Joinville - wonders and miracles

Wonders and Miracles

Medieval chronicler Jean de Joinville has provided historians with quite a personal account of his own trials and tribulations in the Holy Land during the seventh crusade, 1248-1254. While his body of work was designed to be a biography of the pious King Louis IX, the impression I perceived upon reading Joinville’s work was a profound sense of empathy for the author. Although the depicted events revolved around the French king, Chronicles of the Crusades reads much like an autobiography. This observation is made most apparent within the author’s renditions of religious and spiritual experiences. Discussing the Holy War, I conceived three separate categories whereas Joinville’s account of wonders and miracles could be construed: God’s mysteries, God’s will, and God’s intervention. Religion clearly shaped the author’s worldview, and having an appreciation of his sense of devotion is the only way to understand him

God’s Mysteries

There is a definite sense of wonderment in large segments of Joinville’s writings. Though the Chronicles is not a diary, the same anecdotal remarks present in the chronicle. I define ‘God’s mysteries’ as grand expressions that cannot be explained otherwise. An obvious example, the author expresses awe at the sight of the Nile. He inferred, “No one knows where this flood comes from”. If it were not for the river, the surrounding life would simply burn up. He insinuated that the Nile was akin to an “earthly paradise”. A not-so-obvious example of ‘God’s mysteries’, King Louis himself. Discussing the new fortifications of Jaffa, Joinville explained that the good king spent 30,000 livres of his own funds on a mere gate! Trying to grasp the tremendous humility of such a donation, all that Joinville could state was “God help him” – as if relaying a message that the king was not of this world.

God’s Will

Every time the author survived a battle, or overcame a disease, God’s hand was at play. My second category pertains to Joinville’s religious faith more than anything. Depicted in the chronicle, as armies clashed within the Nile delta, the enemy was preparing to hurl caskets full of flammable liquid. The author got down on his knees and prayed for deliverance. Amazingly, Joinville survived the battles, his subsequent capture, and even time spent imprisoned. The entire chronicle is full of examples regarding the assistance of God, or by the grace of God, or God forbid etc… In all cases, ‘thy will done’ was done.

God’s Intervention

Now, ‘intervention’ and ‘will’ are not one in the same. Rather than letting fate take its course, ‘intervention’ entailed a more activity of the lord. In a word, these interventions were miracles. While in Sidon, Joinville and the sing visited a church that was supposedly blessed - the almighty had come down from the heavens and saved a recently widowed girl from the clutches of Satan. The two friends subsequently attended mass, exhibiting piety. This conveys a general impression to the reader that such activities represented the true goals of the Holy Land. On the journey back to France, a squire fell into the Mediterranean Sea unnoticed by all. When a galley ship picked him up, Joanville later asked the boy why he had not yelled out or even try and swim? To this the squire replied that Our Lady of Vauvert was protecting over him during the entire ordeal. This was a miracle, and the author actually commissioned the creation of stain glass windows depicting this event,

There is value in appreciating Joinville’s religious worldview. Given that he wrote the chronicle many years after the actual crusade, I got the feeling that his opinions had been honed. Looking back on his life, the author had probably gained new insights. Indeed, if he was trying to have King Louis canonized, Joinville would have certainly had a different interpretation of the past events than prior. Considering his rendition of wonders and miracles, it becomes clear that the author was pious himself. If this is true, it just begs the question, why did the crusades fail?