July 26, 2025 • 21 mins
Dive into the intriguing life of Emperor Charlemagne through the eyes of Notker, a monk who spun tales filled with amusing anecdotes and witty narratives. Despite traditional historians dismissing Notker as ill-informed, a number of his tales, including the enigmatic story of the nine rings of the Avar stronghold, have found their way into modern Charlemagne biographies. Written for Charles the Fat, Charlemagnes great-grandson, during his visit to Saint Gall in 883, this podcast presents a unique perspective on a monumental historical figure. (Summary abstracted from Wikipedia by Karen Merline.)
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
Section four of the Life of Charlemagne. This is a
LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain.
For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org.
The Life of Charlemagne by nottgir The Stammerer, translated by
(00:24):
Arthur James Grant, Section four, Book one, Part four. As
Charles stayed in Rome for a few days, the Bishop
of the Apostolic Sea called together all who had come
from the neighboring districts, and then, in their presence, and
in the presence of all the knights of the unconquered Charles,
(00:47):
he declared him to be Emperor and defender of the
Roman Church. Now Charles had no guess of what was coming,
and though he could not refuse what seemed to have
been divinely preordained for him, nevertheless he received his new
title with no show of thankfulness. For first, he thought
(01:07):
that the Greeks would be fired by greater envy than ever,
and would plan some harm against the Kingdom of the Franks,
or at least would take greater precautions against a possible
sudden attack of Charles to subdue their kingdom, And added
to his own empire. And further, the magnanimous Charles recalled
how ambassadors from the king of Constantinople had come to
(01:30):
him and had told him that their master wished to
be his loyal friend, and that if they became nearer neighbors,
he had determined to treat him as his son and
relieve the poverty of Charles from his resources. And how
upon hearing this, Charles was unable to contain any longer
the fiery ardor of his heart, and had exclaimed, Oh,
(01:54):
would that pool were not between us, For then we
would either divide between us the wealth of the east,
or we would hold it in common. But the Lord,
who is both the giver and the restorer of health,
so showed his favor to the innocency of the blessed Leo,
that he restored his eyes to be brighter than they
were before that wicked and cruel cutting, except only that,
(02:17):
in token of his virtue, a bright scar like a
very fine thread marked his eyelids. The foolish may accuse
me of folly, because just now I made Charles say
that the sea, which that mighty emperor called playfully a
little pool, lay between us and the Greeks. But I
(02:38):
must tell my critics that at that date the Bulgarians
and the Huns, and many other powerful races barred the
way to Greece with forces yet unattacked and unbroken. Soon afterwards,
it is true, the most warlike Charles either hurled them
to the ground, as he did the Slavs and the Bulgars,
or else utterly destroyed them, as was the case with
(03:01):
the Huns, that race of iron and adamant. And I
will go on to speak of these exploits as soon
as I have given a very slight account of the
wonderful buildings which Charles, Emperor Augustus, and Caesar, following the
example of the all wise Solomon built at ex either
for God or for himself, or for the bishops, abbots, counts,
(03:24):
and all guests that came to him from all quarters
of the world. When the most energetic Emperor Charles could
rest awhile he sought not sluggish ease, but labored in
the service of God. He desired therefore to build upon
his native soil a cathedral finer even than the works
of the Romans. And soon his purpose was realized. For
(03:49):
the building thereof he summoned architects and skilled workmen from
all lands beyond the seas, and above all he placed
a certain knavish abbot, whose competence for the execution of
such tasks he knew, though he knew not his character.
When the August Emperor had gone on a certain journey,
(04:09):
this abbot allowed any one to depart home who would
pay sufficient money, and those who could not purchase their
discharge or were not allowed to return by their masters.
He burdened with unending labors, as the Egyptians once afflicted
the people of God by such knavish tricks. He gathered
together a great mass of gold and silver and silken robes,
(04:32):
and exhibiting in his chamber only the least precious articles,
he concealed in boxes and chests all the richest treasures. Well.
One day there was brought to him on a sudden
the news that his house was on fire. He ran
in great excitement and pushed his way through the bursting
flames into the strong room, where his boxes stuffed with
(04:54):
gold were kept. He was not satisfied to take one away,
but would only leave after he had loaded his servants
with a box apiece. And as he was going out,
a huge beam, dislodged by the fire, fell on the
top of him, and then his body was burnt by
temporal and his soul by eternal flames. Thus did the
(05:17):
judgment of God keep watch for the most religious Emperor Charles.
When his attention was withdrawn by the business of his kingdom,
there was another workman, the most skilled of all in
the working of brass and glass. Now this man his
name was Tancho, and he was at one time a
monk of Saint Gaul. Made a fine bell, and the
(05:40):
Emperor was delighted with its tone. Then said that most
distinguished but most unfortunate worker in brass, Lord Emperor, give
orders that a great weight of copper be brought to me,
that I may refine it, and instead of tin, give
me as much silver as I shall need, a hundred
pounds at least, and I will cast such a bell
(06:03):
for you that this will seem dumb in comparison to it.
Then Charles, the most liberal of monarchs, who if riches abounded,
set not his heart upon them, readily gave the necessary orders,
to the great delight of the Knavish monk. He smelt
it and refined the brass, but used not silver, but
(06:25):
the purest sort of tin. And soon he made a
bell much better than the one that the Emperor had
formerly admired. And when he had tested it, he took
it to the Emperor, who admired its exquisite shape, and
ordered the clapper to be inserted and the bell to
be hung in the bell tower. That was soon done,
(06:48):
and then the warden of the church, the attendants, and
even the boys of the place tried one after the
other to make the bell sound, but all was in vain,
and so at last the knavish maker of the bell
came up, seized the rope, and pulled at the bell,
when lo and behold down from on high came the
(07:09):
brazen mass fell on the very head of the cheating
brass founder, killed him on the spot, and passed straight
through his carcass, and crashed to the ground, carrying his
bowels with it. When the aforementioned weight of silver was found,
the most righteous Charles ordered it to be distributed among
(07:30):
the poorest servants of the palace. Now it was a
rule at that time that if the imperial mandate had
gone out, that any task was to be accomplished, whether
it was the making of bridges or ships or causeways,
or the cleansing or paving or filling up of muddy roads.
The counts might execute the less important work by the
(07:51):
agency of their deputies or servants. But for the greater enterprises,
and especially such as were of an original kind, no
duke or count, no bishop or abbot, could possibly get
himself excused. The arches of the Great Bridge at Mice
bear witness to this. For all Europe, so to speak,
(08:12):
labored at this work in orderly co operation, and then
the knavery of a few rascals who wanted to steal
merchandise from the ships that passed underneath destroyed it. If
any churches within the royal domain wanted decorating with carved
ceilings or wall paintings, the neighboring bishops and abbots had
(08:33):
to take charge of the task. But if new churches
had to be built, then all bishops, dukes and counts,
all abbots and heads of royal churches, and all who
were in occupation of any public office had to work
at it with never ceasing labor, from its foundations to
its roof. You may see the proof of the Emperor's
(08:54):
skill in the cathedral at ax, which seems a work
half human and half divine. You may see it in
the mansions of the various dignitaries, which, by Charles's device,
were built round his own palace in such a way
that from the windows of his chamber he could see
all who went out or came in, and what they
(09:15):
were doing, while they believed themselves free from observation. You
may see it in all the houses of his nobles,
which were lifted on high from the ground in such
a fashion that beneath them the retainers of his nobles,
and the servants of those retainers, and every class of man,
could be protected from rain or snow, from cold or heat,
(09:38):
while at the same time they were not concealed from
the eyes of the most vigilant Charles. But I am
a prisoner within my monastery walls, and your ministers are free,
and I will therefore leave to them the task of
describing the cathedral, while I returned to speak of how
the judgment of God was made manifest in the building
(10:01):
of it. The most careful Charles ordered certain nobles of
the neighborhood to support with all their power the workmen
whom he had set to their task, and to supply
everything that they required for it. Those workmen who came
from a distance he gave in charge to a certain Lutefried,
(10:21):
the steward of his palace, telling him to feed and
clothe them, and also most carefully to provide anything that
was wanting for the building. The steward obeyed these commands
for the short time the Charles remained in that place,
but after his departure neglected them all together, and by
cruel tortures, collected such a mass of money from the
(10:43):
poor workmen that ds and Pluto would require a camel
to carry his ill gotten gains to Hell. Now this
was found out in the following way. The most glorious
Charles used to go to lauds at night in a
long and flowing cloak, which is now neither used nor known. Then,
(11:03):
when the morning chant was over, he would go back
to his chamber and dress himself in his imperial robes.
All the clerks used to come ready dressed to the
nightly office, and then they would wait for the emperor's
arrival and for the celebration of Mass, either in the
church or in the porch, which then was called the
outer court. Sometimes they would remain awake, or if any
(11:27):
one had need of sleep, he would lean his head
on his companion's breast. Now, one poor clerk, who used
often to go to Lutefried's house to get his clothes rags,
I are to call them washed and mended, was sleeping
with his head on a friend's knees when he saw
in a vision a giant taller than the adversary of
(11:48):
Saint Anthony come from the King's court and hurry over
the bridge that spanned a little stream to the house
of the Steward, and he led with him an enormous camel,
burdened with baggage of inestimable value. He was, in his
dream struck with amazement, and asked the giant who he
was and whither he wished to go. And the giant
(12:10):
made answer, I come from the house of the King,
and I go to the house of Lieutfried, and I
shall place Lutefried on these packages, and I shall take
him and them down with me to Hell. Thereupon the
clerk woke up in a fright, lest Charles should find
(12:31):
him sleeping. He lifted up his head and urged the
others to wakefulness, and cried here I pray you my dream,
I seemed to see another Polyphemus, who walked on the
earth and yet touched the stars, and passed through the
Ionian Sea without wetting his sides. I saw him hasten
from the royal court to the house of Lutefried with
a laden camel, And when I asked the cause of
(12:52):
his journey, he said, I AM going to put Lieutfried
on top of the load and then take him to hell.
The story was hardly finished when there came from that house,
which they all knew so well, a girl who fell
at their feet and asked them to remember her friend
lute Fried in their prayers. And when they asked the
(13:12):
reason for her words, she said, my lord, he went out,
but now in good health. And as he stayed a
long time, we went in search of him and found
him dead. When the Emperor heard of his sudden death,
and was informed by the workmen and his servants of
his grasping avarice, he ordered his treasures to be examined.
(13:36):
They were found to be of priceless worth. And when
the Emperor, after God, the greatest of judges, found by
what wickedness they had been collected, he gave this public judgment.
Nothing of that which was gained by fraud must go
to the liberation of his souls from purgatory. Let his
wealth be divided among the workmen of this our building
(13:59):
and the poorer servants of our palace. Now I must
speak of two things which happened in that same place.
There was a deacon who followed the Italian custom and
resisted the course of nature. For he went to the
baths and had himself closely shaved, polished his skin, cleaned
his nails, and had his hair cut as short as
(14:22):
if it had been done by a lathe. Then he
put on linen and a white robe. And then, because
he must not miss his turn, or rather, desiring to
make a fine show, he proceeded to read the Gospel
before God and his holy angels, and in presence of
the most watchful King, his heart in the meantime being unclean,
(14:44):
as events were to show, for while he was reading,
a spider came down from the ceiling by a thread,
hooked itself on to the deacon's head, and then ran
up again. The most observant Charles saw this happened a
second and a third time, but pretended not to notice it,
and the clerk, because of the Emperor's presence, dare not
(15:05):
keep off the spider with his hand, and moreover, did
not know that it was a spider attacking him, but
thought that it was merely the tickling of a fly.
