ASPECTS OF TillRTEENTH CENTURY FRANCISCAN EDUCATION WITH SPECIAL REGARD TO THE PROVINCE OF ANGLIA
BY
NESLİHAN ŞENOCAK
A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE INSTITUTE FOR GRADUATE STUDIES IN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL SCIENCES IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN HISTORY
BiLKENT UNIVERSITY SEPTEMBER, 1997
I certify that I have read this thesis and in my opinion it is fully adequate in scope and quality asa thesis for the degree ofMaster of History.
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Dr. Paul Latimer (supervisor) I certify that I have read this thesis and in my opinion it is fully adequate in scope and quality as a thesis for the degree of Master of History. A
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Dr. David Thornton (committee member) I certify that I have read this thesis and in my opinion it is fully adequate in scope and quality asa thesis for the degree of Master of History.
Approved by the Institute ofEconornic and Social Sciences
Özet
Fransisken tarikatının onüçüncü yüzyılda geçirdiği hızlı değişim iyi bilinir. Tarikat, başlangıçta yoksulluk ve dilenciliğe yeminli bir grup biraderden oluştuğu
halde, kısa zamanda rahip entellektüeller tarafindan yönetilen, tüm Avrupa'da yaygın
bir okullar ağına sahip bir organizasyona dönüşmüştür. Bu okullann en iyi ve en önemli olanlan ortaçağın ünlü üniversitelerine entegre olmuş ve bu üniversitelerde pek çok Fransisken ders vermiştir. Bu dönüşüm süreci ve bu sürecin doğası bugün tam olarak
aniaşılamamıştır.
Fransiskenlerin İngiltere'deki yerleşimi bu dönüşümün semptomlarından biridir. Tarikat bu bölgedeki faaliyetlerini entellektüel merkezlerde yoğunlaştırmış ve pek çok okullar kurmuştur. İngiltere yerleşimi aynı zamanda bu dönüşümün ne şekilde
gerçekleştiğini göstermek açısından da önemlidir. Erken dönemlerdeki yasal belgelerden anlaşıldığı kadanyla, okullar ve öğrenciler için konulan kurallar tarikatın
organizasyonundaki dinamik özelliklerden biridir.
Zamanla tarikatın başlangıçtaki hedeflerinden uzaklaşması için, laik üniversite hocalanna ve tarikat içindeki muhalif Fransiskenlere karşı haklı gerekçeler gösterilmesi zorunlu oldu. Yalnızca rahip biradedere eğitim hakkı tanıyarak, bu gerekçelerden birini formule eden kişi tarikatın başkanlarından ve bilgin olarak ün yapmış Bonaventura'dır.
İngiliz Fransisken bilginleri de kendilerinin bir sonucu olduğu bu dönüşümü sonuna dek desteklediler.
Abstract
The transformation of the Order of Friars Minor in the course of the thirteenth century is well known-from a group consisting mostly of laymen vowed to poverty and mendicancy, into well-established Order throughout Europe, dominated by derical intellectuals, with a network of schools the best and most important of which were integrated into the universities, where Franciscan lectors hel d prestigious chairs. This transformation is incompletely understood.
The Franciscan settlement in England, with its concentration on seeking out intellectual centers and on the development of schools, was not only symptomatic of this transformation, but also offers illuminating evidence of the way in which the transformatian was effected. Y et as a study of the fragmentary early Franciscan legislation on educational matters reveals, provision for schools and students was a dynamic feature of the who le Ord er' s organisation during its first fifty years of it s existence.
Such a transformatian needed to be justified against the attacks of secular masters and dissident Franciscans. lt was Bonaventura, the Order' s most famous scholar and minister-general, who formulated this justification by strictly tirniting the devetoping educational provision to the Ord er' s derical scholars. English Franciscan scholars also joined the defence of the Order, thus helping to defend the transformatian of w hi ch they were an outstandingly successful result.
Acknowledgements
This thesis is a result of an strong interest and adıniration I have developed in th'e last four years in the life of early Franciscans. Although it was an obviously difficult topic to study in Ankara, a number of people and institutions helped me to remove all disadvantages of being remote from the relevant sources and to organize my knowledge and ideas in order to form this present work.
First of all, I should express my gratitude to Prof Dr. Halil ınalcık for fo unding the European History Studies in Bilkent University, which enabled me to pursue my interest in this topic, and for his role in stimulating my enthusiasm. Further I would like to thank the department for providing me a grant to conduct reseach in England. Without the reseach I have done there, it would have been almost impossible to write this thesis. I want also to thank the British Council, Ankara, and the administration of the International Medieval Congress for providing me with conference grants last summer, where I had the opportunity of consulting scholars who work on the similar topics.
Libraries are the virtual office of historians. Among all the libraries I have had the chance of visiting, I want to thank first of all, to the staff of the Acquisition and Cataloging departments ofthe Bilkent University library for coping with numerous the book and microfilm requests and searches, but always with sympathy and good humor. The friendly and supportive staff of the North Library in the British Library, London, deserve much thanks for their valuable helpin the summer of 1996.
It is a truth universally acknowledged that students going for higher degrees tend to suffer from their supervisors. In my case, I was lucky to have a supervisor who always had time to answer all the questions and to give courage and support. I want to thank heartily to Dr. Paul Latimer for his valuable contributions and guidance. I am also thankful to Dr. C.D.A. Leighton for helping me with Latin and for the discussions I enjoyed and benefited from greatly, also for the expensive London lunches. I am quite indebted to Dr. Bert Roest for providing me ample articles and photocopies, and for his guidance in forming the bibliography of this thesis.
I want to thank all my friends, but especially Feryal Tansuğ, Aslı Gül Gök and
Çağlar Kıral for making life easier for me. Finally, I want to thank my mother and father, Nevin and Erdoğan Şenocak, for supporting me in my decision to study history, and forbeing wonderful parents.To my brother, Erhan Şenocak, I owe special thanks who has always been and will be one of my best friends. It is to him and to our most happy days in the Golden State that this thesis is dedicated.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
List of Abbreviations 1
Introduction 2
1. In the Pursuit of Knowledge: the Franciscansin England 6 2. Building the Franciscan Educational System 25 3. The Justification of Educational Activities 53
Conclusion 65
Appendix 1 69
Appendix ll 70
Appendix lll 71
AFH ALKG AF BF MF Eccleston M oorman
List of Abbreviations
Archivum Franciscanum Historicum
Arehiv für Literatur und Kirchengeschichte
Analecta Franciscana, sive Chronica aliaque varia documenta ad histariarn Fratrum Minorum spectantia, ed. the Fathers of the College of St. Bonaventura (Quaracchi, ı 885-ı 983)
Bullarium Franciscanum Historicum, Romanorum Pontificum, Constitutiones, Epistolas, et Poenientium, Vols I-III, ed. J.H.Sbalarea, (Rome, ı759-ı904)
Miscellanea Franciscana
Fratris Thomae de Eccleston, Tractatus de Adventu Fratrum Minorum in Angliam, ed. A. G. Little, 2nd edn. (Manchester, ı 95 ı)
J. R. H. Moorman, A History of the Franciscan Order A.D. 1517 (Oxford, ı968)
Introduction
Although much has been written on the Mendieant Orders that were formed in the thirteenth century, the depth of their contribution to the characteristics of that century is stili undervalued by general historians. The
Mendieant Orders, and particularly the greatest of these-the Dominican and Franciscan Orders-were almost the only institutions that had contact with every
level of medieval society. Dominican and Franciscan friars became not only confessors but also close friends to Kings and the high nobility. They preached in
the parishes to townspeople, yet they also held a primary place in the intellectual world of Europe, holding chairs in major universities and writing many of the
most influential works of the Middle Ages.
