History of the Franks

by Saint Bishop of Tours Gregory

3. Meantime the festival of Saint Marcellus came, which is celebrated in the seventh month in the city of Chalon, and king Gunthram was present. And when the ceremony was over and he had approached the holy altar for the communion, a certain man came as if to say something. And as he hastened to the king a knife fell from his hand; he was seized at once and they found another knife unsheathed in his hand. He was immediately led from the holy church and put in fetters and subjected to torture, and he confessed that he had been sent to kill the king, saying, “This was the purpose of the man who sent me.” Since the king knew that the hatred of many men was united on him and he feared that he would be stabbed, he had given orders to his men to guard him well and no opportunity could be found to get at him with swords unless he was attacked in the church, where he was known to stand without care or fear. Now the men who had been named were seized and many were executed, but he let this man go alive, though severely beaten, because he thought it a crime that a man should be led out of church and beheaded.

[4. A second son, Theodoric, is born to Childebert. 5. Prodigies. Among others a village with cottages and men disappeared suddenly.]

6. There was in that year in the city of Tours a man named Desiderius who claimed to be great and said he could do many miracles. He boasted too that messengers were kept busy going to and fro between him and the apostles Peter and Paul. And as I was not at home, the common folk thronged to him bringing the blind and lame but he did not attempt to cure them by holiness but to fool them with the delusion of necromancy.[EN] For he ordered paralytics and other cripples to be vigorously stretched as if he were going to cure by taking pains those whose limbs he could not straighten by the blessing of the divine virtue. And so his attendants would lay hold of a man’s hands and others his feet, and pull in opposite directions so that one would think their sinews would be broken, and when they were not cured they would be sent off half-dead. And the result was that many died under this torture. And the wretch was so presumptuous that he said he was blessed Martin the younger and put himself on a par with the apostles. And it is no wonder that he compared himself with the apostles when that author of wickedness from whom such things proceed is going to assert toward the end of the world that he is Christ. Now it was known from the following fact that he was versed in the wicked art of necromancy as we have said above, because, as they say who observed him, when any one said any evil of him far away and secretly he would rebuke them publicly and say: “You said so and so about me and it was not right to say such things of a holy man like me.” Now how else could he have learned of it except that demons were his messengers? He wore a hood and a goat’s-hair shirt and in public he was abstemious in eating and drinking, but in secret when he had come to his lodgings he would stuff his mouth so that his servant could not carry food to him as fast as he asked for it. But his trickery was exposed and stopped by our people and he was cast out from the territory of the city. We did not know then where he went, but he said he was a citizen of Bordeaux. Now seven years before there had been another great impostor who deceived many by his tricks. He wore a sleeveless shirt and over it a robe of fine stuff and carried a cross from which hung little bottles which contained as he said holy oil. He said that he came from the Spains and was bringing relics of the blessed martyrs Vincent the deacon and Felix. He arrived at Tours at the church of Saint Martin in the evening when we were sitting at dinner, and sent an order saying: “Let them come to see the holy relics.” As the hour was late I replied: “Let the blessed relics rest on the altar and we will go to see them in the morning.” But he arose at the first break of day and without waiting for me came with his cross and appeared in my cell. I was amazed and wondered at his hardihood and asked what this meant. He answered in a proud and haughty voice: “You should have given me a better welcome; I’ll carry this to the ears of king Chilperic; he will avenge this contemptuous treatment of me.” He paid no more attention to me but went into the oratory[EO] and said a verse, then a second and a third, began the prayer and finished it, all by himself, then took up his cross again and went off. He had a rude style of speech and was free with disgusting and obscene terms and not a sensible word came from him. He went on to Paris. In those days the public prayers were being held that are usually held before the holy day of the Lord’s ascension. And as bishop Ragnemod was walking in procession with his people and making the round of the holy places, this person came with his cross and appearing among the people with his unusual clothing, he gathered the prostitutes and women of the lower class and formed a band of his own and made an attempt to walk in procession to the holy places with his multitude. The bishop saw this and sent his archdeacon to say: “If you have relics of the saints to show, place them for a little in the church and celebrate the holydays with us, and when the rites are finished you shall go on your way.” But he paid little attention to what the archdeacon said but began to abuse and revile the bishop. The bishop saw that he was an impostor and ordered him shut up in a cell. And examining all he had, he found a great bag full of roots of different herbs and also there were moles’ teeth, the bones of mice, the claws and fat of bears. He knew that these were the means of sorcery and ordered them all thrown into the river; he took his cross away and ordered him to be driven from the territory of Paris. But he made himself a second cross and began to do what he had done before, but was captured and put in chains by the archdeacon and kept in custody. In these days I had come to Paris and had my lodging at the church of the blessed martyr Julian. The following night the wretch broke out of prison and hastened to Saint Julian’s church just mentioned, wearing the chains with which he was bound, and fell on the pavement where I had been accustomed to stand and, overwhelmed with drowsiness and wine, he fell asleep. Unaware of this I rose at midnight to return thanks to God and found him sleeping. And such a stench came from him that that stench surpassed the stenches of all sewers and privies. I was unable to go into the church because of the stench. And one of the clergy came holding his nose and tried to wake him but could not; for the wretch was so intoxicated. Then four of the clergy came and lifted him and threw him into one corner of the church, and they brought water and washed the pavement and scattered sweet-smelling herbs on it and so I went in to offer the regular prayers. But he could not be wakened even when we sang the psalms until with the coming of day the sun’s torch climbed higher. Then I surrendered him to the bishop with a request for his pardon. When the bishops assembled at Paris I told this at dinner and bade him be brought to receive correction. And when he stood by, Amelius, bishop of Tarbes, looked at him and recognized him as his slave who had run away. He secured his pardon and so took him back to his native place. There are many who practise these impostures and continually lead the common people into error. It is of these I think that the Lord says in the Gospel that in the latest times false Christs and false prophets shall arise who shall do signs and wonders and lead the very elect into error. Let this suffice for this subject; let us rather return to our task.