So he finished the reading of the Gospel, and also
went through the rest of the office. But when he
left the cathedral he soon began to swell up and
(15:26):
died within an hour. But the most scrupulous Charles, inasmuch
as he had seen his danger and had not prevented it,
thought himself guilty of manslaughter, and did public penance. Now,
the most glorious Charles had in his suite a certain
clerk who was unsurpassed in every respect. And of him
(15:49):
that was said which was never said of any other
mortal man. For it was said that he excelled all
mankind and knowledge of both sacred and profane literature, in song,
whether ecclesiastical or festive, in the composition and rendering of poems,
and in the sweet fullness of his voice, and in
(16:10):
the incredible pleasure which he gave. Other men have had
drawbacks to compensate for their excellencies. For Moses, the lawgiver,
filled with wisdom by the teaching of God, complains nevertheless
that he is not eloquent, but slow of speech and
of a slow tongue, and sent therefore Joshua to take
(16:33):
consul with Eleazar, the high priest, who, by the authority
of God who dwelt within him, commanded even the heavenly bodies.
And our Master Christ did not allow John the Baptist
to work any miracle while in the body, though he
bear witness that among them that are born of women,
(16:53):
there hath not arisen a greater than he, And he
bade Peter revere the wisdom of all. Though Peter, by
the revelation of the Father, recognized him and received from
him the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven. And he
allowed John, his best loved disciple, to fall into so
great a terror that he did not dare to come
(17:15):
to the place of his sepulcher. The weak women paid
many visits to it. But as the scriptures say to him,
that hath shall be given, and those who know from
whom they have the little which they possess, succeed. While
he who knows not the giver of his possessions, or
if he knows it gives not due thanks to the
(17:36):
giver loses all. For while this wonderful clerk was standing
in friendly fashion near the most glorious Emperor, suddenly he disappeared.
The unconquered Emperor Charles was dumbfoundered at so unheard of
and incredible an occurrence. But after he had made the
(17:56):
sign of the Cross, he found in the place where
the clerk had stood something that seemed to be a
foul smelling coal which had just ceased to burn. The
mention of the trailing garment that the Emperor war at
night has diverted us from his military array. Now, the
dress and equipment of the old Franks was as follows.
(18:19):
Their boots were gilt on the outside and decorated with
laces three cubits long. The thongs round the legs were red,
and under them they wore upon their legs and thighs
linen of the same color, artistically embroidered. The laces stretched
above these linen garments and above the crossed thongs, sometimes
under them and sometimes over them. Now in front of
(18:41):
the leg and now behind then came a rich linen shirt,
and then a buckled sword belt. The great sword was
surrounded first with a sheath, then with a covering of leather,
and lastly with a linen wrap hardened with shining wax.
The last part of their dress was a white or
blue cloak in the shape of a double square, so
(19:03):
that when it was placed upon the shoulders, it touched
the feet in front and behind, but at the side
hardly came down to the knees. In the right hand
was carried a stick of apple wood with regular knots,
strong and terrible. A handle of gold or silver decorated
with figures was fastened to it. I myself am lazy
(19:25):
and slower than a tortoise, and so never got into Frankland.
But I saw the King of the Franks in the
monastery of Saint Gall, glittering in the dress that I
have described. But the habits of man change, and when
the Francs, in their wars with the Gall, saw the
latter proudly wearing little striped cloaks, they dropped their national
(19:46):
customs and began to imitate the Galls. At first, the
strictest of emperors did not forbid the new habit, because
it seemed more suitable for war. But when he found
that the Frisians were ABUSI his permission, and were selling
these little cloaks at the same price as the old
large ones. He gave orders that no one should buy
(20:07):
from them at the usual price, anything but the old cloaks,
broad wide and long. And he added, what is the
good of those little napkins? I cannot cover myself with
them in bed, and when I am on horseback, I
cannot shield myself with them against wind and rain. In
the preface to this little work, I said I would
(20:29):
follow three authorities only, but as the chief of these
Wereenbert died seven days ago, and today the thirteenth of May,
we his bereaved sons and disciples are going to pay
solemn honor to his memory. Here I will bring this
book to an end concerning the piety of Lord Charles
(20:50):
and his care of the Church, which has been taken
from the lips of this same clerk Wereinbert. The next book,
which deals with the wars of the most fierce Charles,
is founded on the narrative of Werinbert's father, Adelbert. He
followed his master Caroled in the Hunnish, Saxon and Slavic wars,
(21:12):
And when I was quite a child, and he a
very old man. I lived in his house, and he
used often to tell me the story of these events.