Although the Order of Friars Minor-the Franciscans-played such a part in the intellectual achievements of the thirteenth century, they, in particular, have not received the necessary attention from historians. Many major works of Franciscan authors, such as the early metaphysical summa of Thomas of York, remain unedited. There are a good number of manuscripts, inciurling letters,
statutes and treatİses which await the attention ofhistorians.
The study of the Franciscan Order was at its height during the Iate nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Scholars like A. G. Little and H. Felder wrote enlightening works on the educational and scholarly activities of the Order.
Little focused on England, and particularly on the Franciscan school at Oxford. ı Felder, who was a Franciscan anda hishop himself, drew a wide-ranging picture of the educational activities of theOrderin the thirteenth century.2 Although this is a very extensive study, Felder's work is very much outdated now and badly needs revision, particularly in the light of more recent research done on the general features of medieval universities. Little's work too, partly because its concems are too insular and partly because one man could only do so much, also needs reconsidering.
In this thesis I have tried to ask questions which, I believe, have not been asked so far, but which could be very useful for understanding the motives behind the educational development ofthe Order. To be more specific, this thesis aims at shedding light on the development of the Franciscan educational network in the province of Anglia, white keeping the European context of the Franciscan Order tirmly in mind.3 The reasons for the choice of the province of Anglia are, first of all, the availability of sources, and secondly, the special position of
ı Dr. Little produced a good number of books and articles on the Franciscans in England. However, he restricted his study of their educational activities largely to the Oxford school. As a studium generale, Oxford surely did not reflect the Franciscan educational system as a whole. Little's heavy reliance on Roger Bacon's works in analyzing the Oxford school often brings confusion, since Roger Bacon was an extraordinary personality, with an individual style of observation which did not always reflect reality. Among the various works of Dr. Little, the following are the ones I have found most useful: A.G. Little, 'Educational Organisation of the Mendieant Friars in England (Dominicans and Franciscans)', Transactions of the Royal Historical Society, New Series, 7, (1894), 49-70; Franciscan Papers, Lists and Documents (Manchester, 1943); The Grey Friars in Oxford, Oxford Histoncal Society Publications, 20 (Oxford, 1892).
2 Pelder H., Geschichte der wissenschaftlichen Studien im Ft:.anziskanerorden his
um die Mi tt e des 13. Jahrhunderts (Freiburg im Breisgau, 1904 ).
3
The Province of Anglia in the thirteenth century included England, Iretand and Scotland.
England in the educational world of thirteenth-centwy Europe, having two major universities of that time, namely Oxford and Cambridge.
The fırst chapter of this thesis emerged out of two questions: why did the Franciscans choose the particular English towns in which they settled and what is
the significance of the sequence of settlement? In order to answer these questions I have tried to find some common denominator between all the towns in which
they settled and have looked closely at that sequence of settlement. Furthermore, I have made a sketch of the general atmosphere in the Order at the time the English mission was launched, in an attempt to reveal some clues as to the nature of that mission. In the light of these investigations, I have discussed the arguments of
certain scholars on these and related topics.
The second chapter is an attempt to reconstruct the Franciscan educational system in the early thirteenth centwy. To date the shortage of extant legislation from this period has pushed scholars towards using evidence from the fourteenth
centwy and from the better-documented Dominican Order. However, these approaches contain obvious dangers of anachronism and unsupported assuınption. In the thirteenth century the Franciscan Order enjoyed a period of tremendous growth. The educational network and even the shape of the whole Order were
highly dynamic. Hence, I have tried to rely on the evidence before 1260. As the chronicles and the constitutions of the Order are the main primary sources, it was
necessary to make some notes on their nature. In the case of the chronicles, the question of reliability has usually been the main problem for historians. As for
they were made. The fırst part of this chapter has been dedicated to this task. In the second part, I have tried to draw the main lines of a picture of the Franciscan
educational system in the early thirteenth century. It is as yet impossible to give a more a detailed picture. The fınal part of this chapter offers, in the light of this
discussion, some revisions ofLittle's views on the nature of the Franciscan school at Oxford and, in particular, a reconsideration of Little's emphasis on Roger
Bacon as a representative of that school.
The third chapter deals with the internal conflict which developed as a reaction to the many changes in the Order, particularly after the death of St. Francis. It also concems the conflict that arose, chiefly at Paris, between secular and mendieant masters, though it does not attempt a detailed account of that dispute. In both of these conflicts, between the Spiritual and Conventual groups of the Order, and between secular and mendieant masters, educational activities were both an important issue and played a signifıcant role. The chapter focuses in
particular on Saint Bonaventura's part in shaping the Order's response to these conflicts.
The conclusion of the thesis tries to draw these strands of argument together.
Chapterl
In the Pursuit of Knowledge: The Franciscans
in
England
The fırst Franciscans arrived in England in 1224. They comprised a group
of four clerics and fıve lay brothers. Their leader was Agnellus of Pisa, the fırst
Provincial Minister of the Province of Anglia and appointed by St. Francis himself.4 Agnellus had been the founder of the Franciscan convent at Paris which, already before his journey to England, was slowly on its way to becoming the centre of studies in the order. So Friar Agnellus was quite familiar with the contemporary intellectual environment. The choice of Agnellus as the leader of the Franciscan pioneers in England raises a question about the intentions of the teaders of the order. Close attention to the pattem of movement of this pioneer group can perhaps point towards an answer. The Franciscans landed at Dover and went quickly from there to Canterbury, the cathedral city of the most important archbishopric in Britain. 5
When they arrived in Canterbury, they remained for a while in a smail room granted to them in 'the house of scholars' as we leam from Eccleston:
'Cito enim postea concessa fuit eis camera parva infra domum scholarum, ubi de die sedebant quasi clausi continue. Sed cum scholares in vespera domum rediissent, intraverunt domum in qua sederant, et ibi faciebant s ibi ignem, et sederunt juxta eum, et ollulam nonnunquam cum faecibus cerevisiae, cum collationem bibere deberent, posuerunt super ignem, et posuerunt discum in olla et biberunt circulariter, et dixerunt singuli aliquod verbum aedifıcationis'. 6
4
Eccleston, pp. 3-4.
5
lbid., p. 6.
