links to the royal house and the Godwine family; see below, p. cxxii.

56 See below, p. 372. 366 Vo]. ii. 72—4. ?9 Stenton, Early History; sce esp. p. 21: ‘in the eighth century Berkshire was a border county’. See also Thacker, ‘Aithelwold’, pp. 44—5; Blair, Anglo-Saxon Oxfordshire, pp. 43, 54-6; Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, pp. cciv—ccvi, where it is pointed out that the Thames was not a defensible border and Berkshire not a necessary geographical entity.

568 See above, pp. Ixxxv-xcii. 570 B4-Bs. See also De abbatibus, CMA ii. 271.

599 cc. 2-3. See also above, p. xci.

°7 cc, 27, B8-Bro. An addition in the Abingdon manuscripts of John of Worcester states ‘et (Ine) monasterium quod dicitur Abbendona, quod prius uir nobilis Cissa et rex Ceadwala inceperunt, perfecit; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 609.

INTRODUCTION

was the first donor of Sutton to the abbey." According to both versions of the History, again in distinct passages, Ine left for Rome,

entrusting the kingdom to /Ethelheard.^? JEthelheard is not mentioned in any other narrative section, although a charter in his name and that of King /Ethelbald of the

Mercians is included. MS B gives just the succession in Wessex from /Ethelheard to Cuthred to Sigebert and to Cynewulf, who was

defeated in battle by Offa of Mercia?^? The same war was also responsible for the withdrawal of nuns, formerly of Helenstow, from

Witham, where a fort was built." A critical view of Offa is also suggested when it states that he ‘seized [usurpauit] for himself everything which had been subjected to Cynewulf's jurisdiction, from the Icknield Way between the town of Wallingford and Ashbury in the south to the river Thames in the north?" However, the History also mentions his gift of Goosey, without suggesting (as does

De abbatibus) that it was in return for Andersey.??? MS C does not mention the succession of Offa's son, Ecgfrith. His brief reign is noted in MS B and De abbatibus, but both refer to him as

Ecgberht; the error may be derived from John of Worcester? MS B also records that ‘after Cynewulf king of the West Saxons was killed by Cyneheard, brother of his predecessor Sigeberht, his own brother Beorhtric succeeded him’. It continues that Beorhtric gave Easton, Hampshire, to one of his nobles, who in turn gave the land and associated charter to Abingdon. It also includes a similar transaction concerning Hurstbourne, Hampshire. Finally it records Beorhtric’s death, which from other sources can be placed in 802.?9? Ecgfrith of Mercia’s successor Coenwulf features significantly in both versions of the History. In a narrative derived in part from a spurious charter of Coenwulf, MS C tells of the oppressions that he and his men inflicted on Abingdon, and the successful resistance by °? See below, p. 246. cS B30:

°73 See below, pp. ro, 246. 5? Bra:

?7 See below, p. 246. Given that the passage only appears in MS B, Stenton, Early History, p. 23, is rather misleading in attributing this passage to ‘the twelfth-century historian of Abingdon’. On the description of the border, see also Stenton, Early History,

p. 25.

?7* See above, p. lvii. 57 See above, p. xli. °° B13, Br4, Bro, B2o, B25. Handbook of British Chronology, p. 23. On the significance of these charters of Beorhtric to the question of Mercian control of Wessex at this time, see Stenton, Early History, p. 29; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 29.

PARTICIPANTS

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HISTORY

cxi

the head of the monastery, Hrethhun.**' Coenwulf is presented as resistant to papal orders, and in this context, MS C comments that Hrethhun deemed the king a man to be persuaded by money rather than prayers. MS B gives its own but similar account of this dispute

and the consequent

royal privilege.?? However,

its account

preceded by another chapter in which the king ‘full of piety and "the bowels of mercy", granted his sisters lands at Culham for life, so they might live there in God's service. The lands thereafter were to pass to Abingdon.?? MS B then lists some of Coenwulf’s successors, recording gifts and charters associated with Berhtwulf king of Mercia

(840—2852).°°* Thereafter, the focus is on kings of Wessex, with the rise to dominance of Ecgberht. In contrast to MS C, where Ecgberht, ZEthelwulf, and /Ethelred are mentioned only through their charters? MS B devotes a chapter to Ecgberht and his connection to Abingdon. He ‘received in submission all the kings of the whole of

Albion’, was devoted to Abingdon, and granted it Marcham.?** His son /Ethelwulf 1s noted for a gift which passed to Abingdon, and his ‘general privilege for all the churches of his realm, to whom he distributed by shares the tenth part of the lands of his realm in pure and perpetual alms. The first and foremost of them was the house of

Abingdon.?? MS B also praises /Ethelwulf's son and successor, /Ethelbald, for his love of Abingdon and his confirmation and grant to it. However, the charter it then attributes to him belongs in fact 581 c. 9; also the charters in cc. 10 and 11. See further below, p. ccv. 5? Br6- B18; the link between B16 and B17 is somewhat awkward. The version of the story in De abbatibus does not link the dispute to its mention of the abbot's trip to Rome, rather stating that he set off with the king and bishop’s permission; CMA ii. 274.

55 Another version of the story of Coenwulf’s sisters appears in De abbatibus, CMA ii. 274. See also above, p. Ixviii, for a charter in Coenwulf's name referring to his gift of Culham to Abingdon made at the request of his sisters. A mutilated passage in De abbatibus records the burial at Abingdon of either Coenwulf or Abbot Hrathhun; CMA ii. 274—5.

55 B2r-B24,

the treatment

of the succession not being entirely accurate; cf. De

abbatibus, CMA ii. 275. 555 cc. 12, 13, 16. See also c. 15 for a charter of /Ethelwulf's daughter /Ethelswith, queen of the Mercians, recording the gift of Lockinge; her husband was King Burgred of Mercia. The same charter, with a brief introductory narrative, appears in B33-B34. Cf. De abbatibus which attributes the gift to a man called Cuthwulf, with the king's consent; CMA ii. 275. 58 Bas; note the mistake concerning Ecgberht's relationship to his predecessor. De abbatibus says that a very rich man gave Marcham to Abingdon, with Ecgberht's consent; CMA ii. 275. 57 B27-B28. For /Ethelwulf, see also De abbatibus, CMA

588 Bog,

ii. 275.

cxii

INTRODUCTION

to the eighth century, and is correctly positioned in MS C? JEthelbald's brother and successor /Ethelberht is treated ambivalently: *Although he reigned for little time, that is five years, and in the generous giving of endowments did not provide sufficiently profitably for his soul’s salvation, nevertheless, he did strive

incessantly to take care of the protection of the Church.” To the reign of the next king, /Ethelred (865/6—71), is attributed a gift of land at Wittenham, and the coming of the Danes. The latter drove out the monks from Abingdon and so destroyed the house ‘that

nothing is reported to have remained there besides the walls’.°”! Matters were made worse by King Alfred, who, according to MS B, ‘piled evils on evils, like Judas amongst the twelve’, and took Abingdon violently away from the monastery?" MS C does not mention the destruction of the monastery by the Danes, but does note Alfred’s taking of Abingdon.°’? Several chapters later, however, it refers to Alfred as ‘the most learned king in liberal letters'.??* Alfred’s son, Edward the Elder, is merely named in MS C. MS B, which refers to him as ‘king of the whole of England’, presents him making two gifts that passed, together with the associated charters, to Abingdon. In fact the first of these was a gift of Edward the

Confessor." Edward the Elder's third wife, Eadgifu, would later feature as a prominent influence in favour of the monastery: she *cherished the abbot and monks with the greatest love. Sometimes she showered quantities of her wealth on them, at other times she sought her son's favour for them by assiduous persuasion. ??6 MS C does not give any lengthy account of Edward's son and successor /Ethelstan, but is favourable in its tone. It describes him as ‘holding the monarchy of the principality of the whole of England"??? It is under /Ethelstan that an abbot, Cynath, is again named, and c. 8, B3o. °° See below, p. 264. See below, p. 268. See below, p. 272. c. 17. William of Malmesbury, Gesta pontificum, bk. ii, c. 88, ed. Hamilton, p. 19r, supports the History’s negative picture of Alfred in relation to Abingdon: ‘Elfredi tempore regis, curn barbarica ubique Dani discursarent petulantia, edifitia loci ad solum complanata. Tum rex, malorum preventus consili, terras, quecunque appendices essent, in suos suorumque usus redegit." See also De abbatibus, CMA ii 275-6. 9* See below, p. 48; MS B does not include this description. 55 See below, pp. 32-4, B42-B45. Note that the gift of Farnborough by Alfred's daughter, /Ethelflaed, lady of the Mercians, is wrongly placed before the Danish invasions in B35-B36. °° See below, p. 56; see also cc. 27, 28, B82, B84.

5?7 See below, p. 34.

PARTICIPANTS

IN THE

HISTORY

cxiii

charters record royal gifts directly to the abbey.??? It also notes the king's favour to the young /Ethelwold, and his commending of him to

Bishop /Elfheah of Winchester.*” As usual, MS B is more expansive,

indeed is moved to some rhetorical heights. /Ethelstan was ‘of such piety and holiness of life’ that he strove unceasingly to expend the utmost care and the greatest diligence in rebuilding again numerous destroyed churches. Amongst these he embraced with such great sincerity and so great a privilege of love the monastery of Abingdon, then governed by Abbot Cynath, that not only did he enrich it

with various ornaments but also endowed it with extensive possessions.9? The text goes on to record various of his gifts and charters which

passed directly or indirectly to Abingdon.™! It also mentions him ‘holding his full court at Abingdon’, and receiving a Frankish embassy. The messengers brought various gifts and relics, the latter of which—this version of the History states—King /Ethelstan gave to

Abingdon, ‘concealed with all honour in a silver reliquary.9?? After mentioning /Ethelstan's favour for /Ethelwold, the earlier version of the History goes on to state that not long after, that king was allotted the end of his life and bequeathed the highest position to his brother Edmund. After his death (post cuius obitum), the monastery of Abingdon was reduced to such forlornness that all possessions belonging to it were subjected to royal lordship and it was utterly destitute of monks.

Although grammatically ambiguous, the reference would appear to be to the death of /Ethelstan, and this is made clear in the related

Abingdon passage in John of Worcester.’ Whilst MS C does not explicitly criticize Edmund, and records his death without significant comment, it does include a charter recording him making a gift of

Culham to the royal matron /Elfhild.9^ The History states that she made the church heir of the possession, readers having already been 2

ce: 18-22:

222 63248

$9 See below, p. 278.

$9! B47-B61. See also De abbatibus for his gifts to the abbey; CMA ii. 276. 9? B62. De abbatibus also mentions the gifts from Hugh, and /Ethelstan's death; CMA ii. 276—7. However, it says that Hugh sent gifts ‘because his wife was /Ethelstan's sister’. $05 See below, p. 46; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 610; cf. below, p. 292, for the version in the revised History. Wulfstan, Life of Zthelwold, c. 10, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, p. 16, passes quite swiftly over Edmund's reign. For Edmund being turned against Dunstan, see Vita Sancti Dunstani auctore B, c. 13, Memorials of Saint Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury, ed. W. Stubbs (London, 1874), p. 23.

We Tee, As Plt,

Cxiv

INTRODUCTION

informed that Culham had earlier been a long-standing possession of Abingdon. This grant, together with the lack of praise for Edmund compared with his predecessor and successor, reinforces the impression that it was his reign that was regarded as a period of ‘desolation’ for the abbey. The later version of the History does not include MS C's passage on the decline of the abbey following /Ethelstan's death. Indeed, it mentions Edmund's confirmation of Watchfield to the abbey, on condition that the abbey grant Culham to /Elfhild for life. It also records numerous gifts and charters of Edmund that passed indirectly

to Abingdon. Finally, it records his death at the hands of his butler.9? It goes on to state that: After his death, as we have learnt from the testimony of ancient books, the monastery of Abingdon was reduced to such a forsaken state that, with all its possessions subjected to royal lordship by the sceptre-bearing power, it was entirely destitute of monks. However, nothing true or worthy of recounting has come to our notice as to the causes of this evil misfortune and the occurrence of so unexpected a downfall. Concerning this matter we judge it more useful and also more honourable to remain for the moment wisely silent on such desolation, rather than to make something public which cannot easily be proved to be true or plausible.

It is unclear why the reviser attributed this decline to the period after Edmund's death, whereas MS C specifies that it was after /Ethelstan's; it may, for example, arise from his need to include the charters of Edmund which he had found, or indeed may stem from the grammatical ambiguity of the earlier version noted above. However, the version in MS B makes poor sense given the revival that the abbey was about to enjoy following Edmund's death. It is also notable that MS B does not provide an impressive illustration of Edmund, as it

does for his predecessor and successors.9? The two versions reunite in their praise for Edmund's successor, Eadred; indeed it is with Eadred— the repairer of the house of Abingdon and most faithful restorer of its stolen possessions’—rather

than with St /Ethelwold that MS B starts its second book.9" Both 5 B64—B8r. $99 See below, pp. clxxxix—cxc. $7 See below, p. 294; the focus soon switches to /Ethelwold. Keynes, ***Dunstan B" charters', p. 188, speculates on what he admits is very limited evidence that Eadred may have intended to be buried at Glastonbury or Abingdon, and that therefore Glastonbury or Abingdon was the intended burial place mentioned in his will as the recipient of gifts of precious objects and treasure; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. xxxvii n. 10, is duly sceptical of this suggestion.

PARTICIPANTS

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CXV

versions emphasize his love for /Ethelwold. On his mother’s advice, Eadred gave Abingdon to /Ethelwold and endowed the abbey with estates." According to MS C, ‘at the start of the construction of the monastery [the king] measured the foundations of the work with his own hand, and then in excellent fashion made gifts to them with royal generosity.’ MS C includes one gift and charter of Eadred that passed indirectly to Abingdon, MS B many more.S'? The latter also notes the recognition of his holiness at his death, especially

announced to Abbot Dunstan by a heavenly voice.?!! Privileges,

gifts, and

charters

of Eadred's

successor,

Eadwig,

feature extensively in MS C, but it makes no comment on him.°!” MS B also includes numerous privileges, gifts, and charters, but is

forthcoming in its personal comment

on the king.° In

. Eadwig's sight, /Ethelwold ‘found such grace that the king provided his assent, both effective and affectionate, to all his requests for the promotion of the house of Abingdon’.°'* Eadwig was succeeded by his brother Edgar. Rather surprisingly, neither version of the History mentions his contacts with Abingdon

before his succession. Both versions of the History record his gifts and charters concerning lands that passed directly or indirectly to Abingdon.*'ó MS C speaks of ‘the bountiful generosities of this king in relation to this monastery’, and of the reverence and love in which he held /Ethelwold, although such praise is not significantly more

extensive than that bestowed upon Eadred." In praising Edgar the 995 cc. 27-8, B84—B85. See also below, p. 56, for Eadred continuing to visit the church. $9 See below, p. 56; see also Wulfstan, Life of /Ethelmold, cc. 10-12, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, pp. 16-24; William of Malmesbury, Gesta pontificum, c. 88, ed. Hamilton, p. 191, for Eadred as the initiator of the revival of Abingdon. 9? B86-Brrr. 11 Br12, and see below, p. cxx. Like that of Edgar, Eadred's death appears in the Abingdon kalendar, Cambridge, University Library, Kk. i 22, fo. 5°. $12 cc, 36-56. Whether this silence results from hostility on Eadwig's part towards reforming monasticism must be uncertain; see e.g. Thacker, '/Ethelwold', p. 52. Likewise it cannot be told whether the grants that Eadred, according to a charter in his name, intended to come into effect after his death were fulfilled or not; see below, p. cxxxviil. Problems for Abingdon may have arisen with the division of the kingdom between Eadwig and his brother Edgar in 957, the dividing line being the Thames; see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. xxxviii. Note that De abbatibus states that Edgar succeeded Eadred, omitting any

mention of Eadwig; CMA ii. 280.

;

$13 For gifts and charters, see B114-B172.

614 See below, p. 308. The description of his death is neutral; below, p. 326. 615 See above, p. lxiv, on his seeing the church’s ruins and his vow to restore the house, p. xcvi, on the possibility that /Ethelwold was his tutor.

616 cc. 60—70, 72-90; B174-B206. 97 See below,

p. 94. See also p. 114 concerning

the expulsion

of clerics from

CXVi

INTRODUCTION

later version of the History returns to the higher rhetorical style of its

description of /Ethelstan.?? Whilst comments such as that on his accession he ‘strove in constant meditation “‘to shed the old man with his deeds" suggest reservations about his life before he came to the throne, it is fulsome praise which characterizes its description of his kingship. The praise continues in its brief mention of his death: *Edgar, most illustrious king of the English, happily went the way of all flesh’.°”” MS C gives a brief description of the murder of Edgar's successor, Edward the martyr, noting his simple life and attributing the killing

vaguely to ‘the treachery of wicked men’. MS B describes him as a man whose memory should be commemorated. Through the passage of time . . . that man exerted power by both the seriousness of his behaviour and the holiness of his life, so that before he had suffered the fate of mankind, placed on earth he was seen by all to live the angelic life.”

It goes on to attribute his martyrdom to ‘the trickery of his stepmother /Elfthryth'.9? Both versions of the History note in shared narrative, as well as in their copies of his own great charter of 993, the bad counsel and the hostility to the church of the next king, /Ethelred II. In particular they record his reversal of his father's gifts and his giving of the

abbacy to Eadwine in return for payment.9? The earlier version also calls him an ‘unwarlike’ king, who met the Danish invaders with money, not arms. In the face of such weakly resisted invasions Abingdon's possessions were endangered.?^ However, another chapter appearing in both versions of the History recounts that Abbot Wulfgar managed to persuade /Ethelred to favour Abingdon, so that Winchester, and their replacement by Abingdon monks. De abbatibus does not comment on Edgar, CMA ii. 280.

55 B173. Below, p. 328, calls him a *munificent king’, p. 336 ‘most illustrious’. °° See below, p. 344. His death on 8 July also appears in the Abingdon kalendar, Cambridge, University Library, Kk. i 22, fo. 4"; note also Gerchow, Die Gedenküberlieferung, p. 337, for Cambridge, Corpus Christi College 57, fo. 67", recording the ‘depositio Eadgari! on 8 July. 92 c. 9s. See c. 116, B25o, for his relics being brought to Abingdon. 621 See below, p. 344. 622 See below, p. 346. The mention of Edward in De abbatibus is very brief; CMA ii. 280. 623 C. 95, 96, 98, B214, B215, B217. De abbatibus passes no comment on /Ethelred; CMA ii. 280.

$^ See below, p. 140. See below, p. cxliv, for the statement in De abbatibus that Abingdon was destroyed by the Danes under Swein.

PARTICIPANTS

IN THE

he admitted his errors, compensated

HISTORY

cxvii

the abbey for its losses, and

issued a confirmation charter.?? Both versions of the History go on to record

further

of his gifts that supposedly

passed

directly

indirectly to the abbey.^^ The earlier version also mentions his marriage to Emma of Normandy in 1002, his departure to Normandy in December 1013 or January 1014, his return after King Swein's death in February 1014, and the end of ‘the troubled king’ amidst cnu*t's invasion and English disloyalty after thirty-six years of his reign ‘embroiled in diverse dangerous events’. The later version mentions Dunstan's prophecy of the troubles of the reign, /Ethelred's flight to Normandy, and copies the earlier version's section on his

death."

Both versions share a description of the struggles of

/Ethelred's son, Edmund Ironside, against the Danes, but make no

mention of any relations between him and Abingdon.9?? The History notes only the brevity of the rule in England of /Ethelred's rival, King Swein.9? The Danish invaders as a group are condemned for their barbarity and the History appears to include

Swein in this condemnation,?? but no such accusation is made against his son cnu*t. Rather, the mentions that he ‘ruled Denmark, just and strong hand as becomes an and issued laws.?' cnu*t became a

earlier version of the History Norway, and England with a emperor’, that he visited Rome, patron of Abingdon under the

influence of Abbot /Ethelwine and of his successor Siward.°” Particularly notable was a gold and silver reliquary he had made in honour of

St Vincent, but he also gave two very resonant bells.5? His grants of estates were less notable. Both versions of the History include a charter recording the grant of the church of St Martin, Oxford, and two hides at Lyford, while they each include a different charter

concerning Myton.°* Of cnu*t's successor, Harold Harefoot, MS C says only that he was ‘instituted as king’, had been born of a concubine, and died after five years. MS B does not even call him CaO B210: $7 cc. 109—10, B243-B244. 6° See below, pp. 174, 356.

626 cc. 100-4, B219—-B232, B234, B237-B239. 68 See below, pp. 174, 356. $39 See below, pp. 174, 354-

931 See below, p. 184. For cnu*t's visit or visits to Rome in 1027 and possibly again around 1030/1, see Lawson, cnu*t, pp. 100, 102-4. On his laws, see Lawson, cnu*t, pp. 61—

3, 204-10. 632 On cnu*t’s respect for Siward, sce below, p. 358; there is no equivalent passage in MS C. 833 See the related passages below, pp. 176-8, 356. See also De abbatibus, CMA ii. 281. 64 cc. 113, 114, B246, B247. De abbatibus does not mention cnu*t's grants of lands; CMA ii. 281.

cxviii

INTRODUCTION

king, mentioning only his parentage and his death." Next came Harthacnu*t, son of cnu*t and Queen Emma. Both versions of the

History include his charter concerning Farnborough.5? The earlier version alone criticizes him for his taxation, and his treatment of the corpse of Harold Harefoot, which he ordered *to be dug up and sunk in a place of deepest filth’. Punishment for such wrongdoing was swift, and the text reports with satisfaction that soon afterwards he

collapsed and died during a feast at a royal palace. 'The same version of the History reports the subsequent delight at the succession of Edward the Confessor, son of /Ethelred.9? MS B at the equivalent point calls him Harthacnu*t's brother, son of /Ethelred and Emma. It also provides a fuller account of his accession. It refers to him as ‘the most blessed Edward’, and in the heading of the

following section as ‘St Edward’.®? In different passages, both versions of the History mention his part in the appointment of Abbot Siward to take on the duties of the archbishop of Canter-

bury.?*? A passage common to the two manuscripts describes a visit to Abingdon by Edward, his mother, and his wife, and the consequent

gift of Lewknor.?*' Other gifts, charters, writs, and confirmations by Edward are also recorded.” Less popular with the composer of the History was Edward's practice of choosing abbots for Abingdon, the monk and goldsmith Spearhafoc and the aged bishop Rodulf, both of whom had pre-existing connections with the king. Disapproval of such practice is indicated by the History recording that Edward promised that the abbey should thereafter elect as abbot whomsoever

they wished from themselves." MS C's account of Edward's reign closes with the dedication of Westminster Abbey and his death. This passage also appears in MS B, which later, in a second chapter headed ‘Concerning the death of King Edward’, refers to him ‘having been translated to the heavens".^* 555 See below, pp. 184, 360. Cf. the very brief account of the succession in De abbatibus; CMA

n. 281.

$36 Cc. r16—17, B253. $37 See below, p. 186. 8 See below, p. 186. °° See below, p. 362. De abbatibus calls him ‘gloriosus rex’; CMA ii. 283. $9 See below, pp. 186, 362; see also De abbatibus, CMA ii. 281.

9' c. 121, B261; see also De abbatibus, CMA ii. 283. $9 cc. 121, 127-35, B257, B258, B267-B271 (the last of which does not appear in MS C), B273-B28o, B287—B288; note also De abbatibus, CMA ii. 281-2.

95 cc. 124-5, B264-B265; note also the different tone of the History concerning the succession of Abbot Ordric; c. 126, B266. Cf. the lack of comment in De abbatibus, CMA ii. 281.

°* Sce below, pp. 220, 370; the phrase is also used of Edward the martyr below, p. 346.

PARTICIPANTS

THE

HISTORY

CXIX

Edward's successor Harold had already appeared in the History as a benefactor of Abingdon. Edward had given him four hides at Sandford-on-Thames but at Harold's request had then given them

to Abingdon.^? Passages common to both versions of the History state

in a neutral fashion that ‘to [Edward the Confessor] succeeded as king Earl Harold, son of Earl Godwine’, and describes Tostig as ‘brother of our King Harold', thereby distinguishing the latter from the king of Norway. Harold's victory at Stamford Bridge is reported, whilst his defeat at Hastings is put down to over-confidence.™ There seems no effort, therefore, to deny the legitimacy of Harold's kingship, although a passage which appears only in the later version of the History refers to

Harold as Edward's successor without entitling him king.°” Neither version of the History, in their accounts of the events of

1066, present William as a usurper.“® However, when mentioning King /Ethelred's marriage to Emma of Normandy, the earlier version of the History had traced the descent therefrom of William *who later attacked England and seized [usurpauit] for himself the kingship there’. The later version of the History states that Harold ‘argued’ that he had a better claim to the throne because Edward had left him

the kingdom on account of their kinship.’ It also adds a passage concerning William’s coronation that is drawn from the Chronicle of John of Worcester. John’s passage concludes with the promises that William made at that coronation, to which the History adds a comment of its own: ‘All these things he swore but he held none of them.’ Rather, he deposed almost all the bishops and abbots, and almost all the English nobles fled the country and their lands were

forfeited.©° Apart from these passages, criticism of William is muted. $55 cc. 131-2, B271—B273. This description of the stages of the gift differs somewhat from the more common instances where the king is referred to as giving land to a layman and the layman as giving it to the church with the king’s consent. Possibly the transaction in this case was of different form, possibly it was best after 1066 not to attribute gifts to Earl Harold even with the Confessor’s consent. These circ*mstances would also have provided an incentive for the forgery of a charter recording Edward’s grant direct to Abingdon, rather than relying simply on possession of the genuine charter recording Edward's gift of Sandford to Earl Godwine; Bz73. Note also below, pp. 222-4, concerning

Kingston.

956 See below, pp. 220-2, 366-8.

647 See below, p. 370. See also De abbatibus, CMA ii. 283. 955 See below, pp. 222, 368, 370. On the History and the Norman Conquest, see also J. G. H. Hudson, *The abbey of Abingdon, its Chronicle and the Norman Conquest’, Anglo-Norman Studies, xix (1997), 181—202. $9 See below, pp. 174, 368. 650 See below, p. 372. Note also the positive presentation of Robert d'Oilly's wife in the miracle story concerning Robert in MS B, vol. ii. 328-30. She was Ealdgyth, daughter of Wigod of Wallingford; Blair, Anglo-Saxon Oxfordshire, p. 174.

CXX

INTRODUCTION

Resistance to the lordship of men from passage shared by both versions, but the men of Abingdon ‘ought to have favoured than join the rebels as they did. However, the king’s anger against their lord, Abbot

overseas is recorded in a same section says that the King William’s side’ rather the History goes on to note Ealdred, which may imply

criticism! In general, the strongest criticism is for those associated with William, rather than for the king himself. It had already noted that William's queen had exacted precious ornaments from the church, whilst the later version also recorded that certain monks and sacrists of Jumiéges deceitfully took to Normandy very many

ornaments associated with /Ethelwold.5?? The differing treatment of kings in the two versions of the History

illustrates many of the characteristics of the revision.?? Indeed, but for the lack of explicit statement or external evidence, it would be tempting to associate the rewriting of the History as manifested in MS B with either efforts to obtain a royal confirmation or a royal visit to

Abingdon.9** Take the key structural points of the work. The History now ends with a royal charter, that of Richard I. Book II is made to start with Eadred, and end with William I’s victory at Hastings. Comments on kings are also changed. It is Eadred not /Ethelwold who is called the third restorer of the church, whereas the earlier version—although clear on Eadred's importance—only said that the restoration took place in his time.9? The closeness of abbots to the king is still further emphasized, from the instance of Abben onwards.°”° Indeed portions of the History start to read like a treatise offering advice to, and exempla of, kings. Seized by a deadly illness, King Eadred fell into his sickbed, which he did not leave until, by disposition of the just Judge of the world, he breathed out 651

See below, pp. 226, 374. See below, pp. 224, 340. See also vol. ii p. Ixvi. 653 Note also e.g. the focus on kings in B8; the extended account of Edmund’s death in B81. 654 If we reject the notion that there was an intervening manuscript between the two surviving ones, or if we simply concentrate on the production of MS B regardless of an intervening manuscript, we would have to look to visits by Henry III. He visited Abingdon frequently, at least once a year between 1220 and 1224, and then in 1227, 1228, 1231, 1232, 1234, 1235, 1238, 1240, 1241, 1245, 1246, 1251, 1255, 1257, 1258, 1260, and 1263; see T Craib, The Itinerary of King Henry III, 1216-1272, ed. S. Brindle and S. Priestley (English Heritage, n.d.), pp. 30-4, 37-8, 41-2, 44-5, 48-51, 53-4, 58, 60, 62-4, 66. $55 See below, pp. 48, 294. Note also the considerable increase in space devoted to /Ethelstan and Eadred in MS B because of the increased number of their charters included; B46—B63, B82-Br12. °° B2 concerning Abben, B25 Ecgberht, B46 /Ethelstan, Br13 Eadwig, B251 cnu*t. 652

| |

PARTICIPANTS

THE

HISTORY

Cxxi

his final breath [955]. Indeed, there slipped from Heaven a voice which notified the blessed Dunstan abbot of Glastonbury—who was travelling and hurrying as quickly as possible the sooner to see that flock—of the blessedness of Eadred’s death and how he had suffered the fate of mankind, saying ‘King Eadred sleeps in the Lord’. Oh how happy the life of a king

which is commended by such a happy attestation!°” Edgar’s great virtues are described by the reviser, as are those of Edward the martyr, whilst William the Conqueror receives criti-

cism.°** Focus on the king was further intensified by the provision of illustrations of rulers, greatly enriching the physical appearance of the manuscript and a fitting accompaniment to the increased richness of

the text.°°? 4. Others

Many further participants in the History appear only incidentally, for

example as figures in national history. Others appear only once or only very briefly, for example because of involvement in a dispute. A few people are specified as having been buried at Abingdon: Sidemann bishop of Crediton, who died in 977; /Elfstan bishop of Wilton and former monk of Abingdon, whose death the History dates to 980; Eadwine, probably the ealdorman of Sussex who died in 982;

and a royal woman named /Elfhild.99? Tenants

The tenants of the abbey, so prominent in the History for the postConquest period, are rarely visible in the Anglo-Saxon portion even though Domesday Book reveals that many of the lands held by tenants in 1086 had already been granted out before the Conquest. There are a few exceptions, such as Brihtmund and his family, tenants of Leckhampstead, and Thorkell, who held lands at Kingston Bagpuize.° Also according to the History, the wealthy priest Blacmann 657 See below, p. 308. $58 See below, pp. 326 (cf. p. 95), 344 (cf. p. 132), 372 (cf. p. 222).

659 See below, pp. clxxix-cxc. 999 See below e.g. p. 232 on the conversion; p. 236 on Vortigern; p. 242 on Constantine and Helen; p. 266 on Hinguar and Ubba;p. 282 on Hugh, duke of the Franks; pp. 172, 354, on archbishops of Canterbury; pp. 220, 368, on Harold Hardrada. 61 See e.g. below, p. 190, on an evil reeve.

$82 See below, pp. 52—4, 138, 172, 286; ASC, ‘C’, s.a. 977, 982. See also below, p. 194, for Abbot Siward. 63 See below, p. cliv, for alienation; above, p. Ixvii, for the History’s lack of documents 664 See below, pp. 188-90, 208—10, 220. recording leases.

cxxii

INTRODUCTION

*had become the man of the church and held from it Sandford, Chilton, and Leverton', a statement partially supported by Domesday

Book.” His flight with Gytha, mother of King Harold, suggests that he may have had a connection with the Godwine family.59^ Donors

Many people in addition to kings are mentioned in the History as donors to the abbey. There are, for example, several notable gifts by

women, some probably known from records of their bequest.^ In most cases the donors appear simply as recipients of royal lands who are said to have passed these gifts on to Abingdon, statements that need to be treated with considerable caution. Many such donors only appear once or twice, and in the absence of surnames or other identification it is often difficult to decide 1f two or more appearances

of the same name refer to one or more individuals.9? Here I wish only to deal with a few men who may have First there is Ealdorman /Elfhere /Elfhere was probably the pre-eminent and was later remembered by some as

been important patrons." of Mercia and his family. ealdorman in Edgar's reign, a despoiler of monasteries in

his ealdordom after Edgar’s death.9"' The History records /Ethelwold $65 c. 143. See also cc. 136, B290; DB i, fos. 59° (where he is said to have held Chilton from Harold in alodio), 156". Note also e.g. DB i, fo. 160', for a Blecmann having held Boycott in Oxfordshire; E. A. Freeman, The History of the Norman Conquest of England (6 vols., Oxford, 1867-79), iv. 144 n., states that this land ‘doubtless belongs to our Blaecman'". It may be significant that the 1086 holder was called ‘Reinbaldus’, who might be identified with the Abingdon knight Rainbald, prominent in the History; see vol. ii, esp. pp. lxiii-lxiv,

54-8.

$66 See also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. clxi.

°°7 cc. 25, 57-8, 106-7, B64. It has been suggested that these grants are evidence either for a revival of a minster for women dedicated to St Helen, or for female religious living there with some unofficial arrangement with the monks of Abingdon; M. A. Meyer, ‘Patronage of West Saxon royal nunneries in late Anglo-Saxon England’, Revue bénédictine, xci (1981), 332-58, at pp. 345-6; id., "The queen’s demesne in later Anglo-Saxon England’, in Meyer, ed., Culture of Christendom, pp. 75-113, at 94 and n. 79, P. Halpin, *Women religious in late Anglo-Saxon England', Haskins Society Journal, vi (1994), 97— 1IO, at p. 104. These claims are not necessary to explain the existing evidence; see S. Foot, Veiled Women (2 vols., Aldershot, 2000), ii. 20: ‘All that can be said with confidence is that during the tenth century religious women occupied estates to which Abingdon Abbey laid claim at the Conquest." 585 On such passages, see below, pp. cxxvi-cxxix.

99 See e.g. c. 55, B122-Br23, B126-Br27, for Beorhtric, a thegn. 57 For a more extensive treatment of these men, see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. clxxili-cxcii. For other donors, see footnotes to the relevant donations.

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. clxxxv. He died in 983. See Williams, ‘Princeps

Merciorum gentis.

PARTICIPANTS

obtaining Cuddesdon

IN THE

HISTORY

cxxiii

from him, Osgar acquiring Kingston.°” His

widow, Eadfled, may also have been a patron of Abingdon.9?

/Elfhere's brother /Elfheah was probably made ealdorman of central Wessex in 959 and was buried at Glastonbury following his death in 971. The extent of his donations is uncertain. The earlier version of the History attributes to a thegn named /Elfheah the gift of Buckland,

the later version the gifts of Farnborough, Compton, and Lyford.°“ These may be references to one thegn or two, and the thegn may or may not be the future ealdorman of central Wessex. Moreover, even if all these lands were held by the future ealdorman /Elfheah, it is again impossible to demonstrate that he himself was responsible for giving

them to Abingdon.5? Further brothers called Eadric and /Elfwine may have been the thegns of those names who received various grants that appear in the History and are there said to have passed to Abingdon.* Their brother-in-law was /Elfric Cild who succeeded /Elfhere as ealdorman of Mercia in 983. The name /Flfric is a common one so it is impossible to tell whether, for example, the /Elfric who received Bayworth from King Eadwig and is said to have made Abingdon his heir was indeed /Elfric Ci/4, let alone whether he

did leave Bayworth to Abingdon.°” He was, quite probably, the very powerful man who bought the abbey for his brother, Abbot Eadwine, although /Elfric ealdorman of Hampshire is also a candidate.57? Another possible significant donor to Abingdon may have been Wulfric Cufing, who indeed may have been connected to Ealdorman

/Elfhere’s family. The evidence for his role as donor is that a large number of estates which later belonged to Abingdon had once been his, and that a significant number of charters in the revised version of 672 cc. sceptical 673 c. pp. 152,

45—6, 93. See also B147-B148. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. clxxxvi, appears of the suggestion that /Elfhere gave Cuddesdon to Abingdon. 107; see also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. clxxxvi, 580-1. See also below, 158, for conflict probably between this Eadflad and her brother-in-law /Flfric

Cild.

674 cc. 51-2, B56-B57, B73-B74, B104-B105. 675 See below, p. cxli. 676 Eadric: cc. 47-8, 137, B145-B146, Br51—Br52, B156-Bi157, B164-B165, B189. JElfwine: cc. 49—50, 89-90, B108-B109. See also Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, pp. clxxxvii—

cxc. $7 c. 53. See also e.g. Br32-B133 concerning Hanney. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. cxci, concludes that ‘there is therefore no evidence that /Elfric was a direct patron of Abingdon (although it seems possible that some of his family estates passed to the abbey through his brother, if Abbot Eadwine was indeed his brother)’. 678 c. 96, B215. See also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. cxc-cxci; Keynes, Diplomas,

p. 177n. 91.

679 On Wulfric, see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. clxxiv-clxxxv.

CXXIV

INTRODUCTION

the History record grants to him.9? He had probably started to attend the witan in the 930s, but most of the charters recording grants to him come from Eadred's reign. However, he forfeited in the late 950s, perhaps for reasons connected with the division of the kingdom between Eadwig and Edgar. He was restored to his lands in 960 and

the charter recording his restoration appears in MS B.®! Six of the eight Berkshire estates that this charter mentions were in Abingdon's possession in Domesday Book. However, this does not prove that Wulfric gave them to Abingdon, and in one case, that of Boxford, it can be demonstrated that it first passed to another thegn, /Elfwine, who may have been the brother of Ealdorman /Elfhere, as mentioned above.99? There is also some evidence for a connection between the Godwine family and Abingdon, although their contribution to the endowment that the church enjoyed in 1066 was limited. Queen Edith gave the

abbey land at Lewknor.5?* Earl Harold was said to favour Abingdon in the case over Leckhampstead.° He persuaded Edward the Confessor to give Abingdon four hides at Sandford, and encouraged Thorkell to become the abbey's man 'concerning himself together with his land which is called Kingston'.955 The History tells us that after 1066 the men of the abbey of Abingdon, while they ought to have favoured King William's side, changed their minds and opinions and hastened armed to where they had learnt that the king's enemies were situated. En route they were surrounded, captured, imprisoned, and very wretchedly afflicted.9*?

Such

opposition

to William

might indicate

support

for Harold,

perhaps not surprising in the case of men such as Thorkell.5* Here one must be careful to distinguish the relationships and attitudes of the monastery from those of at least some of their tenants. °° cc. 34-5, B65-B66, B86-B87, B9o-B91, B96-B97, Broo-Bror, B106—B107, B158— Br59, B171-Br72.

55! B186 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 86). 59^ cc. 89-90. This and other evidence leads Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. clxxxi, to suggest that “it is important to consider whether this kin-group [i.e. /Elfhere's] may not have inherited or acquired a major portion of Wulfric's Berkshire holdings, and themselves transmitted it to Abingdon’. 55 Note that Abingdon lands at Drayton may have fallen into the hands of the Godwine family by ro66; see below, p. 349 n. 311. Godwine's support for Siward's move to Canterbury may arise from a personal link to the abbot, not from favour to Abingdon; see above, p. ci.

cote GM TAI: $85 c. 136; see also c. 120. 59 cc. 131-2, 143, B271-B273, on which see above, p. cxix n. 645. M VV 555 See above, p. cxxii, on Blaecmann, vol. ii. 24n. 56 on Eadnoth the staller.

PARTICIPANTS

THE

HISTORY

CXXV

Royal officials

There is little hint in the Anglo-Saxon portion of the History that royal officials would be a source of trouble for Abingdon as they clearly were in the post-Conquest period. The story of King Coenwulf, his huntsmen, and reeves may reflect twelfth-century concerns, although the burden of royal huntsmen was also a problem

for minsters in the ninth century. Immediately after the Conquest, sheriff Froger emerged as a leading oppressor of the abbey, and there was also conflict involving the king's chaplain, Peter, who was keeper

of the vacant bishopric of Lincoln.9? It is unclear whether the relative pre-Conquest silence is a sign of better relations with royal officials or, perhaps more likely, a product of the scarcity of dispute records. Major churchmen

Several major churchmen appear in the pre-1071 part of the History. Only one pope is mentioned in relation to Abingdon. This was Leo III, from whom Abbot Hrethhun obtained protection against the

oppressions of King Coenwulf.9?! The importance already attached to this papal intervention before the writing of the History is clear from

the later tenth-century royal privileges.9 The Winchcombe archive has a fragment of a privilege of the same pope confirming Coenwulf’s rights over minsters that he had acquired or inherited. It could be that he really did intervene with regard to Abingdon as well as Winchcombe, or it could be that a copy of the Winchcombe privilege was later known at Abingdon and misinterpreted to form the basis of the

privilege mentioned in the charters and the History.9? More prominent in the History than popes are archbishops of Canterbury. There is Archbishop Eadsige who in his infirmity called

Abbot Siward to his aid.9?* Archbishop Stigand appears as opponent of Abingdon when bishop of Winchester, and his imprisonment by William I is recorded, perhaps with some pleasure.9? Most prominent $9? See below, c. 9.

$99 See c. 144, B29r.

CON CCX9: 11) BI 77 BIS: 69? “cc, 37, 60, 98. $3 See Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. cciv, which also mentions a Glastonbury document in this context; De antiquitate Glastonie ecclesie, cc. 49, 50; Scott, Early History

of Glastonbury, pp. 106-8. 69* ‘c, 119, B256. $5 See below, p. 196. The History never refers to Stigand as archbishop, although it is not clear whether this is significant in general, or indeed specifically with regard the problem of the witnesses of c. 132, where he is titled bishop when he appears as first witness to a charter dated 1054.

CXXVI

INTRODUCTION

of all is Dunstan, who, according to the earlier version of the History, received /Ethelwold at Glastonbury, gave counsel concerning his | expulsion of clerics from Winchester, joined in the consecration of | the church at Abingdon, and ordered that Bishop Sidemann be buried ]|

at the abbey.°” The reviser added that he consented to /Ethelwold's |

election to Winchester, received a heavenly announcement of the death | of King Eadred, gave instruction to King Edgar, consecrated Edward | the martyr, and, whilst he was crowning King /Ethelred, prophesied the great change that the kingdom was to undergo. Amidst all this activity, he also, we are told, made with his own hands two large bells for Abingdon.°””

VI. ENDOWMENT,

ADMINISTRATION, UP TO IO7I

AND

LAW

1. Abingdon's estates Evidence

Although the abbey may well have enjoyed a wide variety of sources of income, our evidence for its endowment is very largely confined to its lands. The most useful evidence of income from these is provided by Domesday Book. However, rather than work back from Domesday, I now follow the pattern of the History and deal in turn with the reputed early endowment, losses suffered during the Viking Age, the endowment during the time of /Ethelwold, changes in the period from the death of Edgar in 975 until 1066, and finally the impact of the Norman Conquest. This arrangement will help us to analyse the pattern and the plausibility of the History's account of the development of the endowment. The nature of the evidence leads to many difficulties of interpretation. Non-diploma documents, for example wills and leases, have almost entirely been lost. Moreover, there are no genuine diplomas recording grants directly to Abingdon before the time of the Viking attacks, and problems of authenticity with a significant number of tenth- and eleventh-century diplomas for Abingdon. As for the diplomas with beneficiaries other than Abingdon, these are accompanied almost always in MS C and often in MS B by a statement that the beneficiary gave the land to the abbey. Some are 696

cc. 37, 71, 83, 94.

97 See below, pp. 296, 308, 326, 338, 346, 354.

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specific and very plausible, but most are routine.^? Although in the case of diplomas in MS C it can generally be shown that the land was to have some Abingdon connection, and although the fact that the compiler included the statements as a matter of perhaps uncritical routine need not necessarily mean that they are always inaccurate, the routine statements in MS C may on occasion obscure the time when and the processes whereby the lands passed to the abbey. The Libellus "Ethelmoldi, for example, suggests that purchase played a much greater part in the assembling of the lands of an /Ethelwoldian house than the

History’s record of voluntary patronage would allow.°” The statements in MS B that beneficiaries passed their lands to Abingdon must be treated with still greater scepticism."" They are formulaic and indeed in some portions of his text the reviser simply includes diplomas without the formulaic gloss. The lack of critical thought by the reviser as to whether or how lands passed to Abingdon can be demonstrated. King /Ethelred of Wessex's charter granting ten hides in Wittenham to his noble named /Ethelwulf appears in both versions of the History. MS C follows it with the statement that ‘this church afterwards possessed that land by gift of Bishop Siward, together with his document’. MS B reproduces this statement, but also contradicts it in adding one of the standard passages, apparently through simple routine: Not forgetful of the above favour, /Ethelwulf gave and firmly granted that village to the house of Abingdon, with everything entirely pertaining to it, by the consent and will of the king, together with the king's charter expressing that gift and the manner of giving, and in most reverent devotion he offered the king's charter on the altar of Abingdon, for greater protection, in honour of God and the blessed Mary.””' $93 For more specific statements, note e.g. cc. 44, 104; see also Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, pp. cxxxiii-cxxxiv. Keynes, ‘Studies’, p. 87, suggests that some of the estates recorded in charters to individuals may have been ‘given by eleventh-century kings (who are otherwise poorly represented by authentic charters), if we imagine that the grants were effected by the transfer of earlier title-deeds, perhaps accompanied by writ’. One might, however, have expected the narratives in the History to record such royal grants in the 11th century, when narratives are growing in number and detail, and may have been based on earlier notes. $9? Hor purchases, see cc. 33, 93; see also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. cliii, clxx— clxxii, for possible parallels to other houses. 7 See also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. cxxxiv-cxxxvi, where the emphasis is primarily upon scepticism as to the timing of donation to Abingdon. A curious instance is B6s, which does not specify that the land passed to the church, even though Garford certainly was part of Abingdon’s later endowment. 71 c. 16, B31—B32. MS C's statement could be based on a written source such as a will. Note also Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. cxxxv, on Wormleighton.

cxxviil

INTRODUCTION

If one concludes from such lack of consistency and accuracy that all such routine statements in MS B should be ignored unless there 1s other supporting evidence, this considerably reduces our knowledge of the process of endowment at Abingdon, particularly in the tenth century. Rejection of the routine statements, however, need not mean that there was in no case a link between such lands and Abingdon. Some of the charters do concern estates once associated with the abbey, but then lost, alienated, or exchanged. Lands might be lost to straightforward depredations or to permanent alienation of effective control through perpetuation of leases; in neither case would the charter necessarily be lost. Similarly bequests to the church that allowed the grantor or his heir continued but finite tenure might never pass to the church, despite the transfer of the charter. Other estates may have been broken up or combined. If the lands were then given away, the older diplomas may not have been transferred with the new units of land. Such a policy of alienation might have been undertaken, for

example, with regard more distant estates." For all these reasons, lands might not form part of the abbey's later endowment, but a twelfth- or thirteenth-century compiler of a History would wish to include relevant charters to show the existence of a claim, and might

indeed include any available charters on the assumption that they related to lands in which the abbey had once had an interest. Such explanations, though, have their problems. The evidence for

a policy of alienation of distant estates is limited." If there was any policy of permanent alienation, it was likely that the charter would

normally pass with the land." Even if an estate was broken up or merged in the process of alienation, the obsolete charter may sometimes have been destroyed. Other charters make clear the concern that disputes would arise from the existence of older documents: ‘and so we wish that this charter, by our power, may condemn in every way older landbooks, if they are found, so that they may nowhere

prevail at all against our authority'."? And if lands were lost through dispute, but Abingdon kept the charter and preserved its claim, it is hard to see why so many of the relevant charters appear only in MS 7? See Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. cxlvi-cxlvii, put forward there for a deliberate retrenchment does clearly between complete alienation and a policy of Cerney, the lease of which seems to have been quite 75 See below, pp. cxlv—cxlvii.

cxlix—cli, clxiii-clxv. The argument not always differentiate sufficiently leasing; see esp. p. clxiv on South a short one.

7* Note also c. 137, Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. cxxxvi.

OA GUSTOS

| |

| | |

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CXXIX

B. This would be particularly true of lands lost through a process of extension of leases leading to eventual alienation, as in the case of

South Cerney." It is best to treat with scepticism MS B's statements

that the lands concerned passed to Abingdon not just with regard to timing of the transfer but with regard to its actually ever having

occurred.

Why, then, do the charters concerning lands that may never have passed to Abingdon appear in the revised History, and why are they only in that version? We probably need to seek multiple explanations, rather than a single one. One possibility is that lay people placed their charters in monasteries for safe keeping, a practice which we certainly

know existed later in the Middle Ages.’ King Eadred was said to have entrusted numerous documents to Dunstan for safe keeping at Glastonbury."? This is presented as a sign of special favour to Dunstan, but it may be a gloss put on a more common practice by an author intent on praising Dunstan. Alternatively, similar special favour may have been shown to /Ethelwold and some other Abingdon abbots. Such an explanation still does not explain why so many charters were retained at Abingdon, rather than being retrieved by the landholders. Permanent handing over of a charter might risk loss of the estate, given the close association of transfer of land and transfer

of document."^ However, there are further possible explanations. The charters could come to the abbey with monks, either possessing the charters to prove their own right to property or holding them on behalf of their families."' A particular source of charters may have been Englishmen entering the monastery after 1066, although in the absence of the names of monks this is speculative. However, there are 76 See below, p. cxlv, clxiii. The same problem arises with regard charters given as earnest for a bequest, that bequest never being fulfilled but leaving Abingdon with at least a claim to the land; cf. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. ch. 77 Cf Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. cliii: ‘it would be wrong to treat these diplomas as unconnected with the endowment; their connection might be peripheral, but they should not-be relegated from the discussion because they do not bear on the state of the endowment in 1066’. 78 Stenton, Early History, p. 43, Keynes, Diplomas, p. 12 and n.20. See also below, p. cxcvi n. 1086. 79 Memorials of Saint Dunstan, ed. Stubbs, p. 29. 70 Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. cxxxix, points out that ‘Dunstan was required to convey the treasures (and presumably the landbooks) to the king's death-bed when he fell ill’. See Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, pp. cxxxvii—cxl, for further criticisms of the ‘safe-deposit’ theory, p. clxxvi, for acceptance that it may be a possibility at least in a particular case. 71 See esp. c. 138; also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. clii.

CXXX

INTRODUCTION

just hints in the case of abbots that lands or at least charters that

appear in the History may have been linked to them personally rather to the abbey. A charter of Edmund granting thirty hides at Waltham, Berkshire, to his thegn /Elfsige, and another of /Ethelred granting eight hides at Waltham to /Elfgar prepositus, appear in MS B. The revised History says in the first instance that /Elfsige passed land and charter to Abingdon, but there is no other evidence of a connection between Abingdon and Waltham. However, the estate was associated with royal goldsmiths, and it could be that the presence of the charters in the Abingdon archive came about through Abbot Spearhafoc, himself a royal goldsmith."" More charters and lands still may have been associated with /Ethelwold rather than with Abingdon. Suggestive evidence exists concerning Washington in Sussex, for which MS B includes a charter granting it to a layman. MS B also includes Edgar's charter recording his grant of twenty-four hides at Washington to /Ethelwold, and the

charter makes no mention of Abingdon as grantee./? /Ethelwold went on to exchange land at Washington for estates that he used to found Thorney and Peterborough." A similar association with /Ethelwold may explain the presence in the revised History of Eadwig's grant to a layman of the nearby estate of Annington.? We also know that /Ethelwold had other lands in what is now West Sussex, although at sorne distance from Washington and Annington, because part of the gift he made to King Edgar in return for the site of the monastery at Ely was sixty hides at Harting. The lands, according to the Libellus Z]Ethelmoldi, had been given to /Ethelwold by his lord, who the Liber Eliensis says was King /Ethelstan."^ Other lands mentioned in the Abingdon History may also have had an association with /Ethelwold personally rather than, or as well as, with Abingdon. MS C includes Eadwig's grant of Cuddesdon to Ealdorman /Elfhere, and follows it 7? B67—-B68, B237; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 136. 73 Bos, B205. For people depositing valuables at Abingdon after the Norman Conquest see also below, p. 226; however, the History comments that many of these were taken away by the Normans.

7^ Anglo-Saxon Charters, ed. Robertson, no. 37. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. cxliv— cxlv, comments that ‘it may be that a new landbook was drawn up for Wulfstan, while the earlier charters for Washington (now technically obsolete) remained in /Ethelwold's personal archive and later passed inio the archive of Abingdon, where they were preserved because of the connection with /Ethelwold'.

75 Brso. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 278, comments that ‘it is possible that the landbook for the estate had passed through /Ethelwold's hands at some time after 956’.

75 Liber Eliensis, bk. ii, c. 4, ed. Blake, p. 76.

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with an unusually circumlocutory statement of how the land passed to Abingdon: ‘And so the holy father /Ethelwold, with the king’s permission, acquired this land from that ealdorman, with the charter given to him by the king, and thus that land came to this church.’”!” The evidence of the Libellus Ethelpoldi suggests that confusion was possible between gifts to /Ethelwold and gifts to Ely, and the situation

at Abingdon may have been the same."

These are possible explanations of the presence at Abingdon of

charters concerning lands not associated with the abbey."? The compiler of MS C chose to include only charters concerning lands that could be linked to the church, but he may not have been the originator of such selectivity. It is possible, for example, that different groups of documents were stored in separate bundles or perhaps separate chests. The reviser would then have added a further bundle or bundles. Although in some cases evidence of an Abingdon link may have been lost, I shall therefore work on the premiss that charters appearing only in MS B, with or without a formulaic statement that the property concerned passed to the abbey, do not constitute secure testimony of an Abingdon interest in the lands unless there is further supporting evidence. Claims concerning the early endomment

"There is no firm evidence for the early endowment of Abingdon. The earliest charters probably concern a minster at Bradfield, not Abingdon. The early charters for Abingdon are not authentic, and the claims made in the late tenth century not necessarily to be trusted. Indeed, if the early charters were put together in the time of JEthelwold, they too constitute evidence for tenth-century claims regarding the early endowment, not evidence for that endowment itself.’”° 717 c. 46; note that this sentence does not appear in B131. Note also B185 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 101) recording Edgar’s gift of Aston Upthorpe, to his queen, JElfthryth. There is no other evidence, apart from the presence of this charter and B76 (Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, no. 36) in the later version of the History, that Abingdon had lands in the area. However, the queen did have a close association with /Ethelwold and one may wonder whether the land or the charter passed to him on some basis. In 1086 it was again held by a churchman with close royal connections, Regenbald the chancellor; D i,

fo. 63°. ns Differing views over what belonged to /Ethelwold and what belonged to Ely may be one of the problems underlying the dispute in Liber Eliensis, bk. ii, c. 19, ed. Blake, p. 95. 7? See also below, p. cxcvin.1086, for the possibility that copies of charters drafted at

Abingdon were kept.

79 See also Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. clxvi.

cxxxii

INTRODUCTION

The supposedly early evidence provides the following informa-

tion."! Ceadwalla gave twenty hides and specified woods to Abingdon. Later, Ceadwalla or Ine restored to Abbot Hzha 173 hides next to Abingdon. A further document, to be associated with Bradfield, confirms the restoration and makes further grants, producing a total—it claims—of 273 hides. Another charter of Ine grants Haha fifteen hides in Bradfield, fifteen in Basildon, twenty-five in Streatley, and eighty in Earmundesleah, and yet another Ine charter gives back to Haha and Cilla forty-five hides at Basildon, Bradfield, and

Streatley.’”” Moving on from these diplomas linked to Haha and Bradfield, JEthelbald of Mercia confirmed to Abingdon earlier king’s gifts amounting to 250 hides on the west bank of the Thames and twenty on the east, and added twenty-seven hides in Watchfield

and ten by Ginge Brook.’”? With these grants we are moving on to lands in which Abingdon had a provable later interest. The dealings with King Coenwulf suggest that Abingdon may have had a hundred hides at Sutton Courtenay,’”* whilst two diplomas of Coenwulf mention lands including core elements of the later Abingdon estate as recorded in the later tenth century and in Domesday. The first mentions 310 hides at Abingdon, ten at Longworth, eighteen at Aclea, Northtuna, and Punningstoce, fifteen at Sunningwell, ten at Eaton, ten at Sandford, thirty at Denchworth and Goosey, Culham ‘with all the places pertaining to Abingdon’, ten hides at Ginge, and ten at

Leckhampstead."? The second does not in general give hidages but lists Culham, Kennington, Hinksey, Cumnor, Earmundesleah, Eaton, Sunningwell, Sandford amounting to ten hides, Wootton, Ginge, Denchworth, Charney, Goosey, Fernham, Watchfield, Shrivenham, Bourton, Leckhampstead, Boxford, Welford with its appendages, Wickham with its fields as King Ceadwalla remitted, with the whole wood which is called Speen, Poughley, Trinlech, and Easton, with all minor plots pertaining to the aforementioned places." ™

cc. 2-6. See also c. 7, the ‘testament’ of Haha, which grants Cilla forty-eight hides at

Bradfield, fifty-five hides at Ashdown, eighty-three at Earmundesleah, a total—it says—of 183 hides.

es A narrative in MS B claims that Ine gave Sutton Courtenay to Abingdon; Br1. d 8. J: cox gra Bio -B8. c. 10. For comments, see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 38-41. 75 c. 11. Only Bourton, Fernham, and Shrivenham appear in no other document in the Abingdon archive.

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A charter in the name of Ecgberht of Wessex, which appears in both manuscripts of the History, records the king granting fifty hides at

Marcham to Abingdon,"/ whilst a passage of narrative in MS B attributes to Offa the gift of Goosey."? In addition, some charters appearing in MS C record grants said to have passed to the abbey

involving lands that were later part of the endowment."? What then of the charters of the reform period? A charter in Eadred's name notes Alfred's removal of Abingdon and its appurtenances from the abbey, and restores Abingdon immediately and ten hides in Ginge, ten in Goosey, thirty in Longworth, and thirty in Cumnor after his death."? A charter in Eadwig’s name mentions the restoration of land at Abingdon once given by Ceadwalla, whilst the equivalent in Edgar's name reproduces this passage and also confirms ten hides in Ginge, fifteen in Goosey, thirty in Longworth, and five in Earmundesleah.’*' All these places had appeared in the charters-in Coenwulf's name. In contrast, documents recording individual grants to Abingdon, for example Eadwig’s quite possibly authentic charter concerning Ginge, do not present the grants as restorations.” It is impossible to come to any secure conclusion on the extent of the early endowment of Abingdon. A list such as appears in the charter in Coenwulf’s name may be based on some early written source, may rest on oral tradition, or may have been at least largely a later invention.? The Historys claim that records survived the period of the Danes and Alfred is surely not a product of real knowledge but a deduction based on the existence of documents dated to before that period. That /Ethelwold may have supported his efforts to obtain lands from the king with charters, including ones to laymen backed with a statement that the lands had passed to Abingdon, need not indicate that all those lands had been part of 77 c. 12, B25-B26. For Culham, see also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 1o, probably forged after the revision of the History. 73 See below, p. 248. 79 cc. r5 (Lockinge), 16 (Wittenham). For charters only in MS B concerning lands said to have passed from donees to Abingdon, see B14 (Easton, Hampshire), Bzo (Hurstbourne, Hampshire), B22 (lands in Gloucestershire), B24 (possibly Pangbourne, Berkshire), B36 (Farnborough, Warwickshire or Berkshire), B93 (Balking, Berkshire). 730 c. 28. Abingdon is assessed at twenty hides, Ginge ten, Goosey ten, Longworth thirty, Cumnor thirty. 731 cc. 37, 60; see also c. 98. See also c. 39 for Eadwig giving Earmundesleah. See Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. cii-cciv, clix, clxv-clxix, for the relevant estate histories. 73? c. 42. See also c. 81 concerning Cumnor. 73 See also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. clxviii-clxix, 44.

CXXXIV

INTRODUCTION

the early endowment."?^ Only very unusually do we have relevant evidence from a source away from Abingdon, and even then it is not necessarily of a wholly reliable type. A charter in Edward the Elder's name confirms to the Old Minster, Winchester, fifty hides in Hurstbourne, Hampshire, which, it says, had been acquired by King Ecgberht from Bishop Hrathhun and the community of Abingdon in return for fifty hides in Marcham, Berkshire. However, it is possible that the Winchester diploma may be from /Ethelwold's time, so its status as independent or as early evidence is question-

able.^?? Losses in the later ninth century

If the extent of the early endowment of Abingdon is uncertain so too must be any estimate of losses in the first Viking period. The earlier of the versions of the History does not blame losses on the Danes but rather on Alfred. Drawing on a charter in Eadred's name, it states that ‘he took away from the aforesaid monastery the village in which the monastery is situated, called by the vernacular name Abingdon, with all its appendages, rendering inappropriate compensation to the victorious Lord for the victory which he had enjoyed’.”*° The reviser blamed both the Danes and Alfred for damaging the house and its lands. The Danes entirely drove out the monks and destroyed with hostile hand, leonine ferocity, and detestable greed the sacrosanct and venerable house of Abingdon, which so many holy kings and such authoritative men, of whom we have spoken above, had founded and endowed with various endowments, so that nothing is reported to have remained there besides the walls.^? Alfred

indeed piled evils on evils, like Judas amongst the twelve, and violently took away from that monastery the village in which it is situated, commonly called Abingdon, with all its appendages, rendering inappropriate compensation to the victorious Lord for the victory which he had enjoyed against the defeated Danes at Ashdown.^*? 2347

abe

;

For an example where there are surviving hints of an earlier connection, see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. clxvi-clxvii, concerning Hurstbourne. More generally, see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. clxix.

75 Sawyer, no. 358, Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 53. 737 B37. CI:

736

738 Bao.

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De abbatibus states that, in the time of Edward the Elder, the few monks who remained after the Danish attacks had only Culham, and the church of Wickham and the church of Cumnor. Whilst it is very plausible that Abingdon's endowment suffered in the course of the wars between the kings of Wessex and the Danes, to tie these narratives to specific estates lost must be speculative because

of the lack of secure early evidence concerning Abingdon's lands."?? Moreover, the compilers of the History were regarding the ninthcentury church very much in a twelfth- or thirteenth-century light. If one thinks of the church of Abingdon at the time of the Danish invasions as a royal minster, royal removal of lands looks rather different."? In royal eyes it may well have been justifiable, particularly if Danish attacks had disrupted the religious life or even destroyed the church itself.

The early tenth century The earlier version of the History presents four charters of /Ethelstan in favour of Abingdon, together with one of the noble /Ethelstan ‘senator’, giving lands at Dumbleton, Aston Somerville, Shellingford,

Sandford-on-Thames, Swinford, and Uffington.”*' All these places except for Aston Somerville were part of the later Abingdon endowment, but none of the charters can be accepted as genuine.’” The case of Dumbleton, furthermore, illustrates other problems that arise in dealing with even the charters presented in the History as making gifts directly to Abingdon. First, the charter specifies that the gift is to Abbot Cynath, making no mention of Abingdon as the

recipient.

Cynath

was

probably

in fact abbot

of Evesham./?

Secondly, a sixteenth-century single-sheet copy of the charter, but not the versions in the History, includes as a postscript a confirmation of the land concerned to Bishop Osulf of Ramsbury, who had been 79 Cf D. N. Dumville, *Ecclesiastical lands and the defence of Wessex in the first Viking-Age’, in his Wessex and England from Alfred to Edgar (Woodbridge, 1992), pp. 2954, esp. p. 40n. 55, and R. Fleming, ‘Monastic lands and England's defence in the Viking Age’, EHR, c (1985), 247-65. Both the source criticism of the former and the general argument of the latter may be acceptable. 79 See above, p. xcv, below, p. clxx, Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, pp. ccviii-ccix. 7

6c: 19-23.

™ See below, p. ccvi. Swinford was probably included within the abbey’s large manor of Cumnor in Domesday; DB i, fo. 58". The common land at Aston Somerville may have been perceived as part of the estate at Dumbleton, also explaining why the heading of the section only mentions Dumbleton. 73 See above, p. xcv.

CXXXVi

INTRODUCTION

granted it by Abbot Cynath."^* Thirdly, a narrative in the earlier version of the History says that ‘this village was given by King /Ethelstan to that monastery but, as we have said above, was afterwards taken away by others’. Unfortunately its account of the loss of the land may have been recorded on the lost folio between cc. 101 and 102; the revised History says that it was given to /Elfric by Wulfric Spot, whose predecessors had unjustly taken it from the abbey. According to a royal charter in 1002, Dumbleton had returned to King /Ethelred when a woman forfeited it for fornication. It then passed to Abingdon through the will of Archbishop /Elfric, to whom King /Ethelred had granted it."? It may be that this pattern of gift, loss, and restoration is correct, but doubts may be raised by the lack of authenticity of /Ethelstan's charter, and it is possible that the land only came to Abingdon rather later than /Ethelstan's reign. MS B adds a large number of early tenth-century charters recording grants to laymen, who, it was stated, donated them to Abingdon. Whilst some may have passed to Abingdon, they may have done so

later than these passages suggest." For example, MS B includes a charter of Edward the Elder recording his grant of Hardwell to Tata son of /Ethelhun, a gift which an accompanying passage says Tata passed to Abingdon. Neither this charter nor this narrative appears in the earlier version of the History, which attributes the gift of Hardwell to the will of Eadwine, probably the ealdorman of Sussex, whilst De abbatibus attributes the gift to a man called ‘Edwi’ in the time of

Abbot Ordric, 1052-66." This later gift by Eadwine or Edwi, not an immediate transfer by Tata, would have brought the charter to Abingdon. Kings may have continued to exploit lands possibly once associated with the church. For example, King Edmund granted Culham to the royal lady /Elfhild."*? The reviser of the History omitted this charter and claimed that Edmund's grant had only been for life, with reversion to the monks’ own use, but this is likely to reflect the 7^ Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 22. (OS comiogene D. B53-B54 may be one instance where the routine note that the gift passed to

Abingdon is in fact correct. For lands that may never have passed to Abingdon, see c.g. B60-B61, B79—B80. See also below, p. 93 n. 215, on cc. 57-8 in MS C; and note Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 43.

7" B44-B45, c. 108, CMA ii. 282. For gifts that later passed to Abingdon, see also Bs6—

B59.

79 c. 25; see also B69 concerning Earmundesleah, which may earlier have been an

Abingdon possession.

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reviser’s concerns rather than tenth-century arrangements."*?Overall, the evidence for tenth-century royal or other endowment of Abingdon before the mid-940s is thin. We may sympathize with the person who composed the passage in the Abingdon copy of the Chronicle of John of Worcester stating that he knew nothing certain of what happened to the monastery between the death of Coenwulf and the

reign of /Ethelstan.??

Endowment in the period of /Ethelmoldian reform According to the Life of St /Ethelwold, when Eadred came to the throne in 946, monastic religion at Abingdon was ‘neglected and ruined, its buildings poor, and its estate consisted of only forty hides of land. The remainder of the estate, which lies adjacent to it and consists of a further hundred hides, was the king's possession and

under his royal control?! Forty hides, although small by later standards, was still an endowment of some significance. Eadred then gave ‘his royal possession in Abingdon, that is the hundred hides, with excellent buildings, to the abbot and brethren to increase their everyday provisions, and he gave them much monetary help from his royal treasury. His mother sent them presents on an even more lavish scale.’”** Then when Osgar was made abbot, the Life tells us, ‘the place was enriched by the gift of six hundred and more

hides"? What of the History and its charter material? Whilst proceeding chronologically, I shall classify gifts in various ways. I distinguish between gifts in the Domesday core area of Abingdon's endowment, Berkshire and Oxfordshire, and gifts elsewhere. I also distinguish between gifts recorded in charters directly to Abingdon and those said to have been given to Abingdon by a charter's beneficiary. Amongst the latter group, I separate those appearing in MS C 79? B64. See also Thacker, ‘/Ethelwold’, pp. 46—7. 750 John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 610: ‘Post cuius discessum quid huic loci contigerit usque ad gloriosi principis /Ethelstani imperium quia nusquam certi quicquam addiscere potui, suo meus stilus caruit officio." 751 Wulfstan, Life of/Ethelmold, c. 11, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, pp. 18-20; the passage is copied in B84. 72 Wulfstan, Life of Ethelwold, c. 11, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, p. 20; the passage is copied below, p. 296, making an explicit association with Eadred's charter, c. 28, B85.

753 Wulfstan, Life of 4thelwold, c. 21, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, p. 36. By the

standards of medieval chroniclers’ figures the number seems a reasonably accurate one when compared with the gifts made to Abingdon in the time of /Ethelwold and Osgar, as listed below, pp. cxxxix—cxlii.

CXXXVIil

INTRODUCTION

from those appearing only in MS B. In both cases I note whether there is an additional reason to believe the statement that the land passed to Abingdon. Royal grants directly to /Ethelwold's house probably began under Fadred. Whilst there is no explicit bequest to Abingdon in his will, and his great charter recording his restorations to Abingdon is quite possible a forgery, the latter may support the Life's statement

concerning his generosity to Abingdon.’** Eadred was to have full enjoyment of the appended lands which pertain to that village in diverse places, that is Ginge (ten hides), Goosey (ten hides), Longworth (thirty hides), Cumnor (thirty hides), with the permission of the aforenamed abbot and the brothers subjected to him, for necessary purposes through the days of my life. When, though, the period of my life has passed, these with all their accessories are to be brought back perpetually to that village and subjected to the aforesaid monastery.

That such lands are also recorded as being granted by Eadwig or Edgar in charters of those kings may, but need not, show that

Eadred's gift did not take effect.^? /Ethelwold, in his vernacular account of monasticism, criticized Eadred's brother and successor Eadwig for, amongst other faults, ‘distributing the lands of the holy Church to rapacious strangers’, but there is no such criticism in the Abingdon History.^? Rather Eadwig is presented as having made

grants to the monastery, involving Abingdon, five hides at Earmundesleah, twenty at Hinksey, Seacourt, and Wytham, and ten at Ginge, as well as sixty yokes of woodland at Hawkridge to provide wood for building the abbey church.’ Our lack of certainty concerning the early endowment of the church makes it hard to tell how far such grants were restorations, how far they were new gifts, how far they came from royal lands, how far the interests of other parties were affected. ™4 The heading to c. 28, Eadred's charter, includes twenty hides at Abingdon, whereas the charter specifies no hidage for that place. The rest of the lands granted totalled eighty hides, so the heading has made the total one hundred, matching the amount that Eadred is said to have given in the Life of/Ethelmold.

75 See Thacker, ‘/Ethelwold’, p. 52.

756 See above, p. cxv.

7?" See cc. 37-43; see notes to the appropriate sections for problems of authenticity with these charters. Another charter, a quite skilful fabrication not present in the History but preserved in a 16th-century copy of a lost single sheet, records King Eadwig giving twenty hides in Tadmarton to Abingdon in 956; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 68, and sec also above, p. Ixviii. Note also c. 44 for Eadwig giving permission for /Ethelwold's exchange of Curbridge for Kennington.

78 See above, p. cxxxiii; Thacker, ‘AEthelwold’, p. 53.

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Giving accelerated under Edgar, although the authenticity of some of his diplomas remains a problem. His gifts include more distant lands from the monastery, but let us start with grants of lands in Berkshire and Oxfordshire. One of his early actions, in 958, may have been to grant ten hides in Ginge, fifteen in Goosey, thirty in Longworth, and five in Earmundesleah. This may have been a reiteration of grants possibly made by Eadred and Eadwig, as already

mentioned.^? He also made the following gifts: Chapter

Place

Hidage

Date

Charter authenticity

62 66 231 75 zig 79 81 83 85 86

Drayton Hendred Hendred Marcham Denchworth Fyfield Cumnor Hanney Oare Beedon

20 2 IO 50 2 25 30 IO IO 5

960 962 964 965 965 968 968 968 968 965

probably authentic probably authentic suspicious suspicious suspicious possibly authentic possibly authentic possibly authentic possibly authentic suspicious

Let us now

move

on to gifts of more

distant lands. Charters in

Edgar’s name record him making the following grants:/9? Chapter

61 64 65 67 69 70

| Place

Bedwyn, Wiltshire Hurstbourne, Hampshire Southampton, Hampshire Ringwood, Hampshire Burbage, Wiltshire Easthall, Sussex

Hidage

Date

Charter authenticity

73 50

958 961

very suspicious probably genuine

962

probably genuine

961 961 963

uncertain uncertain probably authentic

various rights — 22 20 5

In addition, /Elfgifu, a woman of royal descent, bequeathed Chesham, Buckinghamshire, to Abingdon between 966 and 975."?! Turning now to gifts for which the History provides charters supplemented by the statement that the beneficiary gave the land to Abingdon, all those appearing in MS C concern lands in Berkshire or 759 c. 60; see above, p. cxxxvili. | 760 See above, p. cxxx, on his grant of Washington to /Ethelwold. ! 761 Anglo-Saxon Wills, ed. Whitelock, no. 8, pp. 118-19. The will survives in the cartulary of St Swithun’s, Winchester.

INTRODUCTION

cxl

Oxfordshire, and in all cases a definite link can be established between the abbey and the lands concerned. The gifts may be summarized as follows: Donee

Place

Hides

Date

Charter authenticity

Edmund

Sethryth

Winkfield

942

authentic

Eadred

noble matron Wulfric

Chieveley

951

authentic

Kennington

956

authentic

Chapter

Donor

57-8” 34-5

Eadwig

45-6

Eadwig

47-8

Eadwig

49-50

Eadwig

51-2

Eadwig

137

Eadwig’™

139

Edgar

thegn/? Brihthelm priest /Elfhere ealdorman Eadric thegn /Elfwine thegn /Elheah thegn JElfric thegn Byrhtnoth thegn Beorhtric thegn Byrhtnoth noble Eadric thegn /Ethelsige chamberlain Wulfstan thegn /Elfwine thegn

Cuddesdon

suspicious

Welford

authentic

probably

Milton

authentic

Buckland

possibly

authentic authentic

Bayworth

Tadmarton Tadmarton

probably authentic probably

Tadmarton

authentic authentic

Leckhampstead

modified

Sparsholt, etc.

modified

probably authentic suspicious

Whistley Boxford

968

7? As a charter of Edmund, this is out of chronological order in MS C. It may be so situated because the compiler believed that Sathryth gave the land to Abingdon /Ethelwold's time. In MS B, it appears among the charters of Edmund, B78.

7$ The earlier version of History did not specify that Wulfric gave this land to Abingdon; the reviser spelt this out, Broo. 7* MS B includes both this shortened version of the charter and a full version that has King Edmund as the grantor; B72, B277. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 156, states of the full version that the charter ‘seems to be authentic’. I here include it under Eadwig because

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cxli

It is hard to tell whether the donees really were the people responsible

for passing the lands to Abingdon,’”® although notably in the cases of

Welford and Leckhampstead it is specified that they made their grants to Abingdon when they were dying, whilst /Elfric is said to have made Abingdon heir to Bayworth after his death. In these cases additional notes or records may have underlain the History's more precise statements. On the other hand, the case of Sparsholt may warn against acceptance of the History’s routine statements. The History contains a charter of Edgar recording his gift of Sparsholt to /Ethelsige his chamberlain, but makes clear that the estate passed to

Abingdon only in the mid-eleventh century.’”” Similar problems of chronology may apply to grants recorded only in MS B even when there is an association between Abingdon and the lands concerned. Nevertheless, the grants may usefully be summarized as follows: Chapter

Donor

B87

Eadred

Bot

B97 B99

Bro7 B123

Br33 Br37

Donee

— Wulfric thegn Eadred Wulfric mules Eadred Wulfric thegn Eadred /Elfsige thegn and wife Eadgifu Eadred/ —Wulfric Eadwig — thegn Eadwig ^ Beorhtric thegn Eadwig ^ /Elfric royal kinsman Eadwig ^ /Elfsige thegn

Place

Hides

Date

Charter authenticity

Stanmore/??

947/8

Denchworth

947

probably authentic authentic

Welford

949

X authentic

AEscesburh’®

953

authentic

Boxford

958?

questionable

Hendred

955/6

Hanney

probably authentic 956 X authentic

Benham

956

authentic

my concern is the earlier version of the History’s presentation of the building up of the endowment. ; 765 An exception is Brihthelm's exchange of Kennington with /Ethelwold; c. 44.

ASCs GCNIG 8:9; 767 Stanmore was almost certainly included in Abingdon's Domesday; DB i, fo. 58°; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 174.

768 ie. Uffington, see below, p. 44n. 112.

holding

in Beedon

INTRODUCTION

cxlii Donor

Chapter

Donee

Ethelnoth thegn Eadwig — Wulfric thegn Eadwig ^ Eadric thegn | Eadwig | Eadwold thegn Eadwig

Bis4 Br59

Br65 Bi67

Bio

Fadwig

Bi72

. Eadwig

Brgo

. Edgar

Cynric cup-bearer = Wulfric thegn Brihtheah deacon

Hides

Date

Charter authenticity

956

authentic

Charlton

956

authentic

Longworth

958

Drayton

958

probably authentic | probably authentic

Cern'?

958

Place — Fyfield

Denchworth

958

Kingston

970

probably authentic | probably authentic probably authentic

In addition MS B includes charters for places in Berkshire and Oxfordshire for which there is no other evidence of Abingdon interest: in order of appearance, Curridge, Compton, Barkham, and Weonfelda granted by Eadred; Padworth granted by Eadwig; and Aston Upthorpe, Ardington, Ducklington granted by Edgar, as well

as various of the estates restored to Wulfric Cufing in 960.’”° As for places outside Berkshire and Oxfordshire, notably fewer have any other connection to Abingdon: Chapter

Donor

Donee

Bi48

. Eadwig

Br9g4

. Edgar

X /Elfhere senator Eadwine thegn

Place

Hides

Wormleighton, 10 Warwickshire"! Moredon, 20 Wiltshire"?

Date

Charter authenticity

956 . probably authentic 962 probably authentic

7* These could be the two hides which Domesday records Abingdon holding in Pusey; see below, p. 325 n. 239.

7? Bros, Bros, Brog, Birr, B152, B157, Br85, B186, B193, B19s. It cannot be told whether it is significant that Barkham and Compton both had a TRE tenant named Elmer; DB i, fos. 57°, 61". The two references may be to the same man, and he could also be identified with the /Elmer who held land in Charlton and Buckland, the latter probably as a tenant of Abingdon; DB i, fos. 57°, 59". It is conceivable that he or his predecessors had had a tenurial relationship with Abingdon for the other lands but one hidden by Domesday. Alternatively he could be an Abingdon tenant who deposited diplomas in the abbey, perhaps at the time of the Conquest; see above, p. cxxix.

77^ Tn fact the land probably passed to Abingdon by grant of King /Ethelred, below, p. cxlvii. 7 See below, p. cxliii, for the connection between Moredon and Abingdon.

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In addition MS B includes records gifts of places outside Berkshire and Oxfordshire for which there is no other evidence of Abingdon interest: in order of appearance, Washington in Sussex given by

Eadred;? Pyrford in Surrey, Annington in Sussex, Church Stowe in Northamptonshire, /Escmere in Hampshire given by Eadwig; Linslade in Buckinghamshire and Hamstede, perhaps also in Buckinghamshire,

given by Edgar."

Reduction of estates after 975

The question of whether Abingdon ever received and held those estates for which there is no evidence of an Abingdon connection apart from the testimony, often formulaic and sometimes demonstrably flawed, of the revised version of the History is closely tied to the question of losses following the death of Edgar. There are some explicitly recorded losses. A charter of /Ethelred states that My father King Edgar, whilst he was reigning, granted some of the lands to almighty Christ and his mother St Mary for the monastery which is called Abingdon, for the redemption of his soul, that is Bedwyn with everything pertaining to it, Hurstbourne with all its appendages, Burbage and all the revenues belonging to it. These lands were forthwith violently taken away from the aforementioned holy monastery according to the decision and order of all the leading men, and at their command were subjected to my power. Whether they did this justly or unjustly, they themselves may know. Then, when my brother left this wretched world and received the reward of neverending life predestined for him by God, I, with Christ’s assent, received lordship both of the royal lands and at the same time those pertaining to kings’ sons.’”°

This removal of lands by Edward the martyr is the only Abingdon loss for which there is specific and definitely authentic early evidence. Another case may involve land at Moredon, which a probably authentic charter of Edgar records that king granting to his thegn,

Eadwine. It then apparently passed to Abingdon."* Next, a dubious charter of /Ethelred, which may be a considerably later fabrication or a contemporary production, states that 73 7* Biss B188,

See above, p. cxxx, for the link of this estate to /Ethelwold. Bos (on the connection of which to /Ethelwold see above, p. cxxx), B146, B150, (and Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 62, surviving in a 16th-century copy), B168, B189. See also Br9r, B192, B222.

775, c.1991(p* 150): 776

B194.

cxliv

INTRODUCTION

a certain knight named /Elfgar, my reeve and favourite, unjustly acquired a village of the most holy mother Mary of the monastery of Abingdon, named by the inhabitants Moredon, twenty hides, in the time that is of Abbot Eadwine, with my consent although unjustly, and he gave it to his wife /Elfgifu as a hereditary gift of dower.’””

Such an instance may be taken to support the statement in the earlier version of the History that in the time of Abbot Eadwine (985—90) ‘the monastery of Abingdon, which had been extremely rich a little before, now met with loss of a great many of its possessions’, although other

evidence is lacking.””* De abbatibus tells us that the Vikings completely destroyed Abingdon in /Ethelred's time, but it is significant that such an attack is mentioned by neither version of the History, nor are there any stated losses of lands resulting from these attacks.’” So much for direct evidence for losses. There is also the question of the fate of lands for which there is strong evidence that Abingdon was given them before the death of Edgar, but which did not form part of the Domesday endowment. Most notable are Edgar's large grants of

lands distant from Abingdon."" We have already seen that Bedwyn and Burbage in Wiltshire and Hurstbourne in Hampshire, amounting to 143 hides, were taken away by Edward the martyr on the grounds

that Edgar should not have granted them as he did." Also lost by 1066 were lands and rights in Southampton, twenty-two hides at Ringwood in Hampshire, and five hides in Easthall, Sussex. In addition, lands in at least one of the charters to an individual rather than directly to Abingdon do seem to have passed to the abbey and then been lost, those at Moredon, as mentioned above. Even though restored to Abingdon by /Ethelred, they were not held by the abbey in 1066. If other lands mentioned in charters to individuals really did pass to Abingdon, the scale of the losses between 975 and 1066 was very a See below, p. 160.

iid

73 See below, p. 140.

CMA ii. 280. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. xlii, concludes that an attack on Abingdon in the first decade of the rith century cannot be ruled out, but any disruption must have been short-lived.

™ Although some of the charters concerned are questionable, others are genuine, and questions over charter authenticity need not lead to denial that the grants were actually made. See also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. cliii: ‘King Edgar was absurdly generous to the abbey, bestowing upon the community farflung estates in Sussex and Hampshire; other donors in Abingdon's golden age may have poured out similarly inconvenient largesse. Over the course of little more than a century this complex accumulation of property was transformed into a compact and manageable endowment in Berkshire and Oxfordshire. 7'! For this and the remainder of this paragraph, see also above, p. cxxxix.

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cxlv

considerable. However, we have already seen that the routine statements that the grantee passed the lands to Abingdon need to be treated with scepticism, and have concluded that at least in the case of MS B the routine statements by themselves should not be deemed sufficient evidence of an Abingdon connection. What explanations, then, can be given for loss of the estates which we know were in Abingdon's possession? One is depredation, quite possibly what the lay claimants of such lands would have considered justified seizure following Edgar's unjustified favour to monasteries, just as Edward the martyr did with Bedwyn, Burbage, and Hurstbourne. Another is loss through disputes in court under a less favourable regime. It is very plausible that, following the death of Edgar, Abingdon, like other monasteries, lost lands to local landowners in disputes in or out of court, or failed to receive lands that

had been promised to them."? Another possibility is of deliberate retrenchment of the estate, alienating more distant properties whilst retaining the Berkshire and

Oxfordshire core for reasons of convenience. Alienation of Church lands was condemned by the reformers. /Ethelwold, in his vernacular account of monasticism, implored his successors to increase the observance of the holy rule, and went on Nor is any one of them to presume through the devil's prompting or through any avarice to diminish God's patrimony or with any ill-will to seek how it may be diminished, either in estates or in any other possessions, lest through poverty and penury the fire of holy religion should become lukewarm and grow completely cold.”*

In practice, nevertheless, lands were granted away, perhaps with a

preference for exchange rather than sale or simple gift.? Leases for a set period were acceptable, but might be repeatedly extended or lead to the loss of lands: Stigand, bishop of the city of Winchester, who then indeed had care of the archbishopric of Canterbury (for with its ruler dead that place lacked governance), as a crafty pleader extracted from Spearhafoc the land called 782 See also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. clxviii, clxxii. 783 See ibid., esp. p. clxv; note also Clarke, English Nobility, pp. 53-60, who argues that such consolidation was a hallmark of long-established estates. 7^ Councils and Synods, i. 152; also i. 153-4, addressed to abbesses. See further Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. cxlvii. Note also e.g. Wulfstan’s Canon Lam Collection, ed. J. E. Cross and A. Hamer (Cambridge, 1999), p. 84. 785 See Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. cxlviii.

cxlvi

INTRODUCTION

Cerney, situated in Gloucestershire, to be entrusted to him for a set time. As repayment, at the time of the restitution he would add in perpetual gift to the church of Abingdon his own property of Aston, a village neighbouring Lewknor. But when he had acquired what he sought, he neither restored what had been entrusted to him, nor discharged the payment for what had been entrusted.’*°

However, the evidence for a policy of retrenchment of distant

estates is limited." If one concentrates on lands either given directly to Abingdon or for which further evidence for an Abingdon link exists, the number of estates is not large, even if the hidage is."9? It is, moreover, notable that the majority of these distant estates were the subject of known disputes: Bedwyn, Burbage, Cerney, Hurstbourne,

Moredon."? Given our limited knowledge of pre-Conquest disputes, this is a significant number, suggesting perhaps that other unknown disputes led to further losses of lands: the disputes involving all but Cerney are known only from charters of /Ethelred with their characteristic narrative sections and such charters cease as a source of evidence for Abingdon after /Ethelred. Comparison with other abbeys too suggests the possibility of extensive loss through disputes.?? Burton had lost much of its original 1002 endowment by 1066, and the cause may well have been lay depredation; it may be significant that the Life and Miracles of Saint Modwenna records the saint's vengeance against a violator of the monastery whom Domesday Book shows to have held lands that had formed part of the abbey's 786 See below, p. 196. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. clxiv—clxv, takes this as part of the policy of relinquishing more distant properties. However, leasing was not the same as relinquishing, and the case in fact might better be taken as evidence for the unplanned loss of distant properties, at least in terms of complete as opposed to temporary alienation from the church. See below, pp. cliv-clv, for the lack of later evidence that there was a preference for leasing more distant estates.

7? Analysis of the Domesday tenants of the distant estates that the History links to Abingdon does not reveal to me any significant pattern, except perhaps that several were

associated with the Godwine family, an association that is not necessarily surprising given the extent of their estates. See esp. DB i, fo. 28", for Earl Gyrth holding Washington; fo. 32, for Harold holding Pyrford from King Edward; fo. 39', for Tostig holding Ringwood. There is no evidence to explain this pattern in terms of the Godwine family using Abingdon as a deposit for their charters (see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. cxlii) or of them having seized the lands from Abingdon.

788 See above, p. cxxxix. ACSy OOM 1O2 N24: ™ Miller, Ely, pp. 24-5, states that the widest extent of that abbey’s lands was in the

first decades of the eleventh century. Domesday Book reveals that by 1066 there had been losses in Essex, Cambridgeshire, and Norfolk, although Miller does not provide an explanation for those losses.

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early endowment." At Abingdon the loss of distant estates may have been the result of external pressure rather than internal planning. Acquisitions between 975 and 1066

Although Edgar’s problematic grants of the lands associated with the royal family, together with his twenty hides at Ringwood, are of an exceptionally large scale, grants outside Berkshire and Oxfordshire did not cease with his death. When /Ethelred reversed his policy of taking lands from the Church, his charter for Abingdon announced that he had retained Bedwyn, Burbage, and Hurstbourne but gave in compensation Wormleighton in Warwickshire and Cerney in Gloucestershire, as well as Farnborough, Berkshire, and an unidentified

place called Perry. He also restored twenty hides at Moredon, Wiltshire, and a small estate at Cricklade in the same county." Archbishop /Elfric bequeathed lands in Dumbleton, Gloucestershire,

where Abingdon had lands in Domesday Book."^ Notes in the History record that women named /Elfgifu and Eadflaed had bequeathed lands at Bulthesworthe, Chalgrave in Bedfordshire, and Hillesden in Buckinghamshire, to Abingdon, although these were not retained by

1066.75 Likewise absent from the Abingdon Domesday holding are three hides at Myton, Warwickshire." Eadwine of Caddington bequeathed to Abingdon land at Pirian, which he had bought from the abbey; the context in the will suggests that it may have been in

Bedfordshire or Hertfordshire."

The overall impression is that

Abingdon continued to be happy to receive grants outside Berkshire and Oxfordshire, although their scale was in general smaller than before 975. Such grants are not dissimilar from those received after 7! Geoffrey (OMT, 2002), 79? c. gg, on Wormleighton

of Burton, Life and Miracles of St Modmenna, c. 44, ed. R. J. Bartlett p. 184. which see Keynes, Diplomas, pp. 177-8; see also c. 101 concerning Cerney. was no longer an Abingdon estate in 1066.

CT02"t coc 104-5, DB 1,07 1660 75 cc. 106-7. or Cn iia) B246: 77 S. Keynes, ‘A lost cartulary of St Albans Abbey’, ASE, xxii (1993), 253-79, at p. 276; Sawyer, no. 1517. Eadwine’s will can be dated to c.1050. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 507, takes Pirian to be the same place which /Ethelred had granted to Abingdon in 999; sce below, p. 152. If so, the land had been given to Abingdon at the end of the roth century, alienated or lost, and then restored by Eadwine, although we cannot tell whether Eadwine's bequest came into effect. However, it should be noted that Pirian, or Perry, is a not

uncommon place-name and it is possible that we are dealing with two places of the same namc.

INTRODUCTION

cxlviii

the Conquest? Again this weighs against ideas of a policy of retrenchment. à; Kings also continued to give lands in Berkshire and Oxfordshire, and these were much better retained: Hidage

Date

Charter authenticity

Donor

Place

Edward

Kingston

975 X 978 | uncertain

B2197?

JFKthelred

Arncott

983

Chapter

B231°

j/Ethelred

II7 I2I

Drayton Sutton cnu*t Lyford; minster of St Martin, Oxford, and land?! Harthacnu*t ^ Farnborough Queen Edith Lewknor

132 133

Edward Edward

Sandford Chilton

4 5

1042 reign of Confessor 1054 1052

135

Edward

Leverton

1050

II4

2 2 2

IO —

1000 1032

probably authentic probably spurious probably authentic

uncertain??? -— spurious probably spurious probably spurious

In at least these last three cases it is difficult to tell whether the lands really were granted to Abingdon before the Conquest, or whether after the Conquest the abbot succeeded in persuading the king to allow them to the abbey; only in the case of Sandford did Domesday Book attribute clear title to the abbey in 1066.°°%* The History also ™8 Tn the better-documented period after 1066 we know that there were considerable difficulties in retaining grants such as that of Hill in Warwickshire; see vol. ii. 26, 136, and Rotuli Curie Regis, ed. F. Palgrave (2 vols., London, 1835), i. 70, 240-1, ii. 143, 347; Curia Regis Rolls, i. 139, 257, 300, 399, 456, 463.

7? This charter may have appeared on a missing folio of MS C. 99 This charter may have appeared on a missing folio of MS C. *°! See also J. Blair, ‘Saint Frideswide’s monastery: Problems

and possibilities’,

Oxoniensia, iii (1988), 221-58, at p. 226, for Abingdon's possible temporary acquisition of St Frideswide’s in cnu*t’s time. 9^ On the problem of whether this constituted a new gift, see below, p. 185 n. 415.

55 DB i, fo. 156", gives the hidage as seventeen in 1086. ** DB i, fo. 59', states that Blacmann held Chilton from Harold ‘in alodio' and held Leverton ‘in feudo’; in the case of Leverton Blaecmann's lord is not made explicit, although it may be implied that it was the abbot, from whom the 1086 tenant held. See DB i, fo. 156" for Sandford.

ENDOWMENT,

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AND LAW . cxlix

records grants by people other than kings. Abbot Osgar purchased

twenty hides at Kingston from Ealdorman /Elfhere.95 Eadwine, probably the ealdorman of Sussex, bequeathed lands at Beedon and Hardwell.*°° A woman named Eadfled gave land at Wickham and

Winkfield, and the monk Godric Cild gave land at Sparsholt.9" De abbatibus, but not the History, records a gift of Garsington, Oxfordshire, and an unidentified Hamestede.9? The revised History also continues to include charters to individuals, sometimes supplemented by the statement that the beneficiary gave the land to Abingdon. Some concern places with a further association to Abingdon: Chapter

Donor

Donee

Place

Fides

Date

B212

Edward

Kingston

B224

/Ethelred

/Elfstan bishop Wulfgar

B228

/Ethelred

Drayton and Sutton Leverton

3 1.5 8

975 X 978 possibly authentic 983 authentic

B229

/Ethelred

Wootton

B225

/Ethelred

104

/Ethelred

140

/Ethelred

B239

/Ethelred

B271

Edward

Beorhtric thegn Leofwine thegn Wulfric thegn /Elfric archbishop |Leofric thegn Byrhtwold bishop Godwine earl

Charter authenticity

984

authentic

985

authentic

Dumbleton

2.5

995

authentic

Dumbleton

1002

Whitchurch

IOI2

probably authentic uncertain

Chilton

1015

Sandford

1050

probably authentic authentic

For others there is no further evidence of a link to Abingdon. .

809

805 c. 93, hidage possible altered. The History places the transaction in the reign of Edward the martyr.

ole

807 oc. 107, 138-9. ; 808 CMA ii. 282; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 583 (xi). 5° B43 (Sevington, Wiltshire), B223 (Charlton, Berkshire), B226 (Osanleia), B227 (Ardley, Oxfordshire), B23o (Benson, Oxfordshire), B232 (Little Haseley, Oxfordshire), B237 (Waltham St Lawrence, Berkshire).

INTRODUCTION

The Domesday TRE endowment

Domesday Book allows the following estimates of the annual values of Abingdon lands in 1066: County

: Approx. annual income

eS Hidage

Berkshire Oxfordshire ‘ Gloucestershire

¢.£380—420 slightly over £60 {12

just over 510 — su —

Domesday thus suggests a total income TRE of about £450—-90. Abingdon was probably the eighth wealthiest monastery in England?" The great bulk of Abingdon estates was in Berkshire, in which county it was the largest landholder. There was particular concentration in west Berkshire. This region included the valuable northern areas, notably the Vale of the White Horse, which had the best land in

the county, as well as the less rich area of the central downlands.*"? The core of the estate was Hormer hundred, in a loop of the Thames,

where the abbey was the only significant, or perhaps the only,

landholder in 1066.*'* Domesday records its division into two huge manors, Barton and Cumnor, whilst mentioning other settlements within those holdings. The abbey also had significant lands in Oxfordshire. It had more

property in Oxford than in Wallingford, Berkshire.S'S Of its seven Oxfordshire

north-east

manors,

of Oxford,

three were

Lewknor

close to Oxford,

Lower

Arncott

in the east of the county,

and

*" [ give rounded figures and ranges because of the problems of making precise Domesday calculations from incomplete or problematic information: note e.g. the absence of a ualet for Chilton, DB i, fo. 59; the absence of an entry for Culham; disputed possession of Fawler; lack of clarity as to whether the value of mills, etc. is included in the totals, on which see H. C. Darby, Domesday England (Cambridge, 1977), p. 210.

*!! On the possibility of an Abingdon interest in the Wiltshire borough of Cricklade, see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 530-1.

‘I? See vol. ii, p. Ixxv for this position in 1086; that in 1066 was probably similar. 93 See Domesday Geography of South-East England, ed. Darby and Campbell, pp. 261, 282—3. Sce also Archaeology at Barton Court Farm, ed. Miles. Note also below, p. 240, on Abingdon being ‘surrounded with the richest farmlands, flourishing meadows, abundant fields, and milk-giving herds’, Whether or not this is a topos, it may also represent observation.

*'* The exception may be Shippon, on which see DB i, fo 58; vol. ii. 24. 5^ Note that the position of Abingdon properties in later medieval Oxford shows that they were almost all in what seems to have been the Anglo-Saxon durh, suggesting early acquisition; Blair, Anglo-Saxon Oxfordshire, pp. 160-1.

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Tadmarton and Barford St Michael in its north.?'$ The Gloucester-

shire estates were limited to Dumbleton and the disputed land of South Cerney. The immediate impact of the Conquest, before the coming of the first Norman appointed abbot, Adelelm, involved the loss of some

estates with Henry de Ferrers seizing Fyfield and Kingston.5"

Neither was to be regained by the abbey. However, by 1086 the

Domesday annual income had risen to between £510 and £540.°!® Rights and income other than land

Information on sources of revenue other than land are scarce. Occasional wills not included in the History mention money gifts, with, for example, a man called /Ethelwold leaving twenty mancuses

of gold to Abingdon for his brothers."? Domesday Book supplements the History and other narrative sources concerning other secular

resources."^ Thus it shows the importance of fisheries and woods in the area.^' Mills were a particularly significant area for investment, the scale of which is not revealed by the History but by Domesday: it records Abingdon having twenty-seven mills in Berkshire, four in Oxfordshire, and one in Gloucestershire. The dispute over Cuddesdon mill included in the revised version of the History shows the efforts that could be expended on protecting these valuable sources of revenue. De abbatibus reveals new mills being built below the curia, and a new channel for a millstream being dug in /Ethelwold's time, uncovering the Black Cross in the process." The History also reveals some commercial rights, in a charter of Edgar concerning Southampton and in the narrative concerning the duty of one hundred herrings to be paid from each ship of the citizens of Oxford to the monks’ cellarer for passing through a newly cut channel of the 516 Note that Domesday does not mention Culham; see below, p. clxi. 517 See below, pp. 222-4; see Hudson, ‘Abbey of Abingdon’, pp. 190, 196. 818 See vol. ii, p. Ixxiv. For general changes of value in Berkshire and Oxfordshire, see also Domesday Geography of South-East England, ed. Darby and Campbell, pp. 209, 260; for hidage reduction in Berkshire, ibid., pp. 249—50. It is possible that Abingdon acquired Hoe Benham, Berkshire, after the Conquest, although it is not clear at what date; vol. ii. 156 n. 378. 89 Anglo-Saxon Wills, ed. Whitelock, no. 12; see also no. 10, for Ealdorman A‘thelmer giving two pounds to Abingdon. See below, p. clxix, for gifts of ornaments. 820 On woodland, meadows, pastures, fisheries, and mills in the area, see Domesday Geography of South-East England, ed. Darby and Campbell, pp. 262-71. 821 For woods being mentioned in the History, see e.g. c. 2. 822 CMA ii. 270, 278-9, on which see Biddle er a/., “Early history’, p. 47.

clii

AUC

INTRODUCTION

D Os

MAP

TRE Abing don estates named in Domesday

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Thames.*”? The abbey may in addition have enjoyed some revenue

from jurisdictional privileges, to be considered later.9?*

There may also have been various ecclesiastical rights, for example pensions from churches with links to Abingdon, perhaps extending

back to the pre-/Ethelwoldian minster.?? Particularly close ties were

enjoyed with the church of Culham, ties for which both versions of

the History provide ancient bases.7^ The abbey may also have received revenues

from tithes, although there is no evidence for

this in the Anglo-Saxon period.*””

2. Estate administration

This section is intended to provide only background to the information in the History on the control of Abingdon’s estates, not a full economic

analysis of estate exploitation."* However, it must be noted that the information provided by both the History and Domesday is demonstrably limited, for example with regard to arrangements within

complex estates and to changing settlement and estate patterns.?? Demesne and tenants

As stated earlier, the History is notably restricted in its interest in the abbey's pre-Conquest tenants. Nevertheless, both the limited Abingdon evidence and analogies with other monasteries suggest that S 0ce. 65. TAT. 824 See below, pp. clviii-clix; for suggestions on the significance of such income, see S. P. J. Harvey, ‘The extent and profitability of demesne agriculture in England in the later eleventh century’, in T. H. Aston et a/., eds., Social Relations and Ideas: Essays in Honour of R. H. Hilton (Cambridge, 1983), pp. 45-72. 95 See Thacker, */Ethelwold', p. 48: ‘Such a community must have had a large dependent territory or parochia over which it exercised certain well-defined rights, including a monopoly over burials, claims to church scot, etc. The area of this parochia would have corresponded with the administrative unit focused on the estate with which the church was associated, in this instance, presumably, the great royal estate of Earmundesleah.’ 826 B16, B64; see also below, p. clx. 827 Cf. vol. ii, p. Ixxx. 828 Such an analysis would rely very largely on Domesday Book, not the History; see above, p. cli, on the number of mills owned by Abingdon being revealed only by Domesday. 829 See e.g. the case of lands given to the knight Hermer during the reign of William I; vol. ii. 8. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. clix, concludes that this instance ‘forms a reminder that the internal economy of the Abingdon manors may have been far more intricate than is now apparent. If the Denchworth holding was a detached portion of the Uffington manor, then we should take into account the possibility of other such associations which might result in some Abingdon holdings being concealed within Domesday entries for distant manors.’ See also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. clxii.

cliv

INTRODUCTION

leasing of lands was very important. Domesday records various Abingdon tenants whom it describes as being prohibited either from going where they wished [non potuit ire quo uoluit] or from withdrawing [non potui ab eo recedere]. These were probably leaseholders, holding the equivalent of what at Ely were called thegnlands.! The Abingdon entries also mention people who could go where they wished but none were Abingdon tenants, and in two cases they are specified as holding in alodio, which may indicate the holding of bookland.*” Domesday provides information on the proportion of land that had been granted out by the abbey. For Berkshire the information is quite extensive, and indicates that roughly a quarter of lands by value was held by tenants. This figure is approximately similar to that for 1086.5? In Oxfordshire the proportion held by tenants TRE is only about one-seventh, but the information on TRE arrangements is very limited, so the figure is likely to be a significant underestimate.*** Where it provides sufficient information, Domesday also indicates very similar patterns of estates having been alienated in 1066 and 1086. Of the Berkshire estates given individual Domesday entries, all that were alienated in 1086 had also been alienated in 1066. Only Buckland had a tenant named for 1066 and not 1086. In contrast, some of the lands presented as subsidiary units within large manors did specify tenants for 1086 but not for 1066. This may simply be an omission, but in other cases it is specified that the land had been of the demesne supply of the monks, strongly suggesting a change in

landholding terms between 1066 and 1:086.? There is no clear 53? All Berkshire, unless otherwise stated: (i) ‘non potuit ire quo uoluit: Norman in Seacourt; thegn in Wytham; Norman in Beedon; /Elfgeard's sons in Lyford; (ii) ‘non potuit ab eo recedere: /Elfward the priest and Leofwine the goldsmith in Shippon; Leofwine and Norman in Barton and Dry Sandford; Wulfric in Bayworth; six Englishmen in Sugworth, Sunningwell, and Kennington; Brihtwine, /Elfric, and a reeve in Leckhampstead, Weston, and Boxford; five thegns in Frilford; Eadwine the priest in East Hanncy;

Siward in Sandford-on- Thames (Oxfordshire). See DB i, fos. 58'—59', 156". Silence on the terms of tenure need not indicate that other tenants were free to go or withdraw. 5? On thegnlands, see Miller, Ely, pp. 51-3; some may have been administrative tenures, others leases or the product of commendation. A reference in the History to ‘vavassours’ land’ may indicate that the term thegnland was in use at Abingdon before the Conquest; vol. ii pp. lix, 50.

** DB i, fos. 58' (Edith at Benham), 59' (Blacmann at Chilton, as Harold's tenant, and Eadric at Fawler as the king’s tenant). 833 See vol. ii, p. Ixxv.

*" Named TRE tenants held lands worth a total of £8. 15s in Sandford-on-Thames; DB i, fo. 156".

955 Goosey and Hanney, DB i, fo. 59°.

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pattern of nearby estates being kept in demesne and distant ones being alienated, although there is some concentration of alienated lands on the south side of the Berkshire downs. Estate administration

Whilst fixed division of revenues between convent and abbot, and endowment of obedientiaries, were post-Conquest developments, it is possible that some revenues were allocated for specific purposes, as the History indicates was the case with the assignment of Lewknor to

the boy monks’ morning repast.**° How, then, were the demesne estates providing for monastic needs administered? A memorandum probably from the mid-thirteenth century lists seven manors that from ancient times were appropriated to the convent for the provision of food supplies: Cumnor, Barton, Marcham, Charney, Uffington,

Lockinge with Farnborough, and Milton.**”? On each lived monks known as ‘reeves of the manors [prepositi maneriorum]| .At fixed times each sent from his estate a contribution towards the provisioning of the monastery. The arrangement lasted for a long time, but was eventually changed because the monks stationed on the manors were living in a less regular fashion than was fitting. The memorandum has been analysed by Gabrielle Lambrick.*** All seven estates were pre-Conquest, and all were in north Berkshire, five being within ten miles of the abbey. All were held at least partially in demesne in Domesday and continued to be so held. She notes the similarity to the system at Cluny, but points out that it was unusual in England and might well be out of line with tenth-century reform ideals. She therefore suggests that it was unlikely to have been introduced by /Ethelwold, and puts forward as a possible candidate Osgar, who had knowledge of Fleury and possibly of other French houses deriving practices from Cluny. Alternatively it might have been introduced from c.1000 when, according to De abbatibus, the Danes wiped out the abbey. The situation in the years before the Conquest, she suggests, seems to have been that this group of manors together with others were held in demesne and supplied food farms for the monastery, including the abbot. Some would have been held by the monk reeves, others farmed 836 On division of revenues and endowment of obedientiaries, see vol. ii, pp. Ixxxiii— Ixxxvii. For Lewknor, see c. 121. Accounts of the Obedientiars, pp. 36—7, has income from Lewknor in the kitchener's account. 837 Chatsworth, no. 405, G. Lambrick, ‘Abingdon Abbey administration’, Journal of Ecclesiastical History, xvii (1966), 159-83, at pp. 182-3. 838 T ambrick, ‘Administration’, pp. 161—5.

clvi

INTRODUCTION

by laymen or other monks.**? The seven manors were probably transferred to the abbot’s management later, when a division of revenues betweei abbot and convent was negotiated.^? However, it must be said that there is no strong early evidence for this system. As Lambrick notes, it was very much against reform ideals: the proem to the Regularis Concordia states that monks are not to visit properties of the monastery except if great necessity or

reasonable discretion required.**! If such ideals rule out /Ethelwold as the inventor of the system, they surely equally rule out Osgar. More acceptable would be lay reeves rather than monks. In this case, the system would fit the type of farming of lands that we know existed

elsewhere.5? For this we have some Abingdon evidence earlier than the memorandum, although still well after the Anglo-Saxon period. MS C includes a list of revenues of the chamber, written in the same hand as the History, and therefore probably from before c.1170. It includes the entry: *from abbey's manors, which make nine and a half months, 52s. 3d.’.°*? Another list in MS C, probably in a late twelfthcentury hand, deals with the kitchener's revenues and mentions Cumnor, Marcham, Charney, Uffington, Milton, Shellingford, Lockinge, Wittenham, and Appleford, *which make one month of farm, and Cuddesdon which makes a half month of farm?.5**^ What we have 5? Lambrick, ‘Administration’, p. 165 n. r, interprets the History’s account of Blacmann's holdings at Sandford, Chilton, and Leverton in this way. She also suggests that Godric Cild was farming Sparsholt from his father Eadric TRE and inherited it on his father's death; ‘the abbey thereupon claimed that it had passed to the monastic community to which the monk belonged, and he may have been allowed to continue farming the estate in the abbey’s interest’. The History gives only very limited support for this interpretation of arrangements at Sparsholt; c. 138. DB i, fo. 59', mentions neither Eadric nor Godric farming the land from the abbey.

5" Lambrick, ‘Administration’, p. 161, where she suggests that the change took place ‘during the last quarter of the eleventh century or thereabouts’.

*!! Thid., p. 162; see Regularis Concordia, proem. 12, ed. Symons, p. 8: ‘Villarum autem circuitus, nisi necessitas magna compulerit et necessariae rationis discretio hoc dictauerit, uagando nequaquam frequentent.’

9'. R. V. Lennard, Rural England, 1086—1135 (Oxford, 1959), p. 131. It should also be noted that the evidence from Cluny is less clear for roth-century practice than Lambrick makes out. Evidence for small numbers of monks living on collections of properties known as decanie, where goods were collected before being sent to the mother house, exists from the mid-r2th century, but earlier arrangements for obedientie are much less clear; see M. Hillebrandt, “Le Doyen à Cluny: Quelques remarques sur sa terminologie et son histoire’, Annales de Bourgogne, lxxii (2000), 397-428. I would like to thank Barbara Rosenwein for her help on this point.

» CMA ii. 326; on the list, see vol. ii, p. xxvi. e CMA ii. 307, on which see vol. ii, p. xxvi. The list includes all the manors that

appear in the memorandum in the Chatsworth cartulary.

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then is nine named manors—including all seven named in the later memorandum—owing a month’s farm, and one owing half a month.** Again there is no early Grilenes to support this, the only significant Domesday statements being that Goosey and Hanney were

‘of the monks’

food’ in 1066.5 However, the type of system

suggested by these late twelfth-century customs is similar to that which existed at other houses and may have existed at Abingdon before 1066.°*” 3. Law and disputes The dispute records and the narratives that make the History such a valuable source on post-Conquest law are far less numerous for the

Anglo-Saxon period.*** Moreover, composition or rewriting of such narratives by the compiler of the History was likely to introduce more significant anachronism regarding the earlier period. Indeed, one of the uses to which the Anglo-Saxon portions of the History can be put is to suggest how Anglo-Saxon law was perceived in the time of

Henry II and beyond.*” The earlier version recounts that a certain rich man named Thorkell, by the witness and advice of Earl Harold, did homage to the church of Abingdon and Abbot Ordric concerning himself together with his land which is called Kingston. Indeed, it was then permitted to any free man to do so, so that the lordship of the aforesaid village would be dependent on the perpetual right of this church.*°

In this instance, an anachronistic term, homage, is being used in an attempt to describe an Anglo-Saxon practice, commendation. In one of the passages introducing charters to laymen in MS B twelfth- or thirteenth-century language is casually used to describe the grant: *King Alfred gave to a loyal man of his, named Deormod, the village 955 Conceivably the central estate at Barton provided the remaining two and a half months, although the present list mentions Barton paying the particular render three times a year. On Barton having the sense of central farm, see R. J. Faith, The English Peasantry and the Growth of Lordship (Leicester, 1997), pp. 36—7, 42. 846 DB i, fo. 59°. Cf. the relatively early evidence on farming at Ely contained in the Liber Eliensis, bk. ii, c. 84, ed. Blake, pp. 152—3, and discussed by Miller, Ely, pp. 37-43. 847 Tennard, Rural England, p. 131 and n. 1. See Wulfstan, Life of St Smithun, c. 11, Lapidge, Cult of St Smithun, p. 526, saying that a prepositus called Byrhtferth had looked after estates of the abbey (prouiderat ... rura monasterii) in the time of Abbot Osgar. 858 See above, pp. xxxiv, lv, on the litrited influence of learned law on the vocabulary of the History. 849 See also below, p. 192, for use of the phrase ‘in misericordia . . . incidit", ‘fell into mercy’, in the context of a case in the reign of the Confessor. 850 See below, p. 222.

clviii

INTRODUCTION

called Appleford, for his service and homage.'! The Latin translations of Old English documents also provide interesting information, although it cannot be told whether the translations were the

work of the compiler.?? For example, the terms ‘sace and socne [sake

and soke]’ are translated as ‘litigium [lawsuit|' and ‘exquisitionem [search, investigation], the latter an unusual term in England and not

a very good match for soke.*?? Jurisdictional rights of the reformed house

The phrase ‘sake and soke’ appears in the first of a pair of writs in Edward the Confessor's name. 'The writ grants Abbot Ordric for Abingdon ‘sake and soke, toll and team, and ;nfangentheof, inside borough and outside borough, hamsocn and grithbrice and foresteal over his own land'.5* Sake and soke may have involved jurisdiction similar to that of the hundred court, except perhaps in excluding any rights of capital punishment. Toll and team were the rights to take tolls and to supervise the processes of proof concerning possession of chattels. /nfangentheof was the right to execute thieves caught redhanded within the privileged land, after summary trial. Hamsocn concerns assault on a person in a house, or perhaps on the house, grithbrice breach of the peace, and forsteal obstruction, particularly of

royal officials.? Doubts have been expressed about the authenticity of this writ, but there are not sufficient difficulties to make certain

that it should be rejected.?* Some doubts could arise from minor slips or changes made in copying. It may be significant that the last three privileges are not mentioned in De abbatibus’s summary of Edward's grant, but De abbatibus struggled with the meaning even of the more common privileges and may have omitted the others either because of ignorance of their meaning or because it was providing 5! See below, p. 274. 5? Sce also use of the phrase ‘secundum patrie Anglie morem’, *according to the custom of the land of England’, in the Latin version of the will of Archbishop /Elfric, with no

equivalent in the Old English version; c. 105, B235 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 133). 755 cc. 127-8. For 'exquisitio', cf. Gesetze, ed. Liebermann, i. 213. De abbatibus gives the more imaginative translation of sake and soke as, respectively, ‘conflictus’ and ‘assaltus’; CMA ii. 282. Note also c. 127 for MS B's confusion over the spelling of infangentheof: the incorporation into the word of the *v' which MS C had used as a key within its translation sizes that the scribe of MS B did not frequently employ the term.

Se Gara7: *9 N. D. Hurnard, ‘The Anglo-Norman franchises’, EHR, lxiv (1949), 289—327, 433-

60, at pp. 302-10.

“°° Anglo-Saxon Writs, ed. Harmer, pp. 123-31.

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only a summary." Likewise, it may cast suspicion on the Confessor’s writ that his successors’ grants are less specific; William I’s writ simply grants all customs as the abbot could show by writ or charter that the abbey had had by gift of King Edward, whilst that of William II grants only ‘sake and soke and all its customs, as well and fully as it best and most fully had in the time of King Edward and of my father'.* However, the detail of Edward’s writ may have rendered later repetition unnecessary. Parallels to other writs make it plausible

that Edward’s grant should be accepted as authentic.5?? A second writ granted that Abbot Ordric and the monastery ‘are to have and possess freely Hormer hundred, in their own power for ever more. And thus that no sheriff or court reeve may have any soke or

court there without the abbot's own order and grant. It has been strongly argued

that all Anglo-Saxon

writs with such exclusion

clauses are bogus.*°' No such clause appears in William II's writ that mentions the hundred or in those from the earlier part of Henry Is reign. Rather it first appears in a writ of Henry I datable to 1126 X 1127, issued in the context of a dispute between the king and Abbot Vincent, and that dispute would provide a context for the

forgery of the writ in Edward's name.?? Whether this forgery involved creating the whole writ or just improving a grant of the hundred by the addition of an exclusion clause cannot be told. Overall, Abingdon's secular jurisdictional privileges were not extensive compared with some of the other great monasteries

established in the tenth century, for example Ely.? Nor is there any other evidence of the abbot having a court that decided land cases, as he would after the Norman Conquest. It 1s possible that some such court might have dealt with disputes over leases. However, in the only case for which we have extensive information, that concerning Leckhampstead, the issue of hereditary right was raised 857 CMA ii. 282; sec above, p. clviii n. 853. Sea VolI$i1:325«20: 859 See esp. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 573.

SOL Citz0: 861 p. Wormald, ‘Lordship and justice in the early English kingdom: Oswaldslow revisited’, in W. Davies and P. Fouracre (eds.), Property and Politics in the Early Middle Ages (Cambridge, 1995), pp. 114-36, esp. pp. 128-9.

862, Vol. ii. 230-2. 863 Cf eg. Miller, Ely, pp. 25-35; also Hurnard, ‘Anglo-Norman franchises’, esp. pp. 316-27, 446-7. See also below, cc. 9, 11, 12, B17, Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, no. 10, for privileges claimed in charters in King Coenwulf’s name; below, p. ccv, on the dating of these forgeries.

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clx

and the case was settled ‘in an assembly of high-ranking men’, most likely a royal or shire court.* Abingdon established some ecclesiastical privileges, although these too were limited compared with those of certain other houses that

were prominent in the tenth-century reform movement.*”

The

Orthodoxorum charters of privileges emphasize the abbey’s right to elect its own abbot. Even if the earlier charters of the series, in the names of Eadwig and Edgar, are not genuine, such freedom of election may have been one of /Ethelwold's main concerns as abbot. /Ethelred affirmed the right after his appointment of Ead-

wine.99 Again when Edward

the Confessor appointed the aged

Bishop Rodulf as abbot of Abingdon, the monks extracted a promise that they 'elect as his successor whomsoever they wished from amongst themselves when Rodulf died'.597 The other privileges particularly prominent in the later version of the History were those enjoyed by Culham. They supposedly derived from the time of King Coenwulf. For example, the abbot alone according to the favour of the privilege may choose and constitute a man experienced in law to hear diligently and bring to a canonical decision complaints and pleas concerning both criminal and other matters pertaining to ecclesiastical law. From that time, too, the priest or cleric of the church of Culham was to receive the chrism on the vigil of Easter by the hand of the sacrist in the church of Abingdon, to use for baptism and the sick. Moreover, when the parson or vicar of that church yields to death, the abbot of Abingdon, by his own authority and not by the consent or counsel of the archbishop or bishop or archdeacon or dean or any ecclesiastical official, will give the parsonage or vicarage to whom he wishes, without presentment being made to the

diocesan or another.?9* 99 See below, pp. 188, 210. For an interpretation of this case, see A. G. Kennedy, ‘Disputes about bocland: The forum for their adjudication’, ASE, xiv (1985), 175-95, at pp. 188-9. *5' Abingdon was not exempt from episcopal supervision, as would become particularly clear during the disputes of the early 13th century; see above, p. xlix. For the diocesan bishop being behind /Ethelred's oppression of the church, see below, p. 142. For a brief introduction to the background of monastic exemption, sec B. H. Rosenwein, Negotiating Space: Pomer, Restraint, and Privileges of Immunity in Early Medieval Europe (Ithaca, 1999), pp. 32—6.

*°° See below,

pp. 62, 96, 146; also John,

Orbis Britanniae,

p. 172; Thacker,

*/Ethelwold', p. 53.

"^ c. 125. Note also De abbatibus on Siward's responses concerning episcopal benediction; CMA ii. 281. See above, p. 1, for one of the possible motives of the reviser of the History being to re-emphasize freedom of abbatial election.

*9* See below, p. 252; see also Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, no. ro.

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It seems likely that Culham did enjoy privileges from an early period, but the exact nature of those privileges must remain uncertain.® By the later Middle Ages, Culham was an ecclesiastical peculiar under

the abbot’s direct control and had special rights of sanctuary. In

addition, Culham would be exempt from royal taxation, and geld exemption could even be an explanation for the lack of reference to

Culham in Domesday Book®”

Substantive law

Although its evidence is limited, the History does provide some interesting snippets of information, particularly about the law of landholding. Some are preserved in charters, most notably King ‘Ethelred’s charter concerning the resumption from Abingdon of certain lands that pertained to the king’s sons, vital evidence on royal landholding arrangements.*”” Others appear in narratives, thus raising anxiety about anachronism. Nevertheless, most concern the mideleventh century rather than earlier periods, and it is interesting that it was believed to have been ‘the custom among the English that those monks who wished might receive goods and patrimonies, enjoy them,

and do with them as they pleased’.’”’ We are told something of the way in which land transfers were

believed to have been made.?" Charters passed with lands, and the revised version of the History repeatedly states that the charter was

placed on the altar of the church, thus symbolizing the transfer? 89 See e.g. Thacker, /Ethelwold', p. 45, for the argument that ‘there seems no good reason to reject these traditions out of hand, and they find some confirmation in the fact that Culham long remained very closely linked with the abbey’. Arguments based on working back from later arrangements are criticized e.g. by E. Cambridge and D. Rollason, ‘Debate: The pastoral organization of the Anglo-Saxon Church. A review of the *Minster Hypothesis", Early Medieval Europe, iv (1995), 87—104. 870 Thacker, */Ethelwold', p. 49; VCH, Oxfordshire, vii. 35. 9" See VCH, Oxfordshire, vii. 30-2; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. ccv, 47-8. On ecclesiastical peculiars in the later Middle Ages, see R. N. Swanson, ‘Peculiar practices: The jurisdictional jigsaw of the pre-Reformation Church’, Midland History, xxvi (2001), 69-95. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. clxiv, suggests that ‘it may have been Culham’s complete identification with the abbey (and perhaps with Hormer Hundred) that led to its omission from the Domesday survey’. 87 c. gg. See P. Wormald, ‘On pa waxpnedhealfe: Kingship and royal property from ZEthelwulf to Edward the Elder’, in Edward the Elder, ed. Higham and Hill, pp. 264-79, 9/5 See below, p. 212. esp. pp. 271, 274. 874 See above, pp. cxxvii, cxlv, for purchases and exchanges. 9/5 See e.g. B42, B44, which state that the donor ‘as was then the custom, as a symbol of this gift placed the king's charter (through which he had all his right in that land) on the

altar of the blessed Mary at Abingdon’.

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INTRODUCTION

Whilst such statements are given in routine fashion, and are in part intended to show why the charters ended up at Abingdon, some such ceremony seems plausible. In one case the routine statement is expanded to include direct speech by the donor: Lulla, desiring before his death to make Christ his heir, with the consent of King Beorhtric and the counsel of authoritative men, gave and granted to God and St Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there the aforesaid village, that is Easton, and placed on the altar of the blessed Mary at Abingdon that charter whereby King Beorhtric had confirmed that land to him. At that time this had greater efficacy and confirmatory power than anything else that he could do concerning that land. And as a sign of complete agreement he pronounced in English ‘All my right which I had in Easton I give to St Mary in Abingdon’.*”°

The routine mention of royal consent again may not be based on any detailed knowledge of Anglo-Saxon law, and may be included because of later practice, but neither of these reasons precludes the possibility that the consent of Anglo-Saxon kings was on occasion sought for grants of bookland. There is some information about leases, including possible ambiguity over their duration: a custom in those days got out of control, to considerable future damage: anyone offering plenty of gold or silver would receive by purchase a portion of land amounting to three or five hides, or a whole village, in various places of the abbey, under the cover that permission to possess this land was to extend for the lives of three, or two, men.??

The rather awkward ending may be significant dispute over Leckhampstead, where the church original lessee’s wife should count as one of the the lease should last. It is possible that in some not have counted the widow in this way.*”

in the context of the was insistent that the three lives for which cases lay lessees may

Disputes

Leases were a prominent

issue in the small number

of dispute

narratives in the pre-Conquest part of the History.8”? Apart from sa Br3.

37 See below, p. 218.

See below, p. 190. Other leases were for a shorter period than even a single life, for example that of South Cerney to Bishop Stigand; below, p. 196. See also above, p. cxxix, below, p. clxiii.

*” L omit disputes not directly involving Abingdon, as recorded in some charters copied

into the History; see esp. B227 (= Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, no. 125, trans. EHD, i. no. 118). Note also the dispute concerning Lewknor, but not directly involving Abingdon; c. 121.

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the account of the early conflict with King Coenwulf, the case concerning Leckhampstead is the first dispute narrative to appear in the earlier version of the History.**° A lease of South Cerney also produced a dispute, on the outcome of which the History is rather obscure; Domesday Book only records that it was claimed by Abingdon but ‘all the shire testified that Archbishop Stigand had

held it for ten years in King Edward’s time’.**' Fyfield was leased for three lives to the sheriff Godric but lost to Henry de Ferrers after the

Conquest.** Apart from disputes over leased lands, the later version of the History also includes quarrels involving a meadow and—after the Norman Conquest—a mill. The latter in particular is a type of dispute that would feature strongly in later parts of the History. Also like several later disputes, it involves conflict with a royal official.99* We learn something of disputing procedures in and out of court. Most notable is the use of documents in court, for example the production of a landbook by Abingdon’s opponent Brihtwine in the dispute concerning Leckhampstead: Brihtwine . . . had hitherto possessed the land at Leckhampstead without the monks' permission, and he was behaving in particularly loud-mouthed fashion since he had the land-book, that is the document of the estate described. For he who had in his possession such writing could thereby dispute more confidently for any land.**

It is unclear why Brihtwine, if he was only the successor of a lessee as the abbey claimed, had come into possession of the document. Nevertheless, his strong position may explain why, despite the History presenting the abbey as victorious in dispute, Domesday Book records Brihtwine as the abbot's tenant of Leckhampstead in the time of King Edward.**° The same case is also interesting for Bishop, formerly Abbot, Siward's use of a letter to send his evidence $50 Ce: 09 12052136:

33! See below, p. 196; DB i, fo. 169.

882 See below, p. 224; see also the general statement, below, p. 218-20, concerning problems arising from leases.

583 B63, Bzor. 884 Tt may be significant that it appears at the stage where the text was quite possibly starting to draw on earlier notes or memoranda. For another clash with a royal official, see below, p. 228, involving Froger the sheriff. 885 See below, tenant by a lease the church, but hereditary right;

ESOU BIO

p. 208. Brihtwine was, according to the History, the brother of the third for three lives. At his brother’s death, the land should have returned to Brihtwine was refusing to give up the land and claiming it instead by c. 120.

Sot

clxiv

INTRODUCTION

concerning a case, an instance of a practice for which there are few

surviving parallels." One may also wonder whether the dispute

would have arisen, or have been so serious, had not Siward moved from Abingdon to Canterbury. However, the most striking example for procedure in court, appearing only in the later version of the History, is the use of a shield, sheaf of wheat, and candle to determine possession of a meadow at Berry, disputed with men of Oxfordshire. The shield floated down the Thames, miraculously indicating Abingdon's possessions. The use of such a procedure in a dispute during the reign of Edmund is unprovable; if based on any early record, its absence from the first version of the History is hard to explain. The supernatural, however, is involved in other judicial contexts as well. The later version of the History attributes to the Black Cross particular power, which would have been relevant in judicial contexts: ‘it is so holy that no one who has taken an oath on it can affirm a lie without punishment and mortal danger, for it is believed to have been smelted and made in large part from nails of the Lord’. If such a view was widely shared, it is an interesting instance of the type of popular beliefs that would have been of considerable importance in the administration of justice but are rarely recorded.?? The same version of the History records Abbot Ealdred taking the relics of St Vincent to confront the men of the bishopric of Lincoln in their dispute over Cuddesdon mill: When, indeed, by judgment of the judges present it came about that the abbot was to make an oath on the relics which he had brought that his side was the more just, he knelt and stretched upwards his right hand. When, lo, on the opponents’ side the firm ground began to shake, the hard ground to soften, so much so that the feet of the horses became stuck in the softness. Also a very strong wind plucked the spears from the hands of those holding 59 See esp. S. D. Keynes, ‘The Fonthill Letter’, in M. Korhammer, ed., Words, Texts and Manuscripts: Studies in Anglo-Saxon Culture presented to Helmut Gneuss on the Occasion of his Sixty-fifih Birthday (Cambridge, 1992), pp. 53-97. 55 B63. On this case, see also above, p. xlii; EPNS, Berkshire, ii. 454. For parallels with an episode in Beowulf, see A. Orchard, A Critical Companion to ‘Beowulf’ (Woodbridge, 2003), pp. 102-3; C. Tolley, *Beomulf's Scyld Scefing episode: Some Norse and Finnish analogues’, 47v, lii (1996), 7—48, at p. 11; R. North, Heathen Gods in Old English Literature (Cambridge, 1997), pp. 182-94. H. M. Chadwick, The Origin of the English Nation (Cambridge, 1907), p. 279, stated that the story ‘must have been founded upon some ritual practice current among the peasantry of the district’.

* Bz. See e.g. J. G. H. Hudson, The Formation ofthe English Common Law (Harlow, 1996), p. 159, on popular belief concerning ordeal.

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them, and threw them into the air, dashed them against one another and broke them by the force of the wind, in a marvellous sight.

Finally, the Leckhampstead dispute shows resort to the supernatural not to decide a case but to ensure that a decision be observed: Not long afterwards, when Hereman the diocesan bishop of this place was dedicating the church then constructed at the cemetery entrance, amongst the rest of the things which were there held to be admitted or excluded by episcopal office, he excluded from the community of Christianity and struck with perpetual anathema all who from that time strove in any way for the extraction of the aforesaid land from the sustenance of the monks living at Abingdon.??! VII.

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1. Dedication

As soon as we have any secure information, we know that the abbey of Abingdon was dedicated to St Mary. However, our sole evidence for this for the period before the mid-tenth century comes from forged charters and later narratives. This may lead to some caution as to the early dedication, because at least some abbeys, including Worcester,

had a change of dedication to Mary in the tenth century??? Interestingly, the privilege for Abingdon in King Eadwig's name refers to the abbey, ‘situated in the well-known place called by the noble name of Abingdon by local inhabitants of this race, and held to be dedicated to the mother of our Lord Mary, ever Virgin, and also to the blessed Peter prince of the apostles and to his fellow apostle Paul". Whether or not the charter as it stands is authentic, it seems unlikely that this unusual reference to Peter and Paul would be a result of later composition. However, there is no other strong

evidence for an early dedication to these apostles.*” 99 See below, p. 37489?! See below, p. 210. 82 Clayton, Cult, pp. 132-4. She modifies her views somewhat in 'Centralism and uniformity versus localism and diversity: The Virgin and native saints in the monastic reform’, Peritia, viii (1994), 95-106. An alternative possibility is that Abingdon, like other early minsters, may at one stage have had a pair of churches, one dedicated to Peter and Paul, the other to Mary. Mary then emerged as the main dedication, attached to the abbey church. See J. Blair, ‘Anglo-Saxon minsters: A topographical review’, in J. Blair and R. Sharpe, eds., Pastoral Care before the Parish (Leicester, 1992), pp. 226-66, at 250-6. 93 See below, p. 62. 99 See also c. 94 for Bishop Sidemann being buried at Abingdon in the chapel dedicated to St Paul.

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INTRODUCTION

2. Buildings Evidence for the abbey buildings is poor. The written sources are late and limited, the archaeological investigation inconclusive. An excavation in 1922 was poorly executed. It uncovered on the site of the Norman abbey an Anglo-Saxon church, the dimensions of which may have been at least 200 feet long by 57 feet wide, possibly with an eastend apse. This building has been variously interpreted as /Ethelwold's minster, an earlier church possibly of the ninth century, or a

post-Conquest building. Pre-Ethelpoldian church

'The existence of a round church seems to have been associated with the Virgin Mary, with a possible example at Hexham in the early eighth century, and there is some evidence for such a church at Abingdon.*”° Unfortunately, neither version of the History gives us a description of the pre-Conquest church buildings, although a description of the earliest church may have appeared in the lost early folios of the revised version. Instead, we have to rely on De abbatibus, which describes churches that it attributes to the founder, Haha, and the refounder, /Ethelwold. Heha’s monasterium was 120 feet long and round in east and west. It was built where the monks? cellar currently was, in such a way that the altar stood where the lavatorium was now situated. About it were twelve cells for the twelve monks, and the same number of chapels. There was a high surrounding wall rather than a cloister. According to a later passage in De abbatibus, the Danes destroyed the monasterium, but the cells and chapels survived to be found by /Ethelwold, who ordered that they be preserved.??? 55 Biddle et al., ‘Early history’, pp. 63-4; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. xxxix. 95 See Clayton, Cult, p. 137, who notes further evidence from Bury and St Augustine's, Canterbury; R. Krautheimer, ‘Sancta Maria Rotunda’, in Studies in Early Christian, Medieval, and Renaissance Art (London, 1969), pp. 107-14; R. Gem, ‘Towards an iconography of Anglo-Saxon architecture’, Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes, xlvi (1983), 1-18, esp. at pp. 8, 11. Neither the History nor De abbatibus gives any description of the monastery associated with Abben.

"7 CMA ii. 272-3, 277. E. Fernie, The Architecture ofthe Anglo-Saxons (London, 1983), p. 110, argues that the description of the monasterium concerns the whole site, not just the church; he draws a contrast with the ecclesia mentioned at CMA ii. 273. The ellipsis within his translation may slightly alter the sense of the passage, and he does not deal with the later passage concerning Danish destruction. See also CMA ii. 270, where the ‘officinas monachorum' are referred to as distinct from the ‘monasterium’. The earlier version of the History does not mention destruction of the church by the Danes, but the later version tells

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It is hard to know how much trust to place in this description. As we have seen, archaeology provides no help. The passage in De abbatibus is followed by a description of clothing, food, and other practices within the monastery, which seem highly unlikely to have any early source." If monasterium does, as seems likely, refer to the church, it might indicate a longitudinal church, with apses at both east and west ends; however, this would make Abingdon the first

church on this plan north of the Alps, which may also instil doubt.???

That the rounded ends of Hzha’s monasterium bears some resemblance to De abbatibus's description of /Ethelwold's own church, to be discussed below, may also instil scepticism. If, on the other hand, monasterium 1s taken to refer to the whole site, such a sub-circular precinct does seem plausible for an early religious community, but at 120 feet would be extremely small." If preserved by /Ethelwold, memory of it may have passed down into the written record. However, it need not have been the work of the founder, and it has been suggested that De abbatibus may be describing ‘arrangements which would have characterized many, perhaps all, of the grander ecclesiastical communities in the period before reform’, that is

perhaps in the earlier tenth rather than the seventh century.??! The fate of the early abbey church, whatever its form, is not recorded with any certainty. The later version of the History, like De abbatibus, attributes to the Danes the destruction of Haha's church but this is not specified in the earlier version of the History. It has been suggested that the early buildings may have survived to form part of a group with /Ethelwold's church, but if these included the early church it may be the more surprising that we hear so little of its form and nothing of its later demise in the History.”

us that ‘nothing is reported to have remained there besides the walls’; below, p. 268. For a description of a possibly rather similar group of buildings at Christchurch minster, Hampshire, see J. Blair, The Church in Anglo-Saxon Society (Oxford, 2005), p. 516.

88 CMA ii. 273. 59? Fernie, Architecture of the Anglo-Saxons, p. 110. 9 See e.g. Biddle et al., ‘Early history’, p. 43; R. J. Cramp, ‘Monastic sites’, in Wilson, ed., Archaeology of Anglo-Saxon England, pp. 201-52, at 216; Blair, ‘Anglo-Saxon minsters: A topographical review’, p. 235, with other relevant comments at pp. 227, 230 on geography, pp. 235-46 on the reuse of Roman sites. 9!! Thacker, */Ethelwold', p. 48. 92 See Gem, ‘Iconography’, p. 8n.42; he does not there discuss the account in De abbatibus of the Danish destruction of all but the cells and chapels, CMA ii. 277.

clxviii

INTRODUCTION

"Ethelmold's church

JEthelwold's own vernacular account of reform states that Edgar ordered that a glorious minster be built at Abingdon within three years, but does not describe the resultant building." The Life of St "Ethelwold specifies that the new church was built on the existing site and was measured out for /Ethelwold by King Eadred himself.” Such action suggests that the church may have been started from scratch, rather than modifying an existing building. /Ethelwold worked on the site himself, and *one day, when the man of God was toiling at building work, a huge post fell on him, knocking him into a pit. He broke almost all his ribs on one side, and would have been completely shattered but for the pit breaking his fall.” Unfortunately, the Life gives no description of the church, saying that it is better seen than described." The earlier version of the History repeats the story of Eadred measuring out the foundations and records the dedication of the church in 963." However neither it nor the revised version describes the church.” We are again left to rely on De abbatibus, which states *Cancellus rotundus erat; ecclesia et rotunda, duplicem habens longitudinem quam cancellus; turris

quoque rotunda erat’.”” If rotundus means ‘round ended’, we have a description notably similar to that given for Hzha's church.?!? If rotundus means ‘round’, the meaning is different: ‘the chancel was round, the nave also round and twice the length of the chancel, and a tower too was round’. Thus we appear to have a centrally planned building, perhaps related in design to the palace chapel at Aachen.?!! 95 Councils and Synods, i. 148. ?* Wulfstan, Life of Ethelwold, c. 13, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, p. 24. According to Leland, Faritius moved ‘the olde churche that stode then more northerlye where now the orchard is’, the old church presumably being that of /Ethelwold; The Itinerary of John Leland in or about the Years 1535—1543, ed. L. T. Smith (5 vols., London, 1906—r0), v. 76.

?5 Wulfstan, Life of /Ethelmold, c. 15, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, p. 28. The church concerned is not specified but the position of the chapter in the Life would suggest Abingdon.

°° Wulfstan, Life of thelwold, c. 13, cd. Lapidge and Winterbottom, p. 24. ?" See below, pp. 56, 116; also John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 611. °°8 B207 would be the obvious place for such a description. B252 mentions the church, but gives no physical sense of it. See below, Br18-Br19, for a grant relating to the building of the church.

CMA ii. 277-8.

*!! See noting his possibility circular or display of

*! Biddle et al., Early history’, p. 45.

Gem, ‘Iconography’, pp. 7-12; Fernie, Architecture of the Anglo-Saxons, p. 109, comments on the tower; Thacker, */Ethelwold', p. 57, who also states that ‘one is that like /Ethelwold's reconstructed Old Minster at Winchester it had a large perhaps double-apsed west work with a complex of chapels and facilities for the relics and for royal ceremonial’.

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At least by 977 there was a porticus chapel on the north, where Bishop

Sidemann was buried.?? Other buildings

From narratives, we also learn in passing of other monastic buildings. The revised version of the History contains accounts of two miracles said to have occurred in the refectory in the time of the Danes, which may be an imposition of later arrangements or may give some indication of the existence of other monastic buildings in the

second half of the ninth century.?? /Ethelwold's inspection of the monastery, according to the earlier version of the History, took him to the kitchen [coquina]. However, the monk cooking there was doing so for craftsmen or workmen rather than monks, and it is notable that

the version of the story in the Life does not use the word kitchen.?!* In the time of Edward the Confessor we hear of the king and queen visiting all the domestic buildings of the monks, and seeing the boy

monks eating in the refectory.?? In the same reign a church was dedicated at the cemetery entrance.” Ornaments

Abingdon texts tell us a considerable amount about the ornaments that decorated the interior of the church. Particularly prominent are reliquaries.?"" Also mentioned are liturgical vestments and vessels, as

well as splendid gospel books.?'? The revised History gives a lengthy account of /Ethelwold's contribution. Of especial note was a silver retable, worth £300, but his gifts also included a chalice, crosses, and

cloths of silver and gold.?'? MS B also says that /Ethelwold made a ?7 ASC, *C', s.a. 977. For another, eastern, porticus chapel having existed but been demolished by the end of the 11th century, see vol. ii. 30. For the possibility of a chapel dedicated to St Vincent, see below, p. 286. According to the revised version of the History, Abbot Siward (1030-44) contemplated demolishing this church, but this is not mentioned in the earlier version or in De abbatibus, and (as suggested above, p. I) the reviser's passage may reflect 13th-century concerns rather than r1th-century reality; B252.

?5 B38-B39. 914 c. 29; cf. Wulfstan, Life of Zthelwold, c. 14, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, p. 26.

Mcr:

?15 See below, p. 210.

?U See below, pp. 172, 176-8, 194, 356. On reliquaries, see Dodwell, Anglo-Saxon Art,

pp. 195-201. 18 See below, pp. 172, 194, 356; note the mention of bells below, pp. 178, 356. Sec Dodwell, Anglo-Saxon Art, pp. 180—7 on vestments, 203-9 on vessels, 201—3 on books and bindings. 19 See below, pp. 338-40. According to De abbatibus, engraved (sculpta) on the retable were the twelve apostles and perhaps the Virgin; CMA ii. 278. Dodwell, Anglo-Saxon Art, p. 209, refers to it as a ‘frontal’. For crosses four feet high, see CMA ii. 278; Dodwell,

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INTRODUCTION

form of timbrel ‘to arouse greater devotion on festival days’, and constructed two bells ‘with his own hands’.””? Many such ornaments fell victim to the Norman Conquest, a notable oppressor being William I's queen.” 3. Monastic life

Abingdon before Athelwold

The sources give very little specific information on life in the church of Abingdon before the tenth century. If it is to be trusted at all, the foundation story, with Haha's equivocation over his monastic vows, may suggest a situation where boundaries between secular and monastic were confused, as suggested by Bede's Letter to Egbert?” It is also possible that the History is right to associate the early foundation with a nunnery at St Helens. The local settlement pattern and the discovery of the cruciform disc-headed pin later known as the

Black Cross might provide evidence for such a nunnery.?^* In the eighth and ninth centuries Abingdon was in the contested border area between Mercia and Wessex, and it seems likely that Abingdon was a royal minster, first under the control of Mercia and then of Wessex.?"* The scale of the minster, and even the effect of Anglo-Saxon Art, p. 212, notes that the text does not make any comment suggesting they were unusually large, although it should be added that such comment might not be expected of De abbatibus.

°0 Dodwell, Anglo-Saxon Art, pp. 49—50, is sceptical of statements that /Ethelwold himself made sophisticated ornaments. ?! See below, p. 224; see also p. 340. See further Dodwell, Anglo-Saxon Art, ch. 8, esp. pp. 221-2, on the impact of the Norman Conquest. D CEA ?5 For a cautious suggestion of this possibility, see Blair, Anglo-Saxon Oxfordshire, pp. 64—5; also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. cci, ‘what relationship [the pre-/Ethelwoldian minster] would have had with St Helen's is impossible to discover. Perhaps we should see the two centres as respective components of a double monastery, with the men living separately from the women.’ The stronger suggestion by Meyer, ‘Patronage’, pp. 345-6, is criticized by Foot, Veiled Women, i. 51 n. 80. For St Helen's as an early minster, see Biddle et al., ‘Karly history’, p. 29, and Thacker, */Ethelwold', p. 50, who both raise the possibility that the later parochial rights of St Helen's may show its early importance. For criticism of the method of working back from later parochial rights, see Cambridge and Rollason, ‘Pastoral organization of the Anglo-Saxon Church’, e.g. p. 102: ‘Payments for chrism, which couli only be supplied by the bishop, were not an archaic due in the late eleventh

century but a significant element of episcopal income. Their organization may therefore have been of recent date.’

?/^ Sce above, p. cix, on the border region. Thacker, */Ethelwold', p. 47, suggests that the minster would have been occupied by ‘a group of secular priests or canons, who lived in separate houses drawing separate incomes from the communal property, and who, in the tolerant circ*mstances of the ninth-century Anglo-Saxon church, may even perhaps have married’.

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the area, are uncertain. Nevertheless, certainly by as we have seen, Abingdon was an important royal with a royal residence or palace would have been a it is possible that the minster was headed by one of

/Ethelstan’s favoured Continental clerics, Godescealc.??^

The earlier version of the History states that ‘after [/Ethelstan's] death [939], the monastery of Abingdon was reduced to such forlornness that all possessions belonging to it were subjected to royal lordship, and it was utterly destitute of monks’, whilst the later

puts the decline after the death of Edmund (946).?5 However, as we have seen, the Life of St Zthelwold mentions a continuing endowment of forty hides even in the period of destitution. The History may well exaggerate the scale of decline in order to highlight /Ethelwold's

achievement.??? "]Ethelwold and after: material life The existing close association of Abingdon with the king made it a particularly suitable place for Eadred to give /Ethelwold to build up

his monastery.?? The fourteenth-century chronicler John of Glastonbury dated the refoundation of Abingdon to 954, but his source, if any, is unknown, and earlier evidence cannot provide such an exact date.””? Nevertheless, the association with Eadred's reign (946—55) is supported by the Life of St /Ethelmold and its account of that king

measuring out the foundations of the new abbey.??? De abbatibus states that there were fifty monks at Abingdon in /Ethelwold’s time, although the Winchester Liber Vitae gives the

names of only forty-one Abingdon monks in the period up to 1030. 9/5 See below, pp. 38, 286; see above, pp. xcv, cvii. ?26 See above, p. cxiv. ?7 Wulfstan, Life of /Ethelmold, c. 11, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, pp. 18-20; the passage is copied below, p. 296. See also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. ccix; Thacker, * Athelwold', p. 51, argues that ‘almost certainly . . . the church which /Ethelwold came to rule and reform in 955 had only ten years before been a substantial minster associated with

an important royal residence’. 9/8 Cf. Stenton, Early History, pp. 50-1, who stated that ‘so far as we can see it was only chance that directed that Abingdon should be the scene of /Ethelwold's labours’. He notes that there were other monasteries in Berkshire, and that *we have no warrant for the

assumption that Abingdon, when /Ethelwold received it, differed in any significant way from any of these little houses’. i 29 Wulfstan, Life of Ethelwold, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, p. xliv.

930 Wulfstan, Life of Ethelwold, c. 12, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, p. 22; sce also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. xxxvi-xxxvii. 953! CMA ii. 279; Liber Vitae, ed. Keynes, pp. 95-6, fos. 26'—27'. See above, n. 667, for rejection of the idea that some form of female community existed at p. cxxii Abingdon in the roth century.

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INTRODUCTION

The monks for the new monastery came from various places, the Life

of St JEthelmold naming Glastonbury, Winchester, and London."

According to the earlier version of the History, *to follow the stricter way of life, very many men of God, from diverse parts of England and instructed in different manners of reading and singing, heard of the holiness of /Ethelwold, came to him and were received??? This stricter way of life was in part liturgical, as will be discussed shortly, but also presumably covered matters such as food provision. However, whilst /Ethelwold is generally regarded as the most austere of the English reformers, it should be noted that our twelfth- and thirteenth-century narratives give instances of him alleviating the strictness of the Rule in certain ways. According to De abbatibus, he

did so in order to attract the rich to become monks.”** Most notable is the account in the revised version of the History of his provisions concerning food and drink. Some historians have treated this with scepticism, seeing it as a justification for laxities in life at the time of writing. However, it may be that greater trust should be placed at least in the general thrust of the account, not least because an early eleventh-century riddle appears to celebrate the generosity of /Ethel-

wold’s drink provision.?* As for the standards of life at Abingdon after the abbacies of /Ethelwold and Osgar, the History provides little comment. Notably neutral in tone is the statement with reference to a mid-eleventhcentury practice that was certainly not acceptable at the time of writing: “it was then the custom among the English that those monks who wished might receive goods and patrimonies, enjoy them, and do

with them as they pleased’.”*° The additional food provision for boy monks is also recorded." However, we cannot gain an overall picture of either declining or maintained standards, and the History did not endeavour to provide one. ?3? See above, p. cvii. ?55* CMA ii. 279. See further Thacker, */Ethelwold', p. 56.

?33 See below, p. 54.

?55 B207. For doubts, see Knowles, Monastic Order, pp. 716—17; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. xl. For greater acceptance, see Porter, ‘/Ethelwold’s bowl’, and Lapidge, "/Ethelwold as scholar and teacher’, p. 106 and n.105, where he comments ‘that the information as transmitted includes a number of Old English words and expressions (e.g. bolla A:thelwoldi) which are unlikely to have been fabricated by a thirteenth-century chronicler’.

°° See below, p. 212; Gransden, "Traditionalism and continuity’, p. 191, gives this as an

example of diversity of custom, and describes it as *perilously near to property owning by individual monks’. See also Knowles, Monastic Order, pp. 80-1 and n. 4. eae

C. 121.

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A:thelwold and after: liturgical life and learning The Virgin Mary, to whom the abbey was dedicated, was naturally of considerable importance in the devotions of /Ethelwold and of Abingdon. Whilst her Assumption limited the number of possible relics, at least by the early twelfth century Abingdon was claiming possession of Marian clothing relics.”** The tenth-century reformers promoted considerable liturgical devotion to the Virgin, as is apparent, for instance, from the Regularis Concordia as well as from monastic dedications.» At Abingdon we have evidence for such devotion continuing beyond the initial period of reform, for a Marian

poem was dedicated to Siward, abbot from 1030 to 1044.?^? The church of Abingdon acquired relics of saints other than Mary even before the coming of /Ethelwold. The revised version of the History recounts the Frankish embassy to /Ethelstan's court in 926, bringing him as gifts precious relics specifically part standard of St Theban legion, aforesaid King silver reliquary,

to be treated with all reverence and also to be venerated, of a thorn of the crown and part of a nail of the Lord, and the Maurice the most glorious martyr and commander of the with a precious finger of St Denis the martyr. . . . The /Ethelstan gave those relics, concealed with all honour in a to this most sacred house of Abingdon.?"!

The same event was recorded by William of Malmesbury, who stated that the piece of the crown of thorns and a piece of Christ's cross passed to Malmesbury. What we have is competition between at least two houses for precious relics.?*? In the early twelfth century the list ?38 Vol. ii. 220; for the limits to Marian relics, see Clayton, Cult, p. 131. °39 See Clayton, Cult, esp. pp. 62-8, 89, 110, 121. °#0 See ibid., pp. 106-8; the poem was added (probably between 1030 and 1044) to a copy of Boethius! De Consolatione Philosophiae, written at Abingdon c.1000. Clayton states, pp. 106—7, that ‘the poem consists of a set of Latin verses, written in the form of a circular maze, which can be read in either of two ways: by following the path of the maze, which gives one arrangement of lines, or according to the circles, which gives a different arrangement. The seven concentric circles reflect the sevenfold heaven into which, the author prays, Siweard, the dedicatee of the verses will be introduced." It is not strictly necessary that the poem was composed at Abingdon. It could have been written elsewhere with a dedication to Siward, and then copied into the Abingdon manuscript. °41 B62. If this version of the story is true, the passing of the standard of Maurice provides some evidence of interest in Roman martyrs at Abingdon in the roth century; see also vol. ii, p. civ and n. 588. On relics at Abingdon before 1066, see also I. G. Thomas, ‘The Cult of Saints’ Relics in Medieval England’, Ph.D. thesis (London, 1975), pp. 150-5. 42 William of Malmesbury, Gesta regum, bk. ii, c. 135, ed. Mynors et al., 1. 218-20. For possible additional competition from Exeter, sec L. H. Loomis, "The holy relics of

clxxiv

INTRODUCTION

of relics drawn up for Abbot Faritius included the holy nail and the

finger of St Denis, but not the others mentioned in this passage."

JEthelwold himself displayed considerable interest in relics.?** In later Abingdon writings this manifested itself most importantly in his association with the finding of the Black Cross. However, it should be noted that this episode is mentioned neither in the Life of St AEthelmold nor the earlier version of the History. Nor, still more strikingly, does the relic appear in Abbot Faritius's list.°** The earlier version of the History does mention the presence at Abingdon of relics of St Vincent, for which King cnu*t provided a reliquary.”*° The later version adds the story of their spectacular use by Abbot Ealdred in

the dispute concerning the mill at Cuddesdon.^" The presence of relics of Vincent at Abingdon is confirmed by the early and independent evidence of an Anglo-Saxon list of saints’ resting places."*? According to Abbot Faritius’s list, the relics consisted of an arm, a thigh bone, part of a shoulder blade, and a rib. They had, the History tells us, been acquired in the time of King Edgar. De abbatibus, more dramatically, tells us that they were stolen from Glastonbury in

Abbot Osgar’s time."

Again we have competition

concerning

Charlemagne and King Athelstan: The lances of Longinus and St Mauricius’, Speculum, xxv (1950), 437-56, at pp. 446-50.

?5 Vol. ii. 220-2. This need not indicate the truth of the History's story, but might indicate that the story reflects r2th-century relic holdings. ?*! On Athelwold and relics, see also Thacker, ‘Ethelwold’, p. 6r, and S. J. Ridyard, The Royal Saints of Anglo-Saxon England (Cambridge, 1988), pp. 106—14. On /Ethelwold obtaining Edgar's permission to transfer relics from neglected sites, see the *Lives of Saint Thancred and Saint Torhtred’, in Liber Vitae: Register and Martyrology of New Minster and Hyde Abbey, Winchester, ed. W. de Gray Birch (London, 1892), p. 286. ?5 T take the ‘small part ofanail’ to be the relic acquired from /Ethelstan, not that used

in the making of the Black Cross; vol. ii. 220. Cf. Thacker, */Ethelwold', p. 60: *it seems reasonable to suppose that the story [of the Black Cross] was current in /Ethelwold's time, and that the veneration of the cross in the new community represents an attempt to link it with early monasticism at Abingdon'. The feast of St Helen (18 Aug.) was observed at Abingdon, but was not unique to that monastery and need not be specifically associated with the relic of the Black Cross; English Benedictine Kalendars afier A. D. rroo, ed. F. Wormald (2 vols., Henry Bradshaw Soc., Ixxvii, Ixxxi; 1939, 1946), i. 26.

?** See below, p. 176; also p. 356. See below, p. 286, for a chapel dedicated to St Vincent. Vincent, the proto-martyr of Spain, died in 304; Oxford Dictionary of Saints, p- 391. On his cult, see further Thacker, */Ethelwold', p. 60n. 132 °7 Boor, above, p. clxiv.

^* D. W. Rollason, ‘Lists of saints’ resting-places in Anglo-Saxon England’, ASE, vii

(1978), 61-93, at p. 91.

?^* Vol. ii. 70, 200, CMA ii. 280; also stolen were the head of St Apollinaris and many other relics. Cf. William of Malmesbury on Glastonbury's acquisition of the relics, De antiquitate Glastonte ecclesie, c. 62, Scott, Early History of Glastonbury, p. 130; see also Gesta regum, bk. ii, c. 160, ed. Mynors et ai., i. 260. Thacker, ‘Ethelwold’, p. 61, suggests that ‘it

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possession of relics. Similarly Shaftesbury and Abingdon both claimed possession of the relics of Edward the martyr, and the earlier version of the History provided a miracle to support Abingdon’s position. In the time of cnu*t, the relics of St Edward, king and martyr, were moved to Abingdon. And when their carrier afterwards resolved to take them away from there, not far from the church on his journey, by God’s will he was stopped in his tracks and could go no further. Thus the sacred relics were brought back to the church and are preserved therein to this day.???

Abbot Faritius's list of relics also includes a shoulder blade, arm, finger, and some hairs of /Ethelwold himself. His cult presumably developed at Abingdon as well as elsewhere soon after his death, and he appears prominently in a calendar perhaps written at Abingdon in c.1000 and certainly in the abbey's possession by the mid-eleventh

century.”*! The revised History includes a prayer plausibly attributed to /Ethelwold and most likely preserved at Abingdon since his time.?? Besides relics, a further manifestation of the cult of the saints was the observance of feast days. According to the later version of the History, /Ethelwold replaced mead with wine at dinner for the principal feasts observed at Abingdon: Christmas, Easter, Whitsun, the Assumption of St Mary and her Nativity, the birth of the apostles Peter and Paul, the feast of All Saints.?? The same calendar that names /Ethelwold also includes various early saints, and their

commemoration may reflect /Ethelwold's own interests.??* The manuscript containing the calendar is of the greatest iinportance as evidence of learning and liturgical life in late Anglo-Saxon Abingdon.?? It includes a heavily annotated copy of the Rule of St looks therefore as if Eadgar may have come into possession of relics of St Vincent and divided them between Glastonbury and Abingdon’. On Faritius’s treatment of the festivals of St Apollonaris and Vincent, see vol. ii, p. cvi. The head of Apollinaris does not appear in Faritius's relic list. 950 c. 115; cf. B25o. Faritius’s relic list includes ‘the greatest part of St Edward’; sce vol. ii. 222. William of Malmesbury stated that parts of Edward's body were taken from Shaftesbury to Leominster and Abingdon; Gesta pontificum, bk. ii, c. 86, ed. Hamilton, p. 188.

951 Thacker, ‘Aithelwold’, pp. 62-3; on the manuscript, Cambridge, Corpus Christi College 57, see below; on the cult, see Wulfstan, Life of /Ethelmold, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, pp. cxii-cxliii. De abbatibus records Abbot Ingulf (1130-58) building a chapel dedicated to St /Ethelwold; CMA ii. 291. ?53 See below, p. 342. 952 B208.

954 See Thacker, */Ethelwold', pp. 62-3.

°55 Cambridge, Corpus Christi College 57; for what follows, see esp. M. R. James, A Descriptive Catalogue of Manuscripts in the Library of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge

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INTRODUCTION

Benedict, two texts associated with the Carolingian reformer Benedict of Aniane, and the Diadema monachorum by the early ninth-century author Smaragdus of Saint-Mihiel, again associated with Carolingian reform circles. Such works were used within the monastery, for example for daily communal reading in the chapter. There were also insertions relating to monastic customs and liturgy, and two formulae used to announce the death of members of the community. The manuscript contents illustrate the influence of Frankish monasticism on liturgical life at Abingdon. De abbatibus states that /Ethelwold had the Rule brought from Fleury. The earlier version of the History is not so specific, but states that /Ethelwold sent Osgar to Fleury for instruction, from which the monk 'returned with other fellow soldiers and kindly imparted by teaching what he had

learnt'.?^? It also records that /Ethelwold, ‘wishing them to sing praise to God in church with a harmonious voice, summoned from the monastery of Corbie (situated in France and with a very high reputation for ecclesiastical discipline at that time) highly skilled men whom his own monks might imitate in reading and chanting’.”°” Such Frankish, and in particular Fleury, influence was also of wider influence within monastic reform, notably manifest in the Regularis Concordia, a text very closely linked to /Ethelwold. Liturgy was central to monastic life, and there is evidence that monks of /Ethelwold's familia, at least in his time as bishop of Winchester, had to carry out not only the normal monastic offices (2 vols., Cambridge, 1912), i. 114—18; Gerchow, Die Gedenküberlieferung, pp. 244—52, 335— 8; Thacker, /Ethelwold', pp. 54-5; Wormald, */Ethelwold and his Continental counterparts’, p. 31; Gretsch, Intellectual Foundations, pp. 252-4. This Abingdon copy is one of five roth- or r1th-century English manuscripts of the Regula S. Benedicti abbatis Anianensis siue Collectio capitularis, Wulfstan, Life of /Ethelmold, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, p. lvii.

*°° CMA ii. 278; below, p. 54. See also Wulfstan, Life of Ethelwold, c. 14, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, p. 26; below, p. 336. For continuing links to Fleury, see Gretsch, Intellectual Foundations, pp. 369—70; Lapidge, Cult of St Smithun, pp. 220-1, on the possibility of a book belonging to Lantfred, a Frankish monk who had come from Fleury to Winchester, being with Osgar at Abingdon probably in period 974 x 984. Lantfred’s own works included the Translatio et miracula S. Swithuni; see Lapidge, Cult of St Swithun, pp. 218-24. /Ethclwold based his translation of the Rule of St Benedict on a Fleury version of rule. The date of the translation is uncertain; Gretsch, Intellectual Foundations, p. 260, implies that /Ethelwold probably brought it with him to Abingdon from Glastonbury. The Fleury version is not that copied in Cambridge, Corpus Christi College 57, which seems to have two exemplars, one Carolingian and the other English, the latter based on an 8thcentury Worcester manuscript.

**” See below, p. 54. For /Ethelwold's concern with music, see also De abbatibus, which

states that he built organs for Abingdon with his own hands; CMA ii. 278. See Lapidge, Cult of Swithun, pp. 382-3, for organs and Church reform.

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but also considerable private devotions.? As for other aspects of learning, the position already seen that the Abingdon is a matter graphy, no celebrated

at Abingdon is not entirely clear. We have extent of historical writing in Anglo-Saxon of dispute.??? There was no Abingdon hagioscholar particularly associated with the house,

and only a small number of manuscripts.” However, this impression

could be deceptive, being partly a matter of survival, partly linked to the departure of the best Abingdon scholars to Winchester and other houses associated with /Ethelwold. Moreover, it has been suggested that /Ethelwold may well have compiled his gloss on the Royal Psalter while at Abingdon."*! There are also reasons for believing that there were links between Abingdon and the vernacular gloss on Aldhelm's De Virginitate.?? Although not of interest to the later compiler and reviser of the History, such an emphasis on use of the vernacular was a

key feature of /Ethelwoldian reform??? VIII.

MANUSCRIPTS

1. MS C: London, British Library, Cotton Claudius C. ix

Contents (* indicates work of the scribe of the History)^* fo. 1" Notarial copy of letters patent of Elizabeth I?95 fo. 1" Pressmarks fo. 2" Cottonian title page fo. 3° Cottonian list of contents ?53 Lapidge, ‘AEthelwold as scholar and teacher’, p. 105.

°° See above, pp. lx—Ixii. 96" See also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. xl-xli; Wulfstan, Life of Zthelwold, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, p. lxi. Cf., for example, the attribution of the Life of Oswald to Byrhtferth, monk of Ramsey. Note also Dumville, English Caroline Script, pp. 18, 26, 153—5, on the lack of use of Caroline minuscule at Abingdon until the mid-11th century, whereas it was used at Winchester from the time of /Ethelwold. °°! Gretsch, Intellectual Foundations, pp. 263, 266, 274, suggests that /Ethelwold compiled his gloss on the Royal Psalter in his time at Glastonbury or Abingdon, with some evidence pointing to Abingdon. See also Dumville, English Caroline Script, p. 14n. 33. 62 Gretsch, Intellectual Foundations, p. 377. Note also ibid., p. 426: “The origin of the glosses in /Ethelwold's circle at Glastonbury (and perhaps Abingdon) also leave it beyond reasonable doubt that it was /Ethelwold and Dunstan who were responsible for placing the study of Aldhelm in a central position in the late Anglo-Saxon curriculum, and that it was the intellectual milieu of King /Ethelstán's court which inspired them to do so.’ 963 See also Ker, Catalogue of Manuscripts containing Anglo-Saxon, no. 2, for a manuscript of the Excerptiones de Prisciano with Latin and Old English glosses, which he says (p. 3) is ‘almost certainly from Abingdon’. 964 See also Julian Harrison's description of the manuscript at (http://molcat.bl.uk).

965 This is a former pastedown.

clxxviii

INTRODUCTION

fos. 4'—12" Hugh of Saint Victor, Chronicle (Worcester, s. xii?) fos. 12-17" Annalistic chronicle (Worcester, s. xii^) fos. 18-102" William of Malmesbury, Gesta regum Anglorum (Battle Abbey, s. xiii’) fos. 102'—103' Award of Norham, 1291 fo. 104" Cottonian title page: ‘Historia Abbatiz Abbendonensis de rebus & terris eiusdem ecclesi: duobus distincta libris’ fos. 105—177" Historia ecclesie Abbendonensis (s. xii^)* fos. 177—178" Confirmation charter of Richard I (s. xii™) fo. 178" Notification of agreement between the abbot of Abingdon and Peter son of Herbert de Fore, 5 Nov. 1232 (s. xiii“) fo. 1787 * Charter of Henry III (s. xiii" *9)995 ise fo. 179" " Proceedings following the death of Abbot Roger (s. xii fos. 179'—182" Customs relating to obedientiaries (s. xii?)9? fo. 182" Lists of (i) hides in Berkshire pertaining to abbey; (ii) knights holding of abbey (s. xiii) fo. 182" Memorandum of dues owed by John de Courtney (s. xiii™) fo. 183° Custonis relating to obedientiaries, continued (s. xi^")? fo. 183" ‘ Bull of Alexander III, 1177 (s. xii")? fo. 184" ‘ Charter of William, dean and chaplain of Salisbury, 1220— 36/7 for Abingdon (s. xiii"*9) fo. 185° blank

fo. 185" Arrangements concerning the provision of wine (s. xiii*)?”’ fo. 186^" Arrangements for the admission of novices (s. xiii^)^? fo. 187° Names of tenants holding lands in Wallingford, which pertain to the abbot’s chamber (s. xii*) fo. 187° Decree concerning matters done in accordance with the greater part of the chapter (s. xiii)? fo. 187° Principal feast days, on which the abbot was accustomed to eat in the refectory (s. xiii^) °°° This is a different hand from that earlier in fo. 178". °°” Printed CMA ii. 297-9, English Lawsuits from William I to Richard I, ed. R. C. van Caenegem (2 vols., Selden Society, cvi, cvii; 1990-1), no. 570. This continuation does not pick up the narrative at the point where the History ceases. Its later date of composition, after the coronation of the Young King in 1170, is indicated by its use of ‘Henricus secundus’ for Henry II, rather than the History’s *Henricus iunior’.

a Printed CMA ii. 299-309. T Printed ibid., pp. 313-14.

?* Printed ibid., pp. 312-13. ?" Printed ibid., pp. 314-17.

Printed ibid., pp. 317-20. > Decrees of Third Lateran Council (1179), c. 16. The passage also appears in the Decretals of Gregory IX, X 3.11.1.

MANUSCRIPTS

clxxix

fos. 187'—190' Lists concerning lands and tenants of the church of

Abingdon in Berkshire (s. xii?)*°”*

fo. T Hd entries concerning Winkfield and Whistley (s. ““/s. xiii'); four lines in early modern hand "n 190* " Abingdon response to 1166 inquest into knight service (s.

siins

fo. 191° List of lands and tenants (s. xii^)*?7* fo. 191" Custom of wood to be gathered for fuel (s. xii)*°”” fos. 191'—192' Dues owed to the monks’ kitchen (s. xii”, with near

fo. fo. fo. fo.

contemporary addition)* ?/ 192" Refectorer's dues and obligations (s. xii**)?” 192" Rents of the altar (s. xii^)*?*? 192" Rents of the chamber (s. xii^)??! 193" Rents of the almoner (s. xii^*)???

fo. 193 Bull of Pope Alexander III (s. xii^")

fo. 193° Rent of the precentor (s. xii^")*? fo. 193 " Rent of the infirmary (s. xii1

°F

fo. 193" Rent pertaining to the fabric of buildings (s. xiiTee

fos. 193'—194' Rent of the hostillar (s. xii™/s. xiii)??? fo. 194." Memorandum concerning tenants and lands (s. xiii) 987 fo. 194" Rents due to the almoner (s. xiii)??? fo. 195 late medieval or early modern parchment leaf fos. 196'—202" Boundary clauses for Abingdon charters (s. xii^)* fo. 203. Charter of Edward I for Abingdon (s. xiv) fo. 203° Charter of Henry III for Abingdon (s. xiv) fos. 204'—209' Early modern Abingdon indexes, notes, letters, on

paper fo. 210 medieval/early modern parchment pastedown (lifted)

°74 Printed vol. ii. 379-89; see also D. C. Douglas, ‘Some early surveys from the abbey of Miptasdous EHR, xliv (1929), 618-25, at pp. 623-5.

°75 Printed vol. ii. 389-91. ?7 Tbid. pp. 394-5; CMA ii. 321-2. ?? Printed CMA ii. 324.

89 Printed vol. ii. 397; CMA ii. 324—5.

?8! Printed vol. ii. 398; CMA ii. 326—7.

?53 Printed ibid., p. 328. ?55 Printed ibid., p. 329.

Printed ibid., pp. 330-2. ?85 Printed ibid., pp. 332-4. memorandum

concerning tenants.

?76 [bid., pp. 391—4. 78 Printed vol. ii. 395-6; CMA ii. 322-4. 982 Printed CMA ii. 327-8.

?5* Printed ibid., p. 328. 86 Printed ibid., pp. 329-30.

This passage is in the same

hand as the preceding

clxxx

INTRODUCTION

Date and history of the manuscript

As argued earlier, the section of MS C devoted to the Abingdon History probably dates from the 1160s.”*” Given that the History goes up to the early part of that decade, the existing manuscript is most likely the first fair copy of the work." The post-Reformation history of the Abingdon portion of the manuscript is uncertain until it was acquired by Sir Robert Cotton, probably by 1610. It was he who brought the Abingdon material together with the other historical works that now form Cotton Claudius C. 1x.””! Physical description of the History portion of MS C The text of the History is written in two columns, with normally

thirty-eight lines per column.??? The writing rises from the top ruled line. The written area is approximately 225-35 x 155-65 mm. The first four quires, each of four bifolia, form Book I of the History (fos.

105-35). Quires 5 to 11 form Book II of the History (fos. 136— 71).* It is notable that the last two ‘quires’ are in fact each a single bifolium, suggesting that the scribe was making preparation for the end of the work. An Arabic numeral foliation from 1 to 74 at the centre of the upper margin of the recto predates the bringing together of the various elements of MS C, and extends from the opening of the History to 989 See above, p. xv. ?9 The physical stages of writing out historical texts in the 12th century require further study. For the use of wax tablets for a draft, see Eadmer, The Life of St Anselm, ed. R. W. Southern (NMT, 1962; corrected reprint OMT, 1979), p. 150. For a surviving author's draft, with corrections, interlineations, marginal text, and spaces left blank for names or improvements, see Creaicon Richardi Divisensis de tempore regis Richardi primi, ed. J. T. Appleby (NMT, 1963), pp. xviii-xxiv. ?'' For the general context of Cotton's interests, see E. M. C. van Houts, ‘Camden, Cotton, and the Chronicles of the Norman Conquest of England', in C. J. Wright, ed., Sir Robert Cotton as Collector (London, 1997), pp. 238-52; at p. 248 she points out that Cotton obtained the Ramsey Chronicle, the Liber Eliensis, Hemming's cartulary, and both manuscripts of the Abingdon Histery. C. G. C. Tite, ‘“Lost or stolen or strayed”: A survey of manuscripts formerly in the Cotton Library’, in Wright, ed., Sir Robert Cotton as Collector, pp. 262—306, at 266, points out that in the early 1620s Cotton owned Oxford, Bodleian Library, Digby 96, the Abingdon manuscript of the Meditations of Godwin. °°? There are thirty-nine lines on fos. 119" and 120’; thirty-seven lines on fos. 132" and 1335; thirty-six lines on fo. 169’. In the portions by the main scribe after the History, there are normally thirty-eight lines per column, although only thirty-seven at fos. 201" and

202".

?5 One folio of quire 3 is missing, between fos. 126 and 127. ?* Quire 5 consists of four bifolia and one single folio; quire 6 of three bifolia; quire 7 of five bifolia; quires 8 and 9 each of three bifolia and a single folio.

MANUSCRIPTS

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include the charter of Richard I. It is then replaced by separate foliations for the different sections that follow. An emended version of the foliation of the History then appears at the top right-hand corner of the recto. A further ink foliation of the whole manuscript at the top right-hand corner of the recto has been superseded by a modern pencil foliation at top and bottom right-hand corners.?? A folio is missing from the manuscript between the present fos. 126 and 127.79 The History in MS C contains only one illustration, a depiction of Abbot Faritius as part of an initial A at the start of the account of his abbacy at fo. 144". The illustration is in gold and red, outlined in green and on a blue background. In addition, there is a large zoomorphic initial M in gold and other colours at the start of Book I, large decorated initials at the start of the sections on the restoration of the church under Eadred and /Ethelwold and of the charter in Eadred's name which follows, a large initial A in gold and other colours at the start of Book II, and two drawings of the papal rota of Eugenius III.’ There are also secondary initials in red, green, and

light blue, with varying degrees of elaboration.??? Rubrication

is in the same hand as the main text. All section

headings are rubricated.”” Within the main text, whole words are sometimes in red ink. Some are place-names, most are personal names,

in particular those of Anglo-Saxon kings within charters.'° Kings’ names also very occasionally appear in red outside charters.'! Abbots too appear in red ink, most notably /Ethelwold and Faritius.'"? Initials 995 This refoliation is dated 21 Jan. 1970 at the end of the manuscript. ?96 This was fo. 23 in the early foliation. I can find no obvious reason why it was removed.

?97 fos. 105", r11', 170', 171’. The same decorator may have been responsible for the major decorated initials in Oxford, All Souls College 18, but that manuscript—although it could be an Abingdon product—was not written by the same scribe.

998 For such initials following headings, see e.g. fos. 113", 115", 118". To fo. 108" the initials are alternately in red and green. At fo. 108" there is a blue initial, and thereafter there is no predominant ordering of colours. The larger of these initials following headings sometimes appear in the margin; e.g. fos. 105" (central margin), 107', 119'. ?99 Notethe four lines of rubricated text, probably over an erasure, at fo. 105' (heading to c. 2); the four and a half lines at fo. 111" (heading to c. 28); almost four lines at fo. 135" (explicit to Book I); three lines at fo. 143" (heading for the chapter introducing Faritius, vol. ii. 64). 1000 For place-names, note fos. 114' (Ginge) 118° (Drayton) Henry P's name is rubricated in two places on fo. 159', the first being in a charter.

1001 Note fo. 118" Edgar; fo. 159" Henry I. 19? Athelwold, fos. 111", 113%, 114", 114", 117°, 118", 118", 119", 12455 Faritius, fos. 148-164"; also Abbot Vincent, fos. 164'—167'; Ingulf fo. 168". Note also: fo. 1 18° Dunstan; fo. 124” Pope Leo, King Coenwulf, Abbot Hrathhun; fos. 124", 126" Abbot Wulfgar; fo. 124° Virgin Mary.

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INTRODUCTION

; 1003 ; of witnesses are added in red, green, or blue, "* although on occasion the rubricator, having added those in red, forgot to return with another

colour. '?* Other words are emphasized by the use of capitals, often within

charters.!° The names of kings, abbots, the Virgin Mary, and other saints are on occasion made prominent in this way.’ So too are place names." Likewise whole words at the start of a charter, of a heading, or of a section quite frequently are capitalized.'* On other occasions, just part of a word is capitalized, again often names or the

start of sections.9? The scribe has a few orthographic habits worth noting. The tailed ‘e’ is used almost invariably at the start of the word ecclesia",?'?and frequently but far from invariably where one would expect the form

‘ae’ in classical Latin.'!! It also appears inappropriately for the ablative *e' ending. The form ‘v’ as opposed to ‘u’ is used occasionally in lower case, for example as the second letter of a

word the initial of which is to be added by the rubricator.'?? The Latin word for shire, ‘vicecomitatus’ is often spelt with an opening ‘vy’, the words ‘uxor’ and ‘ui’ sometimes are, and there are other 1003 Note also the crosses following witnesses at fo. 159°.

19 At fo. r27' (c. 102) the rubricator provided the initials of the witnesses in red but forgot to return with another colour to fill in the capital of the ‘Ego’, which preceded each name. Also there are examples of the rubricator forgetting to add initials, especially at the

start of a line; see e.g. fos. 115", 120°, 127' (cc. 48, 70, 104).

V 5 Capitalization and rubrication of names does not seem to have been determined in any simple fashion by the copying of originals. Take /Ethelred's Orthodoxorum charter, c. 98, the original of which is London, British Library, Cotton Augustus ii. 38. This has some names, of kings and of the Virgin Mary, in capitals in a different black ink, and other personal and place-names in capitals in the usual ink. MS B makes no such distinctions. MS C has some names in red and in capitals, but these include Abbots Wulfgar and /Ethelwold. The Virgin Mary only once appears in red. Abbot Eadwine appears in capitals in the original, but not in MS C, and similarly place-names and even St Benedict are not distinguished by case or colour in MS C. At most the original suggested the distinguishing of some words by case and colour; it certainly did not determine the forms adopted in the History.

1006 e.g. fos. 105", 106", 109", 113', 117°, 129", 141", 155', 155", 156° and many other examples. There are exceptions; see e.g. fos. 105", 122", 122".

17 !* at fos. '* °°

e.g. fos. 106 *, 110 ", and many other examples. e.g. fos. 106 *, 113", 115", 126", and many other examples. Note ‘Amen’ capitalized 110°, 126”. Capital N may be particularly common; e.g. fo. 115". For irregularity of usage sce the charters of Nigel d'Oilly and Henry I concerning

Abbefeld at fo. 150". !! See e.g. fo. 160", lines 4 and 5.

1? See fo. 162". 15. e.g. fo. 106" (opening of c. 9), 108" (opening of c. 18), fo. 109' (opening of c. r9).

MANUSCRIPTS

clxxxiii

occasional instances.'?'* Very occasionally words beginning ‘on. . .” appear in the aspirated form ‘hon . . .’: ‘honeris’, ‘honerosus’,

‘honere’.'°'* Likewise the pronoun ‘is’ sometimes appears as ‘his’."°!° The exceptional form ‘monakis’ in a ‘Cirograph concerning

the land of Chesterton’ may reflect the original from which the scribe

was copying.'??