I was most unwilling to listen, and would often run away.
But in the end, by sheer force, he made me here.
End of book one, end of section four.
Section four of the Life of Charlemagne. This is a
LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain.
For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org.
The Life of Charlemagne by nottgir The Stammerer, translated by
(00:24):
Arthur James Grant, Section four, Book one, Part four. As
Charles stayed in Rome for a few days, the Bishop
of the Apostolic Sea called together all who had come
from the neighboring districts, and then, in their presence, and
in the presence of all the knights of the unconquered Charles,
(00:47):
he declared him to be Emperor and defender of the
Roman Church. Now Charles had no guess of what was coming,
and though he could not refuse what seemed to have
been divinely preordained for him, nevertheless he received his new
title with no show of thankfulness. For first, he thought
(01:07):
that the Greeks would be fired by greater envy than ever,
and would plan some harm against the Kingdom of the Franks,
or at least would take greater precautions against a possible
sudden attack of Charles to subdue their kingdom, And added
to his own empire. And further, the magnanimous Charles recalled
how ambassadors from the king of Constantinople had come to
(01:30):
him and had told him that their master wished to
be his loyal friend, and that if they became nearer neighbors,
he had determined to treat him as his son and
relieve the poverty of Charles from his resources. And how
upon hearing this, Charles was unable to contain any longer
the fiery ardor of his heart, and had exclaimed, Oh,
(01:54):
would that pool were not between us, For then we
would either divide between us the wealth of the east,
or we would hold it in common. But the Lord,
who is both the giver and the restorer of health,
so showed his favor to the innocency of the blessed Leo,
that he restored his eyes to be brighter than they
were before that wicked and cruel cutting, except only that,
(02:17):
in token of his virtue, a bright scar like a
very fine thread marked his eyelids. The foolish may accuse
me of folly, because just now I made Charles say
that the sea, which that mighty emperor called playfully a
little pool, lay between us and the Greeks. But I
(02:38):
must tell my critics that at that date the Bulgarians
and the Huns, and many other powerful races barred the
way to Greece with forces yet unattacked and unbroken. Soon afterwards,
it is true, the most warlike Charles either hurled them
to the ground, as he did the Slavs and the Bulgars,
or else utterly destroyed them, as was the case with
(03:01):
the Huns, that race of iron and adamant. And I
will go on to speak of these exploits as soon
as I have given a very slight account of the
wonderful buildings which Charles, Emperor Augustus, and Caesar, following the
example of the all wise Solomon built at ex either
for God or for himself, or for the bishops, abbots, counts,
(03:24):
and all guests that came to him from all quarters
of the world. When the most energetic Emperor Charles could
rest awhile he sought not sluggish ease, but labored in
the service of God. He desired therefore to build upon
his native soil a cathedral finer even than the works
of the Romans. And soon his purpose was realized. For
(03:49):
the building thereof he summoned architects and skilled workmen from
all lands beyond the seas, and above all he placed
a certain knavish abbot, whose competence for the execution of
such tasks he knew, though he knew not his character.
When the August Emperor had gone on a certain journey,
(04:09):
this abbot allowed any one to depart home who would
pay sufficient money, and those who could not purchase their
discharge or were not allowed to return by their masters.
He burdened with unending labors, as the Egyptians once afflicted
the people of God by such knavish tricks. He gathered
together a great mass of gold and silver and silken robes,
(04:32):
and exhibiting in his chamber only the least precious articles,
he concealed in boxes and chests all the richest treasures. Well.
One day there was brought to him on a sudden
the news that his house was on fire. He ran
in great excitement and pushed his way through the bursting
flames into the strong room, where his boxes stuffed with
(04:54):
gold were kept. He was not satisfied to take one away,
but would only leave after he had loaded his servants
with a box apiece. And as he was going out,
a huge beam, dislodged by the fire, fell on the
top of him, and then his body was burnt by
temporal and his soul by eternal flames. Thus did the
(05:17):
judgment of God keep watch for the most religious Emperor Charles.
