medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
On Sunday, March 26, 2006, at 9:25 pm, Phyllis wrote:
> Today (27. March) is the feast day of:
> Albert of Trent (d. 1181) Albert, bishop of Trent, was killed in
> the
> wars between the Lombard League and Emperor Frederick Barbarossa.
> He was venerated as a martyr.
Our one detailed source for A.'s death, the thirteenth-century hagiographer
Bartholomew of Trent, places it on 12. Kal. Oct. in the year 1172. That
year is accepted in recent historical writing; for discussion and
bibliography, see Gian Maria Varanini, "Appunti sulle istituzioni
comunali di Trento fra XII e XIII secolo," in Lia de Finis, ed., _Storia
del Trentino_ (Trento: Associazione culturale "Antonio Rosmini";
Editrice Temi, 1996), 99-126, n. 28 on p. 121. Prior to the late 1970s
the generally accepted date was 8. September 1177, though that was
admitted to be controversial; cf., e.g., A. Cetto, "Adalpreto," _DBI_,
vol. 1 [1960], pp. 227-28.
The Latin form of A.'s name in Bartholomew is Adelpretus; as bishop of
Trent he is Adelpretus (or Adalpretus) II. He was assassinated by a
local noble with whom he had been at odds and with whose family the
prince-bishops of Trent remained in conflict until 1273. Though he was
never canonized, his veneration as a martyr seems to have begun almost
immediately and from at least the sixteenth century onward he was
celebrated liturgically on 27. March. But it is perhaps overstating
matters to say that today "is" his feast day. When in 1913 the diocese
of Trent submitted for papal approval its new liturgical calendar, A.'s
feast was tacitly omitted. That was still the state of affairs when
A.'s entry in the _Bibliotheca Sanctorum_, volume 1 (published 1961) was
written. Since then his fortunes appear to have changed for the better:
he appears in the online Italian-language translation of the new (2001)
RM as a Blessed ("A Trento, il Beato Adelpreto, vescovo") and is listed
under the day of the year given by Bartholomew of Trent, 20. September.
His entry there cites him for his defense of the poor and of children
and especially for his defense of the liberty of the church.
Bartholomew's Passio and Miracula of A. are now available in Emore Paoli's
modern critical edition: Bartolomeo da Trento, _Liber epilogorum in gesta
sanctorum_ (Florence: SISMEL; Edizioni del Galluzzo, 2001). The text is at
pp. 379-85; there's important contextual matter in the Introduzione at pp.
xxvi-vii.
Trento's cathedral of St. Vigilius was reworked in the early thirteenth
century. Here are a few exterior views:
http://www.itea.tn.it/notiziario/n30/copertina.html
http://www.italianvisits.com/images/trentino-im/trento-im/trento-duomo2.jpg
http://www.globopix.net/img.asp?i=6777
http://www.italiantourism.com/fotoenit/prew_2100000069606.jpg
http://tinyurl.com/pwgo3
and one of the interior:
http://community.webshots.com/photo/47167900/1047168022036367367arbtmQ
Best,
John Dillon
(post of 27. March 2004, revised)
**********************************************************************
To join the list, send the message: join medieval-religion YOUR NAME
to: [log in to unmask]
To send a message to the list, address it to:
[log in to unmask]
To leave the list, send the message: leave medieval-religion
to: [log in to unmask]
In order to report problems or to contact the list's owners, write to:
[log in to unmask]
For further information, visit our web site:
http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/medieval-religion.html
|