The manuscript has various marginalia in later medieval and early modern hands. Two groups of marginalia are of particular significance for us. One is in a small hand writing in brown ink, the other in a larger hand in dry-point. Both appear to be hands that gave guidance to the rubricator of MS B, and the marginalia in MS C

appearin the main text of MS B.'?* Such annotations indicate that

the compiler of MS B was making direct use of MS C, although it cannot absolutely rule out the additional existence of another,

intervening manuscript. Material following the History The History is followed by a copy of the confirmation charter of Richard I in a slightly later hand, followed by diverse other material, with fos. 179-85 perhaps forming a separate booklet. This in turn is followed by what may be another booklet, including a group of administrative texts by the main scribe.?? Why these appear here rather than within the History is uncertain. They may have been deemed inappropriate in form for that text, but the 105 > om. B * illi add. B

‘ Apelstano B

^ corr. from fratre by erasure C, fratre B

?5 Gelling, Early Charters of the Thames Valley, p. 59, suggests that the land concerned may be Kingston Lisle. She rejects Kingston Bagpuize because of the discrepancy with the Domesday record of the latter as consisting of two estates of five hides each, both in lay hands TRE. However, she does not consider the combination of the thirteen and seven hides grants mentioned above, p. 134 n. 285, nor take into account the frequency of hidage reductions between the roth-c. charters and Domesday Book or the possibility that the hidage has been tampered with in the present document. It may only be the compiler's own interpretation that /Elfheah's grant concerned land in the same Kingston as King Edward's. However, the other documents suggest that the compiler's interpretation was

correct.

** The present text is a Latin translation of a vernacular record included in the quire of MS C devoted to charter boundaries; MS C, fo. 202"; Sawyer, no. 1216; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 115; Anglo-Saxon Charters, ed. Robertson, no. 51; also trans. Stenton, Early History, pp. 36—7. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 450, suggests that the

original vernacular version may have been the Abingdon half of a cirograph. It is plausible that the hidage has been tampered with in copying, perhaps in the context of later disputes over the land; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 450. Kingston does not appear in the will of /Elfheah, who died in 971 (Sawyer, no. 1485; Anglo-Saxon Wills, ed. Whitelock, no. 9). Stenton, Early History, p. 37, and Gelling, Early Charters of the

THE

HISTORY

THE

CHURCH

ABINGDON

137

93. (B213) Concerning Kingston. Likewise,? concerning the same land, we have found what follows written in English in very old and almost worn-away letters;?*?

Ealdorman /Elfheah made Ealdorman /Elfhere heir concerning twenty hides at Kingston. Then Abbot Osgar asked Ealdorman /Elfhere himself that he be permitted to acquire ownership of that land by payment. That ealdorman agreed to this, and the abbot himself gave one hundred mancuses of gold.?? And it happened at that time, around the time of Easter, that a council was held at the place called Alderbury,”' and there this matter was recounted to those high-ranking men who were present, that is Bishop /Ethelwold,

and Bishop /Ethelstan,"? and Abbot /Ethelgar,? and Eadwine,?* and /Elfric surnamed *Cild',?* and another /Elfric the son of Siraf, and Beorhtric his brother, with these and many others. And this was done in the witness of very many. Also the aforesaid ealdorman received a portion of this document as evidence. 94. Concerning Bishop Sidemann.?”° In the third year of this king, a council was held at Kirtlington at Easter time," and Bishop Sidemann of Devonshire (one of those who was present) was seized by a sudden illness and died there. By order of the Thames Valley, p. 59, raise the possibility that Kingston was associated with one of the places mentioned in the will, most likely Faringdon, Berkshire, but Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 449, rejects this idea on the grounds that all the evidence points to Kingston being a separate estate. Kelly suggests instead that /Elfheah may have acquired the estate after his will was drawn up. 220 A mancus was worth 30 silver pence. ?! Wiltshire. On the basis of the witness list and on the OE text's reference to the meeting as a ‘micel gemot’, Stenton, Early History, p. 37, comments that this was a special assembly, similar in kind to meetings of several shires in one place after the Norman Conquest. ?? Bishop /Elfstan in the Old English version. 73 Abbot of New Minster, Winchester, 964—?988, and also bishop of Selsey 980-8; Heads of Religious Houses, pp. 80-1, 258. His promotion to the bishopric probably provides a terminus ante quem for the present document. He was archbishop of Canterbury 988—90. 294 Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 450, suggests this may be the ealdorman of Sussex mentioned below, c. 108, or the brother of /Elfric Cild who became abbot of Abingdon, below, c. 96. 295 AElfhere’s brother-in-law, and successor as earl of Mercia. 29 See above, pp. lxi—Ixii, for its relationship to an extremely similar passage in ASC, “B’ and ‘C’, s.a. 977. Sidemann was bishop of Crediton between 973 and 977; Handbook of British Chronology, p. 215. 27 Kirtlington, Oxfordshire. Easter fell on 8 Apr. 977, and Sidemann died on 30 Apr. according to ASC, ‘C’.

138

HISTORIA

ECCLESIE

ABBENDONENSIS

corpus iussu regis ac Dunstani archiepiscopi Abbendonam defertur et

in porticu sancti Pauli apostoli illic decenter humatur.””* 95. (cf. B214) De interfectione Eadwardi regis." Nec multo post rex /Edwardus, nil mali erga quemlibet sua pro simplici conuersatione autumans, nefandorum insidiis Quadragesimalibus diebus immerito perimitur. Diuulgato per Anglie populos de regis nece uero indicio, in unum coadunati /Edelredum eiusdem germanum in regnum substituunt. Qui, ubi imperitandi iubendique nactus est potestatem, religioni minus intendere, prauorum consultui se committere, pro libitu multa facere. Adeo ecclesie Abbendonie prauorum commonitu infestus extitit, ut queque pater eius de suis dominiis possessionibus illic deuote contulerat ipse irreuerenter^ suis restitueret usibus. Hec dum in regno mouentur, ecclesiarum ualde necessarius defensor, Adelwoldus^ episcopus sanctissimus, e seculo rapitur.??? Sed et pie memorie domnus Osgarus, pro eo Abbendonie abbas substitutus, illo uite ultima sortitur.*°’ In huiusmodi infortunio locus iste sine defensionis fit obstaculo. [i. 357] 96. (cf. B215) “De Eadwio abbate."?

Erat tunc maior regie domus /Elfricus^ quidam prepotens,’ fratrem habens Eadwinum nomine, 5 monachum/ institutione. Hic apud regem pretio egit? ut is^ frater eius Abbendonie abbas preficeretur.??* In quo distrahitur rerum abbatie copia, tepescit deintus ac deforis predicande “fame gratia. Qua etiam tempestate gens Danorum, multa cum classe, in Angliam appulsa, incursare ubique, incendere, diripere omnia, multos necare, alios in captionem mittere cepit."? Cui rex inbellis, non armis sed pecunia obuiare optimum ratus, uectigal 95

^" irreuerentur B

^"* De Edwino abbate B

Merciorum, B

^ Apelwoldus B

^ monacum B

^ Edricus B

* exegit B

^ prepotes, filius /Elferi ducis

/ his B

** gratie fama B

75 A similar sentence, but omitting mention of the king and Dunstan, appears in the Abingdon version of the Worcester Chronicle preserved in Lambeth Palace Library; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ti. 613. ASC, *B' and ‘C’, s.a. 977, specify that Sidemann was buried on the north side of the chapel. On burials at Abingdon, see above, p. cxxi.

?? The beginning of this section, up to ‘When he acquired . . .’, does not appear in MS B; for that manuscript's different treatment of these matters, see below, B214.

9" Ethelwold died on 1 Aug. 984; Wulfstan, Life of‘Arhelweid. c. 41, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, p. 62; Cambridge, University Library, Kk. i 22, fo. 5". 301 Osgar’s dendi is also mentioned in the Abingdon versions of the Worcester Chronicle; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 613. An Abingdon obit list, Oxford, Bodleian Library, Digby 227, dates Osgar’s death to 24 May; Heads of Religious Houses, pp. 23, 240.

THE

HISTORY

THE

CHURCH

ABINGDON

139

king and Archbishop Dunstan his body was taken to Abingdon and fittingly buried there in the chapel of St Paul the Apostle.?” 95. (cf. B 214) Concerning the death of King Edward.?” Not long after, King Edward, asserting no evil towards anyone on account of his own simple way of life, was undeservedly killed by the treachery of wicked men during the days of Lent. When information concerning the death of the king spread among the peoples of England, united as one they substituted his brother /Ethelred into the kingship. When he acquired the power of ruling and ordering, he paid too little attention to religion, entrusted himself to the counsel of evil men, and did many deeds at will. He was so hostile to the church of Abingdon on the evil men's advice that he irreverently restored to his own use whatever his father had devoutly conferred on it from his own demesne possessions. While these events were going on in the kingdom, the greatly needed defender of churches, the most holy Bishop /Ethelwold, was

seized from the world.*” Also lord Osgar, of pious memory, who had been substituted for /Ethelwold as abbot of Abingdon, was allotted

the end of his life.*°' Amidst misfortune of this sort that monastery came to be without defensive protection.

96. (cf. B215) Concerning Abbot Eadwine>” There was then a leading man of the royal household, /Elfric, a very powerful man, who had a brother, Eadwine by name,? a monk by rule.?^ /Elfric by bribing the king arranged that his brother be

appointed abbot of Abingdon.*” Under him, much of the abbey's property was taken away and the grace of its praiseworthy reputation cooled within and without. Also at that time the people of the Danes, with a great fleet, came ashore in England and began to attack everywhere, to burn, to ravage everywhere, to kill many, and to send others into captivity.? The unwarlike king considered it best to meet this not with arms but money and imposed a very heavy tribute 9? MS B contains a very similar section, but replaces the passage ‘Also at that time . . . for payment’ with a different one; below, B215. 303 On Abbot Eadwine and the identification of /Elfric, see above, p. cxxiii. Cf. also below, B215. 304 Two almost identical sentences appear in the Abingdon versions of the Worcester Chronicle, followed by ‘Quod et factum est’; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 613. 305 On the limited evidence for Viking attacks on England in the g8os, see S. Keynes, ‘The historical context of the Battle of Maldon’, in D. G. Scragg, ed., The Battle of Maldon, AD 991 (Oxford, 1991), pp. 81-113, at 85-6. It could be that the History wrongly associates losses in Eadwine’s abbacy and those due to Viking attacks.

I40

B fo. 87"

HISTORIA

ECCLESIE

ABBENDONENSIS

| His populo Anglorum satis ad persoluendum graue iniungit."" uniuersis calamitatibus, Abbendonense cenobium, paulo ante ditissimum, plurimarum iam incurrit suarum rerum in" periculum. H

306

307

97. (B216) “De Wulfgaro abbate." Sed qui Petro apostolo inter marinos fluctus labanti porrexit manus, C fo. 124"

ipse dignatur ecclesie sue |discrimina releuare.? Nam fere sexennio

predictis ingruentibus aduersis exacto, Eadwinus abbatie prepositus defungitur ac domnus Wlgarus substituitur, uir maxima probitate perspicuus et imminenti articulo temporis ad ecclesie libertatis restitutionem necessarius.? Regis etiam animus, hactenus ergo’ cenobium istud obstinatus, in melius conuertitur ac pro hoc abbatem [i. 358] pro bonitate quam in eo didicerat diligere, uenerari, et admonitis

ipsius se subdere cepit." Quare Abbendonense cenobium iterum a

cunctis ueneratur et colitur, et qui apud regem excellentius erant ipsum de honore eiusdem loci cotidie suggerebant. Huiusmodi frequenti commonitu adeo erga Dei timorem et ecclesie uenerationem rex commutatur ut in multitudinis frequentia fateretur’ in his que ad se deferebantur^ grauiter se errasse. Deinde prouidit que pro rebus ecclesie hactenus detentis condigna forent solutioni. Super hoc et libertatis libellum edidit, in quo omnem circa hunc^ locum simoniacam sectam fieri!!! tam se uiuente/ quam successoribus suis in reliquum regnantibus, anathemate perpetuo interdixit. Cuius seriei talis fuit prosecutio: 98. (B217) "Priuilegium Athelredi regis. a 312 [i. 359] Ego,’ inquit, /Ethelredus,^ altithrono^ adminiculante’ Anglorum ceterarum gentium in circuitu triuiatim persistentium basileus, li. 360] non inmemor angustiarum mihi’ meeque' nationi septimo regni mei ^ erased B

** De morte Edwini abbatis B

^ deferbantur B

* huc B

erga B

* follomed by ut B

^ seuiente, corr. from seuientem B

98 ** De priuilegio Adelredi regis B ^ see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 477-8, for the preceding proem and exposition in A and B ^ om. A ^ f£pelred A4; Apelredus B * altitrono B ^ aminiculante A * ceterarumque 4 ^ michi A ' here and elsewhere A uses the diphthong -x for the ending 99 "The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records the first payment of tribute under the year 991; the History appears to be accumulating disasters within the abbacy of Eadwine. 3°” A charter restoring Moredon, Wiltshire, to Abingdon, below, c. 102, specifies that the land had been unjustly acquired from the abbey in the time of Abbot Eadwine. 308 See Matt. 14: 30-3.

THE

HISTORY

THE

CHURCH

ABINGDON

I4I

on the English people for payment.*° Amidst all these calamities, the monastery of Abingdon, which had been extremely rich a little before, now met with loss of a great many of its possessions." 97. (B216) Concerning Abbot Wulfgar. But He who stretched out a hand to Peter the apostle floundering amidst the waves of the sea, deigned to relieve the crises of His

church. For when nearly six years had passed with these threatening misfortunes, Eadwine, overseer of the abbey, died and lord Wulfgar replaced him, a perspicuous man of the greatest probity and needed for the restoration of the church's liberty in that

threatening crisis.*” For the king’s mind, hitherto inflexible towards that monastery, was changed for the better and correspondingly began to love and venerate this abbot, and subject himself to his advice, on account of the goodness which he had learnt to love in

him.?'? Therefore the monastery of Abingdon was again venerated and revered by all, and those who were pre-eminent around the king daily prompted him about the honour of that monastery. By frequent advice of this type the king was so transformed to fear of God and veneration of the Church that he admitted amidst a great crowd of people that he had erred grievously in those matters of which he was accused. Then he provided what would be suitable payment for those possessions of the church that hitherto had been withheld. In addition, he issued a charter of liberty, in which he forbade by perpetual anathema, both during his own lifetime and during the reigns of his successors in future, all simoniacal suit concerning this

monastery.?!! The following was the wording of the contents of this: 98. (B217) Privilege of King /Ethelred.?" I, he said, /Ethelred, with the support of the One enthroned on high emperor of the English and of the other peoples living round about, far and wide, not unmindful of the afflictions frequently and manifoldly befalling me and my nation in the seventh year of my 39 For the dating of Eadwine’s death to 17 Apr. 990, and for Abbot Wulfgar, sce above, p. xcix. 310 For /Ethelred's change of attitude to the Church and to Abingdon, see Keynes, Diplomas, pp. 186-93, esp. p. 191 for Wulfgar. 3!! ™* And we lay this down, that the aforesaid pontiff is to possess this gift for himself as long as he lives, with everything duly pertaining to it, fields, woods, meadows, pastures, and wooded regions, completely free of all worldly service except three, military service, and fortress and bridge construction. Whoever indeed wishes to augment this, let heavenly blessing be increased for him. But whosoever attempts to diminish it or devise anything else antagonistic, or perhaps produces an older document, is to be anathematized from Christianity and punished for the crime of theft, unless he recovers his senses at once. This gift was carried out and written down in the year 1002 from the Incarnation of Christ, the fifteenth indiction, with these witnesses consenting. I /Ethelred king of the English have bestowed this munificence. I /Ethelstanj, and Ecgberht, and Edmund, and

Edward, and Eadwig, and Edgar the king’s sons. I Archbishop /Elfric have acquired it with a payment. I /Elfheah, and Wulfstan, and Athulf, and /Elfwold, and /Escwig, and Lyfing, and /Ethelric bishops, and many other fellow bishops. I Abbot Wulfgar, and /Elfweard, and Coenwulf, and Godwine, and /Elfsige, and Germanus, and Eadnoth, and Leofric abbots, with other abbots. I Ealdorman /Elfric, and Ealdorman /Elfhelm, and Ealdorman Leofwine.

Thus the king's gift of Dumbleton passed to the archbishop. But when he came to the end of his life, he made heir of it the church of Abingdon, where he had been a monk, by exerting his authority lest any presumptuous man make void his testament. An exemplar of this was drawn up in the following English writing:**° ZH 354 Cf. above, p. 36. 355 Almost certainly a mistake for Eadred, who appears here in the witness list in MS B. 35€ The Abingdon versions of the Worcester Chronicle specify that /Elfric was buried at Abingdon, but translated to his own see [Canterbury] in the reign of cnu*t; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 613.

168

HISTORIA

ECCLESIE

ABBENDONENSIS * a 357

105. (B236) Testamentum /Elfrici archiepiscofn. notificatur quomodo /Elfricus" archiepiscopus Hic [i. 417]

testamentum

[i. 418] B fo. 102”

C fo. 128"

in extremo

condidit.

suarum

rerum

In primo"? ecclesie Christi

Cantuarie terram apud Wellam et apud Burnam et Hrisenburgam" contulit.?? Domino suo me|liorem suarum nauium unam, |cum’ sibi pertinentibus armamentis, et sexaginta galeas cum totidem loricis. °° Et hoc apud ipsum ‘dominum suum* erat interueniens,?' ut concederet loco Sancti Albani terram apud Chingesbiri et ipse in

commutationem

reciperet Eadulfingtun.? Abbendonensi

ecclesie

terram apud Dumeltun, ubi Alfnodo^ cuidam tres hidas concessit tenere tantum suis diebus, et postea rediret cum reliqua terra Abbendonensis ecclesie potestati; insuper et decem boues cum

duobus hominibus.

Cuidam"

quoque

uiro nomine

Celewardo

terram quam emerat apud Walingaford, ut quamdiu uiueret possi-

deret,^ et post eius decessum ecclesia de Ceolsiga ipsius 'dominatu terre’ potiretur. Ecclesie Sancti Albani terram apud Tiwan et Osanig, cum terra de Lundonia quam emerat idem archiepiscopus. Que omnia quidam Ceolricus tunc tenebat, sed secundum quod archiepiscopo in conuentione habebat, post uite illius uiri finem ad predictam ecclesiam martiris uniuersa redirent. Libros etiam suos uniuersos illic delegauit. Precepitque ut de suis propriis expensis quicquid in mutuo ab aliquo acceptum erat restitueretur, et cetera in eius exequiis expenderentur.?" Populo Cantie unam nauem, et alteram genti Wiltescire, iussit largiri.°°* Reliqua uniuersa que sua 105 * following Old English version, Quod Latine sic interpretatur B ^ Alfricus B * Hrisenbeorgam 5 4 followed by eius del. B ^* suum dominum B / Cingesbiri B * Alfnoó primo B ^ Quidam B ** terre dominatum B 357 This is a Latin translation of an Old English original; the Old English is Sawyer, no. 1488; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 133; Anglo-Saxon Wills, ed. Whitelock, no. 18, whose translation also appears in EHD, i. no. 126. Anglo-Saxon Wills, ed. Whitelock, pp. 160—3, provides extensive notes on the will. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 519, states that ‘there can be little doubt that [the will] is authentic’. MS B gives the Old English version, followed by the Latin. It is probably reproduced in full because of its use in the post-Conquest dispute concerning Dumbleton; vol. ii. 5o. It is the only Anglo-Saxon will to appear in the History, even though other sections seem to draw on such wills; see above, p. xxxi, Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 579-83. 555 The Old English version specifies this was ‘saulsceat’, or burial due, on which see Anglo-Saxon Wills, ed. Whitelock, pp. 109—10.

?? Westwell and probably Bishopsbourne, Kent; Monks Risborough, Buckinghamshire. ?? On King /Ethelred's desire for such bequests of military equipment, sce N. P. Brooks, “Arms, status and warfare in late-Saxon England’, in D. Hill, ed., Ethelred the Unready: Papers from the Millenary Conference (British Archaeological Reports, British Series lix; 1978), pp. 81-103, at 9o. Anglo-Saxon Wills, ed. Whitelock, p. 161, states that ‘this is not a payment of heriot, as the Archbishop leaves instructions about this later in his

THE

HISTORY

THE

CHURCH

ABINGDON

169

105. (B236) Archbishop Alfric’s mill. 3° Here it is made known how Archbishop JElfric at the last drew upa testament of his possessions. First,??he conferred on Christ Church

Canterbury land at Well and at Bourne and Risborough.?? To his

lord the best of his ships, with the tackle pertaining to it, and sixty helmets with as many mail coats.??? And he was in his lord’s presence, pleading this,’ that he would grant land at Kingsbury to the monastery of St Alban and himself receive in exchange Eadulfington.’ To the church of Abingdon land at Dumbleton, where he granted to a certain /Elfnoth three hides to hold only for life, and afterwards it would return with the rest of the land to the power of

the church of Abingdon; in addition ten oxen with two men.?? Also to a man named Ceolweard land that he had bought at Wallingford,

that he might possess as long as he lives, and after his death the church of Cholsey is to control the lordship of that land.?9 To the church of St Alban land at Tew and Osney, with land at London

which that archbishop had bought.*® All these a certain Ceolric was then holding, but according to the terms of agreement he had with the archbishop, after the end of that man’s life the entirety would return to the aforesaid church of the martyr. Also he bequeathed to there all his books. And he ordered that whatever had been received as a loan from anyone should be restored from his own funds, and the remainder was to be spent on his funeral.*®’ He ordered one ship to be

bestowed on the folk of Kent, another on the people of Wiltshire.*® will; see below, n. 367. However, the later provision of money could be in addition to this payment of military equipment to provide for his heriot. 361 Cf the Old English version ‘he wilnode gif hit his lafordes willa were’, ‘he wishes, if it were his lord’s will’; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 518—19. 59 Kingsbury, Middlesex. Eadulfington was probably close to Edmonton, Hertfordshire; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 521. 36 See below, B225 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 126). For comment on the status of the two men, see D. A. E. Pelteret, Slavery in Early Medieval England (Woodbridge, 1995),

#122. 4 364 This point is not spelt out in the Old English version. 365 Wallingford, Berkshire. Also in Berkshire, the church of Cholsey had been founded by King /Ethelred and was in /Elfric's former diocese of Ramsbury; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 521. 366 Tew and Osney are both in Oxfordshire. Instead of this and the following sentence, the Old English version has a fuller description of the arrangements concerning Tew, as well as recording the gift of land in Osney and London. 367 Tn the Old English version, this is referred to as his heriot, rather than expenditure on his funeral. 368 Previous to being archbishop of Canterbury, /Elfric had been bishop of Ramsbury, hence his connection with the people of Wiltshire as well as Kent.

170

HISTORIA

ECCLESIE

ABBENDONENSIS

uidebantur esse’ domnum Wilfstanum episcopum et Leofricum abbatem rogauit quatinus sua prouidentia quo melius consulerent

dispertirent.?* Sororibus suis et earum filiis terram de Fittinctune et^ Niwentune contulit, et terram que erat Alfeagi’ filii Esni restituit iis” quibus proprie pertinuerat habere." Domno" Wlfstano archie-

piscopo unum philacterium*” cum uno anulo et codice psalterii, sed [i. 419] et Alfheago^ episcopo unam crucem in suam memoriam dedit.^^ Debita que sibi debebantur a multis passim condonauit.*”* Si quis uero, secundum patrie Anglie morem, in aliquam incurrisset seruitutem tempore sue potestatis, libertate sibi penitus contributa,

relaxatus eius iussu est.?? De his quicumque aliter quam ut dictata^ sunt peruerterit, inde cum Deo concertamen habeat. Amen. B fo. 105"

106. (B240) ^Quomodo

Cealgraua

et Bulteswrda

ad hanc ecclesiam

uenerunt^ >7°

Matrona temporibus his quedam nomine Alfgifa terram de Cealgraue et de Bulteswrde’ ecclesie isti concessit Abbendonensi./ Cuius [i. 429] concessionis testes fuerunt Oswold^ archiepiscopus, et Alfheah episcopus, et /Escwi? episcopus, et /Edelsi/ episcopus, et Odulf* [i. 428]

episcopus;"^ dux quoque

Thured,

et multi primatuum,

rege

etiam fauente, et abbate Eadwino inibi presidente. ! om. B ^ Alfego B

* follomed by de B ! Alfheagi B ? corr. from dicta by interlin. C

" his B

" Homno B

106 °° heading m right-hand margin C; De Alfifa que reddidit Chelgraue et Bulteswurp B ; Bulteswrpe B ^ Abbendunensi B ^ each name preceded by a cross B * Aeswig B ^ Apelsige B * rectius /Edulf or Adulf

5 Wulfstan was bishop of London 996—1002, bishop of Worcester

rooz—16, and

archbishop of York 1002-23; Handbook of British Chronology, pp. 220, 224. It is curious that he is here referred to as bishop, later in the document as archbishop. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 520, suggests that the first reference may simply be a scribal error, or that the will was first composed when Wulfstan was bishop of London but revised after his promotion to York. Leofric was abbot of St Albans from c.990 to an uncertain date, and was Archbishop /Elfric's brother; Heads of Religious Houses, pp. 65, 254. ?? Both Gloucestershire. The Old English version specifies that these lands were in the west [‘be westan']. 71 The Old English version specifies rather that the land was to remain in /Elfheah son of Esne's family.

?? The Old English version specifies a ‘sweorrode’, a pectoral cross. °° /|fheah was bishop of Winchester 984—roos, and archbishop of Canterbury 1006— 12; Handbook of British Chronology, pp. 214, 223. ?* Anglo-Saxon Wills, ed. Whitelock, p. 163, speculates that ‘probably these debts were incurred during the Danish raids, in order to bribe the invaders’. The Old English version

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Everything else that appeared to be his he asked lord Bishop Wulfstan and Abbot Leofric that they distribute by their own provision as they considered best.*” On his sisters and their children he bestowed the land of Fiddington and Newton,*” and the land of /Elfheah son of

Esne he restored to those to whom it properly pertained to have.37! To lord Archbishop

Wulfstan

he gave in memory

of himself a

phylactery?? with one ring and a codex of the Psalter, and also to Bishop /Elfheah a cross."? He pardoned everywhere debts that were

owed to him by many men.*” If anyone, indeed, according to the custom of the land of England, incurred any servitude in the time of his power, that person was released by his order and liberty completely rendered him.?? Whoever corrupts these arrangements contrary to what has been dictated is to have a conflict with God concerning this. Amen.

106. (B240) How Chalgrave and Bulthesworthe came to this church." At this time a certain matron named /Flfgifu granted land at Chalgrave and Bulthesworthe to this church of Abingdon. Witnesses of this grant were Archbishop Oswald, and Bishop /Elfheah, and

Bishop /Escwig, and Bishop /Ethelsige, and Bishop Athulf;*”’ also Ealdorman Thored*” and many other of the leading men, by the king's favour too, when Abbot Eadwine was in charge there. specifies that, in accordance with God's will, he forgave the people of Kent the debts that they owed him and the people of Middlesex and Kent the money he had advanced them.

9/5 The synod held at Chelsea in 816 ordered that every Englishman subjected to slavery in a bishop's lifetime should be freed at the bishop's death; Councils and Ecclesiastical Documents relating to Great Britain and [reland, ed. A. W. Haddan and W. Stubbs (3 vols., Oxford, 1869—78), iii. 583; Pelteret, Slavery, pp. 83, 120. The Old English version specifies

that after his day all penally enslaved men [‘witefzstne’| condemned in his time were to be freed, but does not use the phrase ‘according to the custom of the land of England’. V5 Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 580 (iv), suggests that this section was ‘probably based on a witnessed private charter’. King /Ethelstan had granted Chalgrave, probably the Chalgrave in Bedfordshire, to his thegn Ealdred, and Bulthesworthe to his thegn Wulfnoth; below, Bss, Bs9 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, nos. 21, 24). Bulthesworthe cannot be identified with any certainty. Abingdon had no interest in these lands by the time of Domesday Book, when Albert of Lorraine held eight hides and half a virgate there; DB ik fo. 216". From this section onwards, the proportion of the History made up of charters drops markedly; see above, p. lxxii. 37 Oswald was archbishop of York 971-92; /Escwig probably bishop of Dorchester 975 X 979-1002; /Ethelsige bishop of Sherborne 978 x 979-991/3; Athulf bishop of Hereford ¢.g71-c.1013; Handbook of British Chronology, pp. 215, 217, 222, 224. 378 'Thored was an ealdorman in Northumbria, last heard of in 992; Keynes, Diplomas,

p. 197.

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107. (B241) ^Quomodo Winecafeld et Wicham et Hildesduna ad istam ecclesiam peruenerint." >”? Item nobilis alia matrona nomine Eadfled terram de Winekefeld’ et de Wicham et de Hisdesduna Abbendonensi ecclesie largita est, cum scrinio sanctarum reliquiarum et textu euuangeliorum, argento et auro redimitis, cum calice quoque argenteo* et uestimento sacerdotal

B fo. 105"

108. (B242) ^De Bydena et Hordwille." Item princeps^ australium Saxonum^ Eadwinus’ nomine obiens, Ab|bendonensi loco sepelitur. Cuius testamenti concessu terre de

Budene et de Hordewilla eidem derelicte sunt.?*! [i. 430]

109. Duxit?? autem rex /Ethelredus Normannorum comitis Ricardi filiam in coniugium, nomine Emmam, quam Angli Elfgiuam Immam cognominarunt, de qua Eadwardum et alios liberos genuit, magne

[i. 431] C fo. 128"

pietatis hominem.?? Frater uero eiusdem regine Ricardus iunior dicebatur, de quo natus est Robertus, Willelmi pater qui Angliam postea aggressus regnum | illic sibi usurpauit. Interea tanta ecclesiasticarum et secularium rerum his temporibus, tamque frequens fieri hac in patria permutatio, quanta hactenus apud Anglos quisquam non audierat. Nam eodem rege regnante, Cantuariensis cathedre apicem quinque, sibi inuicem succedentes, patriarche morte commutarunt, scilicet Dunstanus, /Elfgarus, Sigericus, Alfricus, /Elfegus, Liuingus.?' At in secularium personarum maiores, diuersi anfractus 107 ^* heading ^ Winkefeld B

in right hand ^ argento B

margin

Alfled

que

reddidit

Winkefeld

108 ^* De Edwio qui reddidit Bedene B corr. from principes B ^ Westsaxonum, corr. by another hand to australium by expunction and interlineation C ^ Eadwius B 3? See Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 580—1 (v), which suggests that this passage was probably derived from an undated Old English will. Eadflad may have been the widow of Ealdorman /Elfhere of Mercia; see above, p. cxxiii. De abbatibus states that a woman named ‘Elfleda’ gave the church Winkfield, Wickham, Ginge, and Hillesden, during the abbacy of Ordric (1052-66); CMA ii. 282. However, the compiler of De abbatibus may have been guessing, and the position in the History certainly suggests a date in /Ethelred's reign. If the donor is /Elfhere's widow, the gift would have been made at the end of the roth c. See Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 43, for a grant by King Eadred to /Ethelmzr praeses that included Hillesden, Buckinghamshire. It is notable that Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 43, does not appear in the History; sce above, p. cxcvi. Abingdon had no interest in Hillesden at

the time of Domesday; DB i, fos. 146", 147". 38° On reliquaries in lay hands, particularly women's, see Dodwell, Anglo-Saxon Art,

p. 197.

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107. (B241) How Winkfield and Wickham and Hillesden came to this church 3”? Likewise, another matron named Eadfled bestowed the land of Winkfield and of Wickham and of Hillesden on the church of Abingdon, with a reliquary of holy relics and a Gospel book cased in silver and gold, together with a silver chalice and a priestly vestment.???

108. (B242) Concerning Beedon and Hardwell. Likewise, a noble of the South Saxons named Eadwine died, and was buried at the monastery of Abingdon. By grant of his testament lands at Beedon and Hardwell were bequeathed to it.??! 109. Moreover? King /Ethelred took in marriage the daughter of Richard, count of the Normans, Emma by name, whom the English called /Elfgifu Imma, with whom he had Edward, a man of great piety,

and other children.?? That queen's brother, indeed, was called Richard the younger, from whom was born Robert the father of the William who later attacked England and seized for himself the kingship there. Meanwhile at this time there was so great and so frequent change of ecclesiastical and secular affairs in this country as no one had hitherto heard of amongst the English. For during the king's reign five patriarchs exchanged at death the crowning dignity of the see of Canterbury, succeeding one another in turn, that is Dunstan, /Ethelgar, Sigeric, /Elfric, /Elfheah, Lyfing.*** Also amongst the greater secular persons, affairs took a contrary turn. For the people of the 99! Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 581 (vi), suggests that the details probably come from an undated Old English will which does not survive. The donor is probably Eadwine ealdorman of Sussex, who died in 982. See also above, c. 86, on Beedon, and below, B44—

B45 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 19), on Hardwell, Berkshire. De abbatibus states that a man named *Edwi? gave Hardwell and Beedon to the church of Abingdon, again dating the gift to Abbot Ordric’s time (1052-66); CMA ii. 282. Again, however, the compiler of De abbatibus may have been guessing, and the position in the History certainly supports a date in-/Ethelred's reign. Hardwell does not have a separate Domesday entry, but land there may be the three hides one virgate held by Gilbert de Colombiéres entered under Watchfield; see DB i, fo. 59, vol. ii. 324. The name survives in Hardwell Farm, Compton Beauchamp; EPNS, Berkshire, ii. 360—1. 382 MS B, below B243, contains a different section, although with some verbal parallels to MS C. 385 #thelred married Emma in 1002. The Edward mentioned here is the future King Edward the Confessor. /Ethelred and Emma's other children were a son named Alfred and a daughter named Godgifu; P. Stafford, Queen Emma and Queen Edith (Oxford, 1997), p. 3. 384 "The five deaths in /Ethelred's reign were Dunstan in 988, /Ethelgar 990, Sigeric 994, ZElfric 1005, and /Elfheah 1012. Lyfing lived until 1020; Handbook of British Chronology, p. 214.

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incussio. Siquidem gens Danorum cum rege suo Sueino, in Angliam appulsa, adeo ferocitatem ubique locorum et impietatem suam uiritim infudit ut prede, crematui, necique uniuersa dederent. Non dignitati, non etati, non sexui, ulla tunc reuerentie delatio seruata. Peruersus quisque iusticieque proditor ad hostes diffugium habere, idem metu alii facere. Ita rex Ethelredus, a suis diatim destitutus, Normanniam una cum uxore petiit comitique Normannorum Ricardo iuniori, cuius

sororem habebat in matrimonium, sese credidit.*** Verum Sueinus regnum usurpans Anglie, recipitur pro domino. Sed non diu inde letari permissus, quia et regno et uita in proximo priuatur Dei arbitrio. Post cuius interitum, a transmarinis rex Anglorum remeans

oris,^ regno potitur prius habito.**° 110. (B244) ^De temporibus cnu*t regis." Interim’ Danis Sueini defuncti complicibus una cum Anglis contra genuinum dominum conspirantibus, Canutoni filio eiusdem regis [1. 432] sese summittunt, dant fidem, ad que liberet prompte se pergere spondent. Talibus iterum circumuentionibus, rex sollicitus morbo corripitur ac triginta et sex exactis in regno annis uario periculorum

B fo. 105"

euentu implicitis moritur. Nec mora Eadmundus filius eius ab his

B fo. 106°

qui patri adheserant coronatur.?? Qui temptans partes cnu*tonis fundere bello, multorum mentes consciuit ferre iuuamen, quatinus barbare gentis dominatum uiuida a se repellerent manu. Multitudine ergo sibi adunata, quinquies eodem anno suis intulit bellum aduersariis.? Nec tamen fieri superior eis ualuit, immo augeri illos et se deorsum iri, tum et maximam nobilium copiam hinc et inde cesam fuisse contigit. Quare utriusque principis exercitus id consilii equi fore decernunt, quo |pax‘ sacramento fideque utrimque constatuatur, ne uidelicet amplius suorum tanti sanguinis regnandi illectu? proueniat effusio. Consultus ad ipsam rem usque deducitur, itaque regibus ad inuicem conciliatis, Eadmundus’ occidentalibus,*”’ cnu*to 109

^" horis C

110 ^* De morte Adelredi regis et de regno Edmundi regis filii sui B * follomed by et B ^ intellectu B ^ Apelredus B ?5 Emma Christmas of ed. Mynors /Ethelings in

^ [tem B

in fact went to Normandy before /Ethelred in 1013. He joined her there after that year; ASC, s.a. 1013. William of Malmesbury, Gesta regum, bk. ii, c. 178, e£ 4L, i. 304, places his crossing in Jan. 1014. See also S. Keynes, ‘The Normandy’, ANS, xiii (1991), 173-205, at pp. 175-6.

°° Swein died 3 Feb. 1014. After some negotiation, /Ethelred returned, having agreed that he would rule more justly than before; ASC, s.a. 1014.

?9 Athelred died on 23 Apr. 1016; ASC, s.a. 1016. Whilst he succeeded in Mar. 978,

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Danes with their King Swein landed in England and each spilt out such ferocity and impiety everywhere that they gave everything over to booty, burning, and death. No delay on account of reverence then paid heed to rank or age or sex. Every depraved man and betrayer of justice made his escape to the enemies, and others did the same out of fear. So King /Ethelred, daily abandoned by his men, went together with his wife to Normandy and entrusted himself to Richard the younger,

count of the Normans, whose sister he had in marriage.**> Swein, seizing the realm of England, was accepted as lord. However, he was not allowed to rejoice about this for long, since he was soon deprived both of the kingdom and of life by the judgement of God. After his death, the king of the English returned from overseas shores and

possessed the kingdom he had previously had.**° 110. (B244) Concerning the times of King cnu*t. Meanwhile the Danish associates of the deceased Swein conspired together with Englishmen against the genuine lord and submitted to cnu*t, Swein’s son, pledged their faith to him, and promised that they would readily pursue those things he might desire. Amidst such plots again, the troubled king was seized by illness and died after completing in his reign thirty-six years embroiled in diverse danger-

ous events." Without delay his son Edmund was crowned by those who had adhered to his father.*** He tried to rout cnu*t’s side in battle, directing the minds of many to bring help so that with spirited force they might drive back from themselves the lordship of a barbarous people. Therefore, when he had gathered a multitude for himself, he took battle to his opponents five times in the same year.**” However, he could not prevail over them and gain the upper hand, but rather they increased and he declined, a great mass of nobles on both sides being slain. Therefore the armies of both princes decided that the following plan would be just: that peace be established by oath and pledge of faith by both sides, lest, that is, the streaming forth of so much of their men’s blood proceeded in greater quantity with the enticement of ruling. Counsel brought this about, and so, when

the kings had been reconciled, Edmund ruled the western peoples," according to the ASC, ‘C’, he was only consecrated on 4 May 979. In that case, only thirtysix years were completed between his consecration and his death. 388 On the events of Edmund Ironside’s reign mentioned in the following sentences, see Lawson, cnu*t, pp. 19-20. 389 4SC, s.a. 1016, refers to Edmund’s preparations for the battle of Assundun in 1016 as the fifth time he gathered the people of England.

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Merciorum, populis imperarunt. His taliter peractis, Eadmundus hominem exiuit, non plusquam sex mensium transcurso curriculo ex

quo regni sumpserat moderamina.? Inde totius Brittannie cnu*to monarchiam, quin et Datie et Norweie dominatum, adipiscitur triuiatim. Inter quos tam dissidentes in Anglia motus, hinc Dei miseratione protegente, illic abbatis Wlfgari industria uigilante, cenobium Abbendonense a Danorum deuastatione permansit immune, cum dextra leuaque hostium incursio passim loca uniuersa subrueret aut, si beniuolentior fieret, maximo sese pretio habitatores eorum redimere sineret. [i. 433]

C fo. 129°

111. De morte Wlfgari abbatis."

Circa idem tempus domnus Wlfgarus pastor defecit. Deflendo funera fecit quem pie tractauit deuotus grex et amauit.' Cui in pastoralitate domnus /Ethelwinus successit, equitatis comprobatus assertor, et plurime apud cnu*tonem familiaritatis iccirco |consecutus usum.^ Vnde loco Abbendonensi se rex priuatum^ gerebat, uener-

ationem suam illic sedulo conferendo. Quod adhuc celebri predicatur indicio, quo tecam de argento et auro decenter ornatam honori martiris ac leuite Vincentii Hispaniensis fieri fecit," quatinus in ea eiusdem martiris reliquie. locarentur, summa ab uniuersis suffragium eo diuinum petentibus ueneratione in palam colende. In qua etiam apices sculpte erant quorum forma hec est: Rex‘ cnu*t hanc thecam necnon /Elfgiua regina Cudere iusserunt. Bis centum necne decemque,

Coctos igne chrison'?" mancosos atque uiginti, Necne duas libras argenti pondere magno. ^ itaque B 111 ^ ausum MS » rex rep. MS inscripiwon are set slightly into the margin

* the initials starting the lines of the reliquary

99 ie. Wessex; see also ASC, s.a. 1016. ?! Edmund died 30 Nov. 1016; ASC, s.a. 1016. 3°? This section does not appear in MS B, which provides a much shorter passage, the opening of which contains some verbal parallels to MS C; see below, B245.

95 Wulfgar died 18 Sept. 1016; ASC, ‘C’, Cambridge, University Library, Kk. i 22, fo. 5". 'The Abingdon version of the Worcester Chronicle preserved in Lambeth Palace Library states that “Pius pastor Abbendonie Wulgarus obiit anno .xxviii. ex quo illum diuina pietas eidem ecclesie prefecit." It then includes a passage similar to that at the end of c. 110, followed by mention of /Ethelwine's succession. Of /Ethelwine, it states ‘Quem rex

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cnu*t those of the Mercians. When these events had been completed thus, Edmund departed human life, following the passage of not more than six months from when he had undertaken the governance of the kingdom.?' And so cnu*t attained the monarchy of the whole of Britain, far and wide, and also lordship of Denmark and Norway. Amidst such dissensions in England, sometimes by the protection of God's mercy, sometimes by the alertness of Abbot Wulfgar's industry, the monastery of Abingdon remained unharmed by the devastation of the Danes, while the enemies’ incursions were everywhere, right and left, undermining all places or, if more merciful, allowing their inhabitants to ransom themselves at a very great price. 111. Concerning the death of Abbot Wulfgar.??*

Around that time lord Wulfgar the shepherd died.?? The devoted flock that piously treated and loved him performed his funeral rites in

mourning.?^ Lord /Ethelwine succeeded him in the pastorship, a proven assertor of justice, and therefore he enjoyed the closest familiarity with cnu*t. Whence the king conducted himself like an ordinary man towards the monastery of Abingdon, by earnestly conferring his veneration on it? This is still proclaimed by a famous sign, in that he had made from silver and gold a reliquary fittingly decorated in honour of the martyr and levite Vincent of Spain, so that the relics of this martyr might be placed in it, to be openly honoured with the highest veneration by all seeking divine help through this. Also on it letters were engraved, of which this is the form: King cnu*t and also Queen /Elfgifu ordered the casting of this reliquary. Twice a hundred and also ten and twenty gold?" mancuses smelted with fire, and two pounds in great weight of silver. Kanutus pro laudabilis uite merito secretorum suorum conscium efficiens a noxiis sese retrahere ac recta appetere eius suasionibus studebat. Hinc et cenobium Abbendonense a rege diligitur et muneribus eius cumulatur, nam inter alia sua donaria capsam de argento et auro parari fecit in qua sancti Vincentii leuite et martiris reliquie collocarentur’; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 614. 3*^ For this metrical epitaph, see above, p. xxxvi. On the problem of abbatial succession at this point, see above, p. c. 395 Cf. below, B249. The text here is corrupt, and its sense somewhat uncertain. 396 On St Vincent, sec above, p. clxxiv.

397 Interestingly, an Abingdon charter of 1007 uses a related form of this Greek-derived word, below, B237 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 134): ‘pro trecentis criseis adpreciauit mancusis'.

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[i. 434] Hec in superiori parte, et ista inferius continebantur, scripta: Istud /Edelwini patris sub tempore domni Martiris est Vincentii sub honore peractum.

Hec uero nominata regina binomia quidem, scilicet /Elfgiua Imma, /Edelredo regi conubio primum copulata, quam iste cnu*to regno confirmato in coniugem duxit, Hardecnu*tonemque ex ea genuit.?* Addidit huic pio rex cnu*to beneficio ut duo grossioris soni signa tunc quidem laudabilis istic donaret. Abbas autem /Edelwinus capsam alteram, ad formam illius que per regem facta fuit, pari pene magnitudine, condidit, ubi reliquias sanctorum a se exquisitas intulit. 112. De Siwardo abbate??? His ergo uita decedens, successorem Siwardum, ex Glestoniensi quidem cenobio monachum, accepit, tam secularium quam ecclesias-

ticarum uigore admodum

suffultum.*” Cuius mentio in quadam

eiusdem regis cartula sic continetur. 113. Carta regis cnu*t de Mytuna."! In nomine Dei et Domini nostri Ihesu Christi. Anno Dominice incarnationis .mxxxiiii., indictione secunda, ego cnu*t, rex Anglorum totiusque Brittannice orbis gubernator et rector, superna annuente gratia, ab eodem Deo et Domino nostro Ihesu Christo populis et tribubus preelectus in regem, anno imperii mei undeuicensimo, fui rogatus a uenerabili abbate Abbendonensis ecclesie, uocitato nomine Siwardo, ut quandam terram trium manentium in loco qui dicitur ab accolis Mytun ad monasterium beatissime Dei genitricis semperque [i. 435] uirginis Marie, quod situm est ad Abbandune, libenter concedo, eius

gratia amoris qui dicit ‘Petite, et dabitur uobis'."? Maneat igitur hoc

nostrum immobile donum, eterna libertate iocundum, cum omnibus ad se rite pertinentibus, tam in notis causis quam ignotis, in modicis et in magnis, campis, pratis, pascuis, aquarumque cursibus, excepto istis tribus, expeditione, pontis arcisue restauratione. Et mandamus in 95 For Emma's marriage to cnu*t in 1017, see Stafford, Queen Emma and Queen Edith, esp. pp. 226-30. The marriage also produced a daughter named Gunnhild. ?9 MS B contains a different passage, but with some verbal parallels; below, B251. ^? The Abingdon version of the Worcester Chronicle preserved in Lambeth Palace Library contains a similar sentence concerning Siward, preceded by the statement that /Ethelwine had died; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 614. Athelwine died on 25 Feb. 1030.

*! Warwickshire. Sawyer, no. 973; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 140. This is an unusual instance of a charter appearing only in MS C. MS B has a different charter concerning Myton, below, B246 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 139). Charters of Abingdon

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These words were written on the top, and the following were stated below: This was done in the time of lord father /Ethelwine

In honour of the martyr Vincent.

This queen with two names, that is /Elfgifu Imma, who had first been joined in marriage to King /Ethelred, cnu*t took as his wife once he had been confirmed in the kingship, and from her he had a son Harthacnu*t."? King cnu*t added to this pious favour that he would then praiseworthily give two very resonant bells in this place. Moreover, Abbot /Ethelwine constructed another reliquary of almost equal size, on the model of that which had been made on the king's behalf, where he put saints' relics that he had sought out. 112. Concerning Abbot Simard.??? When he departed life, he had as successor Siward, a monk indeed from the monastery of Glastonbury, well buttressed with vigour in both worldly and ecclesiastical matters." He is mentioned as follows in a charter of the same king: 113. Charter of King cnu*t concerning Myton.^ In the name of God and our Lord Jesus Christ. In the year of our Lord 1034, the second indiction, I, cnu*t, king of the English and governor and ruler of the whole British world, with the assent of heavenly grace, chosen by that God and our Lord Jesus Christ as king for the peoples and tribes, in the nineteenth year of my dominion, have been asked by the venerable abbot of the church of Abingdon, called by the name Siward, that I willingly grant certain land amounting to three hides in the place called Myton by the inhabitants to the monastery of the most blessed mother of God Mary, ever Virgin, situated at Abingdon, by grace of the love of Him who says ‘Ask, and it shall be given you’.*” Therefore let this gift of ours remain immovable, happy in eternal liberty, with everything duly pertaining to it, both in known and unknown affairs, in small things and in great, fields, meadows; pastures, and watercourses, except these three, military service, and bridge and fortress repair. And we Abbey, pp. 547-9, examines the difficulties of accepting both charters as genuine, although there is no certain reason for condemning either. Abingdon did not hold land in Myton in Domesday; DB i, fos. 239", 241". For speculation that the estate may have been exchanged with Earl Eadwine for lands at Barford St Michael, Oxfordshire, see Charters ofAbingdon

Abbey, pp. 548-9.

#02 Matt. 7: 7, Luke 11: 9.

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nomine Dei Patris omnipotentis et Filii et Spiritus Sancti ut nullus superueniat hominum, superbia inflatus aut aliqua maliuola instigatione, hanc prefatam donationem atque libertatem in alicuius honeris molestia mutare audeat. Et si prescriptis litteris noluerit consentiens esse, sit ipse in profundum chaos igneis nexibus mancipatus et eius memoria caligine mortis obtecta. Sciatque se alienum a consortio sancte Dei ecclesie per auctoritatem beati Petri apostoli omniumque sociorum eius, nisi hic digna satisfactione emendauerit ante mortem quod contra nostrum decretum maliuola machinatione peregit. Si autem aliquis hoc adaugere uoluerit, augeat Deus partem illius in terra uiuentium. Ego cnu*t rex Anglorum concessi. Ego /Elfgiua regina hanc libertatem libentissime a prefato rege domino meo adquisiui. Ego /Ethelnotus archipresul et ego /Elfricus, cum ceteris

omnibus, confirmauimus.*”? | C fo. 129"

114. (B247) “Carta duorum manentium de Linford."* Ecclesie uero catholice auctoritas iugis et indefessa obtamus ut permaneat. Ad sacra autem sanctuaria |in Domini gazophilatio* diuersa iubentur iactari ac offerri munuscula, quia Regi nato celorum, ut scriptum est, reges terre ^munera obtulerunt.^*? Vnde ego cnu*t, eius gratuita miseratione et inolita benignitate totius Albionis basileus, paruam ruris particulam quod ab huius patrie incolis Linford nuncupatur, duorum uidelicet manentium quantitatem, quoddamque monasteriolum in honore sancti Martini presulis consecratum, cum adiacenti prediolo in urbe

[i. 439] Pax et uictoria apostolice fidei^ cultoribus.

B fo. 106"

B fo. 107"

que famoso nomine Oxanaford' nuncupatur, Domino nostro Ihesu Christo eiusque genitrici semperque uirgini Marie ad usus monachorum loco qui celebri Abbandun uocitatur onomate eterna largitus sum hereditate; in nomine sancte Trinitatis et indiuidue Vnitatis precipiens ut nullus alicuius persone hominum prefatam donationem a predicto cenobio auferre presumat. Hec autem ruris particula libera ut maneat precipio, causis tribus segregatis, expeditione scilicet 114

^* Carta

^ gazofilatio B

regis cnu*t

de Linford

^^ optulerunt munera B

^ followed

by in perpetuum

* Oxnaford B

9 See Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 140A, for the boundary clause preserved in the quire of charter bounds at the end of MS C (fo. 202"), in the main scribe’s hand. *** Sawyer, no. 964; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 138, which, at p. 542, states that this charter ‘can probably be considered authentic’, most likely ‘drawn up in the abbey’; see also the other comments noted in the revised Sawyer, no. 964. The estate mentioned in this charter may be included with the smaller of Abingdon's two Domesday holdings at Lyford,

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order in the name of almighty God the Father and Son and Holy Spirit that no man, puffed up with pride or at any malevolent instigation, shall come up and dare to change this aforementioned gift and liberty by the infliction of any burden. And if he is unwilling to consent to the aforewritten letters, let him be assigned to deep chaos with fiery bonds and his memory concealed by the darkness of death. And let him know that he is outside the fellowship of the holy Church of God by the authority of the blessed apostle Peter and all his associates, unless he makes amends here with fitting compensation before death for having gone against our decision by malevolent plotting. If, moreover, anyone wishes to augment this, let God increase his share in the land of the living. I cnu*t king of the English have granted. I Queen /Elfgifu have acquired this liberty most willingly from the aforementioned king my husband. I Archbishop

/Ethelnoth and I /Elfric, with all others, have confirmed. 114. (B247) Charter regarding two hides in Lyford. Peace and victory to worshippers of the apostolic faith. We truly desire that the authority of the Catholic Church remain endless and constant. Moreover, diverse small gifts are ordered to be set down and offered to the sacred sanctuaries in the treasury of the Lord, since, as it has been written, the kings of earth brought gifts to the

King of Heaven when he was born.9? Wherefore I, cnu*t, by His freely given mercy and accustomed kindness emperor of the whole of Albion, have bestowed as eternal inheritance a very small portion of land called Lyford by the inhabitants of the land, that is the quantity of two hides, and a little minster consecrated in honour of St Martin the bishop, with the adjacent small estate in the town called by the

famous name Oxford, 5 on our Lord Jesus Christ and His mother Mary, ever Virgin, for the use of the monks at the monastery which is called by the well-known name Abingdon; ordering in the name of the Holy Trinity and the indivisible Unity that no man of any rank may presume to take away the aforementioned gift from the aforesaid monastery. Moreover, I order that this small portion of land remain free, with three matters set aside, namely war service, royal fortress Berkshire, amounting to three hides, which had been held from the abbey by a monk called Lindbald TRE; DB i, fo. 59; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 160. 405 Cf. Ps. 67 (68): 30 ‘Tibi offerent reges munera’; Ps. 71 (72): 10-11 'Reges Tharsis et insulae munera offerent; reges Arabum et Saba dona adducent; et adorabunt eum omnes

reges terrae, omnes gentes seruient ei’; Matt. 2: 11. 406 St Martin’s at Carfax, with land probably between Queen Street and Shoe Lane; Blair, Anglo-Saxon Oxfordshire, pp. 151, 156.

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hostili, fundatione arcis regie, pontisque restauratione. Si quis uero inuidus, ignicomis philargirie flammis accensus, huic ueridico libellulo alium circumatramentatum" cupiditatis fallacia libellum superimponere conatus fuerit, sit anathema marathana,* 497 hoc est alienatio a consortio Christianorum, donec resipiscens peniteat quod in inuidie [i. 440] fallacis liuore probarat." "Tantillum terre huius Adelwinus testamento hereditauit Abbendonam et curiam apud Oxonofordam in qua

ipsemet commanebat.' 5 Et hoc fecit multorum testimonio. Acta est hec cartula anno Dominice incarnationis duo et triginta post mille. Et ut hoc inuiolabilis firmitas soliditatem obtinere possit, ego cnu*t regali dextera eandem uexillo sancte crucis + corroboro, manibusque omnium mihi subiectorum confirmare precipio. Ego /Elfgiua predicti [i. 441] regis collatera istud donum crucis uexillo + consolidaui. Ego /Ethelnodus Dorobernensis ecclesie archiepiscopus regium munus gabulo sancte crucis confirmo. Idem ego /Elfricus Eboracensis ecclesie archiepiscopus facio. (I)dem* Wlfsius episcopus cum multis aliis facio."

[i. 442] 115. (cf. B248) In his et tempora predicti abbatis sed et confirmationes cnu*tonis regis harum ecclesie Abbendonensis possessionum intelligi dantur quibus tunc eadem ecclesia aucta est. fo. 107" Illis^ diebus uir prepotens, nomine Adelwardus, ad nouissimum uite terminum ueniens, octo hidas et dimidiam apud Sandford’ et

scrinia tria cum uno grandi cristallo huic^ cenobio largitus est.*” 'Temporibus*'? etiam huius regis, reliquie sancti /Edwardi regis et martiris sunt Abbendone delate. Dumque portitor inde eas postea referre deliberasset, non longe ab ecclesia Dei nutu in itinere uestigio solo tenus hesit nec ultra progredi quiuit. Ita sacra pignora ad ecclesiam reuecta hucusque inibi conseruantur. ^ circumattramentatum B

* maratana B

" see Charters of Abingdon Abbey,

b. 541, for the boundaries in B ** pisne lansplot becwap /Epelwine in to Abbendune 7 pone hagan on Oxnaford pe he sylf onset on mycelre gewitnysse B ^J see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 541—2, for the dating clause and witness list in B * initial om. at start of line, and perhaps because of large capital Y starting the next section C 115 ^ rubricator failed to provide coloured initial C; "Testamentum Adelredi regis as rubricated heading B ^ Apelwardus B ^ Samford B ^ huius C; changed almost certainly from huius B, suggesting that B derives from C

497 See 1 Cor. 16: 22.

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strengthening, and bridge repair. If indeed any envious man, set on fire with the fiery radiant flames of covetousness, tries to set in place of this truthful document another document soiled with the deceit of greed, let him be anathema maranatha,” that is estrangement from the fellowship of Christians, until he comes to his senses and repents that which he approved in the malice of envious falsity. By his testament, /Ethelwine made Abingdon heir of a very small quantity

of this land and of the messuage at Oxford in which he lived. And

he did this by the testimony of many. This charter was carried out in the year of our Lord 1032. And so that this inviolable confirmation can acquire security, I cnu*t, with the royal right hand, strengthen it with the mark of the cross + and order confirmation by the hands of all those subject to me. I /Elfgifu, spouse of the aforesaid king, have made firm this gift with the mark of the cross +. I /Ethelnoth archbishop of the church of Canterbury confirm the royal gift with the sign of the holy cross. I /Elfric archbishop of the church of York do the same. I Bishop Wulfsige with many others do the same. 115. (cf. B248) In these matters, both the aforesaid abbot's times and King cnu*t's confirmations of these possessions of the church of Abingdon are given that it be understood by whom that church was then enhanced. In those days a very powerful man named /Ethelweard, coming to the end of his life, bestowed on this monastery eight and a half hides at Sandford and three reliquaries with one large crystal.^?

Also*'? in the time of that king, the relics of St Edward, king and martyr, were moved to Abingdon. And when their carrier afterwards resolved to take them away from there, not far from the church on his journey, by God's will he was stopped in his tracks and could go no further. Thus the sacred relics were brought back to the church and are preserved therein to this day. 408 AEthelwine’s identity is obscure. Lawson, cnu*t, pp. 151—2, states that /Ethelwine was *probably the Abingdon abbot who died in 1030’, but Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 543, disagrees, primarily on account of the lack of reference to his position in the charter. 409 The donor cannot be identified with certainty. The land was at either Dry Sandford, Berkshire, or Sandford-on-Thames, Oxfordshire. ^ Cf. the passage below, B250, which has limited verbal parallels to that in MS C. Abingdon is presenting a claim to rival that of Shaftesbury, which was recorded in various sources as the resting place of Edward; J. Blair, ‘A handlist of Anglo-Saxon saints’,

in A. T. Thacker and R. Sharpe, eds., Local Saints and Local Churches in the Early Medieval West (Oxford, 2002), pp. 495—565, at 529. See also above, p. clxxv.

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116. Rex autem cnu*to, Datiam, Norweiam, et equa et ualida manu moderans,*"’ summorum Pauli expetitis apud Romanas arces suffragiis, nationes sibi subacte in causarum controuersiis prudentumque consultu, sancitis, in pace diem

Angliam imperialiter apostolorum Petri ac legibus hinc quibus unirentur, seniorum obiuit.*!

[i. 446 n.]

Post*? eum in regem constituitur Haroldus, |filius, ut ferebatur,

C fo. 130°

ipsius cnu*tonis ex concubina progenitus, quinquennioque emenso

moritur."^ Hinc Hardecnu*to, ex cnu*tone rege et Emma

regina

progenitus, imperium Anglie sumpsit. 117. (B254) “Carta regis Hardecnu*t de Ferneburga." E Cuncta seculorum patrimonia incertis nepotum heredibus relinquun[i. 446] tur, et omnis mundi gloria appropinquante^ debite mortis termino ad nichilum reducta fatescit. Huius rei‘ gratia, terrenis caducarum rerum possessionibus semper mansura superne patrie emolumenta" adipiscentes, Domino iuuante, lucremur. Quapropter, lubrici potentatus non immemor, ego Hardacnu*t, Christo conferente rex et primicerius Anglorum atque Danorum, ob remuneratione’ celestis premii, aliquantulam ruris particulam, decem scilicet mansas loco qui celebri Fernbeorgan^ profertur, ad ecclesiam beate Marie genitricis Dei ac [i. 447] Domini nostri Ihesu Christi illo in locello qui dicitur Abbendun*^ ad usus ibidem fratrum Deo seruientium libenter concedo, obsecrans et precipiens in nomine Christi ut nemo successorum nostrorum superioris inferiorisue gradus hoc nostre deuotionis donum aliquo temeritatis aliquatenus instinctu dirumpat." Si quis ergo alium libellulum, false cupiditatis atramento, pretitulatum contra istum in palam protulerit, nec sibi nec sue proficiat auaritie, sed a diuino sit in perpetuum perforatus graphiolo, et ipse meo atque meorum interdictu pontificum permaneat anathematizatus et a Christianorum consortio alienatus, insuper a corpore et/ sanguine Domini

B fo. 108”

117 ^* Carta Hardecnu*ti de Fernburga B ^ corr. from approprinquanto C; adpropinquante B * regi B ^ emulumenta B * remunerationem B S get Feornbergan B * Abbandun B ^ disrumpat B ' attramento B / followed by a B 11 See above, p. xxxiii. *!? cnu*t visited Rome in 1027 and perhaps again in 1031. The laws to which the text here refers are a letter he sent on his departure from Rome, preserved in the Worcester Chronicle and William of Malmesbury's Gesta regum; see John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 512—18; William of Malmesbury, Gesta regum, bk. ii, cc. 182—3, ed. Mynors et al., i. 324—8, ii. 173—5; Gesetze, ed. Liebermann, i. 276—7; P. Wormald, The Making of English Lam: King Alfred to the Tmelfth Century, i: Legislation and its Limits (Oxford, 1999), pp. 348-9. *5 Cf. below, B253. cnu*t died at Shaftesbury on 12 Nov. 1035; Lawson, cnu*t, p. 113 and n. 110.

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116. Moreover, King cnu*t, who ruled Denmark, N orway, and England with a just and strong hand as becomes an emperor,*!! after he had sought the aid of the greatest apostles, Peter and Paul, at the Roman citadels, and from there, by the advice of high-ranking and prudent men, ordained laws whereby the nations subjected to

him might be reconciled in disputes, died in peace.*"? After*? him Harold was instituted as king, the son, as they said, of that cnu*t born of a concubine. He died after five years had passed.*" Harthacnu*t, born of King cnu*t and Queen Emma, took up dominion in England.

117. (B254) Charter of King Harthacnu*t concerning Farnborough.^? All patrimonies of this life are left to uncertain heirs of descendants, and all glory of the world fails and is reduced to nothing with the approaching end of due death. Because of this, we, with the Lord's help, acquire and gain with earthly possessions of transitory things the ever-lasting advantages of the heavenly land. Therefore, not unmindful of the transitoriness of power, I, Harthacnu*t, by Christ's appointing king and ruler of the English and Danes, with a view to payment of a heavenly reward, willingly grant a small portion of land, that is ten hides, at the place commonly called Farnborough, to the church of the blessed Mary mother of God and of our Lord Jesus Christ in that small place called Abingdon, for the use of the brethren serving God there, entreating and ordering in Christ's name that none of our successors, of higher or lower rank, prompted by any rashness break to any degree this gift of our devotion. If therefore anyone brings forward into the open any document previously drawn up with the ink of false greed against this one drawn up above, let it profit neither him nor his avarice, but be pierced in perpetuity by a divine sword, and let him remain anathematized by the interdict of myself and my bishops, and estranged from the fellowship of Christians, and in addition cut off from the body and blood of the Lord, and miserably damned after his death in infernal punishments. 414 Harold died on 17 Mar. 1040; Handbook of British Chronology, p. 28. 415 Farnborough, Berkshire. Sawyer, no. 993; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 141, which, at pp. 552-3, states that *the authenticity of [this document] is uncertain, but there seems to be a good chance that it [is] at least based on a contemporary diploma. . . . There can be little doubt that, in its present form, [the document] was drawn up at Abingdon (as claimed in Abbot Siward's subscription). See above, p. 152, for /Ethelred granting Farnborough to Abingdon. B57 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 29) records King ZEthelstan granting ten hides in Farnborough to his thegn /Elfheah. /Elfheah may have been a future ealdorman in central Wessex; see above, p. cxxiti.

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sequestratus, et in penis infernalibus post obitum miserabiliter dampnatus. Et ut prefate telluris ruricole inuiolabile robur libertatis semper obtinere ualeant, regali liberati sunt precepto ab omni seculari iugo exceptis trium rerum obsequiis, expeditione scilicet populari, [i. 448] uiatici fundatione pontis, arcis conditione regalis. ^(A)cta est ergo huius donationis cartula anno Dominice incarnationis duo et quadraginta post mille, anno imperii mei secundo, in regali uilla que Sudtun nuncupatur, his testibus: Ego’ Heardecnu*t rex meum donum corroboro sancte crucis + signaculo. Ego /Elfgiua eiusdem regis mater [i. 449] collaudo.*? Ego Eadward predicti regis frater assentio. Ego Eadsie archipresul Dorobernensis consigno. Ego Alfric archiepiscopus Eboracensis consentio, cum multis aliis episcopis et abbatibus et laicis. Ego Siward abbas presentem scedulam gaudens composui." 118. De morte Hardecnu*t regis." Rex itaque Heardacnu*t uectigal pene importabile passim a popularibus Anglie exegit.!? Cadauer quoque Haroldi ante se regnantis, causa nimii odii quod pre se regnum anticiparit, effossum iussit in locum profundissimi ceni demergi."" Vnde in singulorum ore hominum de eo haberi imprecatus ut tante crudelitatis non diu [i. 451] abesset animaduersio. Et id contigit. Siquidem ipso in regia hilariter epulante, improuise humi decidit et expirauit, uerbum uel unum suarum rerum alicui non indicens."? His ita compositis, Eadwardus filius /Edelredi regis ab omnibus cum leticia in dominum suscipitur, fauor effunditur, et diadema ei imponitur.*”’ [i. 450]

[i. 451 n] 119. De temporibus Eadwardi regis."

Regnante itaque hoc rege, secundo anno regni eius Cantuariensis metropolis archiepiscopus, Eadsius nomine, accitum Siwardum abba-

tem, quem prudentia plurimum uigere nouerat," regis consensu et C fo. 130°

regni primorum pontificatus decorauit apice ac patriarchatus sui uice ipsum fungi in|stituit. Nam priuatis ipse uti uolebat, quia egritudine "s

* see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 550-2, for the boundaries, dating clause and witness list in B ! the E. at the start of each Ego appears in the centre margin C

**^ On Emma, mother of Harthcnu*t, also being called /Elfgifu Imma, see above, p. 172. *7 The events with which this passage deals appear in B255. *'5 This is presumably the geld of 1040, recorded in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle and elsewhere.

*? ASC, ‘C’, records this event s.a. 1040. *^ John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 532—4, states that Harthacnu*t collapsed at the wedding feast of Tofi the Proud and Gytha, daughter of Osgod Clapa, held at Lambeth. Following his collapse he remained speechless until his death on 8 June 1042.

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And so that the local inhabitants of the aforementioned estate can always hold the inviolable strength of liberty, by royal order they are freed from every secular yoke except services of three things, that is common military service, road bridge building, and royal fortress building. So the charter of this gift was carried out in the year of our Lord 1042, the second year of my dominion, in the royal vill called Sutton, with these witnesses: I King Harthacnu*t strengthen my gift with the sign of the holy cross +. I /Elfgifu mother of that king join in

praising." ^ | Edward brother of the aforesaid king assent. I Eadsige archbishop of Canterbury join in signing. I /Elfric archbishop of York consent, with many other bishops and abbots and laymen. I Abbot Siward, rejoicing, have composed the present document. 118. Concerning the death of King Harthacnu*t.^" And so King Harthacnu*t demanded an almost unbearable tax everywhere from the populace of England.*'® Also, he ordered the corpse of Harold who reigned before him to be dug up and sunk in a place of deepest filth, because of his excessive hatred arising from Harold having taken the kingship before him.*!? Therefore, every man's mouth prayed concerning him that such great cruelty would not long go unpunished. And this happened, inasmuch as, while he was happily feasting in a royal palace, he fell down and expired without warning, not proclaiming even one word concerning his affairs to

anyone.^?? When these matters had taken place thus, Edward son of King /Ethelred was joyously adopted as lord by everyone, approval

was poured forth, and the diadem placed on him.*”! 119. Concerning the times of King Edward." And so with this king reigning, in the second year of his reign the archbishop of the metropolitan see of Canterbury, Eadsige by name, summoned Abbot Siward, whom he knew to flourish greatly in prudence.? With the consent of the king and the leading men of the realm Eadsige honoured Siward with the eminence of a bishopric and instituted him to perform as a substitute in his patriarchal position. For he was wishing to spend his time on private matters ?! Edward was crowned on 3 Apr. 1043; sce Barlow, Edward the Confessor, p. 61. 422 MS B deals with Siward and Canterbury in B256. The present section closely resembles a passage in the Abingdon version of the Worcester Chronicle which is preserved in Lambeth Palace Library; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 614. On Siward and Canterbury, see above, pp. ci-ciii. 93 Eadsige was archbishop of Canterbury 1038-50; Handbook of British Chronology, p. 214.

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laborabat. (A)bbendonensi autem ecclesie /Edelstanus eiusdem loci sacrista abbas constitutus est. [i. 457]

120. (B259-60) “De Lechamstede.* **

De uilla quadam^ Lechamstede appellata tunc Abbendonie agitabatur questio. Dicebat enim quidam diues, Brichwinus’ nomine, quod Siwardi dono ipsam in ius suum hereditarie possidendam acceperit, dum pro potestate dominatus que liberet disponeret."? Sed id falso imposuit. Nam cnu*tonis tempore regis, pater huius—Brithmundus^ uocatus—-a conuentu cenobitarum Abbendonensium eandem impetratu acquisiuit,’ eo dictatu ut trium hominum uita, ipsiusmet scilicet Li. 458] et duorum quos ipse Brithmundus/ prospiceret, inde frueretur. Hoc tempore euoluto, monachorum manui libere restitueretur. Defuncto ergo illo, ad uxorem ipsius transfertur terre fruendi secundaria permissio, tercia ad Brithnodum* filium horum. Cuius post mortem Siwardus, uolens usui monachorum eandem terram delegare, cum iam trium manutenentium numerositas defecisset, predictus Brithwinus^ frater Brithnodi' cum nobilium quorundam comitatu Abbendoniam requisitum abbatem ueniunt, quatinus et iste quoad uiueret inde tenens foret. Diu rogatum et tandem id impetratum est. Cumque is abbas iam alias frena direxisset," quicquid antea pactum fuerat preuertere ille hom*o sategit, protestando sibi suisque de terra ipsa ius hereditarium concessum. Quo contra episcopus Siwardus Godwino comiti litteras dirigens, falso eundem prosecutum ostendit, ita scribens:* *??

B fo. 111"

Siwardus episcopus Godwino comiti, et Hermanno episcopo, et Kinewardo, et ceteris omnibus nobilibus de Bearrucscira, salutem." Audiui Brithwinum! terram de Lechamstede sibi omnino appropriare. 120

^* De contentione Lechamstede B

^ Brihtmundus B

* adquisiuit B

^ Brihtwinus B ' Brihtnodi B Lechamstede as rubricated heading B

^ corr. from quedam B

/ Brihtmundus B

* Brihtwinus B

* Brihtnodum B

7 rectius uenit * Responsio Siwardi episcopi de ! Brihtwinum B

*^ For this case, see also above, pp. clxiii-clxv. The dispute is calendared as Wormald, ‘Lawsuits’, no. 86. It is uncertain when Abingdon first obtained Leckhampstead, although it was claimed as part of the early endowment; above, cc. 10-11. See below, c. 137, B71—B72, for it being granted to the thegn Eadric in the mid-roth c.

"5 Note that the evidence of DB i, fo. 58", suggests that ‘Bricstuinus’, i.e. Brihtwine, was one of Abingdon's tenants at Leckhampstead TRE.

#6 ie. taken on Eadsige’s duties at Canterbury. "7 Sawyer, no. 1404; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 143; Anglo-Saxon Writs, ed. Harmer, no. 3. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 558, states that the writ which follows ‘is

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since he was struggling with illness. /Ethelstan sacrist monastery was made abbot of the church of Abingdon.

189

of this

120. (B259—-60) Concerning Leckhampstead.** A dispute was then under way concerning a village of Abingdon's called Leckhampstead. For a certain rich man named Brihtwine was saying that he received that land by gift of Siward to be possessed hereditarily as his own property, in that he might dispose what he

wished according to the power of lordship.? But he claimed this

falsely. For in the time of King cnu*t, his father—called Brihtmund— acquired this from the convent of the Abingdon monks by request, on this specification, that thereafter it be enjoyed for the lives of three people, that is of Brihtmund himself and of two whom he would specify. When this time had passed, it would be freely restored into the monks' hands. So when he died, the second permission to enjoy the land passed to his wife, the third to their son Brihtnoth. After his death Siward wished to assign that land to the monks’ use, since now the total of three holders was exhausted, but the aforesaid Brihtwine brother of Brihtnoth came to Abingdon with a band of noblemen and asked the abbot that he might be tenant of that land as long as he lived. After a long period of asking, at length this was obtained. And when

this abbot had taken up the reins elsewhere,"^ Brihtwine strove to exceed whatever had been previously agreed by protesting that the hereditary right of that land had been granted to him and his. Against this Bishop Siward sent letters to Earl Godwine and showed that man

was pursuing the case falsely, writing thus:*”” Bishop Siward to Earl Godwine, and Bishop Hereman, and Kine-

weard, and all other noble men of Berkshire, greeting.*”* I have heard that Brihtwine is entirely appropriating the land of Leckhampstead to almost certainly a Latin translation of a genuine Old English writ’; see also Anglo-Saxon Writs, ed. Harmer, p. 123. The writ can be dated to 1045 x 1048. #28 Godwine’s earldom of Wessex included Berkshire. Godwine was earl from possibly 1018 until his death in 1053; Barlow, The Godmins, pp. 22, 48. Hereman was bishop of Ramsbury 1045—55 and of Sherborne 1058-78; Handbook of British Chronology, pp. 220, 222. Kineweard was probably the sheriff of Berkshire, witnessing various charters as prepositus or prefectus; see below, c. 132, B43, B254, B257, B258, B273 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, nos. 141-2, 145—7). The writ must date from 1045 x 1048, after the consecration of Bishop Hereman and before the death of Siward. It is one of only three episcopal writs surviving from Anglo-Saxon England; Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 558. It may have been necessary for Siward to submit his evidence in writing because his episcopal duties kept him in Kent. Alternatively, written testimony may have been more common than the surviving evidence allows us to know.

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Sed iniuste id agit. Nam, me permittente, ea potitus est eo tenore, ut post suum decessum monachorum libere in manum redeat. Quod conuentione dispositum est illustrium uirorum plurimorum presentia, eo die quo Brithnodus," eius frater" defunctus, Abbendonie sepultus fuit. Qui tercius a patre, nam mater eius inter se et patrem [i. 459] media eiusdem terre possessione functus est, quibus tantummodo cnu*tonis regis tempore trino uite spacio hominum possessores fieri fo. 111” inde a monachis Abbendonensibus concessum fuerat. Hec | haud aliter haberi fide quam Deo et regi meo domino debeo interposita iuro. Sed et si adhuc his quis discrederit, iudicio quo censura uestra potuerit iure definiri, inueritare que protestatus sum ero paratus. Hec quanquam ab episcopo sint testimonio prolata, uir ille tamen tanto calluit ingenio ut ad Ordrici abbatis, de quo inferius tractabitur, illius inde dominatus excuti nequiuerit tempora."? 121. (B261) “De Luuechenora." *? Matrona quedam, /Elfgiua nomine, de genere regali nobilissima— /Ediue scilicet regine regis /Edwardi^ consanguinea—uillam quandam que Luuechenora dicitur de matrimonio suo habebat, in qua fre-

quentius degebat." Hec uite presentis cursu peracto cum ad finem appropinquaret, quod in forensibus rebus carius habebat, cognate sue predicte quam et pre ceteris diligebat —quamuis absenti—uillam de Luuechenora habendam dereliquit. Que cum uite finem sortita esset, procurator domus eius in uilla, quasi sibi donata esset, dominium exercere cepit, prorsus ignorante regina, quoniam absens erat, quia ei donata fuisset. Predictus uero^ procurator subiectos sibi non medio€ fo, 131 criter affligebat, modis omnibus eis gra|uis existens et honerosus. Res namque eorum diripiebat et unicuique ultra modum exactor auarus [i. 460] imminebat. Inter quos cuidam Eadwino cognomento Ramere mala multa inferebat, et quamuis omnes odio haberet, hunc tamen pre " Brihtnodus B by prolata del. B 121

" eius rep. C

De uilla Leuekenore B

^ ueritate changed from veritare B ^ Eadwardi B

follomed

* om. B

*? See below, p. 208. 9 Oxfordshire. Calendared Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 582 (ix); Wormald, ‘Lawsuits’, no. 134. The events must have taken place between 1045 and Mar. 1052, that is between Edward’s marriage to Edith and the death of his mother Emma. Note, however, that De abbatibus dates the gift to the time of Abbot Ealdred (1066-71); CMA ii. 283. In 1086 Abingdon had seventeen hides at Lewknor; DB i, fo. 156". Accounts of the Obedientiars, pp. 36-7, has income from Lewknor in the kitchener’s account.

THE

HISTORY

THE

CHURCH

ABINGDON

IQI

himself. However, he does this unjustly. For, with my permission, he gained possession of it on this condition, that after his death it is to return freely to the hands of the monks. This was set down by agreement in the presence of very many illustrious men, on the day on which Brihtnoth, his late brother, was buried at Abingdon. Brihtnoth was the third from the father (for in between himself and his father his mother enjoyed possession of that land) to whom alone it had, in the time of King cnu*t, been granted by the monks of Abingdon to be possessors thereof for the space of the lives of three men. Having pledged the faith that I owe to God and my lord king, I swear that these things did not happen in any other fashion. But if anyone still disbelieves these things, I will be prepared to prove what I have testified, by a judicial method whereby your judgment can rightly be determined.

Although these things were put forward by the bishop as testimony, Brihtwine, however, was so skilled in trickery that his lordship of the land could not be shaken off until the times of Abbot Ordric (about

whom it shall be treated below).*? 121. (B261) Concerning Lemknor.*? A most noble matron named /Elfgifu, of the royal family—that is a kinswoman of Edith queen of King Edward—had from her marriage a village called Lewknor, in which she very frequently resided.^' When the course of the present life was run and she was approaching her end, she left the village of Lewknor, which she held particularly dear among her worldly possessions, for her aforesaid kinswoman to have, whom she loved beyond others, although she was not there. When she was allotted the end of her life, the guardian of her house in the village began to exercise lordship, as if it had been given to him. The queen, since she was not there, was altogether unaware that it had been given to her. Moreover, the aforesaid guardian to no small extent afflicted those subject to him, in every way acting in an oppressive and burdensome fashion to them. An avaricious official, he used to take away their possessions and threatened everyone beyond measure. Amongst those people he inflicted many evils on a certain Eadwine, surnamed Ramere, and, although he hated everyone, 31 fK|fgifu's identity cannot be established for certain, although Queen Edith did have a sister of that name; see Barlow, The Godwins, p. 26 n. 32. Edith, daughter of Earl Godwine, married King Edward in 1045 and lived until Dec. 1075; ASC, s.a. 1045, 1075.

192

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ABBENDONENSIS

ceteris laboribus fatigabat.? /Edwinus^ autem, tantis malis prouoca-

B fo. 112"

[i. 461]

tus grauiterque de illata sibi ferens iniuria, cogitabat aliquando tam nequam hominis a suo et cohabitantium collo iugum inhumanum excutere. Veniensque ad prenominatam reginam, uiri tirannidem et suorum grauem oppressionem ostendit, et enarrans qualiter a cognata sua defuncta ei uilla eadem donata esset, querebat quare, sicut suis, non eis melius prouideret. Regina uero quia ei uilla donata esset se nescire dicebat et usque ad tempus illud neminem sibi hoc indicasse asserebat. Et /Edwinus^ ‘ego,’ inquit, quocumque modo iusseris, et uillam tuam esse et ipsum eam iniuste tenere probabo'. Vocatus deinde predictus procurator ad curiam uenit et, ne multis morer, manifesta ueritate conuictus, ita esse ut /Edwinus/ asserebat negare minime potuit. Villam postea regine, quamuis inuitus, tradidit pro commisso quoque in eiusdem^ misericordia cum rebus omnibus incidit. His ita gestis, contigit regem /Edwardum^ cum matre et uxore hospitandi gratia ad Abbendoniam uenire. Cumque officina fratrum omnia uidendi’ gratia lustrassent, inuenerunt in refectorio pueros monachos, ut moris est puerorum, propter etatis’ infirmitatem ante refectionem fratrum cibum sumentes. | Propiusque uenientes nichilque excepto pane appositum eis inspicientes, quesiuit regina utpote urbana quare tam prope mensam comederent et preter panem ad gustandum nil^ haberent. Quibus respondentibus se uix aliquando aliud habere, commota est regina ad pietatem pro eorum uictus exiguitate. Et aduocans regem, qui aderat, obnixe petebat ut pueris aliquid redditus concederet, quo scilicet eis exinde melius esset, quod ipsi (ut ita dicam) ad eorum conuiuium uenissent. Rege autem cum hilaritate dicente se eis libenter daturum si terram aut possessionem in promptu’ deliberatam haberet, ‘ego’, ait regina, ‘uillam unam que Luuechenora dicitur nuper adquisiui. Hanc, si tibi placet, pro honore beate Marie dono perpetuo illis concedo.' Qui cum respondisset hoc sibi magnifice gratum esse, sub specie refectionis matutinalis puerorum, attitulata est uilla de Luuechenora in dominium abbatie Abbendonensis a rege /Edwardo" et regina /Edgióa" donatione

perpetua.*? ^ Eadwinus B * Eadwinus B ^ Eadwinus B ' corr. from uidenda B 7 propter etatis rep. and del. B B " Eadwardo B " Eadgipa B

* eius B * nichil B

^ Eadwardum B ! impromptu

THE

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193

this man beyond others he wore out with burdens.** But Eadwine, provoked by such great evils and taking hard the wrong done to him, at length considered how to shake off from his own and his fellow inhabitants’ necks the inhuman yoke of so depraved a man. He came to the aforenamed queen and demonstrated that man’s tyranny and the heavy oppression of his men. He told how that village had been given to her by her late kinswoman, and inquired why she did not provide better for these people, as for her own. The queen, indeed, said that she did not know that the village had been given to her and asserted that hitherto no one had indicated this to her. And Eadwine said, ‘I will prove, in whatever way you order, both that the village is yours and that he holds it unjustly’. Then the aforesaid guardian was summoned and came to court, and (lest I delay with many details), convicted by manifest truth, he could not deny at all that it was as Eadwine asserted. Afterwards, although unwilling, he handed over the vill to the queen and also fell into her mercy with all his possessions for his misdeed. Following these events, it happened that King Edward with his mother and wife came to stay at Abingdon. When they had gone round to see all the domestic buildings of the brethren, in the refectory they found boy-monks who, as is the custom of boys, were taking food before the brethren’s meal, because of the weakness of their age. Coming closer and seeing nothing but bread placed before them, the queen asked, politely as one might expect, why they ate so close to the meal and why they had nothing but bread of which to partake. When they answered that they scarcely ever had anything else, the queen was moved to compassion for the meagreness of their provisions. She appealed to the king, who was there, seeking resolutely, on the grounds that they themselves had (as one might say) come to their feast, that Edward grant some rent for the boys whereby they would be better off in future. The king, however, cheerfully said that he would willingly give to them if he had any land or possessions ready for disposal. ‘The queen said ‘I have recently acquired a village called Lewknor. If it pleases you, I grant this to them by perpetual gift for the honour of the blessed Mary’. When he answered that this was splendidly agreeable to him, the village of Lewknor was consigned to the demesne of the abbey of Abingdon by King Edward and Queen Edith by perpetual gift, for

the specific purpose of the boys’ morning repast.'? 432 I have been unable to establish any more with certainty concerning Eadwine. 433 In the later 13th c. the abbey had a charter in King Edward’s name that was produced as evidence of its right to Lewknor; see Lyell, no. 538, Placita de Quo Warranto, pp. 664-5.

194

HISTORIA

ECCLESIE

ABBENDONENSIS

Inuenimus preterea^ hanc eandem uillam priscis temporibus a quodam Danorum nobilissimo Nouitoui nominato, una cum membris suis (id est Hachamstede et ceteris), huic ecclesie cum obiret donatam, sed postmodum per aduersitates que contra ecclesiam oriri solent a dominio ecclesie fuisse ad tempus alienatam, et ut prediximus succedente tempore iterum recuperatam, immo iterum donatam, et ore regio confirmatam. Cessabit ergo merito omnis obiectio prioris et, uolente Deo, ultime perditionis, cum manifesta sit ratio secunde reuersionis. 122. (B262) Transactis^ aliquot reuerendus episcopus Siwardus in episcopatu annis, dum languore deprimeretur, quorum monitu episcopalem indeptus’ fuerat dignitatem, eorum quoque ad Abbendoniam gratia regreditur, ibique decedens, sepulture honorifice commenda-

tur,*? posteris illic’ degentibus munificum sui monimentum derelinC fo. 131"

[i. 462]

quens, cum uillam Witteham | eius dono hucusque monachi in dominio habuerint, in ciuitatis Walingaford^ contermino sitam;**° cunctum etiam sue capelle paratum, in qua continebantur scrinium sanctarum reliquiarum, euuangeliorum duo codices non granditate sed uenustate decenter argenti et auri parati; calix laudabilis operis permaximus;?" pecten eburneus et decorus; alba;?? super humerale;"? stola cum fanone et casula albi coloris," de pallio aurifrixo singula perlucida; pluraque alia que breuitatis studio preterimus. 123. (B263) De morte /Ethelstani^ abbatis. Obierat^ anno precedenti domni Siwardi transitus et pie memorie domnus Adelstanus’ abbas, elemosinarum et pietatis precipuus cultor.*’ Vt enim huiusmodi in eo probaretur efficientia, instante tante inedia famis, qua tunc frumenti sextarius solidis quinque ^ pretea B

122 ° preceded by De morte Siwardi episcopi as rubricated heading B * over erasure B ^ Walingford B ^ add. at end of line B 123 ^* Adelstani B * Apelstanus B

^ ineptus B

^ Abierat, the wrong initial having been added by rubricator C

5* See Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 582 (viii). Ackhamstead is a lost village site, formerly in Oxfordshire, now in Buckinghamshire; A. Morley Davies, ‘Abefeld and Ackhamstead: Two lost places’, Records of Buckinghamshire, xv (1947—52), 166—71. On it being a member of Lewknor, see also vol. ii. 292. Nefetofi ‘minister’ witnessed B271, B273, B275 (Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, nos. 144, 145, 147). His identity is uncertain. *5 Siward died on 23 Oct. 1048. His illness, return to Abingdon, and death after two months of being confined to bed are also mentioned in the Abingdon versions of the Worcester Chronicle; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 614.

THE

HISTORY

THE

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195

We have found besides that this same village, together with its members (that is Ackhamstead and others) had in former times been given to this church by a certain very noble Dane named Nefetofi when he was dying."* However, it had afterwards been for a time alienated from the church’s demesne by adversities that were accustomed to arise against the church. Then, as we have said, it was later recovered again, or rather given again and confirmed by the king’s mouth. Therefore every reproach concerning the earlier and, God willing, final loss will deservedly cease, since the correctness of the second reversion is obvious. 122. (B262) When some years had passed in his episcopate, the reverend Bishop Siward, as he was pressed down by illness, returned to Abingdon by the grace of those same men by whose advice he had attained episcopal dignity, died there, and was honourably handed

over for burial.7? He left a generous reminder of himself for those living there in future, since the monks still have in demesne by his gift

the village of Wittenham, situated next to the city of Wallingford; 6 also all the furnishings of his chapel, in which were contained a reliquary of holy relics, two gospel books fittingly produced not with large quantity but with elegant quality of silver and gold; a very large

chalice of praiseworthy work;**’ a beautiful ivory comb; an alb;*? a superhumeral;*? a stole with a maniple and a white chasuble," each one radiant from gold embroidered cloth; and many other things we pass over in eagerness for brevity.