When his attention was withdrawn by the business of his kingdom,
there was another workman, the most skilled of all in
the working of brass and glass. Now this man his
name was Tancho, and he was at one time a
monk of Saint Gaul. Made a fine bell, and the
(05:40):
Emperor was delighted with its tone. Then said that most
distinguished but most unfortunate worker in brass, Lord Emperor, give
orders that a great weight of copper be brought to me,
that I may refine it, and instead of tin, give
me as much silver as I shall need, a hundred
pounds at least, and I will cast such a bell
(06:03):
for you that this will seem dumb in comparison to it.
Then Charles, the most liberal of monarchs, who if riches abounded,
set not his heart upon them, readily gave the necessary orders,
to the great delight of the Knavish monk. He smelt
it and refined the brass, but used not silver, but
(06:25):
the purest sort of tin. And soon he made a
bell much better than the one that the Emperor had
formerly admired. And when he had tested it, he took
it to the Emperor, who admired its exquisite shape, and
ordered the clapper to be inserted and the bell to
be hung in the bell tower. That was soon done,
(06:48):
and then the warden of the church, the attendants, and
even the boys of the place tried one after the
other to make the bell sound, but all was in vain,
and so at last the knavish maker of the bell
came up, seized the rope, and pulled at the bell,
when lo and behold down from on high came the
(07:09):
brazen mass fell on the very head of the cheating
brass founder, killed him on the spot, and passed straight
through his carcass, and crashed to the ground, carrying his
bowels with it. When the aforementioned weight of silver was found,
the most righteous Charles ordered it to be distributed among
(07:30):
the poorest servants of the palace. Now it was a
rule at that time that if the imperial mandate had
gone out, that any task was to be accomplished, whether
it was the making of bridges or ships or causeways,
or the cleansing or paving or filling up of muddy roads.
The counts might execute the less important work by the
(07:51):
agency of their deputies or servants. But for the greater enterprises,
and especially such as were of an original kind, no
duke or count, no bishop or abbot, could possibly get
himself excused. The arches of the Great Bridge at Mice
bear witness to this. For all Europe, so to speak,
(08:12):
labored at this work in orderly co operation, and then
the knavery of a few rascals who wanted to steal
merchandise from the ships that passed underneath destroyed it. If
any churches within the royal domain wanted decorating with carved
ceilings or wall paintings, the neighboring bishops and abbots had
(08:33):
to take charge of the task. But if new churches
had to be built, then all bishops, dukes and counts,
all abbots and heads of royal churches, and all who
were in occupation of any public office had to work
at it with never ceasing labor, from its foundations to
its roof. You may see the proof of the Emperor's
(08:54):
skill in the cathedral at ax, which seems a work
half human and half divine. You may see it in
the mansions of the various dignitaries, which, by Charles's device,
were built round his own palace in such a way
that from the windows of his chamber he could see
all who went out or came in, and what they
(09:15):
were doing, while they believed themselves free from observation. You
may see it in all the houses of his nobles,
which were lifted on high from the ground in such
a fashion that beneath them the retainers of his nobles,
and the servants of those retainers, and every class of man,
could be protected from rain or snow, from cold or heat,
(09:38):
while at the same time they were not concealed from
the eyes of the most vigilant Charles. But I am
a prisoner within my monastery walls, and your ministers are free,
and I will therefore leave to them the task of
describing the cathedral, while I returned to speak of how
the judgment of God was made manifest in the building
(10:01):
of it. The most careful Charles ordered certain nobles of
the neighborhood to support with all their power the workmen
whom he had set to their task, and to supply
everything that they required for it. Those workmen who came
from a distance he gave in charge to a certain Lutefried,
(10:21):
the steward of his palace, telling him to feed and
clothe them, and also most carefully to provide anything that
was wanting for the building. The steward obeyed these commands
for the short time the Charles remained in that place,
but after his departure neglected them all together, and by
cruel tortures, collected such a mass of money from the
(10:43):
poor workmen that ds and Pluto would require a camel
to carry his ill gotten gains to Hell. Now this
was found out in the following way. The most glorious
Charles used to go to lauds at night in a
long and flowing cloak, which is now neither used nor known. Then,
(11:03):
when the morning chant was over, he would go back
to his chamber and dress himself in his imperial robes.
