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tomas o{ Monmouth, Life and Passiolx of St. William of Norwich

l,':t;*tas of Monmouth,Ltfeand Passion of St. William of Norwich { ' ! i

(1.) Concerning the forewarning in his mother's dream.

The rnercy of divine goodness, wishing to display itself to the see of Nor-wich, or rather to the whole of England, and to give it in these new times a

new patron, granted that a boy should be conceived in his mother's womb

without her knorn ing that he was to be numbered among the illustrious mal-

tyrs and worthy to be honored among ali the army of the saints. Moreoverdivine mercy brought it about that he should grow up little by little as a fra-grant rose from the thorns.

His father was a certain Wenstan by name. His morher was called Elviva,

and they passed their lives as honest people in the country, being very rveli

supplied with the necessities of life. It should not seem absurd to anyone thata boy of such sanctity and destined for such honor should by God's will be

born from iowly parents, when it is certain that He Himself rn'as pleased to be

born from among the poor. Accordingly his mother, althor"rgh ignorant of the

fact, had by divine goodness conceived, and, whiie still unaware, was withchild. But it happened that she rvas chosen to receive a marveious forewarningby a vision worthy of our honor, which revealed to her how great should be

rhe sanctity and dignity of the chiid whom she bore in her ,,vomb. As she slept

it seemed to her that she was standing in a r:oad with her father Wuiward, a

priest, avety famous man in his time.1 Arrd there as she looked down, at her

feet, she saw a fish known as a luce. The fish had twelve fins on each side, and

the1,' were red as if they were dabbled with biood. And she said to her father,

"Father, I see a fish, but I wonder very much how it should have come here orhow it can live in so dry a spot." Her {ather answered, "Pick it Llp' my daugh-

rer. Pick it up and put it in your bosom." Xfhen she did so, the fish seemed to

move in her bosom and by degrees to grow so large that she could no ionger

hold it. So it glided out, and escaping by her sleeve and suddenly acquiring

rvings, it flew away, and passing through the clouds, it entered into heal'en,

ivhich opened to receive it.The woman awoke after her vision, and in the morning she told her father

',r,hat she had seen in her dream. Her father having much experience in

:xplaining visions, wondering what rvas presaged and what it portended, firstihought it over privately and, considering all the facts, after a while he

responded to his daughter. "Know for certain, my dearest daughter, that you

are with child, and rejoice with joy because you shall surely bring forth a son

l ho shail attain to highest honor on earth, and after being raised above the

iiouds shall be exalted exceedingly in heaven. Knorv, too, that when your son

shall have reached the age of twelve, then he shall be raised to this pinnacle ofElory." Now we can hardly believe that the father would have spoken these

il'ords to his daughter with so much certainty on the basis of his own knowl-*dge, but rather on behalf of the Holy Spirit, to whom alone all things are pre-

ient) even fhose things which are to come.

5a9

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5zaMEDIEVAL HAGIOGRAPHY

In accordance with her father's words, the daughter did bring forth a son,

who also at twelve years of age arrived at the height of honor that had been

foretold.(2.) Concerning his birth and infancy.

After some time had passed and the day had arrived for his deliverg a son

was born to the woman) and he was called r|Tilliam. But he was born on the

day ofthe Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary, that is on Candlemas'2 Per-

haps this also indicated how gfeat the purity and sanctity of the child would

be, and that he would gfeatly love candles and their brightness. But I have

judged that I should not ornit one event, which I later learned of from his

-oth", and his brothers and the priest who had baptized him, so I have

inserted it here. on rhe day of his weaning, when his father wenstan was

entertaining his relatives who had been invited to the feast, a man who was

undergoing penance, with iron bands upon his arms' presented himself to the

guestJas iibegging for alms. After dinner the man cheerfully held up the child

In his handr, "na

lh. b"b5 wondering at the iron fetters in the innocence of

childhood, touched them with his little hands. Suddenly the boncis broke and

fell to pieces. The guests, amazed at the sight, were greatly astonished, and

attribuled what had occurred to rhe merits of the child. The penitent, set free

by divine favor, went his way giving thanks' The priest, who was among the

gu.rrr, collected the broken rings and placed them in a conspicuous place in

his church at Haveringland, not only for keeping up the memory of those who

were living but also as a record for those who should come after; and he care-

fully preserved them for a long time.'The mother, loving her child exceedingly, reared him with very great care'

and by carefully rdo."ling him she brought him up from his infancy to the age

of reason. 'when he was only s.rren years old, as I learned from the mother's

narrative, he became so devoted to abstinence that, aithough his elder broth-

ers did not fast, he himself fasted on three days of the week-namely Mon-

days, \wednesdays, and Fridays. He aiso celebrated with devout fasting the

vigils of the apostles and of oth., ,"irrt, that were announced to the people'3

ena nis zeal graduaLly increasing, he used to pass many days content with

norhing but bread uni *"r.r. \(lith his heart overflowing with pietg rvhatever

h. .orrld save from his own portion of food or extort from his mother by his

pieas, he used to distribute to the poor' sometimes openly and sometimes

,..r"ily, But while doing these things he conducted himself so dutifuliy,

kindly, and prudentlS thar as far as possible he at the same time benefited

the poor "rrd

di.l ,ro, .u,rr. his parents any annoyance' FIe atrended church

loyfnlty, learned his letters arrd th" Psalms and prayers' and treated all the

,irlrrgr'of God with the grearest reverence. With divine grace anticipating

him in all things, he srroye wirh earnest ef{ort by kindness to all, to be loved

by all and to be burdensome ro none. Divine providence worked in the child

(who was knowingly ignorant and wisely untaught) the mighty works of

grace and pointed o", nV sure signs even then how great his merits were going

to be later on.

Thomas of Monmouth,Life and Passion of St. William of Norwich 5zr

(3.) How he was accustomed ro associate with the Jews and, rebuked by

his own people for doing so, how he withdrew himself from them.

\(hen there{ore he was flourishing in this blessed boyhood of his and had

attained his eighth year, he was entrusted to the skinners to be taught their

craft. Gifred with a teachable nature and eagerly applying hard work, in a

short time he far surpassed lads of his own age in the craft, and he equaled

sorne who had been his teachers. So attracted by a divine command, he left

the country and moved to the city and lived for some time with a very famous

mastef of that crafr. He was seldom in the country, but was occupied in the

city and diligently gave himself to the practice of his craft, and thus he reached

his twelfth year.

Now, while he was staying in Norwich, the Jews who were settled thele

and needed to have their cloaks or their robes or other garments {whether

held as security for loans or their own property) repaired, preferred him over

all other skinners. For they thought him to be especially suited for their work,

either because they had learned that he was honest and skiliful' of because

attracted to him by their avarice, they thought they could bargain with him

for a lower price, or as I believe instead, because by the ordering of divine

providence he had been predestined to martyrdom from the beginning of

ii*e, "rrd

gradually step by step was drawn on toward that fate. And the

Jews, thinking him to be somewhat naive and thus more suited to their pur-

pose, had chosen him to be mocked and sacrificed in scorn of the Lord's pas-

sion. For we have learned from certain Jews, who were afterward converted

to the Christian faith, that at that time they had planned to do this very thing

with some Christian. And in order to carfy out their evil purpose) at the

beginning of Lent they had chosen the boy William, who was twelve years old

urrd ,rnuioully innocent. When therefore the holy boy, ignorant of their

treacherous plan, had frequent dealings with the Jews, he was taken to task by

Godwin the priest, whose wife was the boy's aunt, and by a certain'Wulward

with whom he was staying, and he was prohibited from associating with them

any more. But the Jews, annoyed that their plans were thwarted, tried with all

their might to salvage their wicked scheme. They were especialiy eager

because the day for carrying out the crime they had decided upon was

approaching, and the victim whom they had thought they had aheady secured

had slipped out of their wicked hands. AccordinglS collecting all the cunning

o{ theii ir^fty plots, they found a man-I am not sure whether he was a Chris-

tian or a Jew-who was a most treacherous fellow and just the fitting person

for carrying out their detestabie crime. With great haste-for their Passover

was only three days off-they sent him to find and bring back with him the

victim who, as I said before, had slipped out of their hands.

(4.) How he was deceived by the Jews' messenger.

