A letter from Ermengard of Narbonne, viscountess of Narbonne (1151, July 20)

Translated letter:

I, Ermengard viscountess of Narbonne,who was the daughter of Ermengarde, swear to you Raymond Trencavel who was the son of Cecilia, that from this hour forward I shall be faithful to you in your life and the members that adhere to your body and all your cities and those fortresses that exist today and that will be there in the future, and your castles and your allods and fiefs and your baileys and all the honors which you have today and should have and the men and women should have from you. – I the aforesaid Ermengard shall not take from you the whole of all the above nor any part, nor any man or men, woman or women by my trickery or by my counsel or by my assent. And if there should be a man or men, woman or women who should take anything of all the aforesaid from you, I the said Ermengard will not have agreement or association or love for them to your harm, but as often as you bring it to my attention youself or through an envoy or envoys, I shall not refuse to be informed, I will be a faithful aid to you for all the aforesaid in faith without trickery and against all men, except the count of Barcelona, and the count of Toulouse and the count of Routier and the archbishop of Narbonne and except the men of my lands, from whom I shall be able to do right by you and I shall do it; except for those, I shall be an aid to you without trickery. And if I or anyone from my land should commit any crime against you, I shall make amends to you and have it amended when you call my attention to it either yourself or through your messenger within the first forty days; and if I cannot do it, I will be an aid to you and yours without trickery. And from this hour forward I shall not knowingly maintain a man or woman from your lands nor from your fiefs nor your jurisdiction to your harm. As is written above, I shall hold all this to you and observe it with correct faith without trickery, except inasmuch as you absolve me of your free will without force, by God and these holy Gospels. This oath was taken on Friday, 13th kalends of August, in the year 1151 of the lord’s incarnation, under the rule of king Louis. Witnesses of this thing are Berengarius abbot of Lagrasse and William of St. Felix and Aucter of Podico and Bernard Raymond of Campenduto and Peter Seger of Beziers, and Peter of Minerve, and William of Durban, and Gerald of Narbonne,and Bertrand of St. Nazaire and William of Poitiers. Arnold of Clairan wrote this, requested by the aforesaid Ermengarde and said witnesses.
I Raymond of Trencavel son of Cecilia swear to you Ermengarde viscountess of Narbonne … who were the daughter of Ermengard, that from this hour forward I shall be faithful to you in your life and your members which hold to your body and your cities, and I shall be a faithful aid to you in all the aforesaid in faith without trickery against all men, except the count of Barcelona and the count of Toulouse and St. Giles and except Bernardo-Ato my brother and the count of Routier and the archbishop of Narbonne and except the men of my lands from whom I shall do right by you as I can (etc. as in the preceding). This oath was taken on the Friday, 13th kalends of August, in the year 1151, etc.

Original letter:

Juro ego Hermengardis vicecomitissa Narbonae quae fui filia Hermengardis tibi Raymundo Trencavello qui fuisti filius Caeciliae, quod de ista hora in antea fidelis ero tibi de tua vita & de tuis membris quae corpori tuo adhaerent & de tuis civitatibus totis & de ipsis forteziis quae ibi hodie sunt & in antea ibi erunt & de ipsis tuis castellis & de ipsis tuis alodiis & feudis & de ipsis tuis bajuliis & de totis honoribus quos hodie habes & habere debes & homines & foeminae habere debent de te. — Ego praedicta Hermengardis de his omnibus supradictis non tibi totum neque aliquam partem tollam nec homo vel homines, foemina vel foeminae per meum ingenium nec per meum consilium nec per meum assentimentum. Et si erit homo vel homines, foemina vel foeminae qui de istis omnibus praedictis tibi aliquid tollant, ego Hermengardis praedicta cum illo vel cum illa vel cum illis finem neque societatem nec amorem habebo ad tuum damnum, sed per quantas vices tu me commonueris per te ipsum aut per tuum missum aut per tuos missos, & commonere me non vetabo, fidelis adjutor ero tibi de omnibus aedictis per fidem sine tuo inganno & contra omnes homines, excepto comite Barchinonensi & excepto comite Tolosano & comite Ruthenensi & archiepiscopo Narbonensi & exceptis hominibus de terris meis, unde directum tibi facere potuero & faciam; sin autem, de illis adjutor ero tibi absque inganno. Et si ego vel aliquis de mea terra ullum malefactum tibi fecerimus, ego tibi emendabo & emendare faciam quando tu me commonueris per te ipsum aut per tuum nuncium infra ipsos primos LX dies; & si facere non possem, adjutor tibi tuisque ero sine tuo tuorumque inganno. Et de ista hora in antea non manutenebo hominem neque foeminam de tuis terris neque de tuis honoribus neque de tua justitia ad tuum damnum me sciente. Sicut superius scriptum est, sic totum tibi tenebo & attendero recta fide sine inganno, excepto quantum inde tu mihi absolveris tuis gratis animis sine forcia, per Deum & haec sancta Evangelia. Factum est hoc sacramentum VIa feria, XIII kalendas augustas, anno M CLI Incarnationis dominicae, regnante Lodovico rege. Hujus rei sunt testes Berengarius abbas Crassensis & Guillelmus de Sancto Felice & Aucterius de Podico & Bernardus Raymundi de Campenduto & Petrus Segerii de Biterri & Petrus de Minerva & Guillelmus de Durbano & Geraldus de Narbona & Bertrandus de Sancto Nazario & Guillelmus de Pictavo. Arnaldus de Clairano hoc scripsit rogatus a praedicta Hermengardi & a testibus praedictis.

Juro ego Raimundus Trencavelli filius Caeciliae vobis Ermengardi vicecomitissae Narbonae, ….quae fuisti filia Ermengardis, quod de hora ista in antea fidelis ero vobis de tua vita & de tuis membris quae tuo corpori se tenent & de tuis civitatibus & fidelis adjutor ero tibi de omnibus praedictis per fidem sine tuo inganno contra omnes homines, excepto comite Barchinonensi & comite Tolosano & Sancti Egidi & excepto Bernardo-Atone fratre meo & comite Ruthenensi & archiepiscopo Narbonensi & exceptis hominibus de meis terris unde tibi directum facere faciam si potuero (&c.) (comme dans l’acte precedent). Factum hoc sacramentum via feria, XiiI kalendas augustas, anno MCLI, &c.

Historical context:

Exchange of oaths between Ermengard and Raymond Trencavel.

Printed source:

Devic and Vaissette, Histoire Generale de Languedoc (Toulouse: Privat, 1875) 5.1142-44, #587,

Date:

1151, July 20