All the clerks used to come ready dressed to the
nightly office, and then they would wait for the emperor's
arrival and for the celebration of Mass, either in the
church or in the porch, which then was called the
outer court. Sometimes they would remain awake, or if any
(11:27):
one had need of sleep, he would lean his head
on his companion's breast. Now, one poor clerk, who used
often to go to Lutefried's house to get his clothes rags,
I are to call them washed and mended, was sleeping
with his head on a friend's knees when he saw
in a vision a giant taller than the adversary of
(11:48):
Saint Anthony come from the King's court and hurry over
the bridge that spanned a little stream to the house
of the Steward, and he led with him an enormous camel,
burdened with baggage of inestimable value. He was, in his
dream struck with amazement, and asked the giant who he
was and whither he wished to go. And the giant
(12:10):
made answer, I come from the house of the King,
and I go to the house of Lieutfried, and I
shall place Lutefried on these packages, and I shall take
him and them down with me to Hell. Thereupon the
clerk woke up in a fright, lest Charles should find
(12:31):
him sleeping. He lifted up his head and urged the
others to wakefulness, and cried here I pray you my dream,
I seemed to see another Polyphemus, who walked on the
earth and yet touched the stars, and passed through the
Ionian Sea without wetting his sides. I saw him hasten
from the royal court to the house of Lutefried with
a laden camel, And when I asked the cause of
(12:52):
his journey, he said, I AM going to put Lieutfried
on top of the load and then take him to hell.
The story was hardly finished when there came from that house,
which they all knew so well, a girl who fell
at their feet and asked them to remember her friend
lute Fried in their prayers. And when they asked the
(13:12):
reason for her words, she said, my lord, he went out,
but now in good health. And as he stayed a
long time, we went in search of him and found
him dead. When the Emperor heard of his sudden death,
and was informed by the workmen and his servants of
his grasping avarice, he ordered his treasures to be examined.
(13:36):
They were found to be of priceless worth. And when
the Emperor, after God, the greatest of judges, found by
what wickedness they had been collected, he gave this public judgment.
Nothing of that which was gained by fraud must go
to the liberation of his souls from purgatory. Let his
wealth be divided among the workmen of this our building
(13:59):
and the poorer servants of our palace. Now I must
speak of two things which happened in that same place.
There was a deacon who followed the Italian custom and
resisted the course of nature. For he went to the
baths and had himself closely shaved, polished his skin, cleaned
his nails, and had his hair cut as short as
(14:22):
if it had been done by a lathe. Then he
put on linen and a white robe. And then, because
he must not miss his turn, or rather, desiring to
make a fine show, he proceeded to read the Gospel
before God and his holy angels, and in presence of
the most watchful King, his heart in the meantime being unclean,
(14:44):
as events were to show, for while he was reading,
a spider came down from the ceiling by a thread,
hooked itself on to the deacon's head, and then ran
up again. The most observant Charles saw this happened a
second and a third time, but pretended not to notice it,
and the clerk, because of the Emperor's presence, dare not
(15:05):
keep off the spider with his hand, and moreover, did
not know that it was a spider attacking him, but
thought that it was merely the tickling of a fly.
So he finished the reading of the Gospel, and also
went through the rest of the office. But when he
left the cathedral he soon began to swell up and
(15:26):
died within an hour. But the most scrupulous Charles, inasmuch
as he had seen his danger and had not prevented it,
thought himself guilty of manslaughter, and did public penance. Now,
the most glorious Charles had in his suite a certain
clerk who was unsurpassed in every respect. And of him
(15:49):
that was said which was never said of any other
mortal man. For it was said that he excelled all
mankind and knowledge of both sacred and profane literature, in song,
whether ecclesiastical or festive, in the composition and rendering of poems,
and in the sweet fullness of his voice, and in
(16:10):
the incredible pleasure which he gave. Other men have had
drawbacks to compensate for their excellencies. For Moses, the lawgiver,
filled with wisdom by the teaching of God, complains nevertheless
that he is not eloquent, but slow of speech and
of a slow tongue, and sent therefore Joshua to take
(16:33):
consul with Eleazar, the high priest, who, by the authority
of God who dwelt within him, commanded even the heavenly bodies.