123. (B263) Concerning the death of Abbot A:thelstan. In the year preceding the passing away of lord Siward had also died lord Abbot /Ethelstan of pious memory, an outstanding devotee of alms and compassion.**' The influence of this upon him is shown by the fact that, when starvation through a great famine was at hand, 536 See Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 582—3 (x), where it is suggested that the details may come from a lost will or a more general account of Siward. On Little Wittenham, see also above, c. 16. ^? A chalice is a cup for consecrated eucharist wine. For liturgical vessels and vestments, see e.g. A New Dictionary ofLiturgy and Worship, ed. J. G. Davies (London, 1986). 438 A white vestment, reaching to the ankles, with tight-fitting sleeves and held in by a

girdle at the waist. It was worn at celebration of mass. ^9 A vestment worn over the shoulders, like an amice or pallium. #40 A stole is a vestment consisting of a narrow strip of silk or linen, worn over the shoulders and hanging down to the knee or below. A maniple is a cucharistic vestment consisting of a strip of cloth worn over the left wrist and hanging down. A chasuble is a sleeveless mantle, the outermost vestment worn by the celebrant at the eucharist. 441 /Fthelstan died on 29 Mar., probably in 1048; see above, p. ciii.

196

B fo. 112"

HISTORIA

ECCLESIE

ABBENDONENSIS

uenundabatur,'? in nulla circum se posita regione tam suis quam alienis ab eo stipem queritan|tibus alimonie nemo studiosius et copiosius ipso subuenit.** 124. (B264) De Sperauoc abbate. 'Talibus ergo patribus ad requiem, ut credimus, hinc profectis, rex quendam monachum de ecclesia sancti /Edmundi^ regis et martiris, aurificis arte peritissimum, nomine Spearhauoc, Abbendonie abbatem constituit.*** A quo Stigandus Wentane ciuitatis episcopus, tunc uero archiepiscopatus Cantie curam gerens (nam inde defuncto gubernatore locus uacuus manebat regimine), uti callidus perorator, extorsit terram Cyrne uocatam in Gloecestrensi scira sitam, sibi ad tempus

Li. 463] determinatum commendari;*? ea retributionis ^mercede, ut restitu-

tionis tempore sui proprii iuris Eastun,"^ quandam uillam con-

tiguam Leuechenore ecclesie Abbendonensi perpetua coniungeret donatione. Sed eo quesito iam potito, nec commendatum reddidit,

nec commendati remunerationem exsoluit."" Siquidem rex Willelmus senior, triumphata Anglia, ipsum Stigandum captioni deditum

ad mortem usque in ea detinuit." ? Spearhauoc autem a rege ciuitati Lundonensi, eodem predicte pactionis anno, in episcopum promo-

tus,"? dum

auri gemmarumque

electarum

pro corona

imperiali

cudenda, regis eiusdem assignatione, receptam haberet copiam, hinc et ex episcopii pecunia marsupiorum farsisset plurimum receptacula, clanculo Anglia secedens, ultra non apparuit. Huiusmodi exitus Dei ^ corr. from copiosus by interlin. B

124 ^ Eadmundi B ^* tempore sui proprii iuris mercede ut restitutionis B; these and the following two words are over an erasure. Marginalia in dry-point and brown ink also refer to the correction ^*^ A sester of grain was probably eight bushels, also referred to as a seam or a quarter; Zupko, Dictionary ofWeights and Measures, p. 374. There are not accurate figures for the price of grain in the Anglo-Saxon period, but later prices make the History’s figure seem reasonable. The price ofa quarter of wheat was under 2s. in the 1160s, rising towards 6s. in the first decade of the 13th c., then fluctuating around 4s. for the next forty years; The Agrarian History of England and Wales, i: 1042-1350, ed. H. E. Hallam (Cambridge, 1988), p. 734. “8 The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle does not mention famine at this time, but it does record a pestilence, earthquake, and wildfire; ASC, ‘C’, s.a. 1047, ‘D’, s.a. 1048-9. 4 Spearhafoc's succession is also mentioned in the Abingdon versions of the Worcester Chronicle, s.a. 1048, but in a form with only very limited verbal connection to the History; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 614. On his career, see the entry by J. Blair in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography; also Dodwell, Anglo-Saxon Art, pp. 46-7, 55, 58, 213. ^5 Stigand became bishop of Winchester in 1047, and he retained that see following his appointment to Canterbury in ros2 until his deposition in 1070; Handbook of British Chronology, pp. 214, 223; M. F. Smith, ‘Archbishop Stigand and the eye of the needle’,

THE

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197

whereby a sester of corn was put up for sale at 5 shillings,” no one anywhere around him was more zealous or more lavish than he in providing help both for his own men and for others who sought from

him an offering of nourishment.**

124. (B264) Concerning Abbot Spearhafoc. So when such fathers, as we believe, had departed from here to rest, the king appointed as abbot of Abingdon a certain monk of the church of St Edmund king and martyr, most skilled in the goldsmith's art, Spearhafoc by name." Stigand, bishop of the city of Winchester, who then indeed had care of the archbishopric of Canterbury (for with its ruler dead that place lacked governance), as a crafty pleader extracted from Spearhafoc the land called Cerney, situated in

Gloucestershire,

to be entrusted

to him

for a set time.*? As

repayment, at the time of the restitution he would add as a perpetual gift to the church of Abingdon his own property of Aston, a village

neighbouring Lewknor.** But when he had acquired what he sought, he neither restored what had been entrusted to him, nor discharged

the payment for what had been entrusted.^" King William the elder indeed, when he had conquered England, placed Stigand in captivity and kept him there until death.**? But Spearhafoc, in the year of the aforesaid agreement, was promoted by the king to be bishop for the city of London.**? Then, at a time when he had, by the king’s allocation, plenty of gold and chosen gems acquired for fashioning the imperial crown, he stuffed money-bags full with riches from the bishopric, left England in secret, and did not appear again. God's ANS, xvi (1994), 199-219. The dating of these events and the description of Stigand’s position raises difficulties. Archbishop Eadsige had died at the end of Oct. 1050, He was succeeded in Mar. 1051 by Robert of Jumiéges, who in turn was expelled in Sept. 1052, to be succeeded by Stigand. The History's dating of the agreement concerning Cerney to the year in which Spearhafoc was appointed to London indicates 1051, when Stigand was not archbishop of Canterbury. One possibility is that this is otherwise unsupported evidence for Stigand having a custodial role at Canterbury before the appointment of Robert; another is confusion on the part of the composer of the History. ^ Aston is presumably Aston Rowant, Oxfordshire, about a mile from Lewknor. "7 DB i fo. 169', states that Walter son of Roger held South Cerney, and that Archbishop Stigand had held it. It goes on: *this manor has been claimed for the church of St Mary of Abingdon, but the whole county witnessed that Archbishop Stigand had held it for ten years in King Edward's lifetime. Earl William [fitzOsbern] gave this manor to Roger the sheriff, Walter's father.’ For Abingdon holding or claiming Cerney in the midI2th c., see vol. ii. 266, 274. ^55 Stigand died on 21 or 22 Feb. 1072; Handbook of British Chronology, p. 214. *9 Spearhafoc was appointed to London in succession to Robert of Jumiéges; Handbook ofBritish Chronology, p. 220.

198

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ABBENDONENSIS

uindicta tulere, quorum machinatione suis diminuta est ecclesia augmentis. Secundum itaque predictam definitionem, sub presentia et testimonio regis /Edwardi^ sic de manerio deliberatum fuit. 125. (B265) De Rodulfo episcopo *et abbate." Inde Rodulfum quendam longeuum abbatis loco ponendum rex transmisit, qui episcopatum apud Norweiam gentem diu moderans, et tandem ab huiusmodi fasce priuatum se agere malens, ad regem ipsum suum, ut ferebatur, cognatum uenit, a quo et susceptus est. Vt uero tam Dei quam sui respectu eum monachi reciperent honorifi[i. 464] ceque tractarent, utpote summa canicie iam maturum, eo discedente," licere eis dedit quem de suis uellent potius successorem eligere. Paretur regi. Reuerentie subiectio’ debite a fratribus uiro competenter impenditur. At ipsos regia nequaquam fefellit in posterum promissio.

C fo. 132"

126. (B266) De Ordrico abbate *ecclesie huius." Siquidem sene predicto annis haud^ duobus integris transactis obeunte, Ordricus, etatis medie, affabilitatis gratiose hom*o, monachus Abbendonensis |ecclesie ingenti omnium gaudio, fauente rege, abbas ab eis suscipitur.*°° Qui, quia a rege non mediocriter diligebatur, eius edicto^ plura sanciri^ ecclesie ad libertatis necessaria impetrauit. Quorum hucusque ad formam, ceteri post eum successores abbates ipsius abbatie inuestitura se potiri usualiter, cum primo initiantur, expetunt. Que huiusmodi habent modum:

127. (B267) Carta regis Eadwardi Anglice.! Eadward king gret his bisceopas and his abbodas^ and his heorlas and peignas pe on pam scyran syndon pe Ordric abbud hef6’ land inne. And ic’ kype eow p ic hebbe geunnon him into sancta Mariam [i. 465] mynstre sace^ and socne, toll and team, and infangenepeof,’ binnan burgon and butan burgon, hamsocne and gridbrice/ and foresteal, ofer

B fo. 113°

* Eadwardi B

125

yore

^ discedende C

126

** om. B

^ haut B

127

* abbotes B

! hef C

* second i interlin. B ^ corr. from edictio B

* hic B

^ sancciri B

^ sake B. In C, the legal terms are

numbered i—vii in both this English writ and the Latin one that follows; in B, such numbers only appear in the Latin text, and only over the first five terms. The numbers are in the main hand, above the specific term * infanguenebeof B, perhaps misled by the numeral v above the mord in C ! gridbryce B

*° Rodulf's death in 1052 and Ordric’s succession are also mentioned in the Abingdon versions of the Worcester Chronicle; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 615.

9! Sawyer, no. 1065; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 148; Anglo-Saxon

Writs, ed.

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199

vengeance brought such ends for those by whose trickery the Church was diminished for their own profit. And so according to the aforesaid decision, in the presence and by witness of King Edward, it was settled thus concerning the manor.

125. (B265) Concerning Rodulf, bishop and abbot. Then the king sent a certain aged man, Rodulf, to be put in the abbot’s place. He had long been governing a bishopric among the Norwegian people, and finally preferring to free himself from such office he went to King Edward, his kinsman so they said, by whom he was received. So that the monks would, out of respect both for God and himself, receive and treat honourably Rodulf, inasmuch as he was already of ripe old age, the king gave them permission rather to elect as his successor whomsoever they wished from amongst themselves when Rodulf died. The king was obeyed. Submission of due reverence was fittingly paid by the brethren to Rodulf. But the royal promise by no means deceived them thereafter. 126. (B266) Concerning Ordric, abbot of this church. The aforesaid old man died without two whole years having passed, and Ordric, a man of middle age and charming affability, a monk of the church of Abingdon, was received by them as abbot, with the king’s approval, and to the immense joy of everyone.**” Since he was greatly loved by the king, he obtained affirmation by his edict of very many things necessary for the liberty of the church. Other abbots succeeding after him still usually seek to possess an edict of similar form at their installation in the abbacy when they are first admitted to office. These have the following form:

127. (B267) Charter of King Edward in English.*' King Edward greets his bishops and his abbots and his earls and thegns who are in those shires within which Abbot Ordric has land. And I inform you that I have granted him for St Mary’s monastery sake and soke, toll and team, and infangentheof, inside borough and outside borough, hamsocn and grithbreach and foresteal over his own Harmer, no. 4, with translation. The writ also appears in one of the later Abingdon cartularies, Lyell, no. 70. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 573, states that the authenticity of the writ is uncertain, but also notes a similar grant to St Augustine’s, Canterbury, and argues that ‘it is not difficult to believe that the abbot of Abingdon was granted such privileges’. The writ, if authentic, can be dated no more precisely than to 1052 x 1066, the abbacy of Ordric. On this writ, and the Latin translation which follows, see also above, p. clviii.

200

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ECCLESIE

ABBENDONENSIS

his agen land. And ic nelle nanu(m) men gepafian P him znig^ para

pinga of anime pe ic him geunnen hebbe.” 128. (B268) Interpretatio in Latinum. Eadwardus rex salutat suos episcopos et suos abbates et suos comites et barones qui in illis uicecomitatibus sunt ubi Ordricus abbas habet terram infra. Et ego ostendo uobis quia ego habeo permissum sibi ad sancte Marie monasterium litigium, exquisitionem, teloneum et appropriationem, et infra captum latronem, infra burgum et extra burgum, domus assaltum, et pacis infractionem, obuiationem, super suam propriam terram. Et ego nolo ulli homini permittere ut ei aliqua harum rerum auferat que ego sibi concessi habere.

129. (B269) Carta regis Eadwardi* de hundredo de Hornimere.** Eadward cyninge^ gret Hereman bisceop‘ and Harold eorl and Godric

and ealle his’ pegenas on Bearrucscyre freondlic.*** And ic cyde eow P Ordric abbud and eal p hired on Abbendunes mynstre, be minre unne [i. 466] and gife, frigelice habban and wealdan Hornemeres hundred,’ on hyre agenre andwealde on ecere worulde. And swa f nan scyrgerefe odde/

motgerefe par habban ani socne oÓ0e^ gemot” buton pes abbudes' agen hese and unne.

130. (B270) Interpretatio in Latinum. Eadwardus rex salutat Hermannum episcopum et Haroldum comitem et Godricum et omnes suos^ barones de Bearrucscira^ amicabiliter. Et ego ostendo uobis quod Ordricus/ abbas et omnis congregatio Abbendonensis monasterii, meo concessu et dono, libere habeant et possideant hundredum de Hornemere, in sua propria potestate in sempiterna secula. Et sic ut nullus uicecomes uel prepositus ibi habeant aliquam appropriationem seu placitum sine abbatis proprio iussu et concessu. * eng B 129

^ habbe B

" Edwardi B.

* hunred B

^ king B

^ odde B

130 ^" corr., possibly from meos C end of word C

* biscop B

* odde B

7^ corr., almost certainly from mine C

^ mot B

^ Bearcscira B

' corr. from abbutes B ^ Ordicus C

^ n erased at

*? Sawyer, no. 1066; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 149; Anglo-Saxon Writs, ed. Harmer, no. 5, with translation. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 575, concludes that ‘it is impossible to establish whether [this document] is a genuine writ to which an exclusionary clause has been added, or whether it is a later fabrication perhaps based in part on a genuine writ of the Confessor concerned with some other transaction’. If authentic, the writ dates from 1053 X 1055 or 1058 x 1066. Hormer is the Berkshire hundred in which Abingdon lies. The abbey held all the Domesday estates therein. On this writ, and the Latin translation that follows, see also above, p. clix.

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land. And I will permit no one to take away from him any of the things which I have granted him.

128. (B268) Translation into Latin. King Edward greets his bishops and his abbots and his earls and barons who are in those shires within which Abbot Ordric has land. And I show you that I have permitted to him for St Mary’s monastery lawsuit, investigation, toll and appropriation, and thief captured within, inside borough and outside borough, house assault, and breach of the peace, confrontation, over his own land. And I am not willing to permit any man that he take away from him any of those things which I have granted to him to have. 129. (B269) Charter of King Edward concerning the hundred of Hormer.*>* King Edward greets in friendly fashion Bishop Hereman and Earl

Harold and Godric and all his thegns in Berkshire.? And I inform you that Abbot Ordric and all the congregation in the monastery of Abingdon, by my grant and gift, are to have and possess freely Hormer hundred, in their own power for ever more. And thus that no sheriff or court-reeve may have any soke or court there without the abbot's own order and grant. 130. (B270) Translation into Latin. King Edward greets in friendly fashion Bishop Hereman and Earl Harold and Godric and all his barons of Berkshire. And I show you that Abbot Ordric and all the congregation of the monastery of Abingdon, by my grant and gift, are to have and possess freely the hundred of Hormer, in their own power for ever more. And thus that no sheriff or reeve may have any appropriation or plea without the abbot’s own order and grant. ^53 Godric was the sheriff probably of Berkshire and possibly of Buckinghamshire before 1066; J. A. Green, English Sheriffs to 1154 (HMSO, 1990), pp. 26, 28; see also Clarke, English Nobility, pp. 135-8, 309-10. See below, p. 224, for the History stating that he fell at Hastings. DB i, fo. 60‘, has a Godric unjustly taking lands at Sparsholt after Hastings, which has led to suggestions that the sheriff may have survived Hastings. However, the preceding Domesday Book entry mentions Godric ‘a free man [unus liber hom*o) holding land there, perhaps to distinguish the Sparsholt Godric from Godric the sheriff, who appears in the next entry but one with reference to holding TRE; see also below, p. 212, on Godric Cild holding land at Sparsholt. This may be to distinguish two Godrics. Otherwise either the hundred jurors in 1086 or the History have made a mistake. For other discrepancies between the History and Domesday, see Hudson, ‘Abbey of Abingdon’, pp. 189-90. Harold, who became Harold II king of England in 1066, here appears as earl of Wessex. He succeeded to the earldom following the death of his father, Godwine, in 1053.

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[i. 4 69 n.] 131. De Haroldo comite.*

Rex autem Eadwardus dederat comiti Haroldo terre portionem quandam transflumen Tamisie quatuor hidarum, que Sandford uulgo uocitatur. Sed postea, eiusdem comitis suggestione, abbate Ordrico optinente, ecclesie Abbendonensi eandem terram concessit. De quo ita cartula inscripta est:

132. (B273) Carta quatuor hidarum de Sandford. *° Cuncta seculorum patrimonia incertis nepotum heredibus relinquni. 470] tur,’ et omnis mundi gloria appropinquante" debite mortis termino ad nichilum reducta fatescit. Huius rei^ gratia, terrenis caducarum rerum possessionibus semper mansura superne patrie emolumenta adipiscentes, Domino iuuante, lucremur. Quapropter, lubrici potentatus non inmemor, ego Eadwardus,’ Christo conferente rex et primicerius

i. 469]

B fo. 114 1 4"

C fo. 132)

Anglorum," | ob^ remunerationem* celestis premii, aliquantulam ruris particulam, quatuor mansas in communi terra loco qui celebri Sandford’ profertur, ad ecclesiam beate Marie genitricis Dei ac Domini nostri Ihesu Christi illo in locello qui dicitur Abbandun ad usus ibidem fratrum Deo seruientium libenter concedo, obsecrans et precipiens in nomine Christi ut nemo successorum nostrorum superioris inferiorisue gradus hoc nostre deuotionis donum aliquo temeritatis aliquatenus instinctu dirumpat.' Si quis ergo alium libellulum, false cupiditatis atramento, pretitulatum contra istum in palam protulerit nec sibi nec sue proficiat auaritie, sed a diuino sit in perpetuum perforatus graphiolo, et ipse meo atque meorum interdictu pontificum permaneat anathematizatus, et a Christianorum consortio alienatus, insuper a corpore et sanguine Domini sequestratus, et in penis infernalibus post obitum miserabiliter" dampnatus. Et ut prefate telluris ruricole inuiolabile robur libertatis semper obtinere ualeant, regali liberati sunt precepto ab omni seculari iugo exceptis trium rerum obsequiis, expeditione scilicet populari, uiatici 132 * Samford B ^ Eadward B * remuneratione B * protulererit C

^ relinquuntur B ^ adpropinquante B ^ regi B ! preceded by atque Danorum struck out C; atque Donorum B ^ xt Sandfordan B ' disrumpat B / attramento B ! misabiliter B

^5* This section does not appear in MS B, although there are some verbal parallels in the latter's introduction to this gift of Sandford-on- Thames; below, B272. 55 Sawyer, no. 1025; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 147, which, at p- 571, states that this charter “would appear to be a fabrication’. The main problem is the witness list in MS B, whereas that in MS C is more acceptable. However, the latter still refers to Stigand as a

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131. Concerning Earl Harold.*™* Moreover, King Edward had given to Earl Harold a portion of land amounting to four hides across the Thames, which is commonly called Sandford. But afterwards, at the suggestion of that earl, he granted that land to the church of Abingdon, under the charge of Abbot Ordric. Concerning this a charter was written thus: 132. (B273) Charter regarding four hides in Sandford.** All patrimonies of this life are left to uncertain heirs of descendants, and all glory of the world fails and is reduced to nothing with the approaching end of due death. Because of this, we, with the Lord’s help, acquire and gain with earthly possessions of transitory things the ever-lasting advantages of the heavenly land. Therefore, not unmindful of the transitoriness of power, I, Edward, by Christ's

appointing king and ruler of the English," with a view to payment of a greater reward, willingly grant a small portion of land, four hides in the common land in the place commonly called Sandford, to the church of the blessed Mary mother of God and of our Lord Jesus Christ in that small place called Abingdon, for the use of the brethren serving God there, entreating and ordering in Christs name that none of our successors, of higher or lower rank, prompted by any rashness break to any degree this gift of our devotion. If therefore anyone brings forward into the open any document previously drawn up with the ink of false greed against this one drawn up above, let it profit neither him nor his avarice, but be pierced in perpetuity by a divine sword, and let him remain anathematized by the interdict of myself and my bishops, and in addition estranged from the fellowship of Christians, and in addition cut off from the body and blood of the Lord, and miserably damned after his death in infernal punishments. And so that the local inhabitants of the aforementioned estate can always hold the inviolable strength of liberty, by royal order they are freed from every secular yoke except services of three things, that is, common military service, road bridge strengthening, and royal bishop, whereas he had become archbishop by the time of the charter; see also above, p. 196 n. 445. On the possible circ*mstances of fabrication, see above, p. ccvi. The four hides separately specified in Domesday as being held from the abbot by Wenric in 1086 may correspond to the four mentioned in this charter, and in the grant to Earl Godwine, recorded in an apparently authentic charter of 1050; DB i, fo. 1 56", below, B271 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 144). 456 Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 572, suggests that the deletion of ‘atque Danorum’ may ‘reflect a belated realization that this was not such an appropriate component of a royal style for Edward the Confessor’.

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[i. 471] fundatione pontis, arcis conditione regalis. "Acta est hec donatio anno

ab incarnatione Christi .mliiii., his subscribentibus testibus: Ego Eadward rex Anglorum prefatam donationem sub signo sancte crucis [i. 472] indeclinabiliter consensi atque roboraui. Ego Stigandus episcopus subscripsi. Ego Hermannus episcopus, ego /Eldredus episcopus, ego Duduca episcopus, ego Leofric episcopus subscripsimus. Ego Ordri-

cus abbas, ego Alfwardus" abbas," ego Alfwinus abbas concessimus. Ego Siwardus dux,'"?ego Haroldus dux, ego Leofric dux concessimus. Ego Kinewardus prepositus, ego /Elfwi prepositus annuimus."

[i. 488] Idem" rex, sub eodem abbate, quinque hidarum portionem terre apud B fo. 117"

Cildatun? concessit huic ecclesie, quam portionem^ /Edelredus' rex, pater huius /Edwardi regis, Beorhtwaldo episcopo Wiltoniensi

donauerat.'^? 133. (B288) Carta regis Eadwardi* de Cildatun.*? Confirmat nos sacre auctoritatis scriptura, dicens *Nudus egressus sum ex utero matris mee, et nudus reuertar illuc", et iterum ‘Nichil intulimus in hunc mundum, uerum nec ab eo auferre quid poterimus'.**! Quapropter, lubrici potentatus non inmemor, ego Eadward,’ Christo conferente rex et primicerius totius Albionis, regni fastigium humili presidens animo, ob remunerationem maioris premit, aliquantulam ruris particulam quinque comparatam cassatis, cui uocabulum certa astipulatione Cildatun’ profertur, ad ecclesiam beate Marie genitricis Dei ac Domini nostri Ihesu Christi in loco qui dicitur Abbandun ad usus ibidem fratrum Deo seruientium libenter concedo, obsecrans et precipiens in nomine Christi ut nemo successorum meorum superioris uel inferioris gradus hoc nostre deuotionis donum aliquo temeritatis aliquatenus instinctu dirumpat. [i. 489] Sit autem predicta quam ego cum consensu optimatum meorum prefato largitus sum cenobio ab omni terrene seruitutis iugo libera, tribus his exceptis, rata uidelicet expeditione, pontis arcisue "77 see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 570-1, for the boundaries, dating clause, and witness list in B " rectius Wlwardus, the rubricator having entered the wrong intial C ^ [tem idem B ’ Childatun B ^ potionem B " Adelredus B * Edwardi B

133

^ Edwardi B

^ Edward B

^ Childatun B

^ terra add. B

* Abbot /Elfweard of Evesham had died in 1044; Heads of Religious Houses, p. 47. It is possible that the rubricator had entered the wrong initial in MS C and that MS B's reading of *Wulfweard' is correct. If so, his abbey cannot be identified.

*® On this rendering of ‘dux’, see above, p. cxciii. *5? This sentence concerning Chilton, Berkshire, does not appear at this point in MS B, but rather on the second appearance of the charter, below, B288. Byrhtwold was bishop of

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fortress building. This gift was carried out in the year 1054 from the Incarnation of Christ, with these witnesses subscribing: I Edward king of the English have consented to and strengthened unfailingly the aforementioned gift under the sign of the holy cross. I Bishop Sugand have subscribed. I Bishop Hereman, I Bishop Ealdred, I Bishop Duduca, I Bishop Leofric, have subscribed. I Abbot Ordric, I

Abbot /Elfweard,"" I Abbot /Elfwine have granted. I Ealdorman^?

Siward, I Ealdorman Harold, I Ealdorman Leofric have granted. I Kineweard the reeve, I /Elfwig the reeve have agreed. The same king, under the same abbot, granted to this church a portion of land amounting to five hides at Chilton, which portion King /Ethelred, father of this King Edward, had given to Byrhtwold

bishop of Wilton.*? 133. (B288) Charter of King Edward concerning Chilton.*© The writing of sacred authority strengthens us, saying ‘Naked came I out of my mother’s womb and naked shall I return thither’, and again “We brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry

nothing out from it."^! Therefore, not unmindful of the transitoriness of power, I, Edward, by Christ's appointing king and ruler of the whole of Albion, exercising this eminence of kingship humbly, with a view to payment of a greater reward, willingly grant a small portion of land totalling five hides, called by reliable statement Chilton, to the church of the blessed Mary mother of God and of our Lord Jesus Christ in the place called Abingdon, for the use of the brethren serving God there, entreating and ordering in Christ's name that none of my successors, of higher or lower rank, prompted by any rashness break to any degree this gift of our devotion. Moreover, let the aforesaid land, which I have bestowed on the aforementioned monastery with the consent of my leading men, be free of every yoke of earthly servitude except these three, that is, fixed military service, Ramsbury 100545; Handbook of British Chronology, p. 220. The bishopric had been moved from Wilton to Ramsbury, but the earlier name is here used; see Barlow, English Church 1000-1066, p. 220. 1 ^9 Sawyer, no. 1023; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 146. MS B had also already contained a fuller version, below, B258. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 568, states that the document ‘was evidently drawn up at Abingdon, and is likely to be spurious’, primarily on grounds of problems in the witness list. On the possible circ*mstances of fabrication, see above, p. ccvi. A charter only in MS B records King /Ethelred granting five hides in Chilton to Byrhtwold bishop of Ramsbury in 1015; below, B239 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 137). DB i, fo. 59", records that Abingdon had five hides in Chilton in 1086; TRE Blaccmann Ut obmrsv2i Tim 6:7 had held it from Earl Harold *in alodio'.

206

HISTORIA

restauratione. Si quis B fo. 118" uiolare | immutareue factione ante obitum tratus incendiis cum puniatur. Acta est Domini .mlii, | his C fo. 133° nominantur.

ECCLESIE

ABBENDONENSIS

autem, laruarico instinctus spiritu, hoc donum presumptuosus temptauerit, nisi digna satissuum reus penituerit, eternis barathri! prosIuda/ Christi proditore eternaliter lugubris hec prefata donatio anno ab incarnatione testibus quorum nomina in superiori carta

li. 473] 134. (B274) *De Leomartun." Idem rex, sub eodem abbate, adiecit in dono octo hidas apud flumen Cynete, terre portionem que Leowartun^ uocatur, quam /Edelredus'

B fo. 114"

rex Brithrico^ ministro suo donauerat.*”

135. (B275) “Carta regis Eadwardi de Leomartun." * Ego Eadward, Christo conferente rex et primicerius totius Albionis regni fastigium humili presidens animo, ob remunerationem maioris premii, aliquantulam ruris particulam octo mansas iuxta flumen quod Cynete uocatur, illud uidelicet rus quod Eéeric’ quidam rusticus habuisse cognoscitur, largiendo libenter concedens perdonabo ad ecclesiam beate Marie genitricis Dei ac Domini nostri Ihesu Christi in loco qui dicitur Abbendun ad usus ibidem fratrum Deo seruientium libenter concedo,'* obsecrans et precipiens in nomine Christi ut nemo successorum nostrorum superioris uel inferioris gradus hoc nostre *deuotionis donum aliquo temeritatis aliquatenus instinctu dirumpat. Sit autem predicta tellus quam ego cum consensu optimatum meorum prefato largitus sum cenobio ab omni terrene seruitutis fo. 115" iugo libera, tribus his exceptis, rata uidelicet expeditione, | pontis arcisue restauratione. Si quis autem, laruarico instinctus spiritu, hoc Li. 474] donum uiolare immutareue presumptuosus temptauerit, nisi digna satisfactione ante obitum suum reus penituerit,’ eternis barathri’ * baratri B

^ interlin. B

134

^* Rex Edwardus dedit Leofwartun B

135

** Carta regis Edwardi B

^ Brihtrico B ^ petuerit B

^ Leofwartun B

^ corr. from E®erec B

* Apelredus B

^* donum deuotionis B

* baratri B

**^ Ethelred’s charter recording his gift of eight hides in Leverton, Berkshire, to his

thegn Beorhtric in 984 appears only in MS B; B228 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 122). That the compiler of the earlier version of the History knows of the earlier gift presumably indicates that he knew of the /Ethelred charter but chose to omit it, although a possible alternative is that he learnt of /Ethelred's gift from a note connected to the present charter.

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and bridge and fortress repair. Moreover, if any presumptuous man, prompted by diabolical spirit, attempts to violate or change this gift, unless the offender does penance with worthy compensation before his death, let the mournful man eternally be laid down and punished in the eternal fires of Hell with Judas the betrayer of Christ. This aforementioned gift was carried out in the year of our Lord 1052, with those witnesses whose names are named in the charter above. 134. (B274) Concerning Leverton. The same king, under the same abbot, added as a gift eight hides by the river Kennet, a portion of land that is called Leverton, which

King /Ethelred had given to Beorhtric his thegn.*” 135. (B275) Charter of King Edward concerning Leverton.* I, Edward, by Christ's appointing king and ruler of the whole of Albion, exercising this eminence of kingship humbly, with a view to payment of a greater reward, willingly grant by bestowing and will remit a small portion of land, eight hides next to the river called the Kennet, specifically that land which a certain rustic /Etheric is known to have had, to the church of the blessed Mary mother of God and of our Lord Jesus Christ in the place called Abingdon, I grant willingly*™ for the use of the brethren serving God there, entreating and ordering in Christ's name that none of our successors, of higher or lower rank, prompted by any rashness break to any degree this gift of our devotion. Moreover, let the aforesaid estate, which I have bestowed on the aforementioned monastery with the consent of my leading men, be free of every yoke of earthly servitude except these three, that is, fixed military service, and bridge and fortress repair. Moreover, if any presumptuous man, prompted by diabolical spirit, attempts to violate or change this gift, unless the offender does penance with worthy compensation before his death, let the mournful ^93 Sawyer, no. 1020; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 145. MS B has again already included a full version, below B257. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 566, states that the document ‘was certainly drawn up at Abingdon’, and ‘is likely to be a fabrication, though probably an early one’. The present charter draws on /Ethelred's charter to Beorhtric. In addition it has inconsistencies in its witness list. However, it is notable that the care taken to insert the name of Kineweard, reeve of Berkshire, in the witness list in MS B may indicate that the document ‘came into existence not very long after the given date’. For further discussion of the circ*mstances of fabrication, see above, p. ccvi. DB i, fo. 59°, records Abingdon having lands in Leverton in 1086. TRE it had been held by Blacmann ‘in feudo’. The TRE assessment was six and a half hides, the 1086 assessment four and a half. 464 The possibly redundant proliferation of dispositive phrases in this charter may be related to partial copying from King /Ethelred's charter concerning the same lands.

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prostratus incendiis cum Juda Christi proditore eternaliter lugubris puniatur. Acta est hec donatio anno ab incarnatione Domini .ml. Ego’ Eadward^ rex Anglorum consensi et roboraui. Ego Stigandus episcopus confirmaui. Ego Hermannus episcopus conclusi. Ego VIfo^ episcopus consensi. Ego Ordricus abbas quieui. Ego Godwine dux, cum multis aliis, subscripsi. 136. (B276) Per idem tempus^ presbiter nomine Blacheman pecuniosus, abbatis et monachorum permissu, ecclesiam ob uenerationem apostoli Andree in insula ad australem monasterii locum sita fabri-

cauit.? Cuius in lateribus dextrorsum et sinistrorsum claustralibus, ad monachorum/ formam habitaculorum, cum domibus edendi uictusque coquendi, quiescendi quoque, et ceteris conuersationi uirorum necessariis mirifice coaptatis, picturis celeturisque’ infra et extra ubique locorum delectabile uisu subhornatis, singulorum tecta plumbi laminis edificiorum texit. Cui insule a uocabulo Andree Andresia insitum est nomen. Tali ibi parata mansione, priuatim se monachis ingerendo, tum auri argentique ostentu, tum facundi oris profusione, ad hoc processum sui emolumenti perduxit, ut predic-

tarum

terrarum,

id est Sandford,^ Cildatun,/ et Leowartun,*

haberetur. Ceterum quod emolumenti de edificatis [i. 475] possessor mansionibus in insula sibi prouenerit, postea dicemus." Interim huius temporis euentus prosequamur. Brichwinus, de quo in" domni Siwardi episcopi tractatu intulimus,’ ' terra Lechamstede hucusque absque monachorum permissu potiebatur, agebatque se loquatius cum landboc, id est telluris descripte libellum, secum haberet.*” Poterat enim quis illo fiducialius pro qualibet terra disceptare, in cuius manu huiuscemodi scriptura haberetur. Quare abbas primum prudenti sategit argumento quatinus eadem scriptura sibi restitueretur. Quod postquam factum est, per / preceded by heading Testes, and with a cross preceding each witness B ^ initial om. C

* Eadwardus B

136

^ monacorum B

^ temporis C; temporis corr. from tempus B

^ interlin. B B

^ dextrosum B

* celaturisque, the first four letters being over an erasure B

* Leofwartun B

^ interlin. B

^ Childatun

* followed by in, struck out, B

*65 The island of Andersey lies between two branches of the Thames, near Abingdon. The History suggests that Blaecmann was seeking to found a substantial minster church or monastery at Anderscy. For this, and for Andersey's earlier connection to kings and to the abbey, see above, p. cviii. For later developments including the removal of the lead from the roofs of the buildings on Andersey, see vol. ii. 72-4. Blaecmann was clearly a rich priest, probably with.a close connection to the Godwine family.

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man eternally be laid down and punished in the eternal fires of Hell with Judas the betrayer of Christ. This gift was carried out in the year of our Lord 1050. I Edward king of the English have consented and strengthened. I Bishop Stigand have confirmed. I Bishop Hereman have approved. I Bishop UIf have consented. I Abbot Ordric have agreed. I Ealdorman Godwine, with many others, have subscribed. 136. (B276) During this period a wealthy priest named Blacmann, out of reverence for the Apostle Andrew, built a church on the island situated to the south of the monastery, with the permission of the

abbot and monks.*® To left and right were cloistered sides, after the pattern of monks’ dwellings, with rooms for eating and cooking food, also for resting, and with the other necessities made marvellously suitable for the religious life of men, and decorated with paintings and carvings everywhere inside and out in a fashion delightful to the sight, and he covered the roof of each building with lead sheets. To this island was attached the name Andersey, from the word Andrew. When he had built such a house there, by privately presenting himself to the monks, both with a display of gold and silver and with a pouring forth of eloquent speech, he furthered his own advantage thus that he might be the possessor of the aforesaid lands, that is

Sandford,*® Chilton, and Leverton. For the rest, we shall speak later of what advantage came to him from the houses built on the island.*®” Meanwhile let us pursue events of this time. Brihtwine, about whom we told in the discussion of lord Abbot

Siward,'* had hitherto possessed the land at Leckhampstead without the monks’ permission, and he was behaving in particularly loud-mouthed fashion since he had the land-book, that is the

document

of the estate described.*”

For he who

had in his

possession such writing could thereby dispute more confidently for any land. Therefore the abbot first strove by prudent argument to have the document returned to him. This afterwards happened, through Earl Harold, whose favour the abbot enjoyed in this matter. It was decreed that, when the opposing pleas brought by the i.e. Sandford-on- Thames. 468 See above, c. 120. ^9" See below, p. 222. ^9 The document which Brihtwine had in his possession was probably the charter which follows this section. It may never have passed to Abingdon, or Brihtwine may have obtained it from the monastery, directly or indirectly, by some unrecorded means. Charters of 466

Abingdon Abbey, p. 559, suggests as an alternative possibility ‘that Brihtwine simply approached the king (? Harold Harefoot or Harthacnu*t) and acquired a landbook for the property’.

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ABBENDONENSIS

Haroldum comitem, cuius gratia in id abbas utebatur. Edicitur ut, in consistorio seniorum" ratiociniis de predicta terra ex diuersa illC fo. 133" atione disceptantium | pensatis, cui rectius in reliquum ipsius terre proprietas competeret decerneretur. Itaque cum die denominato inde disceptaretur, causidici quibus illic ius equum disponere fuerat delegatum, cognito alternarum disputationum uero indicio, abbatis causam decernunt iustiorem. Vnde ipsi et monachis terra libere restituitur." Nec multo post, dedicante huius loci parrochiano B fo. 115" episcopo Hermanno ecclesiam tunc tem|poris in cimiterio" introitu constructam, inter cetera que episcopali officio admitti uel excludi eo habebantur, uniuersos qui ullo modo predicte terre extractum a uictualitate monachorum Abbendonie degentium ab illo tempore satagerent a communitate Christianitatis exclusit et perpetuo perculit

anathemate. Videant posteri quid inde cauendum sit." [i. 476] 137. (B277) Carta decem cassatorum de Lecamstede.*?

In nomine Dei summi et altithroni,^ qui omnia de summo celi apice uisibilia et inuisibilia ordinabiliter gubernans atque moderans. Presentisque uite curriculo cotidie temporales possessiones et uniuerse diuitiarum facultates nostris humanis obtutibus cernimus deficientes ac decrescentes. Sic mutando fragilitas mortalis uite. marcessit, et rotunda seculorum uolubilitas inanescit, ac in carorum propinquorum amicorumque amissione conqueritur ac defletur. Quapropter ego Eadwi, Angligenarum rex ceterarumque gentium in circuitu persistentium, fideli meo ministro uocitato nomine Eadrico, ob illius amabile obsequium eiusque placabili fidelitate, decem mansas largiendo libenter concedens perdonabo illic, ubi uulgus prisca relatione uocitat Lechamstede;*”* quatinus ille bene perfruatur ac perpetualiter possideat dum huius labentis eui cursum transeat illesus atque uitalis spiritus in corruptibili carne inhereat, et post se cuicumque uoluerit perhenniter heredi derelinquat, sicuti predixi. Sit autem predictum rus liber ab omni mundiali obstaculo, cum omnibus que rite ad ipsum ^ comtem B 137

* cimiterii, a/tered from cimiterio B

° altitroni B

*? The nature of this assembly cannot be known for certain; see above, p. clx. ?' Nevertheless, the evidence of DB i, fo. 58", suggests that Brihtwine was the abbot's tenant for Leckhampstead TRE; see also above, p. clxiii.

*? For the church at the cemetery entrance, see above, p. clxix. For later dispute concerning Leckhampstead, see vol. ii. 56-8, 196-8. "3 Sawyer, no. 665; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 37. MS B had again already included a different version, which has King Edmund as the grantor, below, B72. Charters

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disputants concerning that land had been weighed in an assembly of

high-ranking men,*” it would be decided to whom the ownership of that land belonged more justly for the future. And so when the matter was debated on the specified day, the pleaders, to whom in that place it had been delegated to set down the equitable right, got to know the facts in both sides’ arguments and decided that the abbot’s case was the more just. Therefore the land was freely restored to him and the

monks." Not long afterwards, when Hereman the diocesan bishop of this place was dedicating the church then constructed at the cemetery entrance, amongst the rest of the things which were there held to be admitted or excluded by episcopal office, he excluded from the community of Christianity and struck with perpetual anathema all who from that time strove in any way for the extraction of the aforesaid land from the sustenance of the monks living at Abingdon. Let men in

future see what should be guarded against concerning this.*”” 137. (B277) Charter regarding ten hides in Leckhampstead.*? In the name of the highest and high-enthroned God, who governs and rules in orderly fashion everything visible and invisible from the highest apex of Heaven. And with our human gazes we perceive the temporal possessions and all the wealth of riches daily failing and decreasing in the course of the present life. Thus the mortal fragility of life grows feeble in changing, and the circular mutability of the ages becomes nothing, and is lamented and bewailed in the loss of dear relatives and friends. Therefore I, Eadwig, king of the English and of the other peoples living round about, willingly grant by bestowing and will remit to my faithful thegn, called by the name Eadric, on account of his beloved service and by his pleasing loyalty, ten hides in the place which the common people call Leckhampstead by ancient naming," so that he may enjoy it well and possess it perpetually while he proceeds unharmed along the course of this fleeting life and the vital spirit abides in the corruptible flesh, and after him he may leave it for ever to whomsoever he wishes as heir, as I have said before. Moreover, let that land be free from every worldly hindrance, with everything known to pertain duly to that place, both ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 156, states of the full version that the charter ‘seems to be authentic’. The full version is dated 943. 474 Tt is impossible to identify Eadric with certainty as there was more than one thegn of that name in the mid-gth c. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 273, comments that the Eadric who received Welford from King Eadwig, above, cc. 47-8, ‘can probably be identified as the son of Ealdorman Ealhhelm and brother of Ealdormen /Elfheah and /Elfhere', and that Leckhampstead is immediately north of Welford.

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locum pertinere dinosc*ntur, tam in magnis quam in modicis rebus, campis, pascuis, siluis, excepto istis, expeditione, pontis arcisue coedificatione. Insuper ad augmentum predicte donationis gratia

‘unam molinam’ iuxta diriuatiuis cursibus aquarum Lamburnam" *^? [i. 477] perpetuali donatione

dedi predicto ministro. Hoc tempore cachinnantes nenias subdolosi huius seculi ‘dinosc*ntur interdum inchoasse, alienum* lucrum sibi usurpatiue cum ambitione iniquitatis uendicare. Sed torpentes auaritie incessus omni modo in nomine sancte Trinitatis ab omnibus Christianis interdico, ita ut meum donum corroboratum sit cum signaculo sancte crucis. Etiam si quis alium antiquum librum in propatulo protulerit, nec sibi nec aliis

proficiat, sed in sempiterno graphio* deleatur, et cum iustis non scribatur/ nec audiatur.^ Denique uero si quis (nobis non obtantibus) nostrum hoc donum uiolari fraudulenter perpetrando consenserit, consideret hinc se die ultima iudicii coram Deo rationem redditurum, atque cum reprobis quibus dicitur ‘Discedite a me, maledicti, in

ignem eternum','"" penis atrocibus se esse passurum, si non antea corporea lamentatione emendauerit. B fo. 116°

Hanc igitur cartulam cum terra moriens idem Eadricus |ecclesie Abbendonensi dereliquit, quam cartulam cum terra abbas Ordricus a predicto Brithwino extorsit.

C fo. 134°

138. (B278) Consuetudinis apud Anglos tunc erat ut monachi qui uellent pecuniarum patrimoniorumque forent susceptibiles, ipsisque fruentes quomodo placeret dispensarent."? Vnde et in Abbendonia duo Leofricus et Godricus Cild appellati, quorum unus Godricus Speresholt iuxta locum qui uulgo mons Albi Equi nuncupatur, alter Leofricus Hwitceorce super flumen Tamisie maneria sita patrimoniali

iure obtinebant."" Quorum unum, id est Speresholt, usque hodie pratis add. ^ Lamburniam

^* redundant

^* over erasure B

abbreviation

marks

over

unam

molinam

^ scribantur C; corr. from scribantur B

* corr. from audiantur B

"5 The Lambourn

is a tributary of the river Kennet, and passes to the south of

Leckhampstead. The mill on the Lambourn must have been outside the estate; EPNS, Berkshire, iii. 657.

476 See above, n. 338. 477 Matt. 25: 41. 478 See above, p. clxxii. *” The first of the pieces of land concerned seems to be the manor of ‘Spersold’, Berkshire, assessed at ten hides, which appears as a 1086 Abingdon holding in DB i, fo. 59'. This is the manor later known as Fawler; see vol. ii. 52, 182—4. Domesday provides more

THE

in great military increase thegn as

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213

things and in small, fields, pastures, woods, except these, service, and bridge and fortress building. In addition, to the aforesaid gift, I have given as a favour to the aforesaid a perpetual gift one mill, beside the channelled currents of

the waters of the Lambourn.*” At this time deceitful men of this

world, desirous of injustice, are known sometimes to begin guffawing complaints, to claim another’s income improperly for themselves. But in the name of the Holy Trinity I forbid the paralysing attacks of avarice by all Christians in every way, thus that my gift may be strengthened by the sign of the holy cross. Also if anyone publicly brings forth another old land-book, let it profit neither him nor

others, but let him be deleted from the Everlasting Charter* and not be written or heard with the just. Finally, then, if anyone (which we do not choose) agrees to violate this our gift by acting fraudulently, let him consider that he will render account of this in God's presence on the Last Day of Judgement, and will suffer with awful punishments with those wicked men to whom it is said ‘Depart from me, ye cursed,

into eternal fire," if he does not previously make amends with bodily lamentation. "Therefore, when that Eadric was dying, he left this charter with the land to the church of Abingdon, which charter Abbot Ordric extorted with the land from the aforesaid Brihtwine.

138. (B278) It was then the custom among the English that those monks who wished might receive goods and patrimonies, enjoy them,

and do with them as they pleased.*”* Therefore in Abingdon, two monks called Leofric and Godric Cild obtained manors by patrimonial right, Godric Sparsholt next to the place commonly called the hill of the White Horse, Leofric Whitchurch, situated on the river

Thames.*” One of these, i.e. Sparsholt, has remained to this day in detail about the descent of the land at Sparsholt. A man named Eadric had held it ‘in alodio? from King Edward. He conveyed it to his son, presumably Godric Cild, who was a monk of Abingdon; see also above, p. 201 n. 453. From it the son was to support his father while he lived, and have the manor after Eadric died. However, the men of the shire did not know what belonged to the abbey, as they had not seen the king’s writ or seal which might have signified the conveyance of the land. The abbot, backed by the monks, stated that the son had transferred the lands to the church in the time of King Edward, and that he had the king’s writ and seal concerning this. As to the second of the pieces of land, DB i, fo. 159', records that Leofric and Alwin held Whitchurch, Oxfordshire, TRE; see also below, p. 217 n. 486. In 1086 Miles Crispin held it. It was assessed at ten hides. Miles Crispin was one of the successors of Wigod of Wallingford, whose granddaughter he married; Blair, Anglo-Saxon Oxfordshire, p. 174.

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ecclesie feudo^ remansit, aliud^ uero Wigodus oppidanorum Walinli. 478] gafordensium dominus possedit, uelle monachorum predictorum

hinc et inde de eisdem terris sic se referente." Nec accidisset de

una secus quam de altera, si uiro secundum morem gentis necdum austeriora edocto ferre remissius blandiretur, domno Adelelmo^

abbate dominatum loci huius optinente.** 139. (B279) Carta de Speresholt decem cassatorum.**? Quecumque enim secundum decreta canonum atque ecclesiastica instituta salubri consilio definiuntur, quanquam sermo tantum absque" textu sufficeret, tamen quoniam plerumque nostris temporibus tem-

pestates et turbines secularium rerum etiam portas" ecclesie pulsa(n)t, iccirco opere pretium censuimus ob cautelam futurorum ea que definita sunt paginis’ scripturarum annectere, ne in posterum obliuione tradita ignorentur. Quapropter ego Eadgar, regali fretus a Domino dignitate, quandam ruris particulam, decem uidelicet mansas in loco qui dicitur Speresholt, et unam mansam cum duodecim agrorum quantitate qui sunt in loco qui Badalacyng“ dicitur, et etiam unum molendinum ad Hirdegraue^ cum duodecim agrorum portione pertinente/ ad ipsum molendinum,^ camerario meo uocitato /Epel-

sie’ 5? perpetua largitus sum^ hereditate. Tali autem tenore tradendo concessi ut possideat usque ad ultimum uite sue cum omnibus ad se rite pertinentibus, campis, pratis, pascuis, siluis, et post se cuicumque uoluerit heredi in perpetuum ius derelinquat. Sit autem predicta terra libera ab omni regali tributo preter expeditionem et pontis arcisue [i. 479] constructionem.' Si quis uero, cupiditate illectus, temptauerit irritam facere aut frangere huius decreti diffinitionem, sciat se in tremendo examine rationem redditurum. Scripta est hec scedula anno ab incarnatione Domini .dcccclxiii., his testibus: Ego’ Eadgar rex. Ego Dunstan archiepiscopus. Ego Kynsie* episcopus. Et multis aliis. 138 ^ ecclesie interlin. after instead of before feudo B

^ aliut B

^ uero B

^ Apelelmo B 139

^" abque B

' corr. from portans B

* Hyrdegraue B * Apelsige in B precedes each witness B

* corr. from paganis B

^ Bapalacyng B

! pertinentem, on account of redundant final abbreviation mark B C * sunt C; corr. from sunt B ' constructione C 7 a cross * Kinsie B

*9 Wigod was a kinsman of Edward the Confessor and a prominent landholder, with possessions in at least seven counties. He was dead by 1086. For his lands, see Clarke, English Nobility, pp. 144—5, 356—7. His daughter, Ealdgyth, married Robert d'Oilly, and their daughter married Miles Crispin; Blair, Anglo-Saxon Oxfordshire, p. 174; K. S. B. Keats-Rohan, “The devolution of the Honour of Wallingford, 1066—1r148', Oxoniensia,

liv (1989), 311-18.

55! Adelelm was abbot 1071-84.

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215

the fee of the church, but of the other Wigod lord of the garrison of Wallingford took possession, thus in every way going back on the

wishes of the aforesaid monks concerning those lands." And the

outcome for the two estates would not have differed one from the other, if, when lord Abbot Adelelm held lordship of this monastery, he had more indulgently flattered the man according to the custom of his people, when he had not yet learnt to bear harsher circ*mstances.**! 139. (B279) Charter concerning Sparsholt amounting to ten hides.*** For whatever is laid down according to the decrees of the canons and ecclesiastical institutes by beneficial counsel, although speech alone without text would suffice, nevertheless, since in our times storms and whirlwinds of secular matters beat even the doors of the Church very frequently, therefore we have decided it to be worthwhile, out of circ*mspection concerning the future, to attach in pages of writing those things which have been laid down, lest in future they might not be known, having passed into oblivion. Therefore I, Edgar, strengthened by the Lord with the royal dignity, have bestowed as perpetual

inheritance on my chamberlain called /Ethelsige*? a small portion of land, that is ten hides in the place called Sparsholt, and one hide with the quantity of twelve fields that are in the place called Balking, and also a mill at Hirdegrave, with a portion of twelve fields pertaining to that mill.55* Moreover, I have granted it by handing over, with the following condition, that he may possess it to the end of his life with everything duly pertaining to it, fields, meadows, pastures, woods, and after him may leave it in perpetual right to whomsoever he wishes as heir. Moreover, let the aforesaid land be free of all royal tribute besides military service, and bridge and fortress construction. If anyone indeed, enticed by greed, attempts to make null or to breach the decree of this decision, let him know that he will render account at the awe-inspiring trial. This document was written in the year of our Lord 963, with these witnesses: I King Edgar. I Archbishop Dunstan. I Bishop Cynsige. And with many others. 482 Sawyer, no. 713; Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, no. 97, which, at p. 392, states that the document ‘appears to be genuine’. MS B had already included fuller version of this charter in the chronologically appropriate place, below, B184. 483 There are several thegns named /Ethelsige in witness lists of Edgar’s charters. This one may be identical to the /Ethelsige pedisecus who witnessed Sawyer, no. 768; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 392. 484 Balking, Berkshire, north-west of Sparsholt; see also below, Boz, B93. Hirdegrave seems to be the lost Hurgrove, in the north of Steventon parish; EPNS, Berkshire, ii. 418; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 394. Neither place is named in Domesday Book.

216

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140. (B280) Carta de Hwitcyrce.* Aurea, ut fertur, quondam secula haud hominum toxicatis infecta nequitiis, sed pura simplicitate, remotis simultatibus, ubique uigente, nullis territoriis usa nosc*ntur. At nostra etas, liuida mortalium malignitate fuscata ac multimodis cladibus obsessa, causa B fo. 116v uitandarum | litium terminis telluris proprie exoptat^ perfrui, que tamen iusticia emendanda, prudentia gubernanda, temperantia tenenda, fortitudine corroboranda est, et in hac uita labili summis studiis eterna mortalibus mercanda est. Vnde ego /Edelredus," basileus totius Albionis, omnipotentis Dei nutu regente, cuidam ministro meo mihimet fideliter obsequenti, Leofrico uocamine,**° quoddam ruris amminiculum, scilicet decem cassatos proprio iure possidendum largiter tribuo in uilla que famose a ruricolis^ Hwitcyrce’ dicitur, in prouincia Oxnafordnensi^ sita^ iuxta ripam fluminis C fo. 134” Tamesis, ut libere uoti compos, uita comite, possideat, et |cui heredi libuerit derelinquat. Sit hec tellus cum appenditiis suis libera ab omni [i. 480] secularis seruitutis honere exceptis que omnibus communia sunt, uidelicet procinctu pontis arcisue recuperatione, nostra auctoritate sibimet et heredibus per tempora cuncta permansura. Et si forte quispiam hanc nostram donationem (quod absit) annullare satagerit, et impie proprio dominio subdi maluerit, sciat se reum fore iustissimi iudicis Christi examinis, nisi forte ante suppremum diem semet neuo huius piaculi emaculet. Hoc denique rus cuiusdam possessoris Leofricus onomate quondam et^ etiam nostris diebus paterne hered-

itatis iure fuerat," sed ipse impie uiuendo, hoc est rebellando meis militibus in mea expeditione, ac rapinis insuetis et adulteriis, multisque alus nefariis sceleribus, semetipsum condempnauit simul et possessiones. Ideoque uolumus ut hec cartula nostra potestate antiquiora territoria, si inuenta fuerint, omnimodis condempnet, ut 140 B

" corr. from optat by interlin. B ^ Apelredus B ^ Hwitcirce B ^ Oxnafordensi B ^ interlin. B

^ michimet B ^ ruriculis * interlin. folloming erasure B

555 Sawyer, no. 927; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 136; calendared in Wormald, ‘Lawsuits’, no. 76. MS B had already included a fuller version of this charter in the chronologically appropriate place, below, B238. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 533, comments that ‘the authenticity of [the document] is a matter of uncertainty, largely due to dating difficulties", especially regarding the compatibility of the witness list in the full version with the date 1012; see also Keynes, Diplomas, p. 265. A Bishop /Ethelstan witnessed the charter, but he is most likely the bishop of Hereford, and cannot have been appointed before 1013. It is possible that the charter should be dated to that year. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 534, concludes that ‘the problem of the witness-list . . . really comes down to the attestation of Bishop /Ethelstan: either his subscription represents an error of

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217

140. (B280) Charter concerning Whitchurch.*® Golden ages, so it is said, not infected with the poisoned wickedness of men, are known once to have existed without units of land, with pure simplicity flourishing everywhere and disputes removed. But our age, blackened with the malicious malignity of mortal men and besieged with many kinds of disaster, for the sake of avoiding law cases greatly desires to enjoy boundaries to its estates, which, however, should be emended with justice, governed with prudence, held with temperance, strengthened with courage, and in this fleeting life eternal things should with the greatest efforts be purchased with mortal ones. Wherefore I, /Ethelred, emperor of the whole of Albion, with the will of almighty God ruling, generously assign to be possessed by proprietary right to a thegn of mine, faithfully obedient to me, Leofric by name," a certain provision of land, that is ten hides, in the village famously called by the local inhabitants Whitchurch, in Oxfordshire situated next to the bank of the river Thames, so that he may freely possess it in full attainment of his wishes as long as he lives, and may leave it to which heir he pleases. Let this estate with its appendages be free from all burden of secular servitude except those which are common to all, that is battle service, and bridge and fortress restoration; by our authority all are to remain to him and his heirs throughout all times. And if anyone (let it not be so) strives to annul this our gift, and prefers to subject it impiously to his own lordship, let him know that he will be guilty at the trial of the most just judge Christ, unless by chance before the final day he cleanses himself from the blemish of this sin. In conclusion, this land once and also in our days belonged to a certain possessor named Leofric by right of paternal inheritance." But he condemned himself and also his possessions by living impiously, that is by rebelling against my soldiers in my service, by extraordinary plunderings and adulteries, and by many other wicked crimes. And so we wish that this charter, by our power, may condemn in every way older land-books, if they some kind, or the date of the diploma is incorrect. Whether this inconsistency is enough to condemn the diploma is a matter of opinion. None of the formulation gives reason for concern." i 486 A Leofric of Whitchurch witnessed the settlement of a Berkshire land dispute in 990 x 992; Sawyer, no. 1454; Anglo-Saxon Charters, ed. Robertson, no. 66. ASC, ‘A’, s.a. 1001, records a Leofric of Whitchurch being slain in battle. It is impossible to tell whether these are references to the same or different men. If they were not the same man, the former could be the beneficiary of the present gift. 487 Again this could be one of the Leofrics of Whitchurch mentioned in the previous note.

218

HISTORIA

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ABBENDONENSIS

nil usquam preualeant contra nostram auctoritatem. Scripta est hec nostra donatio anno .mxii. post incarnationem Domini nostri Ihesu

Christi, indictione decem, mense Iulio, his testibus: ‘Ego /Edelredus/ rex. Ego /Ethelstanus* filius regis. Ego Wulfstanus' archiepiscopus,’ cum multis aliis.

[i. 481]

141. (B281-3) Monasterium autem Abbendonense Tamisie flumen ex australi parte habet sui preterfluum, per quod hac illacque deducitur nauigium.*** Verum tempore abbatis Ordrici, ultra ecclesie aream que illic ab habitantibus Bertun^ dicitur, iuxta uiculum nomine ad Tropam, alueus eiusdem amnis porrectus, perinde remigantibus difficultatem non minimam" prestabat. Nam tellus inferius longc quam superius altior subrecta ipsum alueum sepe aque indigum

faciebat.? Vnde Oxenefordensis urbis ciues," nam illorum naui-

B fo. 117°

gium sepius transitum illic habebat, perorant quatinus per pratum ecclesie quod inferius ad austrum patet fluun cursus eo tenore diriuetur, ut in reliquum euum exinde de unaquaque naui sua centum allecia cellarario monachorum de more persoluentur.?"! Quorum uotum dum procederet ad effectum, ut pacta est, ho|die usque sponsio predicta exigitur. Per idem tempus, dum Dominice natiuitatis. diei. nocturnale sollenniter officium. a fratribus celebraretur, contractus quidam coram multis qui aderant subito diuinitus est curatus. Preterea" mos illis diebus futurum ad dampnum non parum insoleuerat, ut offerente quolibet auri uel argenti copiam, trium aut quinque terre portionem hidarum, siue uillam integram, diuersis ^* heading Testes,

* Apelstanus B

mith a cross preceding

each

witness B

J Apelredus

! Wifstanus B

141 ^* erasure at start and end of this word B at end B ^ Peterea C * damnum B

^ miniman C * reliqum, mith erasure ^ insoluerat, involving correction B

*55 J. Blair, ‘Transport and canal-building on the Upper Thames, 1000—1300/, in id., ed., Water Transport and Canal-Building in Medieval England (Oxford, forthcoming), explains that ‘the difficult stretch of the Thames . . . must . . . be identified with the modern main channel, sweeping in a large bend around the south edge of the Abbey precinct. If Orderic’s diversion went “through the church's meadow . . . below it to the south”, it is unlikely (in the absence of any relevant earthwork or cropmark) to have bisected the flat gravel island of Andersey, and certainly did not traverse Culham Hill. The only possible candidate is the rivulet, now called Swift Ditch, which runs along a strip of alluvium between them. . . . Both courses are in fact natural versions of the Thames at different stages of prehistory. What Abbot Orderic did in the 1050s or early 1060s was to enlarge the lesser but more direct course, diverting river-traffic from the north to the south side of Andersey Island: his

THE

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THE

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ABINGDON

are found, so that they may nowhere prevail at all against authority. This our gift was written in the year 1012 after Incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ, the tenth indiction, in month of July, with these witness: I King /Ethelred. I /Ethelstan king's son. I Archbishop Wulfstan, with many others.

219

our the the the

141. (B281—3) Moreover, the monastery of Abingdon has the river Thames flowing past on its southern side, through which shipping

passes in both directions."? But in the time of Abbot Ordric, the channel of that river lay beyond the church's plot of land which is called Barton by those living there, next to the hamlet named Thrupp, thereby presenting considerable difficulty for those rowing. For often, when the river-bed downstream stood considerably higher than that upstream, it made that channel devoid of

water.*? Therefore the citizens of the town of Oxford," as their shipping very often had passage there, pleaded that the course of the river be channelled through the church's meadow which extended below to the south of the river, on the following terms, that for the rest of time one hundred herrings be customarily paid from each of their ships to the monks’ cellarer.*?' As their petition was fulfilled, the said undertaking is exacted, as agreed, to this day. At that same time, when the night office of the day of the Lord's birth was being solemnly celebrated by the brethren, a certain cripple was suddenly cured by God, in the presence of the many who were there. Besides, a custom in those days got out of control, to considerable future damage: anyone offering plenty of gold or silver would receive by purchase a portion of land amounting to three or five hides, or a workmen laboured through silt, not gravel. Over the centuries since then, the main flow has reverted once again to its natural" Anglo-Saxon course beside the late Iron Age valleyfort, and the abbey and town which succeeded it.’ See also R. H. C. Davis, “The ford, the river, and the city’, Oxoniensia, xxxviii (1973), 258-67, at pp. 263-4; and the map in C. J.

Bond, ‘The reconstruction of the medieval landscape: The estates of Abingdon Abbey’, Landscape History, i (1979), 59-75, at p. 70. 489 The large manor of Barton, Berkshire, contained Abingdon. Barton is rarely named in the History; see also below, B178, vol. ii, 202, 266 (papal privilege), 274 (papal privilege), 292. Thrupp, Berkshire, is just east of Abingdon/Barton. The Latin in the text is somewhat unclear, and the present translation requires ze//us to be translatable as ‘river-bed’, i.e. ground under the water. What is clear, though, is that the sentence is describing blocking of the channel with silt. 490 De abbatibus attributes the action to the citizens of London as well as Oxford; CMA ii. 282. 491 See also vol. ii. 174, for this render. De abbatibus specifies that the render was to be

paid between the feast of Purification of the Virgin (2 Feb.) and Easter; CMA ii. 282.

220

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ABBENDONENSIS

abbatie locis reciperet emptione, quodam subornatu id palliantes, quatinus trium uel duorum uita hominum inde possidendi proten-

deretur permissio.? Quo ex facto contigit ut, Anglorum non longum post principatu ad Normannos traducto, loca eadem singula illorum

militibus dispertirent."? Nec de his cuiquam mirandum. Nam post nimias Danorum et diuturnas importunitates, indulta iam in proximo earum quiete, oblitis erumpnis, quisque ad illicitos ausus prosilit. [i. 482]

142. (B284) De morte Eadmardi" regis. 'Tot^ rerum nouitatibus per dies regnum fedantibus, natalitium Christi geniture instabat. Qua tempestate in presentia regis optimatumque eius apud Westmonasterium, dedicatio ecclesie illic ab ipso

C fo. 135°

ecce, | in septimane ipsius festo, cunctis gaudio intendentibus, rex

rege in sancti apostoli Petri titulo constructe celebrata est. Cum morbo corripitur ac in uigilia Epiphaniorum diem clausit ultimum.*^ Cui in regem successit Haroldus comes, filius Godwini comitis.*^^ 143. (B285) “De /Ealdredo abbate." Abbas etiam Ordricus, postquam domum sibi commissam honorifice gubernasset et a memoria principum apostolorum (quo deuotionis gratia perrexerat) ad sua remeasset, diutina egritudine decoctus diem sortitur ultimum." ?? "Ealdredus uero, in eodem monasterio prepositure officium exibens, abbatie dominatum post illum adipiscitur.’ *”° In proximo autem Paschali festo sidus insolitum, quod cometem [i. 483]

uocant, unius continuatione septimane apparuit, et^ mense Septembrio instante rex Norweie, eodem denominatus uocabulo quo rex Anglie, scilicet Haroldus, Angliam appulit, regnum illic sibi uendicare pro lucro reputans, suffragium ferente fratre nostri regis Haroldi 142

^" Edwardi B

EPomc;

143 ** second and third words of heading erased C; De Ordrico abbate B ^ circa sollempnitatem sancti Vincentii martiris add. B, and also in dry-point in margin of C ^* see belom, p. 368, for the version in B “ om. B; see belom, p. 368, for the version in B ??? Sce above, p. clxii, on leases. * See vol. ii, pp. lix, 6. ^?* The dedication took place on 28 Dec. 1065. The Life of King Edward, ed. F. Barlow (znd edn., OMT, 1992), pp. 110—12, indicates that Edward was not present in person at the dedication; see also Barlow, Edward the Confessor, p. 247. The ASC, s.a. 1065, and John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 598, state that he made it be dedicated, phraseology that the History could quite easily take to indicate Edward's personal presence.

495 s Jan. 1066; sce also Barlow, Edward the Confessor, p. 250. 5 Edward was buried on 6 Jan. 1066, and Harold crowned on the same day; Barlow, Edward the Confessor, pp. 253-4.

*7 Abbot Ordric died on 23 Jan. 1066; see above, p. cvi.

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whole village, in various places of the abbey, under the cover that permission to possess this land was to extend for the lives of three, or two, men.*”” It thereby happened that when the governance of the English was not long afterwards transferred to the Normans, each of

these places was disposed of to their knights."? Nor should anyone

wonder at this. For now peace was bestowed following the excessive and long-lasting oppressions of the Danes, those distresses were forgotten and everyone rushed to commit improper and presumptuous deeds. 142. (B284) Concerning the death of King Edmard. With so many novelties continually befouling the kingdom, the day of Christ's birth was at hand. At that time, in the presence of the king and his leading men at Westminster, the dedication was celebrated of the church built there by the king himself in the honour of the holy

apostle Peter.?* When behold, during the feast of that week when everyone was devoted to joyfulness, the king was seized by illness and

passed away on the vigil of Epiphany."? To him succeeded as king Earl Harold, son of Earl Godwine.*”° 143. (B285) Concerning Abbot Ealdred. Abbot Ordric too, after he had honourably governed the house entrusted to him and had returned home from the shrine of the princes of the apostles (to which he had gone for the sake of devotion), was worn out by a long-lasting illness and allotted his final day. So Ealdred, who was performing the office of provost in

that monastery, acquired the lordship of the abbey after him.*” Moreover, at the next festival of Easter an unusual star, which they

call a comet, appeared for the duration of one week,? and with the month of September upon them, the king of Norway, called by the same name as the king of England, that is Harold, landed in England, thinking to claim the realm there for his own benefit. He was aided by ^3 The Abingdon version of the Worcester Chronicle preserved in Lambeth Palace Library contains two very similar sentences; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 615. MS B, below, p. 368, states that Ealdred was provost for external matters, and I here translate prepositure officium as ‘office of provost’. However, prepositure officium could mean the priorship; for prepositus meaning prior, sce vol. ii, p. xlv; The Monastic Constitutions of Lanfranc, rev. edn., ed. D. Knowles and C. N. L. Brooke (OMT, 2002), p. 112. Symeon of Durham, Libellus de exordio atque procursu istius, hoc est Dunhelmensis, ecclesie, bk. iv, c. 8, ed. D. Rollason (OMT, 2000), p. 246, wrote that Cuthbert ‘successit in prepositi (id est prioris) officium. Nam qui nunc prior, a beato Benedicto prepositus monasterii appellatur.’ 49 Easter fell on 16 Apr. 1066. ASC, ‘C’ and ‘D’, s.a. 1066, report that the 'star' —which we know as Halley's comet—first appeared on 24 Apr. and shone all week.

222

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Tosti comite." Quibus ‘ultra Eboracum’ rex Anglorum occurrens utrumque /cum auxiliatoriis/ eorum bello extinxit.^?' Cuius^ uix soluto fine uictorie, ecce, comitem Normannie Willelmum sibi imminere apud Hastingas bellumque paratum inferre "ex

nuntio discit.’*°? Ille ‘nimium suis’ uiribus fidens, minus prouide quam decuerat /comitem aggressus, sensit superiorem." Itaque bello deuictus,’ tam ipse quam cuncti eius socii" interiere." 9? ^Willelmus uero Anglie diadema optinuit" Cui dum quidam subiectionis fidelitatem sponderent,

nonnulli exteras sibi sedes per alia regna

[i. 484] consulti rati petere sese subducerent. Abbas Ealdredus, primorum?

sese sententie dedens, regi fidelitatis sacramenta persoluit. At in posteriorum numero, cum multi diuerterent, tum et perempti regis mater, secum in comitu suo una cum plurimis aliis presbiterum Blachemannum habens, Angliam deseruit. His presbiter, sicut in cronicis Ordrici abbatis meminimus, ecclesie hom*o effectus de ea

tenuerat Sandford, Cildestun, et Leowardestun.?" Verum ipso, ut

B fo. 118"

B fo. 118”

dixi, ab Anglia discedente, quecumque illius fuerant in manum regis, utputa profugi, redacta sunt. Quare abbas magno cum labore predictarum terrarum apud regem optinuit restitutionem." (B290) Vt de his terris ipse abbas explicauerat, in ceteris quoque que tum ab | ecclesie dominio alienum in ius transierunt forte explicasset, si non ad^ infortunium suum et ecclesie regis? incurrisset

indignationem, de quo post edocebimus."?

Nam

quidam diues,

Turkillus nomine, sub Haroldi comitis testimonio et consultu, de

se cum sua terra que Kingestun dicitur? ecclesie Abbendonensi et abbati Ordrico homagium fecit. Licitum quippe libero cuique illo in tempore sic agere erat, quatinus predicte uille dominatio sub huius ecclesie perpetuo iure penderet. Hic cum in bello memorato ^* Eboracem ultra urbem B belom, p. 368, for the version in B

^^ una cum auxiliariis B ™ suis nimium B

* for an addition here in B, see belom, p. 368 " interire B

2357991... B

? interlin. B

! corruens B

* Huius B ^^^ seg ^! aggressus comitem B

" secum add. B

" regie B C, suggesting that B derives from C

°° Harold, or Harald, Hardrada was king of Norway 1046-66. For Tostig, see Barlow, The Godwins.

°°! The battle of Stamford Bridge, 25 Sept. 1066. ?? Henry of Huntingdon, Historia Anglorum, bk. vi, c. 28, ed. Greenway, pp. 388-9, mentions that Harold learnt of William's landing from a messenger, whilst dining at York on the same day as Stamford Bridge. See further D. C. Douglas, William the Conqueror (London, 1964), pp. 398-9. William had landed in England on 28 Sept. 1066. The battle of Hastings took place on 14 Oct. 1066. 995 "The present paragraph ends here in MS B.

*" William was crowned on 25 Dec. 1066.

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Earl Tostig, brother of our King Harold. The king of England hurried to meet them beyond York and in battle killed them both

with their supporters.°”!

With this victory scarcely complete, behold, he learnt from a messenger that William count of Normandy was threatening him and prepared to join battle at Hastings. Harold put too much trust in his strength and attacked the count less prudently than was fitting, but discovered William was the superior. And so defeated in battle,

both Harold and all his allies died. William, then, obtained the diadem of England." While certain men were promising him the loyalty of subjection, others were withdrawing, thinking themselves well advised to seek foreign dwelling-places for themselves in other kingdoms. Abbot Ealdred submitted himself to the opinion of the

former^? and paid oaths of loyalty to the king. But among the latter, as many were departing, the mother of the slain king too quit England, who had with her in her company the priest Blaecmann,

together with many others." This priest, as we recorded in the chronicles of Abbot Ordric, had become the man of the church and held from it Sandford, Chilton, and Leverton.??? But, as I said, he left England, and whatever had been his was taken back into the king's hand, as a fugitive's. Therefore with great effort the abbot obtained restitution of these aforesaid lands from the king. (B290) When this abbot had extricated these lands, he might also perhaps have extricated others which had passed from the lordship of the church to the right of another, had he not incurred the king's anger, to his own and the church's misfortune (concerning this we will speak later).? For a certain rich man named Thorkell, by the witness and advice of Earl Harold, did homage to the church of Abingdon and Abbot Ordric concerning himself together with his

land which is called Kingston.?? Indeed, it was then permitted to any free man to do so, so that the lordship of the aforesaid village would be dependent on the perpetual right of this church. When this man died in the battle mentioned earlier, Henry de Ferrers seized for 505 The context makes it likely that this is the sense of ‘primorum’, which would normally mean ‘leading men’; the word ‘priorum’ would fit better. 506 For the flight of Blacmann and Gytha, mother of Harold, in 1068, see Barlow, The Godwins, p. 119. Cf. MS B's treatment of Blecmann, below, p. 372.

37 See above, p. 208.

à ; 35 See below, p. 226. 59 Kingston Bagpuize. Thorkell's identity cannot be established with certainty. On ‘homage’, see above, pp. clvii-clviii.

224

HISTORIA .

ECCLESIE .

ABBENDONENSIS B

510

occubuisset, terram, cuius dominationis inuestituram" multo ante tempore quam bellum foret ecclesia in manus habebat, Henricus de

Ferrariis sibi usurpauit, abbate inualido obstare.*'' Similiter et de terra que Fifhide dicitur actum est. Nam Godricus quidam uicecomes eo tenore ab ecclesia eandem terram tenendam acceperat, ut trium hominum uita hereditario iure ipsa possideretur; quicquid tamen offensionis possessoribus forte accideret, ecclesia inde iac[i. 485] turam nullam incurreret. Itaque ipso cum predicto uiro pariter in bello occiso, idem Henricus de Ferrariis hanc uillam cum altera sue ditioni adiecit.?'? Nec tantum deforis per hos dies huiusmodi incommoda, sed et de ornamentis ecclesie dispendia infra ipsum sanctuarium prouenerunt. Siquidem regine imperio eorumdem pretiosiora sibi deferri mandauit. Quid facto opus esset in his abbate cum fratribus consulentibus, C fo. 135" regine de | electioribus’ transmittere ornamentis deliberant. Que ut sibi exhibita! sunt respuit, ac ornatiora requirit. Illi, quibus undique peregrinus incumbebat metus nouorum principum, quod cautius seruare debuerant pro uoto imperantis domine ad medium deferunt, id est casulam aurifrixo per totum mirifice consutam, cum cappa

choreali ualde optima, alba quoque cum stola,?? et textu euangeliorum,' singulis auro gemmisque laudabili" opere redimitis. B fo. 119"

144. (B292) De captione Aldredi abbatis. Interim^ ceperunt multa in regno Anglico machinari molimina, satagentibus id iis’ quibus transmarinorum dominatum ferre nunc erat necessarium, quanquam hactenus sibi insolitum. Horum pars siluarum, quidam in locis insularum sese abdere, piratarum more raptim uiuere, quosque obuios obtruncare. Pars gentem Danorum ut r

144

electoribus 5

* exibita B

^ Hinc non multo post B

* euuangeliorum B

" Jaudabi B

^ his B

5? The word ‘inuestitura’ is also used at vol. ii. 10 and 88, at the latter of which it is glossed ‘saisiatio’.

?'" DB i, fo. 6o", records Henry de Ferrers holding Kingston, assessed at five hides. It states that Stankell had held it TRE. DB i, fo. 61", attributes another four hides (five hides TRE) at Kingston to William son of Ansculf. These had been held TRE by Thorkell from King Edward. Most likely either the History or Domesday has confused the estates or their holders’ names, although conceivably Thorkell had had some relationship to Stankell’s lands which Domesday does not record. See also Hudson, ‘Abbey of Abingdon’, p. 190. Henry de Ferrers was a very substantial Domesday lord, and a Domesday commissioner in the west Midlands; see J. C. Holt, ‘1086’, Domesday Studies (Woodbridge, 1987), pp. 46, 58.

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himself the land, seisin?'? of the lordship of which the church had had in its hands a long time before that battle, and the abbot was unable to

resist."

It happened similarly concerning the land called Fyfield. For

a certain sheriff Godric had received that land from the church to hold on these terms, that it be possessed by hereditary right for the lives of three men; however, whatever harm by chance happened to the possessors, the church was to incur no loss thereby. And so when he, with Thorkell, was killed in battle, the same Henry de Ferrers

added this village with the other to his lordship.*!

Nor at this time was it only in external affairs that troubles of this sort occurred, but losses also entered the sanctuary itself with respect to the church ornaments. The queen by her order instructed that the more precious of them be brought to her. When the abbot consulted the brethren concerning what should be done in these matters, they decided to send some of the more choice ornaments to the queen. She rejected those that were shown to her, and sought more magnificent ones. Pressed on all sides by fear of the foreign and of their new rulers, the monks followed the imperious queen’s wishes and brought into the open what they ought to have preserved more carefully, that is a chasuble marvellously sewn all over with orphrey, with quite the

very best choir cope, also an alb with a stole,’!’ and a gospel text, each bordered with gold and gems in magnificent work. 144. (B292) Concerning the capture of Abbot Ealdred. Meanwhile many plots began to be hatched in the English kingdom. At such plots worked away those now compelled to bear the lordship of men from overseas, to which they had hitherto not been accustomed. Some hid themselves away in woods, some in islands, living by plunder like pirates, slaughtering those who came their way. Some enticed the 5? DB i, fo. 60", records two manors at Fyfield, both held by Henry de Ferrers in 1086.

The first was held by Godric the sheriff TRE (uicec' being interlined above his name by the main scribe), the second by Godric, almost certainly Godric the sheriff. Of the first, assessed at ten hides, it states that Godric held of the abbot and could not go wherever he wished with land. Clarke, English Nobility, p. 66, takes this contrast with the History as *showing that on occasion Domesday was quite capable of omitting such information". Alternatively, the History may here have been secking to establish a clearer limit to Godric’s hold on the land. Of the second manor, assessed at ten hides TRE but now five hides because King Edward so remitted, Domesday simply states that Godric had held from King Edward. For Godric, see also above, p. 201n. 453. Fyfield and Kingston Bagpuize are adjacent to one another. Abingdon did not succeed in re-establishing its claims to them; see vol. ii. 42, 176-8, on Kingston church. 55 This phrase could also be translated ‘with a white stole’; Dodwell, Anglo-Saxon Art, p. 182; Blair, Anglo-Saxon Oxfordshire, p. 173.

226

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ABBENDONENSIS

Angliam appetant illicere.^?'^ Illi Angliam pro uoto dum aduenissent, predam tantum agere, ignibus quedam absumere, quosdam captioni summittere. Ceterum nec armis comminus rem’ agere nec regnum’ deuincere/ ualentes, infecto negotio ad propria* remearunt. Talibus temptatis^ cum diuersi ordinis et dignitatis uiri se commiscuissent,’ tum episcopus Dunelmensis quoque, /Egelwinus [i. 486] nomine, inter eos qui capti sunt inuentus, et Abbendoniam missus in

captione ibi ad sue mortis degens diem obiuit/?? Sed et homines abbatie Abbendonensis, dum regis parti fauere Willelmi^ debuerant, animo et consultu mutati, armati, quo hostes regis ipsius consistere

acceperant, gressum contenderunt.) Circumuenti in itinere, captique incarcerantur, et satis misere affliguntur. ‘In illorum etiam dominum, id est abbatem Ealdredum (qui et Brichwinus dictus est, binomius enim erat) regis inimicitia est perlata adeo ut absque dilatione eius precepto apud castellum Walingafordense in captione

poneretur.?"" Aliquanto autem post tempore a predicto loco eductus, in manu Wintoniensis episcopi Walchelini seruandus committitur, apud quem mansit quoad uixit./?' Ea tempestate, recenter commutati status regni causa, cum plurimorum plurime in monasterio Abbendonensi recule reposite essent, ne domi direptoribus raptum tutore cariture irent, delatorum illatione B fo. 119” aulicis officialibus id intimatum, ac proinde illuc transmissum, et quicquid huiusmodi reperitur, adimitur. Supra" hoc, et que infra septa monachorum pretiosiora inueniri poterant—"auri argentique, uestium, librorum, uasorumque’ diuersi generis copia" usibus ecclesie honorique computata—multa indiscrete distracta" sunt.?? "Nullius * followed by si uenerint regnum posse adipisci inualida manu obstante B ^ corr. from regem B * followed by quod autumatum leue B ! followed by duxerant uendicare B * followed by maximo suorum detrimento B ^ temtatis B " comiscuissent B / obiit B * followed by ut pote cui iam fides ubique regionum Anglie seruari iurata fuerat B ^" Quo infortunii casu Ealdredus, qui et Brithwinus, abbas, (binomius enim erat), pastorali non multo post potestate nudatus, Wincestrem ad urbem dirigi iubetur ibique custodie quamdiu uitales carpsit auras mancipatur P " Super B ^" etiam B ^ corr. from vasarumque C ? distractata B Tom.

?'5 This passage refers to the Danish expedition which began in 1069; see Douglas, William the Conqueror, pp. 218-22.

?5 thelwine was bishop of Durham 1056—71; Handbook of British Chronology, p. 216. The form */Egelwinus' used by the History suggests the 12th-c. vernacular, but I here give the form appropriate to the rrth c. For /Ethelwine's fall, see also ASC, ‘E’, s.a. 1069; Symeon of Durham, Libellus de Exordio, ed. Rollason, pp. 192-4. ASC, ‘E’, s.a. 1071, places his death in the winter following his capture in 1071. It is unclear whether /Ethelwine was held in the monastery at Abingdon or perhaps in the royal buildings nearby.

THE

HISTORY

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227

people of the Danes to claim England.?'* When they came to England in response to the request, all they did was plunder, destroy certain things with fire, subject certain people to capture. But they were not strong enough to fight hand to hand nor to conquer the kingdom, but went home with their task incomplete. While men of various orders and ranks had involved themselves in these attempts, the bishop of Durham, /Ethelwine by name, was also found amongst those captured, was sent to Abingdon, and died,

having lived in captivity there until the day of his death.?? In addition the men of the abbey of Abingdon, while they ought to have favoured King William's side, changed their minds and opinions and hastened armed to where they had learnt that the king's enemies

were situated." En route they were surrounded, captured, imprisoned, and very wretchedly afflicted. The king's anger was so directed against their lord, that is Abbot Ealdred (who was also called Brihtwine, for he had two names), that by the king's order he was

immediately placed in captivity at Wallingford castle.°'’ A little while later he was taken from that place and for safekeeping committed into the hands of Bishop Walkelin of Winchester, with whom he remained

as long as he lived.?' At this time, because of the recently changed state of the realm, very many possessions of numerous people had been deposited in the monastery of Abingdon, lest at home they lack a protector and become booty for plunderers. Informers intimated this to court officials, and the information was likewise passed on, so whatever possessions of this sort were found were taken away. In addition, many very precious goods which could be found within the monks' precinct—a wealth of gold and silver, vestments, books, and vessels of diverse types, assigned to the use and honour of the church—were

indiscriminately taken away.°'? There was no reverence for the sight 516 AEthelwine was seized at Ely, but the destination of the men of Abingdon cannot be known for certain. 57 Wallingford castle is mentioned in DB i, fo. 56'. It would appear that Ealdred was placed in captivity in 1071, the same year as Bishop /Ethelwine. Ealdred scems to have been one of those churchmen who had a double name, like, for example, Lyfing, who was also known as /Ethelstan, bishop of Wells and archbishop of Canterbury in the early 11th c.; see G. Tengvik, Old English Bynames (Nomina Germanica, 4; Uppsala, 1938), pp. 397-8. 515 Walkelin was nominated bishop of Winchester on 23 May 1070 and consecrated on 30 ed. May. He died on 3 Jan. 1098; Handbook ofBritish Chronology, p. 276. 519 See Dodwell, Anglo-Saxon Art, pp. 216-18, for other instances of Norman spoliation of churches.

228

HISTORIA

ECCLESIE

ABBENDONENSIS

sacrorum liminum prospectus reuerentia, nulla fratrum desolatorum compassio.’ Extra per uillas, posthabito cuiuslibet respectu, passim impensa uastatio. Itaque temporis illius rerum abbatie amissarum, uel insinuatio uel computatio non facile dictu. Quarum executioni Frogerus tunc Berchescire’ uicecomes precipuus efferebatur.' ^? Sed eiusdem illo potentis hominis immoderatum super homines depressos progressum, Moderantis uniuersa, postea Dei’ uindicta cohercuit, ut et ius quo efferebatur" tirannicum regia sibi justicia auferretur, et in despectum omnium inopia et stoliditate quoad uixit [i. 487] uerteretur, suis in his? miseriis patulam prebens formam sequacibus quia locus tutele celi regine deditus, tum et sanctorum qui et fundarunt et incoluerunt uirorum memoria consecratus, reuereri potius quam depredari debeat. "Explicit liber primus terrarum huius ecclesie Abbendonensis, continens in se annos .cccexiiii. a Ceadwalla rege usque ad Willelmum regem." ??! ' Berkescire B m—-m

om.

* efferrebatur B

' om. B

" offerebatur B

" hiis B

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229

of sacred precincts, no compassion for the ravaged brethren. Outside, with no respect for anyone, devastation was dispensed indiscriminately throughout the villages. And so it is not easy to give either record or reckoning of the abbey's possessions lost at that time. Froger, then sheriff of Berkshire, was said to be the leading

participant in carrying out these deeds."

But afterwards

the

vengeance of God, the Governor of all things, punished the ungoverned advances of that powerful man over those whom he had oppressed, so that royal justice took away from him the tyrannical right by which he was raised up, and as long as he lived it was changed into universal contempt by his neediness and stupidity. In these his afflictions, he presents a clear model for those to come that a place dedicated to the guardianship of the Queen of Heaven, and consecrated in memory of the holy men who founded it and inhabited it, should be revered rather than ravaged. Here ends the first book of the lands of this church of Abingdon, containing in it 414 years from King Ceadwalla to King William?" ?? Froger’s shrievalty cannot be precisely dated, but was most likely in the early postConquest years; Green, English Sheriffs, p. 26. For Froger, see also DB i, fos. 57, 58".

521 Ceadwalla was king of Wessex 685-8, William king of England 1066-87; the calculation therefore is incorrect.

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APPENDIX

APPENDIX:

Br....-lam inhabitantibus nouo usus uocabulo, a nomine suo Bruto, insulam Britanniam sociosque suos Britones nuncupauit.' De carn(i)s exuto ergastulo sine fide catholica, successerunt ei reges multi usque ad tempus regis Lucii fidei Christiane similiter ignari^ Hic autem Lucius, audita fama et sanctitate predicatorum in ciuitate Romana tunc temporis degentium, nuntios suos cum litteris suis patentibus! ad uenerabilem papam Eleutherium destinauit, quantocius rogans deuotissime et supplicans attencius quatinus per mandatum ct uoluntatem eius Christianus efficeretur. Huius itaque comperta deuotione, ad precum suarum instantiam, misit uir uenerabilis Eleutherius papa ad Lucium regem illustrem nuntios suos, fa*ganum uidelicet et Diuianum, uiros religiosos necnon fide catholica sufficienter instructos.* Hii uero, cum celebri deuocione, regem ipsum et populum suum unanimi assensu et pari concordia baptizauerunt, destruentes ydola et ecclesias fideliter construentes. Quid multa? Hu duo uiri, sincere in omnibus et per omnia Deo deuoti, Christianitatis [i. 2] executores effecti, constituere decreuerunt per loca singula singulos ministros Dei omnipotentis, et ubi archiflamines secundum legem gentilium inuenerunt, loco eorum archipresules, similiter ubi flamines, episcopos subrogauerunt. Fuerunt autem tunc temporis archipresules tres tribus in locis famosissimis, uidelicet Londonia, Eboraci, et apud Vrbem Legionum.?

