Care and Feeding of Princes

Since "infant formula" was not invented until the 20th century, breastfeeding was the standard way to get nourishment into a baby. If for some reason a mother could not breastfeed (death in childbirth, illness, disinterest), a wet nurse was found: a lactating woman willing to breastfeed the newborn. There might be another reason a mother could not nurse, especially if she were a high-ranking royal: the desire not to infect the breastmilk.

If you look at family trees of kings and queens, you will see many, many members in each generation. This did not necessarily spring from a deep and abiding sexual attraction between husband and wife. The greatest need of a king/queen was to produce an heir.

The need was for several heirs, in fact. Not only was there a concern about infant mortality, or a grown son dying in battle or by accident before he had a chance to inherit the throne. There was also a political desire to marry children to nobles of your own or other countries in order to create allies through family ties.

How did this need preclude breastfeeding? According to an article from the National Library of Medicine:

There was even a belief that the milk would be contaminated by sexual intercourse, which contraindicated marital relations during the period of lactation, a situation that the queens could not afford. [link]

Since a queen was "ideally" made pregnant as soon as she was able after the birth of a child, her milk was not suitable for the newborn, and so a wet nurse was employed for that vital purpose. Choosing a wet nurse was the province of the queen herself. The wet nurse was not likely to be a woman off the street, but a member of a royal family who was lactating. The wages for a royal wet nurse were very high compared to other professions available to females in the Middle Ages.

There's a lot more medieval discussion about breast milk than one might think. The philosopher and theologian Ramon Llull had advice for raising children that focused on human milk. I'll share that next time.

The Career of the Wet Nurse

A "wet nurse" is a woman hired to breastfeed a baby when the baby's own mother is unable or unwilling to do so. The mother may have died in childbirth, or the mother may be a wealthy woman who does not want to be bothered with the act of breastfeeding. Disease could also prevent a mother from lactating sufficiently.

The illustration is from the 15th century Danse macabre des femmes ("Dance of death for women"). This shows death threatening a wet nurse that the baby she holds will die. She replies that she would like to go dancing but cannot because of the swelling she feels that must be dealt with by feeding the child and that "sudden death would be a pity."

Christianity, Judaism, and Islam all agreed that breastfeeding was important and demanding work. If a Jewish mother did not want to breastfeed, it was her husband's obligation to find an appropriate substitute. Medieval Islamic law considered nursing and raising the youngest children as a job worthy of a salary if a mother had to do the work after the death of the child's father. Contracts for wet nurses could last from one to nine months.

The practice began long before the Middle Ages. In Rome a wet nurse was a nutrix, "nurturer," and wet nurse was a profession. Rome had a landmark called the Columna Lactaria ("Milk Column") where (the Roman grammarian Festus wrote) people could bring babies to be nursed. It was either a place where wet nurses could be hired, or a public charity where lactating women shared their milk, or perhaps both.

Breast milk was understood to be vital to the proper development and health of a baby, and so medieval parents would choose their wet nurse carefully, researching the health and moral standing of the candidate.  The wet nurse could be the major influence on the child for its first couple years at least—and might be employed as a nanny later, as with the mother of Alexander Neckham, Hodierna, who was wet nurse to Richard I.

After the Black Death of the mid-14th century, as prices for goods and services rose because of the scarcity of laborers, wet nurses were increasingly slaves put into the role whether they wished it or not.

The breast feeding of royal children, however, was a different case. Let's talk about the care and feeding of princes tomorrow.

Alexander Neckham and Virgil's Pet Fly

Alexander Neckham (1157 - 1217) was an abbot in Cirencester Abbey who left us several writings, including De naturis rerum ("On the nature of things") with the first reference in the West to the magnetic compass.

He wrote many other works, mostly theological. His Speculum speculationum ("Mirror of speculations") while not being very original, pulled together a range of topics borrowing from Peter Lombard's Sentences, Augustine, Platonic ideas from William of Conches, Avicenna, Aristotle and others. One of his chief aims in the Speculum was to combat heresy, specifically Catharism's dualism (that good and evil were equal powers). He wrote Fables taken from Æsop and Avianus, and a commentary on Virgil that might have started a legend.

In his commentary, he writes about a poem attributed to Virgil, Culex ("The Gnat"). There is a medieval legend that Virgil (70 - 19BCE; often spelled Vergil in the Middle Ages) had magical powers. What Neckham wrote was Vergilius fecit Culicem ("Virgil made a gnat"). What Neckham is likely to have meant was that Virgil wrote the poem "Gnat," but it was misunderstood to mean that Virgil made a gnat (or fly), and this was taken to mean Virgil had magical powers and could create things.

Shortly after Virgil's death, his home town of Naples started the story that he had founded the city, and/or that he was its governor. Naples also had a story that workmen constructing a temple were plagued by swarms of flies. Virgil's gnat/fly destroyed all the other flies, allowing the men to finish their work in peace.

Virgil's fly gave rise to another legend in the Middle Ages, that he mourned its death and built a lavish tomb for it. The illustration is from Ripley’s Wonder Book of Strange Facts (1957). The Latin inscription reads “Fly, may this urn prove light for you, and may your bones rest easily.” Historians have tried to explain this persistent Virgilian legend as a legal dodge. The government was confiscating estates of the wealthy to be able to give land to returning war heroes (true). The estate could be saved if it held a burial plot (true). Virgil's family had a large estate (true). No contemporary writer, however, mentions any such event in Virgil's life.

A lot of of stories can be spun from the desire to believe amazing things, along with a misunderstood line.

I'd like to return to a mention from yesterday: Neckham's mother was wet nurse to the future King Richard I. What was the life/career of a wet nurse like? We'll look into that tomorrow, and ask the question: is there an appropriate illustration for this topic in a G-rated blog in the United States?

The Magnetic Compass

Alexander Neckham was a theologian and writer from St. Albans whose birthday gave him a surprising status. He was born on 8 September 1157, reportedly the same day as King Henry II's son Richard. This made Alexander's mother, Hodierna, an ideal wet nurse for the baby prince. Richard and Alexander would both be nursed by Hodierna. Hodierna was housed (and Alexander therefore raised) in the king's household and treated well.* Hodierna would even become Richard's nanny and his main source of maternal affection.

Alexander received an education similar to the young Richard, and went on to become abbot of Cirencester Abbey. He also wrote books on theology and other subjects. One of these books was his De naturis rerum ("On the nature of things"). Here's a passage:

The sailors, moreover, as they sail over the sea, when in cloudy weather they can no longer profit by the light of the sun, or when the world is wrapped up in the darkness of the shades of night, and they are ignorant to what point of the compass their ship's course is directed, they touch the magnet with a needle, which (the needle) is whirled round in a circle until, when its motion ceases, its point looks direct to the north. (1863 translation)

This is the earliest (written between 1187 and 1202) reference in Europe to the use of the magnetic compass. Beckham had recently returned from France and was specifically referring to seeing the use of the compass in the English Channel.

The Chinese were using the magnetic compass over a hundred years prior to this. It is tempting to make the leap to Chinese inventions and Marco Polo's writings, but Polo (1254-1324) lived well after Neckham wrote. It is still a strong possibility that Italian traders brought back the invention of the magnetic compass.