6 'For soon after that he had granted to them a small room below the house of the
While five ofthem remained at Canterbury, four ofthem, namely Richard Ingeword, Richard Devon, Brother Henry and Brother Meliorat, went to London. 7 As the commercial capital of England with a relatively great population, London was an expected choice of settlement.8 However, London was also one of the most important intellectual centres of England by that date. There were three principal schools, attached to St. Paul's Cathedral, St Martin-le-Grand, and St Mary Arehes respectively. They were specialized in arts, and perhaps also in law. A. B. Cobban observes that it is surprising that this vigorous intellectual life did not produce an university.9
At London, they split again. Before the end of 1224, two of them, the priests Richard Ingeworth and Richard Devon, moved to Oxford. 10 The reason for the c ho ice of Oxford as the third settlement cannot be considered straightforward, especially if one considers the ambivalence or even the hostility in some of the attitudes of early Franciscans towards the pursuit of scholarly studies. Oxford was
scholars returned to the house in the evening, they (the Friars) entered the house in which they were sitting and made a fire for themselves, and they sat next to him, and sometimes, when they were obliged to drink a jar with the foul things of beer for collation, they put it on the fire and placed discus in the jar and drank it in turn, and each spoke some word of edification':Ibid, pp. 6-7.
7
Jbid., p. 7.
8
Although there are no accurate population estimates for early thirteenth century London, ithada population of over 10,000 in 1086, and one of around 35,000 in 1377, probably comfortably exceeding this before the Black Death. It was, in any case, the biggest city in England by a large margin: H C. Darby, Domesday England (Cambridge, 1977), p. 303; J. C. Russell, British Medieval Population (Albuquerque, 1948), p. 142.
9 A. B. Cobban, The Medieval English Universities: Oxford and Cambridge to c.
1500 (Cambridge, 1988), p.29.
10
a moderately important borough and certainly growing in importance at this time, but within a similar distance from London, Winchester would in the early thirteenth century probably have offered the friars a larger population center. ı ı Oxford's real importance was undoubtedly based on the presence of the university, which was the greatest rival to Paris University at that time. For a new order looking for any kind of recruits, Oxford was naturally a promising place, yet they had a good chance of getting simple, zealous recruits almost anywhere in England since their good reputation was alıeady wide-spread. However, if they wanted to obtain recruits among the ranks of masters and scholars with the intention of founding a studium to educate the novices, Oxford was the perfect place to serve this purpose. So the third settlement of their pioneering mission in England was this famous university town and here they founded a convent. ı2 The course of events after the foundation of Oxford proves further the early Franciscan zeal for establishment in intellectually energetic towns.
11
Darby, Domesday England, p. 303; Russell, British Medieval Population, pp. 50, 285. By the fourteenth century, however, Oxford would have overtaken Winchester in size: Ibid., p. 142.
ı2
Franciscans were expected to be mobile following the model of Jesus Christ and the Apostles. The early Franciscans, even when they stayed in one place for a while, were inclined to choose ruins or abandoned churches for their accommodation. In his Testament St. Francis, at the very least, discouraged the acceptance of elaborate buildings. However, in order to maintain a school, there was a need to live in proper buildings.The papal bull Quo Elongati of 1230 permitted Franciscans the 'use' of this sort of buildings or indeed anything else, including books and money, that was necessary for the purposes of the Order, while maintaining the Order' s prohibition of ownership. Y et the Oxford settlement and all of the early settlements in England took place before the bull. In fact, the establishment of permanent convents was one of first violations of the ideals of St. Francis for the sake of studies: 'Die Bulle "Quo Elongati" Papst Gregors IX', ed. H. Grudmann, AFH, 54, 1961, 21-23; St. Francis of Assisi, Writings and Early Biographies: English Omnibus of the Sources for the Life of St. Francis, ed. M. A. Habig (Quincy, 1991), p. 68
In 1229 or 1230 Robert Grosseteste agreed to teach the Franciscans in Oxford, something which made everyone aware of their presence in contemporary intellectual circles and added to their prestige. 13 Perhaps it also made the Minorite school a subject of jealousy. Grosseteste was clearly very fond of friars. 14 He was already in close touch with Dominicans before Franciscans arrived to Oxford There is enough evidence that he enjoyed the company of Franciscans.15 Yet it is stili not clear why he agreed to teach to Franciscans and continued to do so for five or six years until his election as hishop of Lincoln. Scholars like Little have argued that the choice of Grosseteste as the fırst teaeber in the Franciscan school shaped the Oxford school of Franciscans once and for all. There is some truth in this argument. Grosseteste bequeathed his considerable library to the Franciscan convent. 16 The library contained many books written by both medieval and ancient philosophers, together with the works of Latin and Greek Church Fathers.
13 Robert Grosseteste was one of the most important fıgures
of thirteenth century. Not much is known about the fırst fıfty years of his life. However, he started to teach theology in the secular Oxford schools in 1225. Southem believes that it was at this time that he became the Chancellor of Oxford University. It was around this time that his fame as a scholar started to spread. He also made extensive use of the Bible in his lectures, while the common tradition was to lecture on Peter Lombard's "Sentences". However, his real fame in royal and papal circles came after he was elected as hishop of Lincoln in 1235: R W. Southem, Robert Grosseteste: The Growth of an English Mind in Medieval Europe, 2nd ed. (Oxford, 1992), pp. 5, 70-5. For an older interpretation of Grossteste's early career, see Robert Grosseteste Scholar and Bishop, ed. D. A. Callus (Oxford, 1955).
14
Southem, Robert Grosseteste, p. 5 15
As an example of the Grosseteste's early fondness of and intimacy with the Oxford friars, see the letter written by him to Agnellus of Pisa conceming the departure of Adam of Oxford to preach to the Saracens in 1225: Roberli Grosseteste Epistolae, ed. H. R Luard, Rolls Series, 25 (London, 1861), pp.17-21.
16 R. W. Hunt, 'The Library of Robert Grosseteste' in Robert Grosseteste Scholar and Bishop, ed.Callus, p. 130.
Definitely, the possession of such valuable books shaped the minds of the later generations educated in the Franciscan convent. However, to think that the subjects Grosseteste taught in the Franciscan school were identical with his own interests would be too far-fetched.17
Now that the Oxford settlement had been established, the Franciscarıs
were ready to move on further to other towns, and the towns they chose were among those with established educational reputations. Soon Richard de lngeworth and Richard Devon were on their way again, this time to Northampton.18 Medieval Northampton was then an important royal borough. 19 The town had a notable intellectual standing too. In the twelfth century, the schools of Northampton had almost achieved the degree of a studium generale.20 The migration of scholars from Northampton to Oxford during the latter part of the reign of Richard I is one of the important elements involved in the foundation of Oxford studium. A.B. Cobban states that some of these twelfth century schools maintained themselves during the early thirteenth century?1 In these schools, law, theology and the liberal arts were taught. 22 So when Franciscans arrived here, these schools were probably stili functioning. After all, it could hardly have been
17
This topic will be discussed in more detail in the second chapter.