And our Master Christ did not allow John the Baptist
to work any miracle while in the body, though he
bear witness that among them that are born of women,
(16:53):
there hath not arisen a greater than he, And he
bade Peter revere the wisdom of all. Though Peter, by
the revelation of the Father, recognized him and received from
him the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven. And he
allowed John, his best loved disciple, to fall into so
great a terror that he did not dare to come
(17:15):
to the place of his sepulcher. The weak women paid
many visits to it. But as the scriptures say to him,
that hath shall be given, and those who know from
whom they have the little which they possess, succeed. While
he who knows not the giver of his possessions, or
if he knows it gives not due thanks to the
(17:36):
giver loses all. For while this wonderful clerk was standing
in friendly fashion near the most glorious Emperor, suddenly he disappeared.
The unconquered Emperor Charles was dumbfoundered at so unheard of
and incredible an occurrence. But after he had made the
(17:56):
sign of the Cross, he found in the place where
the clerk had stood something that seemed to be a
foul smelling coal which had just ceased to burn. The
mention of the trailing garment that the Emperor war at
night has diverted us from his military array. Now, the
dress and equipment of the old Franks was as follows.
(18:19):
Their boots were gilt on the outside and decorated with
laces three cubits long. The thongs round the legs were red,
and under them they wore upon their legs and thighs
linen of the same color, artistically embroidered. The laces stretched
above these linen garments and above the crossed thongs, sometimes
under them and sometimes over them. Now in front of
(18:41):
the leg and now behind then came a rich linen shirt,
and then a buckled sword belt. The great sword was
surrounded first with a sheath, then with a covering of leather,
and lastly with a linen wrap hardened with shining wax.
The last part of their dress was a white or
blue cloak in the shape of a double square, so
(19:03):
that when it was placed upon the shoulders, it touched
the feet in front and behind, but at the side
hardly came down to the knees. In the right hand
was carried a stick of apple wood with regular knots,
strong and terrible. A handle of gold or silver decorated
with figures was fastened to it. I myself am lazy
(19:25):
and slower than a tortoise, and so never got into Frankland.
But I saw the King of the Franks in the
monastery of Saint Gall, glittering in the dress that I
have described. But the habits of man change, and when
the Francs, in their wars with the Gall, saw the
latter proudly wearing little striped cloaks, they dropped their national
(19:46):
customs and began to imitate the Galls. At first, the
strictest of emperors did not forbid the new habit, because
it seemed more suitable for war. But when he found
that the Frisians were ABUSI his permission, and were selling
these little cloaks at the same price as the old
large ones. He gave orders that no one should buy
(20:07):
from them at the usual price, anything but the old cloaks,
broad wide and long. And he added, what is the
good of those little napkins? I cannot cover myself with
them in bed, and when I am on horseback, I
cannot shield myself with them against wind and rain. In
the preface to this little work, I said I would
(20:29):
follow three authorities only, but as the chief of these
Wereenbert died seven days ago, and today the thirteenth of May,
we his bereaved sons and disciples are going to pay
solemn honor to his memory. Here I will bring this
book to an end concerning the piety of Lord Charles
(20:50):
and his care of the Church, which has been taken
from the lips of this same clerk Wereinbert. The next book,
which deals with the wars of the most fierce Charles,
is founded on the narrative of Werinbert's father, Adelbert. He
followed his master Caroled in the Hunnish, Saxon and Slavic wars,
(21:12):
And when I was quite a child, and he a
very old man. I lived in his house, and he
used often to tell me the story of these events.
I was most unwilling to listen, and would often run away.
But in the end, by sheer force, he made me here.
End of book one, end of section four.
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