[7. Ennodius, duke of Tours and Poitiers, is removed from office. The Gascons make an inroad on Frankish territory, and also the Goths. 8. Childebert desires to punish Gunthram Boso for the insults he had offered to Brunhilda during Childebert’s minority. 9. Rauchingus, Ursio, and Bertefred, enemies of Brunhilda, plot Childebert’s death. Rauchingus is trapped and brutally killed. Ursio and Bertefred take refuge in a stronghold.]

10. While this was going on king Gunthram sent a second time to his nephew Childebert saying: “Let there be no delay; come, that I may see you. For it is surely necessary for your own life as well as for the public welfare that we see one another.” Hearing this he took his mother, sister, and wife and hastened to meet his uncle. Bishop Magneric of the city of Trèves was present also, and Gunthram Boso came, whom bishop Ageric of Verdun had received in custody. But the bishop who had pledged his faith for him was not present, because the agreement was that he should appear before the king without any defender so that if the king decided that he must die he was not to be begged off by the bishop; and if the king granted him life he would go free. Now the kings met and he was judged guilty on various grounds and was ordered to be put to death. When he learned it he flew to Magneric’s lodging and shutting the doors and sending the clerks and attendants away he said: “Most blessed bishop, I know that you have great honor with the kings. And now I flee to you to be rescued. Behold, the executioners are at the door, whence you may plainly know that if you do not save me I shall kill you and go outside and die. Let me tell you plainly that either one death overtakes us or an equal life shall protect us. O holy bishop, I know that you share with the king the place of father to his son[64] and I am sure that whatever you ask you will obtain from him; he will not be able to deny your holiness anything you demand. Therefore either obtain my pardon or we shall die together.” He said this with his sword unsheathed. The bishop was alarmed at what he heard and said: “And how can I do it if I am kept here by you. Let me go to beg the king’s mercy and perhaps he will pity you.” But he replied: “By no means, but send abbots and men you trust to carry the message I propose.” However, these matters were not reported as they were to the king, but they said that he was being protected by the bishop. And so the king was angry and said: “If the bishop refuses to come out let him die together with that doer of wickedness.” The bishop when he was told this sent messengers to the king. And when they had told their story king Gunthram said: “Set fire to the house and if the bishop cannot come out let them be burned together.” The clerks on hearing this burst open the door by force and got the bishop out. Then when the wretch saw that he was hemmed in by great flames on every side he approached the door with his sword. But as soon as he left the threshold and set foot outside at once one of the people threw a lance and struck his forehead. He was confused by this stroke and lost his head and tried to throw his sword but he was wounded by the bystanders with such a multitude of lances[EP] that with the heads sticking in his body and the shafts supporting him he was unable to fall to the earth. A few who were with him were killed and exposed on the field at the same time. And permission to bury them was obtained from the princes only with difficulty. This man was faithless, headlong in avarice, greedy for other men’s property beyond limit, swearing to all and fulfilling his promises to none. His wife and sons were sent into exile and his property confiscated. A great quantity of gold and silver and of valuables of different sorts was found in his stores. Moreover what he had concealed underground from a consciousness of wrongdoing did not remain hidden. He often made use of soothsayers and lots, desiring to learn the future from them, but was always deceived.

[11. Gunthram and Childebert settle their differences amicably. 12. Ursio and Bertefred are dislodged from their stronghold and slain. 13. Baddo is allowed to go free. Dysentery is severe in Metz. Wiliulf’s wife marries a third time. 14. Bishop Egidius of Rheims makes his peace with Childebert.]