18
Eccleston, p. 1 O
19
J. C. Russell estimates population for Northampton of just over 1000 in 1086, and 2216 in 1377: British Medieval Population, pp. 51, 142. H. C. Darby estimates arather higher population in 1086, sornewhere between 1500 and 2000: Domesday England, p. 307.
2
°
Cobban, The Medieval English Universities, p.29. For more information on Northampton schools and their signifıcance see H.G. Richardson 'The Schools ofNorthampton in the Twelfth Century', E.H.R., lvi (1941) pp. 595 ff.
21
Cobban, The Medieval English Universities, p.30.
clear at the time that the schools in Northampton would not become a University like Oxford and Cambridge. Indeed, thirteen years after the Franciscan settlement in Northampton, when the university of Oxford was suspended because of a conflict between the scholars and the papal legate, some of the fugitive scholars proceeded to Northampton and established a studium, which according to Rashdall maintained itself for a long time. 23 The evidence for a Franciscan school in Northampton comes from the Close Rolls where it states that Henry lll granted timher for the building of the school. 24 Relying on this information, it is suggested that the school was founded in 1258. However, this looks too straightforward a conclusion. There might well have been a school before that date which was functioning within the convent. The king's grant might have been used for the establishment of a separate school building or the addition of a reading room. One piece of information supports slightly the existence of an earlier Franciscan school. The convent building has been altered when Albert of Pisa was Provincial Minister of Anglia, around 1236. Two other convents had been 'altered' at this time, and curiously enough, both of them were convents that had or would have a school: Hereford and Gloucester.25 When a school was initiated, convents needed enlargement and alteration in order to make a room for the lectures, and to accommodate an increasing number of students just as was the case with Oxford, though perhaps not to the same degree. Therefore, these alterations could well be
23 H Rashdall, The Universities of Europe in the Middle Ages, ed. M. Powicke & AB. Emden (Oxford, 1936), iii, p. 88.
24 A.G. Little gives the evidence from Close Rolls 42, Henry lll, m. 6, in Eccleston, p. 50, n. i.
25
Jbid, p. 44. The expression used is mutatus est, literally 'was altered'.This might indicate that the convent had been enlarged for whatever purpose.
a sign of an early school in these places.
Before the end of 1225, the friars entered the gates of another university town--Cambridge. 26 This was another site where Franciscans founded a school. Certainly it was less painful to found schools in university towns or other towns with intellectual resources, from the po int of view of recruiting lectors. According to Eccleston, the first lector in the Cambridge convent was Vincent of Coventry, an Englishman. W e do not know much about Vincent of Coventry other than he was appointed lector in London by Albert of Pisa in 1236. Vincent of Coventry joined theOrderin 1225, probably in Cambridge.27 He was already a master when he joined the Order. What he did between 1225 and 1236 is not known for sure. Emden writes that he became the first lector in Cambridge after 1236.28 On the other hand, Moorman states that he had already been lector in Cambridge when he was appointed to the London convent. 29 It is more likely that the Order made use of such a master as much as possible, and that he therefore would have been teaching in Cambridge before he was sent to London. According to the list of Cambridge lectors with which Eccleston provides us, the second lector was William Pictavensis (ofPoitiers).30 However, he only started teaching in 1251.31 This would suggest that between 1236 and 1251, there was no lector in the Cambridge convent. Since this is quite unlikely, we can almost certainly say that
26
lbid, p. 12. 27
lbid, p. 16.
28 AB. Emden,
Biographical Register of the University of Cambridge to 1500 (Cambridge, 1963), p. 164
29
Moorman, p. 136 30
Eccleston, p. 50.
William was not the second lector, and that there were some other lectors who taught there between 1236 and 1251.
The year 1226 witnessed two more Franciscan settlements, in Norwich and in Worcester. Just as in all the previous foundations, Norwich too came to have a school. Not much is known about the intellectual activity of the town before the Franciscan settlement, but the existence of a cathedral would seem to presume at least some sort of cathedral school. The Franciscan school of Norwich, which developed into one of the major schools of the Order, was founded at least by 1250.32 Another piece of evidence conceming the existence of the Norwich school comes from a letter of Alexander N to a lector called Bartholomeus de Bruna in Norwich in 1257.33
The stream of settlements in England flowed steadily. By 1228, the Franciscan friars had established themselves in Hereford. 34 AB. Cobban deseribes Hereford as one of the most brilliant cathedral schools of England in the twelfth century, where all seven liberal arts were taught, along with legal studies.35 It is not unreasonable, therefore, to look for an early establishment of a Minorite school here, and indeed Hereford became one of the best-known theology schools of the English Franciscans by the beginning of fourteenth century. 36 The earliest
32
Moorman, p.124n. Norwich was one of the intermediate schools, of special status though not a studium general e, mentioned in the Ordinations of Benedi ct XII in 1336. For these, see the discussion in chapter two of this thesis.
33
BF, ii, p.216 34
D. Knowles and R. N. Hadcock, Medieval Religious Houses: England and Wales (London, 1971) pp.222-229.
35
Cobban, The Medieval English Universities, p. 28 36
'Ordinationes a Benedicto XII pro Fratribus Minoribus Promulgatae per Bullam 28 Novembris 1336', AFH, 30 (1937), p. 349.
reference to this school comes from Eccleston, who states that during the time of Albert of Pisa, William of Leicester was appointed as lector to the Hereford school. 37 This must have been around 1236, when Albert of Pisa was appointed provincia1 minister of England. It was close to this time, as mentioned above, that the buildings of the Hereford convent had been altered The Chronicle of XXIV Generals writes that, around 1235, the hishop ofHereford, Radulphus Anglicus, a master in theology, entered the Order.38 Also according to the fourteenth-century chronicle, another lector received a letter from the Bishop and entered the order. 39
As W.R. Thomson argues, although entry into the Order meant the loss of some episcopal dignity, there were stili cases where bishops took the Franciscan habit in the early years, which shows us the degree of popularity Franciscans enjoyed at the time.40
W e cannot often give exact dates for the foundation of the other early convents in the province. All we know is that by 1230 nine more convents had been established. These were Bristol, Gloucester, King's Lynn, Leicester, Lincoln, Nottingham, Salisbury, Stamford and York.41. As for the intellectual activities of
37
Eccleston, p. 50
38
This is probably Ralph of Maidstone, whose entrance was also recorded by Eccleston: Eccleston, p. 85.
39
'The Chronicle of the XXIV Generals', AF, iii, p. 220
40
W.R. Thomson, Friars in the Cathedral: The First Franciscan Bishops 1226-1261 (Toronto, 1975), p. 152.
41
See Appendix 1. The dates of Knowles and Hadcock refer in many cases to A.G. Little without making a reference to a specific work. So I did not have an opportunity to find out how Dr. Little found them. Yet, generally Little finds his evidence in the Close Rolls and other records of central government, so the dates should be reliable, even though the evidence can often show no more than that a convent existed at that date, rather
than
being evidence of the actual foundation.these towns, again not m uc h is known. York had a cathedral school, noted for the study of law in the twelfth century. Salisbury, which again had a cathedral school, was the destination of some fugitive scholars from Oxford in 1238.42 About the others virtually nothing is known. Very probably, the Franciscans had been on the move all of the time, and had continued founding convents from 1226 onwards. These early convents are of particular interest since, at least in six of them, the Franciscans again founded schools that received mention sooner or later. We do not have any reference to any school in King's Lynn, Lincoln or Nottingham, but all the others contained schools which were very important in the Order in the fourteenth century. In fact, apart from these convents, only three other convent schools in existence in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, remain unmentioned: those of Exeter, Coventry and Newcastle. The convent of Exeter is recorded first in 1240, but it seems quite unlikely that the friars had waited ten more years in order to settle down in one of the major towns of medieval England. Exeter was a bishopric and a castle-town with a substantial population. 43 It should have been an attractive location to Franciscans. Similarly, the Coventry settlement, which is first recorded in 1234 in connection with a grant oftimber by Henry
m,
probably took place around 1230. As for Newcastle, the earliest record of the convent is in 1237. It is again very likely that the convent was already established by 1233, when Brother Elias made Scotland a separate province. The42
H. Rashdall, The Universities of Europe in the Middle Ages, i, p. 88. For the Franciscan convents founded before 1240, see the map of England in Appendix
m.
43
H.C. Darby estimates Exeter's population as over 2,000 in 1086: Domesday England, p. 308. J.C. Russell estimates the population at the same date as 1,438 and as 2,340 in the year 1377: British Medieval Population, pp. 50, 142.
reason given for this division was sornewhat unusuat for what might be seen as an administrative measure:
'demandatum est a ministro generali fr. Elia ut provincia anglicana divideretur in duas, ut esset scilicet una Scotiae et alia ut prius Angliae. Voluit enim, ut dicebatur, quod sicut ordo fratrum Praedicatorum XII habet priores provinciales in toto orbe vice XII apostolorum, sic et ipse sub se haberet septuaginta duos ministros vice septuaginta duorum discipulorum.' 44
The Ordinations of Benedi ct XII issued in 1336 state that London, York, Norwich, Newcastle, Stamford, Coventry and Exeter were subject to the same jurisdiction as the studia generalia of the Order.45 By 1336, there were seven custodies in England and all of the towns mentioned above belonged to a different custody. The studia in these towns, which I have termed 'intermediate studia' will be discussed at length in the second chapter.
Such is the story of the early Franciscan settlement in England. The policy of settlement is very clear. The establishment of convents took place quite fast, one after another. The Franciscan friars did not try to settle down fully in one or two places. Instead, very shortly after the foundation of a convent, they formed small parties--even as few as two people-and sent them as pioneers to new places. As a result, by 1233 the Franciscans were well-established in England,
44 'It is demanded by the minister general Brother Elias that the English province shall be divided into two, that is to say as Scotland and England. He wants this since, so they say, just as the Order of Friars Preachers (Dominicans) has 12 provincial priors in the who le world, just like the twelve apostles, thus he (Elias) would have under himself seventy-two minİsters corresponding to the seventy-two disciples:' Eccleston, p. 41.
45 'Ordinations a Benedieta XII Pro Fratribus Minoribus Promulgatae per Bullam 28 Novembris 1336', AFH, vol. 30, (1937), p. 349
Ireland, and Scotland. 46
A particular feature of these settlements attracts attention. The early Franciscans chose to settle down in places where there was an active intellectual life. This is clearly so in case of London, Oxford and Caıtıbridge, and in other cases the towns chosen often had cathedral schools, some of them of note, or were towns that housed fugitive scholars from Oxford and Cambridge. Of course, it is hard to say definitely that their purpose was to recruit from among scholars, or to found schools. Probably, they had more than one purpose, but in these early years they could only found schools if they could recruit lectors to teach in them, whether a secular master or a master who agreed to join the Order. In the end, we can safely say that, one way or another, the Franciscan settlement in England seems to have aimed at embracing the intellectual life in England and at becoming involved in it actively. Maybe this
was
not their only object, but it surely was one of their aims. One question remains to be answered Whose idea was this? Which authority in the Order prompted these Franciscan pioneers to act this way? It is highly improbable that this was a decision made by St. Francis; he-in the beginning certainly-preferred to stay away from university towns. B. Gratien quotes Celano to point to Francis' indignation upon teaming the foundation of a house for the brethren in Bologna.47 Besides,none
of the surviving legislation of the Order gives any criteria for the choice of places in which to found new convents. Yet, the course of events show that St. Francis46
Moorman,
p.
175.47 B. Gratien, Histoire de la fondation et de l'evolution de l'Ordre des freres
changed his mind towards the last years of his life about the necessity of studies for his Order. P.G. Odoardi writes that besides the /aici, St. Francis was also surrounded by many c/erici such as Fr. Silvestro, Fr. Leone, Fr. Cesario, Fr. Pacifico and Fr. Elias, who probably in:fluenced him on this matter.48 So he not only gave his permission for study, but also made the attendance to dasses obligatory in order for friars to be ab le to serve better the apostolic ideal of the Order, which was preaching. For the same purpose, he gave his permission to Brother Elias for the organization of studies in the Order. 49 Indeed, it was Brother Elias and John Parenti who did their best to mak:e sure that the Fransiscan Order was involved in intellectual activities.
Fr. Elias was a complicated, but influential figure in the early history of the Franciscan Order. Among his various deeds, the promotion of theological studies in the Order was a major one. The foundation of the studium of Bologna, which was the first in the Order, took place during his Vicarage. Again, the studium ofParis was founded shortly afterwards. It is quite possible that there was a continuous communication between Elias and Agnellus of Pisa about the Franciscan policy towards the recruitment of scholars and foundation of studia. Elias was the Vicar of the Order until1227, so the last three years of his vicarage coincided with the Franciscan settlement in England. As the main decision-mak:er in the Order in this period, Elias was almost the only person who could have been
48 P.G. Odoardi, 'Un Geniale Figlio di S. Francesco', MF, 54, 1954, p. 100. More generally, it can be seen that St Francis's attitudes towards study and the acquisition of knowledge were often changeable and inconsistent: Gratien, Histoire de lafondation et de /'evo/ution de /'Ordre, pp. 81-96.
responsible for the preparation of the intellectual infrastructure. 50
In 1226, while Franciscan expeditions were continuing in Anglia, in Assisi, in the headquarters of the Order, times were harder than ever. St. Francis, the ultimate symbol of the unity of the Order, died in his beloved church of Portiuncula. To the surprise of many, Brother Elias lost the leadership of the Order to John Parenti, a Florentine lawyer, famous for his learning and devotion. Although he seemed to follow St. Francis zealously in simplicity and goodness, as for the promotion of learning he diverged quite radically from the path which St. Francis attempted to draw. John Parenti, just like Brother Elias, openly supported educational activities. He sent a friar Simon Anglicus to Germany to lecture. 51 It is not unlikely that he gave directives to Provincial Minİsters for the establishment of schools in the convents and to arrange for leamed scholars to teach the friars. In the convent ofPadua, Anthony ofPadua started to teach Franciscansin 1223.52 In the Paris convent, this problem was solved by the presence of Haymo of Faversham, an English scholar who hadjoined theOrderin 1225. In the same year in England, Agnellus of Pisa, the Provincial Minister asked Robert Grosseteste, then the most eminent scholar of Oxford University to teach the friars in the Oxford convent. It does not seem very probable that Agnellus of Pisa made this decision independently. Indeed, it is quite interesting that the papal bull
Quo Elongati which legally allowed friars the use of money, books and proper buildings-three issues closely related to the establishment of Minorite
schools-50
lbid., p. 101.
51 'The Chronicle of the XXIV Generals', AF, iii, p. 237; Moorman, p. 91-2. 52 'Chartularium Studii Bononiensis S. Francisci (Saec. XIII-XIV)', AF, 11, (1970), p. 3
was issued in 1230. s3 This suggests that John Parenti was already in close to uc h on these issues with Pope Gregory IX. If John Parenti really gave directives to Provincial Ministers, he would not have done so without informing the pope.
The nature of this early Franciscan settlement in England raises questions about the function of custodies as educational units. Eccleston mentions six custodies in the province of Anglia in his chronicle: London; Oxford; Cambridge; Salisbury; York. and Worcester.54 Yet we do not have accurate knowledge as to which convents belonged to which custodies. The oldest surviving document conceming the divisions within provinces which specifies which convent belonged to which custody is Codex Nr. 1960 in the Vatican archive. This only goes back to as far as 1324.55 Hence the thirteenth century divisions of Franciscan provinces remain uncertain. A.G. Little argued that 'in England the custody acquired a special importance as an educational area, each custody maintained a special school of theology.'56 This is certainly a realistic argument for the fourteenth century 7 but in the early thirteenth century almost every convent had a school of some status and there would have been no need to organize custodies as educational areas.
One of the general points that has frequently been made conceming the Franciscans is that they followed the Dominicans in their settlement policy and
s3 'Die Bulle "Quo Elongati" Papst Gregors IX', ed. Grundmann, 2 I -23. 54
Eccleston, pp. 34-36.
ss
Fr. Conrad Eubel, Provinciale Ordinis Fratrum Minorum Vetussimum (Rome, 1892), p. 3.s
6 A. G. Little, 'The Administrative Divisions of the Mendieant Orders in England', in English Histarical Review, 34 (1919), 54.educational organization. A very recent study by R. French and A. Cunningham points out on the rivalry between the two Orders and continues:
'In the early years this rivalry showed itself most clearly in the fact that everywhere the Dominicans went, the Franciscans were sure to go. When the Dominicans went to a particular town and took up residence
7 the Franciscans went to the same town and began settling in. '5
Admittedly, I have not made a comparison of Doıninican and Franciscan settlements in all the provinces, but for England it is very evident that this statement of French and Cunningham is wrong. Although the Franciscans arrived in England three years later than the Dominicans, by 1230 there were only nine Dominican convents in England, as opposed to seventeen Franciscan ones. 58 The Dominicans arrived in England in 1221, and they established their first house in Oxford. Once established there, they did not hurry to settle down in other towns, but remained there for three years, until they founded their second convent in London in 1224. The third convent only appeared in 1226 in Norwich, and the fourth in York in 1227. They did not go to Cambridge until 1238.59 It has been suggested that the reason for this slow-motion settlement was the Doıninican's preference to found convents only after raising sufficient number of educated friars in the Oxford convent, who were then capable of making new foundations
57 R. French and A. Cunningham, Before Science: The Jnvention of the Friars' of
Natural Philosophy (Aldershot, 1996), p. 204.
58
See Appendix 1.
59 For the list of dates of the foundation of Dominican convents in England, see
W. A. Hinnebusch, The Early English Friars Preachers, (Rome, 1951) pp. 493-495.
in accordance with the Constitutions. 60 Whatever logic there was behind the settlement policy of Dominicans, clearly it was not the one Franciscans adopted. French and Cunningham extended this argument to the foundation of studia in both orders:
'When Dominicans went to studium towns and inserted themselves into the life of studium, the Franciscans followed them in the race for theology chairs ... The Dominicans were barely established at Cambridge before the Franciscans, breathless, turned up in 1225 and took up residence in the former house ofBenjamin the Jew.ı61
There is no reference to a Dominican convent in Cambridge before 1238. To look at the foundation dates of the convents of both orders in France and England is enough to falsify the statement of French and Cunningham.62 Besides, if the Dominicans had been established in Cambridge before the Franciscans, the Franciscans would almost certainly have stayed with them on their arrival in the town. French and Cunningham's evidence for a rivalry between the two Orders consists only of the settlement dates of the two Orders in Paris and Oxford, which cannot be considered as a sign of the Franciscan's jealousy of the Dominicans. Moreover, both in London and Oxford, the Franciscans had been warmly welcomed by the Dominicans, who took care of them until the Franciscans had
60 M. O'Carroll, 'The Educational Organisation of the Dominicans in England and Wales 1221-1348: A Multidisciplinary Approach', in Archivum Fratrum Praedicatorum, 50 (1980), 47.
61 I have referred to W. A. Hinnebush's list ofDominican convents in
The Early English Friars Preachers (Rome, 1951) p. 493. Here, as well as in Knowles's list, the foundation date of the Cambridge convent is given as 1238. French and Cunningham do not give any reference for their date.
62 To servethis purpose, I made lists of the dates of the foundation of Franciscan
and Dominican convents in England and France in the fırst half of thirteenth century. For these lists, see Appendix A below.
fo und a place of their own. There was some friction between the two Orders after the 1240s, but this cannot be taken back to the 1210s and 1220s.
Joanna Cannon, in her article on the mendieant organizations in England, argues that the Dominicans were the most thoroughly organized mendieant Order in terms of schools and that other orders followed them and adapted their scheme. 63 This cannot be true, given the picture of Franciscan settlement in England as I have tried to draw above. Apart from other considerations, the Franciscans certainly had more schools than the Dominicans in 1236. The Franciscans defınitely pursued a different path from the Dominicans, who spread
the foundation of their English convents over the who le of the thirteenth century. There is also an extremely important point here which has been ignored by scholars working on the Franciscan educational system. Dr. Little in his fırst
article about this system wrote the following:
'The Franciscans, unlike the Friars Preachers had no tradition of teaming to start from: every Dominican convent was essentially a school, the early Franciscan convent was not. The Dominican educational system had merely to be organised; the basis was
contemporaneous with the foundation of the Order; the Franciscan educational system had not only to be organİsed but to be created ab initio. ı64
As it will be demonstrated in the next chapter, the differences between the Franciscan and Dominican educational systems went deep, right to the heart of
63 J. Cannon, "Panorama geografıco, cronologico e statistico sulla distribuzione
degli Studia degli ordini mendieanti (Inghilterra)", in Le scuole deg/i Ordini
mendieanti (see. XIII-XIV), ed. M. d' Alatri, Convegni del Centro di Studi sulla Spiritualita Medievale, 17, Todi 11-14 ottobre 1976 (Todi, 1978), p. 94.
64
A.G. Little, 'Educational Organisation of the mendieant Friars in England (Dominicans and Franciscans)', Transactions of the Royal Histarical Society, New Series, 7, (1894), 63-64.
the nature of the convent school. Dominican schola were designed to serve all friars in the convent, but Franciscan studia only served clerics. Franciscan education was not aimed at teaching all friars the basics of faith, it
was
aimed at the higher education of clerics who were deterınined to be involved in the scholarly world.65 Therefore, we cannot expect these two systems of education, differing in aims and in subject matter, necessarily to besimilar in organization. Indeed, the presumption, without specific evidence, ought surely to be that they were different.Cbapter II
Building the Franciscan Educational System
The systems of education in the mendieant Orders is a highly interesting issue in the history of Middle Ages. These systems, which consisted of networks of schools, each type with different functions and in an hierarchical order, were some of those rare institutions of the Middle Ages whose branches spread throughout Europe. Among all of the mendieant Orders, the Franciscans and Dominicans had the most extensive networks of schools. From the historian's po int of view, the reconstruction of the educational network of the Franciscans is mo re difficult than for that of the Dominicans s ince the extant primary sources of the Franciscan Order are much fewer in number. The two main groups of sources for the educational organization of the Franciscans are the various chronicles and the legislative documents. I believe that the nature of these documents is worth describing, since it is only through them that we may construct our current knowledge about the Franciscan system of studia.
The chronicle containing the fullest information about educational activities is that of Thomas ofEccleston.66 Essentially a history of the Franciscans in the province of Anglia, Eccleston's chronicle gives valuable information about the activities in theOrderin the period 1224-1258. Asa chronicler, he has got his own style, and although he has omitted a good deal of information about events in
66 The mostrecent and best edition ofEccleston's chronicle is that by A.G. Little,
Tractatus Fr. Thomae vulgo dicti de Eccleston, De Adventu Fratrum Minorum in Angliam, ed. A.G. Little (Manchester, 1951). The chronicle is also edited by J. S. Brewer inMonumenta Franciscana, Vo/.1, Rolls Series, 21 (London,1858), pp. 5-72.
the Order and in England during this period, he is, as Little deseribes him, 'honest, well-informed, (and) accurate' in what he wrote.67 His ultimate purpose in writing the chronicle seems to have been to publicize the glory and good deeds of his Order, and to show that the servants of the cause of the Order had always been rewarded and promoted to high positions.
A second chronicle, which informs us about sch9larly activities in the Order is that of Salimbene.68 Salimbene's chronicle differs from Eccleston's Tractatus in being a personal history, a story of of his own life and times, rather than a general or provincial history of the Order. The period of the chronicle falls between 1170 and 1288. He had been to a lot of places and had met the most important people of his times, like Brother Elias, Emperor Frederick ll, Pope Innocent IV, John ofParma and Hugh ofDigne. It isa very valuable source about the daily life ofFranciscans in the thirteenth century.69
Apart from chronicles, the best sources for tracing the development of the educational organization are the legislative documents of the Order. Certainly, the fundamental legislative document of the activities of the Order of Friars Minor was the Rule. St. Francis did not choose to adopt one of the already existing
67 A.G. Little,
Franciscan Papers, Lists, and Documents (Manchester, 1943) p. 27. The reader can find a detailed discussion of the chronicles of the Franciscan and Dominican Order here.
68
The mostrecent study of Salimbene's chronicle is: M. d'Alatri, O.F.M. Cap.,La Cronaca di Salimbene: personaggi e tematiche (Roma, 1988). The best known edition is Chronica fratris Salimbene de Adam ordinis Minorum, ed. O. Holder-Egger, Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Scriptores, Vol. XXXII, pp. 1905-13.
69 There isanother thirteenth century Franciscan chronicle, written by Jordan of
Giano. It concems the Franciscan settlement in Germany, but does not give us any information about scholarly activities: Chronica Fratris Jordani, ed. H. Boehmer (Paris, 1908).
monastic rules, such as the Rule of St. Benedict or the Augustinian Rule. He wanted to explain the way of life he expected from his followers in simple and plain words. The first Rule, which is not extant today, was written in 1209. However, with the passing of time the number of friars increased drastically; the office of provincial minister was instituted and abuses began in the Order. All this made the writing of another rule essential. The Rule of 1221 and the Rule of 1223, which was just a shorter and more explicit version of the former, provided the foundation of Franciscan legislation. In both the Rules of 1221 and 1223, St. Francis did not openly oppose the promotion of scholarly activities, but he certainly di d not encourage it. In the Rule of 1221, he writes the very words which afterwards became the foundation of Bonaventura's defense of studies in the Order: 'Those who are illiterate should not be anxious to study.'70 In Chapter 7 of the same Rule, St. Francis orders, in accordance with the Bible, that 'everyone should remain at the trade and in the position in which he was called'.71 Y et he introduces a limitation to that, by asserting that 'the friars who have a trade should work at it, provided that it is no obstacle to their spiritual progress and can be practised without seandaL '72 This statement justified the recruitment of people from all sorts of professions, including lectors and masters.
The Rule, of course, was an exceptional piece of legislation. The usual organ for Franciscan legislation was the general chapter. The issues to be discussed in general chapters, presided over by Minister Generals, were first
70
St. Francis of Assisi, Writings and Early Biographies, p. 63 71
lbid., p. 37.
72
decided by the diffinitores. After the discussion of the agenda, new statutes were added to existing constitutions and, if necessary, a revised and enlarged version of the existing constitutions would be produced. 73 These constitutions made by general chapters were referred to as constitutiones generales. A copy of these constitutions was sent to all custodians in the Order. Probably all general chapters created some constitutions, but records do not survive from many general chapters. One of the fırst statutes ordained in the chapter of Assisi in 1227 by the
second Minister General, John Parenti, concemed the bearing of titles other than Brother: 'Hic statuit nullum fratrem magistrum vel dominum sed omnes communiter fratres vocari.'74 At a time when fuar-masters were already not uncommon and when friars were rising to high positions in the Church, this was an attempt to retain equality of status within the Order.
The earliest extant, substantial set of constitutions was produced by the general chapter of 1239, presided over by Minister General Albert of Pisa. The tyrannical administration ofBrother Elias from 1232 to 1239 made the members of the Order aware of the necessity of a body of constitutions to restrict the authority of minister generals. The most provocative act of Elias had been that he chosen visitators from his own intimate circle, vesting them with untrammelled authority. A significant number of the 1239 constitutions were directedat tirniting and regulating the power of the office of visitator75. When asked at the Chapter of
73
The latin terms statutum, constitutio, ordinatio and actum were used interchangeably.
74
'He ordered that no brothershall be called master or lord, but everyone shall be called commonly brother': 'De Fratrum Minorum Constitutionibus Praenarbonensibus', ed. C. Cenci,AFH, 83 (1990), 51.
