A letter from Adelaide of Carcassonne

Translated letter:

Gothic law in book 5, title 2, chapter 6, instructs that things given, if they are handed over in person, can in no way be demanded back by the donator.  Thus, in the name of God, I, Adelaide, daughter of countess Rangard, am the donator to you, Raymond, count of Barcelona, and countess Almodis, your wife, and your son Raymond Berenguer.  By this document  of my donation I give you all the powers and rights, possessions or authorities, which I have or ought to have, and men and women have or ought to have through me, in fief or by allods and tutelage or agreements or whatever rights in the county of Razès and Couseran and Comminges and Carcassonne and Narbonne and Minerve and Toulouse, as all the aforesaid were [possessed by] Roger, the old count of Carcassonne and Otto, his brother, the count of Razès and Bernard Roger and Raymond Roger and Peter, bishop, sons of said Roger, and as they were [possessed by] count Peter Raymond, my father, and Roger, his son, my brother, and countess Rangard, my mother, as much as these aforesaid held and had them there in whatever way, and men and women through them.  For all the above, cities, counties, bishoprics, viscounties, and other honors and offices, towns and castles, fortresses and fortifications, churches, parishes, townships, homes, payments, rents, markets, tolls, fees, travel-tolls, fairs, tolls, procurations, pasture-lands, woods, barren lands, trees, gardens, cultivated or not, mountains, hills and stones, money, in circulation or not, rustic and urban, legal disputes (malla) or suits, meadows or pastures, water-sources, rivers, with their runoffs/tributaries (discursionibus) and fisheries and mills and milling rights, and with all lands and vineyards, cultivated or not, viaducts and drains, with all abbeys, monasteries, cells, possessions, farms and chapels, with all their boundaries and appurtenances which were, are,  or will be in said counties and viscounties.  All the above came to me by authority and right and heredity of my said father and my brother and by maternal right and whatever rights and succession of the said parents and relatives.  All which are written above, with all their boundaries and appurtenances and abutments, I, said Adelaide, by my willing and gracious spirit give to you, namely said count Raymond and countess Almodis, and your son Raymond Berenguer, and by my right and power I hand over the rule and power and ownership to you to do all that you will; and that is manifest.  And if I, the donor, or any of my posterity or consanguinity, or any other man or woman, should try to break this document of donation, I or they could not obtain what I or they sought, but I or they must pay you or your successors all the above doubly with all its improvement; and afterwards the present document of donation would remain firm and stable for all time.  This document of donation was made on the 4th nones of August in the year of the lord’s incarnation, 1070, in the 8th “millesima contessima” era, 8th indiction, 11th year of the reign of king Philip.  Sign+ of the woman Adelaide I who made this donation by spontaneous will, signed and asked it to be signed.  Peter, priest, who wrote this sheet of bestowal as asked and subscribe with the noted day and year.

Original letter:

Lex Gothorum precipit in libro v eiusdem legis, titulo II, capitulo VI, ut res donate, si in presenti tradite sint, nullo modo repetantur a donatore. Ideoque, in Dei nomine, ego, Adalaidis, filia que sum Rangardis, comitisse, donatrix sum vobis, Raimundo, comiti Barcheone, et Almodi, comitisse, coniugi tue, et filio vestro Raimundo Berengarii. Per hanc scripturam donacionis mee dono vobis omnes voces et dretaticos, possessiones vel auctoritates, quas ego habeo vel habere debeo, et homines vel femine habent vel habere debent per me, per fevos vel per alodia vel per baiulias sive per conveniencias vel per qualescumque voces in comitatu Redensi et Coseranensi et Comeniensi et Carcassonensi et Narbonensi et Menerbensi et Tolosano, sicut fuerunt predicta omnia de Rodgario, comite vetulo Carcassonensi, et Otone, fratre eius, comite Redensi, et de Bernardo Rodgarii et Raimundo Rodgarii et Petro, episcopo, filiorum predicti Rodgarii, et sicut fuerunt Petri Raimundi, comitis, patris mei, et Rodgarii, filii sui, fratris mei, et Rangardis, comitisse, matris mee, quantum isti supradicti qualicumque modo ibi tenuerunt vel habuerunt, et homines vel femine per eos. Sunt, namque, predicta omnia, civitates, comitatus, episcopatus, vicecomitatus et alii honores et dignitates, castra vel castella, municiones sive fortedas, ecclesie, parrochie, ville, domus, census, redditus, mercata, telonea, leddes, pedadges, fire, rafega, alberges, pascuaria, silve, garrice, arbores, horti, cultum vel eremum, montes, et podii et petre, monete, condirectum vel discondirectum, rusticum et urbanum, malla vel placita, prata vel pascua, fontes, flumina, cum eorum discursionibus et piscatoriis et molendinis et molendinariis, sive cum omnibus terris vel vineis, cultis vel eremis, vieductibus vel reductibus, sive cum omnibus abbaciis, monasteriis, cellis, possessionibus, prediis vel capellis earum, cum omnibus illarum terminis et pertinenciis cunctis que in predictis comitatibus vel vicecomitatibus fuerunt, sunt vel erunt. Advenerunt ergo, mihi predicta omnia per vocem et dretaticum vel hereditatem iam dicti patris mei et fratris mei seu per maternam vocem sive per qualescumque voces vel successionem predictorum parentum vel propingnorum meorum. Que, vero, predicta omnia superius scripta, cum omnibus terminis et pertinen­ciis et affrontacionibus illorum cunctis, ego, predicta Adalaidis, meo libenti et grato animo dono vobis, iam dicto Raimundo, videlicet, comite, et Adalmodi, comitisse, et filio vestro Raimundo Berengarii, et de meo iure et potestate in vestrum trado dominium et potestatem et proprietatem ad facienda omnia quecumque volueritis; et est manifestum. Quod si ego donatrix, vel aliquis ex posteritate mea vel consanguinitate mea vel aliquis alius homo vel femina, venero vel venerint ad irrumpendum contra hanc scripturam donacionis, non hoc valeam vel veleant vendicare quod requisiero vel requisierint, sed componam vel componant vobis aut successoribus vestris supradicta omnia in duplo cum omni sua immelioracione; et postmodum presens scriptura donacionis firma et stabilis permaneat omni tempore. Facta scriptura donacionis IIII nonas augusti anno Dominice incarnacionis millesimo LXX, era millesima contessima VIII, indiccione VIII, anno XI regni Philippi, regis. Sig+num Adala<i>dis, femine, que hanc donacionem feci et spontanea voluntate firmavi et firmare rogavi. Petrus, presbiter, qui huius scedulam largicionis rogatus scripsit et subscripsit die annoque prenotato.

Historical context:

Adelaide turns over the lands she claimed after the death of her brother, which her mother had given to her husband as her dowry, and her husband had sold to the count and countess of Barcelona three years earlier, without clear title.  See Cheyette, "The `Sale'," 834-36.

Printed source:

Liber Feudorum Maior 2.308-09, #822, also HGL 5.579-80.  

Date: