A letter from Matilda of Tuscany, countess of Tuscany, duchess of Lorraine ()

Translated letter:

Matilda, by the grace of God if she is anything, to her most faithful A[lbert], dear greetings and every good; and to his wife, Ida, most faithful service. We are very grateful for your memorable prudence and loyalty, because you have served so faithfully, so strenuously in those things which relate to the honor and utility of my person, defending and retaining in their entirety all things that pertain to the honor/fief of my castle of Briey. You have certainly loved our honor and advantage in temporal matters and we in turn show that love to you without hesitation, wishing and eagerly desiring to increase your honor and advantage generously in reward for your loyalty and service. And since in those things which seem to look to the glory of the body you have gloriously shown us loyalty and service, as a most cherished faithful who, we do not doubt, loves the salvation of my soul as well as my body, we ask and charge you especially to divide that parcel of the fief of Briey which I offer to blessed Peter and give for the cure and salvation of my soul and of my mother of blessed memory, whose pious memory I carry always in my breast, to maintain the servants of God, as is contained in the charter we made. On a day that the servants of God will advise you, you be present to divide that parcel from other lands, placing the boundaries with clear signs, determining it so there can be no doubt, no dispute about the boundaries of that land, and no suit can be lodged. We want you to set the bounds of that land within the confines shown and designated by the charter we made. When the boundaries are set and the land designated, we want and order all those in our service and all the better inhabitants to be present with you. And we ask your loyalty and prudence urgently that you defend that place, in which the religious men serve God now or in the future, and everything which we give them or anyone in the future gives; guard them from all men, all adversaries, so that you allow no impediment or harm to the servants of God. If anyone should wish to offer an allod or fief which he holds from us to those servants of God for the salvation of his soul, we praise it and concede and confirm and accept it as pleasing and cherished as if it were given to our use or property. Such love, such benevolence we ask you to show for love of us to the servants of God who dwell there, that others will learn from your example to love and venerate that place and enhance it with necessary things. We also want you to express our good will and gratitude to all those beloved and very dear people in our service and tell them as they love our favor so they [should] love the salvation of my soul and of my lady mother of pious memory, and make no disturbance, do no harm to the servants of God or permit the townsmen to do any, but show them reverence and love and defend them from the injuries and harm of all according to their ability. We also want you to suggest and ask on our part those who have an allod or feof near that place in which the church is to be built, that they concede adjacents lands for charity and our prayers to the use of the servants of God. We want and order the charter which we made to be read before all, peasants/serfs and knights. Fare well.

Original letter:

M., Dei gratia si quid est, suo fidelissimo A., salutem caram et omne bonum; uxori quoque ejus, Yde, fidelissima servicia. Prudentie ac fidei tue semper memorande quamplurimas gratias persolvendo persolvimus, pro eo quod tam fideliter, tam strenue in hiis, que ad corporis mei honorem attinent et utilitatem, servisti, defendendo et retinendo nobis integerrime cuncta, que ad castelli mei de Brigerio honorem pertinere videntur. Diligendo dilexisti pro certo in temporalibus honorem et commodum nostrum et nos procul dubio vicem dilectionis in hoc siquidem tibi exhibemus, quod pro merito videlicet fidelitatis tue ac servicii honorem et commodum tuum ampliare magnifice et augmentare cupimus et desideranter desideramus. Et quoniam in hiis que ad corporis gloriam spectare videntur, gloriose nobis fidelitatem exhibuisti et servicium, sicut fidelem karissimum quem corporis et anime mee similiter salutem diligere non dubitamus, rogando rogamus et precipiendo precipius ut illam particulam de honore Brigerii, quam ad remedium et salutem anime mee atque beate memorie matris mee, cujus piam memoriam semper in pectore porto, omnipotenti Deo et beato Petro offero et dono ad sustentationem servorum Dei, sicut in carta quam fecimus continetur, ut qua die servi Dei te monebunt, per tuam corporalem presentiam, ponendo terminos et signa manifesta, ab aliis terris dividas et de[sic] designes et determines ita ut nulla dubietas, nullum litigium de terminis illius terre amplius fiat, vel moveatur aliqua querimonia. Ad ponendos vero illos terminos et ad terram illam designandam volumus et precipimus omnes qui de familia nostra sunt atque cunctos nostros meliores villanos tecum adesse. Locum quoque illum, in quo viri illi religiosi Deo serviunt, qui modo sunt vel in futuro erunt, et omnia, que illis damus seu que aliquis quolibet tempore daturus est, fidem et prudentiam tuam instantem rogamus, ut ab omni homine, ab omni adversario defendendo defendas, tuendo tueris ita ut nullum impedimentum nullam servis Dei molestiam fieri paciaris. Si quis etiam alodium vel etiam feodum, quod a nobis habet, illis Dei famulis pro remedio anime sue offerre voluerit, laudamus et concedimus et firmamus et ita etiam gratum et carum hoc accipimus, quasi aut nostro usui aut nostre proprietati esset datum. Tantam etiam dilectionem, tantam benivolentiam caritate nostra loco illi et servis Dei inibi famulantibus Deo rogamus et exibere, ut ceteri locum illum diligere et venerari et rebus necessariis ampliare tuo exemplo discant. Volumus pariter et bonam voluntatem universe dilecte et karissime familie nostre, te dicere ex nostra parte gratiam et sicut nostram amant gratiam, sicut amant anime mee salutem atque pie memorie domne et matris mee, ut nullam inquietudinem, nullam prorsus molestiam servis Dei faciant aut villanos facere permittant, sed reverentiam et dilectionem illis exibeant et ab omnium injuria et molestia illos pro posse suo defendant. Volumus etiam te ammonere et ex nostra parte rogare illos qui alodium vel feodum habent circa locum illum, in quo edificanda est ecclesia, ut terras adjacentes caritate et precibus nostris ad usum servorum Dei concedant. Cartam quam fecimus coram omnibus tam rusticis quam militibus legi volumus et precipimus. Vale.

Historical context:

This is a letter to one of Matilda’s men in the Lorraine (who cosigned another document, Die Urkunden, 46) telling him to convey a piece of land to the church for the souls of her mother and herself. The manuscript and Die Urkunde give 1095; Maccarini puts it somewhat later, 1096-1100.

Manuscript source:

copy in Paris BN, nouv.acq.lat.1608, Cartulaire de St. Pierremont 1292, fol.4v

Printed source:

P.A. Maccarini, “Lettera inedita della Contessa dagli archivi di un’antica abbazia lorenese,” Reggio Storia, 21 (1983), 32 and Die Urkunden, 47

Date:

1095, May 21