75
Metz in 1254 for constitutions, the Minister General John of Panna said that instead of multiplying them they ought to try keeping the ones they already had, which suggests that the legislation of the Order was already substantial by that date.76 In any case, the Constitutions of 1239 were the backbone of the well-known Narbonne Constitutions of 1260. Salimbene suggests that the Narbonne Constitutions were actually a well-arranged version of the 1239 Constitutions:
'Et in illo capitulo (the general chapter of 1239) facta est maxima multitudo constitutionum generalium; sed non erant ordinatae; quas processu temporis ordinavit fr. Bonaventura generalis minister, et parum addidit de suo, sed poenitentias taxavit in aliquibus locis. ı77
So far, scholars have almost without exception referred to the Narbonne Constitutions as the fırst legislation conceming the organization of studies in the
Order. However, the very recent edition of pre-Narbonne constitutions, an edition compiled from three different manuscripts, gives us much valuable information about scholarly activities in the Order around 1239. These constitutions will be discussed at length below.
After the constitutions produced by general chapters, the second
76
D. Burr, 0/ivi and Franciscan Poverty: The Origins of the Usus Pauper
Controversy (Philadelphia, 1989) 77
'And in that chapter a vast number of general constitutions were made; but they were not put in order. The Minister General Brother Bonaventura put them in order in the course of time and added a few of his own, though he re-assessed the value ofregulations in some places': Chronicafratris Salimbene de Adam ordinis
Minorum, ed. O. Holder-Egger, Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Scriptores,
Vol. XXXII, p. 102. The term ordinatae in this context has been translated by J.R.H. Moorman as 'confırmed', but these constitutions seem in no particular need for confırmation and 'put in order' or 'well-arranged' seems a more natural translation: Moorman, p. 105.
legislative organ was the provincial chapter, headed by the provincial minister. Thereby, there was the opportunity for legislation specifıc to individual provinces depending on their needs. The third and last type of legislation comprised bulls and ordinationes of the Papal See. As the Franciscan Order had to be wholly obedient to the Pope, he had the right to interfere in all the affairs of the Order.
The Franciscan educational organization depended mainly on these three types of legislation and these constitute the major part of the information we have today about educational activities in the Franciscan Order. Each body of constitutions and papal ordinations generally produced a seetion of legislation entitled De Occupationibus Fratrum which had something to say about the regulations goveming students, lectors and schools. Unfortunately, there is a shortage of extant Franciscan legislation from the thirteenth century, which makes the understanding of the early educational activities of the Franciscans quite
diffıcult. So far, the nature of Franciscan education has been studied largely from
chronicles and from legislative documents dating later than 1260. However, now, with the editing of the pre-Narbonne constitutions, we have the chance of reconstructing the educational organization of the period prior to 1260.
The first relevant statement we fınd in the pre-Narbonne constitutions is that 'Ministri, custodes et lectores non sint visitatores.'78 This shows us that '}ector' was already a well-established office within the Order of Friars Minor. W e fınd a similar statement in the general constitutions of Paris 1292: 'Nullus
autem frater fungatur simul custodis et lectoris offıcio vel visitatoris, nisi
78
manifesta necessitas id requirat.'79 Another interesting point concerns Paris. Because of the Franciscan school flourishing there, and which was considered in
the Order as the highest step in an intellectual career, Paris was given special attention already in 1239:
'Statuimus quod singulis annis visitetur domus Parisiensis per specialem visitatorem, missum a generali ministro. Qui, si invenerit aliquem de studentibus insolentem, possit cum ministro provintiali remittere ipsum ad suam provintiam.'80
The same statement, with the same words except 'de studentibus', exists in the Narbonne Constitution. There is another statement in the pre-Narbonne constitutions dealing with the recruitment policy of the Order and which was never quite repeated in the later constitutions:
'Nullus recipiatur in ordine nostro nisi sit talis clericus qui sit competenter in grammatica instructus vel logica vel medicina vel decretis vel legibus vel theologia, aut nisi sit talis clericus vel laicus, de cuius ingressu esset valde famosa et celebris edificatio in populo et in clero.'81
This statement can be interpreted in many ways. In the first years of the Order the ratio of lay brothers to clerics was quite high. 82 This ratio fell between
79
'No brother shall perform the office of custodian, !ector or visitator at the same time, unless there is a clear necessity for that.': 'Statuta Glia Ordinis 1260, 1279 et 1292', ed. M. Bihl, AFH, 34 (1927), 298.
80
'W e orderthat the Paris convent will be visited every year by a special visitator assigned by the minister general. If he finds any of the students insolent, he has the right, with the provincial minister, to send him back to his own province': 'Const. Prenarbonne', 75.
81
'No-one shall be received into the order unless he is such a cleric as is well instructed in grammar or logic or medicine or canon law or civil law or theology, or unless he is such a cleric or layman from whose entrance there would be renowned and famous edification among the people and clergy': Jbid.
82
Felder H., Geschichte der wissenschaftlichen Studien im Franziskanerorden bis um die Mitte des 13. Jahrhunderts (Freiburg im Breisgau, 1904), p. 67. For a detailed discussion of the meanings oflay and clerical, see Chapter III, p. 51-54.
1220 and 1232, and the influence of the lay brothers in the Order was almost broken. However, when Brother Elias assumed the position of Minister General, he recruited lay people in great numbers and they were placed in high offices in order to neutralize the clericilization of the Order, as we learn from Salimbene.83 A reaction to this was the main reason for this new unwillingness to recruit lay brothers. The statute above was intended to bring balance to the number of lay and derical brothers in the Order. As for the recruitment of clerics, we see that the required qualifications are various. Almost all of the existing faculties in the universities are covered. This is a clear proof that the Order was willing to recruit clerics specialised in different branches. As for the young people, they were expected at least to be well-instructed in grammar. Those clerics who were instructed in theology were probably intended to be lectors in the studia of the Order. As for subjects like medicine and law, there is no evidence that these sciences were taught in Franciscan schools. The intention was probably to assign them to offices within the Order where they could use their expertise. 84 It is interesting to observe that, only thirty years after its foundation, the Order of Friars Minor, where the word 'minor' indicated the humbleness of the brothers, was turning into an Order ofFriars Major.
83
'Tertius defectus fratris Heliae fuit, quia homines indignos promovit ad officia ordinis. Faciebat enim laycos guardianos, custodes, ministros, quod absurdum erat valde, cum ordine eset copia bonorum clericorum. 'Also, }or a more detailed discussion ofElias see Chronica.fr. Salimbene, p. 103.For the recruitment ofhigh numbers of lay brothers the reader can refer to D. Berg, Armut und Wissenschaft. Beitrage zur Geschichte des Studienwesens der Bettelorden im 13. Jahrhundert (Dusseldorf, 1977) and Felder, Geschichte der wissenschaftlichen, p. 107.
84
The assignment of clerics to high offices in the order will be dealt in more detail in the third chapter.