[EQ]15. Now at that time in Spain king Richared was influenced by the divine mercy and summoned the bishops of his religion and said to them: “Why are quarrels continually going on between you and the bishops who call themselves Catholic, and when they do many miracles by their faith why can you do nothing of the sort? Therefore I beg you let us meet with them and examine the beliefs of both sides and find out what is true; and then either let them take our plan and believe what you say or else you recognize their truth and believe what they preach.” This was done and the bishops of both sides gathered and the heretics expounded the doctrines that I have often described them as advocating. Likewise the bishops of our religion made the replies by which, as I have pointed out in the previous books, the heretics have been often defeated. And above all the king said that no miraculous cure of the infirm had been done by the bishops of the heretics, and when he recalled to mind how in his father’s time the bishop who boasted that he could restore sight to the blind by his faith which was not the true one had touched a blind man and [thus] condemned him to perpetual blindness and had come off in confusion—​I have told this story more fully in the book of The Miracles—​he summoned God’s bishops to him separately. And by questioning them he learned that it was one God that was worshiped with distinction of three persons, namely, the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, and the Son was not inferior to the Father nor the Holy Ghost, nor the Holy Ghost inferior to the Father nor the Son, but they were equal and alike all-powerful, and in this Trinity they confessed the true God. Then Richared perceived the truth and ending the argument he placed himself under the Catholic law, and receiving the sign of the blessed cross together with baptism he believed in Jesus Christ son of God, equal to the Father and the Holy Ghost, reigning for ages of ages. Amen. Then he sent messengers to the province of Narbonne to tell what he had done and bring the people to a like belief. The bishop of the Arian sect there at the time was Athalocus who caused such trouble to God’s churches by his vain doctrines and false interpretations of the Scriptures that he was believed to be the very Arius who, as the historian Eusebius relates,[ER] lost his entrails in a privy. But when he did not allow the people of his sect to believe these things and only a few flattered him by agreeing with him he was transported with spite and went to his cell and laid his head on the bed and breathed out his worthless soul. And thus the heretics in the province confessed the inseparable Trinity and departed from error.

[16. King Richared sends an embassy to Gunthram and Childebert. It is not received by Gunthram. 17. An unusually cold spring. 18. The Bretons ravage the territory of Nantes.]

19. The feud among the citizens of Tours which, as we have stated above, was ended, burst out again with renewed fury. After slaying Chramsind’s kinsmen Sichar had become very friendly with him, and they loved one another so dearly that they often ate together and slept together in one bed. Once Chramsind made ready a dinner towards night and invited Sichar. He came and they sat down together to dinner. And Sichar became drunk with wine and made many boasts to Chramsind, and he is reported to have said at last: “Dearest brother, you owe me great gratitude for killing your kinsmen since you got payment for them and you have much gold and silver in your house, and if that payment had not given you a start you would now be naked and in need.” But Chramsind heard Sichar’s word with a bitter heart and said within himself: “Unless I avenge my kinsmen’s death I ought to lose the name of man and be called a weak woman.” And at once he extinguished the lights and plunged his dagger into Sichar’s head. Sichar made a little cry and immediately fell and died. The attendants who had come with him rushed away. Chramsind stripped the garments from his lifeless body and hung it on a picket[ES] of the fence and mounted his horse and went to the king. He entered the church and threw himself at the king’s feet and said: “I beg for my life, O glorious king, because I have killed men who slew my kinsmen secretly and plundered all their property.” But when the case was gone into in detail queen Brunhilda was displeased that Sichar, who was under her protection, had been killed in such a way, and she became angry at Chramsind. When he saw that she was against him he went to Bouges, a village in the territory of Bourges where his kinsmen lived, because it was in Gunthram’s kingdom. And Tranquilla, Sichar’s wife, left her sons and her husband’s property in Tours and Poitiers and went to her kinsmen at Pont-sur-Seine and there married again. Sichar was twenty years old when he died. He was in his lifetime a fickle, drunken, murderous person, who offered insults to many when he was drunk. Later Chramsind returned to the king and it was decided that he must prove that Sichar had killed his kinsmen. This he did. But since queen Brunhilda had placed Sichar under her protection, as we have said, she ordered Chramsind’s property to be confiscated. But later it was returned by the court official Flavian.[ET] In addition he went to Agen and got a letter from Flavian directing that no one should touch him. Flavian had received his property from the queen.

20. In that year, which was also the thirteenth of king Childebert, I went to visit him at the city of Metz, and received orders to go on an embassy to king Gunthram. I found him at Chalon and said: “O famous king, your glorious nephew Childebert sends you many greetings and offers endless thanks to your goodness because he is continually reminded by you to do the things that please God and are acceptable to you and of advantage to the people. As regards the matters of which you spoke together he promises to fulfil everything and engages not to break any of the agreements which are made in writing between you.” And the king said to this: “I do not offer him like thanks, because his promises to me are being broken. My part of Senlis is not surrendered;[EU] the men whom I wished to go for my good, since they are my enemies, they have not let go. And in what sense do you mean that my sweet nephew does not wish to break any of his written agreements?” To this I answered: “He wishes to do nothing contrary to those agreements but promises to fulfil them all, so that if you wish to send [men] to divide Senlis there need be no delay; for you shall receive your own at once. And as to the men you mention let their names be given in writing and all that is promised shall be fulfilled.” We spoke of these matters and the king ordered the agreement itself to be read over again in the presence of the bystanders.