Remembering Kings Past: Monastic Foundation Legends in Medieval Southern France

Rating:
Summary: In Memoriam: A survey of the created past
Review: In this work, Prof. Amy Remensnyder depicts how the fictional relationship between northern medieval kingship and southern monastic foundation legends allowed monasteries to wage ideological war over contested material and spiritual wealth in Southern France between 900 and 1300. While the magnitude and breadth of her research is quite remarkable, it inevitably detracts from her work. Instead of a detailed composition of Merovingian and Carolingian kingship in monastic warfare, Prof. Remensnyder offers brief sketches of local confrontation. Since Prof. Remensnyder organizes her research chronologically around the roles of specific northern kings, the vitality of monastic confrontations becomes inexplicably muddled and confused. Prof. Remensnyder should be commended without hesitation for the attempted scope of her research, but the multitude of examples does not make up for the lack of a coherent narrative. For any readers interested in the imaginary elements of southern French monasticism, use Prof. Remensnyder's detailed epilogue and bibliography to launch into further reading.