At the dawn of day, on the Monday afrer Palm Sundag that detestable

messenger of the Jews set out to execute the business that was committed to

him, and after searching with very Sreat care, he at last found the boy

\(illiam. '$(hen the child was found, the man deluded him with cunning

5zz

MEDIEVAL HAGIOGRAPHY

wordy tricks and deceived him with lying-promises' For he pretended that he

was the cook of william, archdeacon tf Nt#il;l"J'ft"' he wished to have

him as a helper i" 'h;;i';;"' *t'"'" if he should continue steadilv with him i

he would set many ;;;;r"*; in his situat"i'oilff,. ,i*plt- bov was deceived i

and trusted hi*"lf to 'ht-*""' Ht*t;;;';ishing io hau" his rnother's i

approval-fo' t'i' futt']' n"l aita by this t*"__ftt 't"'ttd with the fellow to

find her. Vhen th"y ;;; 'o-" to where. 'h"

*ut' the boy told her the reason i

for his visit, and 'r'"""ii'1"'"ft"t-g d;;;t;;t'tnt*: :flthe

net of his ':

treachery. So with many promises that son of perdition easily prevailed upon

the boy's mind *itn ii"'J*p'itg offers' vt' "t'ntt'

he could not at allgain the

mother's consent' But when the scoundr;li:::*::iffi'ff i:Jfffi'1 imother's consent' But when rnc ssuL'rs!"';;;t;*,

and in her motherly affec-

f.Tr1flH"*';.*l"Tf ;Itl':fJ"*:**"''th"traitor'o"'h'oihe'th'mother' He begs; 'ht;;;;''

He begs' bt't o"ly that he may make away with

the boy. She refuses, ;;il;;; tr'"ir'9"ra 1o" hi*' He asserts that he is the

archdeacon,s cook, #;;;"s not believ" fti* -i all' So between her and

him you might n""t ";;'"-.'""ttr" "' ;;;" a sheep an{ a wolf (who

seemed at first 'igLr

#;ttt "'oii""l i'tati*t" of u thitd' The lamb was

between them' Here ;J;;th;lp ^"! tht" tht wolf' The wolf persists so

that he mav rend ""d;;;;;;r'" 'i"tp holds her ground that she mav rescue

and save. eot u""t'l;';;;v;;*? ia "'i"o fiuo*d the one and kept on

incessantlv begging il;;'#' "i;: J;;;i;" ;other' partlv overcome bv

her son's prayers J^;"'*';;duced by the man's rosy promises' at last was

compelled against her will to give *"'' ;;;;gg"d' io*tver' for delay till

after Easter; bot the Liro, ,*ol. ir. *o.rii'i*-ri""i intt" days' not for thirty

pieces of silver.-Th";;;;r"lo*d." r"t;i*-go' and vgwed she would not

release him befcre E;; So the ,r"lror-root ihree shillings from his purse

with intent,. *""f.ii rfr, -otir.f, a*orio"riuJio btttd the capricious stub--

bornness crf " ntU" *"*^t'-"attta fylt't gf;"tr-of money to the lust of

gain. Thus 't't *'l']"*"' ;4i;4 "* 'i'-f iJ" of the innocent's service' or

rather in truth as the price of .nt'

bl:"-d' Bt" "o' even yet was the mother's

devotion shaken, n* ,rr. intuition of u .r*G evil easily removed' The wran-

gling still *tnt on'-o*ont'idt *l't' p'"it';';"0 on'the other with the pieces

of silver, so that, o i" *"rJ ".,'*t"' ao** i"' stubbornness by his continual

offers, tht b'igl't"t" ;i;h; coins that '*it"a at her might arouse her avartce'

so the mothet's ;;;;; cruellv di""#;;ili i:: though her moth-

erly af{ection only slowly gave way.under the temptation and' persuaded at

last by the shining piec"' of 1lver, 1le

;;;; oitti- ?l l* greed' and once

overcome' willingly or not'.she t'*t '" "tt"n' that which she still opposed'

Brieflv told, the *oth*' being won ;;ili; was handed over to the

wolf, and the Uoy Witliam was given up to the betrayer'

(5.) How "t,;;;;';ir" t""*' ht *" taken' mocked andli|T'"""r'n'"*

in,t,. -o'niiJ' "Lordingtv th"'

Tj?i,,1i;5:;5: ;;^;; *", passing

;l'h: t:::: j;*' ffi:J1il: ilT;;: ;;';; ''*

"na'uiJ'r'^'l'che mo'rher

Thomas of Monmou th' Life and Passion of St' \Yilliam of Norwich 523

hadentrustedtheboytohim,andthen_hewentoutagainhastily'Buttheboy's aunt said quickiy to her daughter' "Follow them at once' and take care

you find our where ,# ;;; i;ad"ing the boy off fo." Thus the girl ran out to

explore the way tf'"y -t" going' and-she foliowed them at a distance as they

turned about through somt"p'li"t' alleys' At last she saw them entering cau-

tiouslyintothehouseofacerrainJew,andsheobservedthatthedoorclosedrightafterthem'\ilrenshesawthis,shewentbacktohermotherandtoldher-t1*i11Tl],

,,0. an innocent ramb led to the sraughter, was treated

kindly by the Jews' t;;;;;;; ;; *h*' *"u being prepared for. him' he was kept

untilthe{ollcwingmorning.Butonthenextd""n*h.hinthatyearwastheirpassover, after the singing of the hymns for the jay it the synagogue, the lead-

ers of the 1.*u "rr.*f;iJ * .rr" house of the Jew mentioned earlier. suddenly

they seized hold of ;;l;t william "' h" *"' hnving his dinner and in no fear

of any treachery, "";;t; ill treated him in ""'iot"

horrible ways' For while

some of them held rrm rro* behind, others opened his mouth and gagged him

with a wooden ,"a, ?"*g i' Uy 'tto"g'

through both iaws to the back of his

neck, they fastened i' *it[ a knot "' "ghtly "*hty could' After that' taking a

short piece of rope about the thickne$ o{ orr"'. iittle 6nger and tying three

knots in it at c.,tain ai"unt" marked out' they bound it around that inno-

cent head from the i"..rr.ra to the back, forcing the middle knot into his fore-

head and the two "tht;; into his temples' The rwo ends of the rope were

srretched mort tlghi;'", tfr. 1".f. of hisiead and fastened in a very tight knot'

Theendsoftheropewerethenpassedaroundhisneckandcarriedaroundhisthroat under his chin, and there they finished off this dreadful engine of tor-

ture in a fifth knot.Butnotevenyetcouldthecrueltyofthetofturersbesadsfiedwithout

addingstillmoreSeverepains.Havingshavedhishead,theystabbeditwithcountlessthorn-points,andmadethebloodcomehorriblyfromthewoundstheymade.e"atn"y*t'"tot"'"landsoeagertornflictp-ain-thatitwasdiffi-culttosaywhethertheyweremofecruelormoreeagerintheirtortures.Indeed,theirskillintorturinggavestrengthtotheircrueltyandprovideditwith implem"rrr,. Tht", *hile the*" t""*il of the Christian name were revel-

ing in the spirit or *"ri.. around the boy, some of those present decided that

he should be fixed ro a cross in mockery of $. Lord's passion. And they did it

asiftosay,"Just"r*"to"dtmnedtheChristtoashamefuldeath'soletusalsocondemntheChristian,sothat,unitingtheLordandhisservantinalikepunishment, *" *1, "'"

U-tft upon them"the pain of His reproach that they

attribute to us"'Conspiring,therefore,toaccomplishthecrimeofthisgreatanddetestable

malice, they next laid their bloodstaineJ h""d' upon the innocent victim' and

having lifted him f'""t iftt ground ""d-f"'t"""a iti* upon the cross' they vied

with one anorher;;;i; "#orr. to make an end of him. And we, after inquir-

ing into rft. *"rr"""'v diligently-' both found the house and discovered in it

some most..rt"i" ""ittt"'"*"ik' of what had been done there' For people

5L4

MEDIEVAL HAGIOGRAPHY

say that there was there instead of a cross a post set lp benveen fiilo other

posts, and a beam *""fttJ"tross the middle post and attached to the others

on either side. And "'

*t "ft"'*ard disto'"erta' fto* th1 larks

of the wounds

and of the tronds, the right hand and roo, rr"a-u..n tightly bound and fastened

with cords, but the left hand and foot *"" pi"""d 1:l two nails' Thus' the

deed was planned so that' in case at any timi h* should be found and the fas-

tenings of the nails ai'*ut"d' it might "o'U"

at*tted that he had been killed

by Jews rather 'h"";;";;;;;' iut while in doing these things thev were

adding pain to p"i" u"d wound to wound' still they we-re noj abie to sadsfy

their senseler. .rortri'"lri ,rr.i, inborn rr"tr"J.r christians. Indeed, after all

rhese many ",ro

,r."lrliffiilffi .;; " frightful wound in his left side'

reaching all the *'r'o?" "t""' Lf rtit rtt"n "Ja "t th:i?l^'" make an end

ofthemattertheyextinguishedhismortalli{esofarasitwasintheirpower.And since *""y ""u--'

of blood *t" """ti"g down- {rom all parts of his

body, they poured r"i't* *"'er over hi*;;;;t; the blood and to wash and

.t'lh"rT;J;ff,.* boy and marryr of christ, william, d.ving the death of

time in mockery of *tio'a's death' but crowned with the blood of a glorious

martyrdom, .nr.r.ii",t;;. kingdom ";;l;tv on high'-11*,t forever' in the

year ofour Lord's rnt"'1"'ion 'fi44'()" $;;;;"y' 'ht

72nd day o{ March'a

His soui rejoices blissfully in Heaven among the shining hosts of the saints,

and his body *ork' *J'Jf"t upon earth by ihe omnipotence of divine mercy'

(6.)How they conferred about hidine him'

Thus, their wicked purpose having U!* utto*plished' the Jews consulted

with one anorher "booi*hur else was ,J. aon". ih"y took dorn'n the lifeless

body from,t" po'ii"l ;tg'" to plot *tti"r'"v shouid do with it ' ' ' lThev

discussed,t.i, p'otl- ot'ktd"t'd"y *i'hot"'reaching agreement' Meeting

again on fit""a^yltn"y"'o"tluded 'f'^''ftty should disposeof the body well

away from ,r',"i' niignit'L:c,d in ordet'o aiut" suspicion from themselves'

Nevertheles,, ftt"i'it tfte Thursday U"fo" E""t' *"t Ab'oltttion Day' when

penitents f'o* tn'lt'ghout the diocese-g"tttt'"a at the-cathedral to receive

absolution of their siis, the Jews decideffi;; it would be sa{er to wait until

FridaY to disPose of the corPse'l

(7.) How ht *;';;t;ita o"t and hidde' in the wood'

Thenextdaydawned'whent"try*h"'"theChrisdanreitgionspeciallycelebrates ,r'" "a"i';'""?

th* n"""'nble Cross's On that day it is the custom

among all Christiai'-"o' o"ty to fast but also to abstain from all amusements

and pleasur.*, ""i'*n'i" 'olt' "'oond; ;; th""ht' of the saints to be dili-

gently engaged it' dtuo"t ltt""d""tt "' nt-tttt' ,At.darlisht, therefore' on this

day the J.*' who had been chosen itlt'a"y before namely' Eleazar' and

another, tied up ;;;;;' of the utt""i^*"'tvr $flilliam in a sack and carried

it out. And when they had got out "i;; city with the. trody and were iust

entering Tho'pt rilia' i' i"not"ta' ti'u'-u'certain citizen of Norwich-

indeed,, one of th;';;; "-nt"t ""d 'itttt" of the citizens-met them' His

christian name was Elward and his J;;;;. was Ded' After visiting all the

Thomas of Monmou th, Life and Passion of St''William of Nornich 525I^A?HY

otherothers,ounds

.stened

us, the.he fas-

r killed)y were

satisfYrfter all;ft side'r an end

: powel.s of his

ash and

death ofgiorious:r, in the

March.are saints,le mercy.

:onsultedhe lifeless

. . [TheY. Meetingbody wellremselves.

)an whento receive

wait until

n speciallY:he customnusements; to be dili-fre, on thiseazar6 and

and carriedd were just

Norwich-_t them. Hisiting all the

churches in the city during the previous night' he was -returning

from the

church of Saint tut"ry tutrgi"i"rr,-*hich is the church at the hospital near the

wood, and was making hf, *^y with a single servant -along.

the edge of the

wood to Saint Leonardls church. Divine grace affanged for this to happen so

that there might be a lawful witness,T "nd

when the body was afterward dis-

covered, the matter *ign, not be concealed from the Christians' So Elward,

comingupontheJews"astheyweregoingalong'recognizedthem'buthecould not tell what it was that one of them was carrying in front of him on his

horse,s neck' However, being suspicious and considering what sort of business

the passers-by were .ondorti,,g and *hat it could possibiy be that they were

.nriing with them, and why they shoutd have gone so far from home on a

day wh"en Jews did not normally leave their houses,s he halted for a moment

and asked them where they were going' Then, going nearer and reaching out

his hands, he touched whar they were caffying with his right hand, and he

founcl it was a human body. But they, frightened at having been discovered

and in their terror having nothing to ,ug g*u. their horses free rein and

rushed into the thick of tlie wood. Whereupon a suspicion of some mischief

suggested itself to the mind of Elward; yet he turned his thoughts once again

,oif," road he had been traveling with the pious enthusiasm of.devofion'

Meanwhile the Jews, pickin! tireir way through the tangled thickets of the

wood, hung the body by a thin flu*.,, cord to a tfee and left it there, and then

returned home by *orh", path' And because they were extremely terrified

and conceived new fears at every meeting with anyone that they saw, I coniec-

ture that the same thing happened to them that usually occurs to very timid

people who are feelingluilty. Eot in such a case they look with suspicion at

.u.ryorr" they encouniet, "ttd

they see pitialls everywhere' and they suppose

that tree trunks and stones seen at a distance afe men. At any rate when they

gotback,theJewstoldtheothersthemishapthathadoccurr.edtothemOnthe road.

(8.) How by giving a hundred marks to the sheriff they were rid of their

fear.

The enemies of the Christians, being very much alarmed' were quite at a

loss to know what to do. And in despair, while one was suggesting this and

another that measure for their common safety, they decided at last to hasten

to John the sheriff, who in the past had been their refuge and their one and

orrl'y pror..tor.e So by common .o"*."' it was arranged that certain of them

who were their chief men in influence and power should go ro him and deal

with him so rhat, supported by his alrthority, they should have nothing more

to fear. so they *..rt ,nd passing within the castle walls, were admitted to the

presence of the sheriff. tir"y rria that they had a great secret to divuige and

wished to communicate secretly with him alone.'Without delay, when all who

wefe present had withdfawn, John bade them immediately to declare what

they wanted, and they replied, "Listen, we are placed in a position of great

urr"i"ry, and' ifyo., ."n hetp ot out of it, we promise you a hundred marks' "

He, delighted at the ,r.r-b., of marks, promised that he would keep their

5?-6

MEDIEVAL HAGIOGRAPHY

secret and that, according to his power' he would not fail to give them his sup-

o"T::3,1J,'i'lT;" the great secret had been revealed, Elward was hastilv

summoned. 'When i" ""i"'ta'

he was immediately ordered' or rather com-

pelled, by the sheriffl ;;;h;; it *ot"d to or not' to take an oath that he

would reveal .ro irrto"rn"rion ug"irr*, the Jews nor divulge what he had seen

during his lifetime, ;;-;;;;, rite until hJ himself was at the point of death'

But the ordering .f ;;;i"i"e goodness by no means wished that event to be

hidden forever' *nitit Ht attt'Lintd 'f'ot'ta be revealed in many ways to the

praise of His iff",t'ioo' L*'ty' "nd

to keeping alive the memory of His own

r*Til:J*'#ffi" five years hadgone by, this Etw_ard, overtaken bv infir-

mity, was brought ';;h; t"i of his life' But as his last hour was drawing near'

he was admonished * "-"i'it" by the holy boy' Willia.m himself (who was

abeadynow becomi"g "t'y famous th'oogho"'tht *holt.province by his fre'

quent miract..), ,to"? ""gfttt to

"utul tle things he had seen to whomever

he pleased' So, he i;;;d"" his bedside t"'tuiti persons whom he thought

worthytoreceiveti"'"ttf"'ionofsuchagreatsecret'namely'Wicheman'amonk to whom the bishop had commitr.a itr" responsibility.for receiving the

confessions of ptnite"t' ""d ' ' ' ' priest of Saint Nicholas'10 At last on his

deathbed, arrd al*o'-t *iitt t'i' l"'tio'd" in obedience'to the martyr's com-

mand, he set forth in o'it' what he had first seen and afterward had come to

know was certainlY true'

