A letter from Beatrice of Savoy (1263)

Translated letter:

In the name of the father and of the holy and indivisible trinity and the son and holy spirit, amen. In the year of the lord 1263, ninth kalends of March, I, Beatrice, widow of the lord of renowned memory, Raymond Berengar, with weak/sick body but healthy mind and in good disposition, dispose and assign my movables and immovables in this manner and I make my last will. First, I commend my soul to Jesus Christ and leave him all my movable goods to be distributed in his honor as I shall specify below. I choose my burial [to be] in the church of the St. John of the Jerusalemite hospital which I built at my expense at Les Echelles and all my land and all my immovable goods which I have and possess as they are from the grant of my mother of good memory and of my bishop-elect brothers in whatever castris, towns, rights, except the castrum of Les Echelles with its dependencies which I already gave by donation to the Jerusalemite hospital which I built there. I give, bequeath to my dearest daughters Marguerite and Eleanor illustrious queens of the French and of England that they have, hold, and possess all the aforesaid at their will [disposition] for their lifetime. If one of them should give over her portion in the aforesaid by ceding or death or willingly, the other would hold all in her life as set forth above. If said queens divided said goods by death or other manner or should not wish to hold them for life, I wish and order that all the aforesaid goods revert to Thomas Amadeus and Louis, sons of Thomas my former/deceased brother whom I establish as heirs in the aforesaid. So that whichever of them should die, the portion of the decedent would revert to the survivor. To Eleanor, daughter of the present count Thomas, I bequeath 500 Tours pounds,(1) to buy gowns, and other necessities when she marries. Also, to the daughter of Rudolph of Geneva,another I bequeath 250 pounds. [Also, to the daughter of Henry of Geneva, 250 Tours pounds.](2) Also to the daughter of the Contesson of Medoc/Meuillon [Medullionis], 250 Tours pounds. Also to the daughter of the lord of Carnera, 150 Tours pounds. Also to Berengaria, daughter of lord Benedict of Castellione, 150 Tours pounds. Also I bequeath 1000 Tours pounds to be distributed by the hand of my executors in pious causes, from which I wish 300 pounds to be given to homes of religious where it seems to them most useful, the rest up to 700 to pay and satisfy my claimants. If any remain, it is to be spent in pious causes where my executors think it most useful. Also, I bequeath to Beatrice countess of Anjou [her daughter] a hundred silver marks and designate her my heir in them. Also, to the lord archbishop of Canterbury, my brother [Boniface], 100 marks. Also, to the lord bishop-elect of Lyons, my brother [Philip] 100 marks. Also, to lord Peter, count of Savoy, my brother, 100 silver marks. Also, I bequeath 3000 Tours pounds to construct a certain hospital at Les Echelles which will be called the house of God and that possessions be bought for the work of said hospital, from the fruits and revenues of which possessions I wish a general gift or distribution three times each week to all the poor who gather there for that reason. This is my last will which I wish and assess named by right of testament or canonical equity forthwith, whether codicils or whatever other last will. So that it might be valid in any event and have force, I make the confirmation of this my last will and appoint as executors the venerable father lord John of Vienne, archbishop-elect lord Philip of Lyons, my brother, Libert, abbot of Hautecombe, Stephen, archdeacon of Canterbury, so that said abbot and archdeacon or another of them who might be present with the counsel of the aforesaid lord archbishop-elect of Lyons should administer all the aforesaid. Enacted at Amiens [in Picardy], in the year and day mentioned above [in witness of which we, the aforesaid archbishop of Vienne and bishop of Grenoble, have had our seals affixed to the carefully transcribed document.](3)

Original letter:

In nomine patris sanctae et individuae trinitatis et filii et spiritus sancti amen. Anno domini MCCLXIII nonis kal. martii. Ego, Beatrix, relicta inclitae recordationis Domini Reymundi Berengarii, Comitis Provinciae, licet infirma corpore tamen sana mente & in bona disposicione constituta de rebus mobilibus meis et immobilibus dispono & ordino in hunc modum et meam facio voluntatem ultimam. In primis commendo animam meam Ihesu Christo eique relinquo omnia mea mobilia bona distribuenda ad honorem ipsius sicut inferius declarabo, sepulturam meam eligo in ecclesia hospitale sancti Joannis Hierosolymitani, quam ego aedificavi meis sumptibus apud Scalas & totam terram meam que et omnia bona mea immobilia que habeo & possideo & quasi ex conatione bone memorie matris mee & electorum fratrum meorum in quibuscumque exisistant castris vinis juribus excepto castro de Scalis cum appendenciis suis quod jam dedi donatione inter vivos pro anima mea hospitali hierosolymitano quod eodem construxi; do, lego carissimis filiabus meis Margaretae francorum, & Aleonorae angliae reginis illustribus ut praedicta omnia habeant teneant et possideant pro suo libito voluntalis toto tempore vitae suae, altera autem cedente vel decedente vel in praedictis bonis portionem habere volente, altera totum habeat in vita sua ut superius est expressum. Quandocumque vero dicta bona morte vel alio modo dictae reginae diviserint vel forte in vita tenere noluerint, volo & praecipio quod omnia praedicta bona ad Thomam Amadeum, & Ludovicum filios quondam domini Thomae fratris mei, libere revertantur quos in praedictis haereditatibus instituo, ita quod quicumque aliquis eorum decesserit portio decedentis ad superstitem revertatur; Alienorae filiae praedicti comitis Thomae lego quingentas libras turonenses pro emendis vestibus & aliis necessariis quando maritabitur. Item filiae Rodulphi Gebennensis bis centum & quiquaginta libras. [Item filiae Henrici Gebennensis CCL librorum turronensium.](2) Item filiae contissonae de Medullione bis centum quinquaginta libras Turronen. Item filie domini de Carnera centum quinquaginta libras Turronen. Item Berengariae filiae domini Benedicti de Castellione centum quinquaginta libras Turronen. Item lego mille libras Turonenses distribuendas per manus executorem meorum in pias causas de quibus volo quod tercentum librae dentur in proventibus domibus religiosis ubi melius viderint expediendum, residuum usque septingenta ad emendandum & pacificandum clamores meos. Residuum si quod fuerit, expendatur in pias causas ubi melius executores mei viderint expedire. Item lego Beatrici Andegavie comitissae centum marcas argenti et in eis ipsam mihi haeredem instituo. Item domino Cantuariensi archiepiscopo fratri meo centum marcas. Item domino Lugduni electo fratri meo centum marchas. Item domino Petro comiti Sabaudie fratri meo centum marcas argenti. Item lego tria millia librarum Turonensium pro construendo quodam hospitali apud Scalas quod vocabitur Domus Dei & ad emendum possessiones ad opus dicti hospitalis de quarum possessionum fructibus et proventibus volo quod fiat generalis dona sive distributio ter in singulis septimanis omnibus pauperibus ibidem convenientibus hac de causa. Haec est ultima mea voluntas quod volo & praecipio valere, jure testamenti nuncupativi, vel codicillorum vel cujuscumque alterius ultimae voluntatis, vel saltim de cannonica aequitate in omni eventu valeat & robur obtineat firmitatis cuius meae ultimae voluntatis facio & ordino executores venerabilem patrem dominum Joannem Viennensem archiepiscopum, dominum Philippum Lugdunensem electum fratrem meum, Libertum abbatem Altaecombe, & Stephanum archidiaconem Cantuariensem; itaquod dicti abbas & archidiaconus vel alter eorum qui praesens esset de consilio praedicti domini viennensis archiepiscopi & domini Lugdunensis electi predicta omnia administrent. Actum Ambianensi anno et die praedictis [in cujus rei testimonium nos viennensis archiepiscopus et Gratianopolitanensis episcopus supradicti hinc transcripto facta diligenti collacione cum originali sigilla nostra duximus apponenda.]

Historical context:

Beatrice's will, which makes a number of bequests to women in the family, appears within a vidimus of 1401 which also includes her donation of Les Echelles to the hospital of St. John of Jerusalem and the permission given her by Peter of Savoy to make that donation. There are bequests to her three surviving daughters and to various nieces, as well as to religious causes.   A castrum is an administrative unit with a castle at the center. 

Scholarly notes:

 (1)The Latin transcription gives quingenta, 500, not quinquagenta, 50, but French translation gives 50. Since this is the first named sum and the subsequent bequests are reasonably large, but in declining amounts, I have accepted the Latin reading.
(2)  This bequest is missing in the text Guichenon gives.
(3) The phrases in brackets are not in Guichenon's text.

Manuscript source:

Samuel Guichenon, Histoire Généalogique de la royale maison de Savoye (Lyons, 1660), v. 2 Preuves, 65.  Also in Archives départementales du Rhône, Series 48 H 1841, # 1,  with some lacunae.

Printed source:

Francisque Viard, Beatrice de Savoye (Lyon: L'Echo de Savoie, 1942) 132-34, document #16.

Date:

1263