E05955: The Chronicle of Fredegar describes how King Clovis gave gifts to the churches of Martin (ascetic and bishop of Tours, ob. 397, S00050) and Hilary (bishop of Poitiers, ob. 367, S00183) after his victory over the Visigoths at the battle of Vouillé in 507. This part of Fredegar's text is based on Gregory of Tours' Histories, but includes material not in Gregory. Written in Latin in Gaul/Francia, 659/700.

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posted on 2018-07-14, 00:00 authored by dlambert

Chronicle of Fredegar 3.24

Multis muneribus ecclesia sancti Marthini et sancti Helariae ditavit, quorum fultus auxilio haec cernitur implisse.

'He [Clovis] enriched the churches of St Martin and St Hilary with many gifts, because he seemed to have relied on their aid to achieve these things.'

Text: Krusch 1888, 102. Translation: David Lambert.

History

Evidence ID

E05955

Saint Name

Hilarius/Hilary, bishop of Poitiers, ob. 367 : S00183 Martin, ascetic and bishop of Tours, ob. 397 : S00050

Saint Name in Source

Helarius Marthinus

Related Saint Records

Type of Evidence

Literary - Other narrative texts (including Histories)

Language

Latin

Evidence not before

659

Evidence not after

700

Activity not before

507

Activity not after

511

Place of Evidence - Region

Gaul and Frankish kingdoms

Place of evidence - City name in other Language(s)

Tours Tours Toronica urbs Prisciniacensim vicus Pressigny Turonorum civitas Ceratensis vicus Céré

Cult activities - Places

Cult building - independent (church)

Cult activities - Non Liturgical Practices and Customs

Bequests, donations, gifts and offerings

Cult Activities - Miracles

Miraculous interventions in war

Cult Activities - Protagonists in Cult and Narratives

Monarchs and their family

Source

The work known as the Chronicle of Fredegar dates from the second half of the 7th century. There is a long history of controversy over the questions of how many authors were involved in its compilation and precisely when they worked, but the current consensus is that it was produced by a single author working in one of the Frankish kingdoms at some point after 659 (Collins 1996, 83, 91-96). Book 3 consists of an epitomised version of the first six books of Gregory of Tours' Histories, but with interpolated material that is not in Gregory.

Discussion

This sentence in the Chronicle of Fredegar corresponds to a sentence in Gregory, Histories 2.37 (E02032), but Gregory refers only to Clovis giving gifts to the church of St Martin, not also to that of St Hilary. The observation that Clovis seemed to have achieved his victory through the saints' aid is also an addition by Fredegar.

Bibliography

Edition: Krusch, B., Chronicarum quae dicuntur Fredegarii Scholastici libri IV cum continutationibus, in: Fredegarii et aliorum chronica. Vitae sanctorum (Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Scriptores rerum Merovingicarum 2; Hannover 1888), 18-193. Further reading: Collins, R., "Fredegar," in: P.J. Geary (ed.), Authors of the Middle Ages: Historical and Religious Writers of the Latin West, vol. 4, nos. 12-13 (Aldershot, 1996), 73-138.