Allofthisl,Thomas'amonkofNorwich,afterhearingitfromtheirlipsandknowingittol""""intytrue'havebeencarefultohanddowninwrit-ing, because I did not think that the story of so irnportant a truth ought to be

lost ot concealed bY silence'

(9.) How a Ug* f'o- ht'v"" gleamed over his body like a ladder of fire'

Vhile these things were going on in the cit5 on the very same day' that is

the Friday before ,#-ru.r.if""Jt of th" ,.sorre.tion of the Lord' the divine

grace'which,,"t"t'"nsentfromHi'-"'u""ts'condescendedtoexhibitaround about the body of the glorious

^^rto"which was lying in the wood'

certain glorious ""i*t"i"' of his piety' Fo' to*"'d evening of that same day

a frerylight suddeniy nu'f"a dow" f'om heaven' which' extending by degrees

as far as the ptace;ffiilt.d;;;, bl^rl,"dinthe eyes of manv people who

were in different ofu"t'' Particuiarly Henry de Sprowston' formerly the

keeper of rhe stableffi#;;;4t, ,r* i, as he was standing at the door

of his house *irr, "rirri, r"-ity. TF,. r"ay i*g"tda, formerlywife of william of

Apulia, with her attendants saw it *". 'srr","t", th. lorr. of God, lives near the

hospitalofSaint'r",,04"*a"1"',looki'gafterthesick,andengagedinsuchservices, ,h. liu., as

'^ i"{gn, for the sal-u"tior, o{ her soul. But in the same

night, when the 'i; ;*;; of- the.hosfital were getting up for the midnight

office in the silence of the night, th"y l"* the brlghmess of that same light

when Legara" ,fto*ta it to tt"*' Indeed some of iht* "y thar even on the

morning of Holy S"*au, the brightne"'*"' apparent to them as they gazed

Thomas of Monmou th, Life and' Passion of St' Witliarn of Norwich 5L7

untilsunrise.Moreover,thatlightdividedintorworaysandseemedtotakethe shape of a very torrg't"dd"r,""*t"rrding from below into the sky to the east-

ward. And, as they whl first found the body iying in the open air in the wood

testified, one of these rays stretched as f", ".

his head and the other to his feet'

sfhat else did the divine grace wish to signify to His faithful ones with this

sign except that ir ** rfi, pleasure ro declare, by a clear indication to all,

how great was the merit of him whom He was so glorifying by signs from

heaven? For the form of the ladder typifies his ascent to glory, and the bright-

ness of the light declares his deserving of the martyr's crown'

{10.) How he was discovered and by whom'

[On Saturday morning, the nun Legardaand some of the residents of the

hospital wenr out before ,irrri*" to find the spot where-the light had appeared'

'$0hen they got there' they found the boy's body at the base- of an oak tree'

where fwo crows *.r" iryrng to feed or, ,ir. corpse . Nevertheless, their efforts

were in vain because *divinJ providence, having foreseen to preserve him ' ' '

, wished him to remain undefiled by birds and wild beasts'"1

(11.)How he was found a second time'

On that same Saturd ay, aftet sunrise, Henry de Sprowston' the forester

whom I mentioned urr.*,'*""nting his horse, went into the wood to see if he

could find anyone who might be doing mischief by cutting down anything in

the wood without permisslon' As he was going along' either chance or' as I

ratherbelieve, the divine will inclined his mind to*"td the place where he had

seen the beams of the bright light gleaming on the day before. \fhile he was

p"rri"* u*k and forth in"that iart*of the wood, suddenly he observed a man

cufting wood who said that he had discovered there close by a boy who had

been slain. Then, ied by the peasant, Henry found the boy' but who he was or

how he had got there he .o.,ld 'ot unde,stand. But when he had looked at

himverycarefullytofindoutifbyanychanceheknewhim,heperceivedthathe had been wouna*J, *a he noticed the wooden torture in his mouth'

Becoming aware that the boy had been treated with unusual cruelty, he now

began to"suspect, from the manner of his treatment' that it was no christian

but in fact a Jew *no rrra presumed to slaughter an innocent child of this kind

with such horrible barbarity. so, observing th. pl".e very carefully and taking

note of the quarter of the h."u..,,, he became certain that this was the Same

place where on the day before he had seen the rays of light gleaming and flash-

ing upward. e..orlig1y, when he had considered these things with much

asronishmenr, Henrf J*rrt Uu.t and told his wife and all his household all he

had seen. Then summoning a priest he announced to him that the body of a

little innocent who had been tieated in the most cruel manner had been dis-

coveredexposedinthewood,andthatheverymuchwishedtotakeitawayfrom there and, if J. pri"rt approved, to bury it in the churchyard of Sprow-

ston.Afteru*ry."rn.rtlyd"libe'atingaboutcarryingoutthisintention'theycame to the conclusion ih"t, b..",rr. the festival of Easter was coming the

neft day, they should defer their arrangement until the third day12 and so

carry out their devout intention more fittingly'

MEDIEVAL HAGIOGRAPHY

528

(12') How he was buried in the wood rt off. But in the meantime by one

'so the business of;'rvins him.was til'*j;-J';:'}il ffJ'',]"-., F;:

man after another telling others :n"tt ]'-t;;i;a"rr,'ir1r,"tk the hearts ofall

T;*H#,, *;:rHfJJ:i:::ff: ;;;;; ;'irred wilh a s'|ranse

excitemenr, rt.,. *r".ii'i"r"'.rr*J.a *nrr "rt,i"J p"oplt' and already many

or them asserre d,i, ^,''.

Jrr,r.,. r "* yl' i tr ji1;T *|;f Ti ;i:,'..i,' |Ii1

that time' And so.some were "*d1i?-: here and there, especially the boys

;;;;;'"" rv aftair' Manv were runnrnt;";;;.y-ru,i"ain crowds to the

#.f**:ruul; ffiiJ:i$::ililH; ffi;; ""d,:r de'cec'cing'lhe

marks of the to"t"t"'l' #'il;;"a t"'"i"tr' iooking'into'the method of the

acr, some suspected that the Jews *"r..ir?Jil;':;?il *:];:$4f:+:1

:lJ,l*:,'nnu*u;;il1":*=;::T3Jy.!-ffi ;;;*h""h"v

heard how the t-'J;;;'G *o rt";atii-t"t ro'"'tt"*telves' and when

thev returnta, 'tttv i-t"'iuti 'r" '"'ni"]ui;;

;t others' And thus all

through tht S"tu'dY";"d ffi"t'rt ttt*';" "ll the city everwvhere was

occupied in going ;i#;;;;g ti';' "ili"*"' lnd 'u"vuodv

was excited

;; il""rh ""*n:l::1':iitT"'Jiur rervor was urging alr or them to

destroy the Jews' ffi;;;;o",d.th"'"""0''nt" nt"e laiJhands upon them

except'hut ""'"'lii u' i"" tr sheriff f-t* tt'"v kept quiet for awhile'

wr,'.,hings#;;;:lin:hi.*l:nkri:is1'J!,:i:;'3:1:ro,#,*l;'t.i'-nl',r;,:l:j::J,h;;; ,r,. n,,i hou,.or ih. dav, he has-

readY to carry ou

tened to where 'nt'ul""a -"'iv"''gtJ';tl;;

*" still'lving in the open

air. But when he *"': the place wi'nol:'i";; 1"1'1"'1i1lHt":t"1'il'llimpurse, rr" d..ii.i that tre must chanse his plans o*tltt