For the Chinese, it was a magnetized needle floating in a bowl of water and called the "South Pointing Fish." Between 1295 and 1302, Giovanni "Flavio" Gioja (if he existed: there is speculation that a typo gave credit to the wrong person) balanced the magnetized needle on a post over a compass rose and enclosed the whole thing in a box, eliminating the spillable-in-rough-seas bowl of water type.

The Muslim world, often ahead of Western Europe in scientific matters, does not make reference to the magnetic bowl-of-water compass until 1242. Muslims saw value in the device not just for marine navigation but also to determine how to face Mecca for prayer when far away from that city.

The magnetic compass allowed sailors to increase the season of safe navigation beyond the times of clear skies. More trading trips could be made during months that were typically clouded and more risky.

Alexander Neckham did more than observe a compass, however, and we'll look into him more tomorrow, including how he might have inadvertently given rise to the legend of Virgil's magic fly!

*Richard later gave Hodierna a generous pension.

The Astronomer Sultan

The Rasulids were a Sunni Muslim dynasty that ruled what is now Yemen and the Red Sea Coast of the Arabia peninsula from the early 13th century to 1454. Their third sultan, Al-Ashraf Umar II, was only sultan for less than two years, following a 46-year rule by his father, but he used his time as sultan-in-waiting to become highly educated. He understood medicine, mathematics, agriculture, and astronomy.

As an astronomer, he wrote a treatise about astrolabes (a device known to many in the east and the west) and sundials. In it, he describes the making of a qibla compass, designed to determine qibla properly wherever you are—that is, the direction toward Mecca for when you pray—a vitally important point in Islam. Al-Ashraf did not claim in the treatise that he invented it, but it is the earliest mention of a compass for determining qibla found in a medieval Islamic text, so his name is historically linked with its creation.

The qibla compass, of course, is a magnetic compass that points north. That is only the first step, however: once you find north, marks around the dial indicate major cities in which you might find yourself. The position of the city's name on the dial—if that's where you are when it is time to pray—show the compass direction from north that you must face.

Al-Ashraf also wrote one of the earliest known Islamic works on agriculture, a seven-chapter treatise that covers times for planting, cereal crops, seed crops, flowering plants, aromatic plants, vegetables, and even pest control. He lived in what is considered the Islamic Golden Age, and died in 1296.

The qibla compass is used extensively today; now, what about the magnetic compass itself? When was that discovered, and what did the Middle Ages do with it? Let's find out next time.

The qibla

I mentioned yesterday that Abu Yusuf Yaqub al-Mansur had an interest in building and re-building mosques. One was the Kutubiyya Mosque, the largest in Marrakesh. Started in 1147, it was rebuilt in 1158, with al-Mansur finishing the reconstruction in 1195 with the enormous 253-foot-tall minaret (pictured).

The reason for rebuilding of this mosque and others by the Almohads was that the originals, built by their rivals, the Almoravids, were considered heretical. The Almoravids were heretics in the eyes of the Almohads who built their mosques with the wrong qibla.

The qibla is the direction of prayer, the direction toward Mecca one faces when praying. More than that, it is the direction an animal is faced when slaughtered for sacrifice, the direction to avoid when spitting or relieving oneself, and the direction the deceased are aligned during burial. 

The Almoravid mosques were designed with the qibla facing too far east. From Marrakesh and the surrounding Almohad Empire in North Africa and the Iberian Peninsula, Mecca was more to the south. Therefore, in order to worship properly in the mosque, some mosques needed to be completely rebuilt.

What was the state of Muslim science that would allow them to determine the proper qibla from different cities? Wouldn't it be nice to have a compass that would point toward Mecca? It would, and something like that was developed by a sultan who was also an astronomer. I'll tell you about him next time.

Abu Yusuf Yaqub al-Mansur

Yaqub al-Mansur ruled the Almohad Caliphate in North Africa and part of the Iberian Peninsula from 1184 until his death on 23 January 1199. During that time he managed to hold off attempts by the Christian rulers of Iberia to reclaim lands controlled by Muslims.

It was his father, Abu Yaqub Yusuf (reigned 1163 - 1184) who originally spread the caliphate to Iberia in 1170. Not content to hold Seville and surrounding territory, he marched an army to Portugal. He was countered by Afonso I of Portugal and Ferdinand II of León. Wounded by a crossbow, he died on 29 July.

His son vowed revenge, taking several castles and handing out defeats to Christians before returning to Africa. When Alfonso VIII of Castile mounted a reconquista, al-Mansur returned and defeated the Christians again, this time taking hundreds as slaves and selling them in Africa.

Besides being a successful military commander, he was also a patron of the arts and architecture. He added a massive gate to the Kasbah, a major citadel in Morocco (seen above), and finished a mosque in Marrakesh. He also began what would have been the largest mosque in the world, but construction was discontinued after 1199, leaving only a massive minaret. One of his other accomplishments was the first hospital in Morocco.

The philosopher Averroes was a favorite of al-Mansur's and had a place at his court, even though some of his ideas got him in trouble for being too radical and anti-Muslim. al-Mansur was well-read and well-versed in Islam, and even wrote a book on the prophet Muhammad. His father had appointed a chief judge who made sure the law adhered to strict interpretation of the Koran. al-Mansur took this a step further and had that judge destroy any books of law that did not conform.

The mosque whose construction he finished was the Kutubiyya Mosque. Kutubiyya and several other mosques were redone by the Almohads. Not because they were not beautiful enough, or large enough, but because they were built "wrong." I'll explain the qibla tomorrow.

The Almohads in Iberia

The Almohads were a North African Berber group who founded an empire in the 12th century. By 1159 they had extended their power over the Maghreb (northwest Africa). By 1172, the Muslim parts of the Iberian Peninsula (south and east) were under their rule, taking over from the Almoravid dynasty.

Two of the rulers of the Almohads were Abu Yaqub Yusuf, who ruled from 1163 to 1184, and his son, Abu Yusuf Yaqub al-Mansur ("the Victorius"), who ruled from 1184 until 1199). Under their strict Muslim rule, many Christians and Jews migrated to the Christian nations of Aragon, Castile, and Portugal.

In 1195, when al-Mansur was in Africa, Alfonso VIII of Castile decided to mount a reconquista and reclaim the Muslim-controlled lands in Iberia. He united the kingdoms of Aragon, Castile, León, Portugal, and Navarre. When al-Mansur heard of their advance into his territory, he quickly returned from Africa. His major defeat of the Christian army at the Battle of Alarcos was when he took on the epithet "al-Mansur."

In 1212, Pope Innocent III initiated a Crusade against the Muslims in Iberia. Alfonso and his Castilians, Peter II of Aragon, Sancho VII of Navarre (who earlier had helped defend the continental interests of his brother-in-law, Richard Lionheart), and Franks under the vicious Archbishop Arnaud Amalric, united at the pope's request. Their final battle against the forces of the leader Muhammad al-Nasir broke the hold of the Almohad Caliphate in Iberia.

The Almohads were still strong in North Africa, but eventually they were supplanted by the growing Berber Marinid Sultanate.

