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Bobolen, Domnola, And A Massacre In A Vineyard

By
thehistorianshut
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Around the year 585, two powerful people clashed over rights to a vineyard in the vicinity of Angers, France. On one side was Domnola, a remarried widow who had many friends among the nobles administering the Frankish lands of the Merovingian Dynasty. As an example of her connections, Domnola was the daughter of Bishop Victorius of Rennes, and her first husband had been a brother-in-law to a duke. It was the ties to her father, Victorius, that embroiled Domnola in the vineyard dispute, as she claimed that the farmland in question had belonged to her father and therefore was now her property.

Domnola’s opponent in the vineyard dispute was a man named Bobolen. He was a figure of little note to his peers, as nothing laudatory was written or recorded about his family or his feats prior to or after the events in question here. Although not a man of fame, Bobolen was still a man of some power, as he had managed to become employed as an official or agent for Dowager Queen Fredegund, the widow of King Chilperic (r. 561-584) and the mother of King Chlotar II (r. 584-629).

Unfortunately for Domnola, her social connections proved less powerful than Bobolen’s government leverage during the vineyard dispute. Despite Domnola’s unresolved claims to the property, Bobolen seized the disputed region and banned his rival from setting foot on the land. In protest, Domnola and a group of her supporters broke into the vineyard and refused to leave. This act of defiance, regrettably, inspired Bobolen to hatch a horrific plot.

Bobolen soon arrived on the scene, backed by a pack of armed henchmen, and he confronted the protesters. What happened next was recorded by Bishop (and historian) Gregory, from nearby Tours, who wrote, “Bobolen started an affray and attacked Domnola with a band of armed men. He had her murdered, claimed that the vineyard was his and stole all the movable property. All the men and women who were with Domnola were put to the sword: none was left alive, except a few who ran away” (History of the Franks, VIII.32).

The massacre did not go unnoticed. Although Bobolen had the support of Fredegund and child-king Chlotar, there was a bigger fish in the Merovingian Dynasty’s Frankish empire at that time—King Guntram of Burgundy (r. 561-593). Guntram, who was young Chlotar’s uncle and the undisputed patriarch of the dynasty, was greatly displeased with what occurred at the vineyard in Angers. He tasked an agent named Antestius to hunt down those responsible for the massacre. Gregory of Tours recounted this man’s efforts, saying, “Antestius was sent to Angers by King Guntram. He punished severely all those who had been involved in the death of Domnola, wife of Nectarius. The goods of Bobolen, who had been the ringleader in this outrage, were confiscated to the public treasury” (History of the Franks, VIII.43). Whether or not Bobolen suffered any more severe punishments besides confiscation of property because of the murders was unfortunately left unmentioned by Bishop Gregory.

Written by C. Keith Hansley

Picture Attribution: (tree in wine country, [Public Domain] via publicdomainpictures.net and Creative Commons).

 

Sources:

  • The History of the Franks by Gregory of Tours, translated by Lewis Thorpe. New York: Penguin Classics, 1971.

Illustration Of Pope Urban II At The Council Of Clermont

By
thehistorianshut
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This colorful image, attributed to the French artist Jean Colombe (c. 1430–1493), comes from an illuminated manuscript of Sébastien Mamerot’s Les Passages d’Outremer. Pope Urban II (r. 1088-1099) is the featured speaker in the painting, depicted standing at the podium before a room of onlookers. During that speech, delivered at Clermont in 1095, Pope Urban would plant an idea in the heads of his followers that would usher in a new chaotic age for Christendom. If the face of Helen of Troy was the visage that began the Trojan War, then it was the face of Pope Urban II that began the Crusades. After talking of the gains that Muslim armies had been making against the Christian empire of Constantinople in Anatolia, Pope Urban reportedly suggested that Christians should fight to secure the holy land, and that God would forgive all sins involved with accomplishing such a task, as well as forgiveness for other sins crusaders might have committed before deciding to make their armed pilgrimage. Fulcher of Chartres (c. 1059-1127), a clergyman and soon-to-be crusader who was present at the 1095 Council of Clermont, recorded an account of the pope’s speech:

“I [Pope Urban], with suppliant prayer—not I, but the Lord—exhort you, heralds of Christ, to persuade all of whatever class, both knights and footmen, both rich and poor, in numerous edicts, to strive to help expel that wicked race from our Christian lands before it is too late. I speak to those present, I send word to those not here; moreover, Christ commands it. Remission of sins will be granted for those going thither, if they end a shackled life either on land or in crossing the sea, or in struggling against the heathen. I, being vested with that gift from God, grant this to those who go” (Chronicle, book I, chapter 3, section 4-5).

Soon after that speech, the First Crusade began (c. 1095/1096-1099). It was the start of a trend that would last for centuries, with Crusades being launched against several targets with varying success. In time, Crusades would also be launched against Christian heretics, and even Constantinople—the imperial city that Pope Urban II wanted to aid—would ultimately be captured by Crusaders in 1204, causing a great disturbance in the region until the Crusader regime was forced out in 1261.

Written by C. Keth Hansley

 

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The Buddha

By
thehistorianshut
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The Buddha (6th-5th century BCE)

“Do not speak harshly to anyone.
Those to whom you speak
might respond to you.”

  • The Dhammapada (Verses on the Way, Chapter 10), recorded in the 3rd century BCE. Translation by Glenn Wallis, 2004.

Despite Employing Orators And Scribes, Justinian Reportedly Insisted On Giving His Own Speeches And Personally Writing Sensitive Dispatches

By
thehistorianshut
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Emperor Justinian (r. 527-565) was an intelligent man and he enjoyed applying his education to his daily tasks, such as giving speeches and writing dispatches. Justinian’s behavior in regard to actions such as these, was recorded by the mysterious historian, Procopius, whose personal impression of the emperor is a puzzle, as his texts (The Wars, The Buildings, and The Secret History) peculiarly all used different tones of affection or disdain for Justinian. On the emperor’s habit of writing his own sensitive dispatches, Procopius wrote, “The officials known as a secretis were not allowed the privilege of writing the emperor’s secret dispatches—the task for which they had originally been appointed—but he wrote almost everything himself” (The Secret History, chapter 14).

Procopius also wrote of Justinian’s alleged insistence on personally giving public speeches about edicts or announcements that were published under his name. As the story goes, the emperor insisted on doing the speeches himself, even though he was reportedly a lackluster orator. Emperor Justinian’s diction, wrote Procopius, “was utterly uncouth. Whenever he wished a rescript to be published in his name, he did not send it in the usual way to the holder of the Quaestor’s office to be promulgated but thought fit in most cases, in spite of the poorness of his speech, to read it out himself” (The Secret History, chapter 14). Although Procopius meant these passages to be insults and criticisms against Justinian—as was the theme of the peculiar Secret History—one can only admire the emperor’s determination to put his education in language and writing to a practical use.

Written by C. Keith Hansely

Picture Attribution: (Image of Emperor Justinian based on the mosaic at San Vitale (Ravenna), [Public Domain] via the Yorck Project and Creative Commons).

 

Sources:

The Alexander Mosaic, By An Anonymous Artist In Pompeii

By
thehistorianshut
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This mosaic is perhaps the most famous ancient image of Alexander the Great (r. 336-323 BCE), the king of Macedon who led his army on a series of conquests from Greece all the way to the borderlands of India. Although the mosaic, constructed from over a million tesserae tiles, now hangs upright like a painting in the National Archeological Museum of Naples, it actually spent most of its existence on the ground as a floor mosaic in Pompeii’s House of the Faun, one of the city’s largest and richest private homes. The construction of the mosaic has been dated to around the turn of the 2nd and 1st century BCE, and it survived long enough to be preserved by the ashes of Vesuvius that buried Pompeii in 79 CE.

Depicted in the mosaic are the opposing forces of Alexander the Great and the Persian ruler, Darius III. Time played an ironic role-reversal on the participants of the battle in the mosaic. On the left, Alexander’s side (the army that won the battle) has become quite damaged over the thousands of years—yet the torso and head of Alexander thankfully survived. Contrastingly, the tiles that make up Darius’ defeated army remain remarkably intact.

As for the precise event shown in the mosaic, most observers and scholars interpret the scene as a rendition of the Battle of Issus (c. 333 BCE). In that particular fight, Alexander inflicted a decisive defeat on the Persian forces, causing Darius III to mount such a chaotic retreat that his own family was captured by Alexander’s troops. Arrian (c. 90-173+), a Greek-Roman biographer of Alexander, described the last moments of the Battle of Issus, a description that can also be used to understand what it occurring in the mosaic:

“The moment the Persian left went to pieces under Alexander’s attack and Darius, in his war chariot, saw that it was cut off, he incontinently fled—indeed, he led the race for safety. Keeping his chariot as long as there was smooth ground to travel on, he was forced to abandon it when ravines and other obstructions barred his way” (Anabasis of Alexander, 2.11).

Written by C. Keith Hansley

 

Sources:

Saxo Grammaticus

By
thehistorianshut
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Saxo Grammaticus (c. 12th and 13th centuries)

“There is less safety, though more pomp, in the palace than in the cottage.”

  • From The Danish History (Book 1) by Saxo Grammaticus, translated by Oliver Elton (Norroena Society, 1905) and edited for reprint by Douglas B. Killings (2012).

Confucius Reportedly Fantasized About Living With Ancient China’s Nomadic Neighbors

By
thehistorianshut
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Like many artists and thinkers who would come after him, Master Kong (better known to English readers as Confucius) faced the frustrating experience of not being fully appreciated by his contemporaries during his lifetime. Although Confucius left a legacy of wisdom that would keep his name famous for around 2.5 thousand years and counting, he evidently lived a life in which he often felt disappointed, with many ambitions left unfulfilled. He apparently yearned for a more prestigious position in life than that of an itinerant tutor and advisor. Confucius reportedly did fill some government positions from time to time, but his forays into governance were usually short and unrewarding. Frustration about his inability to maintain a steady high-profile state leadership position leaks though in Confucius’ sayings, such as “If only someone were to make use of me, even for a single year, I could do a great deal; and in three years I could finish off the whole work” (The Analects, book 13, section 10). In times when Confucius was in a gloom about his unfulfilled ambitions, he was said to have sometimes fantasized about living abroad. Confucius’ students took note of their teacher’s musings and recorded them in texts such as the aforementioned Analects of Confucius.

Within The Analects, Confucius’ admiration for the so-called “barbarians” can be seen, and his growing fantasy about possibly traveling to live with them pops up now and then in sections of the book. In one of his earliest mentions of respect for China’s neighbors, Confucius reportedly stated, “The barbarians of the East and North have retained their princes. They are not in such a state of decay as we in China” (Analects, book 3, section 5). This vision of a less chaotic environment seemed to appeal to Confucius, especially as his government ambitions continued to be thwarted.

In the sayings of Book 5 of The Analects, a reported comment of Confucius can be found where the frustrated teacher proclaimed, “The way makes no progress. I shall get upon a raft and float out to sea” (Analects, 5, 6). He likely hoped his raft would wash up in the lands of the barbarians he admired. Disciples around the philosopher apparently stopped their master from carrying out this particular fantasy, but his thoughts of living abroad continued to persist. By book 9 of The Analects, the ongoing struggle of Confucius’ students to keep their teacher from leaving the Chinese kingdoms reappeared. In one of the most explicit sayings on this matter, the text stated: “The master wanted to settle among the Nine Wild Tribes of the East. Someone said, I am afraid you would find it hard to put up with their lack of refinement. The Master said, Were a true gentleman to settle among them there would soon be no trouble about lack of refinement” (The Analects, 9,13). Despite the teacher’s retort, his disciples convinced him to stay, as there is no evidence that Confucius ever acted on his fantasy of joining the barbarians.

Written by C. Keith Hansley

Picture Attribution: (Ming Dynasty depiction of Confucius, [Public Domain] via Creative Commons).

 

Sources:

Landing of Columbus, by John Vanderlyn (1775–1852)

By
thehistorianshut
-

In this painting, the American artist John Vanderlyn re-creates the landing of the explorer, Christopher Columbus, in the so-called New World. The adventurer had set sail from the Canary Islands around early September in 1492, with the backing of Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain, and his expedition made landfall on one of the Bahamian islands in the middle of October in the same year. That first moment when Christopher Columbus and his crew stepped foot on land was the scene that John Vanderlyn captured in the painting above. Christopher Columbus, himself, described the event in his own words to Luis de St. Angel—treasurer of Aragon—in a letter written by the explorer during his journey home in 1493. Columbus wrote:

“As I know you will be rejoiced at the glorious success that our Lord has given me in my voyage, I write this to tell you how in thirty-three days I sailed to the Indies with the fleet that the illustrious King and Queen, our sovereigns, gave me, where I discovered a great many islands, inhabited by numberless people; and of all I have taken possession for their Highnesses by proclamation and display of the Royal Standard without opposition” (Letter to Luis de St. Angel, 1493).

John Vanderlyn captured the scene well, displaying Columbus centerfold with his proud Royal Standard held high. The artist, however, also included other details on the periphery of the painting. On the right side, natives of the island look on at the foreigners with shock, fear and confusion. On the left side of the canvas, some of Christopher Columbus’ crew have already broken away from the flag ceremony in order to start searching for treasure.

Written by C. Keith Hansley

 

Sources:

Homer

By
thehistorianshut
-

 

Homer (flourished c. 700 BCE)

“The whole world prays that a heartless man who behaves heartlessly will suffer misfortune in his life, and derides him after his death; whereas when a man behaves kindly because his heart is kind, his reputation is spread far and wide by the guests he befriends, and he has no lack of people to sing his praises.”

  • The Odyssey (Book 19, approx.  line 330) by Homer, translated by E. V. Rieu and edited by D. C. H. Rieu. New York: Penguin Classics, 2009.

Marco Polo’s Fortuitous Capture By Genoese Sailors

By
thehistorianshut
-

Marco Polo left on his famous adventure to the court of Kublai Khan in 1271, alongside his father, Niccolò, and his uncle, Maffeo. The odyssey of this trio of Polo men spanned over two decades, as Marco and his older kinsmen would not return to Venice until 1295, after twenty-four years had passed. As is evident from his traveling companions, Marco Polo—despite his fame and name recognition—was not the only Polo family merchant to see Kublai Khan. So why did he become so much more famous than Niccolò and Maffeo? It is largely due to his fortuitous capture by the Genoese navy.

The next phase of Marco Polo’s adventure would take place in 1298, when he was apprehended by Genoese sailors and forcibly brought back to Genoa. He did not spend much time in captivity, as he was released safe and sound back to Venice by 1299, but in that short imprisonment in Genoa, Marco had the good luck to meet a fellow captive named Rustichello of Pisa. This prisoner from Pisa, so it happened, was a writer who specialized in the genres of romance and chivalric tales. This happenstance union of prisoners ultimately led to the creation of Marco Polo’s book, known by several different titles, such as Description of the World, Il Milione (possibly based on Marco’s nickname), or simply The Travels.

Written by C. Keith Hansley

Picture Attribution: (The Return of Prince Charles From Spain, by Hendrick Cornelisz Vroom (1562 1563–1640), [Public Domain] via Creative Commons).

 

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