[i. 1]

fo. 4°

' This sentence is drawn from Geoffrey of Monmouth; see The Historia regum Britannie of Geoffrey of Monmouth, i: Bern, Burgerbibliothek, MS 568, ed. N. Wright (Cambridge, 1985), p. 13. See above, p. clxxxvi, on what may have preceded this passage. According to Geoffrey, Brutus was the great-grandson of Aeneas. ? The story of Lucius’s letter to Pope Eleutherius appears in Historia regum, ed. Wright, p. 46, and in Bede, Ecclesiastical History, bk. i, c. 4, ed. Colgrave and Mynors, p. 24. Bede derives it from the Liber Pontificalis, and perhaps some other source; J. M. Wallace-Hadrill, Bede's Ecclesiastical History of the English People: A Historical Commentary (Oxford, 1988), p. 11; A. Harnack, ‘Der Brief des britischen Kónigs Lucius an den Papst Eleutherus’, Sitzungsberichte der preussischen Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Berlin (x904), 909—16. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle mentions it briefly s.a. 167, the year in which it says Eleutherius became pope. Eleutherius was in fact pope c.174—89; Oxford Dictionary of Popes, pp. 11-12. > Both Bede and Geoffrey use the noun epistola/ epistula; the compiler of the History presumably changed this to /ittere patentes to emphasize that the letter was a solemn royal

communication.

APPENDIX:

Br... . by a new name used by the inhabitants, he called the island Britain and his associates Britons, from his name Brutus.! After he had left the prison of the flesh without the Catholic faith, many kings likewise ignorant of the Christian faith succeeded him, up to King Lucius's time.* Lucius, however, had heard of the reputation and holiness of the preachers then living in the city of Rome, and he sent his messengers, with his letters patent,’ to the venerable Pope Eleutherius, asking most devotedly and begging very earnestly that he be made a Christian as soon as possible by the pope's instruction and will. So, in response to these prayers, once he had discovered the king's devotion, the venerable man Pope Eleutherius sent to the illustrious king, Lucius, his own messengers, that is fa*ganus and Divianus, religious men appropriately trained in the Catholic faith.* With renowned devotion, they baptized the king himself and his people with unanimous assent and shared agreement, destroying idols and building churches in accordance with the faith. What's more, these two men, sincerely devoted to God in everything and every way, who had been made the agents of Christianity, ordered that individual ministers of almighty God be appointed for each place, and where they found high priests according to the law of heathens, in their place they substituted archbishops, where they found priests, they substituted bishops. At that time, moreover, there were three archbishops in three very famous places, that is London, York, and

the City of the Legions.”

* On fa*ganus, Divianus, and their place in Geoffrey’s version of the story of Lucius and Eleutherius, see J. S. P. Tatlock, The Legendary History of Britain (Berkeley and Los Angeles, 1950), pp. 230-5. Note also parallels to the story in De antiquitate Glastonie eccleste, c. 2, Scott, Early History of Glastonbury, pp. 46—50. ^ Cf. Historia regum, ed. Wright, p. 46: *ubi erant flamines episcopos, ubi archiflamines archiepiscopos posuerunt. Sedes autem archiflaminum in nobilibus tribus ciuitatibus fuerant, Lundoniis uidelicet atque Eboraci et in Urbe Legionum, quam super Oscam fluuium in Glamorgancia ueteres muri et edificia sitam fuisse testantur. The City of the Legions is identified with Caerleon, Monmouthshire; for the tradition concerning the archbishopric, see C. N. L. Brooke, ‘Geoffrey of Monmouth as historian’, in C. N. L. Brooke et al., eds., Church and Government in the Middle Ages (Cambridge, 1976), pp. 77— 91, at 80-2.

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Ba. Per quantum tempus durauit Christianitas in. Brittannia postquam Lucius rex suscepit Christianitatem. Interea, rege Lucio uiam uniuerse carnis ingresso, corpus ipsius in uilla Gloucestrie honorifice humatum est, ut regiam decebat sepulturam. Post huius uero decessum, ut multa paucis perstringamus, usque ad tempus Diocliciani imperatoris sub tranquilla deuotione et sancta conuersatione in Brittannia durauit Christianitas. Floruit etiam his temporibus in Brittannie finibus, Deo disponente, feruentissima monachorum religio et sanctitatis multis in locis memoranda deuotio. Verumptamen tunc temporis fuit quidam religiosus monachus, Abbennus nomine, qui ex Hibernia Brittanniam ueniens uerbum Dei, prout Spiritus Sanctus dabat eloquium illi, fideliter predicabat. Hic uero post temporis processum, illustrissimi regis Brittonum curiam adiens ubi, laudabiliter receptus et magnifice ab omnibus honoratus, ipsi regi amoris priuilegio in tantum specialis est effectus ut in ipso se gauderet alterum repperisse Ioseph.? Optinuit autem memoratus Abbennus a rege Brittonum, ad precum suarum instantiam, maximam partem Berroccensis prouincie, in qua, de consensu regis et consilio regni, monasterium feliciter fundauit cui nomen Abbendoniam, uel a nomine suo uel a loci uocabulo alludenter, imposuit. Secundum enim idioma Hibernensium, ut ex relatione modernorum accepimus, Abbendon mansio Abenni interpretatur; secundum uero idioma Anglorum Abbendun mons Abenni |uulgariter nuncupatur. Est autem locus ille in planitie montis, uisu desiderabilis, paulisper ultra uillam que nunc uocatur Suniggewelle, inter duos riuulos amenissimos qui, locum ipsum quasi quendam sinum inter se concludentes, gratum cernentibus prebent spectaculum et oportunum habitantibus subsidium. Congregauit etiam ibi uenerabilis uir Abbennus copiosam monachorum multitudinem, uidelicet trecentos monachos uel eo amplius iugi deuotione ibidem Deo famulantes, quibus prior et abbas non tantum prefuit sed, secundum regulam beati Benedicti plus studens amari quam timeri omnibus,'° per omnia profuit. Nouissimis uero diebus suis, cum esset cani capitis, sanctus uir Abbennus, Christi uestigia sequens et pro eius * See Historia regum, ed. Wright, p. 47; Geoffrey dates his death to 156. The phrase "ingredi viam universe carnis! is quite common in medieval writings. It has biblical roots, although it is not a quotation from the Bible: note esp. Gen. 6: 13 ‘finis universae carnis'; Josh. 23: 14 ‘ingredior viam universae terrae’; 3 Kgs. (1 Kgs.) 2: 2 ‘ingredior viam universae terrae’. For its use by the compiler of MS B, see above, p. liv. ^ See Bede, Ecclesiastical History, bk. i, c. 4, ed. Colgrave and Mynors, p. 24; Historia regum, ed. Wright, pp. 49-50. Diocletian was emperor 284—305.

TEXT AND TRANSLATION OF MS B

235

B2. How long Christianity lasted in Britain after King Lucius adopted Christianity. Meanwhile, when King Lucius had gone the way of all flesh, his body was honourably interred at Gloucester, as befitted a royal burial. After his death, indeed, to pass briefly over many matters, Christianity in Britain endured until Emperor Diocletian's time, in a state of peaceful devotion and holy religious life.’ For then, by God's disposition, there flourished within the borders of Britain a most fervent monastic life and a noteworthy devotion to holiness in many places. At that time there was a devout monk named Abben, who came to Britain from Ireland and in accordance with the faith preached the word of God, as the Holy Spirit used to give him eloquence.? After some time passed, moreover, this man came to the court of the most distinguished king of the Britons, where he was received in praiseworthy fashion and magnificently honoured by everyone, and he became so privileged in the king's love that the latter rejoiced that he had discovered in Abben another Joseph.’ Furthermore, in response to his prayers, that Abben obtained from the king of the Britons most of the region of Berkshire, within which, by the consent of the king and the counsel of the kingdom, he happily founded a monastery on which he conferred the name Abingdon, alluding either to his own name or that of the place. For we have learnt from our contemporaries that, according to the language of the Irish, Abingdon is interpreted ‘house of Aben’; but according to the language of the English, Abingdon commonly means ‘the hill of Aben’. Moreover, that place is on the plateau of a hill, pleasing to the eye, a little beyond the village now called Sunningwell, between two lovely streams which enclose that place between them like a promontory and provide an agreeable view for onlookers and suitable support for those living there. The venerable man Abben gathered there a plentiful multitude of monks, that is three hundred monks or more who served God there in constant devotion; he was not merely in charge of them as prior and abbot but rather benefited them all in every respect, striving according to the Rule of St Benedict rather to be loved than feared.'° Indeed in his final days, when he was whitehaired, the holy man Abben followed in the footsteps of Christ, and, 8 For Abben and the following version of the foundation story, see above, p. Ixxxvii. ? An allusion to the story of Joseph and Pharaoh; see Gen. 39-50. 10 Rule of St Benedict, c. 64: ‘et studeat plus amari quam timeri". The Rule of St Benedict of course had not been composed at the time when Abben supposedly lived.

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amore gloriam mundi spernens captusque dulcedine natalis soli, Hiberniam petiit; ibique, diuina disponente clementia, in sancta conuersatione uitam suam finiuit. Mansit autem monasterium Abbandonie in Catholica fide et monastica religione usque ad aduentum Anglorum. Et quia de Anglis a nobis est mentio facta, uirtus nobis

assit angelica, ut nichil preter ueritatem de Anglis proferamus."' B3. De aduentu Saxonum in Brittanmiam. Anno itaque Dominice incarnationis .ccccxlix., regnante Vortegerno in Brittannia, ut ex tenore ueritatis uenerabilis Bede presbiteri accepimus, uenerunt in Brittanniam nauali uehiculo de partibus

Germanie Saxones, Angli, et Iuti.^ Qui, licet diuersarum essent [i. 4] prouinciarum, maxima tamen eos concatinauit dileccionis integritas

pariter et federis confederatio. Hii ad peticionem regis Vortegerni Brittannie applicuerunt ad insulam, pollicentes contra inimicos ipsius regis, Scottos uidelicet et Pictos qui Brittanniam atrociter debellauerant, auxilium se fore prestaturos. Verumptamen quibus succedentibus ad uotum his que in animo auide conceperant, inito certamine cum Scottis et Pictis, Saxones sumpsere uictoriam. Verum quod cum Saxonie prospero euentu renuntiatum,^ pariter et insule fertilitas denuntiata et Brittonum segnities fuisset expressa, itidem retransmittitur illo ueloci cursu classis prolixior armatorum manum deferens forciorem, que, formidinem formidini Brittonum exaggerans et uires uiribus accumulans, inexpugnabilem reddidit exercitum. Hii itaque in Brittannia degentes, inito consilio cum Scottis et Pictis, post temporis protelacionem neminem qui eis in aliquo resisteret aut iuridictioni

eorum perfunctorie uel (h)orarie contradiceret inuenerunt. Hiis ita gestis, disponente iusto mundi iudice cuius prouidentia in sui dispositione non fallitur, gens memorata ciuitates muratas pariter et agros, arboribus extirpatis, depopulantes, suum ubique continuauerunt incendium ita ut totam insule superficiem funere et fumo

obtexisse uiderentur.'* Sed ad quid . . .?

B3 ^" followed by et, expunged

!! The play on the words ‘Angli’ and ‘angeli’ appears in Bede, Ecclesiastical History, bk. li, c. 1, ed. Colgrave and Mynors, p. 134. "^ See Bede, Ecclesiastical History, bk. i, c. 15, ed. Colgrave and Mynors, pp. 48-52. For the British leader Vortigern, see Wallace-Hadrill, Bede's Ecclesiastical History: A Historical Commentary, pp. 20—1.

TEXT AND TRANSLATION

OF MS B

237

spurning the glory of the world for the love of Him and taken by the sweetness of his native soil, sought Ireland. There, by the disposition of divine clemency, he ended his life in holy religious living. The monastery of Abingdon, moreover, remained in the Catholic faith and monastic religion until the coming of the English. And since we have mentioned the English, let angelic virtue be present with us, lest we

state anything but the truth about the English."! B3. Concerning the coming of the Saxons into Britain. Therefore in the year of our Lord 449, when Vortigern was reigning in Britain, as we have learnt from the venerable priest Bede's statements of truth, Saxons, Angles, and Jutes came into Britain on

sea transport from areas of Germany."

Although

from diverse

regions, nevertheless an immense unity of love and also a compact of agreement bound them together. At the request of Vortigern king of Britain, these men landed on the island, promising that they would furnish help against the king's enemies, that is the Scots and the Picts who had savagely waged war on Britain. Nevertheless, with the matters reaching the desired conclusion that they had greedily conceived in their minds, the Saxons joined battle with the Scots

and Picts and claimed victory." When this, with its favourable outcome, was reported back to Saxony, and also the island's fertility was made known and the sloth of the Britons recounted, a larger fleet bearing a stronger force of armed men was in similar fashion sent rapidly back from there. Heaping fear on the Britons' fear, and piling strength on strength, it made up an indestructible army. Therefore those living in Britain took counsel with the Scots and Picts, but, after a delay, found no one who would resist the invaders in any way or perfunctorily or briefly contest their authority. So, following these events, by the disposition of the just Judge of the world whose foresight does not err in its arrangements, the Saxon people devastated walled cities and also fields, uprooted trees, and extended their arson everywhere so that they were seen to cover the entire

surface of the island with death and smoke.'^ But to this . . .?

13 This sentence and the following one draw on the wording of Bede, Ecclesiastical History, bk. i, c. 15, ed. Colgrave and Mynors, p. 50. 14 This sentence has some verbal parallels to Bede, Ecclesiastical History, bk. i, c. 15, ed. Colgrave and Mynors, p. 52. 15 See above, p. clxxxvii, on what may have followed this passage.

238 fo. 5

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B4. ...annis iuuentutis sue,'® tam nature quam industrie, et cum se

inuenisset longe recessisse a creatore suo, oculis cum manibus in celum erectis, longa tra(h)ens suspiria, in hunc modum prorupit in uocem: 'Creator creaturarum, Deus, miserere mei super omnes homines miseri. Peccaui, erraui, et scienter te^ negaui. Sed tu, mitissime Domine, qui non uis mortem peccatoris sed ut magis conuertatur et uiuat," uerte uultus ad singultus, uerte ad suspiria [i. 5] mea oculos misericordie tue, et concede mihi spacium emendationis uite mee, ut sufficienter doleam et deleam ea que ab ineunte etate scienter et ignoranter contra uoluntatem tuam perpetraui.’ Nec mora potauit eum uino compunctionis Deus, cui omne cor patet et omnis uoluntas loquitur ut fugeret a facie arcus.'? Inspiratus itaque rex Cedwalla gratuito et repentino instinctu Spiritus Sancti, qui quando uult et ‘ubi uult spirat’,'? qui quem uult et quantum uult inspirat, qui ‘cui uult miseretur, et quem uult indurat,? dixit se uelle ad baptismum^ cum omni festinantia properare et errori gentilitatis penitus renuntiare. Quod ut fieret cum maiori sollempnitate, quamuis sacramentum in se non minus (h)abeat efficatie in baptizatis propter personas baptizantium, exclusa necessitate, rebus tamen domi bene dispositis Romam, festinanti gressu peciit.^! Vbi a Sergio papa honorifice susceptus et ab eo in die sancti sabbati Paschalis anno Dominice incarnationis .dclxxxix. gloriosissime est baptizatus, et a beato Petro Petrus feliciter est appellatus.^ Vbi etiam, dum adhuc in albis esset, carnis exutus ergastulo duodecimo kalendas ‘Maiarum feria tercia? sepultus in basilica beatorum apostolorum Petri et Pauli, quieuit in pace pectoris pacem prestolans eternitatis.”* Fecit autem Sergius papa epitaphium ipsius regis metrice et in sarcofa*go ipsius exarari decreuit. Cuius epitaphii tenor hic est: B4 * interlin.

^ baptissmum MS

^* Marciarum feria sexta M.S

1^ The person referred to is Ceadwalla king of the West Saxons. 7 Cf. Ezek. 18: 23, 33: 11, which was widely quoted, for example in patristic literature, in the form in the text.

13 See Ps. 59 (60): 6; Isa. 21: 15. ? Cf. John 3: 8: ‘Spiritus ubi vult spirat." 7 Cf. Rom. 9: 18: ‘Ergo cuius vult miseretur, et quem vult indurat.' *! This passage derives from Bede, Ecclesiastical History, bk. v, C. 7, ed. Colgrave and Mynors, p. 470.

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B4. . . . in the years of his'^ youth, both of nature and diligence, and when he found that he had withdrawn far from his Creator, he raised his eyes and his hands to Heaven, and, taking a deep breath, burst into speech in the following way: ‘Creator of the creatures, God, pity me pitiful above all men. I have sinned, I have erred, and knowingly I have denied You. But You, gentlest Lord, who do not wish a sinner to die but rather that he be converted and live, turn Your face to my sobs, turn the eyes of Your mercy to my sighs, and grant me the time to correct my life, so that I may sufficiently grieve and may expunge those deeds which from an early age I knowingly and unknowingly perpetrated against Your will.’ And without delay God, to whom every heart opens and every will speaks so that it may flee from the face of the bow, made him drink the wine of remorse. Inspired, therefore, by the graciously given and sudden instigation of the Holy

Spirit, which blows when it wishes and ‘where it wishes’,’’ inspires whom it wishes and as much as it wishes, ‘which hath mercy on whom it will hath mercy, and whom it will it hardeneth',? King Ceadwalla said that he wished to make all haste to baptism and renounce entirely the error of heathenism. Although the sacrament in itself does not have less efficacy on the baptized because of the persons of those baptizing, nevertheless that this might be done with greater solemnity, he put matters of necessity aside, set in order

affairs at home, and travelled swiftly to Rome.?' There he was honourably received by Pope Sergius and most gloriously baptized by him on the holy Saturday before Easter in the year of our Lord

689, and happily called Peter, after the blessed Peter.”” There, while still in his white robes, he left the prison of the flesh on Tuesday 20

April,? was buried in the basilica of the blessed apostles Peter and Paul, and rested with peaceful heart awaiting the peace of eternity." Moreover, Pope Sergius made an epitaph for that king in metre and decreed that it should be inscribed on his tomb. The text of that epitaph is as follows:

22 Sergius I was pope 687—701; Oxford Dictionary ofPopes, pp. 82-3. Easter fell on 11 Apr. 689. 3 ‘The date given in the manuscript is 18 Feb., the day of the week Friday. 18 Feb. 689 was in fact a Thursday, and of course was before Easter. Given the obvious error, and the ease with which it could have been made in copying, I have emended the text. Bede, Ecclesiastical History, bk. v, c. 7, ed. Colgrave and Mynors, p. 470, gives ‘duodecimo kalendarum Maiarum die’, but does not specify the day of the week. 24 The final phrase is also used of Abbot Hugh; below, p. 360.

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Bs. Epitaphium regis Cedwalle.” Culmen, opes, sobolem, pollentia regna, Triumphos, exuuias, proceres, menia, castra, lares; Queque patrum uirtus et que congesserat ipse, Cedwalla regnipotens^ liquit amore Dei, Vt Petrum sedemque Petri rex cerneret hospes, [i. 6] Cuius fonte meras sumeret almus aquas, Splendificumque iubar radianti carperet haustu, Ex quo uiuificus fulgur ubique fluit, Precipiensque alacer rediuiue premia uite. Barbaricam rabiem, nomen et inde suum Conuersus, conuertit ouans, Petrumque uocari Sergius antistes iussit, ut Ipse pater, Fonte renascentis quem Christi gratia purgans, Protinus albatum uexit in arce poli. Mira fides regis, clementia maxima Christi, Cuius consilium nullus adire potest, Sospes enim ueniens supremo^ ex orbe Britanni, Per uarias gentes, per freta perque uias, Vrbem Romuleam uidit templumque uerendum Aspexit Petri, mistica dona gerens. Candidus inter oues Christi sociabilis | ibit, fo. 5 Corpore nam tumulum, mente superna, tenet. Commutasse magis sceptrorum insignia credas Quem regnum Christi promeruisse uides. B6. Descriptio uille Seuekesham, postea Abbendoniam appellate. Verum ne sub silentio nobilitatem uille Seouechesham pretereamus, quasi rei ueritatis ignari, aliquid de ea probabili relatione et fide digna ad presens in medium proferamus. Fuit itaque Seouechesham ciuitas famosa, aspectu desiderabilis, diuiciis plena, agris circumdata uberrimis, uernantibus pratis, diffusis campis, et gregibus lactifluis. Hic sedes regia, huc cum de regni precipuis et arduis tractaretur negociis, [i. 7]

concursus fiebat populi./ Vbi etiam a primis Britonum temporibus locus fuit religionis, tam tempore religionis fanatice quam tempore B5 ^" uel armipotens interlin. above regnipo

d subpremo MS

^5 The epitaph appears in Bede, Ecclesiastical History, bk. v, c. 7, ed. Colgrave and Mynors, pp. 470-2. See further R. Sharpe, ‘King Ceadwalla’s Roman epitaph’, in K. O'Brien O'Keeffe and A. Orchard, eds., Latin Learning and English Lore: Papers for Michael Lapidge (2 vols, Toronto, 2005), i. 171-93. 26 See above, p. cvii.

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Bs. Epitaph of King Ceadwalla.?> Eminence, wealth, kindred, powerful kingdoms, Triumphs, spoils, great men, fortified cities, strongholds, homes; And those qualities of his fathers and those he had assembled himself, Powerful-ruling Ceadwalla abandoned for love of God, So that as a visitor the king might look on Peter and the see of Peter, Blessed he might take the pure waters from his fount, Gather a brilliant radiance from the shining draught, From which flows everywhere a life-giving brightness, Swiftly taking the rewards of reborn life. Rejoicing he changed his barbarous rage and, following that, his own name: The Archbishop Sergius, as his father, ordered that he be called Peter, Purifying him at the font the grace of reborn Christ Immediately carried him, clad in white, to the height of Heaven. Remarkable the king’s faith, greatest the mercy of Christ, Whose counsel no one can approach, For coming safe from Britain, the endmost part of the world, Through diverse peoples, through seas and roads, He saw the town of Romulus, and, bearing mystic gifts, Gazed upon Peter’s awe-inspiring temple. White-clad he will go as an intimate among the sheep of Christ, He occupies a tomb with his body, the heavens with his soul. You should believe to have exchanged for something better the insignia of sceptres Him whom you see to have deserved the kingdom of Christ. B6. Description of the village of Seuekesham, afterwards called Abingdon. Lest we pass over in silence the nobility of the village of Seuekesham, as if ignorant of the truth of the matter, we now make generally known something about it with a credible and trustworthy account. So, Seuekesham was a renowned city, of desirable appearance, full of riches, surrounded with the richest farmlands, flourishing meadows, abundant fields, and milk-giving herds. Here was a royal seat, to this place people gathered when the important and difficult business of

the realm was discussed.”° From the earliest times of the Britons it

was also a place of religion, in the time both of pagan religion and of

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religionis Christiane. In hac etiam ciuitate plura fuerunt indicia Christianitatis ex antiquorum^ conuersatione Britonum, ut supra dictum est, cruces etenim et imagines, que in uilla ipsa nunc hic nunc illic effosse reperiebantur, huius rei prebent experimentum. B7. De inuentione migre crucis.

Inter alias etiam cruces inuenta fuit crux illa sancta que nigra crux appellatur. Sancta enim adeo est ut nullus, iuramento super eam prestito, impune et sine periculo uite sue possit affirmare mendacium; creditur etenim ex clauis Domini ex magna parte conflata et facta. Nec tamen a Constantino magno, qui in ea regione imperator creatus fuit," ibi reposita, ut quidam dic*nt; sed credibilius quidem a beniuolis suis Britannis quos secum Romam profecturus deduxerat transmissa illuc, ut memoria sanctitatis et meriti utrorumque— scilicet matris et filii—insignius appareret, ubi et corporalis presentie

ip(s)orum conuersatio habita magnificabatur." Vel certe transmittente^ Cesare ipso uel matre eius ad honorem et tuicionem patrie de qua ad imperium assumptus fuerat, ut prediximus, a quibus propter merita et sanctitatem eorum crucem Domini constat fuisse inuentam. Tempore Anglorum edificata ibi capellula ipsius sancte Helene, que aliquando ibi tempore uiri siue filii conuersata fuerat, crucem illam repertam fuisse asserunt, per quam, multa signa indicens, sanctuarii illius uirtutes monstrate sunt. Quot rei periurio super eam deprehensi [i. 8] sint? Non est numerus miraculorum. Vnde" (cum tot uirtutibus quas enumerare non possumus mendacia et asserciones false detegerentur) reuerentia qua debebat honorabiliter tractabatur; et uolentibus fratribus eam auro et argento ornare, quicquid ei in una die circa adaptabatur, totum altera decidisse et dissolutum esse uidebant, nec potuit aliqua parte aliquando aurum uel argentum circa eam confo. 6" firma|ri, sindone tantum exterius per totum inuoluta est. B6 ^ anticorum MS

B7 ^ transtmittente MS

^ Vnus MS

7 Constantine the Great, son of Constantius and Helena, was emperor 306—37. See also Historia. regum, ed. Wright, p. 51, from which the compiler of the History's knowledge of Constantine presumably derives. *8 The narrative could be clearer here, with the sudden mention of Constantine's

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Christian. Also in this city was considerable evidence of Christianity from the religious life of the ancient Britons, as mentioned above, for crosses and images, which were found buried in various places in this village, provide proof of this. B7. Concerning the finding of the Black Cross.

Among the other crosses found was, indeed, that holy cross which is called ‘the Black Cross’. It is so holy that no one who has taken an oath on it can affirm a lie without punishment and mortal danger, for it is believed to have been smelted and made in large part from nails of the Lord. However, it was not, as some say, deposited there by Constantine the great, who was made emperor in that area.”’ It is more plausible that it was sent there by his well-wishers, the Britons, whom he had taken with him when setting out for Rome, to make clearer the memory of the holiness and merit of both—that is mother and son—at the place where the sojourn of their corporeal presence was also

extolled.** Certainly, whether sent by the Caesar or his mother to the honour and protection of the homeland from which he was raised to dominion, as we have said above, it is agreed that the cross of the Lord was found by those people because of their merits and holiness. It is asserted that the cross was discovered at a small chapel (built there in the time of the Angles) of that Saint Helen who had lived the religious life there at some point in the time of her husband or son, and through it, as many signs demonstrate, the powers of that holy relic have been revealed. How many wrongdoers have been caught by perjury on it? Those miracles cannot be numbered. As a result (since lies and false assertions are revealed by so many miracles which we cannot number) it was honourably treated with the reverence due; the brethren wished to decorate the cross with gold and silver, but they saw that whatever was one day added to it, the next day entirely fell off and was shed, and that gold or silver could never be fixed anywhere around it, but it could only be wrapped all round with muslin on the outside. mother, Helen. It is possible that this lack of clarity results from a lapse by the compiler or/ and the scribe of MS B. For Helen, see A. Harbus, Helena of Britain in Medieval Legend (Cambridge, 2002), which unfortunately does not consider the incorporation of Helen into

the Abingdon legend.

244

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Verumptamen rex Cedwalla—cuius anime propitietur Deus?— non tamen bona supra enumerata Abbendonie contulit, uerum etiam de propria uoluntate sua Cille, sorori Heani patricii, dedit licentiam construendi monasterium in loco qui nunc dicitur Helnestoue, iuxta Thamisiam, ubi uirgo Deo sacrata et sacro uelamine uelata quam plurimas choadunauit sanctimoniales, quarum in posterum mater extitit et abbatissa. Post huius decessum succedente te(m)poris interuallo quam plurimo,*' translate sunt sanctimoniales prefate ab illo loco ad uillam que dicitur Witham.? Succedentibus uero nonnullis annis, cum graue bellum et a seculo inauditum ortum fuisse inter Offam regem Merciorum et Kinewlfum regem Westsaxonum, tunc temporis factum erat castellum super montem de Witham, ob cuius rei causam recesserunt sanctimoniales ille a loco illo nec ulterius redire perhibentur.? [i. 9] B8. De morte Cedmalle* et Ina rege.

Nunc restat ut ad successores regis Cedwalle et eorum tam maleficia quam beneficia succincte" describenda, pro modulo scientie nostre, stilum uertamus reciprocum. Itaque audito decessu regis Cedwalle in Westsaxonia, fama uolitante (qua nihil uelocius),** successit ei in hereditatem" Ina rex, affinis illi lineari propinquitate. Hic autem primo donationes et beneficia predecessorum suorum Cisse?? et Cedwalle necnon maximam portionem hereditatis Heani abbatis precipue erga monasterium Abbendonie^ irrita fieri decreuit, sed postmodum ad cor suum rediens et facti penitens, perspicaciterque intelligens illas duas partes iusticie quibus dicitur ‘Declina a malo et fac bonum"," non solum a malo declinauit uerum etiam faciens bonum, de suis maneriis et licitis donationibus ipsius domus beneficia auxit uberius. Primo etenim ablatis in integrum restitutis, .ccl. cassatorum descriptionem, prout carta ipsius subsequens testatur, prefate domui et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus, abbate Heano B8 ^ corr., in black ink, from Cedwalla ^ sucstincte MS * possibly corr. to hereditate, although the deletion of the abbreviation mark may be accidental ^ followed by a redundant second use of the word primo ? Cf. Exod. 30: 16. Similar phrases were used in the liturgical commemoration of the dead.

*° Presumably in the section which has been lost; see above, p. xlvi. For gifts by Ceadwalla, see also above, cc. 2-3. ?' Ceadwalla died 689; Offa was king of Mercia 757-96, Cynewulf king of Wessex

757-86.

* Either Wytham or Wittenham; see above, p. Ixxxvi.

TEXT AND TRANSLATION

OF MS B

245

To continue, King Ceadwalla—to whose soul may God be rendered favourable?— not only conferred on Abingdon the goods enumerated above,” but also of his own will gave Cilla, sister of Heha the nobleman, permission to build a monastery in the place now called Helenstou, next to the Thames, where the virgin, consecrated to God and veiled with the sacred veil, gathered together a large number of nuns, of whom she thereafter was mother and

abbess. A very considerable time after her death,*! those nuns were moved from there to the village called Witham. But after a few years, when a serious and unprecedented war had arisen between Offa king of the Mercians and Cynewulf king of the West Saxons, a fort was then built on the hill at Witham, on account of which the nuns withdrew from that place and are reputed never to have returned.? B8. Concerning the death of Ceadwalla, and King Ine. Now it remains for us to turn our pen, which moves back and forth, to King Ceadwalla's successors, and to describe succinctly both their bad and their good deeds, according to the extent of our knowledge. And so, when King Ceadwalla's death [689] had been heard of in Wessex, and rumour (than which nothing is swifter)** was flying about, King Ine, who was related to him by genealogical line,

succeeded him in his inheritance.* At first he decreed to make void the gifts and endowments of his predecessors Cissa?? and Ceadwalla and also the greatest part of the inheritance of Haha the abbot particularly to the monastery of Abingdon, but afterwards he returned to his senses and repented his deed. Perceptively understanding those two elements of justice about which it is said *Depart from evil and do good", not only did he depart from evil but also he did good, increasing the endowments of that house in greater abundance from his own manors and legitimate gifts. After first fully restoring what had been taken away, he gave and granted and by his charter confirmed to the aforementioned house and the monks serving God there, with Abbot H:cha present in person and watching, 33 See Stenton, Early History, pp. 23-5. 34 35 their 36

Cf. Vergil, Aeneid, iv. 174: ‘Fama, malum qua non aliud uelocius ullum’. According to the genealogies in ASC, s.a. 685, 688, their closest common ancestor was great-great-grandfather, Ceawlin. This is the first mention of Cissa in the surviving part of MS B, but it seems very likely that he had appeared in the missing folios.

3/1 Ps. 136: (37): 27-

246

APPENDIX

uiuente et uidente, dedit et concessit et carta sua confirmauit.”” carte subscriptio hec est: .

Cuius .

Bg. Carta Ine regis." Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 4; above, cc. 3, 4. [i. 13] Bio. Testamentum Heani antequam abbas efficeretur. fo. 6"

[i. 14] fo. 7

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 3; above, c. 7. Bir. De donatione uille que appellatur Suttun. Iste uero Ina primo dedit et concessit Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus uillam de Suttune in puram et perpetuam elemosinam, cum omnibus ad illam integre pertinentibus, quam uillam monachi libere et quiete in pace possederunt usque ad tempus Kenulfi regis et Retuni abbatis, utputa inferius dicemus enucleatius. Biz. Qualiter rex Ina Romam petiit et ibi obiit.? Postquam uero supradicta bona rex Ina fecerat, Deo acceptabilia, perpendens sollicite quod nudus intrauit in mundum et quod nudus reuerteretur ad humum," hom*o ad humum properans, disponens sibi prouide ne morsu mortis corrueret corporis et anime, quod bene inceperat fine pociori consummauit. Relicto namque imperio suo ad Adelardo consanguineo suo commendato, anno Dominice incarnationis .dccxxviii. Romam profectus est, ubi, ne conuersionis sue pompam faceret, quasi ad populum falerans, non in publico comam deposuit sed, ut solius Dei placeret oculis qui iudicat uerba, cor, renes

hominum," amictu tectus plebeio clam uixit clamque consenuit. Remansit

Cuthredus,

itaque. Adelardus

in regno.

Quo

cui Sigebertus, cui Kinewlfus."

mortuo,

successit

Quo ab Offa rege

Merciorum in bello uicto, omnia que iuridictioni sue subdita fuerant, ab oppido Walingefordie in australi parte ab Ichenildestrete usque ad Esseburiam et in aquilonali parte usque ad Tamisiam," rex Offa sibi usurpauit. Iste uero Offa Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et B9 ^" an illustration of the king appears at the start of this charier

55 "The use of ‘descriptio’ is not typical of the History, and could perhaps reflect the peculiar nature of the ‘charter’ that follows. The arithmetic whereby the figure 250 was reached is obscure. ? Cf. MS C's brief statement above, p. 10. ^! Cf. Job 1: 21 ‘nudus egressus sum de utero matris mee, et nudus revertar illuc’, a

passage used in several Abingdon charters; see p. 387. " Cf. e.g. Rev. 2: 23. The ‘renes’, translated in the Authorized Version of the Bible as ‘reins’, are the kidneys or the loins, and following biblical usage the term was used to refer to the seat of feelings, affections, or appetites.

TEXT AND TRANSLATION

OF MS B

247

a delineation of 250 hides, as his following charter witnesses.?? This is the text of that charter: Bo. Charter of King Ine. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 4; above, cc. 3, 4. Bro. Testament of Haha before he was made abbot. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 3; above, c. 7. Bri. Concerning the gift of the village called Sutton. This Ine, indeed, first gave and granted to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there the village of Sutton in pure and perpetual alms, with everything entirely pertaining to it, which village the monks possessed freely and _ undisturbed in peace up to the time of King Coenwulf and Abbot Hrathhun, as we will tell more plainly below.

B12. How King Ine sought Rome and died there.*° Indeed, after King Ine had done these good deeds, which were welcome to God, he anxiously contemplated that he entered the

world naked and that he would return naked to the earth." As a man hastening to the earth, he made prudent dispositions for himself lest he be brought down by the bite of the death of body and soul, and what he had begun well he completed in even better fashion. So he left his dominion entrusted to his kinsman /Ethelheard, and in the year of our Lord 728 set out for Rome. There, lest he make a display of his conversion, as it were showing off to the people, he accepted the tonsure not in public, but in such a way that he might please the eyes

of God alone, who judges men's words, hearts, and feelings," and he lived secretly clad in a common man's garment and grew old secretly. JEthelheard therefore remained in the kingdom. When he died, Cuthred succeeded him, to whom Sigeberht succeeded, to whom

Cynewulf.? When he had been defeated in battle by Offa king of the Mercians, the latter seized for himself everything which had been subjected to Cynewulf's authority, from the Icknield Way between the town of Wallingford and Ashbury in the south to the river

Thames in the north.*? That Offa, indeed, conferred the village called * Cuthred reigned 740-56, Sigeberht 756—757, Cynewulf 757-86; Handbook ofBritish Chronology, p. 23. 55 Ashbury, Berkshire. For Offa’s victory and capture of Benson, Oxfordshire, sec AS G 5.4. 779. Note the comments of Stenton, Early History, pp. 23-5, who suggests that Mercian dominance may have stretched further south in Berkshire than the present Abingdon account allows.

248

APPENDIX

li. 15] monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus uillam que Gosi appellatur in puram et perpetuam contulit elemosinam. * Tempore etiam istius Offe regis quidam episcopus nomine Rethunus, de regno Merciorum contumeliis et ui hostilitatis coactus, episcopatui suo renuntiauit et in monasterio Abbendonie monachatum suscipiens, abbas et pater postea est effectus.

fo. 7

B13. De Brihtrico rege Westsaxonum. Interfecto Kinewlfo Westsaxonum rege a Kinewardo, Sige|berti predecessoris sui fratre, successit ei Brihtricus frater eius.* Iste uero Brihtricus uillam de Estun cuidam principi suo Lullan nomine dedit, et concessit ei et carta sua confirmauit ut memoratus Lullan prefatam^ uillam cum omnibus appendiciis suis cuicumque uellet

daret pariter et assignaret.*® Cuius carte memoratus Lullan^ fretus

[i. 16]

munimine, ante mortem suam, de consensu regis Brihtrici et consilio uirorum autenticorum, desiderans Christum sibi facere heredem, uillam predictam, scilicet Estune, Deo et sancte Marie‘ et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus dedit et concessit, et cartam illam, qua rex Brihtricus terram memoratam illi confirmauerat, que tunc temporis plus efficatie et confirmationis habebat quam aliqua alia quam de eadem terra facere posset, super altare beate Marie Abbendonie posuit. Et in signum maioris federis protulit Anglice ‘Al mine rihte pat ic hedde in Estun ic gife seinte Marie in Abbendun.’ B14. Hec est carta Brihtrici regis. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 7."

B12 * corr. from helemosinam by expunction

B13 ^ corr. from prefatas by erasure

i corr. from Lullam by erasure

* interlin.

"* Offa’s gift of Goosey is not mentioned in any charter. The compiler of MS B may have read of Offa's gift in De abbatibus, which states that the king gave it in return for Andersey; CMA ii. 273. Alternatively, he may have worked backwards from the charter in King Coenwulf's name restoring, amongst other properties, Gooscy, and have guessed that Offa was the original donor; see above, c. 1o. ^^ These events are recorded in the ASC, s.a. 786, and note also the entry s.a. 757 S66 further S. D. White, *Kinship and lordship in early medieval England: The story of Sigeberht, Cynewulf, and Cyneheard', Viator, xx (1989), 1-18. Beorhtric was king of Wessex 786—802; Handbook of British Chronology, p. 23.

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

249

Goosey on God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms.* Also in that King Offa's time a certain bishop named Hrathhun, driven from the kingdom of the Mercians by indignities and force of enmity, renounced his bishopric and became a monk in the monastery of Abingdon, afterwards being made abbot and father.

B13. Concerning Beorhtric king of the West Saxons. After Cynewulf king of the West Saxons was killed by Cyneheard, brother of his predecessor Sigeberht, his own brother Beorhtric

succeeded him." Beorhtric, indeed, gave the village of Easton to a noble of his named Lulla, and granted to him and confirmed by his charter that Lulla might equally give and assign that village with all

its appendages to whomsoever he wished.*® Strengthened by the protection of this charter, Lulla, desiring before his death to make Christ his heir, with the consent of King Beorhtric and the counsel of authoritative men, gave and granted to God and St Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there the aforesaid village, that is Easton, and placed on the altar of the blessed Mary at Abingdon that charter whereby King Beorhtric had confirmed that land to him. At that time this had greater efficacy and confirmatory power than anything else that he could do concerning that land. And as a sign of complete agreement he pronounced in English ‘All my right which I had in Easton I give to St Mary in Abingdon’. B14. This is the charter of King Beorhtric. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 7.

*© Crux Easton, Hampshire. Lulla may be the same man as the prefectus Lulla who witnessed a charter for Glastonbury; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 35. It may be that Abingdon did have an early interest in Crux Easton and associated lands at Hurstbourne, but surrendered it in an exchange with King Ecgberht of Wessex. The lands may have passed to Abingdon under Edgar, but were no longer in the abbey’s hands in 1066; sec Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 89, pp. clxvi, ccvii, 30-1, 367; Charters of the Early West Saxon Kingdom, ed. Edwards, p. 184. 47 Sawyer, no. 268. This charter records Beorhtric granting the above ten hides to Lulla. It is dated 801. Charters of the Abbey of Abingdon, p. 33, states that the charter ‘is a very difficult document to evaluate, in part because there are relatively few reliable West Saxon texts from the eighth and early ninth centuries with which to compare it’. Edwards, in Charters of the Early West Saxon Kingdom, p. 183, states that ‘there is good reason to argue that the charter is basically genuine and it may be that the whole text is authentic’.

250 [i. 18] fo. 8°

APPENDIX

Bis. De morte Offe regis Merciorum et successione Kenulfi. Interea Offa rege Merciorum uiam uniuerse carnis ingresso, successit ei in regnum filius eius Egbertus, qui paucis diebus post patrem suum regnauit et statim cessit in fatum. Cui successit Kenulfus.

B16. De sororibus Kenulfi.? Iste uero Kenulfus duas habuit sorores uterinas, non solum facie decoras uerum etiam elegantia morum bonorum insignitas et —quod est longe melius—in omnibus et per omnia omnipotenti Deo deuotas. Has uero nonnulli proceres potentissimi, tum propter regiam dignitatem, tum propter earum famam memoria dignam, in copulam adoptauerunt sibi maritalem. Quas cum rex puta^ (de cuius consensu et uoluntate huiuscemodi penderet negocium) quadam die affabili uultu interrogaret cuiusmodi uitam actitare, quosue sponsos in hac mortali tunica habere desiderassent, demissis in terram paululum uultibus earumque mentibus in celum iugiter erectis, quasi desuper [i. 19] eis datum et celitus prouisum, regi huiuscemodi dedere responsum: *Rex piissime, bene nouit sanctitas uestra nos ex regali prosapia esse propagatas. Nouit etiam benignitas uestra, frater amantissime, quod ab ineunte etate Deo seruire eique soli placere finaliter, tota mente totisque uiribus nostris, desiderauimus. Nunc ergo benignitatem fo. 8” uestram, capitibus demis|sis, iunctis manibus, flexis poplicibus, uoce lugubri, petimus habere exoratam, quatinus, pro amore illius qui de uirgine nasci dignatus est uirgines nos permanere et in integritate mentis et corporis ei iugiter famulari cui seruire regnare est pacifice permittatis. Hunc etenim, pre omnibus mortalibus, ut decet sponsum habere preadoptauimus, nec alium quempiam habebimus, licet in continenti capitalem subire deberemus sententiam.' Quibus rex, plenus pietate et uisceribus misericordie, hec uerba respondit: *Quid ergo, dilectissime sorores et famule Dei deuote, sedet animis uestris? Petite quod iustum fuerit?" nec repulsam paciemini.’ Cui uirgines ‘Volumus et desideramus insuper beniuolentiam uestram omni qua possumus deuocione deprecamur quatinus nobis aliquam porciunculam terre, liberam ab omni humano seruitio et seculari B16 ^* followed by id est erase 55 Offa's son was in fact called Ecgfrith, and he ruled in the latter part of 796; the mistake derives from John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 226. For the duration of his reign, see also Handbook ofBritish Chronology, p. 16. ?^ For the relationship of this section to a late forged charter, Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, no. IO, see above, p. Ixviii.

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

251

Bis. Concerning the death of Offa king of the Mercians, and the succession of Coenwulf. Meanwhile, when Offa king of Mercians had gone the way of all flesh, his son Ecgberht succeeded him in the kingdom, who reigned for a few days after his father and immediately yielded to death.*® Coenwulf succeeded him. B16. Concerning Coenwulf’s sisters.” That Coenwulf, indeed, had two uterine sisters, who were not only beautiful in appearance but also distinguished in the elegance of their good conduct, and—which is far better—devoted in everything and every way to almighty God. Moreover, some very powerful great men selected these sisters to join with themselves in marriage, both because of their royal status and because of their noteworthy reputation. When one day the king (on whose consent and will business of this type rested) with a kind expression asked the sisters what sort of life they would desire to live, and what husbands they would desire to have in this mortal garb, they lowered their faces somewhat to the ground and raised their minds constantly to Heaven, and gave to the king the following answer, as if it had been given to them from above and provided from Heaven: ‘Most pious king, your holiness knows well that we are sprung from royal stock. Also, your goodness knows, most beloved brother, that from an early age we have desired to serve God and please Him alone for ever, with all our minds and all our strength. Therefore now, with heads bowed, hands clasped, knees bent, voices mournful, we seek to entreat your goodness that, for love of Him who deigned to be born of a virgin, you peacefully allow us to remain virgins and constantly, in wholeness of mind and body, to serve Him to serve whom is to reign. For as is fitting we have chosen to have Him as a husband, before all mortals, and we will not have anyone else at all, even were we obliged to undergo immediately a capital sentence.’ The king, full of compassion

and ‘the bowels of mercy',? answered them in these words: ‘What, therefore, most beloved sisters and devoted servants of God, resides

in your souls? Seek what is just?! and you will not suffer rebuff.’ The virgins replied to him: ‘We wish and desire and in addition beseech your good will with all the devotion of which we are capable that you grant us a small portion of land, free of all human service and worldly 59 The phrase ‘uiscera misericordie’ appears in Luke 1: 78, Col. 3: 12; note also vol. ii. 344; Wulfstan, Life of Ethelwold, c. 33, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, p. 50.

>! See Matt. 20: 4.

252

[i. 20]

APPENDIX

exaccione, ubi in Dei seruitio manere possimus, nobis concedatis. Petimus etiam ut illam terram Deo et beate Marie Abbendonie monachisque ibidem Deo seruientibus, ubi corpora nostra temporalem habebunt sepulturam, libere et quiete cum omni libertate prescripta post decessum nostrum in perpetuam dare possimus elemosinam.’ Tunc rex cum magna deliberatione, conuocatis archiepiscopis et episcopis et comitibus et baronibus regni ipsius, uillam que Culeham appellatur, cum omnibus ad illam integre pertinentibus, eis in uita earum concessit, et post earum decessum ecclesie sancte Marie Abbendonie et conuentui ibidem Deo seruienti,’ liberam et quietam ab omni seculari exaccione, sub omnium episcoporum anathemate firmiter confirmauit, ita ut nec regi nec regiis ministris homines uillam inhabitantes aut alterius precepto pareant aut iuridiccioni, preterquam abbatis principaliter aut illius uel illorum quem uel quos abbas Abbendonie custodem. ibi constituerit aut custodes." Impetrauit etiam rex Kenulfus a papa Leone tercio priuilegium de ecclesiastico beneficio in eadem uilla, sub anathematis interminatione, ne quis mortalium, siue archiepiscopus siue episcopus siue archidiaconus siue decanus aut eorum officiales siue homines eorum, ab ipsa ecclesia uel persona ecclesie uel uicario, uel ab alio annua pensione ipsam tenente ecclesiam, aut in ius uocare aut aliquid ab ea exigere presumat, unde in posterum alicui iuridiccioni episcopali uel alii subici posset et sic libertatis sue pati detrimentum. Solus autem abbas ex beneficio priuilegii aliquem iuris peritum quemcumque uoluerit constituet qui querimonias et placita tam de criminalibus quam de alis ad ius ecclesiasticum pertinentibus diligenter audiat et fine

canonico decidat. 7 Ex illo etiam tempore sacerdos uel clericus

fo. 9

ecclesie de Culeham crisma in uigilia Pasche per manum sacriste in ecclesia Abbendonie ad usum baptismi et infirmorum accipiet. Persona uero uel uicario ipsius ecclesie in fatum cedente, abbas Abbendonie, auctoritate propria non de consensu uel consilio archiepiscopi uel episcopi uel archidiaconi uel decani uel alicuius officialis ecclesiastici, personatum uel uicariam cui uoluerit dabit, |nulla facta presentacione ad diocesanum uel ad alium. Quod si de abbate ipsius ecclesie humanitas contigerit, et ecclesia nominata uacauerit, prior et conuentus de consilio communi personatum uel uicariam cui uoluerint et dabunt et assignabunt et carta sua confirmabunt. Istam uero uillam cum omni libertate prescripta non solum uenerabilis papa Leo "

aoe

corr. from seruientibus

^ custodere MS

" corr. from custodies.

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

253

exaction, where we can live in the service of God. We also seek that after our death we can give that land freely and undisturbed with all the above liberty in perpetual alms to God and blessed Mary of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, where our bodies will have earthly burial.” Then, when he had called together the archbishops and bishops and earls and barons of that realm, with great deliberation the king granted to them for their lives the village called Culham, with everything entirely pertaining to it, and he confirmed it after their deaths to the church of St Mary of Abingdon and the convent serving God there, free and quit of all secular exaction, firmly under the anathema of all the bishops, in such a way that the men living in that village were to obey neither the king nor royal officials, nor the order or jurisdiction of anyone else, except of the abbot in person or of him or those whom the abbot of Abingdon appointed guardian or guardians there. King Coenwulf also obtained from Pope Leo III a privilege concerning the ecclesiastical benefice in that village, under threat of anathema, that no mortal man, whether archbishop or bishop or archdeacon or dean or their officials or their men, presume to summon to justice or demand anything therefrom, from that church or its parson or vicar, or from another holding that church by annual pension, whereby it could for the future be subjected to any episcopal or other jurisdiction and thus suffer harm to its liberty. Moreover, the abbot alone according to the favour of the privilege may choose and constitute a man experienced in law to hear diligently and bring to a canonical decision complaints and pleas concerning both criminal and other matters pertaining to ecclesiastical law.?? From that time, too, the priest or cleric of the church of Culham was to receive the chrism on the vigil of Easter by the hand of the sacrist in the church of Abingdon, to use for baptism and the sick. Moreover, when the parson or vicar of that church yields to death, the abbot of Abingdon, by his own authority and not by the consent or counsel of the archbishop or bishop or archdeacon or dean or any ecclesiastical official, shall give the parsonage or vicarage to whom he wishes, without presentment being made to the diocesan or another. But if the abbot of that church suffer the fate of mankind, and the named church is vacant, the prior and convent by common counsel will give and assign and by their charter confirm the parsonage or vicarage to whom they wish. Not only did the venerable

Pope Leo by his privilege confirm that village, with all the above 3? On the privileges of Culham, see above, p. clx.

254 [i. 21]

APPENDIX

domui abbatie Abbendonie priuilegio suo confirmauit, sed et litteras suas regi Kenulfo misit petitorias, rogans’ attentius quatinus memoratam uillam cum omnibus appendiciis suis et libertatibus prescriptis, sicut et ipse summus pontifex priuilegiauerat, ut et ipse rex eandem uillam Abbendonie priuilegio suo confirmaret. Cuius peticioni licet rex non in continenti adquieuerit, tamen pro loco et tempore multo melius et consulcius, utputa inferius dicetur, summi pontificis salubri adquieuit consilio. Br7. De temporibus Rethuni episcopi et abbatis. Succedentibus itaque annis circiter^ septem, uenatores et aucupes regis Kenulfi, prout illa gens assolet absque uerecundia aliena uiuere

quadra,™ nunc in expensis prodigis et exaccionibus indebitis, nunc in [i. 22]

contumeliis uariis et dilapidationibus patrimonii crucifixi superfluis, domum Abbendonie aggrauare presumebant, nec a tali presumptione et tam detestabili aut prece uel precio aliquatenus desistere uolebant. Verumptamen quod cum abbas Abbendonie, nomine Rethunus, et unanimis eiusdem loci conuentus egritudine tulissent, ne quid in preiudicium domus sue super huiuscemodi iniuriis fieret in posterum, multiplici ammonitione pretaxata tam regi quam regiis ministris" ut ab huiusmodi desisterent iniuriis, nec aliqua suscepta, abbas et conuentus pro statu suo et domus sue ad sedem appellauerunt apostolicam. Nec mora memoratus abbas curiam adiit Romanam ubi a uenerabili papa Leone laudabiliter susceptus, ipsum pontificem super negotio suo quoad cautius potuit propensius consuluit. Quem conquerentem seruus seruorum Dei, affabili lenitate consultum, puta ex inolita bonitate (de cuius pectore semper exuberabat tam pietatis quam dulcedinis immensitas), cum sue tuicionis apicibus insimul et auctoritatis apostolice priuilegiis, perpropere remisit ad propria. Sane quod cum rex iam accepisset tum ex tenore literarum summi pontificis tum ex uiua uoce portitoris uel se debere Anglicane ecclesie libertati diligenter intendere, et maxime defensioni domus Abbendonie uigilanter insistere et ab indebitis exaccionibus pariter et uexationibus ipsius domus penitus desistere, uel indignationem sedis apostolice maturius incurrere, nunc blandiciis cauillatoriis, nunc e

B17

regans MS ^" scirciter MS

! interlin.

° Cf. c. 9 above, dealing with the same matters. The content of this chapter probably derives from Coenwulf's privilege which follows it. ?* See Juvenal, Satires, v. 2.

TEXT AND TRANSLATION

OF MS B

2K5

liberty, to the house of the abbey of Abingdon but he also sent his petitory letters to King Coenwulf, asking very earnestly with regard that village with all its above appendages and liberties, that the king also would confirm that village to Abingdon by his own privilege, just as the highest pontiff had granted in his privilege. Although the king would not immediately agree to his request, afterwards, however, much more appropriately and advisedly taking into account the circ*mstance, he did agree to the highest pontiff’s beneficial plan, as will be told below. B17. Concerning the times of Hrethhun, bishop and abbot.? Then, after about seven years had passed, King Coenwulf’s huntsmen and fowlers, being a breed who are accustomed without restraint

‘to live at another man’s board’,** presumed to oppress the house of Abingdon, now with wasteful charges and undue exactions, now with various affronts and excessive waste of the patrimony of the crucified Christ, and they were unwilling to desist in the least from such detestable effrontery either for prayer or payment. Nevertheless, when the abbot of Abingdon, named Hrethhun, and the likeminded convent of that place had endured this with suffering, and when both the king and the royal officers had received manifold warnings that they desist from such wrongs and they had made no such undertaking, the abbot and convent appealed to the apostolic see regarding their own situation and that of their house, lest any further wrongs of this type be done in future to the prejudice of their house. Without delay, that abbot went to the Roman Curia where he was received in praiseworthy fashion by the venerable Pope Leo, and very eagerly took counsel with that pontiff concerning his business, as prudently as he could. With good-natured mildness, as from habitual goodness, the servant of the servants of God (from whose breast an immensity both of piety and of sweetness always abundantly flowed) advised the complainant and then sent him very swiftly home, with letters of his protection and privileges of apostolic authority. When, indeed, the king learnt both from the terms of the highest pontiff’s letters and from their bearer’s own words that he ought either to pay attention diligently to the liberty of the English Church, and especially apply himself vigilantly to the defence of the house of Abingdon and utterly desist from undue exactions and similarly from vexations of that house, or incur very promptly the indignation of the apostolic see, he strung out that business now with quibbling flattery,

256

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fulminantibus minis, quasi exceptionibus dilatoriis, sic ipsum elongauit negocium ut uel minimo uel penitus nulli rex iam procurasset [i. 23] fo. 9

effectui mancipare.? Interea cum iam de summo pontifice humanitus contigisset, littere ipsius abbatis de negotio suo | exequendo, quoad* usum penitus sunt quassate, attestante lege qua dicitur mortuo mandatore, respirat mandatum. Quo uiso, abbas Retunus et conuentus domus Abbendonie, uehementer timentes ne illis in posterum ad culpam et detrimentum domus sue imputaretur quod litteras prefatas contra regiam dignitatem, ut asserebat rex, impetrassent. Memoratus abbas Rethunus de consilio fratrum suorum regem adiit super negotio suo cum ipso pacifice locuturus. Quod ut securius faceret, aurum et argentum secum deportauit ad summam .cxx. librarum, diiudicans hoc sibi fore potissimum consilium de regis amore optinendo et ultimum remedium. Quod cum factum esset, regi

illud tantillulum argenti et auri pro bono pacis optulit, et preterea centum manentes ad uillam regalem Suttun prope Abbendoniam sitam. Quorum donorum gratia adeo animum regis ad beniuolentiam uir Dei Rethunus sibi et domui sue captauerat ut decretum publice sanctiretur ne quisquam domus regie officialium uel prefectorum aut episcoporum in possessionibus ecclesie Abbendonensi pertinentibus ultra iam aliquid lucri siue seruitutis uel indebite exaccionis requireret, immo libertas ex integro omnibus ipsis perpetuaretur. Nacta itaque occasione ab huiusmodi concordia, abbas Rethunus ea que inter regem et ipsum lam fuerant sopita, ne in rediuiuam litem resurgere possent, utile sibi decreuit et domui sue in scriptum redigere et ad noticiam posterorum transmittere. Quo libenter a rege concesso, priuilegium suum fecit rex domui Abbendonie de uillis ad ipsam domum pertinentibus similiter et de propriis donationibus suis, que in priuilegio suo sequenti singillatim specificantur. Tenor uero priuilegii hic est: [i. 25] B18. Priuilegium Kenulfi. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 9; above, c. 11.

* corr. from ad by interlin. ofquo

^ partially corr. from ecclesia

B18 * an illustration of the king appears at the start of this charter

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257

now with fulminating threats, dilatory exceptions as it were, thereby taking care that the order had either only very little or absolutely no impact.? Meanwhile, when the highest pontiff had suffered the fate of mankind, the abbot's letters concerning the business he had to pursue were rendered completely useless, in accordance with the law whereby it is said that with the death of the one ordering, the order breathes its last. When this was apparent, Abbot Hrathhun and the convent of the house of Abingdon feared tremendously that in future they would be accused, as a crime and to the loss of their house, of having sought those letters against the royal dignity, as the king was asserting. Therefore, the aforementioned Abbot Hrathhun on his brethren's advice went to the king to speak with him peacefully concerning their business. To do this more confidently, he took with him gold and silver to the value of £120, judging that this would provide for him the most powerful persuasion and the greatest salve in obtaining the king's love. When this was done, he offered the king for the good of peace that tiny amount of silver and gold, and in addition one hundred hides at the royal vill of Sutton, situated close to Abingdon. By grace of these gifts, the man of God Hrethhun made the king's mind so favourable to himself and his house that a decree was publicly ordained that in future no official of the king’s household or reeve or bishop should seek any money or servitude or undue exaction in the possessions pertaining to the church of Abingdon, but instead freedom was wholly to be perpetuated for them all. Having obtained opportunity from an agreement of this sort, Abbot Hrathhun decided that it would be useful for himself and his house to have drawn up in writing, and conveyed to the notice of men in future, those matters now settled between the king and himself, lest they could arise again in a revived dispute. The king willingly granted this and made his privilege for the house of Abingdon concerning the villages pertaining to that house and likewise concerning his own gifts, which are individually specified in his privilege which follows. The terms of the privilege are, indeed, as follows: B18. Privilege of Coenwulf. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 9; above, c. 11. 55 The libertas ecclesie Anglicane is very much a concept of the compiler's own time; cf. Magna Carta, c. x Anglicana ecclesia libera sit’. On the emergence of the phrase ecclesia Anglicana, see Z. N. Brooke, The English Church and the Papacy (Cambridge, 1952), ch. 1. For the style of this and the following sentence, see above, p. liii. 56 "The author is here, of course, playing down a very substantial payment.

258 [i. 27] fo.

i. 28]

fo.

APPENDIX

B19. De Brihtrico rege West Saxonum. His diebus memoratus rex Westsaxonum Brihtricus, de quo superius prelibauimus, dedit cuidam principi suo, nomine Hemele, uillam que Mene uocatur, et carta sua confirmauit et concessit ei omni eodem modo quo supradicto principi suo Lullan, ut et ipse post decessum suum quemcumque uellet de eadem terra heredem sibi faceret." Dedit itaque memoratus Hemele uillam de Mene de consensu regis Brihtrici Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus, cum omnibus ad illam pertinentibus. Optulit etiam cartam ipsius | regis Brithrici super altare sancte Marie, quam habuit de eadem uilla. Cuius carte tenor hic est: B2o. Carta Brihtrici de Hisseburna.

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 6.7? i. 29]

B21. De morte Kenulfi regis. Post discessum Kenulfi regis Merciorum regnauit sanctus Kenelmus

filius eius paucis diebus, cui successit Ceolwlfus frater Kenulfi, cui Bertulfus.© Iste uero Bertulfus dedit Alfeo principi duodecim cassatos iuxta flumen quod appellatur Cirne et Kalemundesdene.*' Ipse autem Alfeus de consensu regis Bertulfi dedit Deo et sancte Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus eandem uillam cum duodecim cassatis terre supradictis, omni eodem modo quo supra de Lullan principe dictum est.” Et hec est karta regis Bertulphi: ? Hemele was probably an important ealdorman; see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 29. On Hurstbourne, see above, p. 22 n. 66; for Lulla, above, B13. The charter which follows in fact leaves the land by the Bourne rivulet, Hampshire, not that by the Meon, in Hemele’s hands; the compiler of the later version of the History appears to have misunderstood the charter. ** Sawyer, no. 269. This charter records Beorhtric granting thirty-six hides, in part by the Bourne rivulet, to Hemele, in exchange for thirty-four on the river Meon, Hampshire, previously granted to Hemele by King Cynewulf. The charter is datable to 786 x 794. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 28, states that the charter ‘is more likely than not to be an authentic document, although it is possible that the various hidages have been corrupted in transmission’. See also Stenton, Early History, pp. 29-30, who takes it as genuine, with an added phrase in the witness list; also Charters of the Early West Saxon Kingdom, ed. Edwards, pp. 179-83.

? i.e. St Kenelm, on whom see e.g. John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 238-40; Three

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259

B19. Concerning Beorhtric king of the West Saxons. In these days, that Beorhtric king of the West Saxons, whom we mentioned above, gave the village called Meon to a noble of his named Hemele, and by his charter confirmed and granted to him in entirely the same way as to his aforesaid noble Lulla, that after his death he might make whomsoever he wished his heir concerning that land.? Therefore that Hemele, by King Beorhtric’s consent, gave the village of Meon to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, with everything pertaining to it. He also offered on the altar of St Mary the charter of that King Beorhtric, which he had concerning that village. The terms of his charter are as follows:

B20. Charter of Beorhtric concerning Hurstbourne. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 6.°° B21. Concerning the death of King Coenwulf. After the demise of Coenwulf king of the Mercians [821], his son St

Cenelm reigned for a few days,’ to whom succeeded Ceolwulf, brother of Coenwulf, and to him Berhtwulf. This Berhtwulf indeed

gave

twelve

hides

Churn, and Calmesden,

to the river that is called the

to /Elfheah, a noble.

Moreover,

that

/Elfheah by the consent of King Berhtwulf gave that village with those twelve hides of land to God and St Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in entirely the same

way as was said above concerning Lulla, the noble.” And this is King Berhtwulf's charter: Eleventh-Century Anglo-Latin Saints! Lives, ed. R. C. Love (OMT, 1996); W. Levison, England and the Continent in the Eighth Century (Oxford, 1946), pp. 249-51; Oxford Dictionary of Saints, p. 231. 9? Ceolwulf was king of Mercia from 821 until his expulsion by Beornwulf in 823. Berhtwulf came to the throne in 840 and died in ?852; Handbook of British Chronology, p. 17. Berhtwulf therefore was not Ceolwulf's direct successor, as the text implies. Conceivably the compiler was led into error by some similarities between the names Beornwulf and Berhtwulf. 9! Calmesden, Gloucestershire; see further Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 63. The introduction to the boundary clause of the charter that follows states that King Berhtwulf booked the land to /Elfheah ‘his feeder sune’. The exact relationship indicated by this phrase is uncertain. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 63, takes it to mean that /Elfheah was Berhtwulf's nephew. Another possibility is that /Elfheah was Berhtwulf's half-brother, i.e. his father's son, not his mother's. 9? See above, p. 248. Such routine statements in MS B that beneficiaries of royal gifts passed the grant to Abingdon are not to be trusted; sce above, pp. CXXVi-cxx viii.

260

APPENDIX

B22. Carta Bertulfi regis. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 13.9 [i. 31] B23.^ fo. 11°

Eidem Berthulfo Merciorum regi dedit Ceolredus antistes quatuordecim cassatos iuxta flumen Tamisie pro libertate quorumdam monasteriorum, et ipse rex Beorthulfus dedit Ethelwlfo principi eodem modo quo supra.” Et ipse Ethelwlfus princeps dedit Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus eosdem duodecim cassatos, cum carta regis. Cuius descriptio carte hec est: B24. Carta regis Berthulfi.

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 12.9 [i. 32] B25. De morte Brihtrici regis’ West(saxonum). fo. 11*

Brihtrico rege Westsaxonum cedente in fatum, successit ei Egbrihtus

nepos eius, filius Kinewlfi ab Offa rege Merciorum uicti."^ Iste uero Egbrihtus omnes reges tocius Albionis in dedicionem suscepit. Qui et uidisset [i. 33] cum audisset famam bonitatis domus Abbendonie donationes et beneficia que predecessores sui supradicti ipsi domui intuitu caritatis contulere, domum ipsam sincere dilexit, quem amorem euidentissime probauit ipsius operis exibitio. Videns etenim beneficia predecessorum suorum quam plurima, sua uero parua uel nulla, timens in se radices ficus fatue succidi si nullos fructus afferret," ad se reuersus ac iugi meditatione mortem pre occulis habens suspectam, secum multociens deliberauit quid beneficii in remissionem peccatorum suorum domui Abbendonie dare posset in puram et perpetuam helemosinam. Quid multa? Ad hoc B23

° the rubricator failed to provide a heading, although the appropriate space had been left

B25 ^" corr. from Brihtrico rege

^ crudely written over erasure

55 Sawyer, no. 202. This charter records Berhtwulf granting the above twelve hides to /Elfheah. It is dated 852, although this may be a slip for 842. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 61, states that ‘the authenticity of [the document] is uncertain’, and concludes, p. 62, that it is probably best to believe that it is ‘a forgery, or at least a technical fabrication’. Apart from the presence of this charter in the archive, there is no other evidence of Abingdon interest in this land; note, however, Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 63-4, for Abingdon interests in the vicinity. ** Ceolred was bishop of Leicester from the early 840s until perhaps as late as 888; Handbook of British Chronology, p. 218. This introductory passage is unusual in not specifying where the lands were situated. According to Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 56, the lands *were probably located somewhere on the river Pang, not necessarily in the close vicinity of modern Pangbourne’. The variation in the hidage may simply be a scribal error. °° Sawyer, no. 1271; trans. EHD, i. no. 87. This charter records Bishop Ceolred granting

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OF MS

261

B22. Charter of King Berhtwulf. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 13.9

B23. Ceolred the bishop gave fourteen hides next to the river Thames to that Berhtwulf king of the Mercians in return for the freedom of certain monasteries, and King Berhtwulf gave it to /Ethelwulf, a

noble, in the same way as above.” And /Ethelwulf, the noble, gave

those twelve hides to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, with the king’s charter. This is the text of his charter: B24. Charter of King Berhtwulf. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 12.9 B25. Concerning the death of Beorhtric king of the West Saxons. When Beorhtric king of the West Saxons yielded to death [802], there succeeded to him Ecgberht his nephew, son of the Cynewulf who was conquered by Offa king of the Mercians.% That Ecgberht, indeed, received in submission all the kings of the whole of Albion. When he heard report of the goodness of the house of Abingdon and saw the gifts and endowments that his predecessors mentioned above had charitably conferred on it, he sincerely loved that house, a love most clearly proved by the action he performed. For seeing that his predecessors’ endowments were very many but his own few or none, and fearing that the roots of the sycomore would be cut if it

bore no fruit,” he turned again to himself and, constantly meditating upon death held up before his eyes, he often deliberated internally what endowment he could give in pure and perpetual alms to the house of Abingdon for the remission of his sins. What’s more, it the fourteen hides on the river Pang to Berhtwulf, in return for freedoms, and Berhtwulf then granting the land to /Ethelwulf. The charter is dated 844, although 843 may be correct. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 55, states that the document ‘seems to be authentic’, at p. 59 that ‘it is impossible to be certain whether [the document] is acceptable as it stands, or whether it has undergone some . . . interpolation or revision; what is clear is that it is based on genuine ninth-century documentation’. Kelly also suggests, at p. 57, that this may have been one of the documents from a minster at Bradfield, close to Pangbourne, which passed into the Abingdon archive. See Stenton, Early History pp. 25-6, for the charter's significance concerning Mercian control of Berkshire into the mid-gth c. 66 Ecgberht was not, in fact, son of Cynewulf; Handbook ofBritish Chronology, p. 23. $7 Sycomore here is a species of fig tree, not the species of maple familiar in Britain (commonly spelt sycamore); see DMLBS, fasc. iv s.v. fatuus. The allusion is probably to Luke 13: 6-9, where Christ tells in a parable of a man who had planted a fig tree [arborem fici] in his vineyard, but then found no fruit upon it. He complained of this to the dresser of his vineyard, and the dresser answered that he would tend it for a year; if it then bore fruit, it was to be left, if it did not, it was to be cut down [succides eam].

262

APPENDIX

tandem peruenit quod de consilio magnatuum regni ipsius uillam que Mercham appellatur, cum omnibus ad illam integre pertinentibus, Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus dedit et concessit et carta sua confirmauit. Cuius carta hec est:

B26. Carta Egbrihti regis Westsaxonum de Mercham." Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 11; above, c. 12. [i. 35] B27. De morte Egbrithti regis. fo. 12"

Egbrihto rege Westsaxonum carnis exuto ergastulo et hac luce communi priuato, successit ei Hathewlfus filius eius, qui cuidam principi suo, nomine Alcmundo, uillam que Essebiri appellatur dedit, et ut carta sua testatur concessit ei ut quemcumque uellet sibi faceret heredem.® Ipse uero Alcmundus hanc uillam domui Abbendonie in puram^ et perpetuam helemosinam dedit, cum carta ipsius regis. Fecit etiam rex Hathewlfus generale priuilegium omnibus ecclesiis [i. 36] regni sui, quibus decimam partem terrarum regni sui in puram et perpetuam helemosinam per partes distribuerat. E quibus prima et precipua fuit domus Abbendonie. Forma autem priuilegie eius hec

est: B28. Quomodo Adelwlfus rex dedit decimam partem regni sui ecclesiis. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 14; above, c. 13. i. 38] B29. De morte Adelwlfi regis et quomodo Adelbaldus filius eius confirmauit ecclesie Abbendonie omnes donationes Cisse et Cedwalle et Ine. Hethelwlfo mortuo, successit ei /Ethelbaldus filius eius. Iste uero /Ethelbaldus inter ceteras regni sui ecclesias domum Abbendonie fo. 13° quasi quadam speciali prerogatiua in tantum dilexit, |ut non solum de propriis beneficiis suis illam dotaret, uerum etiam terras quas primi fundatores Abbendonensis cenobii, scilicet Cissa, Cedwalla, Hina, eidem cenobio dederant et confirmauerant, ipse eidem /Edelbaldus ipsas easdem terras cum donatione propria sua carta confirmauit, et eas singillatim specificauit. Tenor autem carte hic est:

B26 ^ an illustration ofthe king appears at the start of this charter

B27

^ peruram, because of unnecessary abbreviation mark MS

°° Calendared in Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p- 579 (i). No charter recording the king’s gift to Ealhmund survives. If it survived until the time of the compilation of MS B, it is hard to understand why the compiler did not include it here; if it did not survive until his

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263

finally came at length to this, that by the counsel of the magnates of that realm he gave and granted and by his charter confirmed the village called Marcham, with everything entirely pertaining to it, to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there. This is his charter: B26. Charter of Ecgberht king of the West Saxons concerning Marcham. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 11; above, c. 12. B27. Concerning the death of King Ecgberht. When Ecgberht king of the West Saxons had left the prison of the flesh and been deprived of this common light, /Ethelwulf his son succeeded him [839]. /Ethelwulf gave the village called Ashbury to a noble of his named Ealhmund, and as his charter witnesses granted to

him that he might make whomsoever he wished his heir. That Ealhmund, indeed, gave this village to the house of Abingdon in pure and perpetual alms, with that king's charter. King /Ethelwulf also made a general privilege for all the churches of his realm, to whom he had distributed by shares the tenth part of the lands of his realm in pure and perpetual alms. The first and foremost of them was the house of Abingdon. Moreover, the form of his privilege is this: B28. How King Athelwulf gave the tenth part of his realm to churches. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 14; above, c. 13.

B29. Concerning the death of King A:thelwulf and how /Ethelbald his son confirmed to the church of Abingdon all the gifis of Cissa and Ceadmalla and Ine. After /Ethelwulf died, his son /Éthelbald succeeded him [855]. Amongst the other churches of his realm, indeed, /Ethelbald loved the house of Abingdon as if by a special precedence, so much so that not only did he endow it regarding his own benefactions, but also the lands which the first founders of the monastery of Abingdon, that is Cissa, Ceadwalla, Ine, had given and confirmed to that monastery, those lands too /Ethelbald confirmed by his charter to the monastery with his own gift, and specified them individually. Moreover the terms of the charter are as follows: compilation, it is unclear how he knew of the gift. *Essebiri' is the History's version of the Old English /Escesbyrig/ Zscesburh (translatable as Ashbury), that is the area of Uffington and Woolstone, Berkshire; EPNS, Berkshire, ii. 380, Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 118— 19. A man or men named Ealhmund ‘princeps’ witnessed B14 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 7) and Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 10.

264

APPENDIX

B30. Carta Adelbaldi regis Westsaxonum de Wachenesfeld." 9? Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 5; above, c. 8. [i. 40] B31.^ Post decessum Athelbaldi successit ei frater eius Adthelbrihfo. 13”

tus. Qui, licet paruo tempore regnasset, uidelicet quinque annis, et in largitione beneficiorum non ad sufficientiam salutis. anime salubriter sibi prouidisset, nichilominus tamen proteccioni ecclesiastice incessanter studuit curam impendere. Quo cedente in fatum, regnauit frater eius Athelredus. Iste uero Athelredus, tenens regni gubernacula, dedit ac concessit uenerabili et familiari principi suo Athelwlfo terram decem cassatorum in uilla que dicitur Witham, omni eodem modo quo carta regis subsequens testatur, scilicet ut quemcumque uellet heredem post decessum suum sibi faceret. Ipse, uero non factus inmemor prescripti beneficii, domui Abbendonie uillam ipsam cum omnibus ad illam integre pertinentibus, de li. 41] consensu et uoluntate regis, cum carta regis ipsam donationem et modum donandi exprimente, dedit et firmiter concessit, et ipsam cartam regis ad maiorem munitionem in honore Dei et beate Marie super altare Abbendonie deuocione optulit reuerentissima. Et hec est carta regis: B32. Carta Adelredi regis de Witthenham. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 15; above, c. 16, and cf. below, B89.

Li. 42] B33. De Lakinge. His temporibus princeps Cufwlffus, minister Ethelswipe regine Merciorum, dedit Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus terram quindecim manentium in uilla que dicitur Lakinge, de consensu et uoluntate memorate regine, fo. 14° in puram et | perpetuam helemosinam. Cartam etiam ipsius regine posuit super altare sancte Marie in testimonium donationis sue. Cuius carte subscriptio hec est:

B34. Carta Adelsuid regine de Lakinge.* Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 17; above, c. 15. B30

^ an illustration of the king appears at the start of this charier

B31 ^" the rubricator failed to provide a heading, although the appropriate space had been left at the end of the previous passage, at the bottom of the column

B34 ^ this heading appears at the top of the column, rather than at the start of the charter. An illustration of the queen appears at the start of the charter

TEXT

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265

pac: Charter of Athelbald king of the West Saxons concerning Watchfield. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 5; above, c. 8. B31. After /Ethelbald's death his brother /Ethelberht succeeded him [860]. Although he reigned for little time, that is five years, and in the generous giving of endowments did not provide sufficiently profitably for his soul's salvation, nevertheless, he did strive incessantly to take care of the protection of the Church. When he yielded to death [865], his brother /Ethelred reigned. When JEthelred was holding the reins of the realm, he gave and granted land amounting to ten hides in the village called Wittenham to his venerable and intimate noble /Ethelwulf, in entirely the same way as the following charter of the king witnesses, that is, that he might make whomsoever he wished his heir after his death. Not forgetful of the above favour, /Ethelwulf gave and firmly granted that village to the house of Abingdon, with everything entirely pertaining to it, by the consent and will of the king, together with the king's charter expressing that gift and the manner of giving, and in most reverent devotion he offered the king's charter on the altar of Abingdon, for greater protection, in honour of God and the blessed Mary. And this is the king's charter:

B32. Charter of King #thelred concerning Wittenham. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 15; above, c. 16, and below, B89. B33. Concerning Lockinge. At that time the noble Cuthwulf, a thegn of /Ethelswith queen of the Mercians, gave land amounting to fifteen hides in the village called Lockinge to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, by that queen’s consent and will, in pure and perpetual alms. He also placed that queen’s charter on the altar of St Mary in testimony of his gift. This is the text of her charter:

B34. Charter of Queen A:thelswith concerning Lockinge. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 17; above, c. 15.

$ For MS B's mistaken positioning of this document of King /Ethelbald of Mercia (716-57), see above, p. 12 n. 41.

266

APPENDIX

Li. 44] B35. De Feornberga.”° Omni eodem modo princeps Edricus, familiaris /Elflede regine Merciorum, dedit Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus uillam que Feornberga appellatur, per consensum et uoluntatem memorate regine et per carte auctoritatem quam prefata regina ei fecerat de supradicta uilla." Posuit etiam cartam ipsam super altare domus Abbendonie, insignans omni iure suo quod habuit in eadem terra per carte ipsius regine attestationem. Cuius carte hec est notificatio: B36. Carta Elflede regine de Ferberga.* Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 20." [i. 46] B37. De aduentu Danorum in Angliam et destructione de Abbendonia.?

fo. 14"

Tempore uero /Epelredi regis, utputa ex serie gestorum accepimus Anglorum, gens quam plurima de Danubia nauali uehiculo in Angliam aduentasse peribetur. Cuius sane duces principales et ductores uiri sanguinum Yngwar et Hubba extitisse commemoran-

tur.^ Applicuerunt autem Dani isti sub brumali emisperio in regno Norhanhimbrorum./" Quibus, tum propter loci amenitatem, tum propter insule fertilitatem, pariter et omnium bonorum affluentiam, tantus appetitus regnandi in ipsa fuisse comprobatur, ut nulli iam parcerent terrigenarum condicioni, aut etati, uel sexui, cuiuspiam etiam in mortis discrimine deferrent. Enimuero interfectis uiris et mulieribus pariter cum paruulis ad ubera matrum adhuc pendentibus, urbibus hinc inde subuersis, uicis passim suc(c)ensis, adiacentes B36

^" an illustration of the Athelfled appears at the start of this charter

B37

^" interlin.

” Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 87—8, argues that the Mercian character of the charter and the transaction would suggest Farnborough in Warwickshire, but that the place-name evidence seems to point to Farnborough in Berkshire. Abingdon may have had interests in both; see above, cc. 99 (p. 152), 117, below, B56, Bs7 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 29), B253, B254. This appears to be a roth-c. gift, wrongly positioned here because the charter includes the date 878. /Ethelfled was the daughter of King Alfred of Wessex and wife of AEthelred II of Mercia. ?' Eadric is a common name, and his identity cannot be established with certainty. ” Sawyer, no. 225. This charter records /Ethelflaed confirming the above ten hides to Fadric her thegn, after an earlier document concerning the land had been lost. The charter, wrongly dated 878, is probably from 915 x 916. The charter appears to be acceptable as authentic, except for the date; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 86-8. 75 Cf. the account in MS C, above, c. 14. ™ This is the great army the arrival of which the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle dates to 866. Asser, Life of King Alfred, c. 21, ed. Stevenson, p. 19, and John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii.

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

OF MS B

267

B35. Concerning Farnborough.”° In exactly the same way the noble Eadric, a trusted man of /Ethelfled queen of the Mercians, gave the village called Farnborough to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, by that queen’s consent and will and by authority of the charter which the aforesaid queen had made for him concern-

ing that village.”’ He also placed that charter on the altar of the house

of Abingdon, recording all his right which he had in that land by attestation of the queen's charter. This is the message of her charter: B36. Charter of Queen A:thelfled concerning Farnborough.

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 20.” B37. Concerning the coming of the Danes to England and the destruction of Abingdon.”* In King /Ethelred's time, indeed, as we have learnt from the account of the deeds of the English, a very numerous people from the Danube are reported to have come to England by sea transport."* Their principal leaders and leading men are recorded as being the

bloodthirsty men

Hinguar and Ubba.^

landed in the kingdom

Moreover,

of the Northumbrians

those Danes

under the wintry

heavens.”° They proved to have such a desire to rule there, because of the loveliness of the place, the fertility of the island, and equally the abundance of all goods, that they then spared none of the inhabitants by reason of their standing, or age, or sex, but did away with them by any manner of death. Having killed the men and women and also the little children still on their mothers’ breasts, toppled towns on all sides, and set alight settlements everywhere, they laid waste the neighbouring regions, which had been so happy, 280, but not the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, state that the fleet came from the Danube. John of Worcester is probably the History’s source. S. Keynes and M. Lapidge, Alfred the Great (Harmondsworth, 1983), p. 238, comment that Asser’s statement ‘makes no sense; it is possible that he was simply recording his belief or assumption that it came from Denmark, and. made a mistaken connection between Danes and the Danube’. 75 Neither the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle nor John of Worcester mention the leaders’ names at this point, but they do appear in Henry of Huntingdon, Historia Anglorum, bk. v, c. 5, ed. Greenway, p. 280, and William of Malmesbury, Gesta pontificum, bk. ii, c. 74, ed. Hamilton, p. 153. Hinguar may be identified with Ivar the Boneless, and Ubba may have been his brother; see Keynes and Lapidge, Alfred, pp. 238-9. The phrase ‘viri sanguinum' appears in Ps. 54: 24, Ps. 138: 19, and Prov. 29: Io. 76 The ASC, s.a. 866, 867, and John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 280, have the army land in East Anglia and then move to Northumbria. ‘Brumali’ could mean northern, rather than winter, but Symeon of Durham, Historia Dunelmensis ecclesie, bk. ii, c. vi, Opera omnia, ed. T. Arnold (2 vols., London, 1882—5), i. 55, has the Danes take York on 1 Nov. 867.

268

fo. 15"

APPENDIX

prouincias tam felices tam infelici deuastatione depopulauerant, ut nee etiam manus mittere ad sancta oe aliquatenus for|midarent.”” Euertebat itaque domum Gedeonis”® gens extera, agni fedus edus

rapuit, cornu Dauid flagellabat gens misera," uiolente plena gente sola sedit ciuitas.*’ Vrbes itaque cum monasteriis subuertebantur, quorum etiam monimenta adhuc plurimis in locis prestant indicia, utputa ubi parietum ac murorum reliquie hucusque spectantur

semidirute.7 Quid multa? Dani isti de regno ad regnum et de ad populum alterum, quasi pro signo uictorie animi extollentes insolentiam, tandem ad Westsaxoniam infelici gressu peruenerunt ubi consimili modo quo ceteris in locis debacantes, ultimo sacrosanctam ac uenerabilem domum Abbendonie, quam tot reges sancti et uiri tam autentici supradicti fundauerant et dotis uariis ditauerant, tam inimica manu tamque leonina ferocitate necnon tam detestabili auiditate, monachis penitus effugatis destruxerant, ut nihil ibi preter parietes reliquisse periberentur. Hoc tamen diuinitus prouiso quod reliquie sanctorum cum cartis ipsius domus, ^quasi superius in hoc libro annotauimus et inferius sunt annotate, clamdestine sunt res’eruate, ad hoc forte, quatinus recuperatores simul et reparatores eiusdem cenobii de terris ad ipsam ecclesiam ‘de iure^ pertinentibus per easdem cartas imposterum fierent certiores.? O quis dolor et que anxietas! Et quis tam dure ceruicis,™* tam ferrei pectoris, tam adamantini cordis, ut hec audiat et se a lacrimis abstineat? Expulsis itaque theofilis a gremio matris sue, locum ipsum tam sanctum et tam honestum non solum presumtuose sed et

[i. 47] populo transeuntes

irreuerenter allophili^? occupauerunt,

et hii Dani immo

pagani

fuere. E quorum collegio dum plerique, inflati spiritu superbie, die quadam in refectorio de more monachorum residerent et tam scuriliter quam incomposite in omnibus se haberent, accidit huiuscemodi miraculum quod non est sub silentio pretereundum. es

ait^

d ^" over erasure ^* interlin. this word continued the line into margin. It is probably in a different pen although the same hand. The word also appears in dry point

” The phrase ‘sancta sanctorum’ appears at various points in the Bible; see c. g. Num. 4: 19; Heb. 9: 3. 75 For Gideon, see Judg. 6-9. ” The allusion, like the sentence more generally, is somewhat unclear. Some reference is being made to the distinction between good sheep and bad goats in Matt. 25: 33. In addition, the lamb here must refer to Christ. 30. See Ps. 131: 17: *! Cf. Lam. 1: 1: *Quomodo sedet sola civitas plena populo', *How doth the city sit solitary, that was full of people’. The place of the word ‘uiolente’ within the sense of the sentence is somewhat unclear, and the word indeed could be corrupt.

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

269

with such unhappy devastation, not even fearing in the least to place their hands upon things most holy.” So the foreign people overturned the house of Gideon, the young goat seized the covenant of the lamb,” the pitiful people were scourging the horn of David,? and with the whole people engaged in violence, the city sat solitary.' So towns together with monasteries were overthrown, reminders of which still provide evidence in very many places where the partially ruined remains of walls and buildings are to this day observed. What's more, those Danes passed from kingdom to kingdom and from people to people, raising insolence of spirit like a mark of victory, and at length they made their evil entry into Wessex, where they vented their fury just as elsewhere. Finally, they entirely drove out the monks and destroyed with hostile hand, leonine ferocity, and detestable greed the sacrosanct and venerable house of Abingdon, which so many holy kings and such authoritative men, of whom we have spoken above, had founded and endowed with various endowments, so that nothing is reported te have remained there besides the walls. However, it was divinely provided that the relics of saints with the charters of that house, as we have recorded above in this book and also as recorded below, were secretly preserved, for this possibility, that in future through those charters the restorers and also repairers of that monastery would be more certain of the lands pertaining by right to that church.? Oh what grief and what anxiety! And who is so stiffnecked,** so steely spirited, so very hard-hearted, that he may hear these matters and refrain from tears? So when the lovers of God had been expelled from their mother’s bosom, the Philistines? not only presumptuously but also irreverently occupied that place, which is so holy and honourable, and these Danes moreover were pagans. While one day very many of their company, puffed up with the spirit of pride, were sitting like monks in the refectory and were behaving themselves in all respects in a manner both scurrilous and disorderly, there occurred the following miracle which should not be passed over in silence. 82 Cf. a similar sentence with some variations above, p. 28.

83 See above, p. cxxxiii. 84 See Exod. 32: 9, 33: 3, 5, 34: 9; Deut. 9: 13.

85 The word ‘allophilus’ is used by Aldhelm, De Virginitate (prose), LIIL, in Aldhelmi Opera Omnia, ed. R. Ehwald (MGH, Auctores Antiquissimi, xv; Berlin, I9I9), p. 311, with reference to the ‘giant of the Philistines [a/liphilorum]', that is, Goliath.

