Book 8

BOOK VIII

HERE BEGIN THE CHAPTERS OF THE EIGHTH BOOK

1. Visit of the king at Orleans.

2. How the bishops were presented to him and how he made ready a feast.

3. The singers and Mummolus's silver.

4. Praise of king Childebert.

5. The visions of Chilperic which the king and I saw.

6. Those whom I presented.

7. How bishop Palladius said mass.

8. Prodigies.

9. The oath given in behalf of Chilperic's son.

10. The bodies of Merovech and Clovis.

11. The doorkeepers and the killing of Boantus.

12. Bishop Theodore and the plague that visited Ratharius.

13. The embassy sent by Gunthram to Childebert.

14. Danger on the river.

15. Conversion of deacon Vulfilaic.

16. What he related of St. Martin's miracles.

17. The signs which appeared.

18. Childebert sends an army into Italy; the dukes and counts who are appointed or removed.

19. Killing of the abbot Daulfus.

20. Acts of the synod at Macon.

21. The court at Beslingen and the violation of sepulcher.

22. Death of the bishops and of Wandalinus.

23.­ Floods.

24. The islands of the sea.

25. The island in which blood appeared.

26. The former duke Berulf.

27. Desiderius returns to the king.-

28. Hermengild and Ingunda and the Spanish legates secretly sent to Fredegunda.

29. Fredegunda sends persons to kill Childebert.

30. The army makes an expedition against Septimania.

31. The killing of bishop Prætextatus.

32. Killing of Domnola, Nectarius's wife.

33. Burning of Paris.

34. Temptations of recluses.

35. Spanish legates.

36. Killing of Magnovald.

37. A son is born to Childebert.

38. The Spaniards burst into the Gauls.

39. Death of the bishops.

40. Pelagius of Tours.

41. The slayers of Prætextatus.

42. Beppolenus is appointed duke.

43. Nicecius is appointed governor of Provence; doings of Antestius

44. The man who wished to kill king Gunthram

45. Death of duke Desiderius.

46. Death of king Leuvigild.

1.

Now king Gunthram in the twenty­fourth year of his reign started from Chalon and went to the city of Nevers. For he was going to Paris by invitation to receive from the holy font of regeneration Chilperic's son, whom they were already calling Clothar. And he left the territory of Nevers and came to the city of Orleans and at that time appeared much among the citizens. For on receiving invitations he went to their homes and partook of the repasts offered him. He received many gifts from them and bestowed many gifts on them in a very generous way. And when he came to the city of Orleans the day was the festival of the blessed Martin, namely the fourth before the nones of the fifth month [July 4]. And a huge throng of people came to meet him with standards and banners, singing praises. And here the Syrian language, there that of the Latins, and again that even of the Jews, sounded together strangely in varied praises, saying: "Long live the king; may his reign over the people last unnumbered years." And the Jews who were to be seen taking part in these :praises said: "May all the nations honor you and bend the knee and be subject to you." And so it happened that when the king was seated at dinner after mass he said: "Woe to the Jewish tribe, wicked, treacherous, and always living by cunning. Here's what they were after," said he, " when they cried out their flattering praises today, that all the nations were to honor me as master. [They wish me] to order their synagogue, long ago torn down by the Christians, to be built at the public cost; but by the Lord's command I will never do it". O King glorious for wonderful wisdom. He so understood the craft of the heretics that they entirely failed to get from him what they were going to propose later. At the dinner the king said to the bishops who were present: " I beg you to give me your blessing tomorrow in my house and bring me salvation by your coming, so that I may be saved when in my humility I receive your words of blessing." When he said this all thanked him, and as dinner was finished we rose.

2.

In the morning while the king was visiting the holy places to offer prayer he came to my lodging. It was the church of Saint Avitus the abbot, whom I mention in my book of the miracles. I rose gladly, I admit, to go to meet him, and after giving him my blessing begged him to accept St. Martin's holy bread at my lodg ing. He did not refuse but courteously came in, drank a cup, invited me to the dinner and went away in good humor.

At that time Bertram, bishop of Bordeaux, and Palladius of Saintes were in great disfavor with the king because of their support of Gundovald of which we have told above. Moreover bishop Palladius had especially offended the king because he had repeatedly deceived him. Now they had recently been under examination before the remaining bishops and the nobles as to why they had supported Gundovald and why they had foolishly ordained Faustian bishop of Ax at his command. But bishop Palladius took the blame for the ordination from his metropolitan Bertram and took it on his own shoulders, saying: "My metropolitan was suffering greatly from sore eyes and I was plundered and treated with indignity and dragged to the place against my will. I could do nothing else than obey one who said he had received complete control of the Gauls." When this was told the king hc was greatly irritated so that he could scarcely be prevailed upon to invite to the dinner these bishops whom he had previously refused to see. So when Bertram came in the king asked: "Who is he ? " For it had been a long time since he had seen him. And thc~said: "This is Bertram bishop of Bordeaux." And the king said to him: "We thank you for keeping faith as you have with your own family. For I would have you know, beloved father, that you are my kinsman on my mother's side and you should not have brought a plague from abroad on your own people." When Bertram had been told this and more, the king turned to Palladius and said: " You do not deserve much gratitude either, bishop Palladius. For you perjured yourself to me three times-a hard thing to say of a bishop-sending me information full oi treachery. You excused yourself to me by letter and at the same time you were inviting my brother in other letters. God . Fill judge my cause since I have always tried to treat you as fathers of the church and you have always been treacherous." And he said to the bishops Nicasius and Antidius: "Most holy fathers, tell me what you have done for the advantage of your country or the security of my kingdom." They made no reply and the king washed his hands and after receiving a blessing from the bishops sat at table with a glad countenance and a cheerful behavior as if he had said nothing about the wrongs done him.

3.

Meantime when the dinner was now half over the king asked me to request my deacon who had sung the responsory at the mass the day before, to sing. When he had sung he next asked me to request all the bishops who, at my instance, had come prepared, to appoint each a single clerk from his service to sing before the king. And so I made the request at the king's command, and they sang, each to the best of his ability, a psalm before the king. And when the courses were being changed the king said: "All the silver you see belonged to that perjurer Mummolus, but now by the help God's grace it has been transferred to my ownership. I have already had fifteen of his dishes like the larger one you see yonder smelted down, and I have kept only this one and one other of a hundred and seventy pounds. Why [keep] more than enough for daily use ? It is too bad, but I have no other son than Childebert, and he has enough treasures which his father left him beside what I had sent to him from the property of this wretch which was found at Avignon. The rest must be given for the necessities of the poor and the churches.