Will of Hadoind, bishop of Le Mans, of 643, leaving property to the cathedral at Le Mans, dedicated to *Mary (Mother of Christ, S00033) and *Gervasius and Protasius (brothers and martyrs of Milan, S00313), and to the churches at Le Mans of *Victorius (bishop of Le Mans, ob. c. 490), of the apostles *Peter and Paul (S00036 and S00008), and of *Vincent (deacon and martyr of Zaragoza, S00290); also to the church of Mary at Évron (in the territory of Le Mans) Written in Latin at Le Mans (north-west Gaul).
E07796
Documentary texts - Will
Will of Hadoind of Le Mans:
The will is dated to the eighth of the Ides of February of the fifth year of King Clovis II (6 February 643). Hadoind, establishing the church of Le Mans as his heir, makes the following bequests to churches of Le Mans and its territory:
Dono tibi, sancta et venerabilis mater aecclesia Caenomannica, in honore sanctae Mariae et domni Gervasii et Prothasii ..'
'I grant to you, the holy and venerable mother church of Le Mans, in honour of saint Mary and the lords Gervasius and Protasius ...' The name and details of the property follow.
Similiter, basilica domni Victurii, ubi ipse domnus requiescere dinoscitur et, si meruero, inibi sepulturam habere desidero:
'Similarly, to the basilica of lord Victorius, where the same lord is known to rest and, if I merit it, where I wish to have my burial:' The name and details of the property follow.
... dono sanctae basilicae domni Petri et Pauli apostolis, quam domnus Bertichramnus, quondam episcopus, ad oppidum Caenomannicae civitatis, suo opere aedificavit:
'... I grant to the holy basilica of our lords the apostles Peter and Paul, which our late bishop, lord Bertram, built through his own efforts at the city of Le Mans:' The names and details of several properties follow.
Simili modo dono basilicae domni Vincentii martyris, quam Domnolus, sanctae recordationis episcopus, suo labore construxit ...
'In the same way, I grant to the basilica of lord Vincent the martyr, which Domnolus, bishop of blessed memory, built through his own labour ...' The name and details of the property follow.
Simili modo dono basilicae domne et sanctae Mariae Aureonno vico quem Agobertus, abbas Diriaginsis, simul aedificavit ...
'In the same way, I grant to the basilica of our holy lady Mary at the village of Évron, which Agobert, abbot of Diergé, also built ...' The names and details of several properties follow.
Text: Busson and Ledru, 157-62.
Summary and translation: Bryan Ward-Perkins.
Cult building - independent (church)
Non Liturgical ActivityBequests, donations, gifts and offerings
Protagonists in Cult and NarrativesEcclesiastics - bishops
Source
Hadoind held the see of Le Mans in the second quarter of the seventh century, succeeding in 623 Bertram of Le Mans, whose will we also have (E06095). Hadoind's will is known through it having been copied into the Acts of the Bishops of Le Mans (Actus pontificum Cenomannis in urbe degentium), a text compiled to justify the claims of the ninth-century bishops of Le Mans to extensive properties and rights. It quotes in full 86 royal, episcopal or private charters, including the wills of Hadoind and Bertram. Many of these documents are obvious forgeries, while others, almost certainly containing a genuine core, have clearly been altered and interpolated to favour the ninth-century bishops' claims. Hadoind's will is, however, generally accepted to be authentic (as is Bertram's). For an introduction to the Actus and the texts it purports to quote, see Goffart 1966.Discussion
The churches of Le Mans mentioned in Hadoind's will are readily identified, and, in the two cases where he mentions their founders, this evidence is corroborated by other texts:The cathedral, here given its full appellation as dedicated to both Mary and the Milanese martyrs, Gervasius and Protasius.
The burial church of perhaps Le Mans' principal local saint, Bishop Victorius (who died around 490), where Hadoind hoped to be buried.
The church of Peter and Paul, built by Hadoind's predecessor, Bertram, and where the latter was buried (see E06095).
The church of the Spanish martyr Vincent, built towards the end of the sixth century by Bishop Domnolus of Le Mans (see E08327 and E08328).
With regard to the church of Mary at Évron, as far as we are aware, this is the earliest reference to it.
Bibliography
Edition:G. Busson and A. Ledru (eds), Actus pontificum Cenomannis in urbe degentium, Le Mans 1901 (= Société des archives historique du Maine, Archives historiques du Maine, II), 157-62.
Further reading:
Biarne, J., 'Le Mans', in N. Gauthier and J.-Ch. Picard (eds), Topographie chrétienne des Cités de la Gaule des origines au milieu du VIIIe siècle, V Province ecclésiastique de Tours (L. Pietri and J. Biarne), Paris (De Boccard 1987), 41-56.
Bryan Ward-Perkins
06/09/2022
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00008 | Paul, the Apostle | Paulus | Certain | S00033 | Mary, Mother of Christ | Maria | Certain | S00036 | Peter, the Apostle | Petrus | Certain | S00290 | Vincentius/Vincent, deacon and martyr of Zaragoza and Valencia | Vincentius | Certain | S00313 | Gervasius and Protasius, brothers and martyrs of Milan | Gervasius et Prothasius | Certain | S01280 | Victorius, bishop of Le Mans, ob. c. 490 | Victurius | Certain |
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