Although fierce when it came to protecting his territory and religion, al-Mansur softened over time, and although the Koran was the only allowed source of law, he allowed philosophers to theorize without punishment. Averroes' radical statements made him despised by some, but al-Mansur kept him safe at court. al-Mansur was a complex individual who supported the arts and architecture and, well, let's take a closer look at him tomorrow.

Alfonso's Family Tree

Alfonso IX of León cared enough about his country that he summoned what can be called the first Parliament in Western Europe to hear from all strata of society, but he clearly didn't care enough about the pope's opinion to change his behavior when it came to relationships with women. Although the pope declared his second marriage to Berengaria of Castile as illegitimate (because they were cousins), after declaring his first marriage to Theresa of Portugal as illegitimate (because they were cousins), Alfonso and Berengaria stayed together for years afterward.

His devotion to his second wife, however, was not a sign of dedicated monogamy. He had several children by several mistresses over his lifetime. We know these because, like many kings, he acknowledged them and made sure they had decent careers and marriages themselves.

Between his marriages he had a relationship with Inés Íñiguez de Mendoza. Their daughter, Urraca Alfonso, married the Lord of Biscay. They had many children.

He also had a relationship with Estefanía Pérez de Faiam, the daughter of one of his nobles (who was witness to several royal charters). Alfonso gifted her with many estates. They had a son who died young.

One Spanish historian claims that the archdeacon Fernando Alfonso de León of the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela was Alfonso's son by a woman named Maura, from Salamanca.

A Portugese woman, Aldonza Martínez de Silva, bore three of Alfonso's children between 1214 and 1218. Rodrigo became lord of Aliger. Aldonza married a count of the kingdom of León. Teresa Alfonso de León married a noble of León, Nuño González "the Good."

A relationship that lasted longer than any of his marriages was with Teresa Gil de Soverosa, daughter of a Portugese noble. They had four children:

• Sancha, who married the Lord of Los Cameros (and later became a nun at a convent which she founded).
• Maria, who was married but later became mistress to Alfonso X of Castile (her cousin).
• Martin, who with his wife founded the Monastery of the Holy Spirit in Salamanca.
• Urraca, who married twice. She was born the year her father died.

Alfonso died on 24 September 1230. His son Ferdinand (by Berengaria) was already King of Castile, and inherited León as well. Castile and León, finally united after the hostilities mentioned in the links above, now dominated the Iberian Peninsula.

At one point in the hostilities, Alfonso of León attacked Alfonso of Castile with the help of Muslims, the Almohads. Who were they, and why would they ally with a Christian king? Why would a Christian king think to recruit them? I'll explain that next time.

Alfonso's Marriage Blues

King Alfonso IX of León (1171 - 1230) may be noted for calling the Three Estates together to advise him—the first such gathering in Western Europe—but not everything could be resolved in that manner.

Every ruler desires an heir, and therefore needs a spouse. Alfonso found his in 1191 in Theresa of Portugal. Theresa was 15 at the time, daughter of the king of Portugal, Sancho I. They had three children: Sancha, Dulce, and Ferdinand. Elsewhere I have mentioned how, in 1224, Alfonso tried to marry Sancha to John of Brienne. John chose a younger daughter by a later wife of Alfonso, but it might not have been just Sancha's age that disqualified her in John's eyes (he was, after all, a good many years older).

In fact, Sancha's "status" might have been a problem for John. Theresa of Portugal was Alfonso's cousin, and Pope Celestine III condemned the marriage on the grounds of consanguinity. Celestine had his papal legate declare the marriage nullified, placing both León and Portugal under Interdict. John might have avoided the match because Sancha could be considered illegitimate and therefore not eligible to inherit León.

Only a year later, Celestine excommunicated Alfonso for "consorting with the enemy." Alfonso clashed with his cousin, Alfonso VIII of Castile. Prior wars had seen territorial boundaries shifting, and León wanted some of their land back. Alfonso invaded Castile with the aid of Muslims, which was a strong offense in Celestine's eyes. (Alfonso VIII had proven an enemy to Muslims, mentioned here.) To create peace between Castile and León, they did what many warring nations did at the time: arranged a marriage between representatives of the two. In this case, the marriage was between Alfonso IX and Berengaria of Castile in 1197.

The problem was that Berengaria was Alfonso VIII's daughter, and therefore her husband's first cousin once removed. (Her paternal grandfather and Alfonso's father were brothers.) León was placed under Interdict once again due to consanguinity. In 1198, Pope Innocent III declared this second marriage annulled, but the couple decided to stay together until 1204, when Alfonso decided he should attack Castile again. (A series of treaties ultimately resolved the borders and the hostilities.)

As for the Interdiction, the pope realized that, if the people went years without the benefits of the mass and sacraments, they would have no reason to support the church financially. He lifted the Interdict on the country, but kept it on the king.

Another strike against Alfonso (but helped make him historically memorable) was his numerous affairs and subsequent numerous illegitimate children. That family tree had many branches, which I'll lay out tomorrow.

The First European Parliament?

The word "parliament" is from the French parlement, first seen in the 11th century to mean "parley" or "conversation." By the middle of the 13th century it was being used for council meetings. It is often automatically associated with England, where the bicameral House of Lords and House of Commons met to decide matters of national importance. During the reign of Henry III, for instance, Parliament's consent was needed to approve taxation. This was an evolution of the rules laid out in Magna Carta.

Whereas the barons of England forced King John to allow them a voice in important decisions, not every king in Western Europe needed coercion. For example, take Alfonso IX of León and Galicia (a very large percentage of the Iberian Peninsula).

Born 15 August 1171, he was 17 when he succeeded his father, Ferdinand II. Wars with Castile had left León in an economic downturn, and Alfonso's first need was to raise taxes, including on the lower classes. This led to revolts in several towns. That, and the continued threat from Castile, prompted Alfonso to summon León's nobles, higher level clergy, and merchants and tradesmen as representatives of several towns, to a Cortes at the Basilica of San Isidoro.

The Cortes ("court") of León of 1188 was the first formal uniting of the Three Estates (Nobles, Clergy, Commoners) in Western Europe. The Cortes laid out rules that are familiar to modern constitutions: the right to private property, to appeal to justice, to the sanctity of the home. The Cortes also demanded oversight of royal spending. As one modern scholar* put it:

Thus, the "plain state" was incorporated into the nascent Cortes of the Kingdom. In this way, the Roman proverb applied: "what concerns everyone must be approved by everyone." Thomas Aquinas clarified that "to guarantee the common good it is necessary that rulers be elected by the people from among the people."

The Cortes of León pre-dated the Parliament of England by decades. I was careful, in the second paragraph above, to specifically refer to "Western Europe," because of course there is at least one notable example of "rule by committee" if we look northward from the Mediterranean at the witenagemot.

Alfonso is also known for a different historical precedent than the Cortes of 1188: his reign mirrored some of Henry VIII's troubles with marriage(s) and the pope. Stay tuned.

*(Thank you, Google Translate)

The Wives of John of Brienne

John of Brienne may have been intended for the monastery by his father, but circumstances turned him into a far busier player in the political affairs of the Holy Land. He married one queen and fathered another, but early deaths left him looking for another wife (and then another), even while he was joining Crusades and fighting wars.

His first wife, Maria of Montferrat, Queen of Jerusalem, died in 1212. He married Stephanie of Armenia two years later.

Stephanie was the only child of the King of Armenia, Leo I. She was born sometime after 1195, and so was perhaps a teenager when she married John in April of 1214. Stephanie's step-mother, Sibylla (her biological mother, Isabelle of Antioch, died when Stephanie was 10), was a daughter of Queen Isabella I of Jerusalem, who was the mother of Maria of Montferrat.

Stephanie gave birth to a son, John. When Stephanie's father was on his deathbed, he changed his choice of successor from his great-nephew (Raymond-Roupen) to his daughter Stephanie. Understandably, there was hostility over the succession, with John of Brienne supporting his wife's claim (which could give him title to King of Armenia). Pope Honorius ruled that Stephanie and her infant son should be the successors to Armenia. Stephanie and her son both died shortly after, and the pope ruled in favor of Raymond-Roupen.

Back to John of Brienne, who now went looking for another wife (and was not busy trying to win the kingdom of Armenia). He found her in Berengaria of León, a daughter of King Alfonso IX of León and Berengaria of Castile. John, in his travels to drum up support for the Holy Land, had visited the famous shrine at Santiago de Compostela. At the time he was still considered King of Jerusalem, and Alfonso offered John his daughter Sancha by his first wife, who would become Queen of León. John instead chose Berengaria, a daughter of Alfonso's second wife. Sancha was 33, Berengaria was 20.

Berengaria and John had children who survived. Marie of Brienne you will read about below. Alfonso went on the Seventh Crusade and became (through marriage) Count of Eu. Louis became Viscount of Beaumont when he married Agnes of Beaumont. John II of Brienne married Marie de Coucy, who was free to marry because her first husband, King Alexander II of Scotland, had died.

In 1229, the throne of the Latin Empire in the East was inherited by Baldwin II of Constantinople, who was only 12. The nobles of the empire decided John de Brienne should become a regent for Baldwin. John was made co-emperor in April 1229; Berengaria was titled Latin Empress Consort. Their daughter, Marie of Brienne, was betrothed to Baldwin; the marriage, in 1234 when she was 10 and he was 17, made Marie Latin Empress. Their child was featured in this post on royal "hostages."

John of Brienne died on 27 March 1237 in Constantinople; he was about 60 years old. Berengaria died 16 days later. She was buried in a marble coffin at Santiago de Compostela. Some records state that he became a Franciscan before he died. His tomb is unknown, but an anonymous troubadour of the 13th century says he was buried in the Hagia Sophia.

The political and genealogical twists and turns of Europeans in the Holy Land could dominate any history blog, but it's time to turn away and head west. Berengaria's father, Alfonso IX, may have held the first Parliament in Western Europe, predating the English result of Magna Carta by decades. Let's take a look at that next time.

John of Brienne and the Queen of Jerusalem

John of Brienne never expected to be a king, or even a lord. He was born about 1170 to Count Erard II of Brienne and Agnes of Montfaucon, a fourth son destined for a career in the priesthood. The deaths of some of his older siblings, however, put him in a position where he became a knight with some estates in Champagne. Then his brother, Walter III, who succeeded Erard in June 1205, was killed, and John became regent to his nephew, Walter IV. (A 13th century anonymous minstrel left a tale claiming that John never wanted the clerical life and became a knight on his own, distinguishing himself in tournaments. This cannot be verified, and contains some untruths that may have been literary license.)

That same year, 1205, saw the death of Queen Isabella I of Jerusalem, and saw the crown pass to her daughter, Maria of Montferrat. Maria, 13, needed a regent to guide the kingdom during her minority. That was her mother's half-brother, John of Ibelin, also called the Old Lord of Beirut (a later nickname, surely: he was only 26 when he became regent). John ruled for three years, and then the search for a husband started.

Also in 1205, King Peter II of Aragon was crowned, and he was considered an option. In 1208 he was 30 and a successful king of a large Christian nation, but he had recently married. The bishop of Acre visited King Philip II of France and asked for help finding a suitable candidate. Philip and Pope Innocent III approved the choice of John of Brienne.

John sailed to the Holy Land from France and married Maria; they were jointly crowned (her regency being ended) in 1210. Maria's uncle was not confident in John of Brienne's ability to handle the kingdom's affairs, but the pope supported the new king. John of Ibelin left to live on Cyprus

After Maria's death in 1212, John was regent for their infant daughter, Queen Isabella II of Jerusalem.

John led the Fifth Crusade, which did not end well. He himself traveled to several countries (Castile, England, France, Germany, Italy) to request support for the Holy Land. He married Isabella to Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II, who then ended not only John's regency but also his other privileges. John shortly after became commander of Pope Gregory IX's army against Frederick while Frederick was on the Sixth Crusade.

Meanwhile, was John of Ibelin stirring up hostility against the new King of Jerusalem? King Hugh I of Cyprus (who also came to power in 1205 at the age of 10) imprisoned supporters of the new king. But then, he had other reasons: Hugh felt that his regent, Walter of Montbéliard, had kept him in a state of deprivation during his minority, and demanded 240,000 bezants of restitution. Walter fled Cyprus and found shelter with John of Brienne. The pope forced Hugh to free John's supporters.

There was much more to come in John's life, including a couple more wives and a new title. More on those tomorrow.

Teen Queen of Jerusalem

Isabella II was the daughter of John of Brienne and Maria of Montferrat. Maria (1192 - 1212) was the daughter of Isabella I, Queen of Jerusalem and Conrad of Montferrat, one of the major participants in the Third Crusade. When Isabella I died in 1205, Maria became Queen of Jerusalem at the age of 12. She was married in 1210 to John of Brienne. Isabella II (1212 - 4 May 1228) was their only child.

Isabella was born in Sicily, and was declared Queen when she was only a few days old, since her mother died shortly after giving birth. John of Brienne managed her regency. Note that her father did not have a direct claim on the throne; he was only styled king by virtue of marriage.

When Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II of Sicily agreed to go on Crusade, he wanted to guarantee that he would become King of Jerusalem. This Crusade was called by Pope Honorius III. Honorius, John of Brienne, and Frederick met in Ferentino, not far south of Rome, and arranged that the widower Frederick would marry Isabella, who was 11 at the time. Honorius hoped this would cement Frederick to the Crusade and guarantee that it would take place.

Frederick managed to delay going, however. Honorius died and was succeeded by Gregory IX, who pushed Frederick to fulfill his vow, finally excommunicating him to get him to start. Frederick still delayed until the wedding took place.

In August 1225, when she was 13, the two were finally married by proxy; it is possible that they had still not met. Days after, since she had reached a majority, she was crowned queen of Jerusalem in her own right. Frederick sent 20 galleys to bring Isabella to Brindisi (on Italy's "heel") where they were married in person. By this act, Isabella also became Holy Roman Empress as well as Queen Consort of Sicily and Germany.

Frederick then declared himself rightful King of Jerusalem by marriage and transferred to himself all rights and privileges previously held in the kingdom by John of Brienne as Regent, his new father-in-law.