270

APPENDIX

B38. Quomodo imago Danos expulit de refectorio.*° Imago etenim affixa cruci, que in medio mense edicioris fuit posita, [i. 48] imago quasi moleste ferens paganorum ingluuiem discumbentium, motu mirabili et brachio mobili necnon digito flexibili, lapides de maceria refectorii potenti uirtute et admirabili fortitudine extraxisse narratur, quibus mediantibus inaudita terribili turbine in ipsam seuiebat multitudinem paganorum. Verumptamen nec a tali lapidatione imago citra destitit donec uniuersos Satani satellites, ^non pedetentim aut more testudinum^ incedentes, extra refectorium penitus expulisset. Hec sunt Christi opera, omni laude digna, cui nichil est difficile. Qui licet naturas singulas certis astringi regulis statuerit, et sic prouiderit ut a prescriptis formulis nature eedem nullo possint conatu ultra naturam progredi uel per se citra regredi, tamen fo. 15" earum auctor, quando uult et ubi uult |et sicut uult," per quamlibet naturam, tam rationalem quam irrationalem, animatam et inanimatam, mirabilia sua mirifice dilucidat, ut cognoscatur ab omnibus quod quotiens factus superbit in factorem, aut plasmatus in figulum, uel creatura contra creatorem suum erigit calcaneum,?? iusto Dei iudicio sciat se labi in profundum dum minus circ*mspecte tendit in altum. Discat itaque hom*o condicionis misere ex istius miraculi explanatione quam periculosum sit superbire et quam perniciosum aliquid arro-

gare, uel etiam cuiquam

derogare, aut dilapidationi abrogare.??

Intendat etiam quam tutum est humilitatis gradum sectari, necnon

Deum timere, cui genuflectitur omne,” insimul et quam honestum ipsam legem naturalem qua nulla lex equior aut iustior firmiter obseruare, qua dicitur: ‘Quod tibi non uis fieri, alii ne feceris.’”! B39. De alio miraculo. Aliut etiam miraculum, non post multi^ temporis elapsum, per [i. 49] eandem imaginem, nec minus admiratione dignum, accidisse perhibetur.’ Frater etenim quidam cum refectorium intrasset sitim leuaturus quam diutius sustinebat, nullo secum comite sui ordinis, B38

“°° this line is written over an erasure

B39

° corr. from multum

^ corr. from peribetur by interlin.

*6 The miracle is also briefly mentioned in the late medieval Abingdon chronicle roll; Salter, ‘Chronicle roll’, 728.

37 Cf. above, p. 238. 55 ic. rebel; note John 13: 18, ‘levabit contra me calcaneum suum’. 99 The sense of this sentence, which gives the morals of the preceding story, is slightly unclear, and it is possible that the text is corrupt.

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

271

B38. How an image expelled the Danes from the refectory.®° An image fixed to a cross, placed on the middle of the most distinguished table, an image as it were bearing ill the gluttony of the dining pagans, is said to have pulled out with powerful force and admirable strength the stones from the refectory wall, with a wondrous movement, a moving arm, and also a bending finger. By these means it vented its rage on the multitude of pagans with an unheard of and terrifying storm. Furthermore, the image did not cease such a stoning until it had entirely expelled all the followers of Satan from the refectory who did not go at a slow walking pace or like a tortoise. These are the works, worthy of all praise, of Christ, for whom nothing is difficult. Although He has decreed that each nature be bound by certain rules, and thus provides that by such regulations these natures cannot through any effort move beyond their nature or of themselves move back from it, however their Author, when He wishes and where

He wishes and as He wishes," may wondrously elucidate His marvels through any nature, both rational and irrational, animate and inanimate, so that everyone may learn that as often as the made disdains the maker, or the fashioned disdains the designer, or the creature raises its

heel against its creator,*® it is to know that by the just judgement of God it will slip into the depths as long as it stretches for the heights with insufficient caution. Therefore let man, of pitiful condition, learn from the exegesis of this miracle how dangerous it is to be proud, and how ruinous to claim anything as one’s own, or even to detract from anything, or to give it up to wastefulness.* Let him direct his mind to how safe it is to follow the steps of humility, and also to fear God, to whom everything kneels,’ and at the same time how honourable it is to observe firmly that natural law than which no law is more equitable or just, by which it is said: ‘Do not do to another what you do not wish to

be done to yourself.””’ B39. Concerning another miracle. After not long had passed, another miracle, no less worthy of admiration, is also reported to have happened through that image. When one of the brethren, accompanied by no fellow monk, entered the refectory to slake his long-endured thirst and, before he tasted the 30 CfRom T4: X 2, Phil: 2: 10: ?! Cf. Tob. 4: 16 ‘Quod ab alio oderis fieri tibi, vide ne tu aliquando alteri facias"; see also Matt. 7: 12 ‘Omnia ergo quaecumque vultis ut faciant vobis homincs, et vos facite illis. Haec est enim lex, et prophetae; Luke 6: 31 ‘Et prout vultis ut faciant vobis homines, et vos facite illis similiter.

272

APPENDIX

non factus inmemor priusquam quippiam gustasset de liquore signo crucis poculum signauit et more solito benedictionem proferens,?? respondit imago uiua uoce ac ore rotundo, distincte et aperte dicens. Verum quod cum frater audisset, factus quasi in extasi quia neminem uidit, et inconsueti‘ uocis representationem perpendisset, sedit solitarius ac quidnam hoc esse posset secum propensius deliberauit. Quid multa? Tandem ad memoriam reuocans quod in dubiis benignius et sanccius est interpretandum, oculos attollit ad imaginem et, recolens quam magna et quam mirabilia Deus per illam subiectam creaturam fieri dignatus est, cruci neccessario duxit asscribendum quod fantasma sibi assolet preiudicare. Non est ergo dubium quin imago loqueretur, nec admiratione dignum si Deus, qui retrahit et tribuit, qui omnia creauit ex nichilo (id est non ex preiacenti materia), ex creatura inanimata uocem protulerit sonoram et quasi ex arteriis prolatam, qui quondam asino Balam mirabiliter contulit ut primo contra prophetam recalcitraret, deinde uoce uiua admoneret ne ulterius in

uia pregrederetur.?? Hec sunt tua, bone Ihesu, opera, cui laus et gloria.

[i. 50]

B4o. De reedificatione Abbendonie. Nunc uero restat ut ad reedificationem domus Abbendonie stilum uertamus reciprocum. Adelredo^ itaque Westsaxonum rege uiam uniuerse carnis ingresso, pius ac misericors Dominus noster Ihesus

Christus, cuius uniuerse uie misericordia et ueritas," qui pios pati et

fo. 16°

impios regnare permittit, orphanis sancte matris ecclesie Abbendonie in tribulationibus factus est adiutor oportunus sui gratia qui cum seruis suis tantam nouit misericordiam. Suscitauit enim successores regis Adelredi, qui pio desiderio (utpote declarabitur inferius) repara|tioni ipsius domus certatim curam impendebant, inter quos fuit predictus rex /Elfredus, Adelredi frater regis, qui primus post

Adelredum

regni suscepit gubernacula?

Hic uero

mala malis

accumulans, quasi Iudas inter duodecim, uillam in qua cenobium situm est, que uulgari onomate^ Abbendonia appellatur, cum omnibus C

inconsuetis MS

B40 ° corr. to Adelfredo by interlin., not necessarily by main hand hand to ydiomate

4 altered in a later

?" On such observances, see e.g. R. J. Bartlett, England under the Norman and Angevin Kings (Oxford, 2000), p. 444; note also William of Malmesbury, Gesta pontificum, bk. iv, c. 140, ed. Hamilton, p. 282, stating that Wulfstan II of Worcester ‘would never omit the benedictions that the English used to make over their drink’.

3 See Num. 22: 21-30. ?* Ps. 24 (25): ro ‘Universae viae Domini, misericordia et veritas’.

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

273

drink, did not forget to mark the cup with the sign of the cross and set forth a blessing as usual," the image replied with a living voice and polished speech, talking distinctly and openly. When indeed the brother had heard this, he was, as it were, stupefied because he saw no one; he assessed this manifestation of a strange voice, and then he sat down by himself and considered very eagerly what this could be. What’s more, finally remembering at length that interpretation in doubtful matters should tend to the kinder and the more holy, he raised his eyes to the image and recalled how great and how wondrous things God deemed it worthy to be done through that subject creation, and he therefore thought it necessary to ascribe to the cross what ordinarily he would assume to be an illusion. For it is not to be doubted that an image may speak, nor does it merit wonder if God, who takes back and bestows, who created everything from nothing (that is, not from pre-existing matter), should bring forth from an inanimate creation a ringing voice, as if brought forth from the windpipe, who once wondrously assigned Balaam to an ass so that at first it kicked back against the prophet and then with a living voice

admonished him not to go further on the way.? These are your works, good Jesus, to whom praise and glory. B4o. Concerning the rebuilding of Abingdon. Now indeed it remains for us to turn our pen, which moves back and forth, to the rebuilding of the house of Abingdon. Therefore, when /Ethelred king of the West Saxons had gone the way of all flesh, our compassionate and merciful Lord Jesus Christ, all of whose ways are mercy and truth,”* who allows the pious to suffer and the impious to reign, became the advantageous supporter of the orphans of the holy mother church of Abingdon in their tribulations by the grace of Him who knows such mercy in relation to His servants. For He aroused King /Ethelred's successors, who by pious desire gradually devoted care to the restoration of this house (as will be set out below), amongst whom was the aforesaid King Alfred, brother of King /Ethelred, who first took up the reins of the kingdom after /Ethelred." He indeed piled evils on evils, like Judas amongst the twelve, and violently took away from that monastery the village in which the monastery is % See above, p. cxii, on the History’s treatment of Alfred. There is confusion in the text in this and the preceding sentence, indicated by the change of ‘Adelredo’ to *Adelfredo' and the use of ‘predictus’ with reference to Alfred, even though he had probably not been referred to earlier. The very logic of the present sentence is obscure, given what the History goes on to say about Alfred.

274

APPENDIX

suis appendiciis, a predicto cenobio uiolenter abstraxit, uictori Domino pro uictoria qua functus est de Danis super Essedune uictis inparem reddens talionem.”° Tempore suo memoratus rex Alfredus uillam que Appelford appellatur cuidam fideli suo pro seruitio et homagio suo," nomine Deormodo, dedit et, ut carta ipsius regis testatur, concessit ei ut quemcumque sibi uellet heredem constitueret. Constituit itaque predictus Deormodus heredem sibi Deum et beatam Mariam et ecclesiam Abbendonie post decessum‘ ipsius regis donationem ipsam ratam attestante et inconcussam. Cuius carte tenor hic est: i. 51]

B41. Carta Alfredi regis West Saxonum de Appelford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 18; above, c. 18.

B42. De morte Alfredi regis West Saxonum et successione Edwards filii sui. Mortuo /Elfredo rege, successit ei /Edwardus filius eius. Iste uero /Edwardus cuidam ministro suo, /Elfstano nomine, uillam que dicitur Sefouenhamtune^ dedit et carta sua confirmauit, insuper et ei concessit ut quemcumque sibi uellet post decessum suum heredem i. 53] facere" de eadem terra, sine ulla contradiccione facere posset, et hoc idem carta regis testatur. Cuius carte memoratus /Elfstanus fretus munimine ipsam terram dedit Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus, in puram et perpetuam helemosinam, et in signum huius donationis, sicut tunc temporis consuetudo fuit, cartam regis (per quam totum‘ ius suum in memorata terra habebat) super altare beate Marie Abbendonie, coram ipso rege et magnatibus suis, nemine donationi sue contradicente, posuit. Cuius carte tenor hic est:

i. 52] . 16"

B43. Carta regis Edmardi de Seuenhantun. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 142.” (5

it seems likely that the word suum followed by another such as auctoritate or carta is missing here B42 ^" final e interlin.

^ corr. from faceret

^ totum rep. MS

°° Cf. above, pp. 32, 50. For the battle of Ashdown, see ASC, s.a. 871, which makes clear that the battle took place before /Ethelred's death following Easter, 15 Apr. 871. *7 On such anachronisms concerning Anglo-Saxon lordship, see above, p. clvii. ?* Sevington in Leigh Delamere, Wiltshire. The charter below, in fact, is one of Edward the Confessor’s and the compiler of this version of the History has wrongly placed it in Edward the Elder’s time.

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

275

situated, commonly called Abingdon, with all its appendages, rendering inappropriate compensation to the victorious Lord for the victory which he had enjoyed against the defeated Danes at Ashdown.”° In his time King Alfred gave the village called Appleford to a

loyal man of his named Deormod, for his service and homage,” and,

as that king's charter witnesses, he granted to him that he might appoint whomsoever he wished as his heir. Therefore the aforesaid Deormod appointed as his heir after his death God and the blessed Mary and the church of Abingdon, with the authority of that king witnessing his gift strong and unshakeable. The terms of his charter are as follows: B41. Charter of Alfred king of the West Saxons concerning Appleford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 18; above, c. 18. B42. Concerning the death of Alfred king of the West Saxons, and the succession of Edward his son. After King Alfred died, his son Edward succeeded him [899]. This Edward, indeed, gave and by his charter confirmed the village called Sevington to a thegn of his named /Elfstan, and in addition granted to him that he might make whomsoever he wished to make his heir concerning that land after his death, without any contradiction, as witnessed by the king's charter? Strengthened by that charter's protection, /Elfstan gave the land to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms, and, as was then the custom, as a symbol of this gift placed the king's charter (through which he had all his right in that land) on the altar of the blessed Mary at Abingdon, in the presence of the king himself and his magnates, with no one contradicting his gift. The terms of his charter are as follows:

B43. Charter of King Edward concerning Sevington. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 142.”

?? Sawyer, no. 999. This charter records Edward the Confessor granting ten hides in Sevington to /Elfstan. It is dated 1043. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 556, states that ‘there seem good reasons to think that [the document] is essentially authentic, although the confused order of the subscriptions raises some problems’. The beneficiary was almost certainly the substantial landholder /Elfstan of Boscombe, whom Domesday records as holding the land TRE; see DB i, fo. 71°; Clarke, English Nobility, pp. 46, 64, 126, 229-31. Apart from the presence of this charter in the archive, there is no other evidence of

Abingdon interest in this land.

276

APPENDIX

[i. 56] B44. Quomodo rex dedit Apelhuni fi)Kiyo Hordmella.'??

fo. 17°

Iste uero Eadwardus rex tocius Anglie, dum adhuc uitales carperet

fo. 17"

auras, cuidam fasallo'? suo Tata Aedelhuni f(i)Ki)o^ | dedit Hordwelle trium manensium in puram et perpetuam helemosinam et carta sua confirmauit. Insuper et ei concessit ut quemcumque sibi uellet post decessum suum heredem facere de eadem terra, sine ulla contradictione, facere posset, et hoc idem carta regis testatur. Cuius carte memoratus Tata /Eóelhuni f(i)l(n)us fretus munimine ipsam terram dedit Deo (et) beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus, in puram et perpetuam helemosinam, et in signum huius donationis, sicut tunc temporis consuetudo fuit, cartam regis (per quam totum ius suum^ in memorata terra habebat) super altare beate Marie Abbendonie coram ipso rege et magnatibus suis, nemine donationi sue contradicente, posuit"? Cuius carte tenor hic est: B45. Carta regis Edwardi de Hordmella. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 19.9

[i. 59] B46. De morte Edmardi regis et successione Adelstani filii sui.9? fo. 18"

Postquam uero Eadwardus rex Anglie Domino disponente uiam uniuerse carnis ingressus est, successit ei Athelstanus filius eius. Iste uero Athelstanus, post suscepta regni gubernacula subito, tante pietatis ac uite sanctitatis extitisse peribetur ut granum sinapis quod in cordis eius orto bonus ortolanus, Dominus ac redemptor noster Ihesus, seminauerat mature radicatum ilico crescere cepisset in arborem magnam firmissime fidei et sancte spei insuper et caritatis

inmense, que nec inuidet nec agit perperam." Opera etenim que Deo sunt placabilia libenter uidit per discretionem, audiuit per obedientiam, B44 ^ this word is below the normal end of the column different hand

^ followed by quod interlin. in

' The name of the recipient is problematic now, and perhaps was for the compiler of MS B. I follow Kelly in taking the peculiar name /Ethelhuniflo to be a conflation of */Ethelhuni and ‘filio’. The recipient of the charter would then be /Ethelhun's son, Tata, who was probably a thegn; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 84. Cf. Keynes, ‘West Saxon charters’, pp. 1146—7, and S. Keynes, ‘Edward, king of the Anglo-Saxons’, in Higham and Hill, eds., Edward the Elder, pp. 40-66, at 54, who argues that he was probably a Winchester

priest.

!! Vergil, Aeneid, i. 387-8; see also below, vol. ii. 332, 354. ' The word ‘fasallus’ is drawn from the charter which follows. For uses of the word, or near equivalents, to mean retainer, see above, p. 21 n. 63. Probably out of habit, the reviser has included the phrase ‘in pure and perpetual alms’ in a gift to a lay person, where it is inappropriate.

TEXT AND TRANSLATION

OF MS B

277

B44. How the king gave Hardwell to the son of Athelhun. ' Moreover, that Edward, king of the whole of England, while he was still ‘drawing the breath of life’,'°' gave in pure and perpetual alms and by his charter confirmed Hardwell amounting to three hides to a

retainer of his, Tata, son of /Ethelhun.'? In addition, he granted to

him that he might make whomsoever he wished his heir concerning that land after his death, without any contradiction, as witnessed by the king’s charter. Strengthened by the protection of this charter, Tata, son of /Ethelhun, gave that land to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms, and, as was then the custom, as a symbol of this gift placed the king’s charter (through which he had all his right in that land) on the altar of the blessed Mary at Abingdon, in the presence of the king himself and his magnates, with no one contra-

dicting his gift.'? The terms of his charter are as follows: B45. Charter of King Edward concerning Hardwell. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 19.* B46. Concerning the death of King Edward and the succession of AEthelstan his son.'° After Edward king of the English by the Lord's disposition had gone the way of all flesh, his son /Ethelstan succeeded him [924]. After he had taken up the reins of the kingdom suddenly,5 this /Ethelstan is reported to have been of such piety and holiness of life that the mustard seed which the good gardener, our Lord and redeemer Jesus, had sown in the garden of his heart became maturely rooted and began to grow there into a great tree of the strongest faith and holy hope and also of immense love, which neither is envious nor acts wrongly." For works pleasing to God, he willingly saw through discernment, he heard through obedience, he tasted through love, he 103 Tt seems more likely that Hardwell passed to Abingdon in the time of /Ethelred the Unready; see above, c. 108. 1 Sawyer, no. 369. This charter records Edward the Elder confirming the above three

hides to Tata, which Edward's grandfather /Ethelwulf had originally given (probably to JEthelhun), but whose charter had been rendered almost completely illegible by submersion in water. It is dated 903. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 83, states that ‘there is no particular reason to question its authenticity’. 105 Cf. the passage in MS C, above, p. 34. 106 This may refer to the death of Edward's son /Elfweard very soon after Edward's own demise; ASC, ‘D’, s.a. 924; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 384. 107 See Matt. 13: 31-2; Mark 4: 31-2; Luke 13: 19. The three theological virtues of faith, hope, and love go back to 1 Cor. 13: 13.

278

[i. 60]

APPENDIX

gustauit per caritatem, olfecit per spem et fidem, necnon tetigit pariter et consummauit per bonam operationem. In ecclesiis etenim quam plurimis destructis iterum reedificandis summam curam ac diligentissimam diligentiam incessanter impendere satagebat. Inter quas cenobium Abbendonie, Chinato abbate locum ipsum tunc temporis gubernante, tanta sinceritate tantoque amoris priuilegio est amplexatus ut non solum illud uariis ditaret ornamentis uerum etiam amplis eam dotaret possessionibus. Quibus possessionibus carte ipsius regis subsequentes ueritatis peribent testimonium, quarum prima hec est: B47. Carta Apelstani regis de Dumeltuna." Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 22; above, c. 19.

[i. fo.

i. fo.

B48. Carta regis Apelstani de Xalingeforda. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 25; above, c. 20. B49. Carta regis Apelstani de Swinford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 26; above, c. 22. B50. Carta regis Apelstani de Sanford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 27; above, c. 21.

B51. Quomodo Apelstanus senator dedit Offentuna. Temporibus etiam /Ethelstani regis fuit quidam uir nobilis, /Ethelstanus senator, qui primo domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus uillam que Vffentuna appellatur, cum omnibus ad (i. 70] illam integre pertinentibus, sicut carta ipsi /Ethelstani senatoris testatur, dedit et concessit in puram et perpetuam elemosinam. Cuius carte hec est notificatio: [i.

fo.

B52. Carta Apelstani senatoris de Offentuna. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 28; above, c. 23. [i. 72] fo.

B53. Adelstanus rex dedit Alfrico ministro suo Wachenesfeld.? Eodem etiam tempore prefatus rex Athelstanus cuidam ministro suo, nomine Elfrico, dedit Wachenesfeld uiginti cassatorum, eo tenore ut, cuicumque post suum decessum heredi uellet donare, libertatem donationis regia auctoritate inde haberet. Sic enim carta regis testatur, unde memoratus Elfricus, in remissionem peccatorum suorum et pro animabus predecessorum suorum, eandem uillam, cum omnibus ad illam pertinentibus, de consensu et uoluntate regis B47 ^" an illustration of the king appears at the start of this charter

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279

smelt through hope and faith, and also he touched and likewise completed through good deeds. For he strove unceasingly to expend the utmost care and the greatest diligence in rebuilding again numerous destroyed churches. Amongst these he embraced with such great sincerity and so great a privilege of love the monastery of Abingdon, then governed by Abbot Cynath, that not only did he enrich it with various ornaments but also endowed it with extensive possessions. The following charters of this king present the testament of truth for these possessions, of which charters this is the first: B47. Charter of King Athelstan concerning Dumbleton. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 22; above, c. 19. B48. Charter of King Athelstan concerning Shellingford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 25; above, c. 20. B49. Charter of King A:thelstan concerning Swinford.? Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 26; above, c. 22.

Bso. Charter of King thelstan concerning Sandford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 27; above, c. 21. B51. How A:thelstan ‘the senator’ gave Uffington. Also in King /Ethelstan's times there was a noble man, /Ethelstan ‘the senator’, who first gave and granted the village called Uffington, with everything entirely pertaining to it, in pure and perpetual alms to the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, as the charter of /Ethelstan ‘the senator’ himself witnesses. This is the message of his charter: Bs2. Charter of /Ethelstan ‘the senator’ concerning Uffington. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 28; above, c. 23. Bs3. King Ethelstan gave /Elfric his thegn Watchfield. Also at that time the aforementioned King /Ethelstan gave Watchfield amounting to twenty hides to a thegn of his named /Elfric, on the terms that, to whomsoever he wished to give it as heir after his death, he would by royal authority have the freedom of giving. For so the king's charter witnesses, whence that /Elfric, for the remission of his sins and for his predecessors’ souls, made this most sacred house of 8 order 109 p. 12.

See above, p. xlv n. 188, for problems arising from the compiler of MS B reversing the of appearance of this and the next charter, and from the forms of the texts he gives. Watchfield is listed in a diploma of King /Ethelbald as an Abingdon estate, above, AElfric is too common a name for the grantee to be confidently identified.

280

APPENDIX

hanc sacratissimam domum Abbendonie, nullo donationi sue contra-

dicente, fecit heredem.!!° Et hec est subscriptio carte regis hanc

donationem confirmantis: [i. 73]

Bs4. Carta regis Adelstani de Wachenesfeld. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 23."

[i. 76]

B55." Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 24."

fo.

[i. 78] fo.

B56." Consimili etiam modo rex /Ethelstanus concessit alteri ministro suo, nomine /Elfeah, Fearnbornpen decem cassatorum, et ille similiter huic domui Abbendonie contulit. Et hec est carta regis

subsequens:!? [i.

Bs7. Carta regis Athelstani de Ferberga. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 29.!*

Bs58. De Cealhgrafan, quomodo Adelstanus rex dedit Ealdredo ministro suo. Idem etiam rex /Ethelstanus concessit Ealdredo ministro suo Cealhgrafan quinque manentium, et ipse ipsam uillam domui Abbendonie

fo.

contulit eodem modo quo supra.'? Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem confirmantis: i. 83] Bs59. Carta regis Adelstani de Chelegraue. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 21.6 B55

° the rubricator failed to provide a heading, although the appropriate space had been left

B56

° the rubricator failed to provide a heading, although the appropriate space had been left

"9 Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 103, takes B64 below—which mentions King Edmund confirming Watchfield to Abingdon—as a possible indication that the statement that /Elfric gave the land to Abingdon was, for once, correct. The passage inserted by the compiler of the later version of the History *probably has some genuine foundation, and may be based on a contemporary record of some kind'. However, the possibility remains that the compiler simply derived his story of /Elfric's gift from Abingdon's later possession of the land.

1! Sawyer, no. 413. This charter records /Ethelstan granting the above twenty hides to /Elfric. It is dated 931. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 102, describes this charter as ‘an example of the very elaborate and standardised diplomas which were produced in the name of King /Ethelstan between 928 and 934/5'. Note that D. N. Dumville, ‘Ecclesiastical lands and the defence of Wessex in the first Viking-Age’, in Wessex and England from Alfred to Edgar (Woodbridge, 1992), pp. 29-54, at 40 n. 55, describes it as ‘genuine (but corrupt)’, although he does not elaborate. !? Sawyer, no. 1604. This text records /Ethelstan granting six hides in Bulthesworthe to his thegn Wulfnoth. It is dated 931. 'T'he History gives only a highly abbreviated version of the dispositive clause of this charter, no doubt because it so resembled the preceding elaborate document. Boundary, sanction, and date clauses are given in full. Charters of

TEXT

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281

Abingdon heir of that village, with everything pertaining to it, by the

king's consent and will, with no one contradicting his gift.!!° And this is the text of the king’s charter confirming this gift: B54. Charter of King A:thelstan concerning Watchfield.

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 23.!! B55.

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 24." B56. Also, in a similar way King /Ethelstan granted Farnborough amounting to twenty hides to another thegn of his named /Elfheah, and he likewise conferred it on this house of Abingdon. And the

following is the king's charter:!? B57. Charter of King /Ethelstan concerning Farnborough.

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 29.!* B58. Concerning Chalgrave, how King #thelstan gave it to Ealdred his thegn. The same King /Ethelstan also granted Chalgrave amounting to five hides to Ealdred his thegn, and the latter conferred that village on the

house of Abingdon in the same way as above.!? And this is the king’s charter confirming this gift: B59. Charter of King /Ethelstan concerning Chalgrave. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 21.6 Abingdon Abbey, p. 106, states that ‘there is no reason to think that the full text of [the document] available to the scribe of [MS B] was not authentic’. See above, c. 106, for the land passing to Abingdon.

!5 fKlfheah's identity cannot be established with certainty, but he may be the future ealdorman of Wessex; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 124. The statement that /Elfheah gave the land to Abingdon may be doubted; King Harthacnu*t and perhaps /Ethelred the Unready granted Farnborough, Berkshire, to Abingdon, above cc. 99 (p. 152), 117. "4 Sawyer, no. 411. This charter also survives in a 16th-c. copy of a lost single sheet, Cambridge, Corpus Christi College 111, pp. 139-41. It records /Ethelstan granting the above ten hides to /Elfheah, following /Elfheah's request for a grant of some land ‘in eternal inheritance’. It is dateable to 934/5 x 938. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 123, states that ‘it seems likely that the charter . . . can be accepted as fundamentally authentic’. For an earlier charter possibly concerning the same ten hides, see above, B36. !5 However, see above, c. 106, for the History’s account of a woman called /Elfgifu giving Chalgrave and Bulthesworthe to Abingdon at the end of the roth c. !6 Sawyer, no. 396; trans. EHD, i. no. 103. This charter records /Ethelstan granting five hides at Chalgrave and Tebworth to Ealdred, which Ealdred had bought from the Danes for ten pounds of gold and silver, on the orders of Edward the Elder and Ealdorman /Ethelred of Mercia. He has now paid /Ethelstan 150 mancuses, it would seem for freeing the land from all secular burden except the trinoda necessitas. The charter is dated 926. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 90-1, takes the charter as authentic.

282

APPENDIX

[i. 85] B6o. Quomodo Apelstanus rex dedit Beorthwaldingtun."

fo. 24°

Predictus rex /Epels(t)anus dedit cuidam religiose femine, nomine

Eadulfu Eadlufa, Beorhtwaldingtun quindecim manentium eodem modo quo supra, et ipsa illam uillam domui Abbendonie contulit.'? Et hec est carta regis:

Box. Karta regis Apelstani de Beorthwaldingtun. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 30.'”

[i. 88] B62. De muneribus que misit Hugo Capet rex Francie Apelstano regi fo.24" /pg[jg, ?? Eodem tempore, rege illustri Anglorum /Epelstano tempore paschali apud Abbendoniam cum comitibus et baronibus suis curiam suam tenente plenariam, prout regio conuenit honori, aduenerunt nuntii regis Francie Hugonis, cognomento Capet, offerentes regi uaria fo. 25° exenia aurea et argentea, necnon et alia super aurum et argentum | et lapidem preciosum dulciora,'”’ reliquias uidelicet preciosas cum omni reuerentia tractandas pariter et uenerandas, scilicet partem spinee corone et partem claui Domini, uexillum etiam sancti Mauricii gloriossisimi martiris et Tebee legionis principis, cum precioso digito sancti Dionisii martiris."^ Quibus a rege gratanter susceptis, peticioni nuntiorum de sorore sua regi Francie nubenda benignum prebuit assensum. Dedit etiam predictus rex A. memorata sanctuaria, in teca argentea cum omni honore recondita, huic sacratissime domui Abbendonie, quorum munimenta super uariis egritudinibus, diuina opitulante clementia, multis adhuc prebent subsidia.^? "7 Berkshire. 175 "The charter simply calls this woman ‘Eadulfu’. It seems most likely that *Eadlufa is a product of confusion over an unfamiliar name; perhaps significantly ‘Eadulfw’ appears at the end of one line, ‘Eadlufa’ at the start of the next.

"9 Sawyer, no. 448. This charter records /Ethelstan granting the above fifteen hides to Eadulfu. It is dated 930, Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 127, states that this charter ‘is typical of the royal dipiomas which were issued in the last five years of /Ethelstan's reign . . . and there is no reason to question its authenticity’. Apart from the presence of this charter in the archive, there is no other evidence of Abingdon interest in this land.

"^ ASC, *D', and Flodoard of Reims (trans. EHD, i. 344), place the marriage of /Ethelstan's sister s.a. 926. It was in fact not the king of France, but Hugh, duke of the Franks and count of Paris, who married /Ethelstan's sister. This is the first reference in the narratives in MS B to a ‘king of England/the English’. On the meeting at Abingdon, see also Stenton, Anglo-Saxon England, p. 345; M. Wood, ‘The making of King /Ethelstan's empire: An English Charlemagne?’, in P. Wormald et al., eds., Ideal and Reality in Frankish and Anglo-Saxon Society: Studies Presented to J. M. Wallace-Hadrill (Oxford, 1983), pp. 250-72, at 266-7; S. Sharp, “The West Saxon tradition of dynastic marriage: With

TEXT

Boo. How King The aforesaid fifteen hides to in the same way

AND

TRANSLATION

283

Athelstan gave Brightwalton.\” King /Ethelstan gave Brightwalton amounting to a woman of religious life, named Eadwulfu Eadlufa, as above, and she conferred that village on the house

of Abingdon.'? And this is the king’s charter:

B61. Charter of King A:thelstan concerning Brightwalton. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 30.''° B62. Concerning the gifis that Hugh Capet, king of France, sent to ZEthelstan, king of England."? At that time, at Easter when the illustrious king of the English /Ethelstan was holding his full court at Abingdon with his earls and barons, as befits royal honour, messengers of the king of France, Hugh, surnamed Capet, arrived, offering the king various gold and silver gifts, and others sweeter than gold and silver and precious stone," that is, precious relics to be treated with all reverence and also to be venerated, specifically part of a thorn of the crown and part of a nail of the Lord, and the standard of St Maurice the most glorious martyr and commander of the Theban legion, with a

precious finger of St Denis the martyr." When the king had accepted these with thanks, he gave his cordial assent to the messengers’ request that his sister be married to the king of France. The aforesaid King /Ethelstan gave those relics, concealed with all honour in a silver reliquary, to this most sacred house of Abingdon, and, helped by divine clemency, the relics’ defences

against diverse sufferings still provide aid for many.'? special reference to Edward the Elder’, in Higham and Hill, eds., Edward the Elder, pp. 79-

88, at 85-6. 7! Cf Ps. 18: 11 (19: 10) ‘Desiderabilia super aurum et lapidem pretiosum multum; et dulciora super mel et favum." 72 For St Maurice and his Theban legion, martyred in ¢.287, see Oxford Dictionary of Saints, pp. 272—3; for his standard, see L. H. Loomis, “The holy relics of Charlemagne and King Athelstan: The lances of Longinus and St Mauricius’, Speculum, xxv (1950), 437—506, at pp. 444-6. For Denis, bishop of Paris, martyred ¢.250, see Oxford Dictionary ofSaints, pp. 105-6. 73 The relic list compiled on Abbot Faritius’s orders in the early 12th c. included a small piece of a nail from the crucifixion and the finger of St Denis but not the standard of St Maurice or part of the crown of thorns. According to William of Malmesbury, Gesta regum, bk. ii, c. 135, ed. Mynors et al., i. 220, /Ethelstan gave the piece of the crown of thorns, along with a piece of the Cross, to Malmesbury. See also L. H. Loomis, “The /Ethelstan gift story: Its influence on English chronicles and Carolingian romances', Publications of the Modern Language Association ofAmerica, lxvii(i) (1952), 521-37, and Loomis, ‘Holy relics of Charlemagne’. On relics, see also above, p. clxxiii.

284

APPENDIX

B63. De morte Apelstani regis. His itaque feliciter peractis non post multum temporis, memoratus rex /Epelstanus uiam uniuerse carnis ingressus est, cui^ frater eius scilicet Eadmundus successit. Tempore uero istius Eadmundi orta est [i. 89] controuersia inter abbatem et monac(h)os Abbendonie ex una parte et

comprouinciales Oxenefordensis pagi ex altera parte, super quodam

prato nomine Beri ecclesie Abbendonie de iure pertinente.^* De

cuius iure insimul et Dei clementia abbas et monachi plus presu-

mentes quam de aliquibus exceptionibus dilatoriis aut cauillatoriis'^

uel obscuris placitis subterfugiis, de assensu communi et uoluntate pari, indictis sibi tribus diebus ieiuniis et orationibus, diuinam deuotissime implorabant clementiam, quatinus eorum ius merum de memorato prato cunctis mortalibus per eius omnipotentiam enucleatius claresceret. Quod dum serui Dei propensius actitarent, inspiratum est eis salubre consilium et (ut pium est credere) diuinitus prouisum. Die etenim statuto, mane surgentes monachi sumpserunt scutum rotundum cui imponebant manipulum frumenti et super manipulum cereum circ*mspecte quantitatis et grossitudinis. Quo accenso, scutum cum manipulo et cereo fluuio ecclesiam pretercurrenti committunt, paucis in nauiculo^ fratribus subsequentibus. Precedebat itaque eos scutum et, quasi digito, demonstrans possessiones domui Abbendonie de iure adiacentes, nunc huc, nunc illuc, diuertens, nunc in dextra, nunc in sinistra parte fiducialiter eos prehibat, usque dum ueniret ad riuum prope pratum quod Beri uocatur, in quo cereus medium cursum Tamisie miraculose deserens se declinauit; et circumdedit pratum inter Tamisiam et Gifteleia, "6 quod hieme et multociens estate ex redundatione Tamisie in modum insule aqua circumdatur. Quo uiso miraculo ab astantibus et concurrentibus tam Berrocensis pagi quam Oxenefordensis nonnullis comprouincialibus, insimul et monachis cereum sequentibus, memoratum pratum domui Abbendonie est redditum, populo acclamante ‘Ius Abbendonie, ius Abbendonie.’ Ex hoc etiam miraculo omnes qui B63 * followed by scilicet, del. by expunction is not entirely clear

^ possibly corr. from nauicula; the reading

A For this incident, see above, p. clxiv. According to EPNS, Berkshire, ii. 454, the name

*Berige' must mean barley island. It lay between the two arms of the river Thames east and

south of New Hinksey; see also the boundary contained in Charters of Abingdon Abbey, nos. 51A, 56, 60, and commentaries.

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

OF MS B

285

B63. Concerning the death of King Aithelstan. Not long after these matters had been happily concluded, King /Ethelstan went the way of all flesh, and to him succeeded his brother Edmund [939]. In this Edmund's time, indeed, a controversy arose between the abbot and monks of Abingdon on one side and the locals of the county of Oxford on the other, concerning a certain meadow

named Berry that pertained by right to the church of Abingdon."* The abbot and monks, setting greater store on their right and the

clemency of God than on certain dilatory exceptions or quibblings'?? or obscure pleaded subterfuges, when three days of fasting and prayer had been imposed on them, by common consent and shared will most devoutly implored the divine clemency that by His omnipotence He very plainly clarify to all mortals their undiluted right concerning that meadow. While the servants of God were very eagerly carrying this out, they were inspired by beneficial and (as it is pious to believe) divinely provided counsel. For on the set day, as they were rising in the morning, the monks took up a round shield on which they placed a sheaf of wheat and on that sheaf a wax candle of prudent size and thickness. When this had been set alight, they committed the shield with the sheaf and the candle to the river flowing past the church, with a few brethren following in a small boat. And so the shield preceded them and, like a finger, pointed out the possessions belonging by right to the house of Abingdon, turning now this way, now that, confidently leading them now to the right, now to the left, until it reached the stream next to the meadow called Berry, to which the candle deviated, miraculously forsaking the middle of the Thames. It went round the meadow between the Thames and Iffley,"* which through the flooding of the Thames is in winter and often in summer surrounded by water like an island. When this miracle had been seen by those standing there and the gathering of many locals of the counties both of Berkshire and Oxfordshire, as well as by the monks following the candle, that meadow was given back to the house of Abingdon, with the people acclaiming ‘Abingdon’s property, Abingdon's property’. Also, from 75 For similar phraseology, see above, p. 256. 126 A. Orchard, A Critical Companion to ‘Beowulf’ (Woodbridge, 2003), p. 103, comments that ‘Gifteleia’ is an early form of the place-name Iffley, suggesting an early origin for the story in the present text. However, EPNS, Oxfordshire, i. 32, notes the form 'Givetelei' in Domesday Book, and later use of ‘Gyftelai’. The place-name form, in particular the presence of the letter *G? at its start, therefore need not be evidence for an early origin for this story.

286

APPENDIX

illud audierant tantus stupor inuaserat ut ab illo tempore usque ad [i. 90] presens tempus non esset inuentus quispiam, rex uel dux!" uel fo. 25" princeps | uel aliquis alius prepotens, qui de eodem prato contra domum Abbendonie causam mouere aliquatenus auderet. [i. 92] B64. Carta regis Edmundi de Culeham.?

Eadmundus, /Epelstano fratri succedens, confirmauit ecclesie Abbendonie Wachenesfeld, cum omnibus ad illam integre pertinentibus, quam predictus Aelfricus de consensu domini sui regis /Epelstani domui Abbendonie in puram et perpetuam contulerat elemosinam,"? hac tamen condicione, ut Godescallus abbas Abbendonie et conuentus eiusdem loci concederent cuidam matrone regalis progeniei, nomine /Elfildz, Culeham omnibus diebus uite sue, liberam et quietam, in ea forma^ et omni eodem tenore quo rex Kenulfus concessit sororibus suis, que eandem uillam huic domui Abbendonie contulerunt, ut predictum est.? Et post decessum ipsius /Elfild, uilla memorata omni eodem modo ad proprios monachorum usus reuertetur. Quod utique sic factum est, memorata A‘lfilda cedente in fatum. Sepulta est /Elfida matrona ista in capella quam in honore sancti Vincentii edificauerat."! [i. 93]

Mete de Culeham. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 31A.?

B65. Dedit rex Eadmundus Wulfrico ministro suo Gareford.? Dedit etiam rex Eadmundus Wulfrico ministro suo Gareford quindecim manent(i)um, eo tenore, ut post decessum suum cuicumque uellet heredi daret. Et hec est carta regis donationem eius confirmantis: B66. Carta regis Eadmundi de Gareford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 33.'** B64

° interlin.

"7 Tt is uncertain whether dux should here be translated *ealdorman', which is its meaning particularly in Anglo-Saxon charters, or more generally as ‘leading noble’, given that the passage deals with time up to the point of its composition. 75 Despite this heading, the compiler of the later version of the History omitted the charter concerning Culham that appears above, c. 25. It seems that he attempted, probably deliberately, to hide any suggestion that there might have been a break in Abingdon's tenure of Culham. The royal grant of the land to /Elfhild ‘perpetue’, as recorded in the charter in MS C, would imply such a break. Instead, the present version states that /Elfhild had only a life tenure. See also above, pp. xlvii, Ixxviii.

' See above, Bs3-Bs4 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 23). 3? See above, B16. P! [t is unclear whether this chapel was at Culham or at Abingdon; Oxfordshire, vii. 35; Biddle et al., ‘Early history’, pp. 47 n. 66, 64n. 157.

see

VCH,

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287

this miracle such bewilderment seized all who had heard it that from

that time to the present no one, king or ealdorman’”’ or noble or any

other very powerful man, has been found who has dared to move a case in any fashion against the house of Abingdon concerning that meadow. B64. Charter of King Edmund concerning Culham.'*8 When Edmund succeeded his brother /Ethelstan, he confirmed Watchfield to the church of Abingdon, with everything entirely pertaining to it, which the aforesaid /Elfric by the consent of his lord King /Ethelstan had conferred on the house of Abingdon in pure

and perpetual alms,'? on this condition, however, that Godescealc abbot of Abingdon and the convent of that monastery grant Culham to a matron of royal lineage named /EIfhild, for all the days of her life, free and quit, in that form and on all the same terms as King Coenwulf granted to his sisters, who conferred that village on this

house of Abingdon, as has been said earlier. And after /Elfhild's death, that village was to revert in every way to the monks' own use. And thus it happened when /Elfhild yielded to death. That matron /Elfhild was buried in the chapel which had been built in honour of St

Vincent.'?! The bounds of Culham. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 31A.? B65. King Edmund gave Garford to his thegn Wulfric.? King Edmund also gave Garford amounting to fifteen hides to Wulfric his thegn, on these terms, that after his death he might give it to whomsoever he wish as his heir. And this is the charter of the king confirming his gift: B66. Charter of King Edmund concerning Garford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 33.'** 132 Sawyer, no. 1567. These bounds also appear in MS C, fos. 200'—201', in the quire of charter bounds at the end of that manuscript, in the main scribe's hand; see also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 588 (no. 40).

133 ie. Wulfric Cufing, on whom see above, p. cxxiii. Unusually this section does not specify that the lay beneficiary went on to grant the land to Abingdon. However, DB i, fo. 59', states that Abingdon held Garford in 1086, and had always done so. It answered for ten hides TRE, six in 1086. 134 Sawyer, no. 471. This charter records Edmund granting the above fifteen hides to Wulfric, ‘for his loving obedience and his pleasing money’. 943, rather than the stated date of 940, seems more likely. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 139, states that the document *is

probably authentic, although the dating clause would appear to have been mis-copied’.

288

APPENDIX

[i. 96] B67. De Wealtham quomodo data erat. fo. 26"

Idem rex Eadmundus dedit /Elfsige ministro suo Wealtham triginta mansarum. Et hec est carta regis per quam donatio ipsius /Elfsige de eadem terra huic domui, sicut tunc temporis consuetudo fuit, est confirmata:"? B68. Carta regis Eadmundi de Wealtham.

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 32.'°° [i. 99] B69. De Earmundeslea et Appeltun.'*’

fo. 27°

Eodem anno'? rex Eadmundus concessit /Epelstano ministro suo’?

Ermundeslea et Appeltun, eodem modo quo supra. Et hec est carta regis per quam donatio ipsius /Epelstani de eadem terra huic domui, sicut tunc temporis consuetudo fuit, est confirmata: [i. 100]

B7o. Carta regis Eadmundi de Ermundesleta. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 34.9

[i. 103]

B71. De Lechamsteda quomodo data erat. Sequenti anno idem rex Eadmundus dedit Edrico ministro suo Lechamstede decem mansarum, eodem modo quo supra. Et hec est carta regis per quam donatio ipsius Edrici de eadem terra huic domui, sicut tunc consuetudo fuit, est confirmata:

fo. 28°

B72. Carta regis Eadmundi de Lechamstede. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 37;'*' cf. above, c. 137, and below, B277. [i. 106] fo. 29°

B73. De Linford quomodo data erat. Tercio anno concessit idem rex Eadmundus /Elfego ministro suo Linford sex manentium, eodem modo quo supra. Et hec est carta 35 For various mentions of men called /Elfsige, none of which is certain to refer to this grantee, see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 135. 'The land concerned may well be the equivalent of the modern parishes of Shottesbrooke, Waltham St Lawrence, and White Waltham, Berkshire; EPNS, Berkshire, iii. 635—8. 79 Sawyer, no. 461. This charter records Edmund granting the above thirty hides to /FMsige. It is dated 940. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 134, states that this document ‘seems likely to be authentic’. See below, B237 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 134), for a later charter probably concerning a portion of this land. It seems probable that the present charter entered the Abingdon archive only after the later grant (1007), and the statement that /Elfsige gave the land to Abingdon should not be believed. Apart from the presence of these two charters in the archive, there is no other evidence of Abingdon interest in this land. Eastern Berkshire was not an area where Abingdon held extensive lands, although it did have holdings at Whistley and Winkfield. 77 Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 143, suggests that Appleton is introduced here and in

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

289

B67. Concerning Waltham, how it was given. The same king Edmund gave Waltham amounting to thirty hides to /Elfsige his thegn. And this is the king’s charter whereby /Elfsige's donation of that land to this house was confirmed, as was then the custom:?

B68. Charter of King Edmund concerning Waltham. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 32.6

B69. Concerning Earmundesleah and Appleton." In the same

year,"

King Edmund

granted

Earmundesleah

and

Appleton to /Ethelstan his thegn,'*’ in the same way as above. And this is the king's charter whereby /Ethelstan's donation of that land to this house was confirmed, as was then the custom: B7o. Charter of King Edmund concerning Earmundesleah. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 34.'*° B71. Concerning In the following stead amounting above. And this that land to this

Leckhampstead, how it was given. year [943], the same King Edmund gave Leckhampto ten hides to Eadric his thegn, in the same way as is the king’s charter whereby Eadric’s donation of house was confirmed, as was then the custom:

B72. Charter of King Edmund concerning Leckhampstead. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 37;'*' cf. above, c. 137, and below, B277. B73. Concerning Lyford, how it was given. In the next year [944], the same King Edmund granted Lyford amounting to six hides to /Elfheah his thegn, in the same way as the charter as a gloss on an early place-name, to make the grant more comprehensible, or more precise. 35 Tn fact the previous charter is dated 940, the one concerning Earmundesleah is dated 942. 139 1e, /Ethelstan ‘Half-king’, caldorman of East Anglia. 9 Sawyer, no. 480. This charter records Edmund granting ten hides at Earmundesleah and Appleton to Ealdorman /Ethelstan (‘adoptiuo fideli meo comiti"). It is dated 942. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 143, states that the document ‘seems to be essentially authentic’. 1! Sawyer, no. 491. This charter records Edmund granting the above ten hides, and a mill on the River Lambourn, to Eadric. It is dated 943. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 156, states that the document ‘seems to be authentic’. For a shortened version in King Eadwig’s name, which appears in both MSS of the History in the context of the 11th-c. dispute over Leckhampstead, see above, c. 137, below, B277. The compiler of MS B presumably assumed they were two different charters because of the different kings named. The nonchronological positioning of the charter in MS C may also have led to confusion.

200

APPENDIX

regis per quam donatio ipsius /Elfegi de eadem terra huic domui, .142 : : est confirmata: tunc temporis: consuetudo fuit, sicut B74. Carta regis Edmundi de Linford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 38.9 [i. 109]

fo. 29"

B75. De Bleobirg," quomodo Eadmundus rex dedit. ^ Eodem anno Eadmundus rex dedit /Elfrico ministro suo Bleobirg centum mansarum, eodem modo quo supra. Et hec est carta regis per quam donatio ipsius /Elfrici de eadem terra huic domui, sicut tunc

consuetudo fuit, est confirmata:^? B76. Carta regis Eadmundi de Bleobirg. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 36.9 [i. 113]

fo. 30"

[i. 114]

B77. Quomodo rex Eadmundus dedit Winkefeld et Smileie. Item eodem anno!" dedit rex Eadmundus Szpripe, religiose femine, Winchefeld et Swinleie undecim cassatorum, et ipse de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus, in puram et perpetuam elemosinam. Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem confirmans: B78. Carta regis Eadmundi de Winkefeld et Swinlea. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 35; above, c. 58.

[i. 117] fo. 31 hA

B79. De Brinnigetuna, quomodo data erat.

Concessit idem rex Eadmundus e(o)dem anno Ordulfo ministro suo

Brinniggetune uiginti mansarum, eodem modo quo supra.'? Et hec est carta regis per quam donatio* ipsius Ordulfi de eadem terra huic domui, sicut tunc consuetudo fuit, est confirmata: B75

° corr. from Beobirg by interlin.

B79 ^ partially corr. from donationem

‘2 lfheah may be the future ealdorman of Wessex; see above, p. cxxiii. "8 Sawyer, no. 494. This charter records Edmund granting the above six hides to /Elfheah. It is dated 944. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 159, states that the document *appears to be authentic". "5 Blewbury, Berkshire. '5 Although this introduction refers to the beneficiary as ‘minister’, which is normally used to mean ‘thegn’, the charter indicates that he was a bishop, and this is almost certainly /Klfric bishop of Ramsbury, in whose diocese the grant lay. The composer of the introduction probably refers to the grantee as thegn out of habit formed over the previous repetitive sections. The very large grant probably was Blewbury hundred, mentioned, for example, in Domesday Book. By 1066 the large estate here granted had been broken up, and in the 12th c. a new hundred would be formed; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 153. Abingdon had no lands in Blewbury hundred in 1066, although charters concerning Aston Upthorpe, part of the hundred hides here granted, did enter the Abingdon archive; sec

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

201

above. And this is the king's charter whereby /Elfheah's donation of that land to this house was confirmed, as was then the custom:!” B74. Charter of King Edmund concerning Lyford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 38.19

B75. Concerning Blewbury, how King Edmund gave it.* In the same year, King Edmund gave Blewbury amounting to one hundred hides to /Elfric his thegn, in the same way as above. And this is the king's charter whereby /Elfric's donation of that land to this

house was confirmed, as was then the custom:!* B76. Charter of King Edmund concerning Blewbury. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 36.'*° B77. How King Edmund gave Winkfield and Swinley.

Likewise, in the same year, King Edmund gave Winkfield and Swinley amounting to eleven hides to Sethryth, a woman life, and by the king’s consent she gave them to God and Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving in pure and perpetual alms. And this is the king’s charter this gift:

of religious the blessed God there, confirming

B78. Charter of King Edmund concerning Winkfield and Swinley. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 35; above, c. 58. B79. Concerning Brimpton,'*® how it was given. The same King Edmund in the same year granted Brimpton amounting to twenty hides to Ordulf his thegn, in the same way as

above.'^ And this is the king’s charter whereby Ordulf's donation of that land to this house was confirmed, as was then the custom: Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 153, 406. Apart from the presence of these charters in the archive, there is no other evidence of Abingdon interest in this land. 46 Sawyer, no. 496. This charter records Edmund granting the above hundred hides to Bishop /Elfric. The charter gives the incarnation date of 944, but the indiction fits 942, not 944. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 151, states that the document ‘is probably authentic, although there is some difficulty with the date’, and notes that ‘the witness-list would be more compatible with 942 than with 944’. The preceding section, introducing the gift, says that it was in the same year as the grant of Blewbury, but the compiler was presumably just working from the incarnation dates contained within the charters. 1 The following charter shares the indiction but not the incarnation date with the preceding charter; both are probably from 942. MS C introduces the gift of Winkfield with

a different passage, above, c. 57.

48 Berkshire.

19? The charter is dated 944. Ordulf’s identity cannot be established with certainty. It is unclear why this passage states that Edmund gave twenty hides in Brimpton when the charter only records the gift of eight.

292

APPENDIX

B80. Carta regis Edmundi de Brinniggetune. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 39/5 [i. 119] fo. 32"

B81. De morte Edmundi regis et successione Edredi fratris sui. Iste uero rex Eadmundus, cum in die festiuitatis sancti Augustini

Anglorum doctoris, in regia uilla que Anglice Pichile Chirche" nuncupatur curiam suam cum magnatibus suis festiue teneret, accidit ut coram eo pincerna suus primo conuiciis, deinde letaliter, in suum

insurget^ dapiferum.'? [i. 120]

Quod

cum

rex moleste

tulisset, uolens

dapiferum suum ex mortis eripere confinio, hictu detestabili et euentu flebili a pincerna suo nomine Leofwine interfectus, diem clausit suppremum. Post cuius obitum,?? ut ex antiquorum librorum accepimus attestatione, Abbendonense cenobium ad tantam est solitudinem redactum ut, omnibus eiusdem cenobii possessionibus

ceptrigera"^ potestate regio subactis dominio,

monachis

penitus

destitueretur. Verum cuius infortunii malum ac talis euentus lapsus inopinati quibus ex causis acciderint nil ueri aut relatione dignum ad nostram peruenit noticiam. Qua de re utilius pariter et honestius fore diiudicauimus super huiuscemodi desolatione ad presens sapienter tacere, quam quicquam in medium producere quod nec uerum esse nec uerisimile de facili possit comprobari. Sane testamentorum libri possessiones ecclesie continentium, quamquam eidem cenobio tam inopinatum immineret dispendium, Dei tamen sunt reseruati prouidentia quatinus reparatores et restitutores eiusdem cenobii, cum eorum successoribus, per ipsos libros fierent certiores ac per processum temporis per eosdem antiquitatum indicia enucliatius nosse potuissent.

A temporibus uero Cisse et Cedwalle insuper et Hine regum Westsaxonum, per quorum patrocinia ipsum cenobium primo fuit erectum et constructum, usque ad hanc terciam eiusdem cenobii desolationem, ducentorum et quadraginta reuolutio annorum fuisse computatur.^? B81 ^ cori. from surget by interlin.

°° Sawyer, no. 500. This charter records Edmund granting eight hides at Brimpton to Ordulf, in return for 9o mancuses of purest gold. It is dated 944. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 162, states that ‘there is no reason to question the authenticity of [the document]. DB i, fos. 62", 62", records two manors at Brimpton, with a total assessment of eight hides TRE. Apart from the presence of this charter in the archive, there is no other evidence of Abingdon interest in this land. ?! Gloucestershire.

'? The killing of Edmund

Worcester,

is also mentioned in e.g. ASC, ‘D’, sa. 946; John of

Chronicle, ii. 398; William of Malmesbury,

Gesta regum, bk. ii, c. 144, ed.

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

293

B8o. Charter of King Edmund concerning Brimpton. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 39.'*°

B81. Concerning the death of King Edmund and the succession his brother. When that King Edmund, on the feast day of St Augustine the English [26 May 946], was in festive fashion holding with his magnates in the royal vill which in English Pucklechurch,’”’ it happened that in Edmund’s presence

of Eadred teacher of his court is called his butler

attacked the king’s steward first with insults and then fatally.’ Angered by this, the king wished to snatch his steward from the verge of death, but instead he himself passed away, killed by his own butler named Leofwine with a detestable blow and in a lamentable

outcome. After his death,'*’ as we have learnt from the testimony of ancient books, the monastery of Abingdon was reduced to such a forsaken state that it was entirely destitute of monks, with all its possessions subjected to royal lordship by the sceptre-bearing

power.?* However, nothing true or worthy of recounting has come to our notice as to the causes of this evil misfortune and the occurrence of so unexpected a downfall. Concerning this matter we judge it more useful and also more honourable to remain for the moment wisely silent on such desolation, rather than to make something public which cannot easily be proved to be true or plausible. Yet despite such an unexpected loss threatening that monastery, nevertheless the books of records containing the church's possessions were certainly preserved by God's foresight, so that through those books the repairers and restorers of this monastery, with their successors, were better informed and could with the passing of time know through them more clearly evidence of times past. From the time, indeed, of Cissa and Ceadwalla and also Ine, kings of the West Saxons, through whose patronage that monastery was first raised and constructed, right up to this third destruction of that

monastery, 240 years are calculated to have passed.^? Mynors et al., i. 232. On officials such as the steward and butler, see Keynes, Diplomas, pp. 158-62, L. M. Larson, The King's Household in England before the Norman Conquest (Madison, Wis., 1904). 155 The remainder of this section has distinct parallels with the equivalent section in MS C, above, c. 24. 155 The word /s]ceptrigera also appears above c. 42, and below, B223 (Charters of 15^ Cf. above, c. 24. Abingdon Abbey, no. x18).

294

APPENDIX

Explicit liber primus.

B82. Incipit secundus, de tercia reparatione domus Abbendome. Itaque, Eadmundo rege Westsaxonum uiam uniuerse carnis ingresso, successit ei in imperium frater eius, memorande memorie, rex illustris Edredus, qui per sanctos admonitus matris sue Edgithe regine tercio domus Abbendonie extitit reparator ac possessionum eiusdem ablatarum fidelissimus restitutor. Sed antequam ad ipsius regis dotes pariter et donationes accedamus describendas, opere precium nobis fore diiudicamus ad presens mentionem de ipso facere, cum sit locus competens et congruus, qui domui Abbendonie post desolationem fo. 33° operis fidelissimus exsecutor, post merorem et dolo|rem gratulabundus consolator, sacri ordinis circ*mspectus constitutor, necnon et omnium bonarum ipsius domus consuetudinum felicissimus institutor, pater et pastor extitit precipuus.

[i. 121]

[i. 122]

B83. De sancto Adelwoldo. Tempore itaque Eadmundi regis, de quo paulo superius in precedenti^ libro prelibauimus, fuit quidam iuuenis in Wentana ciuitate, ex illustri prosapia oriundus, nomine /Epelwoldus. Iste uero /Epelwoldus non solum genere illustrem uerum etiam titulo" spectabilem et omni sanctitate plenam lineam traxit nobilitatis. Vigebant autem in ipso ingeni pariter et industrie bona acceptabilia, adeptaque in puerilibus annis plena litterarum |scientia, nature institucionum bona uenustissime accumulauit honestas. Inueniebantur etiam in eo corporis miranda uenustas, morum acceptissima gratia, eloquiorum gratissima luculentia, adeo ut et

species et mores et gratia in adolesce(n)te /Epelwuoldo uiderentur ad inuicem emula sibi probitate certare.^? (Cuius etiam mentis mansuetudinem, animi constantiam, uultus hilaritatem, oris eloquentiam, manus largitatem, uite sanctitatem, hiis longe preciosorem, etsi feruentissime desideremus ad presens—at tamen ad plenum nequaquam possumus—dilucidare. Hic autem Aepelwuoldus, cum iam adholeuisset et ad annos discretionis feliciter iam peruenisset, ad memoriam reuocans uerbum illud Dominicum, quo

dicitur ‘Non possunt mihi uiuere qui non sunt mundo mortui"; B82 ^ wrongly altered to congruum MS

B83

^" precidenti MS

^ corr. from titulos by erasure

» 5 : a ; tes On the possible source for this description of /Ethelwold, see above, p. liv n.255. 7"

This 1s a frequently expressed monastic sentiment rather than a biblical quotation;

TEXT AND TRANSLATION OF MS B

295

Here ends Book I.

B82. Book II begins, concerning the third repair of the house of Abingdon. Therefore, when Edmund king of the West Saxons had gone the way of all flesh, his brother, the illustrious King Eadred, whose memory should be commemorated, succeeded him in dominion [946]. By the holy admonitions of his mother Queen Eadgifu, he was on this third occasion the repairer of the house of Abingdon and most faithful restorer of its stolen possessions. But before we move on to that king’s endowments and also the gifts to be described, we have judged it worth our while to mention now, since it is a suitable and proper place, the man who after the desolation was the most faithful executor of the work of the house of Abingdon, the joyful consoler after the sorrow and grief, the circ*mspect constitutor of sacred order, and also the happiest institutor of the good customs of that house, the outstanding father and shepherd. B83. Concerning St Athelwold. In the time, therefore, of King Edmund, whom we have mentioned a little earlier in the preceding book, there was a certain young man in the city of Winchester, descended from illustrious stock, named /Ethelwold. That /Ethelwold, indeed, had behind him a noble line, not only illustrious by birth but also noteworthy in repute and filled with all holiness."^ Moreover, in him flourished the welcome qualities of natural disposition and likewise of application, and having acquired full knowledge of letters in his boyhood years, qualities of education most pleasingly enhanced integrity of nature. For in him were found wonderful attractiveness of body, most welcome grace of behaviour, most agreeable splendour of eloquence, so much so that appearance and behaviour and grace seemed in the adolescent /Ethelwold to be vying with one another by turns in competing probity. We have also desired to elucidate most fervently for the present day—but have been quite unable fully to do so—his mildness of mind, his constancy of soul, his cheerfulness of face, his eloquence of mouth, his generosity of hand, and his holiness of life which is far more precious than these. Moreover, this /Ethelwold, when he had already grown up and now happily reached the years of discretion, recalled to his memory the Lord’s word wherein it is said

‘They cannot live with me who are not dead to the world’.’”’ After the scriptural basis appears to be Col. 3: 3, ‘Mortui enim estis, et vita vestra est abscondita cum Christo in Deo.’

296

APPENDIX

mundi retibus perpropere reiectis,? semetipsum abnegando, Chris-

[i. 123]

tum ducem imitando, crucem eius eleuando, factus chore filius Glastonie sub uenerabili patre Dunstano, eiusdem loci abbate, sacre habitum felicissime induit religionis. Vbi uero sacratissime degens uir uenerabilis /Epelwaldus per septemnium,^? diligenter ad memoriam reuocans illud euuangelicum quo dicitur ‘Cum iudex uenerit et cum uentilauerit triticum in area fructum, qui non fecerit

decultoris

in uinea

palmes

abscidetur,'?

iterumque

diligenter

attendens quod cinis est origine, cinis imitatione, cinis resolutione, necnon quid extiterit per originalis peccati contagionem, quid per baptismi gratiam, quid per naufragium, quid etiam per secundam

tabulam post naufragium,'?' quid erit per mortis dissolutionem et glorie remunerationem, ad tantam peruenit sanctitatis perfectionem

ut, in terra positus, ab hom(i)nibus’ uideretur angelicam. 162

uitam

actitare

in terris

B84. Qualiter enim cepit diligere rex Edredus. Huius itaque sanctitate pariter et bonitate comperta," rex Edredus sanctum /Epelwaldum speciali quadam prerogatiua dileccionis ^in tantum" eum est amplexatus ut iam placeret ei ipsum de monasterio accitum habere sibi familiarem. Placuit? etiam regi, suadente matre sua Edgiua, dare sancto uiro quendam locum uocabulo Abbendoniam, in quo quondam florebat monastica religio, sed tunc erat neglectum^ £0433) ac destructum, uilibus edificiis consistens et quadraginta tan|tum [i. 124] mansas^ possidens; reliquam uero prefati loci terram, que centum cassatorum lustris hinc inde giratur, regali dominio subiectam rex

ipse possidebat.'^* Factumque'9 est, consentiente Dunstano abbate, secundum regis uoluntatem, ut uir Dei /Epelwoldus prenotati loci susciperet curam, quatinus in eo monachos ordinaret regulariter Deo * corr. from omnibus by interlin. B84 ^" imierlin.

interlin.

^ negelctum MS

^ massas MS

555 The allusion is not entirely clear, but see Matt. 4: 20, 22; Mark 1: 18, for Christ’s disciples abandoning their nets. 7? Wulfstan, Life of Ethelwold, c. 9, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, pp. 14—16, does not give any indication of the length of time /Ethelwold spent at Glastonbury; Lapidge and Winterbottom, pp. xliii-xliv, suggest that /Ethelwold spent a quite considerable period of his life studying at Glastonbury: from the late 930s until, probably, the early 950s (when he himself was aged between his early thirties and his mid-forties).’

' The allusions are to Matt. 3: 12, Luke 3: 17, John 15; 2.

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

297

most readily casting away the world's nets,'? by denying himself, by imitating Christ his guide, by raising his cross, he was made a son of the choir of Glastonbury under the venerable father Dunstan, abbot of that monastery, and most happily assumed the habit of sacred religion. Living there, indeed, for seven years in a most sacred fashion,"^ the venerable man /Ethelwold earnestly recalled to his memory the Gospel where it is said ‘When the judge will come and when he will winnow the wheat on the threshing floor, and the cultivator's vine branch which does not produce fruit will be cut off^.' And again, earnestly considering that there is ash by origin, ash by imitation, and ash by disintegration, and also what exists by contagion of original sin, what by grace of baptism, what by shipwreck, what through a second plank after shipwreck,'?' what will be through the dissolution of death and the remuneration of glory, he reached such perfection of holiness that, placed on earth, he was seen

by men to live in this world the angelic life.’ B84. How King Eadred began to love him. "Therefore when he had discovered this man's holiness and likewise his goodness, King Eadred embraced St /Ethelwold with a special precedence of love to such a degree that, after summoning him from

the monastery, he was now pleased to have him as his intimate. So,'® swayed by his mother Eadgifu, the king decided to give the holy man a place called Abingdon. Here monastic religion had once flourished, but by now it was neglected and ruined, its buildings poor, and its estate consisted of only forty hides of land. The remainder of the estate, which lies adjacent to it and consists of a further hundred

hides, was the king’s possession and under his royal control.'6* At! the king's wish, and with Dunstan's consent, it came about that the man of God /Ethelwold took charge of this place, with the aim of establishing monks there to serve God according to the Rule. The servant of God accordingly came to the place with which he had been 16! See Jerome, Commentary on Ezekiel, concerning Ezek. 16: 52 (PL xxv. 155€): ‘Secunda post naufragium tabula est, cum peccaveris, erubescere. The phrase was used notably in the context of baptism and penance. 1? A phrase also used below, B21o, concerning Edward the Martyr. 165 The text of the remainder of this section is closely based on Wulfstan, Life of ZEthelmold, c. 11, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, pp. 18-22, and my translation deliberately follows that of Lapidge and Winterbottom.

1^ For these lands, see above, p. cxxxvii. 165 The Abingdon versions of the Worcester

Chronicle also incorporate the passage

*Factumque . . . sibi commissum" from Wulfstan, Life of/Ethelmold; John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 611.

298

APPENDIX

seruientes. Venit ergo seruus Dei ad locum sibi commissum: quem protinus secuti sunt quidam clerici de Glestonia, scilicet Osgarus, Flobbritus, Fridegarus, et Orbrintus de Wintonia, et Eadricus de

Lundonia, eius discipulatui se subdentes.'°° Congregauitque^"sibi in

breui spatio gregem monachorum, quibus ipse abbas, iubente rege, ordinatus est. Dedit etiam rex possessionem regalem quam in Abbendonia possederat, sicut carta regis ipsius subsequens testatur,6? hoc est centum cassatos, cum optimis edifitiis, abbati et fratribus ad augmentum cotidiani uictus, et de regio thesauro suo multum eos in pecuniis iuuit; sed mater eius largius solatia munerum eis direxit. Tantamque gratiam Dominus sibi seruientibus contulit ut ad prefatum cenobium, quod ante erat pauperimum, omnes simul diuitie putarentur affluere, et sic cuncta prosperis successibus occurrere ut palam sententia^ Dominice promissionis impleri uidetur qua dicitur: *Primum querite regnum Dei et iustitiam eius, et omnia aditientur

uobis.'!?? Tenor carte regis hic est: B85." Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 51; above, c. 2 8 [i. 131]

fo. 34"

170

B86. Quomodo rex Edredus dedit Wulfrico Stanmere. Dedit etiam predictus rex Edredus Wulfrico ministro suo Stanmere, cum omnibus que ad ipsum locum dinosc*ntur pertinere, tam in magnis quam in modicis rebus, campis, pascuis, siluis, liberaliter ac eternaliter quamdiu uiuat habeat, et post generalem qui omnibus certus incertusque homunculis constat transitum, cuicumque successionis heredi uoluerit in perpetuum derelinquat. Sic enim carta regis testatur, unde memoratus Wulfricus eandem uillam de consensu et uoluntate regis hanc sacratissimam domum Abbendonie fecit heredem. Et hec est subscriptio carte regis hanc donationem confirmantis: e

B85

sententiam MLS

^" an illustration of the king appears at the start of the charter

Worcester Chronicle also incorporate the passages *Congregauitque . . . possederat" and ‘cum optimis . . . direxit from Wulfstan, Life of ZEthelpold, John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 611.

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

209

charged. He was immediately followed by certain clerics in minor orders from Glastonbury, namely Osgar, Foldbriht, and Frithegar, together with Ordbriht from Winchester, and Eadric from London,

all of whom submitted themselves to his teaching.'©° Soon!” he had assembled a flock of monks, and at the king's behest he was ordained their abbot. The king also gave his royal estates in Abingdon, as his

charter which follows witnesses, the hundred hides, with excellent buildings, to the abbot and monks to increase their everyday provisions, and he gave them much monetary help from his royal treasury. His mother sent them presents on an even more lavish scale. The Lord so bestowed His grace on His servants that men thought all riches were flowing at once into a monastery that had previously been very poor. All seemed to be going so well that it looked as if what the Lord promised was being manifestly fulfilled: *Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all things should be added unto you.’’” The terms of the king’s charter are as follows: B85. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 51; above, c. 2 8

170

B86. How King Eadred gave Stanmore to Wulfric."! The aforesaid King Eadred also gave Stanmore, with everything which was known to pertain to that place, both in great things and in small, fields, pastures, woods, to Wulfric his thegn to have freely and eternally as long as he lived, and after the common passing which is agreed to be both certain and uncertain for all mere men,'”” he might leave it in perpetuity to whomsoever he wished as heir of succession. For so the king's charter witnesses, whereby that Wulfric made this most sacred house of Abingdon heir of that village by the king's consent and will. And this is the text of the charter of the king confirming this gift:

168 This phrase concerning the charter does not appear in Wulfstan, Life of/Ethelmold.

169 Matt. 6: 33; Luke 12: 31.

0 For the boundary clause and additional vernacular passage associated with the charter of Eadred for Abingdon, see above, p. 2n. 5. 7! Stanmore, Berkshire, is in the parish of Beedon and almost certainly was included in Abingdon's Domesday holding at Beedon; DB i, fo. 58". Domesday Book notes that Beedon had been assessed at fifteen hides; this may have been composed of the present ten hides and another five mentioned above, p. 128. The grantee is Wulfric Cufing.

172 ie, all know that death is certain, but none know when and how it will occur.

300

APPENDIX

B87. Carta regis Fdredi de Stanmere.

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 42.? [i. 134] B88. Quomodo rex Edredus dedit Apelwulfo Wittenham.'"* fo. 35°

Consimili modo dedit rex Edredus /Epelwulfo principi Witthenham decem cassatorum, et ipse /Epelwulfus de consensu regis memoratam uillam, eodem tenore quo rex illi concesserat, Deo et beate Marie et huic domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam contulit helemosinam. Carta uero regis hanc donationem confirmans hec est:

B89. Carta regis de Wittenham. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 15; above, c. 16, B32.!^ [i. 136]

B9o. De Dencheswrpe.

fo. 35"

Similiter concessit Wlfrico!”° milii Denchewurpe

quinque cassatorum, et ipse Wlfricus de consensu regis memoratam uillam, eodem tenore quo rex illi concesserat, Deo et beate Marie et huic domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam contulit helemosinam. Carta uero regis hanc donationem confirmans hec est:

Bot. Carta de Dencheswrpe. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 41. [i. 139] Bg2. Edredus dedit Cuthredo ministro suo Bedelakinges. fo. 36"

Item rex Edredus dedit Cuthredo ministro suo Bedelachinges quinque cassatorum, et ipse Cuthredus de consensu regis memoratam^ uillam, eodem tenore quo rex illi concesserat, Deo et beate Marie et huic domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam contulit elemosinam.'? Carta uero regis hanc donationem confirmans hec est:

B92

* followed by terram del. by expunction

'3 Sawyer, no. 542. This charter records Eadred granting the above ten hides to Wulfric. The figure for the indiction (five) and the incarnation date (948) are incompatible, probably through scribal error; the charter may be from 947 or 948. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 174, states that the charter ‘is probably authentic, although the date may have been slightly miscopied’.

'7* This is in fact a gift by King /Ethelred of Wessex; sce above, c. 16.

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

301

B87. Charter of King Eadred concerning Stanmore.

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 42.‘ B88. How King Eadred gave Wittenham to Athelwulf.\”* In a similar fashion, King Eadred gave Wittenham amounting to ten hides to /Ethelwulf, a noble, and /Ethelwulf himself by the king’s consent conferred that village, on the same terms as the king had granted it to him, on God and the blessed Mary and this house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. This indeed is the king's charter confirming this gift:

B89. The king's charter concerning Wittenham. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 15; above, c. 16, B32.'7° Boo. Concerning Denchworth. He likewise granted Denchworth amounting to five hides to Wulfric, a knight,'”° and Wulfric himself by the king’s consent conferred that village, on the same terms as the king had granted it to him, on God and the blessed Mary and this house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. This indeed is the king's charter confirming this gift: Bot. Charter concerning Denchworth. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 41.7 Bg2. Eadred gave Balking to Cuthred, his thegn. Likewise, King Eadred gave Balking amounting to five hides to Cuthred his thegn, and Cuthred himself by the king's consent conferred that village, on the same terms as the king had granted it to him, on God and the blessed Mary and this house of Abingdon and

the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms.'? This indeed is the king's charter confirming this gift: "5 On the repetition of this charter in MS B, see above, p. xlvin. 193. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 68, notes that ‘the exemplar of [this document] may have been in poor condition, for the scribe has left three short spaces in the bounds, as if these sections were not legible’. "6 Most likely Wulfric Cufing. 7 Sawyer, no. 529. This charter records Eadred granting the above five hides to Wulfric. It is dated 947. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 170, states that it ‘seems entirely acceptable’. A charter of King Eadwig, below, B172 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 81), also grants these five hides to Wulfric; it could be a confirmation. 8 This statement is probably not to be trusted, particularly given the compiler’s confusion over the king involved. For King Edgar giving one hide at Balking to Abingdon, see above, c. 139.

302

APPENDIX

B93. Carta de Bedelakinges. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 16.7? [i. 141]

fo. 37°

Bo4. Edredus dedit Eadrico Wasingetune. Idem rex Edredus concessit Eadrico comiti Wasingetune uiginti cassatorum, et ipse Eadricus de consensu regis memoratam uillam, eodem tenore quo rex Eadredus illi concesserat, Deo et beate Marie et huic domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam contulit elemosinam. Carta uero regis hanc donationem confirmans et hec est: B95. Carta de Wasingetune. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 40."*'

B96. De Welliford, quomodo rex Eadredus dedit Wulfrico.'* Consimili modo dedit rex Eadredus Wulfrico ministro | suo Welig-

forda tredecim mansarum,'** et ipse de consensu regis memoratam uillam, eo tenore quo rex illi concesserat, Deo et beate Marie et huic domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et

perpetuam contulit elemosinam.'** Carta uero regis hanc donationem confirmans hec est: B97. Carta regis de Welliford.

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 44. B98. De Escesburh, quomo(do) rex Edredus dedit.

Similiter rex Edredus concessit Elfsio ministro suo et coniugi^ sue Eadgife Escesburh trium et triginta cassatorum, et ipse de consensu regis memoratam uillam, eo tenore quo rex illi concesserat, Deo et beate Marie et huic domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo B98 ^ corr. from coniuge ' Sawyer, no. 539/ 338a. This in fact is a charter of King /Ethelred of Wessex, probably originally dated 868, although the date as it currently appears is 948; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 71. See above, B89, for a similar mistake. It records /Ethelred granting the above five hides to a thegn named Cuthred, who may be the same man as Faldorman Cuthred who appears as a witness in Alfred's reign. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 71, states that in all respects apart from the alteration to the date, the document ‘seems to be authentic’. Balking is not mentioned in Domesday, although the lands mentioned in this charter may have been included in their entirety or in part under other Abingdon entries; see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 72. 9 Washington, Sussex. Eadric was the brother of /Ethelstan Half-king, ealdorman of East Anglia, and /Ethelwold, an ealdorman in Wessex. His own ealdordom was probably in central Wessex; see C. R. Hart, ‘Athelstan “Half King” and his family’, ASE, ii (1973), 115—44, at p. 120. For his witnessing of royal charters, see Keynes, Atlas of Attestations,

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

303

B93. Charter concerning Balking. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 16.7? B94. Eadred gave Washington to Eadric.'? The same king gave Washington amounting to twenty hides to Eadric, an earl, and Eadric himself by the king’s consent conferred that village, on the same terms as King Eadred had granted it to him, on God and the blessed Mary and this house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. This indeed is the king's charter confirming this gift: B9s. Charter concerning Washington.

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 40.!?! B96. Concerning Welford, hom King Eadred gave it to Wulfric.'? In a similar fashion, King Eadred gave Welford amounting to thirteen hides? to Wulfric his thegn, and he himself by the king’s consent conferred that village, on the same terms as the king had granted it to him, on God and the blessed Mary and this house of Abingdon and

the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms.!5* This indeed 1s the king's charter confirming this gift: Bg7. The king’s charter concerning Welford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 44.'*° B98. Concerning /Escesburh, how King Eadred gave it. Likewise, King Eadred granted #scesburh amounting to thirty-three hides to /Elfsige his thegn and /Elfsige's wife Eadgifu, and he himself by the king's consent conferred that village, on the same terms as the king had granted it to him, on God and the blessed Mary and this table XXXII. In 963 King Edgar granted Bishop /Ethelwold twenty-four hides in Washington; below, B205 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 98). The /Ethelwold connection may explain why these charters appear in the Abingdon archive; see above, p. cxxx. 13! Sawyer, no. 525. This charter records Eadred granting the above twenty hides to Eadric. It is dated 947. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 166, states that it “is clearly authentic’.

182 The beneficiary may be Wulfric Cufing. 133 "The charter that follows specifies eighteen hides. Given that the charter survives in the original, the error is almost certainly in the present passage, and arises from simple miscopying of the figure as ‘xiii’ instead of ‘xviii’.

184 See also above, p. 8on. 187. 155 Sawyer, no. 552. The original charter also survives; London, British Library, Cotton Augustus ii. 44, reproduced in BM Facs., iii. 16. The charter records Eadred granting eighteen hides in Welford to Wulfric, in exchange for land in Pendavey, Cornwall. It is dated 949. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, pp. 182—3, accepts the charter as genuine.

304

APPENDIX

seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam contulit. " Carta regis hanc donationem confirmans hec est: .

186

B99. Carta regis Eadredi de Escesbeurh. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 48." [i. 151]

fo. 39°

Broo. De Chiuelea, quomodo data erat Wulfrico. Idem rex Edredus dedit Wulfrico ministro suo Ciueleam quinque et uiginti mansarum, et ipse de consensu regis memoratam uillam, eo tenore quo rex illi concesserat, Deo et beate Marie et huic domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam contulit elemosinam. Carta uero regis hanc donationem confirmans hec est: Bror. Carta regis Edredi de Chiuelea. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 45; above, c. 35.

[i. 155] Broz. De Cusenricge, quomodo data erat ministro regis Eadredi.? fo. 40* Dedit etiam rex Eadredus Alfrico ministro suo Cusenricge quinque cassatorum, et ipse de consensu regis memoratam uillam, eo tenore [i. 156] quo rex illi concesserat, Deo et beate Marie et huic domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam helemosinam contulit." Carta uero regis hanc donationem confir-

mans hec est: Br03. Carta regis de Cusanricge Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 49.'*' [i. 157] B104. Quomodo rex Eadredus dedit Alfeo ministro suo Cumtune.'”” fo. 40”

Consimili modo concessit rex Eadredus Alfeo ministro suo Cumtune

iuxta Eccesdune'?

octo cassatorum,

et ipse de consensu

regis

memoratam uillam, eo tenore quo rex illi concesserat, Deo et beate Marie et huic domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam contulit elemosinam. Carta uero regis hanc donationem confirmans hec est: '86 AElfsige cannot be identified with certainty; he may be the same man who received land at Waltham, above, B67—B68 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 32), and at Benham, below, B136—B137 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 72). For /Escesburh, and its correspondence with Uffington, see above, p. 44n. 112. 7 Sawyer, no. 561. This charter records Eadred granting the above thirty-three hides to /Flfsige and Eadgifu. It is dated 953. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 199, states that it is ‘entirely acceptable’. '88 Wulfric Cufing. The equivalent section in MS C does not specifically state that

Wulfric gave the land to Abingdon; above, c. 34. 15? Curridge, Berkshire. 7? Alfric is too common a name to allow certain identification.

TEXT AND TRANSLATION

OF MS B

305

house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms.'*^ This is the king’s charter confirming this gift:

Bog. Charter of King Eadred concerning /Escesburh. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 48.19? Broo. Concerning Chieveley, how it was given to Wulfric.'*® The same King Eadred gave Chieveley amounting to twenty-five hides to Wulfric his thegn, and he himself by the king’s consent conferred that village, on the same terms as the king had granted it to him, on God and the blessed Mary and this house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. This indeed is the king’s charter confirming this gift: Brot. Charter of King Eadred concerning Chieveley. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 45; above, c. 35. Broz. Concerning Curridge, how it was given to a thegn of King Eadred. ? King Eadred also gave Curridge amounting to five hides to /Elfric his thegn, and he himself by the king's consent conferred that village, on the same terms as the king had granted it to him, on God and the blessed Mary and this house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms.?? This indeed is the king’s charter confirming this gift:

B103. Charter concerning Curridge.

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 49." Bro4. How King Eadred gave Compton to /Elfheah his thegn.'”” In a similar fashion, King Eadred granted Compton next to /Escesdune

amounting to eight hides to /Elfheah his thegn,'?? and he himself by the king's consent conferred that village, on the same terms as the king had granted it to him, on God and the blessed Mary and this house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. This indeed is the king’s charter confirming this gift: 191 Sawyer, no. 560. This charter records Eadred granting the above five hides to /Elfric. It is dated 953. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 202, states that it ‘is probably authentic". Apart from the presence of this charter in the archive, there is no other evidence of Abingdon interest in this land, although Curridge did adjoin Abingdon lands at Chieveley. 1? Compton Beauchamp, Berkshire. On /Elfheah, see above, p. cxxiii. 193 From the context it would seem that /Zscesdune here refers to a specific hill; see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 203-5; cf. EPNS, Berkshire, i. 2-4. The name probably survives in the present-day Ashdown Park, in Ashbury.

306 [i. 158 ]

APPENDIX

Bios. Carta regis Eadredi de Cumtune. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 50.'”* 5

]r B106. Quomodo rex Eadredus dedit Wulfrico ministro suo Boxora."” Similiter rex Edredus dedit Wulfrico ministro suo Boxora decem mansarum, et ipse de consensu regis memoratam uillam, eo tenore quo rex illi concesserat, Deo et beate Marie et huic domui Abbendo[i. 160 ] nie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam contulit elemosinam. Carta uero regis hanc donationem confirmans hec est: [i. 159

fo. 41

B107. Carta regis Eadredi de Boxora. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 77.'°°

[i. 162 ] B108. Quomodo rex Eadredus dedit Beorcham A:lfwino ministro suo. fo. 41” Idem rex Eadredus concessit /Elfwino ministro suo Beorcham trium cassatorum, et ipse de consensu regis memoratam uillam, eo tenore quo rex illi concesserat, Deo et beate Marie et huic domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam contulit elemosinam. Carta uero regis hanc donationem confirmans hec est:

Brog. Carta regis Eadredi de Beorcham. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 47.?? [i. 165 ] fo. 42 r

Biro. Quomodo rex Edredus dedit Alfgaro ministro suo Weoufeld.? Item rex Edredus dedit Alfgaro ministro suo ac militi Weoufelde trium mansarum, et ipse de consensu regis memoratam uillam, eo 7* Sawyer, no. 564. This charter records Eadred granting the above eight hides to his thegn and kinsman /Elfheah. It is dated 955. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 204, states that ‘there is no reason to suspect [its] authenticity’. Apart from the presence of this charter in the archive, there is no other evidence of Abingdon interest in this land. DB i, fo. 61’, records that /Elmer held it ‘in alodio' from King Edward TRE.

P? The grantee is Wulfric Cufing. The charter in the following section is dated 958, but is in the name of King Eadred (946-55); either date or name must be wrong. The compiler of MS B was here simply following the name in the charter.

' Sawyer, no. 577. This charter records the king granting the above ten hides to Wulfric. It is dated 958 although it is in the name of Eadred, who died in 955. Because of the problems of reconciling king's name and date, Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 318, states that “it is difficult to come to a firm decision about the authenticity of [this document)’. See also C. Hart, "The Codex Wintoniensis and the king's haligdom’, Agricultural History Reviem, xviii (1970), supplement, 7—38, at p. 14, who suggests that such substitutions of Eadred's name for Eadwig's result from the fact that ‘the titles of many charters issued in the troubled years of King Eadwig's reign were suspect in the generation after his death, and it appears to have been a common practice of the Benedictine reformers to amend them'. 77 Barkham, Berkshire. /Elfwine may be the beneficiary of two other charters preserved in the History, above, cc. 50, 90; see further Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 196. Apart from

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

307

B10s. Charter of King Eadred concerning Compton. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 50.'”*

B106. How King Eadred gave Boxford to Wulfric his thegn.'°° Likewise King Eadred gave Boxford amounting to ten hides to Wulfric his thegn, and he himself by the king’s consent conferred that village, on the same terms as the king had granted it to him, on God and the blessed Mary and this house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. This indeed is the king’s charter confirming this gift: B107. Charter of King Eadred concerning Boxford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 77.96 B108. How King Eadred gave Barkham to Alfwine his thegn." The same King Eadred granted Barkham amounting to three hides to /Elfwine his thegn, and he himself by the king’s consent conferred that village, on the same terms as the king had granted it to him, on God and the blessed Mary and this house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. This indeed is the king’s charter confirming this gift: B109. Charter of King Eadred concerning Barkham. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 47.95 Bro. How King Eadred gave Weonfelda to /Elfgar his thegn.'”” Likewise, King Eadred gave Weonfelda amounting to three hides to /Elfgar his thegn and knight, and he himself by the king’s consent the presence of this charter in the archive, there is no other evidence of Abingdon interest in this land. 198 Sawyer, no. 559. This charter also survives in a 16th-c. copy of a lost single sheet, Cambridge, Corpus Christi College 111, pp. 145-6. It records Eadred granting the above three hides to ‘a vassal [cuidam uasallo| called /Elfwine. It is dated 952, although the witness list would point to 953 X 955. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 196, states that ‘it seems best to treat [the document] as suspicious, and a possible forgery’. 1? An /Elfgar is prominent in witness lists from 951; by 959-62, when witnessing, he usually appears first amongst the thegns. In 958 he witnesses B170 (Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, no. 79) not as ‘minister’ but as ‘regis propinquus’. ASC, s.a. 962 records that ‘in this year /Elfgar, the king’s kinsman in Devon, died, and his body rests in Wilton’. However, it is uncertain whether this man is the same A‘lfgar who received Weonfelda. The boundary clause makes it clear that the land Weonfelda coincides significantly with Wokefield, Berkshire. Whether Weonfelda is ctymologically linked to Wokefield is disputed; see EPNS, Berkshire, i. 227-8 and R. Forsberg, review article, ‘An edition of the AngloSaxon charter boundaries of Berkshire’, Studia Neophilologica, li (1979), 139-51, at p. 140. Apart from the presence of this charter in the archive, there is no other evidence of Abingdon interest in this land.