:;d.*i}, *t,i, ,il

nm*:[:n:*ll*ll:::]"#'$T:';'$;ffil";i;?*h"'"i'r;J;;t" found' - r ' 'r' ^"-r't rn he mectioned' that while the body was being

l,"l**:;:6l:tF:i{,T{:ff :H,"J3,:",lff i*:';::;,';;?t1f

*;***ru::llii::"':[T*;'o;;';: And Lhink i'l was divinerv

determined 'n^"'l"i*;;i;;;ot""a *'lilt place there"so that afterward the

body might bt ""i'f""ed foi *"""'"""l"ijlio"' and although he was trans-

lated,yetinthisplace'too'divineJ";;t;ilto*ukthimillustriouswlthmany mirucles' . : ^* /r^r*'rin took pains to learn whether it was he'

ir3')How.the priest Godwti':;;J;;;U"r*a, the word spread through

,.,"y*1,:n;l'f.T::il#':[ :#it'; il; ;"''lhe bodv oi wil i

"m *ho

had foflnerl, r'"i aeal'tgs with'nt;;:' ;J;' i;tt the news came to the ears

Thomas of Monmou th, Life and Passion o{ St' William of Norwich 529

:l

c

c

Iit

of Godwin the priest' whose surname was Sturt, and who was married to the

martyr's aunt.And when he learned from the boy's companions that it really was so, he

took care the next day to visit the place with his son Alexander, then a deacon,

and with Robert, the martyrt brother. He did so first in order to make sure

wherher ir r,vas lfilliam himself, and also so that' i{ the boy were recognized,

Godwin might perform the burial service right away. Butbecause he could not

be recognizld until the earth that was laid upon him had been removed, they

determired to dig him up. However, while they were digging and throwing

out the earth, *h.r, tit.y got near the body, suddenly the ea-rth before their

very eyes seemed by some irrong force to be lifted up from below and thrown

orri. *h"n the diggers saw this, immediately a gre^t' horrorand amazement

penetrated their hearts, and falling back they left off what they had started'

But when the priest ."il.d them back, they took courage and resumed their

interrupted ,*rk. B,t, when the same thing happened again the same way as

before, it seemed to them certain that here was one who was not yet dead but

alive. At that the priest crying out ordered them to hurry, for he believed that

they would find him still alive. They were hastening eagerly, when they actu-

ally rouched the body with their hands. vhen the soil was femoved, the face

*", .*por.d, and they plainly distinguished whose it was' Brother recognized

brother and friends their friend. Brother wept for his dead brother and friends

bewailed their murdered friend. The more they had loved him living, the more

they grieved for him slain. And when they came closer they were gready

asronished because, although so many days had passed since the time when

they suspected he had been put to death, yet absolutely no bad smell was per-

..pritrt.. But what seemed riror" d"r"ruing of their wonder was-that though

there was never a flower there nor any sweet-smelling herb growing there-

about-yet there the perfume of spring flowers and kagtant herbs was wafted

to the nostrils of all present. At last having celebrated the burial rites they

replaced the earth thut h"d been dug up and disturbed, and commending the

soul and body to God they went their way'

(14.) Concerning the warning to his aunt in a vision''when the priest-Godwin got home he related to his wife Liviva, who was

the boy's aunt' exactly what lad happened' Immediately clapping her hands

and breaking out intoloud cries' she said, 'olt is true, and my dream was only

roo rrue. It came to me on rhe saturday before Palm sunday, when the Lord

was pleased to reveal to me plainly-in spite of my ignoranc-e-the most cer-

tain truth of this business. I saw in a vision of the night, in which I was stand-

ing in the middle of the streer of the marketplace when suddenly the Jews

came upon rne running up from all sides, and they surrounded me as I fled and

they seized me. And ut ,ft.y held me they broke my right leg with a club and

they tore it away from the rest of my body, and running off rapidly' they

seemed to carry it away with them. O, how tfue was the forewarning of my

vision! o, how happy I would be if I had not dreamed a true dream! I remem-

6rtte

vre

S-

:h

;hIO

rS

530

MEDIDVAL HAGIOGRAPI{Y

ber what you' my lord, said to me when I related this dream to.you: that soon

I would lose one of *y dear ones :l':"*h'ntlt*tt and one whom I certainly

loved more than arl *hrrr. Behold, r "rr,

,ro* ,ufiering what- you predicted'

See, I'm sad to ,ny i' tt"' happened i"" "' voo predicied'" She had scarcely

finished speaking J; .rriripi.t".a her to the marrow, her face grew Yefy

oale. she lort.o'r.io,];;il ;s though it"J trt" slipped from the hands of

il' t;.T:13,t-':*l".tiT,*f;;;} a wh'e, rhe woman rose, and immediatelv

bursdng into tears, ;;;;;[J tr" n"pl'-"* *tto* she had so greatly loved'

For a long while afterw"'a 'f'" could scarcely be restrained from her lamenta-

tions, and she kept t" i"*""tt"g him J; 't" i'"a so dearly and tenderly

Ioved.

ff ; :: :;;Til:? :T#;T:'"1iffi'#H,'lh "'lo'v "1 l* son's murder

came to the ears of hi' -oth"r who' "uto'"lly"ouerwhelmed

by the sad news'

immediately f"i"ttJ "*uy as if she were dead' After a while' however' recov-

ering herself, ,h. t "ri"rr"i io Xor*i.f, *iit""taelay to inquire into the truth

of the matte,. g"'*;J" 'r"

i**ta by th" report of many people that her son

was dead ura *ur'flril;; tn. *ooa]irimediately itutittg her hair and

clappingherhands,sheranweeping""a-"itiogthro"ghthestreetslikeamad woman. At last going to tnt r'oo'l oir"'"'i*"" *ho* I mentioned

before and inquirifi;i;ffi the priest cod*in and her sister, she cculd learn

nothing abour rn. :rr;;;;;, il rh";th except that he had been slain in

an exrraordinary way. Neverthelesr,.fr;;";;ny'probable indications and

conclusions ,h" *;, ;;;uin."d tt ", tn"l-*"r. ".icnlistians

but Jews who

had dared to ao ,irl, .* "ia*a. \fith u *o*un', readiness of belief she eas-

ily gave credence ';;;;" coniectures' Whereupon she at once burst forth into

denouncing'ft" l"*' p"bliclv.with f"1"ii i"a ttdtfli,':t:" ;:T:'Jff:r::;

behaved like a moth"i*ou*d by a morher's love; sometlmes

likeawomanlvithawoman'spassionaterashness'Andso'assumingascer-tain what she only suspected' ""t"ing';"'h;;

;ht imagined' as though it had

actually u..r,...n|'il*t"i'i"tt'h il;;;""d of,"" places' And carried

along by h.' -ott'"'iy ii"""' 'rtt ltp''t"rr';;";"" "o"'vlodv

with dreadful

screams' protesting ti'"t the Jt*' r'^a,"Jt"ti ""a stolen her son away fron

her and killed himl if i' to"aott *o'fttJ "ery greatly upon the minds of th*

populace ,o u.t"i' 'ttt-"u't"

and so "ut'yuoJy

began to cry out with one

voice that all the Jews ought 'o

Ut u""'ty a"t"oy"a as eternal enemies ol

Christians and the Chrisdan religion' .^^r +r^^ ra*rc ar a svnod and offered rc-^'^iii

f How the priest Godwin.accused the Jews at a syn

prove by ordeal ;;;t were guilty of the death of the boy \filliam'

\ilhensomedayshadpassed'thtd"yforholdingthesynoddrewnearand accordi", ,J.;*o* ni.hop EborJi pr"sided. Th. s.rmon having been

preached, tttt ufo"*id Godwiq 'nt

pt*tt' arose' saying that he was about l*

bring to ,t " .u* oi?" Ui.t op ."a ftir tt"it., pri.tit a distr"ssing complaint

Thomas of Monmouth, Life and Passion of St. William of Norwich 511

and one which had not been heard of in the present time. \fherefore, aftereveryone had been ordered to be silent, he began in the following manner:

"Very reverend Lord, Father, and Bishop, may your goodness, which has

been so well known in the past and will continue to be for all time, deign toincline your ears graciously to the words of our complaint. May also the rev-

erend assembly of my brethren and fellow priests, whom I see attending thepresent synod, condescend to listen patiently ro my sad complaint and receive

it without indifference. Truly I have come forward to plead not so much a pri-vate or domestic case as to make known to Fou an outrage that has recentlybeen done to the whole Christian community. Indeed I think it is notunknown to you, Father and very reverend Prelate, nor do I think it is a secref

to most of you, my dear brethren, that a certain boy-a very little boy and aharmless innocent, too-was treated in the most horrible manner in Passion

Week, was found in a wood, and up to this time has been buried there withouta Christian funeral. He was indeed a cousin of my own children, and because

of the tie of kinship which united us he was very dear to me. Therefore, whenI lay my complaint before you all concerning his death,I can hardly keep thetears from my eyes. To begin with, I excuse all Christians as innocent in this

detestable act of murder. But, in the second place, I accuse the Jews, the ene-

mies of the Christian name, as the doers of this deed and as the shedders ofinnocent blood. Third, I am ready to prove the truth of my statements at such

time and place and by such proof as is allowed me by Christian law. Youshould not consider me hasty or unwise in the present business. If I were notcertain of the truth of the charge I have laid before you, I certainly would nothave come forward so confidently to establish the proof I have promised. Andthat the facts are so you can judge for yourselves, not only from the practices

that the Jews are bound to carry out on the days specified, but also from the

manner of the punishment inflicted and the character of the wounds as well as

from the many circumstances that fit together. To these and many other most

evident proofs must also be added Leviva, the boy's aunt, with her veryremarkable warning vision. There is also the weeping mother who laments

that she was circumvented and seduced by the crafty tricks of a verY cunningmessenger of the Jews, and so her son was taken away. Thus, since these

things are so certain and I too am concerned when my neighbor's house is inflames, therefore I come before you as my one and only protection, and I pre-

sent my complaint to you with greater confidence because I firmly believe thatyou will by no means deviate from the laws of right and equity."

\7ith this conclusion he brought his speech to an end and was silent. Withattentive ears, eyes fixed on the ground, and an anxious heart, he waited forthe bishop's answer. AccordinglS while all were disturbed and stunned atwhat had occurred, they say that the prelate, very much moved by the atrocifyof the deed and motivated by his zeal far justice, replied as follows:

"What you affirm to be certain is so far clearly uncertain to usl however,

we shall take care to arrive at reliable knowledge of this business. And if

532MEDIEVAL HAGIOGRAPHY

indeed it turns out ro be as you say, you may be sure that the rigor of our jus-

dce shall nor be found wanting in any (espect. But since it is not pfopef that a

just judge should pronounce ,ipo' thor. who are absent and unheard, let the

JewsbesummonedandhaveahearingtomorrowThen'iftheyareconvicted'iet th"* receive the punishment they deserve'"

Thehandlingofthisbusinessbeingthusputoffuntilthenextday'andthebusiness of the sfnod having been deali with in part, all dispersed intending to

rerurn the next morning. drr, on rhe same d"n by order of the bishop, the

dean13 of Norwich summoned the Jews to appear and ordered them to pre-

sent themselves before the bishop in the mo.nirrg to answer before the synod

regarding such an important matter'

The Jews *rr. fr."tly disturbed and ran to sheriff John as rheir only

refuge, seeking help "arrd

.orrrrr.l in so difficult a cause because by trusting to

frlr-i"ir"*ug.ifr"V had often escaped many dangers. So_Joh-n, having taken

counsel and being one who was not ignorant of the truth, did not allow the

Jewstocomet0thesynodonthefollowingday.Indeedhesentwordthroughhis servanrs that rhe iirhop had nothing to do wlth the Jews, and that in the

absence of the r.i,,g th. Jews should *"k" ,'o answer to such nonsense on the

part of the Christiarrr. io, the bishop having received this message (and the

priest wishing to repeat his complaint of th. p."uiors day in full synod),

inquired of Dom Aimar, prior of iaint Pancras'i and other very learned and

prudentmenwhohupp.'edthentobepresentatthesynod,whatanswertheyit o,rgt, ought to br'gio"rr. They declared unanimously that a clear outrage

was being done ro Go"d and christian law, and they advised that it should be

quickly restrained with rigorous ecclesiastical justice. In the meantime, how-

ever, the bishop, not wishing to appear hasty' and yet not shrinking from

doing what was right, decidJ thatlhe.aforesaid enemies of Christ should be

summonedasecondandathirdtime,lesttoomuchhurryingofthesentenceshould either go beyond moderation or exceed the ordinary limits of custom'

The dean did not ;;i;; * executing what the bishop had decreed. But the

Jews refused to "pp""r.'Wt.n

the syriod had come to an end, the bishop again

consulted with the wisest men as io -h"t was to be done under the circum-

stances. Accordingly it was determined by common consent that notice

should be given * i"rr" that he should nor protecr the Jews against God_, and

to the Jews that peremptory sentence -o"id be passed upon them' and that

unless they at orr.. ."J" to clear themselves of ih. charge they must under-

stand that without doubt they would be exterminated'

ofcourseJohnmovedbythesewordscamewiththeJewswithoutdelay,intending to hear *ttu, *lgi' be said against them' and presented himself'

grumbling,beforethebishop' r , . r,,:- There-upon the "fo"'"id

priest rose and explained his previous com-

plaint'andwhatheassertedin-ordhepromisedthathewouldprovewith-out delay bY the iudgment of God'

The Jews on rh; advice of the sheriff denied the charge brought against

them,butastothep,opo..dordeal,theyaskedforashortdelaytodeliberate.

Thomas of Monmouth, Life and Passion of St' William of Norwich 533

But when the priesr refused this and ptotested against any kind of delay, with

theassentofthebishoptheyproceedtotakecounselintendingtoconferSecretlyaboutit.Thesheriffwasconsultedastowhatremainedforthemtodo in such a critical situation, since they perceived that on the one hand any

delay was denied rhem, and on the othei they were dreadfully afraid of the

trialbyordeal.Afterseekingsomewayofcompromise,withagreatdealofdiscussion, and after dealing with each alternative on its merits, they found no

sa{e escape from such u grl", difficulty excepr by obtaining some tfuce and

delay. If they could obta-in that,-thei nop€a;tney co6lu eagrryE?Q.'rf-rrsr'the'-

king with money the favor of getting "

.h*,'." to argue the case, and so utterly

p.ri"n end to the rumor of the crime of which they stood accused'.WhenthegreatestpartofthedayhadbeenSpentinthiskindofdiscus-

sion, at l"rt tt Jy sent t; the bishop "rking

that rhey be allowed some sort o{

delay. When this was denied them, the sheiiff departed with the Jews, without

-nkirrg the customafy fequest for permission to leave. Bur because it was not

safe for them to remain outside, the sheriff protected them within the defenses

of the castle until, their security having been guaranteed by a royal edict, they

mightbesafeforthefutureandoutofh"rmtway.l7henitwastoldtothebishop and his supporlers that they had gone awaY'the bishop said nothing at

the time because he feared openly to oppo*" the king and his officers' Instead

he reserved the speech which hui b".r, rhus inrerrupted, intending to repeat it

when a future occasion should arise'

(17.)HowAimar,thepriorofSaintPancras'askedleavetotakeawaywith him the bodY of the holY marryr'

ButAimar,thepriorofSaintPancras,havingseenandheardandpon-dered all that had taken place and moved by inward devotion of heart, drew

aside a cerrain priest from whom he took pains to inform himself very fully

and care{ully "bo..,t

the facts of the case aS far as the priest knew them. But

when he learned the manner of the boy,s death, both the kind of torture and

rhe marks and number of the blows, what else could he infer with all of this

evidence except that the most holy boy had uuly been killed by the Jews as an

Lrsult- to Christ?So,movedbyacertaininwardwarmthofdevotion,hewentstraighttothe

bishopandearnestlybeggedwithmanyprayersthathemightbeallowedtotake away with him the body of the holy boy. But when he couid not succeed in

obtaining his request, it is said that he answered that if he had been so fortu-

nate as to get him to saint Pancras, no amounf of silver or gold would have

induced hiir to allow the boy to be taken away. Instead, he would have kept

him very diligently like a most precious treasure, and the boy would have been

properly glor"ifi"d'u..ording to his merits and become famous by frequent ven-

eration aid worship. These words of the prior so affected the mind of Bishop

Eborard that they blca*r an incentive to his veneration and served to increase

his devotion toward the holy boy. urged by this and affected by the advice of

very many, he determined that the body of the blessed boy should be brought

into the cathedral church and be buried in the monks, cemetery.

si4MEDIEVAL HAGIOGRAPHY

(18.) How after being laid out and washed he was found to be uncor-

r"nt;t'

