medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Colleagues may also be interested in this - available from me for £25 (or
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Regards,
Rosemary Hayes
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From: "The Medieval Review" <[log in to unmask]>
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Sent: Thursday, April 19, 2012 4:31 PM
Subject: TMR 12.04.17 Woolgar, Testimentary Records of the English and Welsh
Episcopate (Remfry)
Woolgar, C. M., ed. <i>Testamentary Records of the English and Welsh
Episcopate, 1200-1413: Wills, Executors' Accounts and Inventories, and
the Probate Process</i>. Woodbridge, Suffolk: Canterbury & York
Society (Boydell Press), 2011. Pp. lvii, 360. $45.00. ISBN:
9780907239741.
Reviewed by Paul Martin Remfry
Strategic Castle Studies (SCS Research and Publishing)
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This hardback book is excellently bound and typeset. The opening
"Editorial Note and Conventions" rapidly explains the purpose and
sensible methodology of the work, which is divided into two parts
after the introduction. First comes an account of all probate
documentation of each bishop arranged by diocese and referenced to
published sources. This shows what survives of their testaments and
related documentation. The bulk of the book is then devoted to
printing the previously unpublished probate material for each bishop
in alphabetical order. This consists of the fully transcribed texts of
any surviving wills and other related material.
The author sets out by intelligently discussing the real problems of
the texts and this, to my mind, opens the question of what a primary
source actually is: some of the documents transcribed here are
originals, but most are copies and this opens up the hoary old
question of how accurate these copies were and when they were made. In
transcribing the documents the editor decided to expand all the
original contractions and keep the original spellings of place names
"so that this volume can serve as a basis for linguistic as well as
for historical research" (ix)--a laudable aim.
The introduction expands on the book's purpose--"to tell about how
these prelates lived their lives...and customs of medieval life and
death" (xvii)--and explains how this is to be done by viewing the
probate material as a corpus, as well as collating the published
references for each bishop.
The arbitrary commencement date of 1200 was chosen for the start of
the book on the grounds that only one will survives before that date,
although a handful of references exist to others. To me this cut-off
point seemed an omission, and an appendix to list these missing known
wills from the earlier period would have been valuable, although
several of these were further examined in the introduction (p. xxi
ff.) and mention was made of others in the brief résumé of each see.
The later cut-off point (1413) was usefully chosen as a time after
which most wills have been previously published. The value of the work
again comes out in the statistics: of the 285 bishops who died in this
period, only 74 have left surviving wills, of which over a quarter
were previously unpublished. There are also 21 sets of executors'
accounts and inventories, of which (again) over a third are now
published for the first time. These factors alone make this book a
much welcome addition to the published medieval corpus of original
documents.
There is an interesting discussion of when a bishop was allowed to
make a will and what he was allowed to distribute. This reveals
distinctly different usages in England, Scotland and <i>pura Walia</i>.
The difference was apparently due to the kings of Scotland and the
princes of North Wales not allowing their bishops the right of will-
making. A similar situation may well have existed in England in the
first few generations after the Norman Conquest of 1066.
The story uncovered, of the changing relationships between the Crown
and the executors of the bishops' wills during the reign of Henry III,
proves fascinating reading (xxvi). The leeway that the king allowed
executors is intriguing and emphasises the very non-static nature of
the Middle Ages. The various wills repeatedly reinforce that practices
were not standardized and variety was the spice of medieval life. From
at least the time of Archbishop Hubert Walter (d. 1205), some bishops
regularly updated their wills: according to the unreliable Ralph
Coggeshall, Hubert updated his every summer for the last seven years
of his life (7). Conversely, other bishops of the thirteenth century
made only one will, sometimes years before their deaths. Yet others
only made wills on their deathbed and some apparently did not bother
at all. The Middle Ages was truly a time of individuals.
An interesting occurrence that should be a warning to all historians
concerns the will of Bishop Walter de la Wyle of Salisbury, dated 25
June 1269 (xxx-xxxi). This had a list of witnesses attached and would
have been unremarkable apart from the fact that it led to a lawsuit.