308

APPENDIX

tenore quo rex illi concesserat, Deo et beate Marie et huic domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam contulit elemosinam. Carta uero regis hanc donationem confirmans hec est: Bru. Carta regis Edredi de Weoufelde. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 46.7? Br12. De morte Edredi regis. Iste uero rex Eadredus, letali morbo correptus, decidit in lectum egritudinis, a quo non antea^ disces|sit donec, disponente iusto mundi fo. 43° [i. 168] iudice, spiritum exhalaret nouissimum. Cuius uero finis beatitudinem uox celitus elapsa beato Dunstano abbati Glastonie, itineranti ac quamtocius properanti ut ipsum gregem maturius inuiseret, quam humanitus de eo contigisset innotuit, dicens ‘Rex Edredus obdormiuit in Domino’. O quam felix uita regis que tam felici commendatur attestatione! [i. 167]

fo. 42"

Bi13. De Edwio rege.” Successit Edredo regi in imperium Edwius, filius Edmundi regis fratris sui, in cuius conspectu uir uenerabilis Adpelwoldus abbas Abbendonie (de quo in anteis prelibauimus) tantam inuenit gratiam ut omni sue peticioni memoratus rex quantum ad promotionem domus Abbendonie, tam effectiuum quam affectiuum, preberet assensum. Cuius gratie uir uenerabilis /Epelwoldus non factus inmemor, mox in ipso primordio eius imperii de libertate monasterii Abbendonensis insuper et possessionum ad idem monasterium pertinentium priuilegium ab eodem rege, uniuersisque Anglie archiepiscopis et episcopis constabilitum et confirmatum, impetrauit, archiepiscopis et episcopis necnon et abbatibus sub anathematis interminatione firmiter inhibentibus ne quis mortalium aut quicquam libertati priuilegii contrarium impetrare aut etiam aliquo alio modo malitiose" contra ipsum agere inposterum presumeret. Tenor uero priuilegii hic est: Bl112 ^ final a interlin. Bl113 ^" corr. from malitiosie

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

309

conferred that village, on the same terms as the king had granted it to him, on God and the blessed Mary and this house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. This indeed is the king’s charter confirming this gift: Bri1. Charter of King Eadred concerning Weonfelda. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 46.2% Br12. Concerning the death of King Eadred. Seized by a deadly illness, King Eadred fell into his sickbed, which he did not leave until, by disposition of the just Judge of the world, he breathed out his final breath [955]. Indeed, there slipped from Heaven a voice which notified the blessed Dunstan abbot of Glastonbury—who was travelling and hurrying as quickly as possible the sooner to-see that flock—of the blessedness of Eadred's death and how he had suffered the fate of mankind, saying ‘King Eadred sleeps in the Lord’. Oh how happy the life of a king which is commended by such a happy attestation!

B13. Concerning King Eadwig.”°' To King Eadred succeeded in dominion Eadwig, son of his brother King Edmund, in whose sight the venerable man /Ethelwold abbot of Abingdon (mentioned in earlier passages) found such grace that the aforementioned king provided his assent, both effective and affectionate, to all his requests for the promotion of the house of Abingdon. Not forgetting this grace, the venerable man /Ethelwold sought from that king, right at the start of his dominion, a privilege concerning the liberty of the monastery of Abingdon and also of the possessions pertaining to that monastery, supported and confirmed by all the archbishops and bishops of England, and with the archbishops and bishops and also abbots firmly prohibiting under penalty of anathema that any mortal in future presume either to seek anything contrary to the liberty of the privilege or to act maliciously against it in any way. The terms of the privilege are, indeed, as follows: i 200 Sawyer, no. 578. This charter records Eadred granting the above three hides to /Elfgar. It was issued between 946 (Eadred's accession) and 12 Mar. 951 (the death of JElfheah bishop of Winchester, who witnessed the charter). Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 191, states that it *is probably authentic, although it lacks a dating clause’.

201 Cf. above, c. 36.

310

APPENDIX

[i. 169] Br14. Priuilegium Edwii regis de uilla Abbendome et de abbate eligendo de propria congregatione." Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 83; above, c. 37.

B115. Carta regis Edpi de Abbendoma. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 52; above, c. 38. B116. Quomodo rex ecclesiam dedit de Hengestesige." Item eodem anno dedit rex Edwius Deo et beate Marie et huic domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo in perpetuum seruientibus Hengesige, Seofecan Wyrpe, Wihtham, et carta sua confirmauit. Cuius carte tenor hic est: Bi17. Carta regis Edpi de Hengstessie. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 59; above, c. 41. [i. 182]

fo. 46°

B118. De nemore quod dedit rex Edmius ecclesie Abbendonie 79? Item anno primo regni sui dedit rex Eadwius Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo in perpetuum seruientibus quoddam nemus ad Heafochrycg, (ad architec)tandum^ ecclesiam sancte Marie Abbendonie, peticione /Epelwoldi eiusdem loci abbatis, et carta sua confirmauit. Cuius carte tenor hic est:

[i. 183] Brig. Carta regis Edwu de Hafochrycg. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 57; above, c. 43.

[i. 186] B120. Quomodo rex Edmius dedit ecclesie Gainge.”* fo. 47°

Item anno secundo regni sui dedit memoratus rex Eadwius Deo et beate Marie et huic domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo in perpetuum seruientibus Gainge, et carta sua confirmauit. Cuius carte tenor hic est:

Br121. Carta regis Edmi de Gaing. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 58; above, c. 42. [i. 189]

B122. De Henneritha, quomodo data erat.

fo. 47° fo. 48°

Eodem anno dedit rex Edwius Brihtrico |ministro suo in Hennzripes decem mansas, et ille de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam."? Et hec est carta regis donationem eius confirmans: .

Bl14

205

^ an illustration of the king appears at the start of this charter

Bll8 ^ see above, c. 43

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

311

Br14. Privilege of King Eadwig concerning the village of Abingdon and concerning the choosing of the abbot from the congregation itself. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 83; above, c. 37.

Bi15. Charter of King Eadmig concerning Abingdon. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 52; above, c. 38. B116. How the king gave the church Hinksey.?” Likewise, in the same year [956], King Eadwig gave and by his charter confirmed Hinksey, Seacourt, and Wytham to God and the blessed Mary and this house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there for ever. The terms of his charter are as follows:

Bi17. Charter of King Eadwig concerning Hinksey. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 59; above, c. 41. B118. Concerning the wood that King Eadwig gave to the church of Abingdon.?™ Likewise, in the first year of his reign [955-6], King Eadwig gave and by his charter confirmed a certain wood at Hawkridge to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there for ever, for constructing the church of St Mary of Abingdon, at the request of /Ethelwold abbot of that monastery. The terms of his charter are as follows:

Br19. Charter of King Eadwig concerning Hawkridge. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 57; above, c. 43. B20. How King Eadwig gave Ginge to the church.”™ Likewise, in the second year of his reign [956—7], the aforementioned King Eadwig gave and by his charter confirmed Ginge to God and the blessed Mary and this house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there for ever. The terms of his charter are as follows: Bi21. Charter of King Eadwig concerning Ginge. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 58; above, c. 42.

B122. Concerning Hendred, how it was given. In the same year King Eadwig gave ten hides in Hendred to Beorhtric his thegn, and that man by thé king’s consent gave them to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving

God there, in pure and perpetual alms.” And this is the king’s

charter confirming this gift: 202 Cf above, c. 40.

203 Cf. above, p. 72.

205 Beorhtric cannot be identified with any certainty.

204 Cf. above, p. 70.

3rd

APPENDIX

B123. Carta. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 53.7 [i. 191]

B124. Quomodo rex Edwius dedit Brithnopo Tadmertuna. ^ Concessit idem rex Eadwius eodem anno Birhtnopo ministro suo in Tadmertuna ^nouem cassatos,^?? et ipse de concessu regis Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam. Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem confirmans: B125. Carta regis Edpi de Tademertuna. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 67; above, c. 54. B126. De quinque cassatis in Taddemertune. Eodem anno dedit rex Eadwius Brihtrico ministro suo quinque cassatos in eadem Tademertuna, et ipse de concessu regis Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam. Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem confirmans: B127. Carta regis Edwi de quinque cassatis in Tademertun. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 66; above, c. 55.

[i. 197] B128. Quomodo fo. 49"

rex Edwius dedit Beornodo quinque cassatos in Tademertuna. Item eodem anno dedit memoratus rex Eadwius Beorthnodo principi quinque mansas in eadem Tadmertuna, et ipse de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam. regis hanc donationem confirmans:

Et hec est carta

B129. Carta regis Edwu de quinque cassatis in Tademertuna. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 73; above, c. 56. [i. 200]

fo. 50°

B130. Quomodo rex Edmius dedit Alfrico comiti Cupesdune.?°? Eodem anno dedit rex Edwius /Elfero comiti Cupenesdune decem mansarum, et ille de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et B124

^* the numeral and the word cassatos appear beyond the normal end of the written line

7? Sawyer, no. 581. This charter records Eadwig granting the above ten hides to

Beorhtric. The incarnation date is given as 955, but 956 is more likely to be correct, which would match the indiction and the witness list. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 223, states that it ‘is probably authentic, although there are some minor difficulties’,

TEXT AND TRANSLATION

OF MS B

313

B123. Charter. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 53.” B124. How King Eadwig gave Tadmarton to Byrhtnoth.?”

The same King Eadwig in the same year granted nine hides"? in Tadmarton to grant, gave it Abingdon and alms. And this

Byrhtnoth his thegn, and he himself, by the king’s to God and the blessed Mary and the house of the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual is the king’s charter confirming this gift:

Bi25. Charter of King Eadwig concerning Tadmarton. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 67; above, c. 54. B126. Concerning five hides in Tadmarton. In the same year King Eadwig gave five hides in that same Tadmarton to Beorhtric his thegn, and he himself, by the king’s grant, gave it to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. And this is the king’s charter confirming this gift: B125. Charter of King Eadmig concerning five hides in Tadmarton. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 66; above, c. 55.

B128. How King Eadwig gave five hides in Tadmarton to Byrhtnoth. Likewise, in the same year, the afore-mentioned King Eadwig gave five hides in that same Tadmarton to Byrhtnoth, a noble, and he himself, by the king’s consent, gave it to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. And this is the king’s charter confirming this gift: B129. Charter of King Eadwig concerning five hides in Tadmarton. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 73; above, c. 56. B130. How King Eadwig gave In the same year King Eadwig hides to /Elfhere, an earl, and to God and the blessed Mary

Cuddesdon to Earl Alfric.? gave Cuddesdon amounting to twenty that man by the king’s consent gave it and the house of Abingdon and the

207 MS C does not provide introductions to these Tadmarton charters. 208 The charter specifies ten hides, but the abbreviation in MS B for ‘id est’, which precedes the numeral, makes that numeral look like *ix', hence the confusion. 209 The rubricator seems to have entered the wrong name, as the charter which follows specifies /Elfhere as the grantee. MS C has a different section introducing the gift; above,

C. 45.

314

APPENDIX Et hec est carta

perpetuam elemosinam. confirmans:

regis hanc

donationem

Br31. Carta regis Edmii de Cupenesdune, quomodo dedit comiti. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 70; above, c. 46. B132. Quomodo rex Edwius dedit Alfric Hanme uiginti cassatorum. fo. 51° Item eodem anno dedit rex /Elfrico parenti suo Hannie uiginti mansarum, et ipse de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam. Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem confirmans: B

210

[i. 203]

[i. 204]

B133. Carta regis Edwu de Hannie. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 55 (1).?"!

[i. 207]

B134. Quomodo rex Edwius dedit Eadrico Welliford duorum et uiginti cassatorum.^* Item idem rex Edwius dedit Eadrico ministro suo Welliford duarum et uiginti mansarum,/ et ipse de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam. Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem confirmans:

fo. 52°

B135. Carta regis Eadwu duorum et uiginti cassatorum in Welliford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 64; above, c. 48. [i. 210]

foun zy

B136. Quomodo Edwius rex dedit Alfsio Bennaham quinque et uiginti cassatorum.?? Item idem rex Eadwius dedit /Elfsio ministro suo Bennaham quinque et uiginti cassatorum, et ipse de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam. Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem confirmans: B134

° corr. from mansas

?! [t is almost certain that the grantee was /Elfric Cild. He married the sister of /Elfhere, a royal kinsman; hence /Elfric was by marriage a royal kinsman, or, as the charter says,

'adoptiuus parens’. The witness list includes /Elfric's three brothers-in-law. On /Elfric, see also above, p. cxxiii.

?'! Sawyer, no. 597. This charter records Eadwig granting the above twenty hides to /Elfric, and receiving 60 mancuses in return. It is dated 956. It is repeated in a somewhat different version below, Br6r. Deficiencies in the latter version may have led to the production of the present one, but this cannot be certain; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 234-5. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 235, states that ‘in spite of these textual

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

315

monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. And this is the king's charter confirming this gift: B131. Charter of King Eadwig concerning Cuddesdon, hom he gave it to the earl. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 70; above, c. 46. B132. How King Eadwig gave Hanney amounting to twenty hides to

AElfric. 2? Likewise, in the same year, the king gave Hanney amounting to twenty hides to /Elfric, his kinsman, and he by the king's consent gave it to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. And this is the king's charter confirming this gift: B133. Charter of King Eadwig concerning Hanney. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 55 (1).?!! B134. How King Eadmig gave Welford amounting to twenty-two hides to Eadric.?? Likewise, the same King Eadwig gave Welford amounting to twentytwo hides to Eadric his thegn, and he by the king's consent gave it to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. And this is the king's charter confirming this gift: B135. Charter of King Eadwig regarding twenty-two hides in Welford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 64; above, c. 48.

B136. How King Eadwig gave Benham amounting to twenty-five hides to

Alfsige^? Likewise, the same King Eadwig gave Benham amounting to twentyfive hides to A‘lfsige his thegn, and he by the king’s consent gave it to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. And this is the king’s charter confirming this gift: difficulties, there can be little doubt that [the document] represents a genuine charter of

950’.

77 MS C has a different section introducing the gift; above, c. 47. ?5 Alfsige could also be the recipient of the grant of A’scesburh, above, B98-B99 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 48). The charter grants lands in the modern parish of Speen, Berkshire, including Marsh Benham, or perhaps the entirety of that modern parish; see Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, pp. 304-5. For Abingdon holding two hides at Hoe Benham after 1066, see DB i, fo. 58°; vol. ii. 156; for a 12th-c. administrative list mentioning Abingdon’s possession of a ten-hide holding in Benham, sce vol. ii. 389.

316

APPENDIX

B137. Carta regis Edwu de Bennaham. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, no. 72.7" [i. 212]

fo. 53°

B138. Quomodo rex Edmius dedit Alfwino Middeltun quindecim cassatorum.^? Item idem rex Eadwius dedit /Elfwino ministro suo Middeltun quindecim cassatorum, et ipse de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam. Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem confirmans:

[i. 213] B139. Carta regis Edpii de Middeltuna. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 54; above, c. 50. [i. 215]

fo. 53"

B140. Quomodo Edmius rex dedit Brihtelmo Kenitun. Item idem rex dedit Byrhtelmo presbitero Chenitum, et ipse de consensu regis dedit^ Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam. Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem confirmans:

[i. 216]

B141. Carta regis Edwu de Kenitune. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 56; above, c. 44.

[i. 218]

Br42.^ Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 76.?!6

fo. 54° fo. 54"

B143. Item idem rex Eadwius dedit /Elfrico ministro suo Begenweoróe quinque et uiginti cassatorum, et ipse de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam.?" Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem confirmans:

[i. 219]

B144. Carta regis Edwu de Baenwurpe. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 60; above, c. 53.

B140

B142

7 interlin.

^ the rubricator failed to supply a heading in the appropriate place

*™ Sawyer, no. 591. This charter records Eadwig granting the above twenty-five hides to AElfsige, his ‘loyal man [meo fideli]. It is dated 956. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 303, states that it ‘is almost certainly authentic’.

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

317

B137. Charter of King Eadmig concerning Benham. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 72.”"* B138. How King Eadwig gave Milton amounting to fifieen hides to Alfvine.?' Likewise, the same King Eadwig gave Milton amounting to fifteen hides to /Elfwine his thegn, and he by the king’s consent gave it to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. And this is the king’s charter confirming this gift:

B139. Charter of King Eadmig concerning Milton. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 54; above, c. 50. Br40. How King Eadwig gave Kennington to Brihthelm. Likewise, the same king gave Kennington to Brihthelm the priest, and he by the king’s consent gave it to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. And this is the king’s charter confirming this gift: Br41. Charter of King Eadmig concerning Kennington. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 56; above, c. 44. B142. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 76.?!6

B143. Likewise, the same King Eadwig gave Bayworth amounting to twenty-five hides to /Elfric his thegn, and he by the king's consent gave it to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and

the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms.?" And this is the king's charter confirming this gift: B144. Charter of King Eadwig concerning Bayworth. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, no. 60; above, c. 53. 215 MS C has a different section introducing the gift; above, c. 49. 216 Sawyer, no. 1292; Anglo-Saxon Charters, ed. Robertson, no. 31. MS C provides a Latin summary of this Old English text immediately after its version of the charter; above, p. 76, where this transaction is discussed. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 315, suggests that the present Old English text may have been written on the same sheet as the preceding charter, perhaps as an endorsem*nt or addition. 27 MS C records /Elfric's gift of Bayworth to Abingdon with a different passage, above, p. 84.

318

APPENDIX

Bi45. Quomodo rex Edwius dedit Eadrico Pirianford sexdecim. cassatorum.? Item idem rex Eadwius dedit Eadrico^ ministro suo Pirianforda sexdecim mansatorum, et ipse de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam. Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem confirmans:

B146. Carta regis Edmii de Pirianford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 63.7? [i. 224]

fo. 55"

B147. Quomodo rex Edwius dedit Alfero Wilmanlehttune. Item idem rex Eadwius dedit Alfero senatori Wilmanlehttune, et ipse de consensu regis dedit beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam helemo-

sinam.?? Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem confirmans: B148. Carta regis Edwi de Wilmaleahtun. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 71. [i. 227]

fo. 56"

B149. Quomodo rex Edwius dedit Edmundo Anningadune.””” Item idem rex dedit Eadmundo senatori suo Annigadune, et ipse de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam. Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem confirmans: Bi50. Carta regis Edwu de Anningedune. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 65.7?

B145

^" interlin.

?* Pyrford, Surrey. This may be the same Eadric who received Welford, Berkshire, from Eadwig on the same occasion; above, cc. 47-8. DB i, fo. 32", records that Earl Harold had held Pyrford. Prior to his holding, it had been assessed at twenty-seven hides, but later for only sixteen ‘ad libitum Heraldi’. The hidage mentioned here and in the charter which follows thus matches the reduced level following Harold’s intervention. It may be that the charter was altered to reflect the reduction, or that Harold reduced it to a figure which had some earlier basis; see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 269-70. ?? Sawyer, no. 621. This charter records Eadwig granting the above sixteen hides to Eadric. It is dated 956. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 268, states that ‘there is no good reason to object to' the charter concerning its authenticity. Apart from the presence of this charter in the archive, there is no other evidence of Abingdon interest in this land.

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

319

B145. How King Eadwig gave Pyrford amounting to sixteen hides to Eadric.?? Likewise, the same King Eadwig gave Pyrford amounting to sixteen hides to Eadric his thegn, and he by the king’s consent gave it to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. And this is the king’s charter confirming this gift: B146. Charter of King Eadwig concerning Pyrford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 63.2?

B147. How King Eadmig gave Wormleighton to /Elfhere. Likewise, the same King Eadwig gave Wormleighton to /Elfhere ‘the senator', and he by the king's consent gave it to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there,

in pure and perpetual alms.” And this is the king’s charter confirming this gift: B148. Charter of King Eadwig concerning Wormleighton.

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 71.77" B149. How King Eadwig gave Annington to Edmund.” Likewise, the same king gave Annington to Edmund, his ‘senator’, and he by the king's consent gave it to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. And this is the king's charter confirming this gift: Bi50. Charter of King Eadmig concerning Annington. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 65.7? 220 Tn fact the land probably passed to Abingdon by grant of King /Ethelred, above, c. 99

(p. 152).

221 Sawyer, no. 588. This charter records Eadwig granting ten hides in Wormleighton to Ealdorman /Elfhere. It is dated 956. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 300, states that it ‘is probably authentic’. For further discussion of Wormleighton, see above, p. 152 n. 327. 222 Annington, Sussex. A contemporary endorsem*nt to the original charter concerning Annington refers to Edmund as an ealdorman. An ealdorman called Edmund was a regular witness of charters between 949 and 963. His ealdordom may have been in western Wessex; see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 278. 23 Sawyer, no. 624. The original charter also survives; London, British Library, Cotton Augustus ii. 45, reproduced in BM Facs., iii. 20. It records Eadwig granting ten hides at Annington to Edmund, one of his great men (cuidam meorum optimatum"). In the original the hidage has been altered to sixteen, and this is also the figure in the copy in the History. The charter is dated 956. Except for the alteration to the hidage, Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 277, seems to find the charter acceptable. Apart from the presence of this charter in the archive, there is no other evidence of Abingdon interest in this land.

320 [i. 229]

fo. 57° [i. 230]

APPENDIX

Bi51. Quomodo Edwius rex dedit Eadrico Peadenmure.7* Item idem rex Eadwius dedit Eadrico Peadanwrüe, et ipse de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam. Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem confirmans: B152. Carta regis Eadmit de Pedanwrpe. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 74.7?

[i. 232]

fo. 57"

B153. Quomodo rex Edwius dedit Apelnopo Fifhide.””° Item idem rex Eadwius dedit /Epelnoóo Fifhidam, et ipse de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam. Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem confirmans: B154. Carta regis Edwu de Fifhide. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 61.7

[i. 234] B155. Quomodo fo. 58°

rex Edwius dedit Brihthelmo Stouwe quinque. cassatorum. Eodem anno memoratus rex Eadwius dedit Brihtelmo cognato suo Stowe quinque mansarum, et ipse de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus, eo tenore quo supra.??

B156. Quomodo rex dedit Eadrico Pedanwyrpe. Item idem rex Eadwius dedit Eadrico ministro suo Peadanwyróe, et ipse de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et^ domui Abbendonie et [i. 235] monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam. Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem confirmans: B157. Carta regis Edwu de Pedanwurpe. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 74.7? B156

^" interlin.

* Padworth, Berkshire. Eadric's identity is hard to establish; see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 310.

75 Sawyer, no. 620. This charter records Eadwig granting five hides in Padworth to

Eadric. It is dated 956. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 310, comments that it ‘is probably authentic’. It appears again, below, Br57, probably through a straightforward error. Apart

from the presence of this charter in the archive, there is no other evidence of Abingdon interest in this land.

7* Kthelnoth's identity cannot be established with certainty. ?7 Sawyer, no. 603. This charter records Eadwig granting thirteen hides in F yfield to his

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

321

B151. How King Eadwig gave Padworth to Eadric.?* Likewise, the same King Eadwig gave Padworth to Eadric, and he by the king’s consent gave it to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. And this is the king’s charter confirming this gift: B152. Charter of King Eadwig concerning Padworth. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 74.7? B153. How King Eadwig gave Fyfield to Athelnoth. 5 Likewise, the same King Eadwig gave Fyfield to /Ethelnoth, and he by the king's consent gave it to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. And this is the king's charter confirming this gift:

B154. Charter of King Eadwig concerning Fyfield. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 61.72” Bi55. How King Brihthelm. In the same year, amounting to five king’s consent gave Abingdon and the above.”

Eadmig gave

Stowe

amounting

to five hides. to

the aforementioned King Eadwig gave Stowe hides to Brihthelm, his kinsman, and he by the it to God and the blessed Mary and the house of monks serving God there, on the same terms as

B156. How the king gave Padworth to Likewise, the same King Eadwig gave and he by the king’s consent gave it to the house of Abingdon and the monks perpetual alms. And this is the king’s

Eadric. Padworth to Eadric his thegn, God and the blessed Mary and serving God there, in pure and charter confirming this gift:

B157. Charter of King Eadmig concerning Padworth. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 74.7? thegn /Ethelnoth. It is dated 956. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 262, states that it ‘appears to be authentic’. 228 A 16th-c. copy of the lost original charter of Eadwig concerning this grant is preserved as Cambridge, Corpus Christi College 111, pp. 159-60; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 62. It records Eadwig granting the above hides at Church Stowe, Northamptonshire, to Brihthelm. Brihthelm was probably the bishop-clect of Wells; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 266. It is unclear why the charter does not appear in the History; see above, p. Ixviii. Apart from the presence of this document amongst the 16th-c. copies of Abingdon charters, there is no other evidence of Abingdon interest in this land. 229 Sawyer, no. 620. It is dated 956. This charter has already appeared above, B152.

322

APPENDIX

[i. 237] B158. Quomodo rex Edmius dedit Wlfrico Cheorletun.?*° fo. 58"

Item idem rex Eadwius dedit Wlfrico ministro de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram nam. Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem

suo Cheorletun, et ipse domui Abbendonie et et perpetuam elemosiconfirmans:

B159. Carta regis Edu.

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 69.?! B160. Quomodo rex Edmius dedit Alfrio uiginti cassatos. Item idem rex Edwius dedit Alfrico parenti suo uiginti mansas, et ipse de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam. Et hec est carta^ regis hanc donationem confirmans: [i. 239] Br6r. Carta regis Edwu de uiginti cassatis. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 55 (ii)? [i. 242]

fo. 60°

B162. Quomodo rex Edgarus dedit Alfeo Bochlande.?? Tercio anno regni sui dedit rex Eadwius /Elfeho duci Bochlande, et ipse de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam. Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem confirmans: B163. Carta regis Edgari de Bochelande. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 75; above, c. 52.

[i. 245] B164. Quo anno dedit rex Edmius Edrico Wurpe.?** fo. 60"

Quarto anno regni sui dedit rex Eadwius Edrico ministro suo Wuróe triginta mansarum, et ipse de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et B160

^" cartha MS

?^? Probably Charlton in Grove, Berkshire. The grantee could be Wulfric Cufing; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. clxxx. Abingdon had no Domesday interest in lands at Charlton in Grove; DB i, fos. 57', 60", 61", 62". 2! Sawyer, no. 634. This charter records Eadwig granting five hides in Charlton to Wulfric. it is dated 956. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 292, states that it ‘seems entirely acceptable’. Before the witness list, where one might have expected the vernacular boundary clause, appears the statement that *the aforesaid land is separated by no fixed bounds, but the yokes [/ugera] adjoin yokes’. Another charter granting five hides in Charlton to Abingdon, below, B223 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 118) contains a rather similar clause, and also states that the grant consists of ‘common land [communis terra)’. All these statements suggest the existence of a strip-based common field system. See D. Hooke, The Landscape of Anglo-Saxon England (London, 1998), pp. 113-30. ?3? Sawyer, no. 597. A different version of this charter has already appeared above, B133, and is discussed there.

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

323

B158. How King Eadwig gave Charlton to Wulfric.?*° Likewise, the same King Eadwig gave Charlton to Wulfric his thegn, and he by the king’s consent gave it to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. And this is the king’s charter confirming this gift: B159. King Eadwig’s charter. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 69.?! B160. How King Eadwig gave twenty hides to Alfric. Likewise, the same King Eadwig gave twenty hides to kinsman, and he by the king’s consent gave it to God and Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving in pure and perpetual alms. And this is the king's charter this gift:

/Elfric, his the blessed God there, confirming

B161. Charter of King Eadmig concerning the twenty hides. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. ss (ii).^? B162. How King Edgar gave Buckland to /Elfheah.^? In the third year of his reign, King Eadwig gave Buckland to /Elfheah, an ealdorman, and he by the king’s consent gave it to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. And this is the king’s charter confirming this gift: B163. Charter of King Eadwig concerning Buckland. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 75; above, c. 52. B164. In what year King Eadwig gave Longworth to Eadric.P* In the fourth year of his reign, King Eadwig gave Longworth amounting to thirty hides to Eadric his thegn, and he by the king’s 233 Edgar's name is most likely just a slip by the rubricator; see also above, B130. However, the witnesses are not entirely compatible with the charter’s date of 957, and Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 313, suggests that the apparent simple error by the rubricator may reflect the instability of the text; see also above, cc. 51-2 and note. MS C has a different section introducing the gift; above, c. 51.

°34 Eadric is probably the son of Ealdorman Ealhhelm, and brother of /Elfheah and ZElfhere; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 329. See above, p. 50, for King Eadred's supposed restoration of Longworth to the abbey; p. 94 for a much more plausible charter recording restoration by Edgar. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 329, suggests that Eadred's proposed grant was prevented by Eadwig, who granted the land to a thegn, before Edgar finally ensured that it was acquired by Abingdon. John, Orbis Britanniae, p. 197, suggests that we should believe the History’s statement in the present chapter that Eadric gave the land to Abingdon. He argues that at the time when Eadred booked Longworth to Abingdon, Eadric or a member of his family would have held it with some sort of precarious title. In 958

324

APPENDIX

domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam. Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem confirmans: B165. Carta regis Edmii de Wrpe.

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 8o. [i. 247] B166. Rex Edwius dedit Eadwoldo Draitun decem mansarum.?^ fo. 61°

Eodem anno rex Eadwius dedit Eadwoldo ministro suo Dregtun decem mansarum, et ipse de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam. Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem confirmans: B167. Carta regis Edmii de Draituna. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 78.7?

[i. 249] fo. 61°

[i. 250]

B168. Rex Eadwius dedit Cinlaf uenator Escemere quatuor cassatorum.?** Eodem die^ dedit rex Eadwius Cynlaf uenatori suo /Escemere tredecim mansarum, et ipse de consensu regis domui Abbendonie, testibus supradictis testantibus.

B169. Quomodo rex Edmius dedit Kinrico* duorum cassatorum. Item eodem anno dedit rex Eadwius Kynrico pincernario^" 239 Cern duorum cassatorum, et ipse de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam. Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem confirmans: Bl168

^" over erasure, perhaps of anno

B169 ^" the place-name Cern may have been accidentally omitted here Eadwig persuaded Eadric to give Longworth to Abingdon. However, first he booked the land to Eadric. This temporary possession with full title meant that Eadric would receive the spiritual benefits due to a donor of bookland. Whilst John's suggestion cannot be disproved, it may seem a rather lengthy way to maintain trust in the History's dubious and routine statement that the king gave the land to Eadric who gave it to Abingdon. 255 Sawyer, no. 654. This charter records Eadwig (entitled ‘rex Saxonum") granting the above hides to Eadric. It is dated 958. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 328, states that it ‘appears to be authentic’. ?* Cf. above, c. 62, a charter of Edgar granting twenty hides at Drayton to Abingdon. This mentions that King Eadred, rather than Eadwig, had given ten hides (altered to twenty hides in MS B) to Eadwold, and Eadwold had restored it to Abingdon on his deathbed.

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

325

consent gave it to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. And this is the king’s charter confirming this gift:

B165. Charter of King Eadmig concerning Longworth. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 80.?*° B166. King In the same to Eadwold the blessed God there, confirming

Eadwig gave Drayton amounting to ten hides to Eadwold.?*° year, King Eadwig gave Drayton amounting to ten hides his thegn, and he by the king’s consent gave it to God and Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving in pure and perpetual alms. And this is the king’s charter this gift:

B167. Charter of King Eadmig concerning Drayton. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 78.7? B168. King Eadmig gave /Escmere amounting to four hides to Cynlaf the huntsman.?? On the same day, King Eadwig gave /Fsemere amounting to thirteen hides to Cynlaf his huntsman, and he by the king's consent gave it to the house of Abingdon, with the above witnesses witnessing. B169. Ho» King Eadmig gave two hides to Cynric. Likewise, in the same year, King Eadwig gave Cern amounting to two hides to Cynric the cup-bearer,?? and he by the king's consent gave it to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. And this is the king's charter confirming this gift: Eadwold may be the thegn who witnessed certain charters of Eadwig; Keynes, Atlas of Attestations, table LI. 2377 Sawyer, no. 650. This charter records Eadwig granting the above hides to Eadwold. It is dated 958. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 321, states that it ‘is probably authentic’. 238 The name 7Zsemere is preserved in Ashmansworth, Hampshire. This is next to Crux Easton, and it may be that record of the gift to Cynlaf is linked to Abingdon's interest in Crux Easton; see above, B13-Br4, Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 579-80 (iii). On the source for the History's information, see above, p. xlii n. 169. For other mentions of AEscmere, see Sawyer, nos. 336, 1533. ?9 A Cynric minister also appears in MS B as a witness to Bro7, B114, B175, Charters of Abingdon Abbey, nos. 77, 83 (two Cynrics), 84. The compiler of MS B apparently derives the word ‘pincernarius’ from the use of ‘propincernarius’ in the charter that follows. Cern seems to have been the name of a stream, and thence of land by that stream. The land mentioned in this charter could be in the north of Pusey, Berkshire; EPNS, Berkshire, ii. 389-90, iii. 699. DB i, fo. 59", records Abingdon having two hides in Pusey.

326

APPENDIX

Bz170. Carta regis Edwii de Cern. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 79.9 [i. 251] fo. 62" [i. 252]

Br71. Quomodo rex Edwius (dedit) Wlfrico Dencheswrpe.?*! Item eodem anno dedit rex Eadwius Wlfrico ministro suo Dencheswrpe decem cassatorum, et ipse de consensu regis Deo et beate Marie et domui Abbendonie et monachis ibidem Deo seruientibus in puram et perpetuam elemosinam. Et hec est carta regis hanc donationem confirmans: B172. Carta regis Edwu de Dencheswrthe. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 81.7

[i. 254] Br73. De morte Edwii regis.^? fo. 62"

Rege Eadwigo cedente in fatum sine liberis, diuina disponente clementia successit ei in regnum rex illustris Eadgarus frater eius uterinus. Iste uero rex Eadgarus, cum iam prouectus ad regni solium sceptrigera potiretur potestate, sic uet(e)rem hominem cum actibus suis’* iugi meditatione’ studuit exsuere, ut in ipso tam concupiscentia carnis quam concupiscentia oculorum pariter et superbia uite penitus adnullari uideretur. Licet enim etas uirens et forma decens, dignitas preminens et copia diuiciarum bonos mores sepius emollire et pudorem cordis soleant exstirpare, non est tamen aurum eius

obscuratum^? ob amorem rerum transeuntium, more fluentis aque, fo. 63°

quin in omnibus et^ per omnia diuinis obtemperatis preceptis et quicquid ad hones|tatis et^ dignitatis aumentum illi Deus misericorditer inperciit, totum ad ipsius honorem et^ regni sui salubritatem, sagaciter accitare^ satageret. Nec mora de nouo nouus miles effectus, rex Edgarus, donis nature insignitus et gratie, quasi pugil armatus contra diabolum monomachiam in hac conualle flebili**® uiriliter sustinuit nec succubit, quia adiutor factus est ei et protector qui inbecilli Dauid de robusto Golia triumphum contulit.^" Quid multa? Rex Edgarus, a beato Dunstano pariter et a sancto Adpelwoldo Bl73 ° corr. from ineditationem by erasure of final abbreviation mark ^ mistakenly erased ^ interlin. * corr. from accitaret by erasure

^ interlin.

*40 Sawyer, no. 651. This charter records Eadwig granting the above hides to Cynric his cup-bearer (*propincernarius)). It is dated 958. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 325, states that it ‘can probably be accepted as authentic’. The witnesses include the king’s steward (discifer) and butler (pincerna). 7! See above, Bor (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 41), for a charter of Eadred granting five hides in Denchworth to a man named Wulfric, most likely the beneficiary of this charter, Wulfric Cufing. The present charter may be a confirmation. See below, B186 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 86) for Wulfric’s forfeiture of this and other estates, and their subsequent restoration by King Edgar in 960.

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

327

B170. Charter of King Eadmig concerning Cern. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 79.7? B171. How King Eadwig gave Denchworth to Wulfric^! Likewise, in the same year, King Eadwig gave Denchworth amounting to ten hides to Wulfric his thegn, and he by the king's consent gave it to God and the blessed Mary and the house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there, in pure and perpetual alms. And this is the king's charter confirming this gift: B172. Charter of King Eadwig concerning Denchworth. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 81.7” B173. Concerning the death of King Eadwig.** When the childless King Eadwig yielded to death [959], by the disposition of divine clemency his uterine brother, the illustrious King Edgar, succeeded him in the kingdom. That King Edgar, indeed, when he had been conveyed to the throne of the kingdom and was enjoying the sceptre-bearing power, strove in constant

meditation to shed ‘the old man with his deeds’,** thus that both lust of the body and lust of the eyes and likewise pride of life seemed to be entirely made nothing in him. For although vigorous age and seemly appearance, outstanding dignity and fullness of wealth are accustomed more often to weaken good behaviour and to eradicate

modesty of heart, however his gold did not become dim^*? through love of transient things, like flowing water, but rather, obedient to divine commands in everything and every way, he strove keenly to do whatever God mercifully bestowed on him to increase honour and dignity, entirely for His honour and the good health of the kingdom. And without delay made anew a new knight, King Edgar, marked out with the gifts of nature and grace, like an armed champion manfully

sustained single combat against the Devil in this tearful valley** and did not succumb, since He who conferred triumph on the weak David

against the powerful Goliath was made his supporter and protector.^* What's more, King Edgar was fittingly instructed by the blessed 242 Sawyer, no. 657. This charter records Eadwig granting five hides in Denchworth to Wulfric. It is dated 958. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 331, states that it ‘appears to be authentic’, whilst noting the difficulty of the existence of the earlier charter of Eadred.

243 Cf. above, c. 59. 244 Co]. 3: 9 *expoliantes vos veterem hominem cum actibus suis’. ^5 Cf. Lam. 4: 1 Quomodo obscuratum est aurum".

246 Cf Ps. 83 (84): 7. 47 For David and Goliath, see 1 Kgs (1 Sam.) 17.

328

APPENDIX

ceterisque Anglie" sapientibus decenter instructus, improbos oppressit, rebelles redarguit, iustos et modestos medullitus dilexit, destructas Dei renouauit ecclesias ac honorifice ditauit, et monasteria circiter construi iussit, abiectis a^ cenobiis clericis monachorum quadraginta [i. 255] et sanctimonialiuin cateruas aggregauit. Proficiscens itaque rex de

uirtute in uirtutem "inde ui(r)'?*? tantus ac talis est effectus, non minus predicabilis putaretur Anglis quam Romulus Romanis, Cirus Persis, Alexander Macedonibus, Artarxerses Parthis, Karolus magnus

Francis.”” B174. De priuilegio et cartis Edgari regis. Nunc uero de regis huius munificis liberalitatibus erga hanc sacratissimam domum Abbendonie, insimul et de libertatibus eius possessionumque ad eandem abbatiam pertinentium, sua auctoritate roboratis’ mentionem facere duximus necessarium. Primo ergo ponendum est ipsius priuilegium,"?? deinde carte ponende quibus possessiones subsequentes huic domui confirmauit,?! tercio carte hominum suorum qui de consensu suo cartas eisdem cartis confirmatas huic domui contulerunt,?? et ab illo tempore usque ad

presens tempus inconcusse permanent et gratia Dei perpetuum robur obtinebunt.?? Quarto uero tam cartas eius quam suorum apponemus possessiones olim nostras confirmantes.*** Que uero possessiones licet ad presens minime cedant in usus nostros, nichilominus tamen stetit per regem et suos quin carte eorum de eisdem possessionibus perpetuum robur obtinerent, si antiqui hostis uersutia, et hominum cupiditas ceca, insuper et potestas permisisset regia. Regis itaque Edgari priuilegii tenor hic est:

[i. 256] B175. Priuilegium Edgari regis.” Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 84; above, c. 60. Jf

corr. from Anglice

* interlin.

h-h

the reading here is unclear and the text may be

corrupt B174

^ roborata MS, perhaps misled by following c. 59 above

Bl175

^" an illustration of the king appears at the start of this charter

*48 The textual emendation, and therefore the translation, are necessarily speculative.

*® The compiler here drew on John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 424: ‘pacificus rex

Eadgarus non minus memorabilis Anglis quam Romulus Romanis, Cirus Persis, Alexander Macedonibus, Arsaces Parthis, Karolus magnus Francis’. 250 Brae.

^! Br76-Br83.

TEXT

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329

Dunstan and also by St /Ethelwold and other wise men of England, and he crushed the ill-intentioned, rebuked rebels, from the depths of his heart loved the just and modest, renovated and honourably enriched God’s ruined churches, ordered about forty monasteries to be constructed, and—once clerics had been expelled from the monasteries—gathered bands of monks and nuns. Proceeding from

virtue to virtue he became thence a man**® so great and of such quality that he was thought no less praiseworthy among the English than Romulus among the Romans, Cyrus among the Persians, Alexander among the Macedonians, Artaxerxes among the Parthians,

and Charlemagne among the Franks.?*? B174. Concerning King Edgar’s privilege and charters. Now, indeed, we have thought it necessary to mention this munificent king’s generous gifts towards this most sacred house of Abingdon, and also its liberties and those of the possessions pertaining to that abbey, strengthened by his authority. To be placed first is

his privilege,”°° next the charters whereby he confirmed subsequent possessions to this house,”*! third the charters of his men who by his consent conferred charters/?? on this house confirmed by Edgar’s charters, which from that time until the present remain unshaken and

by the grace of God will maintain their strength for ever.^? Fourth, indeed, we place the charters both of him and of his men confirming our former possessions.^^ Although indeed these possessions at present yield nothing to our profit, nevertheless it was the responsibility of the king and his men that their charters concerning these possessions would have maintained their perpetual strength, if the cunning of the old enemy, the blind greed of men, and in addition royal power had permitted. And so the terms of King Edgar's privilege are as follows: B175. King Edgar's privilege. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 84; above, c. 60. 252 Tt seems likely that the scribe here meant to write ‘terras’ (lands) or some such word, rather than ‘cartas’ (charters).

53 Br84—B196. 254 Br97—B206. In fact all these are charters of the king, not of his men. The phraseology here may reflect 13th-c. assumptions about the likely existence of donors' charters recording their gifts to the Church. Of the places mentioned in those charters, only in Hendred did Abingdon have lands in the 12th or 13th c.; see vol. ii. 322, 388. However, the later lands may not be those which were granted to Abingdon by Edgar; see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 224.

330

APPENDIX

[i. 264] B176. Carta regis Edgari de Mercham. fo. 65" [i. 266] fo. 66"

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 102; above, c. 60. Frileford,” Appeltun, Leoie fuerunt tempore Edgari regis membra de

Mercham, quarum mete partim hic distinguntur, partim alibi.^? Mete de Leia. J/Erest of pan hacce to Dudemeres hele, of Dudemeres to merc lege, of merc lege to stan lege, of stan lege to pere dun lege, of ber dun lege swa eft innon pene hecce.

[i. 267]

B177. Carta regis Edgari de Cumenora. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 111; above, c. 8r.

[i. 270]

B178. Quomodo Wiham, Seuecurt, Henstesheie, Etun fuerunt membra de Cumenora.

fo. 66"

Fuerunt autem Wihtham, Seouecurt, Hensteseie, Eatun membra de Cumenora temporibus Eadgari regis Anglie, habentes cassatos quin-

que et uiginti.?" Nunc uero Hensteseie membrum’ est de Bertona, Wihteham et Seouecurt militibus date, Eatun omnino ablata.^^ Mete de Eatun. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 151.7?

B79. Carta regis Eadgari de uiginti hidis in Draitun. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 85; above, c. 62. B180. Carta regis Edgari de Hannie uiginti cassatarum. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 112; above, c. 83. B176 ^" this sentence is preceded by a blank line, where the rubricator may have failed to enter a heading B178

^ menbrum MS

?5 For comments on this passage, see above, p. 118n. 261. The reference to bounds defined elsewhere could be to those of Appleton in Edmund's charter to /Ethelstan Halfking, above, B7o. ^** This passage also forms the latter part of the boundary clauses of B239 and B258 (Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, nos. 137, 146). These bounds also appear in MS C, fos. 201'— 202", in the quire of charter bounds at the end of that manuscript, in the main scribe’s hand; see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 589 (no. 46). The compiler of the later version of the History seems to have believed that it referred to a place called Lege, and hence associated it with the previous statement about the members of Marcham; Gelling, Early Charters of the Thames Valley, p. 65. 'The present bounds in fact describe an area of woodland linked to Chilton; see Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 538. In each of the following instances, ‘lege’, i.e. OE leah, could mean either clearing or wood; EPNS, Berkshire, iii. 768, 888, 935-6. ^" How these twenty-five hides were distributed between the four named places is uncertain. A charter in Eadwig's name records his grant of twenty hides at Seacourt, Wytham, and Hinksey to /Ethelwold; above, c. 41. Both Domesday and a charter of

TEXT

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331

B176. Charter of King Edgar concerning Marcham. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 102; above, c. 75. Frilford, members

Appleton, Bessels Leigh were in King Edgar’s time of Marcham, the bounds of which are partly defined

here, partly elsewhere.”°°

Bounds of Leigh.^^ First from the gate to Dudemer’s nook, from Dudemzr’s to the boundary wood, from the boundary wood to the stone wood, from the stone wood to the hill wood, from the hill wood again as far as the gate. B177. Charter of King Edgar concerning Cumnor. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 111; above, c. 81.

B178. Hom Wytham, Seacourt, Hinksey, Eaton were then members of Cumnor. Moreover Wytham, Seacourt, Hinksey, and Eaton were members of Cumnor from the time of King Edgar of England, having twentyfive hides." Now, indeed, Hinksey is a member of Barton, Wytham and Seacourt have been given to knights, Eaton completely taken

away.^? The bounds of Eaton. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 151.7? B179. Charter of King Edgar concerning twenty hides in Drayton. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 85; above, c. 62. B180. Charter of King Edgar concerning Hanney amounting to twenty hides. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 112; above, c. 83. Coenwulf, above, c. ro, record ten hides at Eaton, but DB i, fo. 61", makes clear that this was constituted of two five-hide parts. One of these five-hide units may have been included in the present total of twenty-five. 58 No genuine charter associates Abingdon and Eaton. DB i, fo. 61, shows that Eaton was not in Abingdon’s hands TRE, and was held by Miles Crispin in 1086. 259 Sawyer, no. 1569. As above, the compiler mistakenly associated two places with similar names. The Eaton mentioned in the previous section is Eaton in Appleton, whereas this boundary clause covers land on the Cherwell, probably to be associated with Wood Eaton, or Water Eaton, or nearby land in Oxfordshire; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 577.

The inclusion of a boundary clause in MS B not within a charter is unusual; it may have been written on a separate piece of parchment. Note that these bounds are also the final entry in the quire of MS C devoted to such bounds, fo. 202"; see also Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 590 (no. 57). The linguistic form of the bounds may suggest a date in the third quarter of the 11th c.; P. Kitson cited in Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 577.

332

APPENDIX

B181. Carta regis Edgari de Ora decem cassatarum. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 113; above, c. 85. B182. Carta regis Edgari de Bedene. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 103; above, c. 86. B183. Carta regis Edgari de Dencheswrpe. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 104; above, c. 77. B184. Carta regis Edgari de Spersholt decem cassatorum. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 97; cf. above, c. 139, and below, B279./9?

B185. Carta regis Edgari de Estune. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 101.?*!

B186. Carta regis Edgari de /Eskeburt. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 86.7° B187. Carta regis Edgari de Wissele. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 109; above, c. 88.

B188. Carta regis Edgari de Licchelade. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 105.79 B189. Carta regis Edgari de Hamstede.

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 91.2% 269 On the repetition of this charter, see above, p. xlvi. ?*! Sawyer, no. 725. This charter records Edgar giving ten hides in Aston Upthorpe, Berkshire, to his queen /Elfthyrth. It is dated 964. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 405, states that it ‘is in some ways an unconventional text, but there is no good reason to question its authenticity'. Apart from the presence of this charter in the archive, there is no other evidence of Abingdon interest in this land. 7? Sawyer, no. 687. The original charter also survives; London, British Library, Cotton Augustus ii 40, reproduced in BM Facs., iii. 22. It records Edgar restoring to Wulfric Cufing estates that he had forfeited for a certain offence; Zscesburh (in this case identified by Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. clxxvi, as primarily the area which became Woolstone), Denchworth, Garford, Chieveley, Stanmore, Chaddleworth, Boxford, Benham, all in Berkshire; Worting and Tichborne, Hampshire; Stedham, Tillington, Patching, Poynings, Newtimber, all in Sussex. It is dated 960. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 353-5, accepts the authenticity of the document. Wulfgar’s disgrace presumably occurred between 958, when he was still receiving land-grants (see above, B172, and also Sawyer, no. 1491) and 960, the date of the present charter. 263 Sawyer, no. 737. This charter records Edgar giving ten hides at Linslade, Buckinghamshire, to his kinswoman /Elfgifu. It is dated 966. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, P. 417, states that it ‘appears to be authentic’. This /Elfgifu may have been King Eadwig’s first

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

333

B181. Charter of King Edgar concerning Oare amounting to ten hides. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 113; above, c. 85. B182. Charter of King Edgar concerning Beedon. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 103; above, c. 86. B183. Charter of King Edgar concerning Denchworth. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 104; above, c. 77.

B184. Charter of King Edgar concerning Sparsholt amounting to ten hides. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 97; above, c. 139, and below,

B279.79? B185. Charter of King Edgar concerning Aston. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 101 79! B186. Charter of King Edgar concerning /Escesburh. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 86.79? B187. Charter of King Edgar concerning Whistley. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 109; above, c. 88.

B188. Charter of King Edgar concerning Linslade. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 105.7% B189. Charter of King Edgar concerning Hamstede. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 91.?&*

wife, from whom he was divorced on grounds of consanguinity. The will of the beneficiary of this charter survives; Sawyer, no. 1484, Anglo-Saxon Wills, ed. Whitelock, no. 8. It records her bequeathing Czxstzleshamme (probably Chesham, Buckinghamshire) to Abingdon. There is no other evidence of Abingdon holding that land, assuming the bequest actually came into effect. /Elfgifu left Linslade to King Edgar. It is conceivable he gave it to Abingdon, but there is no other evidence for Abingdon having an interest in Linslade. However, it is notable that DB i, fo. 150, records Linslade being held TRE by Alwin, Queen Edith’s man, suggesting the slight possibility that it had a continuing association with queens. :

264 Sawyer, no. 698. This charter records Edgar granting three hides in Hamstede to his thegn Eadric. It is dated 961. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 374, states that it ‘can probably be treated as authentic’. Eadric may be the brother of Ealdormen /Elfhere and /Elfheah; see above, p. cxxiii. The land concerned cannot be identified with any certainty. De abbatibus, CMA ii. 282, records a certain "Thovi' giving Abingdon land at Garsington and Hamstede. This appears amongst a set of entries concerning gifts in Abbot Ordric’s time (1052-66). Such a gift by ‘Thovi’ seems plausible, but it need not concern the Hamstede of this charter; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 374—5.

334

APPENDIX

Brgo. Carta regis Edgari de septem cassatis de Kingestun. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 1 15.46 Br91. Carta regis Edgari de Bragenfelda. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 106.795

Brga. Carta regis Hedgari de Hocanedisce. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 99. B193. Carta regis Edgari de /Epedingetun. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 00 B194. Carta regis Edgari de Mordune. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 94.9 B195. Carta Edgari regis de Duclintun. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 82.7? B196. Carta Edgari regis de Boxora. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 107; above c. 9o.

B197. Carta regis Edgari de Bedewinde. 271 Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 108; above, c. 61. B198. Carta regis Edgari de Hisseburna. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 89; above, c. 64. ? Sawyer, no. 778. This charter records Edgar granting seven hides in Kingston, Berkshire, to his deacon Brihtheah. The absence of a boundary clause renders it impossible to be certain that this is Kingston Bagpuize. Gelling, Early Charters of the Thames Valley, p. 58, raises the possibility that it is Kingston Lisle. The charter is dated 970. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 447, states that it ‘is probably fundamentally authentic, although the lack of a boundary clause is surprising, and there is some possibility of reworking or revision in connection with the abbey’s claim to Kingston Bagpuize’. See also above, notes to c. 92.

266 Sawyer, no. 750. This charter records Edgar granting land in Bragenfelda to Byrhtnoth ealdorman of Essex. It is dated 967. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 420, states that it ‘is probably authentic’. For other charters in Byrhtnoth’s favour preserved in the Abingdon archive, see above, cc. 54, 56. The land conveyed here is hard to identify as the charter includes neither hidage nor boundary clause. Apart from the presence of this charter in the archive, there 1s no other evidence of Abingdon interest in this land. ?" Sawyer, no. 722. This charter records Edgar granting five hides in Hocanedisce to his thegn Wulfnoth. It is dated 963. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 398, states that *there is no reason to question [its] authenticity’. Wulfnoth cannot be identified with certainty. The place-name probably means *Hoca's enclosure’, but again, it cannot be identified with any certainty; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 398. Apart from the presence of this charter in the archive, there is no other evidence of Abingdon interest in this land. *68 Sawyer, no. 691. This charter records Edgar granting nine hides in ZEtheredingetune to his thegn /Elfric. It is dated 961. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 371, states that it ‘would seem entirely authentic, were it not for the unfortunate detail of an attestation by Bishop /Ethelwold'. This is inappropriate for a charter dated 961, since /Ethelwold became a

TEXT AND TRANSLATION

OF MS B

335

B19o. Charter of King Edgar concerning seven hides at Kingston. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 11429

B191. Charter of King Edgar concerning Bragenfelda. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 106.7% B192. Charter of King Edgar concerning Hocanedisce. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 99.78 B193. Charter of King Edgar concerning /Etxheredingetune. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 9o.?9? B194. Charter of King Edgar concerning Moredon. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 94.79 B195. Charter of King Edgar concerning Ducklington. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 82.7? B196. Charter of King Edgar concerning Boxford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 107. above c. go.

B197. Charter of King Edgar concerning Bedwyn.””' Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 108; above, c. 61. B198. Charter of King Edgar concerning Hurstbourne. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 89; above, c. 64. bishop only in 963. It could be that his title was changed from abbas to episcopus in the process of copying, or that the name is an error for /Elfwold; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 371-2. The beneficiary may be /Elfric Cild, on whom see above, p. cxxiii. The place is probably Ardington, Berkshire, where in 1086 Robert d'Oilly held two manors, one assessed at nine hides TRE. The TRE holder of these nine hides was a free man named Sewin; DB i, fo. 62". In the 15th c. the abbot of Abingdon had some meadows there; Lyell, no. 13. Otherwise, apart from the presence of this charter in the archive, there is no evidence of Abingdon interest in this land 269 Sawyer, no. 705. This charter records Edgar granting twenty hides at Moredon in Rodbourne Cheney, Wiltshire, to his thegn Eadwine. It is dated 962. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 383, states that it ‘is probably authentic’. For the previous and later history of the estate, see above, c. 102, Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 383-4. 270 Sawyer, no. 678. This charter records Edgar ‘king of the Mercians’ granting fourteen hides at Ducklington, Oxfordshire, to his thegn Eanulf, together with the old church at "Estlea and forty acres belonging to it and Byrnanlea. /Estlea or East Lea may be identified with co*kethorpe, Byrnanlea may underlie the name of Barleypark Farm and Wood; see EPNS, Oxfordshire, ii. 317; Blair, Anglo-Saxon Oxfordshire, pp. 130-1; VCH, Oxfordshire, xiii. 111, 140. The charter is dated 958. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 334, states that *there is every reason to think that [the document] is authentic’. Eanulf may have been a royal steward; see Sawyer, no. 768. Apart from the presence of this charter in the archive, there is no other evidence of Abingdon interest in this land.

77. For the construction of the text of this charter in MS B, see Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, pp. 427-8.

336 [i. 321]

fo. 78"

APPENDIX

Bigg. Carta regis Edgari de Suthhamtuna. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 93; above, c. 65.

[i. 323] B2oo. Carta regis Edgari de Fifhida. fo. 79"

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no 110; above, c. 79.

[i. 327] B201. Carta regis Edgari de Esthalla. fo. 80°

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 96; above c. 70.

[i. 329] B202. Carta Edgari regis de tribus hidis in Henneripe. fo. 80”

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 92; above, c. 66.

[i. 331] B203. Carta regis Edgari de decem hidis in Henneripe. fo. 81°

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 100; above, c. 73.

[i. 334] B204. Carta regis Edgari de Burgbeche. fo. 81”

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 88; above, c. 69.

[i. 337] B205. Carta Edgari regis de Wasingetune. fo. 82"

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 98.7?

[i. 340] B206. Carta regis Edgari regis de Rimecunda. fo. 83"

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 87; above, c. 67.

B207. De sancto Adpelwoldo. Nunc uero restat ut de uiro uenerabili | Apelwoldo, tempore regis Eadgari istius loci abbate sanctissimo, mentionem faciamus, qualiter, post amplas possessiones Eadgari regis Anglorum illustrissimi, domum istam uenustissime ordinauerit, utputa prudens ac uigilans Domini nostri Ihesu Christi dispensator; uidelicet, quoad ordinis obseruantiam, et institutiones ordini admodum necessarias, similiter et con[i. 344] suetudines omni memoria dignas. In primis itaque beatus Apelwoldus, regnante rege Eadgaro, honorabile templum in honore sancte Dei genitricis semperque uirginis Marie in hoc loco construxit pariter et ad

[i. 343

fo. 83" fo. 84°

uotum consummauit.^? Quo consummato, cum iam beatus Apelwoldus nonnullos fiatres ibi coadunasset, de communi consensu et pari

uoluntate eorumdem misit quendam suum monac(h)jum nomine Osgarum in transmarinas partes ad abbatiam Floriacensem propter * Sawyer,

no. 714. This charter records

Edgar granting twenty-four

hides in

Washington to Bishop /Ethelwold; see also above, p. cxxx. It is dated 963. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 396, states that it ‘appears to be authentic’. Before Edgar's death, /Ethelwold exchanged an estate at Washington with Wulfstan Uccea, for lands in

Huntingdonshire and Northamptonshire: Sawyer, no. 1377; Anglo-Saxon Charters, ed. Robertson, no. 37; EHD, i. no. 112. See above, B95 (Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, no. 40), for

TEXT AND TRANSLATION

OF MS B

337

B199. Charter of King Edgar concerning Southampton. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 93; above, c. 65.

B20o. Charter of King Edgar concerning Fyfield. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 110; above, c. 79. B2or. Charter of King Edgar concerning Easthall. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 96; above c. 70. B202. Charter of King Edgar concerning three hides in Hendred. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 92; above, c. 66. B203. Charter of King Edgar concerning ten hides in Hendred. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 100; above, c. 73. B204. Charter of King Edgar concerning Burbage. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 88; above, c. 69. B205. Charter of King Edgar concerning Washington. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 98.7” B206. Charter of King Edgar concerning Ringwood. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 87; above, c. 67.

B207. Concerning St Athelwold. Now, indeed, it remains for us to mention how the venerable man /Ethelwold, most holy abbot of that monastery in King Edgar’s time, after the extensive possessions of the most illustrious Edgar king of the English, arranged the affairs of that house very pleasingly, as a prudent and vigilant steward of our Lord Jesus Christ; that is, as to the observance of the ordered life, and the usages very necessary for the ordered life, and likewise the customs worthy of every memory. First, therefore, while King Edgar was reigning, the blessed /Ethelwold built and also completed as he desired an impressive church in this place in honour of the holy mother of God and ever Virgin

Mary.?” Following the church’s completion, and once he had brought together some brethren there, the blessed /Ethelwold by common consent and joint will sent a certain one of his monks, named Osgar, overseas to the abbey of Fleury, in relation to the Rule of the an earlier charter concerning Washington. The lands covered by the two charters are similar but not necessarily identical; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 396. 273 The passage ‘honorabile . . . consummauit’ is drawn directly from Wulfstan, Life of AEthelwold, c. 13, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, p. 24, with very minor changes. Again I deliberately follow Lapidge and Winterbottom's translation.

338

APPENDIX

regulam beati Benedicti sub qua fratres istius loci Deo digne famulantes feliciter militarent. Attendens etiam diligenter beatus Apelwoldus illud propheticum quo dicitur ‘Domine, dilexi decorem domus

tue’”””* (ut de domo exteriori ad presens intelligatur), quoad decentius potuit domum istam ornamentis ditauit preciosissimis."

Dedit autem, ut ex antiquorum librorum accepimus attestatione, ^"^ reuerentiam et honorem ob ponderis, calicem unum aureum immensi corporis et sanguinis Domini nostri Ihesu Christi. Dedit etiam tres cruces admodum decoras ex argento et auro puro, que tempore werre regis Stephani sunt confracte, attestantibus monachis nostris uiam

uniuerse carnis ingressis."" Ornauit etiam ecclesiam textis"? tam ex argento puro quam ex auro obrizo, pariter et lapidibus preciosissimis, thurribulis et fialis,’”? peluibus fusilibus et candelabris ex argento" ductilibus, multisque bonis aliis tam usibus monachorum circa altare competentibus quam decentie ecclesiastice competentibus. Opitulante etiam piissimo rege Eadgaro, memorande memorie, abbas Apelwoldus tabulam fecit argenteam precio adpreciatam trecentarum librarum, cuius etiam materiam forma exsuperabat artificialis, que etiam usque ad tempus Vincencii abbatis illesa permansit et incon[i. 345] fracta.?? Interim uir Dei, mulieri forti consimilis,?' sindonem fecit uendidit et tradidit Chananeo, ^? dum per sanctam conuersationem et deuotionem exemplum bone accionis prebuit discipulis suis, de bono in melius commutatis. Fecit etiam duas campanas propriis manibus, ut dicitur? quas in hac domo posuit cum aliis duabus maioribus quas etiam beatus Dunstanus propriis manibus fecisse peribetur. Preterea fecit uir uenerabilis Adelwoldus quandam rotam tintinnabulis plenam, quam auream nuncupant propter laminas ipsius deauratas, quam in festiuis diebus ad maioris excitationem deuocionis fo. 84"

re|ducendo uolui constituit.?^ Fuerunt autem ista^ super enumerata^ B207 ^" corr. from auro tmo letters interlin.

^ corr. from Cananeo by interlin.

* interlin.

4 final

7^ Ps: 25 (26): 8. De abbatibus places these words in the mouth of Faritius at his death; CMA ii. 290.

75 De abbatibus also describes the ornaments that /Ethelwold gave to the church; CMA ii. 277—9. See also above, p. clxix, for this and what follows. ?* These ‘books’ perhaps resembled the vernacular account of /Ethelwold's gifts to Peterborough; Anglo-Saxon Charters, ed. Robertson, no. 39.

77 According to De abbatibus, the crosses were four feet in length. The same text also

mentions the breaking up and stripping of the crosses in Stephen's time; CMA ii. 278. 75 Dodwell, Anglo-Saxon Art, p. 203, takes ‘textis’ to refer to texts, i.e. gospel texts. However, in that case the word should be ‘textibus’, not ‘textis’. The History regularly and correctly treats ‘textus’, text, as fourth declension.

TEXT

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TRANSLATION

339

blessed Benedict, under which the brethren of that monastery worthily served and happily fought for God. So, diligently paying attention to that prophecy in which it is said ‘Lord, I have loved the

habitation of thy house’,””* (as is still understood from the outside of the house) /Ethelwold enriched that house as fittingly as he could

with most precious ornaments.?”> Moreover he gave, as we have learnt from the witness of ancient books,"5 one gold chalice of immense weight, out of honour and reverence for the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. He also gave three very beautiful crosses of pure silver and gold, which were brokenin the time of war under King Stephen, when our monks who

witnessed this had gone the way of all flesh." He also decorated the church with cloths both of pure silver and of unadulterated gold," and likewise with very precious stones, with censers and cruets,”” with basins cast and candlesticks beaten from silver, and with many other goods, both fitting for the monks’ uses around the altar and fitting for ecclesiastical propriety. Also, helped by the most pious King Edgar, whose memory should be commemorated, Abbot /Ethelwold made a silver retable worth £300, the crafted form of which exceeded its matter; it remained unharmed and unbroken right up to the time of Abbot Vincent.?? Meanwhile the man of God, like the virtuous woman,?! ‘maketh fine linen, selleth and delivereth it to

the merchant’,”” while through holy religious life and devotion he presented an example of good action changed from good to better. He also hands, so it is said, which he placed larger ones which the blessed Dunstan

for his disciples, who were made two bells with his own in this house with two other is also reputed to have made

with his own hands.?? Besides, the venerable man /Ethelwold made a certain wheel full of little bells, which they call golden because of its gilded metal plates, and set down that on festival days to arouse greater devotion it be turned by moving back and forth.”** Moreover, 279 Small vessels to hold wine or water for use in the Eucharist, or holy water for other

purposes.

280 See also below, vol. ii. 230, 338; De abbatibus, CMA ii. 278.

281 See Prov. 31: 10. ; 292. Prova 1:24: 283 Dodwell, Anglo-Saxon Art, p. 49, rejects the idea that /Ethelwold possessed the skill to do such work in person, on the grounds that ‘if /Ethelwold had indeed possessed the skills and made these objects, they would certainly have been mentioned in the biography of him written by his contemporary, Wulfstan the Cantor, or in the related biography by /Elfric". 284 See also the description in De abbatibus, CMA ii. 278; this specifies that the gold and silver from it was worth £40 when it was destroyed after 1066. Dodwell, Anglo-Saxon Art,

p. 32, suggests that this must be a revival of ‘the old Israelite instrument of devotion—the timbrel’.

340

APPENDIX

ornamenta, cum aumentatione bonorum aliorum, in ecclesia ista usque ad aduentum Normannorum in Angliam. Illo enim tempore erant in hac domo quidam monachi et sacriste de cenobio Gemmeticensi qui ornamenta quam plurima a beato Apelwoldo laboriose adquisita et huic domui collata, tam aurea quam argentea, eruderato penitus argento a rota^ memorata, secum in Normanniam fraudulen-

ter asportauerunt.^?? Attendens etiam diligentius uir uenerabilis Apelwoldus illud autenticum quo dicitur ‘de altari uiuant qui altari seruiunt',6 similiter et illud euuangelicum ‘dignus est operarius mercede sua'/? Singulis diebus horis statutis fils suis in uinea Domini laborantibus annonam huiuscemodi sub certa astipulatione consti-

tuit./? Monachis Abbendonie ad mensam

discumbentibus, unus-

quisque panem accipiat sibi deputatum de frumento puro quinque marcis parem in pondere, unde uersus ille *Panis Abbendonie par marcis pondere quinque'. Ad istum panem frustum casei ad talem et tantam magnitudinem singulis diebus apponi constituit ut infra quinque dies pondus Abbendunense, quod tunc constabat ex uiginti duabus petris, ut ex antiquorum accepimus attestatione, penitus expenderetur. Constituit etiam mon(a)chis istius loci Deo et beate Marie in [i. 346] perpetuum seruientibus quaqua die duo genera leguminum ante generale, et pulmentum post generale; unum etiam generale et unam pitantiam eis constituit quibus ad refectionem sine crapula uesci possent? In albis unam pitantiam plus quam in aliis diebus constituit, in cappis duas pitantias preter generale, in precipuis festiuitatibus tres pitantias preter generale, et in eisdem diebus

artocreas, et ad cenam oblata constituit./? In quadragesimali uero * corr. from aromata

75 De abbatibus also mentions this incident, placing it soon after the Norman Conquest; CMA ii. 278. The Jumiéges link probably was connected to Abbot Adelelm, or possibly Abbot Reginald, both of whom had been monks at that house; see vol. ii, pp. xl, xlii. The History elsewhere blames William I’s queen for the removal of Abingdon ornaments; above,

p. 224.

2 (Cor (Coe OF teh, 87 Luke ro: 7; see also 1 Tim. 5: 18. *88 For comment on the remainder of this chapter, see above, p. clxxii. *8° *Generals' were the two dishes of cooked food specified in the Rule of St Benedict, c. 39, often with an additional third main dish. Pittances were additional dishes, of various foods, often of higher quality than generals. Pulmentum, here translated pottage, was a

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

341

the ornaments enumerated above, together with the increase of other goods, were in this church right up to the coming of the Normans to England. At that time there were in this house certain monks and sacrists from the monastery of Jumiéges who deceitfully took away with them to Normandy very many ornaments laboriously acquired and conferred on this house by the blessed /Ethelwold, both golden and silver, with the silver having been completely stripped from the

aforementioned wheel.”*° Also, the venerable man /Ethelwold paid very diligent attention to that authority by which it is said that *they live of the altar who wait at

the altar"*? and likewise to that Gospel by which it is said ‘the labourer is worthy of his hire’.”*” Each day for his sons labouring in the vineyard of the Lord at the fixed hours he set down an allowance

of the following sort, firmly corroborated.? When the monks of Abingdon were sitting at the table, each was to receive his allocation of pure wheaten bread equal in weight to five marks, whence the verse ‘An Abingdon loaf is equal to five marks in weight’. To this bread he set down to be added a piece of cheese each day of such and so great a size that within five days should be entirely expended an Abingdon weight, which then consisted of twenty-two stone, as we have learnt from the testimony of aged men. He also set down each day for the monks of that monastery serving God and the blessed Mary for ever two types of legumes before the generals, and a dish of pottage after the generals; he also set down one general and one pittance for those by whom they could be eaten without gluttony.?? On festivals in albs, he set down one pittance more than on other days, on those in copes two pittances besides the generals, on the foremost festivals three pittances besides generals, and on those days he set down meat pies, and thin pastries for

supper.?? In place of cheese during Lent, indeed, he set down for vegetable or cereal dish. For the various dishes, see B. Harvey, Living and Dying in England rroo—r540: The Monastic Experience (Oxford, 1993), pp. 10-11. 290 Monks had either one or two meals a day, depending on the time of year and the liturgical status of the day. The first or only meal was called prandium, here translated as ‘dinner’. The later was called cena, here translated as ‘supper’. Of the four levels of feasts, those in albs were the second lowest; above them came those in copes, and at the top the half dozen greatest feasts of all; see The Monastic Breviary of Hyde Abbey, Winchester, ed. J. B. L. Tolhurst (6 vols., Henry Bradshaw Society, lix, Ixx, lxxi, Ixxvi, Ixxviii, Ixxx (1930-42)),vi. 146-7; The Monastic Constitutions of Lanfranc, rev. edn., ed. D. Knowles and C. N. L. Brooke (OMT, 2002), esp. pp. 70-104; Knowles, Monastic Order, p. 464. Oblata would normally refer to wafers used in the celebration of the Eucharist, but this is clearly not the meaning here; see also Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. Obley.

342 tempore, grossam fratrum onomate

APPENDIX loco casei, cotidie, cum lac acidum dic*ntur,"?

constituit unicuique fratrum unam anguillam generale. In estate uero constituit ad cenam in uasis pulcherrimis que ‘Creches’ uulgari a die que dicitur Hokedai usque ad festum

sancti Michaelis,?' qualibet die. A festo uero sancti Michaelis usque ad festum sancti Martini,? lac dulce secunda^ die. Vas uero quod ‘creche’ nuncupatur septem polices continet quoad^ profunditatem a summitate unius usque ad profundum lateris alterius. Constituit etiam placenta quinque diebus ebdomade Pasche, et in ebdomada Pentecostes quinque diebus, et in die sancti Marchii euuangeliste, tribus diebus rogationum, die ascensionis Dominice. Ad mensuram potus monachorum, uir uenerabilis Apelwoldus quandam assisam, non ultra rationabilem sufficientiam progredientem nec citra deficientem, constituendam perutile fore diiudicauit. fo. 85" Constituit |itaque cifum quendam magnum, flasconem et dimidium, scilicet duas caritates et eo amplius, in se plenarie continentem, quem cifum antiqui ‘bollam Apelwoldi' uocabant. Hac uero mensura" bis in die obbe monachorum implebantur, scilicet ad prandium et ad cenam. In festiuis etiam diebus constituit eis siue in albis siue in cappis idromellum, uidelicet ad prandium inter sex fratres sextarium et ad cenam inter duodecim fratres sextarium. In precipuis uero diebus quas apud nos principales obseruamus, scilicet natali Domini, in Pascha, ‘in Pentecoste, in assumptione' sancte Marie et in natiuitate [i. 347] eius, in natale apostolorum Petri et Pauli, in festiuitate omnium sanctorum, uinum illis constituit ad mensuram qua prius de idromello ad prandium, et ad cenam idromellum. Hec uero et his similia tam habundanter tamque circ*mspecte constituit ut non solum monachi quoad usum uictus sustentarentur, uerum etiam pauperes ex eorum reliquiis propensius recrearentur. Preterea uidens uir uenerabilis quod in maxima parte diminute essent ueritates a filis hominum et magis ac magis in posterum diminuende, timens sibi ac suis ne consuetudines inanteis assignate per processum temporis aut deteriorarentur, aut in peius mutarentur, uel etiam penitus adnullarentur, fecit quod potuit et firmiter prohibuit sub anatematis interminatione ne quis successorum suorum in peius mutare presumeret aut uariare, nisi forte zelo ! over erasure abbreviation mark

* qui ad MS D]

‘ corr. from mensuram

over erasure

" ie. from the second Tuesday after Easter until 29 Sept.

by erasure of final

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

343

each brother one large eel a day, with the generals. In summer, on each day from the day that is called Hock-day right up to the feast of

St Michael,?' he set down for the brethren's supper sour milk in

most beautiful vessels which are called by the vernacular name of

‘Creches’;””” from the feast of St Michael right up to the feast of St Martin"? sweet milk every second day. The vessel, indeed, which is called a ‘Creche’, contains seven inches in depth from the top of one side to the bottom of the other. He also set down loaves for five days in Easter week, five days in Whitsun week, and on the day of Mark the evangelist, the three days of Rogation, and the day of the Lord’s Ascension. As to the measure of the monks’ drink, the venerable man /Ethelwold judged that it would be very useful to set down a certain fixed allowance, neither passing nor falling short of a reasonable sufficiency. He therefore set down a certain great flagon, fully containing in itself a gallon and a half, that is two special measures and more, which flagon men of old used to call */Ethelwold's bowl’. Twice a day, indeed, that is for dinner and for supper, the monks’ drinking vessels were filled with this measure. Also, on festival days either in albs or in copes he set down for them mead, that is a sester between six brethren at dinner and a sester between twelve brethren at supper. On the foremost feast days, indeed, which we observe as principal amongst ourselves, that is Christmas, Easter, Whitsun, the Assumption of St Mary and her Nativity, the birth of the apostles Peter and Paul, the feast of All Saints, he set down wine for them at dinner in the amount which previously they had of mead, and mead for supper. These and things similar to them indeed, he set down so abundantly and so prudently that not only were the monks supported as to use of food, but also the poor were more readily revived from their leftovers. Besides, the venerable man saw that truths were in the greatest part diminished by the sons of men and should be diminished more and more in future, and feared for himself and his men lest customs assigned earlier should either deteriorate through the passage of time, or be changed for the worse, or even be totally annulled; so he did what he could and firmly prohibited under threat of anathema that any of his successors should presume to change for the worse or ?? This is most likely related to the OE ‘cruce’, referring to an earthenware pot; related words also appear in Old French, as ‘cruie’, ‘cruise’, ‘cruche’.

293 ie. 29 Sept.-11 Nov.

344

APPENDIX

caritatis succensus easdem consuetudines de bono in melius aumentare decreuisset./?^ Orauit etiam pro domo ista antequam ad episcopatum Wintoniensem uocatus esset orationem. Cuius orationis tenor hic est: B208. Oratio sancti Adelwoldi.”” Deus eterne, ante cuius conspectum assistunt angeli, et cuius nutu reguntur uniuersa, protege Domine, quesumus, locum istum qui in nomine tuo et beate Marie constructum est, et per uirtutem nominis tui recedat ab eo uirtus inimicorum umbraque fantasmatum et incursio turbinum, percussio fulminum, lesio tonitruum, calamitas tempestatuum, omnisque spiritus procellarum. Preterea quesumus, [i. 348] Domine, ut non ignis domum istam consumat nec hom*o inicus^ per superbiam eam destruat, sed tu, piissime Deus, conserua eam et guberna, multiplicique fructuum ubertate pinguescat, ut omnes habitantes in ea uoce et corde te imnizent et suaui modulatione nomen tuum magnificent, et super eos descendat benedictio tua et super locum istum, maneatque semper. Per Dominum nostrum. B209. Sanctus Adelwoldus factus est episcopus ab Adgaro rege.^?* Above, c. 71. B210. De morte Edgari regis." Edgaro rege Anglorum illustrissimo uiam uniuerse carnis feliciter ingresso, cuius animo propitiatur Deus," successit ei in hereditatem filius eius Edwardus, uir memorande memorie. Iste uero, per processum temporis, tam morum grauitate quam uite sanctitate pollebat, ut antequam humanitus ei contigisset in terra positus

uitam angelicam actitare ab omnibus uideretur? His enim dum regnaret, de Kingestuna Abbendunensi ecclesie septem hidas concessit et de concessu his litteris roborauit:

B208 ^ for iniquus

/* See vol. ii. 332-6 on Abbot Faritius's changes to /Ethelwold's arrangements. ?5 Wulfstan, Life of /Ethelwold, ed. Lapidge and Winterbottom, p. Ixxxv, states that ‘this prayer does not occur in any earlier source, and the attribution to /Ethelwold may well derive from genuine tradition. It bears no marks of /Ethelwold's characteristic inclination towards ostentatious (especially Greek-based) vocabulary, yet it has a fine rhetorical sentence-structure, implying that its author was a Latinist of some competence. The question is best left open.” At Life of /Ethelwold, p. lxxxv n. 158, the editors note that the prayer is also preserved in the so-called Abingdon Breviary of 1528. They do not discuss

TEXT AND TRANSLATION

OF MS B

345

modify these customs, unless, by chance, fired by the zeal of charity he decide to improve them from good to better.?* He also prayed a prayer for this house before he was called to the bishopric of Winchester. The terms of his prayer are as follows:

B208. Prayer of St Athelwold.” Eternal God, before whose sight angels sit, and at whose will everything is ruled, Lord protect, we beseech, this monastery which has been built in Your name and the blessed Mary's, and through the might of Your name may there recede from it the might of enemies and the shadow of apparitions and the attack of whirlwinds, the striking of lightning bolts, the assault of thunder, the calamity of tempests, and every wind of storms. Besides, we beseech, Lord, that fire may not consume this house nor spiteful man destroy it through pride, but You, most pious God, guard and govern it, and let it grow rich with the manifold abundance of fruits, so that all living in it may sing Your praises with voice and heart and magnify Your name in sweet music, and may Your blessing descend on them and on this monastery, and remain for ever. Through our Lord. B209. St /Ethelpold is made a bishop by King Edgar.?”° Above, c. 71. Baro. Concerning the death of King Edgar.” When Edgar, most illustrious king of the English, happily went the

way of all flesh, to whose soul may God be rendered favourable,?? his son Edward succeeded him in his inheritance, a man whose memory should be commemorated [975]. Through the passage of time, indeed, that man exerted power by both the seriousness of his behaviour and the holiness of his life, so that before he had suffered the fate of mankind, placed on earth he was seen by all to lead the

angelic life.?? While he was reigning, he granted seven hides at Kingston to the church of Abingdon, and he strengthened the grant with these letters: why it appears only in the later version of the History. Lapidge, '/Ethelwold as scholar and teacher’, p. 100, describes the traditional link to /Ethelwold as ‘credible enough’. 296 This is the first occasion in which MS B copies an entire section of narrative from MS C; see above, p. xxxviii.

297 Cf. above, c. 91. ?5 Cf Exod. 30: 16. Similar phrases were used in the liturgical commemoration of the dead.

299 A phrase also used above, B83, concerning /Ethelwold.

346

APPENDIX

Bau. Carta sancti Edwardi martiris de septem hidis in Kingestune.* Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 116; above, c. 92. [i. 352] B212. Item carta Edwardi regis de tredecim hidis in Kingestun. fo. 86°

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 1 1707

[i. 354] B213 Quomodo Osgarus abbas emit uiginti hidas in Kingestun. fo. 87°

Li. 356]

Above, c. 93.

B214.^ Edwardo?' rege Anglorum dolo /Elfthripe nouerce sue ad celestia per martirium translato," a sanctis archipresulibus Dunstano et Oswaldo

et decem episcopis in Cingestune ad regni fastigium

Apelredus frater eius, filius Edgari et /Elfthripe, consecratur.*”* 'The remainder of this section is identical to c. 95 above, *Qui, ubi imperitandi . . . fit obstaculo." [i. 357] B21s. De Edwino abbate.*

'The opening three sentences and the last sentence of this section are identical to c. 96 above, except that the name of Eadwine's brother is changed from /Elfric to Eadric, who is said to be son of JElfhere, ealdorman of the Mercians. The passage ‘Qua etiam tempestate . . . graue iniungit’ is replaced by: Nec tamen de his uindicta Dei abfuit diutius. Denique uir pro quo fo. 87"

monasterialis summa?"

ue|niit non multo post regiam offensam

incurrens, a patria ista exul in Datiam depellitur, sed non multo post rediens Danos secum adduxit qui multo tempore patriam uastauerunt. B216. De morte Edmini abbatis.

Above, c. 97.

B211

^ an illustration of the king appears at the start ofthis charter

B214 ^ the rubricator failed to provide a heading, although the appropriate space had been left ?9 Sawyer, no. 828. This charter records Edward granting thirteen hides at Kingston Bagpuize to Bishop /Elfstan, probably of Ramsbury. The date given in the charter is 956, showing that the draftsman had been carelessly copying from an earlier diploma, probably B154 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 61). Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 456, states of this charter and the preceding one, that ‘it is not easy to decide the status of these texts’. They could be classified as Abingdon forgeries made very soon after the purported grants, or they may be ‘official and genuine (if incompetent) royal diplomas, drawn up at Abingdon between 975 and 978 with King Edward's permission’. Sec also the opinions on authenticity noted at the revised Sawyer, no. 828. The context of the charters may be a reorganization of the land; see above, p. 134 n. 285.

TEXT AND TRANSLATION

OF MS B

347

Bair. Charter of St Edward the martyr concerning seven hides in Kingston. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 116; above, c. 92. B212. Likewise, the charter of King Edward concerning thirteen hides in Kingston. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 117.°°° B213. How Abbot Osgar bought twenty hides in Kingston. Above, c. 93.

B214. When? Edward king of the English had been translated to Heaven?" through martyrdom by the trickery of his step-mother /Elfthryth, his brother /Ethelred, son of Edgar and /Elfthryth, was consecrated to the most exalted position in the kingdom by the saintly

archbishops Dunstan and Oswald and by ten bishops at Kingston.?? The remainder of this section is identical to c. 95 above, ‘When he acquired . . . defensive protection.’ B215. Concerning Abbot Eadwine>™ The opening three sentences and the last sentence of this section are identical to c. 96 above, except that the name of Eadwine's brother is changed from /Elfric to Eadric, who is said to be son of /Elfhere ealdorman of the Mercians. The passage ‘Also at that time . . . for payment’ is replaced by: Nor, however, was God's vengeance absent for too long concerning these matters. Not long afterwards the man on behalf of whom the monastic command was sold? incurred royal displeasure and was expelled as an exile from this country to Denmark, but not long afterwards he returned and brought Danes with him who for a long time laid waste to this country. B216. Concerning the death of Abbot Eadwine. Above c. 97. 9"! Cf. above, c. 95. _ 3 Cf. Edward the Confessor, below, p. 370. 303 The passage ‘a sanctis . . . ad regni fastigium" follows verbatim John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 430. 304 This section is very similar to that in MS C, c. 96, above, except for the sentences ‘Nor, however . . . to this country.” On Eadwine, and losses in his time, see above, pp. xcix, cxliv. 395 The composers of the History do not use the unusual phrase ‘monasterialis summa’ elsewhere, and it could be a mistake. The only use of the word ‘veniit’ in the Bible is John 12: 5, when the speaker is Judas Iscariot.

348

APPENDIX

B217. De priuilegio Adelredi regis." Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 124; above, c. 98.

B218. Hucusque de ecclesie libertate; nunc uero de terrarum restitutionem subinferendum. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 129; above, c. 99.

B219. Carta Adelredi regis de Ernicote. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 119. B220. Carta regis Adelredi de Cerne. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 128; above, c. 101.

B221. Carta regis Adelred de Mordune. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 135; above, c. 102. B222. Hec suni terre que Adelredus rex dedit famulis suis, et ipsi de consensu regis ecclesie Abbendonensi.*° Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 95.99 .

B223. Carta regis Adelredi de Cheorletun. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 118.9? B224. Carta regis Adelredi de duabus hidis in Draitun Suttun.>" Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 120?!

et una

B217 ^ an illustration of the king appears at the start of this charter

30° Sawyer, no. 843. This charter records /Ethelred granting two hides in Arncott, Oxfordshire, to Abingdon. It is dated 983. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 463, states that ‘as far as can be determined, [the document] is authentic’. DB i, fo. 156", records Robert d'Oilly and Roger d'Ivry holding two hides in Arncott from Abingdon. For the postConquest history of the estate, see vol. ii. 34, 194, 266. This charter probably appeared on a missing folio of MS C. 37 The heading applies not just to the charter which immediately follows, but to those in succeeding sections as well. The beneficiaries vary from major thegns such as Wulfric Spot to relatively minor thegns, to household officials; I have therefore chosen the relatively neutral ‘followers’ to translate *famuli'; ‘thegns’ would be another possible translation.

9* Sawyer, no. 833. This charter describes /Ethelred granting woodland to his thegn, Leofric. It is dated 962 (a single numeral ‘c’ has slipped from the date in Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 385). Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 385—6, describes it as ‘a curious document. . . . the text as it stands must be regarded as spurious, even though the motivation for fabrication is unclear'. The witnesses are appropriate for the date 962, so the king's name ought to be Edgar. Given that the king's name appears three times in the text, this is presumably a deliberate change, not a slip. Leofric cannot be identified with any

TEXT AND TRANSLATION OF MS B

349

B217. Concerning King /Ethelred's privilege. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 124; above, c. 98.

B218. Up to here concerning the church's liberty; now indeed is to be added concerning the restitution of lands. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 129; above, c. 99. B219. Charter of King /Ethelred concerning Arncott.. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 119.99 B220. Charter of King /Ethelred concerning Cerney. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 128; above, c. 101. B221. Charter of King Athelred concerning Moredon. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 135; above, c. 102. B222. These are the lands that King Athelred gave to his followers, and they by the king’s consent gave to the church of Abingdon.>” Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 95.599 B223. Charter of King /Ethelred concerning Charlton. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 118.5?

B224. Charter of King A:thelred concerning two hides in Drayton and one in Sutton." Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 120.2!

certainty, nor can the location of the woods; for suggestions, see Charters ofAbingdon Abbey,

pp. 386-7. 39 Sawyer, no. 839. This charter records /Ethelred granting five hides at Charlton to his thegn /Elfgar. It is dated 982. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 459, states that it ‘is probably authentic’. /Elfgar cannot be identified with certainty, as he bears a common name. See above, B159 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 69) for King Eadwig granting five hides in Charlton to his thegn Wulfric. This may be the same estate. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, Pp. 293, notes that a man called Tovi held a total of five hides in Charlton in 1066 (DB i, fos. 60*, 61"), and suggests that these could be the five hides mentioned in this charter. 310 Tt is unclear why the rubric differs from the charter as to the number of hides given. 311 Sawyer, no. 851. This charter records /Ethelred granting three hides in Drayton and one and a half hides in Sutton Courtenay to his man Wulfgar. It is dated 983. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 466, states that it ‘appears to be authentic’. The beneficiary is probably Wulfgar the king’s butler; a problematic charter below, B231 (Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, no. 130), states that /Ethelred gave Abingdon three hides in Drayton and two at Sutton Courtenay, which had previously belonged to Wulfgar the butler. DB i, fo. 59', records Abingdon having one hide at Sutton Courtenay. It is possible that the small estate mentioned in this charter was related to the two-hide manor Drayton which Eadnoth the Staller held from Earl Harold TRE; DB i, fo. 60°.

350

APPENDIX

B225. Carta regis Adelredi de duabus mansis in Dumbeltune.?? Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. raf MP B226. Carta regis Adelredi de Osanleia. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 121.?*

B227. Carta regis Adelredi Eardulfeslea. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 125.°"° B228. Carta Adelredi regis. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 122.

316

B229. Carta regis Adelredi de Witune. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 123.7 B230. Carta regis Adelredi de Bensingtun. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 127.7? B231. Carta Adelredi regis de tribus hidis in Draitun et duobus in Suttun. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 130.?? ?? Again there is an inconsistency between the rubric, which specifies a grant of two hides, and the charter, which specifies two and a half hides.