" the bishop chose certain of the monks along with some of the clergy

to bring the boy in, ""d

he directed them to carry out his orders on April24'

\(hiletheywerecarryingouttheir.instructionsandwere'ustrefurning'solarge acrowd of the to*"*o" people me-t them that you would have thought

very few had stayed ill;; i., tt "

.ity. Thus that precious and desirable ffea-

sure was carried *J-;;;e deligir of clergy and people and brought by

the venerable convent of the monks in pro."*rlon and carried into the cathe-

dralchurch"rrdplac.-d*ithitsbierbeforethealtaroftheHolycross'More-over the bier was tout"J-i'h a festive drapery' and candlesticks were placed

upon it on both sides at ail four .orrrrrr, and they gleamed with burning

tapers. The mass "f ;;;;as.solemnly 'ong

by the monks' and the whole

.frlrt.ft was filled from end to end with crowds o{ citizens'

And when ,ft. fuf"* had bee" celebrated' the body was laid up between

the pulpit and the *o"tt" choir lest the crowds of people that were pressing in

desiring to kiss tft" Uiti u"d if possible to ""h fo'*"td to see the bodg should

hinder rather ,rt"" i"ipl;;;t'ht"" who were performing the proper min-

istry of washing 't'"''oip"' For it.was a ioy to be present at so great a specta-

cle and good fortune to bt 't""ding

nea'by' So some of the brethren were

chosen to wash the body and' when it *u' *"ttted' to wrap it in an albls and

linen that had been Ll"rr"d and, when ir was wrapped, to place it again upon

the bier. And they whose tusiness it was took oif th. martyr's coat and the

shoesfromhisfeetandpreparedtowashhimasiSthecustomwiththedead.But while rt.y *.,J*lir'ig rti*' behold' this wonder' this more astonishing

than all wonders, happened' for although thirty-two days had passed since

his death, he was f""a to be unch"t'ltd and without corruption in any

patt.16For, while h; ;' in the hands oi tho" who carried him' his fingers'

arms, and other limbs seemed so pliant that you would have believed him to

be sleeping rather it'"" at"a' But what was even more wonderful' while they

werewashinghisface,freshbloodsuddenlyissuedfr:*'hitnostrils'sothatthe company of those present *"'" ^*^'"i'

R'' tht blood kept flowing drop

by drop, thor. *t'o *J'" f"tpirlg ""f" "t"ite caught it in linen cloths' and

whenitceasedtheyagainwashedhisface.Buttheywhowerepresentatthewondrous,ig6, "ft";;'J """"d

t"'t'ut' both while they were washing him

and especiaUy *i,if"'f" blood *u' floJ"g' so strange a,fragrance of exceed-

ing sweetner* g,tt'"J'heir nostrils' tn"' if'"t pt'fumt itself made clear to them

that the giver of "il '*tt'n"'s had truly tJ-"'o honor the holy body' For

what else .o,rta ,rr" ,,"eerness of the di.iin.-pr.r.nce have intended to signify

ro us excepr that in rhis way He was openly ieclaring how great were the mar-

tyr,s merits i" ,fr"'righ, of ft."u"rrl W. "ir" le"rneJ from the feport of these

Samementhattheydiscoveredsureandobviousindicationsofmartyrdominhim. First *t

"n nil f""a *u' washed

"t'd 'hti' hands cat{1'llr passed over it'

among the nomer,J", purr.ror.s of thorns they came upon pieces of the actual

thorns. rn"y .**l*"iit "*" and took care to preserve them with utmost reY-

Thomas of Monmou th, Life and' Passion of St' Wiltiam of Norwich 535

erence'Next'whiletheyexaminedonebyonealltheportionsofthesacredbody, they found evident signs of *u"y'io* in h1s hands and feet and side'

Morecver rhere were plain indications that he had been doused with boiling

warer. At lasr "*", *u*frirrg the body they clothed him in an alb' wrapped him

in linen, and put him back upon the bier'

\(lhile th.r" thing, *t" Ltitg done' a search was made through the whole

city for u ."r.ophug"os in whichlhe martyr's sacred body might be laid, but

none could be found. so a grave *", doi in rhe cemetery at the foot of the

wall of the chapter house, where the boJy might be entombed in a wooden

cof6n. But while rhey were digging, strange to;ll' a sa-rcophagus was actually

found there resting,rpon "roli"r."goth *er. clea' and pure inside because no

corpse had ever bl"n pla.ed in them. Indeed this discovery was immediately

accepted u, u *ir*.i.i 'i"tt among the great men of the church and its first

founders not one was found *ho ,.*"mbered these sarcophagi, or who had

brought them, or when they had been hidden there. consequently we coniec-

ture thar divine providencehad preserved these intact and unused for such a

long time for St. William'

1rg.t of his entombment in the monks' cemetery'

Iilhenthesethingshadbeenaccomplishedasweha.verelatedandhissoulhad been.o**.rrdJ to God as is customary with the dead, the glorious mar--

ryr was taken inro the inner cemetery to be turied with the whole convent of

thebrethrengoi,'gu.ro,ei*p,ocessionwithPsalmsandpraises.Theceme-refy was filled wirl thousands of people who entered by the gate on the other

side, and the area was hardly large enough for those who. kept coming i". oithe one side were the clergy arrd the *oik, who were celebrating the funeral

service with songs of prais'e; on the other were the laity who were standing by

with the ,r."r.riof ;oy. r,rt uttlrough they who were present differed in grade

and in sex, they we re'al] of.one mind in wishing to see the sight' At last, after

the service had been properly celebrated and the sepuichre had been decently"'frap"raa

at the entlance of the cemetery ulr'Lrlc'c',-- uv:'t^'e'-o-al^iotar thc

bodyofthemostblessedmarryrwastakenfromthebierandlaidwithinit.And as it lay in the sepulchr. i, *ui".*for.a ro view for a period of several

hourstothosewhowerepermittedtolook.,po,,it,wrappedinanalb.Buttothose who h"p;tl ;;' 't""aing "t"" "'

I was informed afterward by

some of them, it was granted ,o ,.rrr. there the sweet-smelling fragrance thal I

mentioned before. Lastly, instead oiu ,t"tr, because no slab was to be had, the

concave half of the other sarcophagus was placed. ovlr him and stone was

fixed ro stone with cement. "When ,li *u, firrlhrd, leaving the Lord to.watch

over him, the convent of monks rerurned to the church chanting' but the rest

returnedtotheirhomesglorifyingthewonderfulworksoftheLord.

NOfgS 1 . -1-- v/^^,^*6 ch,,*h .ince Anticuitv. but inl.Celibacyforpriestshadbeenanidealinthe.!(estern.ChurchsinceAntiquitSbutin

the Early Middle Ages clerical *"rri"gi';;u, ;;;.*.t. since the mid-eleventh centufy'

papal reformer.'frJi.girf"red a^gainst ri" pra.ti.e, tlut a century later it was still common

in England. The priest Godwin srorr, "r''i#jli;;; ;;;; in the Lvents following \fillian's

The Jewish Martyrs of Blois

The lewish Martyrs of Blois i.,"-r-:.,. r.r ,

r. Epnnelu oF BoNN, FRoM THE SEFEn ZaxnrcaurENTRY FoR rrTr'What shall we say to God, how to speak and justify ourselves' the Lord found

ouf ouf sins in 1171., too. For evil looms in France,l and great destruction in

the city of Blois. There were abouf forty Jews who lived in the city, and on

that evil Thursday toward evening,2 the calamity occurred: a certain Jew rode

to water his horse and beheld a servant there-may his name be blotted out of

the Book of Life!-watering his lord's horse. The Jew was carrying some

untanned skins in his arms,3 and one of the rolls of leather slipped so that itwas visible under his cloak. The servant's horse saw the whiteness of the

leather in the darkness and was frightened. He iumped backward, so the ser-

vant could not bring him to the water. Then the Christian servant panicked

and returned to his lord, saying: "Listen, my lord, to what so-and-so the Jew

did. I rode after him to the river to water your horse, and beheld him throw-

ing into the river a Christian boy killed by the Jews. !7hen I saw this, I pan-

icked and hastened to refurn lest he kill me as well. And even the horse

underneath me was frightened by the stirring of the watefs when he threw the

boy into them, and it did not want to drink." Now he knew of his lord that he

would rejoice in disaster,a because he hated a certain haughty Jewish woman

in town, and that is why he spoke this way.s Then he [the lord] answered,

"Now I shall fake my revenge on Madame so-and-so, Madame Pucellina."

