Hincmar of Rheims: Life and Work ed. by Rachel Stone, Charles West (review)

This volume gathers fourteen articles that were presented as papers at the Leeds International Medieval Congress of 2012 in sessions about the illustrious archbishop Hincmar of Rheims (†882). It presents many different Hincmars such as the adviser to kings, the expert in canon law, the “manager” of an important archdiocese, the intellectual and prolific author of a varied œuvre, and the ecclesiastical and political authority constantly entangled in disputes and debates. The compact articles present single cases, and it is only when the reader starts to add them up that Hincmar’s “life and work” (perhaps better described as “troubles and stress”) starts to unfold.

As Rachel Stone explains in her introductory chapter, the volume is first and foremost intended as a ‘roadmarker’ (p. 2) that shows how recent research has changed our understanding of Hincmar and the world in which he operated. A first glimpse of that world is described by Jinty Nelson (chapter 2), who uses his historical writings to gather the little he tells us about his own life. Much more prolific were his writings about his disputes with his nephew, Bishop Hincmar of Laon, which, according to Christine Kleinjung (chapter 3), were rooted in different interpretations of the episcopal office. Nor was Hincmar’s relation to Emperor Lothar I easy, as Elina Screen (chapter 4) explains, since “his” king, Charles the Bald, and the latter’s imperial brother both demanded loyalty in ways that were mutually exclusive. More trouble with royal brothers is discussed by Clémentine Bernard-Valette (chapter 5), who focusses on the difficult year of 875, when Louis the German invaded the kingdom of his brother, Charles the Bald, exactly when the latter was on his way to Rome to be crowned emperor. When Louis the Stammerer succeeded to the throne of Charles the Bald in 877, Hincmar saw new chances to be influential at the royal court, as Mary McCarthy shows (chapter 6), but these ambitions where thwarted by younger men. Hincmar’s Roman legal sources are Simon Corcoran’s subject (chapter 7), who shows that he used such material in specific cases only, and generally preferred Church Fathers and the Bible. Likewise, Philippe Depreux (chapter 8) demonstrates how Hincmar used capitularies in just a handful of specific situations. Hincmar also used hagiography, here the Vita Remigii, to state his opinions. Marie-Céline Isaïa (chapter 9) shows how this text was not only a saint’s life but also a vehicle for ideas about his own episcopal ministry. The bishops’ role as guardians of the social order and helpers of kings, a subject dear to Hincmar’s heart, comes to the fore in his writings about the abduction of women, discussed by Sylvie Joye (chapter 10). Hincmar also did micro-management, as is shown in Josiane Barbier’s discussion (chapter 11) of the case of the mancipia of Rheims’ estate at Cortisol, who did their best to claim free status but found the archbishop as their opponent. Charles West (chapter 12) writes about Hincmar’s relations with the priests and parishes of his diocese as part of his pastoral engagements. One of Hincmar’s greatest nightmares, the “heretic” and rebellious Gottschalk of Orbais, is discussed by Matthew Gillis (chapter 13), after which Mayke de Jong (chapter 14) reflects on Hincmar’s relations to the Pseudo-Isidorian forgeries and papal authority with a somewhat smaller nightmare, the criminal priest Trising, as her starting point.

This rich, attractive collection has certainly succeeded in being a “roadmarker” in the continuing research about Hincmar and his world. At the same time, the kaleidoscopic nature of the book offers a wonderful introduction into a set of important questions about, and sources of, the Carolingian period. Throughout, readers are invited to listen to Hincmar’s thoughts and opinions about more or less everything—the archbishop would surely have approved. [End Page 830...