Remind me in class to return your book...I have it with me

Matthew Paris
...by Jordan Crosby

-Was a Benedictine Monk and English Chronicler who lived from 1200 to 1259 A.D. He was based at St. Albans Abbey in Hertfordshire, which he joined in 1217, and thereafter became the Abbey’s official recorder of events. His history was a rather unique piece of art, due to the many illustrations he made throughout his works.
-His “Chronica Majora” has been seen as a major revision of the works of Roger Wendover’s “Flowers of History , whom Paris may have served as an assistant to for a period of time. Following Wendover’s death, Matthew Paris took it upon himself to make many additions and changes to Roger’s part of the chronicle (56), which is a prelude to my thesis for this assignment.

-The argument I will be trying to make is that through his works and his maps, Matthew of Paris distorts many of Roger’s original intentions in favour of his own personal loyalties and prejudices which includes England, St. Albans, and the role of prophecies. At the same time, he shows xenophobic and intolerant attitudes to those with different ideologies or race. Ultimately he believes divine justice will punish those wrongdoers who have beliefs that differ from his own.

-The additions and changes to Wendover’s works, as well as the penchant for violence is first told through the events on St. Bartholomew’s Day, 1217. Along with a gory picture depicting the battle, Matthew gives a text with a radically different interpretation about the French defeat under Eustace “the Monk”. (59) Wendover originally stated that the French fleet was entrusted to Eustace, who had the task of conducting it safely to London to give to Louis, in an attempt to usurp the throne from young Henry III (59). While crossing the Channel, they engaged the English. (59) While they both discussed the defeat and decapitation of Eustace, Wendover’s report gave credit to Philip de Aubeney as the hero, while Matthew did not even mention him at all (60). Rather Paris gave credit to his own personal friend Hubert de Burgh, (whom Roger didn’t even mention) and was using his own loyalties to his friend in his works. Matthew Paris also triumphantly declares his xenophobic outburst of hatred towards the French, and relishes in Eustace’s death, seeing it as divine justice, in which the guilty (French) are punished, while the virtuous (English), like his friend Hubert, are rewarded. (61).

-Hubert’s ascension in Paris’ works can be attributed to his love of prophecy. He details how the Lord came to Hubert in a deep sleep carrying the cross telling him to keep an eye out for images he may run into shortly thereafter. The next day Hubert sees a priest fleeing with a cross, crying to the Lord for help. Hubert got off his horse, and “under the guidance of that priest, he liberated his country”. (85). This is supposed to show how God rewards virtue, and Paris takes the time to put his friend in the best light, as a man favoured by a divine vision (85).
-Matthew of Paris was also fascinated with Merlin and the use of prophecies. What fascinates Matthew Paris with Merlin’s prophecies is that it espouses the view of the providential destiny of England revealed through predictions, the moral dilemma of good and bad rulers, and foreign oppression of the English people. (95). The pictures of Merlin suggest that he is Christlike and divine in origins, which he uses in his interpretation of him. While red and white dragons had symbolized the Saxons and Britons in Roger’s work, Matthew put some additional feedback into it, interpreting the boar of Cornwall as King Arthur. He thus sees the fulfillment of Merlin’s prophecy in the future destiny of England, which would be ruled by a monarch, why was generous and good (96). Merlin thus represents what England ought to be, rather than what it currently is (97).

-While Matthew is supporting figures he believes to be consistent with his morals and beliefs, he attacks those that do not conform to such standards, such as the prophet Mohammed. Medieval reader who read the works of Mohammed were shocked by the vivid details of the prophet’s sexual life, and were appalled by him. This led many people, including Matthew Paris, to believe that his claims about having revelations from God, were totally false. Standing in stark contrast to his illustrations of Merlin as divine, Paris visually focuses on Mohammed’s death, as deserved punishment for the life he led (100). The picture shows Mohammed standing with a scroll with additional text by Paris originally written by Roger. Focus is only given to Matthew’s words however. Rejecting notions that the prophet had merely died by poisoning, Matthew gives a more gruesome description, as he was accustomed to, saying “He then however fell on a dung heap and...rolled about, gnashing his teeth and foaming at the mouth. A hungry pig, upon discovering that shameless man whose open mouth exalted the stink of undigested meat, set upon him and suffocated him until he was half-dead, dismembered and torn” (100).

-The punishments meted out to Mohammed corresponded to the punishments allocated by the Holy Trinity. Matthew’s words are quite clear, polygamy is evil, and those who are guilty of it, will be punished. His conception of history is shaped by a desire to show patterns of moral retribution, even if he has to make them up (101), and this story supports that belief. Just like the previous story of St. Bartholomew’s Day, 1217, he uses an extraordinary use of violence to conform to the moral message he is trying to get across.

-Matthew of Paris believed that historical events could be known through prophetic revelations. A last example of his prejudices and loyalties lies in the martyrdom of St. Alban. The story of his death is “pure interpolation” (107), as he is adding his own stories to Roger’s text. Nowhere in Roger’s text does he mention anything about St.Alban’s martyrdom, but Matthew adds it in to show moral justice, but to also defend his St. Abbey’s church. His version of martyrdom has the operation of divine justice, because when St. Alban has his read removed, the executioner’s eyes fall out (107). Another grisly, gruesome tale meant to depict a message of punishment to those who persecute his beliefs, and the ability of saints to suspend the laws of nature. (107) The main message however is that “we are obliged to see evil dead generating its own retribution” (109).

-This story allowed Britain to claim its own martyr, but Matthew’s illustration was problematic because it skipped chronological order to bring it into juxtaposition with King Offa’s discovery of the relics (110). Offa was claimed by Paris to have found the relics in 793, which flowed all the benefits of the Benedictine monastery, which was found on the grave of St. Alban (111). The illustration of Offa pointing towards the relics, served the purpose of fighting off rival claims to the St. Alban relics, which had been going on for hundreds of years. (111). Matthew would use illustrations to punish those who disagreed or attacked St. Albans and the relics, as the case with Fawkes de Breave. He had a crime against St. Albans and the prophecies, and Matthew put new crimes (murdering his cook) and new interpretations into his crimes. He eventually showed a picture of Fawkes with a poisoned fish in his mouth, which served St. Alban’s triumph over this Norman foe (116-9). Therefore, his illustrations, served his personal loyalties to St. Albans, and attacked those claims who disagreed with him which included Fawkes, but also the papacy, as he had a negative opinion of the pope’s Innocent III and Lateran IV.

-Matthew’s maps are a testament, due to the fact that maps were a rarity at the time. Much like his writings, in which he would distort facts in favour of his preconceived notions, he would do the same in his maps. He would believe that the world was oval, circular, and at times rectangular (322). His maps, would also conform to his loyalties and prejudices, which was seen in one of his maps where he singled out two churches that were very similar to his St. Albans churches, both which were very rich and privelaged (333).

-From reading Matthew’s readings, I get a picture that he is both very loyal and prejudiced, in that he has absolute faith in what he believes in, while abhorring ideas that are not. While this is not a new thing, he unabashedly puts in material which other people have not discussed or acknowledged as fact, in order to present his worldview as being truthful. I like his absolute strong nationalism, and his maps, in that despite his prejudices at times, tried to make it more truthful by actually record the world he saw around him, and getting firsthand accounts. He is very much aware of his surroundings, and this he should be celebrated for, but he should also be questioned for his prejudices as it is hard to discover what he is relaying and what he is inventing.