Isabella was sent to live in Palermo in northern Sicily while Frederick went on Crusade. There she gave birth at the tender age of 14 to a daughter, in November 1226. The daughter died a year later. In 1228, on 25 April, she gave birth to a son, Conrad, but she died of complications a few days later.

Who was John of Brienne, and how did he come to be married to one Queen of Jerusalem and father another? Come back tomorrow and I'll explain.

The Treaty of San Germano

When Pope Gregory IX started what came to be called the War of the Keys, he thought he was secure because his target was the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II of Sicily, who was finally off on Crusade.

Gregory particularly wanted to capture Sicily from Frederick's control, especially because Frederick had been abusing his power over the church there. Gregory's military leader was John of Brienne, Frederick's father-in-law, who had no particular reason to love Frederick.

Upon hearing of the problems, and that Gregory had invaded Campania in southwestern Italy (Frederick's territory) Frederick abandoned the Holy Land and sailed back home, landing at Brindisi (Italy's "heel") on 10 June 1229. He had his Crusader army, of course, and some of the residents of Campania were opposed to the pope's attempt to expand the Papal States, so joined his cause.

Gregory's attempt to gain control over Sicily was rebuffed by the Muslim population in the western part of the island: they did not want the head of the Christian church having political control over them. Likewise, he could not turn Germany against Frederick; although he was born in Italy (his mother was Constance, Queen of Sicily), his father was Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI, so Frederick was considered German through and through.

The approach of Frederick's forces toward Campania caused the papal forces to start to lose their nerve. In August 1229, Gregory renewed his excommunication of Frederick, along with some of his chief supporters. He was also making promises left and right to various towns about offering them privileges, remission of sins, and political autonomy if they would simply join him and become part of the Papal States, but few were interested. Based on Frederick's treaty in the East with al-Kamil, Gregory claimed that Frederick was working in alliance with Muslims, hoping to erode his support.

For his part, Frederick was sending messages to the heads of Europe, explaining his cause and requesting their support. By the end of October, John of Brienne had retreated back to papal territory, and Frederick's troops had re-taken any of the papal-invaded towns.

Rather than take the opportunity and excuse to invade the Papal States, Frederick stopped his army's advance and requested that negotiations take place. Negotiations led to the Treaty of San Germano, signed on 23 July 1230. Gregory gave permission for Cardinal Giovanna Colonna to absolve Frederick's excommunication. The final treaty was brokered by Leopold VI, Duke of Austria, whose seal is illustrated above.

Contemporary sources, analyzing the War of the Keys, discussed it in terms of the "doctrine of the two swords": the material sword and the spiritual sword. Gregory's letter to England referred specifically to exercising temporal power. This use by the pope of the material sword, since he failed to achieve his aims with the spiritual sword, was criticized by many. There are even competing troubadour poems on the topic.

What I really want to look at next, however, is John of Brienne's role in the war. For that, we have to understand the marriage to Frederick of John's daughter, Isabella of Jerusalem, who became Queen of Jerusalem at the age of 13, was married at 13 to a man she had yet to meet, and was dead by 16.

The War of the Keys

The War of the Keys was called that because of the image of crossed keys (keys to the Kingdom of Heaven) on the papal flag. The war was between Pope Gregory IX and Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II. Frederick vowed to go on Crusade, which Gregory supported wholeheartedly. The vow was on pain of excommunication. Gregory's predecessor, Honorius III, had granted Frederick several delays, but Gregory was not going to be patient anymore, and threatened Frederick with excommunication.

Along with that issue, Frederick laid claim to some lands in central Italy that the popes believed belonged to the Papal States. Also, Gregory felt that Frederick was abusing the church in Sicily.

Part of Frederick's agreement to go on Crusade was that he wanted to be King of Jerusalem. Currently, the King-by-marriage was John of Brienne, who was regent for his 12-year-old daughter, Queen Isabella II of Jerusalem. The marriage, in November 1225, removed John's regency and made technically Frederick King of Jerusalem. Yet still he delayed.

Gregory excommunicated Frederick in October 1227. Isabella died in May 1228. In June 1228, Frederick finally began the Sixth Crusade. While he was traveling, some of his followers invaded the disputed Italian territories. Gregory responded with an army intending to take Sicily from Frederick. For the leader of his army he chose John of Brienne. Gregory levied tithes from several Christian countries to raise money for his army. According to contemporary English chronicler Roger of Wendover, England resisted the tax. King Henry III of England called an assembly of nobles and prelates to hear from the papal legate about the tithe, but the nobles simply refused to pay. Henry did not do anything to interfere with the papal request, but he did not force his nobles to comply.

Meanwhile, Frederick was in the east and signing a treaty with al-Kamil, who was perfectly happy to giving Jerusalem to the Crusaders if they left him alone. When Gregory heard about this, he denounced the treaty and Frederick as being un-Christian.

Now, however, Frederick was free to return and face the pope's forces. We will see how that went tomorrow.

Canonized Anti-Semitism

The first thing we should establish is that "anti-semitism" is the wrong term for what happened to Jews in Western Europe and elsewhere. This may seem like a quibble, but it was not "semitism" that Christians objected to. The term "semitic" was coined in 1781 by a German scholar to designate a group of languages from the Middle East, namely those spoken by the descendants of Noah's son Shem. The German antisemitisch was coined in 1860 as a label and criticism of those who felt the "semitic races" were inferior to white races.

What Pope Gregory IX did was to formalize anti-Judaism, his objection to their religion, not their race. People cannot change their race, but they can change their religion, and opportunities were available. In neither case, however, did Gregory want them to be abused or killed by their neighbors.

Gregory brought a legal mind to the issue of Jews. As with the Papal Inquisition, where he demanded due process and objectivity over mob rule, with his statements on Jews he also established protections for them. His statements, however, formalized their unequal status in society and made it part of canon law.

He started with a 1233 mandate, that Christians needed to stop persecuting Jews for simply being Jews. A year later, he established the doctrine of perpetua servitus Judaeorum, "perpetual servitude of the Jews." By this he meant that they should never be in positions of political power from now until Judgment Day. This led to the idea of servitus camerae imperialis, "servitude under the emperor," that they would always be subject to the authority (whims) of the Emperor (of the Holy Roman Empire), who at the time was Frederick II.

One of the triggers for Jewish persecution was the Crusades. When the Christian population was stirred up with the idea of "taking back" the Holy Land, the act of mistreating Jews surged. Throughout the 1230s, Gregory heard complaints from Jews and mandated that those religious leaders in whose dioceses the crimes were committed should "force the crusaders of their dioceses who had killed and robbed Jews to provide proper satisfaction for the crimes perpetrated against the Jews and for the property stolen from them." This was not a generic request: the pope deliberately named those bishops and archbishops, etc., whom he required to see things right.

His idea of perpetual servitude of the Jews affected them for centuries, and anti-Judaism/modern anti-semitism are still rampant.

Even though Gregory saw their servitude to the emperor, he did not completely trust this particular emperor. He did, as part of his approach, bring charges against Frederick for mistreatment of Jews. That was not the pope's only problem with Frederick. Tomorrow I'll tell you about the War of the Keys and what the pope does when you say you will go on Crusade, but you keep putting it off.

Pope Gregory IX

Ugolino di Conti's birth year is suggested as somewhere between 1145 and 1170, but there are suggestions that he was in his 90s at his death in 1241, so if that is true the 1145 date looks more likely. Only 14 of those years were as pope, which is probably just as well. His legacy is largely negative because of his establishing the Papal Inquisition (not the original Inquisition), his formalizing of anti-semitism in church doctrine (that lasted into the 20th century), and (although this is a result of speculative hindsight and is likely erroneous thinking) the Bubonic plague.

He was first elevated to Cardinal-Deacon in December 1198 by his cousin, Pope Innocent III. In 1206 he was made Cardinal Bishop, and named Dean of the College of Cardinals in 1218. At the request of Francis of Assisi, Pope Honorius III made him Cardinal Protector of the Franciscans. (He had been a friend of Francis already, as well as of Clare of Assisi and St. Dominic.)

Honorius died on 18 March 1227 after trying to establish the Fifth Crusade that had been called by Innocent III. Innocent intended for this one to be led by the papacy, in order to avoid the disaster of the Fourth Crusade. Cardinal Ugolino was elected pope one day after the death of Honorius, taking the name "Gregory" because he was at the monastery of St. Gregory when he accepted the position.

One of his first acts was to expand the powers of an inquisition taking place in Germany. He also established a Papal Inquisition (mostly managed by Dominicans and Franciscans) to formalize what had already been begun and was being handled differently across Christendom. His aim was to introduce due process and objectivity, because too often executions were done by unruly mobs on the innocent in the name of defeating heresy.

He also called for Crusades in places other than the Holy Land, to bring Eastern Europe into alignment with the papacy. These Northern or Baltic Crusades were against the pagan Baltic, Finnic, and West Slavic peoples.

Some modern writers blame Gregory for the Black Death because of a bull he wrote that demonized cats. The widespread killing of cats (the thinking goes) removed a deterrent to the rats that spread the plague. What the proponents of this theory leave out, however, is that papal decree does not run to India and China where the plague was just as widespread as in Europe. Also, one would have to assume the killing of cats was consistent for over a century, since the plague arrived in Europe about 120 years after Gregory's bull.

We will not condemn every act of Gregory: In 1229, when the University of Paris had a strike, he wrote a bull that helped resolve the differences between Town and Gown.

One of his lasting achievements, however, was to institutionalize anti-semitism in the Church. For that, we will wait another day. See you tomorrow.

The Patron Saint of Television

Inspired by Francis of Assisi, Clare of Assisi (16 July 1194 - 11 August 1253) founded a new order for women, the "Order of Poor Ladies of San Damiano." She lived with them for the rest of her life; ten years after her death, the order was renamed the "Order of St. Clare." Her mother, Ortolana, and her sisters Beatrice and Catarina (who took the name Agnes and was also later declared a saint) joined her in the order.

Francis himself ruled the order at first, but finally convinced Clare to become abbess. She disliked the title, and often referred to herself as "mother" or "handmaid" or "servant." In 1215, the Fourth Lantern Council declared that any communities had to adopt an established order, similar to the Rule of St. Benedict. This clashed with Clare's preference, because her desire for strict poverty was not approved by the Benedictine rule. Pope Gregory IX feared that her strict poverty was too physically unhealthy. She eventually convinced him to relent, and he approved for her order what was called Privilegium Paupertatis ("Privilege of Paupers").

In her lifetime, she was credited with a few miracles. In 1234, the army of Frederick II of Sicily was plundering the part of Italy where Assisi is. His men set up ladders to scale the walls in order to enter the convent at San Damiano. Clare grabbed the ciborium—the vessel that holds the host—and carried it to a window. When she held it up at the window, the men fell off the ladders and fled.

Her tendency to fast and deprive herself made her often ill. One Christmas, she was too ill to attend Mass and stayed in her cell. She later reported to her comrades that she had seen the Mass performed in a vision while confined to bed. This incident inspired Pope Pius XII in 1958 to declare her the patron saint of television.

Pope Gregory IX knew Francis and Clare personally, starting when he was a cardinal. His name has been woven throughout this blog for many years, but he has not had center stage. Tomorrow I'll talk about his life and some of the terrible things he did.

St. Clare of Assisi

Similar to St. Francis of Assisi, St. Clare of Assisi (born Chiara Offreduccio) was born to a wealthy family—her father was a count—but she gave it all up to follow a life of poverty and devotion to God.

Her mother, Ortolana—who went on pilgrimages to the Holy Land and Santiago de Compostela—raised Clare and her sister Catarina to be devout Christians. When Clare was 12, her parents arranged a good marriage for her, but Clare begged to be allowed to hold off marriage until she was 18. Later, with the age of 18 approaching, she heard Francis of Assisi preach during Lent in 1212. She went to him and asked his advice on living a life inspired by the Gospels.

On Palm Sunday (20 March), she left her family along with her Aunt Bianca and went to Francis. There her hair was cut short, she put on a plain robe, and took the name Clare. She went into a convent of Benedictine nuns. Her father and others tried to bribe her to come home, but she would not give up the life she had chosen. Shortly after this attempt, Francis moved her to a Benedictine monastery farther away. Two weeks later, Catarina joined her, choosing the same lifestyle and changing her name to Agnes ("lamb").

The two eventually moved back to Assisi, to a small building made for them next to the church of San Damiano, which Francis had repaired as one of his first acts of devotion to his new lifestyle. It became the center of a new order founded by Clare. Originally known as the Poor Ladies of San Damiano, they were formalized as the Order of St. Clare in 1236. (This was 10 years after Clare had died.)

Prior to her death, she experienced an event that would later cause her to be named the patron saint of television. We will get to the story next time.

Francis the Saint

In 1224, Francis of Assisi was on the mountain of Verna, enduring a 40-day fast prior to Michaelmas. He had a companion, Brother Leo, who recorded the result of a vision Francis had in mid-September: "Suddenly he saw a vision of a seraph, a six-winged angel on a cross. This angel gave him the gift of the five wounds of Christ."

After the vision, Francis showed stigmata. The stigmata, from Greek for "mark" or "brand," are the wounds suffered by Jesus from the Scourging and Crucifixion. They are wounds on the hands and feet, the head from the Crown of Thorns, and on the side from the Holy Lance.

He was taken for medical attention for these open wounds, but no one could help heal them. Two years after the vision and the appearance of the stigmata, he died, on 3 October 1226.

Less than two years later, Pope Gregory IX, who as Cardinal Ugolino Conti had been given the task of guiding the Franciscan Order, and who was a friend of Francis, declared Francis a saint. He also founded the Basilica of St. Francis in Assisi, under which Francis' body was interred in 1230. The threat of Saracen invaders caused the tomb to be hidden to avoid desecration; it was not found until 1818! His tomb was renovated between 1927 and 1930. His remains were examined, confirmed to be those of the saint, and put in the tomb in a glass urn. He was named a patron saint of Italy in 1939, along with Catherine of Siena. He is the patron saint of animals and ecology, the patron against fire, and the patron saint against dying alone.

The order he founded has about 16,000 members in 1500 houses across the world. It inspired offshoots such as the Order of Friars Minor Conventual, Order of Friars Minor Capuchin, and the Third Order of Saint Francis (who desire a religious life but not a monastic one).

