A letter of donation

Translated letter:

In the name of the holy and individual trinity.  I Arnau Mir … [and my spouse Arsenda] …  Therefore we give the rock/cliff and place and church called Régola with mills and tithes and first fruits and offerings and appurtenances and boundaries and display of all service and debts from men living there and paying appurtenances.  And moreover we give it the church of St. Michael of Montmagastre with the tithes pertaining to it and with first fruits and all offerings and with other churches and allods and farms and all things that pertain to that church, and as much as it has now and will ever have in the future under that law by which said church of St. Michael with all its others [allods] remain in subjection and command of the church of Ager and be established and administered under the authority of the abbot of that place.  And in a similar way we give it the church of St. Saturnine of Llordá with the tithes pertaining to it and with first fruits and all offerings and with other churches and allods and farms and all the things that pertain to that church and as much as it has now and will ever have in the future under that law by which said church of St. Saturnine with all others remain always in subjection and command of the church of Ager and be established and administered under the authority of the abbot of that place.  We give it all the tithes from our demesnes  ……. Now however let it be known by all in the present as well as the future that said church of St. Peter which is located in the aforenamed castrum of Ager, we put under the protection of St. Peter and the Roman Apostle  and give with all things pertaining to it what it now has and will have in perpetuity, churches as well as castles and cells and other farms and we subject and subordinate it to the Holy Roman Church and the Roman Apostle (papacy) so that with the defense of his protection and the help of his successors it may remain always firm and according to the privilege which we received from that Apostle it be always defended and supported and helped by that Apostle against all persecutions and oppositions, and  since for this we have established in that privilege that the Roman church have from it for fifty years ten gold solidos and we, as long as we live, will always pay said tribute and our posterity who will hold said castrum of Ager after us.  And we confirm all the said dominion according to the order set out above and we corroborate and hand over by our right into the dominion of said church eternally to have and enjoy and possess. And who might wish to disrupt this or attempt by any argument or trick to dilute or diminish it or take away or alienate from the right of said church, he could in no way do it, but for the presumption alone, he would first pay according to the laws of the world all of this triply, and henceforth as devastator and predator of the church would remain bound by the chain of anathema according to the privilege of the Romans by our church of Ager and separated and cut off from the threshhold of the holy church of God and from the college by every Christian, until he felt himself repentant and made satisfaction, and this document of gift would remain always firm in every way for all time.

 Which was done on the 2nd nones of April in the fifth year of king Philip.  Sign+ of Arnau Mir.  Sign+ of Arsenda, his wife, we who, not compelled nor urged but devotedly and powerfully by our own will ordered this charter to be written, and with our own hands as we are accustomed, signed it by point, and asked witnesses to sign.  Sign+ of Letgard, viscountess.  Sign+ of Valencia, countess of Pallars, we sisters confirm this gift.  Sign+ of Berengar, viscount.  Sign+ of Bernard Trasvar.  Sign+ of Berengar Isarn.  Sign+ of Gaucerand Erimann.  Sign+ of Gifred Sanllan.  Sign+ of Dalmau Bernard.  Sign+ of Exquofete.  Sign+ of Raymond Bernard.  Sign+ of Berengar, his brother.  Sign+ of Arnau Ermemir.  Sign+ of Bernard Mir of Apili.  Sign+ of Berengar Mir.  Sign+ of Roger Umbert.  Sign+ of Pons Onofred.  Raymond, clerk, wrote it as asked on the said + day and year. 

Original letter:

In nomine Sancte et Individue Trinitatis. Ego Arnallus Mironis ……. Propter hec damus rupem et locum et ecclesiam Regulam dictam cum molendinis ac decimis et primiciis oblacionibusque et pertinenciis atque terminis et tocius servicii exibicionibus et debitis ab hominibus illic abitantibus vel pertinentibus exolvendis. Et insuper damus ei Eccle­siam Sancti Michaelis de Mamagastro cum decimis sibi pertinentibus et cum primicis et oblacionibus omnibus et cum aliis ecclesiis et alodiis et prediis et omnibus rebus que pertinent ad eandem Ecclesiam, et quan­tum habet modo et unquam habebit ni (sic) futurum sub ea lege quo prelibata Ecclesia Sancti Michaelis cum suis omnibus aliis [alodiis] maneat semper in subieccione et iussione Aggerensis Ecclesie et sit stabilita et decantata sub ipsius loci Abbatis ordinacione. Et simili modo damus ei Ecclesiam Sancti Saturnini de Lordano cum decimis sibi pertinentibus et cum primiciis et oblacionibus omnibus et cum aliis ecclesiis et alodiis et prediis et omnibus rebus que pertinent ad eandem Ecclesiam et quantum habebet modo et unquam habebit in futuro unquam sub ea lege quo prelibata Ecclesia Sancti Saturnini cum suis omnibus aliis [alodiis] maneat semper in subieccione et iussione Aggerensis Ecclesie et sit stabilita et decantata sub ipsius loci Abbatis ordinacione. Damus ei Omnes decimis de nostris dominicaturis …  Nunc autem sciatur a cunctis tam presentibus quam futuris quia supradictam Eccle­siam Sancti Petri que est sita in prenominato castro de Ager, in tutelam Sancti Petri et Apostolici Romani mittimus et damus et cum omnibus rebus sibi pertinentibus, quas modo habet et habitura est in perpetuum tam in ecclesiis quam in castellis et cellis et prediis aliis Sancte Romane Ecclesie et Apostolico Romano eam subiecimus et subiugimus ut sui muniminis presidio et succesorum suorum adiutorio semper maneat fulta et secundum privilegium quod ab ipso Apostolico accepimus contra omnes persecuciones et contrarietates ab ipso Apostolico semper defendatur et subveniatur atque auxilietur, et quia ob hoc statuimus in ipso privilegio ut Romana Ecclesia abeat inde per quinquennium censum decem solidos aureos et nos dum vixerimus prelibatum censum semper solvamus et posteritas nostra qui tenuerit predictum castrum de Ager post nos. Omnem namque supradictum domnum secundum ordinem superius comprehensum confirmamus et corroboramus et de nostro iure tradimus in dominium prefate Ecclesie eternaliter ad abendum et ad fruendum et possidendum. Et qui hec voluerit disrumpere aut per quamcumque occasionem vel ingenium temtaverit, hoc diluere aut minuere sive de iure prefate Ecclesie tollere vel alienare nullo modo possit facere, set pro sola presumpcione primum secundum seculi leges hoc totum in triplo componat, deinde, sicut devastator et depredator Ecclesie anathematis vinculo secundum privilegium Romanorum nostre Aggerensi Eccle­sie factum inmodatus permaneat et a liminibus sancte Dei Ecclesie et ab omni cristiano cetu segregatum et sequestratum se senciat donec resipiscat et satisfaciat et hec postea largicione scriptura omnibus modis semper maneat firma omnia secula.

Que est facta II nonas aprilii in quinto anno regis Philiphi. Sig+num Arnallus Mironis. Sig+num Arsendis, uxoris eius, qui non quoacti neque suasi set votive ac potencialiter per nostra bona volumptate hanc cartam scribere iussimus et manibus propriis, sicut soliti sumus, punctatim firmavimus et a testibus firmari rogavimus. Sig+num Letgardis, vicecomitisse. Sig+num Valencie, comitisse Paliarensis, nos ambe sorores, hec donum confirmamus. Sig+num Berengarius, vice comiti. Sig+num Bernardi Trasuarii. Sig+num Berengario Isarni. Sig+num Gaucerando Erimanno. Sig+num Gifredum Sanllani. Sig+num Dalmacii Bernardi. Sig+num Exquofete. Sig+num Raimundus Bernardi.   Sig+num Berengario, frater eius.  Sig+num Arnalli Ermemiro.  Sig+num Bernardi Mironis de Apilia.  Sig+num Berengario Mironis.  Sig+num Roger Umberto.  Sig+num Poncio Onofred.  Remundus, clericus, rogatus, scripsit et+in prefato die et anno. 

Historical context:

A donation by the viscounts of various churches to St. Peter of Ager, and putting that church under the direct protection of the papacy, with a tithe to be paid to it for fifty years.  The document is witnessed by two of their daughters, Letgard and Valencia.  There are lacunae and some errors in the text; Arsenda’s name is missing at the beginning, but since it appears at the end as one of those who had the document drawn up, it must have been there as it is in similar documents of donation.  A castrum is an administrative unit including a fortified castle.  

Printed source:

Pedro Sanahuja, Historia de la Villa de Ager (Barcelona:  Editorial Seráfica, 1961), 332-33, #20.

Date: