The Premonstratensians

Arguably one of the longest names for a Holy Order, the name comes from The Order of Canons Regular of Prémontré, called so because the Order was found in 1120 in Prémontré near Laon by Norbert of Xanten. They were also known as Norbertines and White Canons.

Norbert was a friend of Bernard of Clairvaux, who favored very strict rules for monasteries. In Prémontré Norbert established a monastery with 13 companions, essentially following the Rule of St. Augustine but adding new rules promoting even greater austerity.

The order was formally approved by Pope Honorius II and grew quickly: by 1126 there were nine houses. In 1143 the Order reached England, and were soon in Scotland where they had the support of the dynasty of Fergus of Galloway.

The first Premonstratensian saint was Evermode of Ratzeburg (died 1178), a companion of Norbert and the Bishop of Ratzeburg. His lifelong goal was the Christianization of the Wends, Slavs inhabiting what is now northeastern Germany. Another was Frederick of Hallum (died 1175), known for intense piety throughout his life and for miracles taking place at his tomb after his death. Ludolph of Ratzeburg (died 1250) disagreed with and was imprisoned and beaten by Duke Albert I of Saxony, dying because of his treatment. There is a legend that a soldier with an arrowhead embedded in his head was able to remove the arrow and survive only after praying to Ludolph.

The Dissolution of the Monasteries by Henry VIII was the first big blow to the success of the Order, which had 35 houses in England at the time. The Reformation and the French Revolution were also difficult times for them. By the 19th century they were almost extinct as an Order, with a few houses existing in Germany. 

In 1893, some Norbertines from Germany came to the United States to minister to Belgian immigrants in Wisconsin, starting the first Premonstratensian abbey in the New World. By the start of the 20th century, however, there were 20 monasteries. Today there are almost 100 monasteries, including abbeys for women, around the world.

The Order was sanctioned by Pope Honorius II, whose name has been woven throughout this blog. Tomorrow I'll give him his own entry. See you then.

Fergus of Galloway

In yesterday's post about St. Ninian, I suggested that the biography of him written 700 years later by Aelred of Rievaulx may have had a political origin. To explain that, we have to talk about Fergus of Galloway.

An 1136 charter by King David I of Scotland includes as a witness Fergus of Galloway. This is our first reference to him. In the early Middle Ages, Galloway would have been a "sub-kingdom" in southwest Scotland, and a king of Scotland like David would have been seen as a "first among equals" like the high-king in Ireland. Over time, these sub-kings were designated as hereditary lords. The dynasty of Fergus lasted from his time until 1234.

Digging into contemporary documents, it appears that he may have been married to an illegitimate daughter of King Henry I of England, Elizabeth Fitzroy. (By some counts, Henry had two dozen illegitimate children.) Fergus had three children: Uhtred, Gilla Brigte, and a daughter Affraic. The chronicler Roger de Hoveden refers to Uhtred as a cousin of Henry's son Henry II. Fergus' second son, Gilla Brigte, had a son who was referred to as a kinsman of Henry II and his son, King John. In other marriage news, Fergus married Affraic to with Óláfr Guðrøðarson, King of the Isles (the Isle of Mann, the Inner Hebrides, the Outer Hebrides, the Orkneys and the Shetlands). Their son, Guðrøðr Óláfsson, became King of Dublin and the Isles. A 12th-century monk and chronicler, Robert de Torigni, claimed that Guðrøðr was related to Henry II.

The Fergus dynasty was very supportive of Augustinians, Benedictines, Cistercians, and Premonstratensians (a strict order founded by a friend of Bernard of Clairvaux, Norbert of Xanten). In one case, records state that Fergus founded a Premonstratensian house at Whithorn. Supposedly, St. Ninian had started the diocese of Whithorn, but it had lapsed, to be revived in 1128. Other records suggest that Fergus founded an Augustinian house that was later converted to Premonstratensian by Christian, the second bishop of the revived Whithorn diocese.

Fergus' extensive support of monasteries and orders has caused some head-scratching to determine the cause. Did he simply want to mirror what other, more-powerful lords did in their realms? Or was there some other underlying purpose. As it turns out, the greatest atrocities during the Battle of the Standard in 1138 were (according to chroniclers) committed by Gallovidian soldiers supporting King David's attempt to capture more territory. It seems likely that Fergus's religious generosity may have had a penitential flavor. Is it possible that the Life of Saint Ninian by Aelred of Rievaulx was a royal request in exchange for a gift to Rievaulx Abbey? Royal patronage is not an unlikely answer. The fact that a biography of a saint who originally founded Whithorn and performed miracles would bring attention and fame to a location within the bounds of Fergus' realm was simply a happy bonus.

For all his publicly expressed piety, however Fergus did not have a happy end. I'll tell you about that tomorrow. The next time after that, however, we will see how the facts of your life don't matter if someone decides afterward that you'd make a good story. See you soon.