35 Sawyer, no. 886. The charter also survives as a single-sheet copy from the second half of the 13th c., London, British Library, Cotton Augustus ii. 48, and a 16th-c. copy of a lost single sheet, Cambridge, Corpus Christi College 111, pp. 175-8. This charter records /Ethelred granting two and a half hides in Dumbleton to his thegn Wulfric. It also explains how a previous holder, /Ethelsige, had forfeited the land to the king, who initially gave it to his man Hawase. It then passed to Wulfric son of Wulfrun, that is Wulfric Spot, a very wealthy thegn with extensive Mercian estates; Anglo-Saxon Wills, ed. Whitelock, pp. 152—3; Charters of Burton Abbey, ed. P. H. Sawyer (Anglo-Saxon Charters, 2; Oxford, 1979), pp. xxxviii-xliii. It is dated 995. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 492, states that it ‘seems entirely acceptable as an authentic charter of King /Ethelred'. In his will, Wulfric probably left this land to /Elfric archbishop of Canterbury, who had also received twenty-four hides at Dumbleton from King /Ethelred; below, B233, Anglo-Saxon Wills, ed. Whitelock, pp. 153—4. /Elfric in his own will left Dumbleton to Abingdon, with the exception of three hides to be retained for life by /Elfnoth the sitting tenant; above, c. 105, below, B235 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 133). Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 493, suggests that those hides may well ‘essentially represent’ the lands given to Wulfric in the present charter. ?* Sawyer, no. 85z. This charter records /Ethelred granting two hides in Osanleia to his thegn /Elfheah. It is dated 984. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 468, states that it ‘is probably authentic’, although in the dating clause the indiction does not match the incarnation date, probably through scribal error. Osanlea cannot be identified with any certainty; Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 469. More than one thegn called /Elfheah appears in /Ethelred's reign; note e.g. Charters of Burton Abbey, ed. Sawyer, no. 32. Apart from the presence of this charter in the archive, there is no other evidence of Abingdon interest in this land.

?5 Oxfordshire. Sawyer, no. 883, trans. EHD, i. no. 118. This charter records /Ethelred granting five hides to /Ethelwig, the estate having previously been forfeited to the king. It is dated 995, the indiction probably being wrong through scribal error. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 486, states that the document *has a number of problems, and its authenticity is not beyond doubt’. Apart from the presence of this charter in the archive, there is no other

TEXT AND TRANSLATION OF MS B

351

B225. Charter of King Athelred concerning two hides in Dumbleton3" Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 126.2? B226. Charter of King /Ethelred concerning Osanleia. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 121?!*

B227. Charter of King ZEthelred concerning Ardley. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 125. B228. King A:thelred’s charter.

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 122.?!* B229. Charter of King Athelred concerning Wootton. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 123.

B230. Charter of King Athelred concerning Benson. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 127.2? B231. Charter of King A:thelred concerning three hides in Drayton and two in Sutton. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 130.°” evidence of Abingdon interest in this land. DB i, fo. 157', records that in 1086 Robert d'Oilly held Ardley from Earl Hugh of Chester, with an assessment of five hides. Note vol. ii. 24 for Earl Hugh acquiring land in Berkshire claimed by Abingdon; however, there is no evidence of such a claim to Ardley. 316 Sawyer, no. 855. This charter records /Ethelred granting eight hides on the river Kennet to his thegn Beorhtric. It is dated 984. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 472, states that ‘there seems no reason to suspect that [the document] is other than authentic’. The boundary clause, and the rubric to the charter in Edward the Confessor's name supposedly granting the land to Abingdon, above, c. 135, identify the land as Leverton. 317 Sawyer, no. 858. This charter records /Ethelred granting ten hides to his thegn Leofwine. It is dated 985. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 475, states that it ‘is clearly authentic’. Leofwine cannot be identified with certainty. Wootton may have been included in the twenty-five hides ‘at Bayworth’ which Eadwig gave /Elfric, above, c. 53. In Domesday Book, Wootton was probably included in the large manor of Cumnor, held by Abingdon;

DB i, fo. 58". 318 Sawyer, no. 887. This charter records /Ethelred giving two hides at Benson, Oxfordshire, to three brothers who were his men, Eadric, Eadwig, and Ealdred. It is dated 996. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 495, states that ‘there is no good reason to question [the document’s] authenticity’. Kelly points out, p. 496, that the two hides ‘need not have been located within the present parish of Benson, but could have been carved from any property, close or distant, formerly dependent on the royal vill’. Apart from the presence of this charter in the archive, there is no other evidence of Abingdon interest in this land. In 1086 the king held eleven hides three virgates at Benson, a king’s thegn [minister] called William one hide, Theodoric the goldsmith two hides; DB i, fos. 154", 160". For Abingdon receiving a mill at Benson in the mid- or late 1150s, see vol. ii. 316. 319 Sawyer, no. 897. This charter records /Ethelred granting three hides in Drayton and two in Sutton Courtenay to Abingdon. The previous holder is specified as Wulfgar the butler. The document is a very rare instance of a charter in favour of the abbey appearing

352 i. 408] . 100°

i. 411]

. 100

APPENDIX

B232. Carta regis Adelredi de Haseleie. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 1 5 00 B233. Quis abbatiam Burtune fundauit.?! His diebus quidam minister Apelredi regis Anglorum, dictus Wlfricus Spot, construxit abbatiam Burtun uocatam deditque ei omnem hereditatem paternam, appreciatam dcc. libras. Et ut hec donatio rata haberetur, dedit Apelredo regi .ccc. mancas auri pro eius confirmatione, et unicuique episcopo quinque mancas, et duobus archiepiscopis decem mancas, insuper Alfrico archiepiscopo Chantuarie uillam Dumbeltonam, a predecessoribus suis ab ecclesia Abbendonensi iniuste ablatam, et unicuique abbati^ libram auri, et unicuique et abbatisse quinque mancas.

B234. Carta Adelredi regis de Dummeltun. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 132; above, c. 104. [i. 416] fo. 102"

B235. Testamentum Alfrici archiepiscopi. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 133.7?

i. 417] B236. Quod Latine sic interpretatur.

Above, c. 105. - 419] B237. Carta regis Apelredi de Waltham. . I02" [i. 422]

fo. 103"

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 134.7? B238. Carta regis Adelredi Hwittchureke.*** Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 136.

B233 ^" abbatie MS only in MS B. It is dated 1000. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 508-9, suggests of the charter's omission from MS C that ‘it may simply have been overlooked, but there is some possibility that it did not come into existence until a later date. . . . There can be little doubt that [the document} was drawn up at Abingdon, and it seems most likely that it should be regarded as spurious, or at best dubious.’ Kelly points out the lack of a proper royal style, conventional royal subscription, and also ‘some surprising errors’. Another possibility is that this charter, like that concerning Arncott, above, B219, appeared on a missing folio of MS C; see above, above, p. xlvii. 9? Sawyer, no. 902. This charter records /Ethelred granting ten hides at Little Haseley, Oxfordshire, to his thegn Godwine, receiving in return payment of 30 mancuses of pure gold. It is dated 1002. Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, p. 511, states that the document ‘is probably authentic", although the indiction does not coincide with the incarnation date. The grantee cannot be identified with certainty, although he may be the son of Ealdorman /Elfheah, on whom see Williams, ‘Princeps Merciorum gentis, pp. 171-2. Apart from the

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AND

TRANSLATION

353

B232. Charter of King A:thelred concerning Haseley. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 131.°”° B233. Who founded the abbey of Burton.?"! In these days a certain thegn of /Ethelred king of the English, called Wulfric Spot, built the abbey called Burton and gave it all his paternal inheritance, worth £700. So that this donation might be held strong, he gave 300 mancuses of gold to King /Ethelred for his confirmation, and 5 mancuses to each bishop and 10 mancuses to the two archbishops, and also to Archbishop /Elfric of Canterbury the village of Dumbleton, unjustly taken from the church of Abingdon by his predecessors, and a pound of gold to each abbot and 5 mancuses to each abbess. B234. Charter of King /Ethelred concerning Dumbleton. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 132; above, c. 104.

B235. Archbishop Alfric’s will. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 133.7? B236. Which is translated thus in Latin. Above, c. 105. B237. Charter of King /Ethelred concerning Waltham. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 134.7? B238. Charter of King A:thelred concerning Whitchurch.?" Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 136; cf. above, c. 140, and below, B280. presence of this charter in the archive, there is no other evidence of Abingdon interest in this land. 321 On possible sources for this section, see above, p. xlii. 322 Sawyer, no. 1488; Anglo-Saxon Wills, ed. Whitelock, no. 18; also trans EHD, i. no. 126. The will is dateable to 1002 x 1005. For commentary, see above, c. 105, the Latin version of the will included in MS C. 93 Sawyer, no. 915. This charter records /Ethelred granting eight hides at Waltham St Lawrence to his reeve /Elfgar. /Elfgar had asked the king for the land in return for 300 mancuses of purest gold and silver. Gelling, Early Charters of the Thames Valley, p. 64, suggests that the price is too high, and should be 30 mancuses. However, we know too little about the background of the transaction for any certainty in this respect. The charter is dated 1007. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 524, states that the document ‘appears to be authentic’. See also above, B68 (Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 32), for a charter of Edmund recording his grant of thirty hides at Waltham to his thegn, /Elfsige; the present charter would concern a portion of that land. The eight hides may be those held by Queen

Edith TRE; DB i, fo. 56". 324 For the repetition of this charter, see above, p. xlvi.

354 [i. fo.

[i. fo.

[i.

APPENDIX

B239. Carta regis Adelredi de Chiltune. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 137.7? B240. De Alfifa que reddidit Chelgraue et Bultesmurpe. Above, c. 106.

B241. De Alfled que reddidit Winkefeld. Above, c. 107. B242. De Edwio qui reddidit Bedene. Above, c. 108.

fo.

[i.

B243. De prophetia sancti Dunstani.*”° Tempore uero istius Apelredi, ut predixit beatus Dunstanus dum capiti eius regale imponeret diadema, subito facta est regni permutatio. Breui etenim tempore sex archiepiscopi, scilicet Dunstanus, Liuingus, Alfgarus, Siricius, Alfricus, Alfegus Cantuariensis ecclesie cathedram adepti archiepiscopalem cesserunt in fatum, ad hoc forte hac luce priuati, ne piorum patrum pia misericordia in posterum sibi insurgere filios uideret degeneres. Nec hoc solum, uerum etiam maiores natu et dignitate potentiores, immo cuiuscumque essent conditionis tam uiros quam mulieres tocius Anglie repentinus irruit pauor pariter et uastatio. Enimuero gens barbarica, scilicet Danorum, nauali uehiculo cum rege suo Swano in Angliam aduentasse perhibetur, que tantam ubique locorum ferocitatem exercuit pariter et impietatem ut nec dignitati uel etati, sexui parcerent aut conditioni. Quorum depopulationi simul et insultui cum gens Anglicana uideret se minime posse resistere, hii propter metum mortis, alii causa rei seruande, nonnulli etiam proditorie ad regem Danorum se contulerunt. Sicque factum est ut regnum ipsum in se diuisum flebiliter

desolaretur.?^" Quid multa? Rex Apelredus, uidens se alienatum tam a fidelitate quam a consortio suorum, Normanniam una cum uxore sua

et liberis gressu petiit festinanti.? Regnauit itaque Swanus in Anglia ?5 Sawyer, no. 934. This charter records /Ethelred granting five hides in Chilton to Byrhtwold bishop of Ramsbury, the estate having previously been forfeited to the king by a thegn called Wulfgeat. It is dated 1015. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 538, states that the document ‘is probably authentic’. See above, c. 133, for a very dubious charter of Edward the Confessor granting Chilton to Abingdon, and for further notes on the estate. Note also above, p. 330, for separate inclusion of the bounds of an area of woodland associated with Chilton.

?5 Cf. above, c. 109. On Dunstan’s prophecies, see e.g. S. Keynes, ‘The declining reputation of King /Ethelred the Unready’, in D. Hill, ed., Zthelred the Unready: Papers

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

355

B239. Charter of King /Ethelred concerning Chilton. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 137.7? B240. Concerning Alfgifu who gave back Chalgrave and Bulthesworthe. Above, c. 106. B241. Concerning Eadfled who gave back Winkfield. Above, c. 107.

B242. Concerning Eadwine who gave back Beedon. Above, c. 108. B243. Concerning St Dunstan’s prophecy.*”° In /Ethelred's time, indeed, as the blessed Dunstan foretold while he was placing the royal diadem on his head, suddenly a transformation of the kingdom occurred. For in a short time six archbishops, that is Dunstan, Lyfing, /Ethelgar, Sigeric, /Elfric, and /Elfheah, acquired the archiepiscopal throne of the church of Canterbury but then yielded to death, deprived of this light perhaps for this reason, so that the pious mercy of pious fathers might not see ignoble sons rise up against them in future. Nor this alone, but also sudden terror and ravaging too rushed down upon the greater by birth and the more powerful by rank, and also upon both the men and the women of the whole of England, of whatever standing. For a barbaric people, that is the Danes, are reported to have come by sea transport to England with their king, Swein, and everywhere exercised such ferocity and impiety too that they spared neither rank nor age, sex nor standing. When the English people saw they could not resist the Danes? devastation and assault at all, some went over to the king of the Danes for fear of death, others to preserve possessions, others still out of treachery. And so it happened that that kingdom divided against

itself was lamentably brought to desolation." What's more, when King /Ethelred saw that he had lost the loyalty and company of his

men, he swiftly sought Normandy, with his wife and children." So from the Millenary Conference (British Archaeological Reports, British Series, lix; 1978),

pp. 227—53, at pp. 236-9.

327 Matt. 12: 25 ‘Omne regnum divisum contra se desolabitur.’ 328 Emma in fact went to Normandy before /Ethelred in 1013. The /Ethelings too went to Normandy, perhaps separately from their mother. /Ethelred travelled there after Christmas of that year; ASC, s.a. 1013. William of Malmesbury, Gesta regum, bk. ii, c. 178, ed. Mynors et al.,i. 304, says that the king travelled to Normandy in Jan. 1014. Sec also S. Keynes, ‘The /Ethelings in Normandy’, ANS, xiii (1991), 173-205, at pp. 175-6.

APPENDIX

356

paucis diebus, quia regno pariter et uita in^ breui diuino arbitrio est priuatus. Verum post cuius decessum rex Anglorum Apelredus, quam citius potuit a partibus remeans transmarinis, nullo contra-

dicente, regno potitur prius habito.?^? [i. 431] B244. De morte Adelredi regis et de regno Edmundi regis filii sui. Above, c. 110. [i. 433 n.] B245. De morte Wifgari abbatis? fo. 106°

Circa idem tempus domnus Wlfgarus abbas uiam uniuerse carnis ingressus est, cui successit Apelwinus abbas, uir magne auctoritatis et equitatis assertor comprobatus, et iccirco cnu*toni regi familiaris est

effectus.?! Ad cuius etiam admonitiones memoratus rex multa bona huic ecclesie Abbendonie contulit. Dedit namque uillas que Mittune et Linford appellantur, cum omnibus ad se integre pertinentibus, sicut karte ipsius regis subsequentes attestantur. Quarum prima hec est: B246. Carta cnu*tonis regis de Mittune.“ Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 139.7? B247. Carta regis cnu*t de Linford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 138; above, c. 114. B248. Testamentum Adelredi regis.^? As above, c. 115: ‘Illibus diebus . . . largitus est’.

B249. De donis cnu*tonis regis.?* Tecam etiam rex cnu*to de argento et auro ad honorem gloriosissimi martiris Vincentii Hispaniensis, cuius reliquie in hac continentur ecclesia fieri fecit. Dedit etiam memoratus rex huic domui duo signa grossa que usque in hodiernum tempus in ecclesia ista habentur. Abbas etiam Apelwinus hoc tempore capsam unam, ad formam illius capse que per regem facta fuit, pari pene magnitudine condidit, in qua reliquias sanctorum a se diligenter adquisitas honorifice condidit. Fecit etiam crucem argenteam que adhuc in hac ecclesia habetur. B243

" interlin.

B246

^" an illustration of the king appears at the start of this charter

?? Swein died 3 Feb. ro14. After some negotiation, /Ethelred returned, having agreed that he would rule more justly than before; ASC, ‘C’, s.a. 1014. 59 Cf. above, c. 111.

?" On the problems of abbatial succession at this point, see above, p. c. 382 Sawyer, no. 967. This charter records cnu*t granting three hides in Myton,

TEXT AND TRANSLATION

OF MS B

357

Swein ruled for a few days in England, but was soon deprived of the kingdom and also life by divine judgement [3 Feb. 1014]. After his death, /Ethelred king of the English returned from overseas regions as quickly as he could and, with no one contradicting, possessed the

kingdom he had previously had.*

B244. Concerning the death of King A:thelred and the reign of King Edmund his son. Above, c.110. B245. Concerning the death of Abbot Wulfgar.>*° Around that time lord Abbot Wulfgar went the way of all flesh [1016], to whom succeeded Abbot /Ethelwine, a man of great authority and a proven assertor of justice, and therefore made an intimate to King cnu*t.?' Also, urged by him, that king conferred many goods on this church of Abingdon. For he gave the villages called Myton and Lyford, with everything entirely pertaining to them, as the following charters of that king witness. Of these, this is the first: B246. Charter of King cnu*t concerning Myton. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 139.7? B247. Charter of King cnu*t concerning Lyford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 138; above, c. 114. B248. King Athelred’s testament.?? As above, c. 115: ‘In those days . . . large crystal.’ B249. Concerning King cnu*t's gifis.* King cnu*t also had a reliquary of silver and gold made in honour of the most glorious martyr Vincent of Spain, whose relics are kept in this church. That king also gave to this house two large bells which are in this church to the present day. Also at this time Abbot JEthelwine constructed a reliquary of almost equal size, on the model of that made on the king's behalf, in which he honourably set the saints’ relics which he had diligently acquired. He also made a silver cross which is still in this church. Warwickshire, to Abingdon. It is dated 1033. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, pp. 547-9, examines the difficulties of accepting both this charter and c. 113, above, as genuine, although there is no certain reason for condemning either. 333 The section that follows is in fact the grant of eight and a half hides and three reliquaries by a powerful man named /Ethelweard. 334 Cf. above, c. 111.

APPENDIX

358

B250. Quo tempore adlate sunt reliquie sancti Edwards Abbendonie.?? Tempore etiam cnu*tonis regis reliquie sancti Eadwardi regis et martiris, que in^ ista continentur ecclesia, ad hanc domum Abbendonensem mirifice sunt delate, prout in serie passionis et uite gloriosissimi martiris euidentissime continetur.^? B251. De aduentu Siwardi abbatis. Athelwino abbate diem clausit suppremum, successit ei Siwardus, ex [i. 444] Glestoniensi cenobio monachus, tam secularium quam ecclesiasticarum uigore admodum suffultus. Ob cuius etiam benignitatem, quam rex cnu*to ex ipsius pectore iugiter nouit exuberare, memoratus rex ecclesiam sancti Martini in Oxonefordia, cum uno prediolo, huic domui caritatiue contulit.***

fo. 108"

B252. Quomodo uoluit Simardus abbas frangere ecclesiam sancti Adelmoldi.?? Interea dum quadam die, more solito, abbas uenerabilis Siwardus deambularet in curia abbacie, attollens oculos suos ad ecclesiam et ad officinas quas beatus Apelwoldus predecessor eius reedificauerat, proposuit in animo suo ecclesiam pariter cum officinis infringere et in | melius mutare necnon et ampliores reedificare. Quod cum in animo suo iam concepisset, uidens tamen nec se posse nec uelle huiusmodi opus aut sic infringere aut^ aliud reparare sine regis gratia simul et licentia, ex consulto regem adiit petiturus^ ab eo licentiam super huiusmodi negotio propensius exequendo. Nec mora quod a rege petiit, sine repulsu, maturius obtinuit. Itaque cum diucius deliberasset super huiusmodi negotio incoando, attendens diligenter uite sanctitatem uenerabilis uiri Apelwoldi predecessoris sui, qui ipsum opus incoauerat pariter et consummauerat, timuit idem opus infringere, admodum pauidus ne super huiuscemodi facto gloriosissimi confessoris incurreret offensam. Quid multa? De consilio fratrum suorum, indictis sibi aliquot dierum ieiuniis, diuinam implorabant clementiam insuper et beati Apelwoldi patrocinium, quatinus diuinitus eis esset manifestatum, aut de ueteri remanendo, B250

B252

^ iterlin.

° followed by sic, del. by expunction

^ corr. from potiturus

35 Cf. above, p. 182. 336 Oxford, Bodleian Library, Digby 146, contains a version of the Passio of Edward the martyr in a 12th-c. hand probably from Abingdon; C. E. Fell, Edward King and Martyr (Leeds, 1971), p. vi. This does not mention the transfer of Edward’s body to Wareham and its later translation to Shaftesbury, but nor does it specify that the relics were brought to

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

359

B250. At what time St Edward’s relics were brought to Abingdon.?? Also in King cnu*t’s time the relics of St Edward king and martyr, which are kept in this church, were marvellously brought to this house of Abingdon, as is contained most clearly in the account of the passion and life of the most glorious martyr.**° B251. Concerning the coming of Abbot Simard. When Abbot /Ethelwine had passed away [1030], Siward, a monk from the monastery of Glastonbury, succeeded him, strongly supported with vigour concerning both worldly and ecclesiastical matters. Also, because of his kindness, which King cnu*t knew to flow copiously and constantly from his heart, that king charitably conferred on this house the church of St Martin in Oxford, with one small estate.**8

B252. How Abbot Simard wished to demolish St Athelwold’s church.?? Meanwhile, one day the venerable Abbot Siward was walking in the abbey court as was his habit and raised his eyes to the church and the domestic buildings which the blessed /Ethelwold his predecessor had rebuilt, and he mentally proposed to demolish the church and also the domestic buildings, to change them for the better and to rebuild them larger. After conceiving this in his mind, but seeing that without the king's grace and also permission he was neither capable of demolishing nor would wish to demolish such work or to build again another, he deliberately went to the king to seek from him permission concerning pursuing such business the more readily. He immediately obtained what he sought from the king, without rejection. When he had longer considered beginning this business, and paying diligent attention to the holiness of life of the venerable man /Ethelwold his predecessor, who had begun and also completed this work, he feared to demolish it, very frightened lest he incur the anger of the most glorious confessor over such a deed. What's more, by his brethren's counsel, they imposed several days of fasting on themselves and implored divine clemency and also the patronage of the blessed JEthelwold, that it be divinely, made manifest to them what was Abingdon. Perhaps the compiler of the History had access to another version of the passion and life of Edward, or perhaps he was himself concocting an rival version to the Shaftesbury claim to Edward's relics. 337 Cf. above, c. 112. 338 The small estate is presumably Lyford; see above, c. 114, B247. 339 On this chapter, see above, pp. lli.

360

APPENDIX

aut nouo monasterio construendo, quid eis pocius expediret. Et factum est. Post aliquot dies, uiro uenerabili Siwardo abbate in Li. 445] lectulo suo quiescenti, apparuit ei beatus Apelwoldus in sompnis, dicens ‘Quid mente uolutes, quid in posterum de ecclesia mea pariter et edificiis meis diruendis ac iterum reedificandis cogitando tecum deliberes bene noui, et iccirco ueni tibi consulere quid commodius sit agendum super huiuscemodi negotio exequendo. Non est itaque tui temporis hoc meum opus infringere aut aliud edificare. Quod ut certius fidem meis dictis adhibeas, attende diligentius, quod quidam de transmarinis partibus ueniet pater et pastor istius loci futurus, qui ipsum opus infringet et nouum incoabit; sed hoc ipsum non

perficiet.**° Post hunc uero, uenient et alii duo similiter loci pastores futuri, qui multa bona tam edificiis quam in aliis huic loco compe-

tentibus admodum necessarii actitare satagent.**’ Quibus cedentibus in fatum, non erit quispiam per diuturnam temporis protelationem in^ hoc loco pastor et abbas futurus qui consimili modo hunc locum bonis studeat ampliare. Nouissimis uero diebus, erit quidam similiter istius loci abbas futurus qui in Christi uisceribus**” hunc locum tanto amplexabitur affectu ut, bona bonis accumulans, edificia diruens et in melius reedificans, ecclesiam condecorans, ordinem seruans, de

consuetudinibus nichil minuens sed pocius aumentans,

Deum

timens, moribus pollens, uite sanctitate precluus, pius pater et pastor uocari dignus, in pace pectoris pacem prestolabitur eternita-

tis.?^^ His auditis Siwardus, a sompno expergefactus,'? gratias Deo fo. 108"

agere et a proposito suo desistere incepit, et pecuniam quam ad ipsum opus inchoandum coadunauerat diligenter | studuit erogare pauperibus.

Li. 446] B253. De morte cnu*tonis regis.**° Mortuo cnu*tone rege^ necnon et Haraldo filio eius, ex concubina genito, regnauit Hardecnu*tus filius eius ex Emma (quondam Apelredi regis regina). Iste ad monitionem Siwardi abbatis dedit huic domui Ferbergam et carta sua confirmauit. Cuius carte tenor hic est: * edeficiis MS B253 340

^ corr. from ctiam

* corr. from regis

i.e. Reginald; see vol. ii, p. cii.

341 ^". ie. Faritius and Vincent; see vol. ii, pp. cii—ciii. ?9 Cf the argument put into Abbot Faritius’s mouth /Ethelwold’s food provisions; vol. ii. 334.

22 Phil rs: justifying his changes to

** ie. Hugh. The final phrase is also used of King Ceadwalla, above, p. 238.

TEXT

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TRANSLATION

OF MS B

361

better for them, about either letting the old remain or building a new monastery. And so it happened. After a few days, when the venerable man Abbot Siward was resting on his bed, the blessed /Ethelwold appeared to him in his sleep, saying ‘What you turn over in your mind, what you are contemplating by thinking about in future destroying my church and also my buildings and rebuilding again, I know well and therefore I have come to counsel you as to what it is more suitable to do concerning pursuing such business. So, it is not for your time to demolish my work or build another. So that you may display greater faith in my sayings, wait very diligently, that a certain future father and shepherd of this monastery will come from overseas, who will demolish this work and begin a new one; but he will not complete this." After this man, indeed, there will also come two other men likewise shepherds of the monastery, who—greatly needed—will busy themselves doing many good deeds both about

buildings and about other matters relating to this monastery.**? When they yield to death, for a very long period of time there will be no future pastor and abbot in this monastery who will in similar fashion strive to increase this monastery with good deeds. In most recent times, indeed, there will likewise be a future abbot of this monastery

who will embrace this monastery in ‘the bowels of Christ’** with such emotion that piling good things on good, destroying buildings and rebuilding them for the better, adorning the church, preserving the ordered life, diminishing nothing of the customs but rather

augmenting them," God-fearing, strong in behaviour, outstanding in holiness of life, a pious father and worthy of being called shepherd,

in peace of heart will await the peace of eternity.?* When he had heard these things, Siward awoke from sleep?? and began to give thanks to God and to desist from his proposal, and strove diligently to bestow on the poor the money which he had gathered for beginning that work. B253. Concerning the death of King cnu*t. 346 When King cnu*t and also his son Harold, born from a concubine, had died [1035, 1040], Harthacnu*t, his son from Emma (formerly King /Ethelred's queen) reigned. Urged by Abbot Siward, he gave and confirmed by his charter Farnborough to this house. The terms of his charter are as follows: 345 A phrase also used of Robert d'Oilly after his illuminating dream; vol. ii. 330. 346 Cf. above, c. 116.

362

APPENDIX

B254. Carta Hardecnu*ti de Fernberga.* Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, no. 141; above, c. 117. [i. 450] Bass. De morte Ardecnu*ti regis. xs fo. rog"

Successit Hardecnu*to Anglorum regi beatissimus Eadwardus frater

[i. 451] eius, Apelredi quondam Anglorum regis et Emme filius. Annitenti-

bus Edsio Dorobernensi archiepiscopo et Liuingo Wigornensi episcopo et Godwino comite, cuius filiam accepturus erat in reginam," Lundonie leuatur in regem?" et ab archiepiscopis Edsio Dorobernensi* et Alfrico Eboracensi archiepiscopo aliisque ferme totius Anglie primatibus prima die Pasche unguitur in regem Wintonie.?! Cuius beneficia que domui Abbendonie contulit inferius annotabimus. B256. De sancto Eadwardo rege. 352 Anno secundo regni Eadwardi regis, Edsius archiepiscopus Dorobernie, Godwino comite mediante, ab Eadwardo rege impetrauit ut sese causa imbecillitatis proprie labori cedere antisticii, Siwardum li. 452] uero ex Abbendonia abbatem, utpote discretum^ religiosumque uirum, in episcopum Rouecestrie sacratum, suo loco substitui et uice iliius uniuersa dispensari concederet. Quo facto Apelstanus, cenobii predicti tunc edituus, eidem preponitur. B257. Carta Edwardi regis de octo hidis iuxta. Chinete.*

Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, no. 145; cf. above, c. 135, and below, li. 455] B258.* fo. rro"

Charters ofAbingdon Abbey, no. 146; cf. above, c. 133, and below,

B288.* B254 ^* an illustration of the king appears at the start of this charter B255

* corr. from Dorobernensis

B256 * corr. from diseretum B257

^ an illustration of the king appears at the start of this charter

B238 ^" the rubricator failed to provide a heading for this charter which starts at the top of fo. 110°, even though a space had been left at the bottom of fo. 110"

v C£. above, c. 118. :zs Edward was Harthacnu*t’s half-brother, Emma being mother to both of them. 7? Edward married Edith, daughter of Godwine, on 23 Jan. 1045; Handbook of British Chronology, p. 29. 350 : ] sir: . : The phrase ‘Lundonie leuatur in regem! follows verbatim John of Worcester, Chronicle, 3. 534.

TEXT AND TRANSLATION

OF MS B

363

B254. Charter of Harthacnu*t concerning Farnborough. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 141; above, c. 117.

B255. Concerning the death of King Harthacnu*t.* There succeeded to Harthacnu*t king of the English the most blessed Edward his brother, son of /Ethelred (formerly king of the English)

and Emma.** Supported by Eadsige archbishop of Canterbury and Lyfing bishop of Worcester and Earl Godwine, whose daughter he

was to receive as queen," he was raised to being king at London,?? and on the first day of Easter [3 Apr. 1043] was anointed as king at Winchester by archbishops Eadsige of Canterbury and /Elfric archbishop of York, and the other leading men of almost the whole of

England.?' We will record below the endowments that Edward conferred on the house of Abingdon.

B256. Concerning St Edward the king??? In the second year of King Edward's reign, Eadsige archbishop of Canterbury, through the mediation of Earl Godwine, sought from King Edward that he grant that Eadsige yield from the toil of his bishopric because of his own weakness, and indeed that Abbot Siward, from Abingdon, as a discrete and devout man, consecrated as bishop of Rochester, be substituted in his place and everything be administered on his behalf. When this was done, /Ethelstan, then sacrist of the aforesaid monastery, was put in charge of it. B257. Charter of King Edward concerning eight hides next to the Kennet. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 145; above, c. 135, and below, B275 353

B258. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 146; cf. above, c. 133, and below, B288.5* 351 The passage ‘ab archiepiscopis . . . in regem Wintonie’ draws heavily on John of Worcester, Chronicle, ii. 534. /Elfric Puttoc was archbishop of York 1023—51; Handbook of British Chronology, p. 224. For the coronation, see Barlow, Edward the Confessor, pp. 60—70. 352 Cf. c. 119 above. 355 The present copy is a fuller version than that which appears below, B275, and in MS C, above, c. 135. It is possible that the absence of proem and exposition in the copy of MS C led the compiler of MS B to fail to recognize its identity with his other, full version. 354 The present copy is a fuller version than that which appears below, B288, and in MS C, above, c. 133. It is possible that the absence of proem and exposition in the copy of MS C led the compiler of MS B to fail to recognize its identity with his other, full version. See also above, B176, for a portion of a boundary clause which may be drawn from this charter.

364

APPENDIX

B259. De contentione Lechamstede. Above, c. 120.

[i. fo.

B260. Responsio Siwardi episcopi de Lechamstede. Above, c. 120. B261. De uilla Leuekenore.

Above, c. 121.

B262. De morte Siwardi episcopt. Above, c. 122. B263. De morte Adelstani abbatis. ADOY6, 69123, fo.

" B264. De Sperauoc abbate. Above, c. 124. B265. De Rodulfo episcopo. Above, c. 125. B266. De Ordrico abbate.

Above, c. 126. fo. 113°

B267. Carta regis Eadwardi Anglice. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 148; above, c. 127.

i. 465] B268. Interpretatio in Latinum Above, c. 128.

B269. Carta regis Edmardi de hundredo de Hornimere. Charters of Ábingdon Abbey, no. 149; above, c. 129. i. 466]

B270. Interpretatio in Latinum. Above, c. 130. B271. De quatuor cassatis de Sanford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 144.5?

i. 469] B272. De morte Godmini comitis.^^

fo Bags

Mortuo Godwino comite, successit ei Haroldus filius eius. Cuius suggestione, abbate Ordrico optinente, rex Anglorum Eadwardus 3555 Sawyer, no. 1022. This charter records King Edward the Confessor granting four hides ‘in communi terra’ at Sandford(-on- Thames) to Earl Godwine. It is dated 1050. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 561, states that it ‘would appear to be authentic’. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, p. 562, notes that it is possible that these four hides were properly

TEXT AND TRANSLATION

OF MS B

365

B259. Concerning the dispute over Leckhampstead. Above, c. 120. B260. Bishop Siward’s response concerning Leckhampstead. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 143; above, c. 120. B261. Concerning the village of Lemknor. Above, c. 121. B262. Concerning the death of Bishop Simard. Above, c. 122. B263. Concerning the death of Abbot A:thelstan. Above, c. 123.

B264. Concerning Abbot Spearhafoc. Above, c: 124. B265. Concerning Bishop Rodulf. Above, c. 125. B266. Concerning Abbot Ordric. Above, c. 126.

B267. King Edward's charter in English. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 148; above, c. 127. B268. Translation into Latin.

Above, c. 128. B269. Charter of King Edward concerning the hundred of Hormer. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 149; above, c. 129.

B270. Translation into Latin. Above, c. 130. B271. Concerning four hides at Sandford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 144.7? B272. Concerning the death of Earl Godwine."^ When Earl Godwine died, his:son Harold succeeded him. At his suggestion, Edward king of the English granted and by his charter confirmed Sandford across the river Thames amounting to four hides Abingdon lands, seized by Godwine, but more likely that Abingdon acquired them after Godwine’s tenure, and possibly only after 1066; see also above, c. 132 (Charters ofAbingdon

Abbey, no. Abingdon.

147) for a spurious charter of the Confessor granting these four hides to a Giacur31 above:

366

APPENDIX

Samford transflumen ‘Tamisie quatuor ecclesie Abbendonensi hidarum concessit et carta sua confirmauit. Que ita inscripta est: B273. Carta quatuor hidarum de Samford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 147; above, c. 132. [i. 473]

fo. 114"

B274. Rex Edwardus dedit Leofwartun. INDOWE, C. 134. B275. Carta regis Edwardi.

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 145; above, c. 135, and cf. B257.? B276." Above, c. 136. B277. Carta decem cassatorum de Lecamstede.*”* Above, c. 137, and cf. above, B72. B278.* Above, c. 138.

B279. Carta de Speresholt decem cassatorum. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, n. 97; above, c. 139, and cf. above, Br84. B280. Carta de Hwitcyrce. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 136; above, c. 140. B281.* Above, c. 141. [i. fo.

B282.^ Above, c. 141.

B283.^ Above, c. 141. i.

482] B284. De morte Edmardi regis.

Above, c. 142. B276 ^" rubricated heading ofminims B278

^* short rubricated heading of minims

B281

^" rubricated heading ofminims

B282

^" rubricated heading of minims

B283

^" rubricated heading of minims

TEXT AND TRANSLATION

OF MS B

367

to the church of Abingdon, under the charge of Abbot Ordric. This was written thus: B273. Charter regarding four hides at Sandford. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 147; above, c. 132. B274. King Edward gave Leverton. Above, c. 134. B275. King Edward’s charter.

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 145; above, c. 135, B257.?7 B276. . Above, c. 136. B277. Charter regarding ten hides at Leckhampstead.**® Cf. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 37; above, c. 137, and cf. B72. B278. Above, c. 138. B279. Charter concerning Sparsholt amounting to ten hides. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 97; above, c. 139, and cf. above, B184.

B280. Charter concerning Whitchurch. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 136; above, c. 140, and cf. above, B238. B281. Above, c. 141. B282. Above, c. 141. B283. Above, c. 141.

B284. Concerning the death of King Edward. Above, c. 142.

3537 See above, pp. xlv—xlvi, for charters repeated in MS B. 358 For the appearance in MS B of two versions of this charter of King Edmund, see above, p. xlvi n. 193.

359 This is also the heading for B290 below.

368

APPENDIX

B285. De Ordrico abbate.

Abbas?

etiam

Ordricus, postquam

domum

sibi commissam

(quo principum apostolorum honorifice gubernasset, et a memoria onis deuoti gratia perrexerat) ad sua remeasset, diutina egritudine decoctus diem sortitur ultimum, circa sollempnitatem sancti Vincentii martiris." Tunc duo subrogati sunt, Haroldus comes scilicet in regem Anglorum, et Ealdredus, hactenus exteriorum preposituram Abbendonie agens, inibi in abbatem monachorum. In proximo autem Paschali festo, sidus insolitum, quod cometem [i. 483] uocant, unius continuatione septimane apparuit, quo auspicatum est futurum quiddam maximum et inopinatum. Nec fefellit opinio, nam mense Septembrio instante rex Norweie, eodem denominatus uocabulo quo rex Anglie, scilicet Haroldus, Angliam appulit, regnum illic sibi uendicare pro lucro reputans, suffragium ferente fratre nostri regis Haroldi Tosti comite. Quibus Eboracem ultra urbem rex Anglorum occurrens, utrumque una cum auxiliariis eorum bello extinxit.

Huius uix soluto fine uictorie, ecce, comitem Normannie Willelmum sibi imminere apud Hastingas’ bellumque paratum inferre, ni fo. 117"

maturius regno cedat, ex nuntio discit. Rectiorem se causam* illo regnandi in Anglia habere al|legans, dum pro consanguinitatis linea rex Eadwardus, iam defunctus, sibi regnum reliquerit sub ipsius etiam attestatione et concessu. Ille nuntium paruipendens, ac suis

nimium uiribus fidens, minus _prouide quam decuerat aggressus comitem, sensit superiorem, quem insulso ausu rebatur inferiorem. Itaque in bello corruens, tam ipse quam cuncti eius socii secum interire. [i. 487] B286.“ Hucusque

de terris et possessionibus quas antiqui reges et regine insimul et homines eorum, tam tempore Anglorum quam Danorum, in puram et perpetuam elemosinam Deo et beate Marie et huic domui Abbendonie monachisque ibidem in perpetuum Deo seruientibus dederant et cartis suis firmiter confirmauerant, Deo iuuante, quoad melius potuimus in his duobus libris precedentibus B284 ^" space suitable for a heading left here B286

^ over erasure

^ eam MS

“ the rubricator failed to provide a heading, although the appropriate space had been left

TEXT AND TRANSLATION

OF MS B

369

B285. Concerning Abbot Ordric. Also*® Abbot Ordric, after he had honourably governed the house entrusted to him, and had returned home from the shrine of the princes of the apostles (to which he had gone for the sake of

devotion), was worn out by a long-lasting illness and was allotted his final day, around the solemn feast of St Vincent the martyr. . Then two men were chosen in place of their predecessors, that is Earl Harold as king of the English, and Ealdred, who had hitherto acted as provost of the external affairs of Abingdon, as abbot of the monks herein. However, at the next festival of Easter, an unusual star, which they

call a comet, appeared for the duration of one week, and by this it was divined that something most important and unexpected would happen. And that belief was not mistaken, for, with the month of

September upon them, the king of Norway, called by the same name as the king of England, that is Harold, landed in England, considering

claiming the realm there for his benefit, aided by Earl Tostig, brother of our King Harold. The king of England hurried to meet them beyond the town of York, and in battle killed them both with their supporters. With this victory scarcely complete, behold, he learnt from a messenger

that William

count

of Normandy

was threatening him

and prepared to join battle at Hastings, unless he immediately ceded the kingdom. He argued that he had a greater right than William to reign in England, since King Edward, now deceased, had by his own statement and grant left the kingdom to him because of the line of kinship. He belittled the messenger, put too much trust in his strength, and attacked the count less prudently than was fitting, but discovered William was the superior, whom with stupid rashness he had thought inferior. And so falling in battle, both Harold and his

allies with him died. B286. Up to here, in these two preceding books, as best we could, by God's help, we have made a record concerning the lands and possessions which old kings and queens and also their men, both in the time of the English and of the Danes, gave and firmly confirmed by their charters in pure and perpetual alms to God and the blessed Mary and this house of Abingdon and the monks serving God there 369 "This chapter is closely based on c. 143, the common material being here indicated by underlining.

APPENDIX

370

annotauimus. Ceterum uero singulas cartas singulorum regum successiue regnantium necnon et omnium aliorum beneficia sua huic domui conferentium locis competentibus studiose posuimus. Verum quod si quis mortalium de supradictis terris et possessionibus miretur, nunc datis, nunc ablatis, at nunc possessis iterum recuperatis, legat libros in ordine, nec quicquam ibi inueniet contrarium quod animum suum iuste debeat ducere in ambiguum. Explicit liber secundus.

[i. 488] B287. Incipit liber tercius?! Item,

Then as above, c. 132, following charter: ‘Idem rex . . . Wiltoniensi donauerat.’

B288. Carta regis Edwardi de Cildatun. Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 146; above, c. 133, B25

8 362

[i. 489] B289.^ Pertactatis fo. 118"

itaque in duobus supradictis uoluminibus sufficienter, pro uiribus nostris pariter et modulo scientie nostre, beneficiis ab antiquis regibus Anglorum insimul et eorum hominibus huic sacratissime domui illatis et eorumdem cartis firmiter confirmatis, nunc superest ut post’ aduentum Normannorum in Angliam singulorum regum in ordine succedentium libertates insimul et beneficia huic sacratissime domui Abbendonie gratis data et gratanter accepta, presentibus et futuris hec eadem scire desiderantibus, quoad succincius poterimus, Deo iuuante, innotescere procuramus. B290. De morte Edwardi regis.9 Igitur Edwardo rege Anglorum anno .mlxv. Dominice incarnationis

ad celestia translato,

successoreque

eius Haroldo

pridie idus

Octobris a Willelmo Normannorum duce bello prostrato, Willelmus dux Normannie ab Aldredo Eboracensi archiepiscopo die natalis

Domini in Westmonasterio honorifice coronatus est,5 prius tamen, ut ipse archiepiscopus ab eo exigebat, ante altare sancti Petri, coram [i. 490] clero et populo, iureiurando promittens se uelle sanctas Dei ecclesias Bind * the rubricator failed to provide a heading, although the appropriate space had been left interlin.

°°" On MS B's confused division into books, see above, p. lxix. * On the repetition of this charter in MS B, see above, p. xlvi n. 194.

TEXT

AND

TRANSLATION

371

for ever. Moreover, we have carefully placed in the proper places each charter of each king reigning in succession and also of all others conferring their endowments on this house. But if indeed any mortal man wonders about the above lands and possessions, now given, now taken away, but now recovered and possessed, let him read the books in order, and he will find nothing contrary there which ought justly to lead his mind to doubt. End of Book II. B287. Book III begins.?? Likewise, then as above, c. 132, following charter: ‘The same king . . . bishop of Wilton.’ B288. Charter of King Edward concerning Chilton.

Charters of Abingdon Abbey, no. 146; above, c. 133, B258.°” B289. Therefore, having in the two volumes above covered sufficiently, according to our strength and also the extent of our knowledge, the endowments bestowed by the old kings of the English and also their men on this most sacred house and firmly confirmed by their charters, it now remains for us, with God’s help, to attend to noting down, as far as we can very succinctly, the liberties and also the endowments given freely to this most sacred house of Abingdon and graciously received, of each king in order of succession after the coming of the Normans to England, for men present and future who wish to know these matters.

B2go. Concerning the death of King Edward.^** Therefore, when Edward king of the English had been translated??? to the heavens in the year of our Lord 1065, and his successor Harold had been brought down in battle on 14 October [1066] by William

duke of the Normans, William duke of Normandy was crowned^^? with due ceremony by Ealdred archbishop of York at Westminster, first, however, promising on oath St Peter in the presence of clergy and people, himself required of him, that he wished to defend

on Christmas day before the altar of as the archbishop the holy churches

9 A phrase also used above, B8. 364 This is also the heading for B284 above. 36 Cf. Edward the martyr, above, p. 346. 366 The remainder of this sentence follows John of Worcester, Chronicle, 11. 606, closely from ‘in Westmonasterio’ and verbatim from ‘coram clero".

372

APPENDIX

ac rectores illarum defendere, necnon cunctum populum sibi subiectum iuste ac regali prouidentia regere, rectam legem statuere et tenere, rapinas iniustaque iuditia penitus interdicere. Hec omnia Deo uouit, sed nichil horum tenuit. Nam episcopos omnes Anglie, preter Aldredum archiepiscopum Eboracensem et Wlstanum episcopum Wigornensem, deposuit, abbates etiam omnes, quos nulla euidenti causa nec concilia nec leges seculi dampnabant, suis honoribus priuauit.' Anglorum pene omnes nobiles, pecuniarum contractum sibi assumentes, extera^ ad regna conuolarunt. Quorum mox terre in regium proscripte sunt fiscum. Eorum unus, Blachemannus presbiter de quo in Ordrici abbatis cronicis retulimus, cognito imperii permutatu, impatiens more

Anglia’ digreditur.?? At abbas Ealdredus, dominum nouiter regno potitum hinc recogniturus, de prefato presbitero quid euenerit quidue de ecclesia tenuerit illinc insinuaturus, curiam regis adiit, a quo et benigne suscipitur. Ceterum de presbiteri negotio in tantum explicuit ut, preter insule Andresie portionem, reliqua iuri ecclesie permitterentur; is‘ enim locus regio proprie receptui ad tempora abbatis Faritii

perdurauit.'^ His ita peractis, suarum securus rerum, abbas domi resedit.

Above, c. 143: ‘Vt de his . . . opere redimitis.’ [i. 491] B291. De molendino de Cudesdun. fo. 118"

Apud uillam Cuthesdunam, terris episcopio Lincolniensi pertinenti-

bus conterminam,"?

orta pro exclusa cuiusdam

molendini

ipsi

[i. 492] Cuthesdunz adiacenti contentione, uolentibus hominibus episcopii exclusam destrui, abbatie uero nolentibus. Petrus, tunc ad contuendum episcopium constitutus iam eo antistite defuncto, capellanus

quidem regis sed post Cestrensis episcopus," multitudine stipatus armatorum, abbas quoque Ealdredus cuneo laicorum et monachorum comitatus deuotorum, secum reliquias sancti Vincentii martiris habens, ad ipsum locum ultra citraque molendinum, sue quisque in portione telluris, statum contionatorium capiendo," conuenerunt; B290

* corr. from extra by interlin.

^ corr. from Anglica

^ his MS

°°” Ealdred was archbishop of York 1061—9, Wulfstan (II) bishop of Worcester 1062—95; Handbook of British Chronology, p. 224. 368 Cf. MS C's treatment of Blacmann, above, c. 143. For the mention ‘in the chronicles of Abbot Ordric’, see above, c. 136, B276.

3 See vol. ii. 72—6.

TEXT AND TRANSLATION

OF MS B

373

of God and their rulers, and to rule the whole people subject to him justly and by royal foresight, to establish and maintain right law, and to forbid totally rapine and unjust judgements. All these things he swore to God, but he held none of them. For he deposed all the bishops of England, besides Ealdred archbishop of York and Wulfstan bishop of Worcester, and he also deprived of their high office all abbots, whom neither councils nor the laws of the world condemned

for any evident cause. Almost all the nobles of the English fled to foreign kingdoms, taking for themselves a restricted amount of money. Soon their lands were forfeited to the royal treasury. When one of them, the priest Blecmann to whom we referred in the chronicles of Abbot Ordric, learnt of the change of regime, he left England, impatient of delay. But Abbot Ealdred, partly to recognize the lord who had newly possessed the realm, and partly to indicate what had happened concerning that priest and what he held of the church, went to the court of the king, by whom he was kindly received. Moreover, he untangled the matter of that priest to such a degree that, besides part of the island of Andersey, the rest were allowed to the church's property. For that place lasted until Abbot

Faritius's time as a royal haven.*” With matters completed thus the abbot resided again in the house, secure in his possessions. Above, c. 143: ‘When this abbot . . . in magnificent work.’ B291. Concerning the mill of Cuddesdon. At the village of Cuddesdon, next to lands pertaining to the bishopric of Lincoln," a dispute arose over the sluice belonging to Cuddesdon mill; the men of the bishopric wished to destroy the sluice, but those of the abbey did not wish this. So Peter, a chaplain of the king, indeed, and afterwards bishop of Chester,*”’ who was then appointed to watch over the bishopric after the bishop's death, closely surrounded by a mass of armed men, and also Abbot Ealdred accompanied by a band of devoted laymen and monks, and having with him the relics of St Vincent the martyr, met at that place on either side of the mill (for the site was of this sort), each on part of

their own estate, taking up the position of suitors."" Some of the 3 Probably Great Milton, Oxfordshire; see vol. ii. 172—4 for continuing trouble in this area after the Norman Conquest. 371 Peter was consecrated bishop of Lichfield in 1072, the see was transferred to Chester in 1075, and he died in 1085; Handbook ofBritish Chronology, p. 253. 372 For another use of contionator in this sense, see Liber Eliensis, bk. ii, c. 34, ed. Blake, p. 109.

374

fo. 119°

APPENDIX

huiusmodi enim loci situs. Illorum uero quidam equis insidentes et garrientes, istorum uniuersi solotenus pedibus consistentes et in sancto cuius aderant pia pignera multam | confidentiam habentes. O Dei sanctorumque eius confidentiam, quam in se confidentibus subuenialem! Siquidem cum arbitrorum presentium examine res eo procederet uti abbas super reliquias quas attulerat ipse iurando faceret quod pars sua rectius iret, ille genuflectit^ sursum dextramque tetendit. Cum ecce, in parte oblocutorum cepit terra firma concuti, dura emolliri, adeo ut equorum pedes infra ipsam mollitiem implicarentur. Turbo etiam perualidus de manibus hastas tenentium excutiens in aera proicere, et inter se ul turbinis illidentes, mirabile uisu, confringere. Quare illi, iam stupidi sueque uite diffisi, clamant, uouent numquam de causa pro qua conflictum inierant ultra inserendum sermonem, incolumes tantum miseratione presentis sancti permitterentur reuerti inde ad propria, insani capitis fore cuius ausus impelleret eadem repetere. Ita rectitudo ecclesie sancti Vincentii martiris, publice propalata, dedit apud Abbendunense monasterium celebriorem extunc haberi sue uenerationis cultum.

[i. 493] B292. De captione Aldredi abbatis."

Above, c. 144. B291

* corr. from genuflectet

B292

^" the rubricator included a heading, although no appropriate space had been left

TEXT AND TRANSLATION

OF MS B

375

former, indeed, were mounted on horses and chattering, all of the latter just stood on their own feet and had great trust in the saint whose holy relics were present. O trust of God and His saints, how supportive of those trusting in Him! When, indeed, by judgement of the judges present it came about that the abbot was to make an oath on the relics which he had brought that his side was the more just, he knelt and stretched upwards his right hand. When, lo, on the opponents’ side the firm ground began to shake, the hard ground to soften, so much so that the feet of the horses became stuck in the softness. Also a very strong wind plucked the spears from the hands of those holding them, and threw them into the air, dashed them against one another and broke them by the force of the wind, in a marvellous sight. Therefore those men, now shocked and despairing of their lives, shouted out and vowed that never again would discussion be started about the case for which they had entered the conflict, nor would any crazed daring impel repetition of these matters. They asked only that they be permitted, by the mercy of the saint who was present, to return thence safe to their homes. So the justness of the church of St Vincent the martyr, publicly made widely known, made the cult of his veneration be held thenceforth more famous at the monastery of Abingdon.

B292. Concerning the capture of Abbot Ealdred. Above, c. 144.

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——

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và và

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pip ts es$4 inn py p now inTh «p Wis Pesos: wick Yer. res ad)

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—

CONCORDANCES

These concordances provide easy cross-reference to the two versions of the History, to Sawyer’s Anglo-Saxon Charters, and to Kelly’s Charters of Abingdon Abbey. Cross-reference to Stevenson’s Rolls Series edition, and to the folios of the manuscripts of the History, are given in the margins of the Latin text of my edition. Sawyer and Kelly provide references to other editions of the charters.

CONCORDANCE

MSC

MSB

Sawyer

Kelly

Charter Beneficiary

B9 Bo

Bio B30

241 241 239 252 1179 93

51B 4 4 2 I 3 5

Abbot Haha Abbot Hzha, etc. Abbot Haha Abbot Haha and Cilla Cilla Abingdon

B18 B26 B28

166 183 278 302

8 9 II 14

Abingdon Abingdon Abingdon (decimation charter)

B34 B32

1201 335

17 15

Cuthwulf ZEthelwulf

B41 B47 B48 B5o B49 B52

355 404 409 408 410 1208

18 22 25 27 26 28

Deormod Abbot Cynath Abingdon Abingdon Abingdon Abingdon

460

/Elfhild

567

Abingdon

I 2 3 4 5 6 7j 8 ji II 12 13

15 16

I 8 19 20 21 22 23

25 26

29 30 31 32 33 34 35

B85

Bro1

558

Wulfric

CONCORDANCES

378 MSB MSC eee

Sawyer So

Kelly ee

Charter Beneficiary ee TRE

Bi 38

Br14 Bris

658 605

85 52

Abingdon Abingdon

39 40 4I 42 43 44

Bii; Bi21 Brig Bi41

663 583 607 614

59 58 57 56

Abingdon Abingdon Abingdon Brihthelm, priest

45 46

Bi131

587

709

/Elfhere

47 48

Bi35

622

; Eadric

B139

594

: /Elfwine

B163 Br44 B125 Br27 Br29

639 590 617 618 611

75 60 67 66 73

/Elfheah FElfric Byrhtnoth Beorhtric Byrhtnoth

B78

482

Sethryth

B175 Br97 B179

673 756 682

84 108 85

Abingdon Abingdon Abingdon

64 65 66

B198 Br99 B202

689 701 700

89 93 92

Abingdon Abingdon Abingdon

67 68 69

B206

690

Abingdon

B204

688

Abingdon

B2or

708

Abingdon

B209

49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62

72 73

B203

724

100

Abingdon

74 75

B176

734

102

Abingdon

B183

733

104

Abingdon

B200

758

IIO

Abingdon

8o 81 82

Br77

757

III

Abingdon

Br8o

759

112

Abingdon

Br8r B182

760 732

113 103

Abingdon Abingdon

76 77

85 86

ENNNMRLLM

CONCORDANCES MSC MSB Se ea

Sawyer ee

Kelly de

Charter Beneficiary ee

B187

769

109

Wulfstan

Br96

761

107

/Elfwine

B211 B213

829 1216

116 IIS

Abingdon Abingdon

876 937

124 129

Abingdon Abingdon

B220 B221

896 918

128 135

Abingdon Abingdon

B234 B236 B240 B241 B242

gor (1488)

132 (133)

Archbishop /Elfric various incl. Abingdon

973 964

140 138

Abingdon Abingdon

B254

993

141

Abingdon

B259-60 B261 B262 B263 B264 B265 B266

incl. 1404

incl. 143

writ in Abingdon's favour

127

B267

1065

148

Abingdon

128 129 130

B268 B269 B270

1066

149

Abingdon

B273, B287 B288

1025 1023

147 146

Abingdon Abingdon

89 go

91 92 93

94 95 96 97 98 99 100 IOI 102 103 104 105 106 107 108

(cf. B214) (cf. B215) B216 B217 . B218

109 IIO

B244

III 112 113 II4 IIS 116 117 118

B247 (cf. B248)

119 120 I21 122 123 124 I25 126

I3I 132 133

134

B274

135

B275

1020

145

Abingdon

136 137 138

B276 B277 B278

665

Eadric

379

CONCORDANCES MS B

Sawyer

Kelly

Charter Beneficiary

B279

753 927

97 136

/Ethelsige Leofric

B280 B281-3 B284 B285, B290 B292

CONCORDANCE

MS C

Sawyer

Kelly

241

Charter Beneficiary

1179

Abbot Haha Cilla

268

Lulla

183

Abingdon

269

Beorhtric/Hemele

202

/E\fheah

1271

King Berhtwulf, /Ethelwulf

278

Abingdon

302

decimation charter

Abingdon

335

/Ethelwulf (duplicate of B89)

120!

Cuthwulf

225

Eadric

CONCORDANCES

381

MS B MS C Sawyer Kelly Charter Beneficiary ————CSC DEDICO Uso mme es PRA. —— NR B41 B42

355

Deormod

999

142

/Elfstan

369

Tata

19 20 22 21

404. 409 410 408

22 25 26 27

Abbot Cynath Abingdon Abingdon Abingdon

1208

Abingdon

413 1604

23 24

FElfric Wulfnoth

41I

/Elfheah

B59

396

Ealdred

B6o Bor

448

Eadwulfu

31A

(/Elfhild)

B43

B44 B45 B46 B47 B48 B49 Bso Bs1 B52

B54 Bss B56 B57 B58

B62 B63

B64 B65 B66

471

Wulfric

B67 B68

461

FElfsige

480

/Ethelstan

491

B69 B7o B71 B72

Eadric (different version of c. 137,

B277)

B73 B74

494

/Elfheah

B75

496

Bishop /Elfric

482

Sethryth

500

Ordulf

567

Abingdon

542

Wulfric

335

/Ethelwulf (duplicate of B32)

B76

B77 B78

B79 B8o B81 B82 B83

B84 B85

B86 B87

B88 B89

382

CONCORDANCES Sawyer

Kelly

Charter Beneficiary

Bot B92

529

Wulfric

B93 B94 Bos

539/3382

Cuthred

525

Eadric

552

Wulfric

561

/Elfsige and Eadgifu

558

Wulfric

560

/Elfric

564

/E]fheah

577

aa)

Wulfric

559

/Elfwine

578

JElfgar

658 605

83 52

Abingdon Abingdon

663

Abingdon

607

Abingdon

583

Abingdon

581

Beorhtric

617

Byrhtnoth

618

Beorhtric

611

Byrhtnoth

587

/Elthere

597

55 (i)

/Elfric (different version of B161)

622

Eadric

591

/Elfsige

594

/Elfwine

614

Brihthelm

MS B

MS C

B96

B97 B98

B99 Broo Bror B10o2 Bro3 B1ro4 Bros

B106 B107 B108 Brog Brio Brrr Bri2 Br13 Br14 Bris Br16 Brr7 Bi18 Brig Br20 Bi21 B122 Br23 Br24 Br25 Br26 B127 Br28 Br29 Br3o Br31 Br32

Br33 B134 Br35

B136

B137

B138

B139 B140 Bi41

CONCORDANCES MSB

MSC

Sawyer

Kelly

383

Charter Beneficiary

Br42

(cf. 44 for Latin summary)

1292

exchange between Brihthelm and /Ethelwold

590

[Elfric

621

Eadric

588

/Elfhere

624

Edmund

620

Eadric (duplicate of B157)

603

/Ethelnoth

Br56 Br57 B158

620

Eadric (duplicate of B152)

B159

634

Wulfric

597

55 (ii)

/Elfric (different version of B133)

639

ZElfheah

654

Eadric

650

Eadwold

651

Cynric

657

Wulfric

673

Bt76 . 75 Br77 81

734 757

102 In

Abingdon Abingdon

B143 B144 B145 B146

B147 B148

B149 Br50 Br51 Br52

B153 B154

B55

B16o

Bró1

B162

B163

B164 B165 B166 B167 B168 B169 Br7o Br71 Br172

B173 B174 B175

B178

1569

ISI

Br79

682

Br80

759

112

Bi81

760

113

B182

732

103

B183

733

104

B184

713

B185

725

IOI

687 769 737 698 718

Abingdon (bounds only) Abingdon Abingdon Abingdon Abingdon Abingdon /Ethelsige (different version of

c. 139, B279) B186

B187 B188 B189 Br9o

109 105 9I 114

Queen /Elfthryth Wulfric Wulfstan /Elfgifu Eadric Brihtheah, deacon

384

CONCORDANCES

MS C MSEND B B Wee

Br9r Br92

B193 B194 B195 Br96

B197 Br98

B199 B200 B2or B202 B203 B204 B205 B206 B207 B208 B209 B210 Barr B212 B213 B214

B215 B216 B217 B218 B219 B220 B221 B222 B223 B224

B225 B226 B227 B228 B229 B230 B231 B232

B233 B234 B235 B236

104 (cf. c. 105)

105

B237 B238 B239

B240

106

Sawyer

Kelly

750

106

Byrhtnoth

722 691 705

99 90 94

Wulfnoth JElfric Eadwine

678 761 756 689

82 107 108 89

Eanulf /Elfwine Abingdon Abingdon

701

Abingdon

758 708 700 724 688 714 690

IIO 96 92 100 88 98 87

Abingdon Abingdon Abingdon Abingdon Abingdon Bishop /Ethelwold Abingdon

829 828

116 117

Abingdon Bishop /Elfstan

876 937 843 896 918 833 839 851 886 852 883 855 858 887 897 902

124 129 IIQ 128 135 95 118 120 126 I2I 125 122 123 127 130 I3I

Abingdon Abingdon Abingdon Abingdon Abingdon Leofric /Elfgar Wulfgar Wulfric /Elfheah /Ethelwig Beorhtric Leofwine Eadric, Eadwig, Ealdred Abingdon Godwine

gol 1488 (1488)

132 133 (133)

Archbishop /Elfric various incl. Abingdon various incl. Abingdon

9I5 927

134 136

/Elfgar Leofric (different version of c. 140, B280)

934

127

Bishop Byrhtwold

AEN

HEU

Charter Beneficiary

Meum

e om

CONCORDANCES MS B MS C pM B241 B242

Sawyer TEM

Kelly plac m

385

Charter Beneficiary (o Hasen reo oM MW

1.9 IAM

107 108

B243 B244

IIO

B245 B246 B247 B248

967

139

Abingdon

114 (cf. 115)

964

138

Abingdon

117

993

I4I

Abingdon

1020

145

Abingdon (different version of

1023

146

Abingdon (different version of c. 133, B288)

1404

143

writ in Abingdon’s favour

1065

148

Abingdon

1066

149

Abingdon

1022

144

Godwine

1025

147

Abingdon

1020

145

Abingdon (different version of

B249 B250 B251 B252

B253 B254 B255 B256 B257

C. 135, B275) B258 B259 B260 B261 B262 B263 B264 B265 B266 B267 B268 B269 B270 B271 B272 B273

132

B274

134

B276 B277 B278 B279

136 137 138 139

B280 B281 B282 B283 B284 B285 B286 B287

140 I41I I4I I4I 142 143

B275

120 120 I2I 122 123 124 I25 126 127 128 129 130

135

B257)

132

665

Eadric (different version of B72)

713

927

136

/Ethelsige (different version of B184) Leofric (different version of B238)

386 MS B B288 B289 B290o B291 B292

CONCORDANCES MSC

Sawyer

Kelly

Charter Beneficiary

1023

146

Abingdon (different version of B258)

INDEX OF BIBLICAL AND CLASSICAL AND ALLUSIONS QUOTATIONS (1) IN NARRATIVE (a) MS C

SECTIONS

Matt. 20: 4

Matt. 14: 30-33

(b) MS B Gen. 39-50 Exod. 30: 16 Num. 22: 21—30 1 Kgs (I Sam.) 17 Judg. 6-9 Tob. 4: 16 Job 1: 21 Ps. 18: 11 (19: 10) Ps. 24 (25): 10 Ps. 25 (26): 8 Ps. 36 (37): 27 Ps. 59 (60): 6 Ps. 83 (84): 7 PSN 1313 17 Prov. 31: 1o Prov. 31: 24 Isa. 21: 15 Lam. 1: 1 Lam. 4: 1 Matt. 3: 12 Matt. 4: 20, 22 Matt. 6: 33 Matt. 7: 12 Matt. 12: 25 Matt. 13: 31-2

140

234 244, 344 272 326 268 270 246 282 272 338 244 238 326 208) 228 330 238 268 326 296 296 298 270 354 276

(11) IN CHARTERS Gen. 1: 26 Josh. 23: 14 3 Kgs. (1 Kgs.) 2: 2 Eccles. 1: 2 Isa. 53: 5 Job 1: 21 40, 100, 104, 118, 128, 164, Job 14: 2 Ps. 67 (68): 30 Ps. 71 (72): 10-11 Ps. 110 (111): 10 Wisd. 1: 7

Matt. 25: 33

250 5

268

Mark 1: 18 Mark 4: 31-2 Luke r: 78 Luke 3: 17 Luke 6: 31 = Luke 10: 7 Luke 12: 31 Luke 13: 6-9 Luke 13: 19 John3:8 John 13: 8 John 15:2 Rom. 9: 18 Rom. 14: 11 - Phil. 2: 1o Coll 323 :95€0153:1:9 9 Gol?3:12 1 Cor. 9. 13 1 Cor. 13: 13 1 Tim. 5: 18 Phil. 1: 8 . Vergil, Aeneid 1. 387-8 iv. 174 Juvenal, Satires, v. 2 Rule of St Benedict, c. 64

EDITED

IN THIS

132. Mic. 5:7 150 2 Macc. 7: 3-5 150 Matt. 2: 11 88 Matt. 6: 20 88 — Matt. 7: 7 134, — Matt. 8: 12 204 Matt. 13: 42, 50 Matt. 22: 13 68 Matt. 24: 51 180 Matt. 25: 29 180 Matt. 25: 30 58 Matt. 25: 41 82

296 276 250 296 270 340 298 260 276 238 270 296 238 270 270 294 326 250 340 276 340 360 276 244 254 234

VOLUME! 68 58 180 88 178 90 90 90 go 36 go 58, 78, 158, 212

! Note that this index does not include charters only calendared in the present volume.

388 Luke Luke Luke Luke Luke John Acts Rom.

INDEX 1: 45 6: 38 rr: 9 13: 28 21: 1o 1: 1 5: I-11 5: 14

OF QUOTATIONS

AND

ALLUSIONS

62 Heb. 9:5 92 Col 2: 13-14 179 91 Cor 13-13 oof 3x Cor. 16:22 108 2 Cor. 4: 18 62 1x 9 Dnm 4627 64 102 C 1:Pcf12224

160 164 164 182 68 40, 100, 104, 118, 128, 134, 204 88

INDEX

To avoid providing many entries for undifferentiated personal names, I have included a brief, generally formulaic, indication of each individual’s place in the History. The word ‘witness’ following a personal name indicates that the individual appears in the History only as a witness to a document or transaction. Separate entries are given for thegns of different kings; these may separate references to thegns who spanned reigns. The index covers both volumes of this edition, the individual volumes being distinguished by small capital 1 and rr. A. the cleric, witness 1 264—5 A. the scullery officer n 362-3 Aachen (Germany), palace chapel at

I clxviii Abban, St 1 xliii Abbefeld (Oxfordshire) 1 clxxxii n., 1 xxxii, IIO—II, 160-1

Abben, supposed founder of Abingdon I x] n., xliii, lvi, Ixxv, Ixxvii, Ixxxv-Ixxxix, xciii, cxx, clxvi n.,

234-7 Abbendun (Berkshire), mentioned in boundary clause 1 xci Aben, see Abben Abingdon (Berkshire) 1 cviii-cix, cxiii, clxxi, 2—7, 240-3, 282-3, Il xxviii, Ixxxi, 24—5, 102—3,

106—7, 116-19, 144—5, 252-3, 266—7, 274—5, 310-11 Abbey, see Abingdon, abbey of Christ's Hospital i11 xviii n. church of St Helen 1 Ixxxix n., u lxv; see also Helen, St; Helenstom hospital of St John m1 ciii lands at/rents from I lxxxiii, cxii, CXXXII—CXXXIV, CXXXVII, cxxxviii n., 2-5, 16—17, 32-3,

50-1, 64—7, 96—7, 146-7, 272-5, 310-11, I Ixxxvii, 203n., 252-3,

272-3, 324-7, 367n., 389, 391, .

392, 395, 398; see also Barton

market II xxxiv, xxxix, Ixvii, Ixviii, Ixxxi-lxxxii, xcii, xcviii, 230—1,

262-3, 266—7, 300-1, 308—11, 340-1 men of II 310—1I priests’ chapter at 11 178-9 women religious at I cxxii n., clxx

Abingdon, abbey of: abbots of, see Adelelm; /Ethelsige; /Ethelstan; /Ethelwine; /Ethelwold; Alfred; Conan; Cynath; Eadwine; Ealdred; Ealhhard; Faritius; Godescealc; Haha; Hrethhun; Hugh; Ingulf; Ordric; Osgar; Peter of Hanney; Rodulf; Roger; Siward; Spearhafoc; Vincent; Walkelin; Wulfgar altars: Holy Trinity u xlv St Mary n 46-7, 78-9, 92-3, 142-3, 180-1, 212—13, 236—7, 244-5,

282—9, 308-9, 328-9 SS Peter and Paul i1 cii, 40-1 bells 1 xliii, cxvii, cxxvi, 178-9, 338-9, U liii, ciii, 340—1 Book of Commemorations 1 xxii, xxiv, II xix, 26—7 boys 1 clxix, 192-3; see also /Edmer; Augustine; Miles; Nicholas; William buildings: abbot's chamber 11 Ixxxiv, cii, ciii,

146-7, 338-9 almonry 11 ciii, 340-1 bake-house 11 ciii, 340—1 brew-house 11 ciii, 340-1 cellars 11 cii, ciii chapter house 1 xlv, lxxi, cii, 32-3, 338-9; burial in 11 248-9, 330—1 church 1 xli, lvii, xcviii, ci, clxviclxix, 56—7, 116—7, 358-61 11 xli, xliv, lvi, ci-civ, 30-3, 66—7,

338-9 cloister 11 xlv, cii, 338-9

INDEX

390

Abingdon Abbey, buildings (cont.) dormitory 11 xlv, cii, 338-9 granary II ciii, 340—1 guest house II ciii, 340-1 kitchen 1 clxix, 0 cii, 338-9 infirmary II ciii, 344—5 parlour 11 cii, 338-9 prior's chamber 11 ciii, 344—5 refectory 1 clxix, clxxviii, 192-3, 270-1, II ciii, 338-9 stable I ciii, 340—1 treasury 11 liv wash-place Il ciii building work 1 xli, xliv, l-li, xcii, xcviti, cxv, cxxxviil, 56—7, 0 xl-xli, xliv, xlvii-xlviii, liii, lvi, Ixxix, ci-ciii, 30—7, 66—7, 74-7, 208-9,

332-3, 338-41, 399 cartularies 1 lxiii, 1 xxvii-xxviil chapels: St /Ethelwold rr ciii St Mary Magdalene i1 338-9 St Michael i1 ciii St Paul 1 138-9 St Swithun 0 ciii St Vincent 1 286—7 chapter i1: xlv, xlviii, liii, 180—r, 218-19,

236-7, 298-9 church at cemetery entrance I clxv,

210-11 document chests I xxviii-xxix, cxxxi, II Xvill, XX, 50—I, 172-3 excavation (1922) I Ixvi, I ci foundation stories 1 xliii, Ixxxi-xcii, clxxxvii, ccv, ccviii, 2—7, 232-47, Il xxii judicial privileges 1 xlix, lxiii, cliii, clviii-clx, 198-201, r1 xxii, xcvi-xcvii, 20—1, 28-9, 114—15, 130-1, 228-9, 232—5, 254—5, 262-3,

298-9, 340-1, 348-9,

372-5; see also Hormer hundred Martyrelogy 1 lxiii, n xlvii men of the abbey turn against William the Conqueror 1 cvi, cxx, cxxiv,

226-7 mills 1 cli, 11 395; see also Benson; Boymill; Cuddesdon; Garford;

Langford; Marcham; Ock; Watchfield; Wittenham monks, see Adelelm; A‘lfric; /Elfstan; /Ethelgar; Aleran; Benedict; Eadric; Eudo, son of Norman;

Foldbriht; Frithegar; Godric; Godric Cild; Godwine; Halawin; Ketel; Main’; Modbert; Ordbriht; Pondius; Robert; Robert the deacon; Robert, son of Gilbert Basset; Roger Haliman; Sacol; Sagar; Saric; Thomas, son of Roger Haliman; William of St Helen; Walter; William obedientiaries 1 clv, clxxviii, clxxxiv, II xxxiii-xxxv, xl, xlvii—xlviii, li-lii, Ixxxv, Ixxxvi n., 80-1, 214-15, 252-3, 296—7 almonry n Ixxxv, Ixxxvi, 216-17, 296—7; almoner 1 clxxix, ui xlvii, Ixxxv, 46—7, 80-1, 398 cellar i1 lviii, Ixxxv, Ixxxvi, 252-3, 296—7, 358-63, 366—7; cellarer 1 218-19, i1 xlvii, xlviii, Ixxxii, Ixxxv, 80-1, 174—5, 216—17, 396—7; see also Ralph; William chamber 1 clxxix, n lvi, Ixxxiv-lxxxvi, 216-17, 252-3, 296—7, 398; chamberlain 1 liii, 368—9; see also Ralph; Roger; Walter; William guest-master / hostillar 1 clxxix, II Ixxxvi, 399 infirmary 1 clxxix, 0 Ixxxv, Ixxxvi, 218—19, 246—7, 296—7, 316—19,

336-7; infirmarer II 399 Geoffrey from the infirmary II 362-3 Richard from the infirmary u 362-3 kitchen i Ixxxv—vi, 11on., 216-17,

252-3, 296-7, 318-19, 338-9, 395-6 abbot's 11 396 monks’ 1 clxxix, ri liii kitchener 1 clvi, rgon., ri liii,

Ixxxvi, 368—9, 398 lignary 1 clxxix, rn xlviii, Ixxxv-lxxxvi, 296—7; lignar i1 xlviii, 250n.,

368-9, 394—5 maundy it Ixxxvi, precentor I clxxix, also William, refectory it Ixxxv,

296—7 i Ixxxv n., 399; see cantor Ixxxvi, cii, 214—17,

224—5, 252-3, 206-7, 336-7; refectorer 1 clxxix sacristy I xvi-xvii, clxxix, II xviii,

INDEX Ixxxv, Ixxxvi, 246-7, 286-7, 296-7, 397; sacrist I xvi n., clx, II xlviii, lviii, Ixxxvi, 68-9, 8o—1,

246-7, 284—9, 296-7, 362-3, 368-9; see also Richard; Robert; Simon see also De obedientiariis prior I xxi n., i xlv, 32-3, 368-9; see also /Elfric; Byrhtferth; Nicholas; Walter; Warenger relics at 1 xl, xcv, cxiii, clxxiii, 172—3, 178—9, 282-3, 356—7, n xxxii, xxxiii, xlvii, lviii, civ, cvi, 66—71, 220—5, 282—3, 290-1, 346—7 scribes li cvi

servants: of alms 11 364-5 of brew-house 11 362-3 butler i1 368-9 of the cellar 1 362-3 cook, abbot’s 11 360-1 cooper I 366-7 cowherd 11 366-7 fishermen n 368-9 four servants of the lignar 11 366—7 of garden 11 364—5 granary-keeper 11 368—9

guardian of the postern gate 11 366—7 heater of the oven ut 364—5 larderer 11 360-1 laundress 11 366-7 of laundry i1 364-5 master of works 0 368—9 millers 1 366—7 park-keeper 11 368-9 of the refectory u 362-3 St Nicholas, chaplain of u 360—1 stable-man nu 366—7 steward n 360—1 summoner II 366—7 swineherd 11 366— usher i1 360—1 washerwoman 11 368-9 watchman 1I 366—7 winnower II 364—5 see also: A. the scullery officer; Adam the parmenter; Adam; /Erward; Ainulf; Amus; Andrew de Scaccario; Atzo; Barton; Bo.; Edulf; Geoffrey; Gerin; H.; Henry; Martin; Martin, servant of the bakehouse; Pain; Peter the doorkeeper; Randulf;

391 Reginald Kiwel; Reginald; Reinbald; Robert the . cordwainer; Robert the tailor; Roger, son of Pain; Saric the cook; Simon the carpenter; "Thomas, son of Salomon; W. Pucin; W., servant of the orchard; W. Sexi; Walter of Hanney; William, cook; William the fair tithes belonging to I cliii, r1 xix, xxxi, xxxiii, xxxv, xliv, xlviii, li, lviii, Ixxii, Ixxiv, lxxx, Ixxxv, Ixxxvi, XCV, cil, cvi, 34—9, 44-9, 78-81,

87-9, 92-3, 138-9, 206-13, 224—5, 244—7, 280—5, 294-5, 302-9, 360-3 tolls and customs duties 1 clviii, 198—201, r1 Ixxiv, xcvii, 228-9,

254—5, 298-9 quittance from i xxxii, Ixxxii, 2—5,

116—19, 130-1, 300-3, 342-3, 346-7, 350-1, 374-5 vacancies: 984-5 1 xcix 1097—1100 II xlv, xcii, 60-3 III7—II20 I XXVI, II xxxiii, li, Ixxv, Ixxxiv, xci, 224—9 1164—5 n lv 1185 1 xxxix n., II xxvi, xl, lv, lxxv, Ixxxiv, Ixxxvi, 358-71

warrens II 302-3 water-course at I xvii, cli, 218-19 young men, see Nicholas; Reginald Achilleus, St, relics u 222-3 Ackhamstead (Oxfordshire) 1 194—5, u lxix, 140-1, 156—7, 162-3, 292-3 Aclea (unidentified) 1 cxxxii, 16—17 Adam, biblical figure 1 60—1 Adam de Beaunay, witness II 342-3 Adam, bishop of St Asaph, witness

Il 358-9 Adam of Catmore, sheriff of Berkshire ii Ixxv, 250—1, 280—1, 310—11,

320-1 Adam the parmenter, servant of the abbey

Il 364—5 Adam de Port, royal justice 11 170—1 Adam, servant of the abbey 11 362—3 Adelelm, abbot of Abingdon 1 xxxii, li, Ixix, xcii, cli, 68n., 214-15, 340 n., II xxx, xxxi, xxxv, xl-xlii, xliv, lix, Ixx, Ixxvii, Ixxxiii, xcv,

INDEX

392

fElfheah, bishop of Wells, witness 1 40—1 AElfheah (I), bishop of Winchester 1 lii n., xcvi, cxiii, 44—5, 309 n. /Elfheah (II), bishop of Winchester and archbishop of Canterbury

Adelelm, abbot of Abingdon (cont.) ci, cii, 18-19, 22-3, 26-7, 32-5,

48-9, 78-9, 134-5, 172-3, 184-93, 330-1, 386 account of abbacy in History I1 2-17 death 11 16-17 list of knights sometimes attributed to II xxvi, lxiii, 322-7 Adelelm of Burgate, holder of land given to Colne i 86-9 Adelelm, lord of Kingston Bagpuize II 42-3, 176—9

1 148-9, 166-7, 170-3, 354-5 /Elfheah, King Eadwig's discthegn, witness 1 77n. /Elfheah, probably ealdorman of central Wessex I cxxiii, cxl, 82—5, 98-9, 136-7, 185 n., 211 n., 281 n.,

290 n., 304—7, 322-3, 333 n.

352 n., 378, 381-3

Adelelm, son of Rainbald, monk of

Abingdon r1: xxi, lxiv, 246—7 Adelina d'Ivry, wife of Roger d'Ivry ru lxix, 34n., 106—9, 162-3, 216—17, 386 Adeliza, daughter of Adelina d'Ivry Il 108-9, 162-3 Adeliza, grand-daughter of Gilbert Latimer i 258-61 Adelwin Quirc of Cumnor i1 396 /Ebba, witness I 10-11 "Edeleahing, wood (Berkshire) 1 2-3 "Ediva (Eadgifu), tenant of Abingdon i1 397 /Edmer, boy of abbey 1 lviii n., cvii, 54—5 AFilwin, man of Wallingford 1 288-9, 397 /Eilwin, son of /Elfric of Botley 0 216—17 /Elfgar, landholder at Abbefeld n 110-11, 160-1 /Elfgar, prepositus 1 cxxx, cxliv, 160-1,

353n., 384 /Elfgar, royal kinsman I 307 n. /elfgar, thegn of King /Ethelred II 1 349n.,

384 /Elfgar, thegn of King Eadred 1 306-9, 382 /Elfgar, son of Ealdorman /Elfric 1 161 n. /Elfgeard, sons of, TRE tenants of Abingdon | cliv n., n 382 /Elfgifu, donor to Abingdon r cxlvii, 170-1, 281 n., 354-5 /Elfgifu, kinswoman of King Edgar : 332 n., 383 AElfgifu, wife of /Elfgar prepositus 1 cxliv, 160—1 JElfgifu, wife of King Eadwig 1 76—7,

332n. /Elfgifu, wife of Kings /Ethelred II and cnu*t, see Emma /Elfgifu, woman of royal descent 1 cxxxix

190-3 /Elfheah, bishop of Lichfield, witness

1 148-9

/Elfheah, relative of King Berhtwulf of Mercia 1 258-61, 380 /Elfheah, son of Esne 1 170-1 /Elfheah, thegns of King /Ethelred II I 350 n., 384 /Elfheah, thegn(s) of King /Ethelstan I 40-1, 185 n., 280-1, 381 /Elfheah, thegn of King Edmund 1 288-91, 381 ZElfhelm, bishop of Dorchester, witness I 164 n., 166—7 /Elfhelm, ealdorman of Northumbria, witnessI 150—1, 166—7 JElfhere, abbot of Bath, witness 1 150—1 /Elfhere, ealdorman of Mercia I xxxii, Ixi-lxii, Ixvii, cxxii-cxxiv, cxxx, cxl, cxlii, cxlix, 76-9, 98-9, I34—7, 21I n., 312-15, 318-19,

323n., 333 n., 378, 382-3 sister of I314 n. fElfhild, royal woman 1 Ixxviii, cxiii—cxiv, cxxi, Cxxxvi, 46-9, 286—7, 377, 381 /Elfhun, abbot of Milton, witness 1 150—1 /Elfnoth, landholder at Dumbleton I 168-9, 350n. /Elfric, abbot, witness 1 40—1 /Elfric, abbot of Malmesbury, witness I 150-1 ‘Elfric, adoptive kinsman of King Eadwig I I25n. /Elfric, archbishop of Canterbury, see /Elfric, monk of Abingdon /Elfric, archbishop of York 1 cii, 180-3, 186-7, 362-3 ‘Elfric, archdeacon, witness 1 164—5 /Elfric of Botley, landholder m xix n., 216-17 /Elfric Cild, ealdorman of Mercia 1 xlvii n. xcix, cxxili, cxli, 85 n., 136-9,

INDEX

142-5, 150-3, 158-9, 314-15, 322-3, 335N., 346-7, 351n., 378, 382-4 /Elfric, ealdorman, witness 1 166-7 /Elfric, ealdorman of Hampshire 1 cxxiii,

138-9, 142-5, 150-1, 346-7 fElfric fElfric, fElfric, /Elfric,

of Harrowdown Hill 1 396 landholder u 397 monk of Abingdon n 190—1, 202-3 monk of Abingdon, bishop of Ramsbury, and archbishop of Canterbury 1 xxix-xxxi, lix, Ixv-Ixvii, cvii, cxxxvi, cxlvii, 'clviii n., 148-9, 163 n., 164-73,

290—1, 350 n., 352-5, 379, 381,

384, 11 50-1 his sisters and their children 1 170—1 ZElfric, priest of Marcham i 58-9 /Elfric, prior of Abingdon n lvii, 176—7 /Elfric, scholar and abbot of Eynsham I I45n. fElfric, son of Siraf, witness 1 136—7 /Elfric, thegn(s) of King /Ethelstan 1 40—1, 278-81, 381-2 /Elfric, thegn of King Eadred 1 304-5, 382 fElfric, thegn(s) of King Eadwig1 cxxiii,

cxl, 84-5, 351 n., 378 /Elfric, thegn of King Edgar 1 334 n., 384 /Elfric, thegn of King Edmund 1 286—7 fElfric, TRE landholder 1 cliv n., 11 379, 381-2 /Elfric, two witnesses of the same name

II 200—1 /Elfric of Wheatley, render of eels 11 396 FElfsige, abbot of New Minster, Winchester 1 144-5, 150-1, 166-7 /Elfsige, bishop of Winchester, witness

1 52-3, 66—7, 70-3, 76-7, 80-5, IIIn. FElfsige, monk of New Minster, Winchester 1 lxv /EJfsige, reeve of Sutton Courtenay 1 xli, XCl, 14-15 ZElfsige, thegn of King Eadred 1 cxli,

302-5, 382 FElfsige, thegn of King Eadwig 1 cxli,

314-17, 382

ZElfsige, thegn of King Edmund 1 cxxx,

288—9, 353 n., 381 /Elfstan, bishop, witness 1 24—5 /Elfstan, bishop of London, witness I 118-19, 148-9

393

/Elfstan, bishop of London or Ramsbury or Rochester, witness 1 98-9, 134-5 /Elfstan, bishop of Rochester, witness

1 148-9 /Elfstan of Boscombe, thegn of Edward the Confessor 1 274—5, 381 /Elfstan, ealdorman, witness 1 40-1 /Elfstan, monk of Abingdon, abbot probably of Old Minster Winchester, and bishop of Ramsbury 1 lxv, cvii, cxxi, cxlix,

52-5, 135 n., 136-7, 346 n., 384 JElfthryth, wife of King Edgar 1 xlii n., CXVi, cxxxi n., 148-9, 332 n.,

346-7, 383 /Elfward the priest, TRE landholder I cliv n., 0 381 /Elfweard, abbot of Evesham, witness

I 204-5 /Elfweard, abbot of Glastonbury, witness

I 150-1, 166—7 /Elfweard, son of King Edward the Elder

1277/0: fElfwig, priest of Sutton Courtenay I XXxii-xxxili, 15 n., II 4—5,

36-41, 383 father of 1 15n. son of I xxxii-xxxili, II 38—41 /Elfwig, reeve, witness I 204—5 /Elfwine, abbot of New Minster, Winchester, witness 1 204—5 /Elfwine, bishop of Lichfield, witness

I 40—1 /Elfwine, bishop of Winchester 1 lxiv /Elfwine, brother of /Elfhere ealdorman of Mercia 1 cxxiii—cxxiv, cxl, 81 n.,

130n., 378-9, 382, 384 /Elfwine, Domesday tenant of Abingdon II 381 /Elfwine, thegn of King Eadred 1 cxxiii,

306—7, 382

JElfwine, thegn of King Eadwig 1 cxxiii, cxl, 80-3, 316—17, 378, 382 /Elfwine, thegn of King Edgar 1 cxxiv,

cxl, 130-3, 379, 384 JElfwine, TRE landholder u 382 /Elfwold, abbot, witness 1 98-9 Elfwold, abbot of Winchcombe, witness

I 150-1 /Elfwold, bishop of Crediton or Sherborne, witness 1 66—7, 98-9, 3350.

INDEX

394

/Elfwold (III), bishop of Crediton, witness I 148-9, 166-7 /Elfwold, ealdorman, witness I 40-1 JElmar the tall, holder of land given to Colne i 86—7 Elmer, TRE landholder(s) 1 cxlii n., 83 n., 306 n., i1 385 /Ernulf, render of eels 1 396 /Erward, servant of the abbey i11 362-3 JEscberht, ealdorman, witness 1 40—1 "Escesburh, earlier name for Uffington (Berkshire) 1 cxli, 45 n., 262-3, 302—5, 332—3; see also Uffington "Escesdune, area of Berkshire Downs 1 6n., 10-11, 304—5; see also Ashdown "/Escmere (Hampshire) 1 cxliii, 324—5 /Escwig, abbot of Bath, witness 1 134—5 /Escwig, bishop of Dorchester, witness I 148-9, 164 n., 166—7, 170-1 "Estlea (Oxfordshire) 1 335 n. /Ethelbald, witness 1 10—11 /Ethelbald, king of Mercia 1 xlv, Ixxxii n., xcii, CX, cxxxll, 12-15, 264-5 /Ethelbald, king of Wessex 1 xlv, cxi-cxii, clxxxix n., 12 n., 262-5

/Ethelberht, king of Wessex I cxii, 31 n.,

264—5 ZEthelfled, lady of the Mercians 1 cxii n.,

clxxxix, 266—7 /Ethelfrith, witness 1 8-9 /Ethelgar, probable monk of Abingdon, abbot of New Minster Winchester, bishop of Selsey, archbishop of Canterbury

I Cvii n., 134—7, 172-3, 354-5 /Ethelgifu, mother of /Elfgifu wife of King Eadwig, witness 1 76—7

/Ethelheard, king of Wessex 1 Ixxxii n., Ixxxvi, cx, I0—15, 246—7 /Ethelmzr, ealdorman of Hampshire I cli n. /Ethelmzr praeses 1 xlviii n., cxcvi n., 172

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