The next morning, he rode to the count of the citg that is Thibaut the Evil the

son of Thibaut-who is worthy of cursing!- evil curses and bitterness on his

head!-the ruler who hearkens to lies!-all of his servants are liars!6'!ilhen

fIfli$au4' fteard fnbr's1', ,be grew' a,agfJ' a'rd r.srak aJJ r,hs Jew"s ^tx 3"tojs and putthern in prison. Then Madame Pucellina encouraged them all, for she trusted

in the count's love, since he had loved her greatly until now.7 But Jezebel his

wife, the enemy, incited him, because she, too, hated Madame Pucellina.s

Now all of them were in chains except for her. But the count's servants who

were guarding her would not let her speak to the count at all, lest she change

his mind. Meanwhile, he, for his own reasons, was considering ruses to enact

as a pretext to attack and seize them.e But he didn't know how to do this, forthere was no evidence against them. This was until a certain priest came-may his memory be lost and uprooted from the land of the living!-and said

to the count; "Come, I will counsel you how to execute judgments against

them. Command the servant to be brought who saw the Jew throw the boy

into the river, and let him be tried by water ordeal to see if the truth is withhim." So he commanded that they bring him and strip off his clothing and put

him into the pool full of polluted waters to see: if he floated to the top, his

words were true, and if he sank to the bottom, he had not spoken ftu1y.10 For

fhese are the judgments of the Christians, how they try matters according to

their faith-laws which are no good and judgments it is impossible to live by

[compare Ezek 20:25]! So they did as they wished and swam the servant and

raised him up: and they acquitted the wicked and condemned the innocent'11

/1J,tt-i 'i'tt 't '' \V'.tl ,

546

MEDIEVAL HAGIOGRAP}{Y

Now, before the arrivar of the n'l':l; *l:Ti"":t:.i"il{lTtr##;

lTJ il r,,fi:r.'ff :f#fi :jil ;tii

"n

i*i; i$3:": r *,,:*,r",.v *" ota .rr"j nt',,"

".it i " rr,". .?ylll ]1il::r;:Tlr:3i,;;;L," nd-

;:'i, l::,1:.+: fi +: ili'*" a'

" a

:' ql?, :,1. i i,-"* 1r,. ll',:',H Xili,ll;

i,i-;;l;.;;.t::h: rneantime' the priest at;;;;;"t tn"T n11,

of wrath lseeil:.;;;;didn',,"[;:,*;:;'xl:r+"1*"",,;:f qlq*:*t**$;*wanted to please'nin?r"""r,in. rii,1"trr.""J

rrr.ly,tdll?" said to them:

[?t# ]l,1Ii::[* *] *:il;','r,.,,'*,,1=, ll l., w o r sh i pr a nd

HII;*, i"$:'H ;#;';;{ s'i';1#1. :i;ff ,tXJ';il*'*iJ;'.;;; ",': Tn:J"*T;tli:[j#["o "t.,n

but.to no bo .ur,ng:

..take

see if PerhaPsl tht

in., r.,',., - .,i#ffi ifr,;ti .l{i:,T ffl {::* ;nruli t;strength in rear

:t j[,?JTi";"i,;;;;:-': *.Ji:::i#'rl,'j", ,if, ror,.n;;;l ,. take rwo oriests of righteousTi;ilG":t.l

ll^lnuildins, becausethe Kohen [Priesti and the tttlt::-T'

[1tr1$:**.:;":;*rra'p;i.f,*|i',,''4ilT"l]:',:tg*g;#il; Jaco!'r7 rhev also tied the

ffi';;'";;;tn: ;ll.o the foe,s vassats:

ffi;';h"; isnited the kindlins il::;;;u' *a said t

about th.i, 1,^nir. The three of them c-" ;;;';*. go free?" Then they sato

..Behold the fire has no power lltt otr., out of this." But.tney struggled:":1

ro rhem: *Nor on your lives wilt You€o"i. lr.. u* they keot getting out' ano

""",. rn"",h"y ,"rurr,.d them "e"i",ii,iffi ,1.* :::-tlfoor.'.xfftffJii.t ."r*rr, hold of a christian l" q;:r;;inedstrenath

and casr them into'i""'* n."?;ne fire' the uncircumcts::#;:;; *ith '*o'd'

tri:1*$;;lT"T:lf{{:;T,iillf,*ll-*:}inu,'i:,''+,*;;;i;;i"-t their souls were burnt o'*;;;;;;su"lv

'n-'-;no saw rhese rhrngs;;;:;; and said to each o'h" ln,iJ"i,J n^*"n"i T ou the counr the rot*-, "1"*

there, Rabbi Baruch t",i;;;'iltio'"l"j"romise on behau o

with his ss'n evesl for he utt" oYt'iia"' io '""n "

t?,*',r. for the sake otth'

irrr", tr, Thibautl, and had s"t" tii ii*"r r" n: u,uui1,^:,rrsed counr, he ltn

ilJ'*' in Bl"is' Because of ouruf;:d; i;;d'rl th"- ac

remainder of those [Jews] who dt

:il:i';T.1f*#"-iil'tr,ill3iii-i"f L#iT'srff fio" Gan"'aay the twentieth of Stvan' irrru rr r"

f"#jrt'":'ff*' were wriften about in orleans'jffi:T;:;:L:1;

Sacred o"t" lil* """'l-""a Rabbenu Jacob was tntc

The Jewish MartYrs of Blois 547

was wfltten that when the flames rose, they lifted up ,h::."'i::: :'..::::together.e",g,-,'r'.songwassoft,butattheenditwas[in]agreatvolce.They [the Cfrri.ti""rt ."ri. urrd ."ii * rr' "what is this song of yours? for we

have never heard a song like thJ'i Th.n we all knew that it was 'aleinu

Ieshabeakh.zl O Daughters of 1.r"".1, -..p fo, the.thirty'two-:o:lt burned in

sancrification of God,s Name.22 e"a r""v your brothers, all ,n: "::lt,:u

Israel, weep for the burning! B"t;;;; "i tt"C sins' they were not ptt*:l:-d

burialexceptintheplacewheretheywereburnedbeneaththemountatn.Afterwards,Jewscameandburiedth"i,bo,'.,.Aboutthirry-nvoholysoulssacrificedthemselvesasanofferingtotheir-Creator,andGodsmelledthesavory offering-whom He ,h"il

"f,oore will make an offering to Him fsee

Gen 8:21; Num 16:51'23

W.On",aly, tftt i*tt"'tth [day] of Sivan' 1.177'was adopted by all the

communities of France and England "nd

th. Rhine as a day of mourning and

fasting, of ,i'J o*" f"t will and at the commandment of the Gaon Rabbenu

JacobbenharavMeirwho*,o,.'r,,*letterstoinformthemthatitwasfit-ting to *"rt

-i as a fasr day for

"lt our people, a f*st day that would be even

grearer ,t "r,

J. Fast of Gedaliah len diq;m;"for it is a day of atonement'"

That is the language of RabbenJ*riting,2i atdso it was established and

adopted by the Jews. And th. po"- "'we hlve sinned, o our Rock" was based

onthis,asthewholeevilincidentwaswritteninit,anditisreferredtointhepenitential poems for the Blois persecutions [I have appended] above'25 May

tt "

,iglrt.o;;ss of all thor" *ho guve themsetv.t foi the unification of the

,r"me "nd,,re

for Israel, Selah'25

The Princes of the

In 1.\7L,theY were hasded over

Declaring God's U+i{Y' theY were a

fruits ripen and bloom,im to compel [them]'xpted u, ,"uorY offerings,2e

Sweet-smelling as' date clusters grown [Song 7:14].30

He decided.,tb end their lives without '""'o*\On the adroi.e of the degenerate priest fwho end their

iryp?isonment and burn them,

".'iivhtb;;;i';;;;;;;; ;;;.; ro cut rhem

:tu f:"*1:Awesome one'

;;,:';;;;;;i'-iii i'"a againstme atttbe dav [Lam 3:3]'31 tz