Gregory of Tours (c. 538 – 17 November 594) did in his Historia Francorum not confine himself to
main political and social events, but regularly included anecdotes. The following story is such an anecdote and it
is also illustrative of Germanic law.
Once at Tours, a man, Ambrosia, persuades his brother
Lupus – a widower who had also lost his children – not to enter the clergy, but
to remarry. The reason is that he fears that his brother will make the Church
his heir. Under Germanic law a man inherited from his deceased childless
brother, even when the latter was married, as the wife was not considered as
belonging to the next of kin. Otherwise there is no logic in the action of this
Ambrosia. Ambrosius finds a woman for his brother. They set a day for giving
over the betrothal gift. In all likelihood the wife in spe was an orphan or had otherwise no male relatives who could
receive this gift and hand it over to her, so Ambrosius acted as intermediary.
The betrothal gift guaranteed some financial independence for a woman within
her marriage. Next the brothers go to a
common house of theirs at Chinon – not far away from Tours -, had a lot of
booze and fall drunk asleep in the same bed. Then a new theme is introduced in
the story: Ambrosius’ wife is a meretrix
(how far more interesting those women are than bleak virgins!) and she has a lover. Hating her husband, she wants to get rid of
him. The lover enters at night the house and kills Ambrosius with his sword,
not noticing that Lupus was sharing the same bed. Lupus awakes and finding
himself bathing in the blood of his brother, he is crying for help but no other
people at home hear his as they too had had enough wine, but the invader does
and returns to give Lupus some firm blows with his sword. The following day
Lupus dies of his wounds, but not before he has told the servants what has
happened. The merry widow and her lover get away with it. This may surprise us,
but apparently there were no relatives to ask for compensation in the form of weregild. Weregild
(also spelled wergild) was the money one had to pay in compensation for
injustice done. It means `man money’ and the first member of this compound is
the same word as Latin vir. Anyway,
this episode must have been the talk of the town at Tours for decades!
Gregorius
Turonensis, , Historia Francorum, liber
vi, 13. De Lupo et Ambrosio Turonicis
civibus interfectis.
Lupus urbis
Turonicae civis, cum, uxore perdita ac liberis, clericatum expeteret, a fratre
Ambrosio prohibitus est, timens, ne heredem institueret Dei ecclesiam, si ei
coniungeretur. Rursumque illi uxorem providit et diem, in quo ad disponsalia
donanda coniungerent, malesuadus frater indicit. Dehinc ad Cainonensem castrum,
ubi hospitium habebant, pariter advenerunt. Sed uxor Ambrosii, cum esset
adultera et alium in amore lupanario, exoso marito, diligeret, insidias viro
tetendit. Cumque hi germani pariter epulantes et nocte usque ad ebrietatem vino
maduissent, in uno strato pariter quieverunt. Tunc moechus uxoris Ambrosii
nocte veniens, quiescentibus cunctis et vino depressis, accensis igne paleis,
ut videret quid ageret, extracto gladio, Ambrosium in capite librat, ita ut
descendens per oculos gladius cervical capitis amputaret. In quo ictu
expergefactus Lupus et se in sanguinem volutari decernens, exclamat voce magna,
dicens: 'Heu, heu, succurrite, frater meus interfectus est!' Moechus vero, qui
iam perpetrato scelere discedebat, haec audiens, regressus ad lectum, Lupum
adiit. Quo repugnante, multis plagis laceratum oppressit et mortali ictu
sauciatum semivivum reliquid. Sed nullus de familia sensit. Mane autem facto,
stupebant omnes de tanto scelere. Lupus tamen adhuc vivens nanctus, sicut actum
fuerat referens, spiritum exalavit. Sed nec longum meretrix lugendi sumpsit
spatium; sed paucis diebus interpositis, coniuncta moecho, discessit.
Lupus: probably
a Latinization of the Germanic name `wolf’
clericatus, us
(m.): clergy
heres heredis (m.):
heir
ei i.e ecclesiae
rursum: again
disponsalium,
betrothal gift, bride gift
malesuadus:
ill-advising
dehinc:
hereafter
pariter:
together
in amore lupanario:
with the love of a whore (lupinaria)
exosus: hating
very much, being hated very much
insidias tendo:
to lay out an ambush
germanus (m.):
brother
epulo: to eat
ebrietas, -atis
(f.): drunkenness
madeo madui: to be wet, to overflow
stratum: bed
moechus:
fornicator, adulter
accensis igne
paleis: having kindled chaff (palea) with fire
libro: to swing
ita ut descendens
per oculos gladius cervical capitis amputare: that the sword coming down
through te eyes cut the pillow of the head (But it could be that Gregory meant calvaria `skull’ instead of cervical
`pillow’.)
ictus, ictus
(m.): strike, blow
expergefacio:
to arouse, awaken
voluto: to
turn
succurro succurri
succursum: to run to help
perpetrato scelere:
the crime (scelus sceleris, n.) being
committed
lectus: bed
Quo repugnante:
though he (Lupus) resisted
plaga: blow
lacero: to
mutilate, lacerate
saucio: to
wound
semivivus: half
alive
familia: not
`family’ but household, including
servants
mane facto: morning having come
nanctus (nanciscor) has here a passive meaning `Lupus being found’
exalo (= exhalo): to breathe out, exhale
lugendi sumpsit spatium: took time for mourning (lugeo)
Translation by Earnest Brehaut (1916)
Lupus, a citizen of Tours, having lost wife and children,
desired to enter the clergy but was prevented by his brother Ambrose who was
afraid that he would leave his property to the church of God if he were joined
to it. Ambrose, persuading him to his harm, provided him with another wife and
appointed the day to meet to give the betrothal gifts. Then they went together
to the town of Chinon where they had a dwelling. But Ambrose's wife being an
adulteress and loving another with the love of a lewd woman and hating her
husband, made a plot for him. And when these brothers had feasted together and
had drunk wine in the night until they were intoxicated, they lay down on the
same bed. When the adulterer came in the night when all were sleeping heavily
because of the wine and setting fire to the straw in order to see what he was
doing, he drew his sword and struck Ambrose on the head so that the sword went
in at his eyes and cut the pillow in two beneath his head. Lupus was aroused by
the blow and finding himself wallowing in blood, he called in a loud voice
saying: "Alas, Alas! Help; my brother is killed." But the adulterer
who had committed the deed and was now going off, heard this and returned to
the bed and attacked Lupus. Although he resisted he was wounded many times, and
overwhelmed and given a mortal stroke and left half dead. But no one of the
household knew of it. In the morning all were amazed at such a crime. Lupus
however was found to be still alive and after telling the story as it occurred,
he died. But the harlot did not take a long time to mourn. In a few days she
joined her adulterer and departed.
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