During the course of this John Middleton, the succentor of Salisbury,
stated that he had written the will for the bishop and he affirmed
that the bishop had confirmed the will to be his and had it sealed in
the presence of many. Master Stephen Grunville, the precentor of
Salisbury, claimed that one of the witnesses to this was Master
William de la Wyle, a canon of Salisbury. William later came forward,
however, and denied having been there, although he agreed with the
depositions made out in the will. A clerk, John Bosco, then came
forward and stated that the bishop had instructed him to write down
the date and the names of the clerks and household members present
when the will was sealed. It is a pity that the original will has not
survived. Quite likely all document sealings were variations on this
theme and this leads me to wonder how many documents that have been
challenged as forgeries due to the irregularities in the witness list
may have included people who were thought to have been there "in
spirit."
The introduction then proceeds through the processes that occurred
after the will was made, through the testament being proved by the
metropolitan courts, the goods inventoried and the executors allowed
to administer the estate. This process could and often did take years,
even though Roman and some diocesan law stated that all should be done
within a year. The useful introduction concludes with the intelligent
warning "that we need to look beyond the text wills to comprehend the
full range of proceedings on a bishop's death" (lvii). The text then
proceeds to give the scholar the best chance of comprehending the
myriad facets that made up the transfer of corporal effects from one
bishop to another.
The middle part of the book begins with a "Catalogue of Probate
Documentation," listed chronologically by episcopal see (1-72). These
consist of a brief potted history of the see followed by the
chronological listing of the various bishops from the beginning of the
thirteenth century to the early part of the reign of Henry V (1413-22).
Obviously this review is too short to look at all the sees in turn,
but a few points of comparison are noteworthy. The first of the sees
is Bangor, and here it is noted that despite Edward I's claim that
"Welsh bishops by ancient custom cannot make wills," Bishop Cadwgan on
resigning his see in 1235/6 did just that (1). In South Wales this was
apparently untrue, with the bishops of Llandaff (41) and St Davids
(54) acting according to English practices. However, both the
cathedrals of these sees were set in lands directly controlled by
Anglo-Norman magnates. In the North the princes of Gwynedd were
generally in control of the lands around the two northern cathedrals
in the thirteenth century and this may account for the apparent
difference. The ancient Welsh usage may have been comparatively modern
and applied only to the rule of Llywelyn ap Gruffydd; after all, he
did hold lordship in parts of Wales before Edward was even born in
1239. Again, the study of original documentation allows the vagaries
of the foundations of established dogma to be uncovered!
The list of bishops by see appears to be exhaustive; I was a little
concerned, however, by the dates attached to some of their episcopates.
Although the book is by no means meant as a timeline, I did feel that
the dating could have been tighter as the presence of bishops in
witness lists are often used to date charters, viz.: "Bishop Giles
Braose of Hereford, 24 September 1200-17 November 1215" rather than
simply "1200-1215." Perhaps this could be done in a second edition.
The third and final part of the book consists of expanded transcripts
of the texts of the wills and associated documents in alphabetical
order by bishop. The methodology used to transcribe these documents is
simple and logical as well as transparent on the printed page. The
section's footnotes are copious and provide a good hunting ground for
those interested in the survival of such things as old books and
manuscripts. Good examples are the books recorded in the wills of
bishops Baldock (74-85), Langham (135-148) and Trefnant (255-264).
The book is concluded with a useful "Word List and Glossary" followed
by an index. To sum up, this is an excellent work which certainly
achieves its aims of editing all the unpublished probate material and
providing a comprehensive overview of the surviving records.
The documents printed in this book emphasize that all these bishops
were individuals and although their wills often followed a common form
to allow their possessions to stay within the confines of the church
rather than being plundered by the Exchequer, they are intensely
intimate documents that reflect the temperament and character of these
educated men and those around them. To quote the Amazon blurb: "They
demonstrate common patterns in terms of goods, styles of living and
customary practices, as well as the power of devotion, intellectual
interests and relationships between bishop and chapter. At the same
time, they illuminate the devices that were employed to keep
ecclesiastical property out of the hands of the Crown, and how to
manage the business of church, diocese and family from beyond the
grave." This aim of the book is admirably fulfilled.
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