In the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

, the Cathar yellow cross was a distinguishing mark worn by repentant

Cathars Catharism (; from the grc, καθαροί, katharoi, "the pure ones") was a Christian dualist or Gnostic movement between the 12th and 14th centuries which thrived in Southern Europe, particularly in northern Italy and southern France. Fol ...

, who were ordered to wear it by the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Background

Catharism was a religious movement with dualistic and

Gnostic Gnosticism (from grc, γνωστικός, gnōstikós, , 'having knowledge') is a collection of religious ideas and systems which coalesced in the late 1st century AD among Jewish and early Christian sects. These various groups emphasized pe ...

elements that appeared in the

Languedoc The Province of Languedoc (; , ; oc, Lengadòc ) is a former province of France. Most of its territory is now contained in the modern-day region of Occitanie in Southern France. Its capital city was Toulouse. It had an area of approximately ...

region of

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

around the middle of the 12th century. Cathars were dualist in their beliefs, and the

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

symbol of the

crucifix A crucifix (from Latin ''cruci fixus'' meaning "(one) fixed to a cross") is a cross with an image of Jesus on it, as distinct from a bare cross. The representation of Jesus himself on the cross is referred to in English as the ''corpus'' (Lati ...

was, to the Cathars, a negative symbol. In the words of one 14th century Cathar Perfect Pierre Authié:

...just as a man should with an axe break the gallows on which his father was hanged, so you ought to try and break crucifixes, because Christ was suspended from it, albeit only in seeming.

The Albigensian Heresy and the Inquisition

The office of the

Inquisition The Inquisition was a group of institutions within the Catholic Church whose aim was to combat heresy, conducting trials of suspected heretics. Studies of the records have found that the overwhelming majority of sentences consisted of penances, ...

was formulated in response to

Catharism Catharism (; from the grc, καθαροί, katharoi, "the pure ones") was a Christian dualist or Gnostic movement between the 12th and 14th centuries which thrived in Southern Europe, particularly in northern Italy and southern France. Follow ...

, and a

crusade The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were i ...

was ultimately declared against Catharism. Repentant first offenders (who admitted to having been Cathars), when released on licence by the inquisition were ordered to:

...carry from now on and forever two yellow crosses on all their clothes except their shirts and one arm shall be two palms long while the other transversal arm shall be a palm and a half long and each shall be three digits wide with one to be worn in front on the chest and the other between the shoulders.

In addition they were ordered "...not to move about either inside or outside" their houses and were required to "...redo or renew the crosses if they are torn or are destroyed by age." At the time these crosses were known locally as "las debanadoras" - which in

Occitan Occitan may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania territory in parts of France, Italy, Monaco and Spain. * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania administrative region of France. * Occitan language Occitan (; o ...

literally meant reels or winding machines. It is thought that this name is derived from the fact that the Cathars compared the cross to a reel and line to which the wearer was tied, and by which the wearer could be reeled in at any time, for a second offense meant the death penalty.

Montaillou

An example of this type of punishment is to be found in the French village of

Montaillou Montaillou (; oc, Montalhon) is a commune in the Ariège department in the south of France. Its original, medieval location was abandoned and the current village is a short distance away. History The village is best known for being the su ...

, one of the last bastions of the Cathar belief; here the local Bishop and future Pope,

Jacques Fournier Pope Benedict XII ( la, Benedictus XII, french: Benoît XII; 1285 – 25 April 1342), born Jacques Fournier, was head of the Catholic Church from 30 December 1334 to his death in April 1342. He was the third Avignon pope. Benedict was a careful p ...

launched an extensive inquisition which involved dozens of lengthy interviews with the locals, which were all faithfully recorded. When Fournier became Pope he brought the records with him and they remain to this day in the

Vatican Library The Vatican Apostolic Library ( la, Bibliotheca Apostolica Vaticana, it, Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana), more commonly known as the Vatican Library or informally as the Vat, is the library of the Holy See, located in Vatican City. Formally es ...

. Examples of residents from Montaillou being forced to wear the cross include: *

Béatrice de Planisoles Béatrice de Planissoles (circa 1274 – after 1322), was a Cathar minor noble in the Comté de Foix in the late thirteenth and early fourteenth century. She was born circa 1274, probably in the mountain village of Caussou. A great deal of inf ...

Raymonde Arsen Raymonde Arsen née Vital was a servant in the Comté de Foix in the early fourteenth century. She was made notable by appearing in Emmanuel Le Roy Ladurie's ''Montaillou''. Born in Prades d'Aillon to a poor peasant family in 1306 she left to work ...

References

*The Yellow Cross - the story of the last Cathars 1290 - 1329. René Weis . Penguin Viking 2000. {{ISBN, 0-14-027669-6 *Limborch - Historica Inquisitionis 1692 History of Catholicism in France Catharism Yellow symbols

Background

The Albigensian Heresy and the Inquisition

Montaillou

See also

References