A letter from Cunegund of Swabia, Queen of Bohemia (1238)

Translated letter:

C, by the grace of god queen of the Bohemians, to all the faithful who will see the present page in perpetuity. Since the human succession of weak condition with the excessive/increasing malice of the day running through the course of time nears the end of the world, by as much as it weaves the web of its posterity at length, so much more participating in the vanity of the creature is it weakened in the natural strength of its senses; because of which it is necessary that those things which are celebrated among men, so they may remain undisturbed, be recorded in writing for proof to the present/living and protection for the future. Therefore, the sale of those goods which Gertrude, former widow of Gerlac, soldier of Zockau in the province of Bautzen, conferred voluntarily on the brothers of the Cistercian order in Buch with the favor of our will, which sale clearly the abbot of that monastery and the convent freely made with the nuns of St. Marienthal of the Cistercian order, diocese of Meissen, which same goods they bought legitimately for 230 marks from the mentioned brothers of Buch, we have confirmed as done in a proper way, by our authority with the reinforcement of our seal, absolving it freely from the weight of our judgments. The goods are the following: Meuselwitz, Gurigk and Borda with all their appurtenances. Witnesses who were present at the sale are: Henry abbot of Celles, Henry subprior, Stephen priest and monk, brother Albert of Blankenburg and many others. Enacted in the year of the Lord 1238.

Original letter:

C., dei gratia Bohemorum regina, omnibus Christi fidelibus presentem paginam inspecturis in perpetuum. Quoniam infirme conditionis humana successio superexcrescente diei malitia per temporum decurrens curricula ad fines seculi appropinquat, quantoque in longum sue posteritatis telam orditur, tanto magis vanitati creature participans naturalibus sensuum viribus infirmatur; qua de re necessarium est, ut ea, que inter homines celebrantur, quatinus inconvulsa permaneant, redigantur in scripto ad argumentum presentium et presidium futurorum. Igitur venditionem bonorum, que Gertrudis, quondam relicta Gerlaci, militis de Zockowa, Budesinensis provintie, voluntarie contulit fratribus Cysterciensis ordinis in Bvch de nostre beneplacito voluntatis, quam videlicet venditionem eiusdem monasterii abbas et conventus libere fecerunt cum monialibus Uallis sancte Marie Cysterciensis ordinis, Mysnensis dyocesis, que eadem bona pro ducentis et triginta marcis a memoratis fratribus de Bvch legittime conpararunt, sicut rite facta est, auctoritate nostra sigilli nostri munimine confirmamus, a gravamine iudicum nostrorum libere absolventes. Bona autem sunt hec: Muzlawiz, Gorch et Porode cum omnibus attinentiis suis. Testes autem, qui venditioni intererant, hii sunt: Henricus abbas Cellensis, Heinricus supprior, Stephanus sacerdos et monachus, frater Albertus de Blankenbvrg et alii quam plures. Acta sunt hec anno Domini millesimo CCXXXVIII.

Historical context:

The queen confirms the possessions bought by the monastery of St. Marienthal from the monks of Buch.

Printed source:

Codex Diplomaticus et Epistolarius Regni Bohemiae, ed. Gustavus Friederich (Prague: 1962), 3.2.264-5, ep.205.

Date:

1238