He also co-founded the Order of Saint Clare, also called the Poor Clares, after Clare of Assisi, who is sometimes referred to as Francis' sister. She wasn't, but she had a similar story to his. I'll tell you about her tomorrow, and why she is the patron saint of television.

Francis the Brother of All

One of the most familiar mental images of Francis of Assisi is his connection with Nature.

While traveling through the Spoleto Valley, Francis saw several birds of all kinds. He ran towards the birds, which did not fly away. He told them

"My brother and sister birds, you should praise your Creator and always love Him: He gave you feathers for clothes, wings to fly and all other things that you need. It is God who made you noble among all creatures, making your home in the air. Without sowing or reaping, you receive God's guidance and protection."

The birds spread their wings and started singing. Francis was able to walk among them and touch them without them flying from him. He realized that animals and birds should be exposed to the Word of God and made it his habit from then on to spend time in finding animals to preach to.

His relationship with animals produced many anecdotes. One time while preaching to people, he had to ask birds to quiet down; they did until his sermon was done. Another time he was brought a rabbit that had been caught in a trap. Francis advised the rabbit to be more careful about traps in the future, and when the rabbit was released it hopped back to Francis' lap.

One day, while in the town of Gubbio, Francis learned that a wolf was menacing the town, killing and eating animals and people. He decided to meet the wolf despite the warnings of the townspeople. He went out from the town, accompanied by a fellow friar and some townspeople who wished to witness the event. The townspeople soon gave up and fell behind. Francis and the friar went on, and were soon faced with the wolf. Francis made the sign of the Cross and said "Come to me, Brother Wolf. In the name of Christ, I order you not to hurt anyone."

He continued, explaining to the wolf that it had been killing people who are made in the image of God. "Brother Wolf, I want to make peace between you and the people of Gubbio. They will harm you no more and you must no longer harm them. All past crimes are to be forgiven." Francis asked the wolf to make a pledge. He extended his hand, and the wolf extended a paw to place in his hand. The wolf then followed Francis back to Gubbio to show the townspeople that the conflict was over. The wolf lived another two years in the town, going from door to door and being fed by the townspeople.

Francis also bought two lambs from a man who was selling them to be slaughtered. One of them followed him everywhere after that. He would return caught fish to the water, telling them to be more careful in the future. On his deathbed, he thanked his donkey for carrying him everywhere, and the donkey wept.

Francis' life was an inspiration for many, and his sainthood was predictable. Let's conclude the story of Francis with his most remarkable sign of his devoutness and his canonization.

Francis the Leader

Francis of Assisi, prior to his episode on the Fifth Crusade, traveled to Rome with his followers to request of the pope permission to found a new order. This was in 1209, a couple years after he started preaching in his home town. Although we call this order the Franciscans, the actual name is the Ordo Fratrum Minorum ("Order of Lesser Brothers"). They were also referred to as Friars Minor.

The catalyst for this was a Mass in February 1208 at the chapel of St. Mary of the Angels. The Gospel lesson from Matthew was about the Apostles going out to proclaim the Kingdom of God. He began preaching and collected 11 followers who lived with him in an abandoned leper colony near Assisi called Rivo Porto.

The original rules of the order that Francis presented to Pope Innocent III are not now known, but according to his biographer and friend, Thomas of Celano, it was some passages from the Gospels. It was revised and expanded over time, but its basis was a rejection of personal property, as well as obedience and chastity. Francis and his followers were also tonsured while in Rome as a sign of their formal endorsement by the pope. Official recognition as an order and their fervent preaching helped the order to grow quickly.

The Rule of the order was revised each year, according to Jacques de Vitry in a letter he wrote in 1216. Amendments were proposed, and Francis would berate them for errors in behavior. While Francis was traveling in the East because of the Crusade, he had to leave the Order in others' hands. First was Brother Peter Catani, but he died within months. Then it went to Brother Elias. Some times, those left in charge of the Order in Italy were making changes that Francis did not want. One was a prohibition against eating meat, but Francis pointed out (on his return) that Acts 10:15 says "What God has made clean, you are not to call profane."

A final re-formulation of the Rule came in 1223, and it is what is followed today.

The most familiar image of Francis was not writing rules or traveling in the East, it is him among animals. Let's look at that facet of his life and beliefs tomorrow.

Francis the Crusader

When Francis of Assisi  looked for inspiration about how he should be organizing his new-found life of devotion to God—and because he was drawing others to him who wanted guidance—he decided to look into the Bible. The sections he randomly opened to were about a rich young man being told to give all he had to the poor, Jesus telling the Apostles to take nothing on their journey, and the idea to take up the cross every day. He told those following him that these were their guiding rules. Francis wanted them to live by the Gospel.

Becoming the leader of an organized group was not a goal he sought. That involved a formality and an authoritative role that he did not think was appropriate for him. He simply wanted to foster the idea of brotherhood among people from all walks of life who came to listen to him. He urged his followers to go forth in pairs to preach God's love, and they did. People soon realized that these poorly clothed and barefoot itinerant preachers seemed very happy with their simple life. The idea that one could be happy without owning anything became attractive to more and more people. Rather than fight poverty, they made poverty acceptable, and even more: desirable.

Although he did not want to be seen as special, he at least once did something that looked self-aggrandizing. During the Fifth Crusade in 1219 he went to Egypt to speak directly to the Muslim leader and convert him. al-Kamil was the Sultan of Egypt, and he received this beggar-looking man and listened to him. Supposedly, al-Kamil told Francis that he liked what he heard and would have converted to what Francis was talking about, "but we would both be killed." Francis' "soft approach" to Crusading was more successful than the papal legate's. al-Kamil supposedly gave Francis permission to visit sites in the Holy Land. We do know that Francis went to Acre and then took a ship to Italy. (A sermon by St. Bonaventure in 1267 claimed that al-Kamil had a death-bed conversion due to the meeting with Francis.)

The presence of "Franciscans" was growing more noticeable, and if so many people were going to be wandering and preaching, it was felt there should be some organization to control their message. Let's look at the birth of the Franciscan Order next time.

Francis the Convert

When young Francesco di Bernardone realized he wanted to live a more devout and pious life, the change did not happen all at once. His encounter with the leper (see link above) was a turning point, but there was more to do on this journey.

He went to the old church at San Damiano to pray, during which he heard Christ on the Cross say to him "Francis, repair my church." Taking this to mean repairing the building of San Damiano, he went to his father's shop and took some of the fine fabrics, selling them on the street so he could give the money to the church.

His father, Pietro, was furious. He took Francis to the bishop in the town square, accusing Francis of theft and demanding that he be forced to repay for the cloth he took. The bishop took Pietro's side and told Francis to return the money and not worry, because "God would provide." Francis not only gave his father the money, but right there in the town square he divested himself of his clothing (since it had come from his father), stripping down to just a hair shirt he had been wearing. He declared "Pietro Bernardone is no longer my father. From now on I can say with complete freedom, 'Our Father who art in heaven.'"

He walked away from town to live in the woods, a hermit with nothing. He later begged people to bring him stones and started to rebuild the crumbling San Damiano himself. He started to preach openly about returning to God and obeying the Church. People started to listen. Then they started to adopt his lifestyle, wanting to live simply, rejecting shelter and money. They slept in the open and begged for food.

Now that he had followers, Francis became concerned about the responsibilities of leadership. He now had to think about how his actions were influencing others. To do that, he had to think more deliberately about what his actions should be. He decided to open the Bible randomly and take its advice. He opened it in three places, and his inspiration formed the basis for his life and the Order he reluctantly founded. The first steps on the path to the Franciscans were taken. We will see how that turned out next.

Francis the Youth

About 1181 in Assisi in Umbria, Pica di Bourlemont gave birth to a son. Her husband, the cloth merchant Pietro Bernardone, was in France on business at the time, and returned home to find that she had named the boy Giovanni, after John the Baptist. Pietro was not happy: he did not want his son associated with religion; he wanted his son to eventually join him in business. Because Pietro had trade connections in France, he re-named his son Francesco, "Frenchman."

Francesco was a happy child, with no wants because of his father's wealth. He had a very permissive lifestyle in a permissive time and was well-liked by everyone. He took trips to France with his father, falling in love with the country and its troubadours. A natural leader, his biographer (Thomas of Celano, who knew him) said "In other respects an exquisite youth, he attracted to himself a whole retinue of young people addicted to evil and accustomed to vice."

When Assisi declared war on its neighbor, Perugia, Francesco saw an opportunity to win attention and glory. Assisi lost, horribly, and it was only Francesco's family wealth that saved him to be imprisoned and ransomed, not killed.

When the Fourth Crusade came along, Francesco saw a better opportunity for glory. He needed a horse and armor—an easy "get" for someone with his family wealth. He had the armor decorated with gold, and accompanied by a magnificent cloak. With all in place, he set off from Assisi to go and free the Holy Land.

One day out from Assisi, he had a dream in which God told him to return home. He followed the dream, even though it led to ridicule from neighbors and anger from his father for the money wasted on the armor and horse. He worked in his father's business, and waited for God's plan to unfold. He started praying more, looking for guidance. Finally, a simple yet profound moment came.

He was riding his horse through the mountains when he came upon a leper. Despite the fear of leprosy, he dismounted and kissed the leper's hand. When the kiss was reciprocated, he felt a sense of joy. Remounting and riding away, he turned to wave goodbye and could not see the leper anywhere. He saw this as a test from God that he passed.

Francesco now had a better idea of the direction of his life, but his first obstacle was his father. We'll see how that turned out tomorrow.

John of Plano Carpini

Marco Polo is known for traveling to the Far East from Europe and observing things unknown to Europeans, but there were many travelers from Western Europe who went into unfamiliar lands for various reasons. One of these reasons was to bring Christianity to the inhabitants. The Franciscan John of Plano Carpini was one of those.

Carpini (c.1185 - 1 August 1252) was from central Italy. He was a companion of St. Francis of Assissi. In 1245, he was sent by Pope Innocent IV to the east with a letter for Ögedei Khan, who had defeated European forces four years earlier at the Battle of Legnica and almost took over all of Eastern Europe. The pope's intention was to protest the Mongol intrusion into Christendom, and to bring Christianity to the East. Incidentally, the mission could learn more about the enemy's intentions and strength.

Carpini had been at that time the Franciscan provincial in Germany. He set out with the pope's letter on Easter Day 1245 (16 April), with a fellow Franciscan, Stephen of Bohemia. They passed through Kyiv, where Stephen became ill and was left behind. They passed the rivers Dnieper, Don, and Volga; those names were first recorded by Carpini.

At the Volga they came to the camp of Batu Khan, a grandson of Genghis Khan, where they were made to walk between two fires (similar—but not as dangerous—as the Ordeal of Fire endured by Peter Bartholomew) to remove any impure thoughts or poisons before they were bought before Batu. Batu sent them on to the court in Mongolia. This second part of the journey set off on Easter Day 1246 (8 April).

This was arduous, and they had suffered through Lent, melting snow for water and eating millet with salt for their sustenance. Their journey of 3000 miles took 106 days. Before they arrived at their destination, Ögedei died, and the envoys were in time to witness the instatement of the new Supreme Khan, Güyük Khan. You can see his response to the pope's letter here.

Güyük kept Carpini and his party until November, and then sent them on their way during winter. Carpini records that they often slept on ground after scraping away the snow. It took them until 10 June 1247 to reach Kyiv. From that point their journey became easier: Slavonic Christians welcomed them and treated them hospitably.

Carpini was given the archbishopric of Serbia and became papal legate to Louis IX of France, a much more comfortable task after his grueling journey eastward. He wrote a record of his trip, the Ystoria Mongalorum ("History of Mongol People"), the first European history of the Mongols. Not long after, a much more accurate account of Mongols was written by William Rubruck.

Rubruck, like Carpini, was a Franciscan. Tomorrow I will start an account of the life of their founder.

The Cumans

Several years ago I mentioned the Codex Cumanicus, a lexicon of the Cuman language designed to help Christian missionaries preach to the Cumans. Thanks to this document, of the many variations of Turkic languages in the Middle Ages, Cuman is the best-known. They are mentioned in ancient Roman texts. Pliny the Elder mentions a fortress named Cumania in the area where there was a Cuman-Kipchak confederation (shown in yellow here) in the western part of the Eurasian Steppe.

Although they were a nomadic people, and therefore putting boundaries on their territory is a very fluid prospect, by the 11th and 12th centuries this confederation was the dominant force in the areas that are now Kazakhstan, southern Russia, Ukraine, southern Moldavia, and eastern Wallachia (in Romania).

This widespread area meant they were in contact with many others. They fought against the Kingdom of Hungary. They fought against the Byzantine Empire. They fought against each other: they were employed as mercenaries by Byzantium to fight against their ethnic cousins, the Pechenegs, with offers of gold from Emperor Alexios I. They had a specific use for gold: armor. Their higher-ranking members wore gold face plates in battle.

They were described as a handsome people, with blond hair and blue eyes. The Russian aristocracy sought Cuman women due to their beauty. Men and women both wore pants, tunics, and caftans, although women's tunics were shorter. Deep crimson was a popular color for clothing. Men shaved the tops of their heads and wore the remaining hair in braids. They wore conical hats made of felt with a broad brim or leather with fur trim. Women also wore conical hats, but with a veil that hung down the back.

A 13th century archbishop records a marriage between a Cuman princess and a Hungarian prince. Ten Cumans swore an oath that they would defend the Kingdom of Hungary. When swearing, they did so with a sword in hand, the sword touching the body of a dog that had been cut in half. A crusade historian also reports something similar: at an alliance between the Cumans and Byzantines, the Cumans had a dog walk between the two groups, then they cut the dog and had the Byzantines do the same. They swore that if the two groups failed in their oath that they would be cut in pieces.

The Cumans were overwhelmed by the Mongols in the 1230s, with the option to be destroyed or to become part of the Golden Horde. They chose the Golden Horde, and eventually blended in with other ethnic groups.

The story of the marriage above comes from one of those Christians who took an interest in the Cumans and their neighbors. Tomorrow I'll tell you about John of Plano Carpini. See you then.