HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Gislebert (or Gilbert) of Mons ( 1150 – 1225) was a clergyman in the administration of the
County of Hainaut The County of Hainaut (french: Comté de Hainaut; nl, Graafschap Henegouwen; la, comitatus hanoniensis), sometimes spelled Hainault, was a territorial lordship within the medieval Holy Roman Empire that straddled what is now the border of Bel ...
and a
chronicler A chronicle ( la, chronica, from Greek ''chroniká'', from , ''chrónos'' – "time") is a historical account of events arranged in chronological order, as in a timeline. Typically, equal weight is given for historically important events and lo ...
whose ''Chronicon Hanoniense'' (''Chronicle of Hainaut'') is an essential eyewitness source for events affecting his patron
Baldwin V, Count of Hainaut Baldwin V of Hainaut (1150 – 17 December 1195) was count of Hainaut (1171–1195), margrave of Namur as Baldwin I (1189–1195) and count of Flanders as Baldwin VIII (1191–1195). History He was the son of Baldwin IV, Count of Hainaut. In th ...
.


Biography

Gislebert was appointed chaplain to Count Baldwin in 1169, notary at some point thereafter, and chancellor from 1178 to the count's death in 1195. From 1192, when Baldwin became margrave of Namur, he was also chancellor of Namur. He obtained the positions of provost of the churches of St. Germanus at
Mons Mons (; German and nl, Bergen, ; Walloon and pcd, Mont) is a city and municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the province of Hainaut, Belgium. Mons was made into a fortified city by Count Baldwin IV of Hainaut in the 12th century ...
and
St. Alban Saint Alban (; la, Albanus) is venerated as the first-recorded British Christian martyr, for which reason he is considered to be the British protomartyr. Along with fellow Saints Julius and Aaron, Alban is one of three named martyrs recorde ...
at
Namur Namur (; ; nl, Namen ; wa, Nameur) is a city and municipality in Wallonia, Belgium. It is both the capital of the province of Namur and of Wallonia, hosting the Parliament of Wallonia, the Government of Wallonia and its administration. Namur ...
, in addition to several other ecclesiastical appointments. Gislebert was a confidant of the count and was also entrusted with several political missions. Among other things he took part in the
Diet of Pentecost The ''Mainzer Hoffest'' (literally "Mainz court festival") or Diet of Pentecost was a ''Hoftag'' (imperial diet) of the Holy Roman Empire started in Mainz on 20 May 1184.''Chronicle of Hainaut'' by Gilbert of Mons
translation from Latin to English by Laura Napran, year 2005. Translator's preface page xxviii has the basis for the 1195-1196 date of composition of the Latin chronicle. Gislebert wrote the ''Chronicon Hanoniense'', a history of Hainaut and the neighboring lands from about 1050 to 1195, which is specially valuable for the latter part of the twelfth century. Aside from the light it sheds on the life and times of Baldwin, Gislebert provides significant information about persons and affairs within France and the Empire, particularly
Philip, Count of Flanders Philip I (1143 – 1 August 1191), commonly known as Philip of Alsace, was count of Flanders from 1168 to 1191. During his rule Flanders prospered economically. He took part in two crusades and died of disease in the Holy Land. Count of Flanders ...
,
Philip Augustus of France Philip II (21 August 1165 – 14 July 1223), byname Philip Augustus (french: Philippe Auguste), was King of France from 1180 to 1223. His predecessors had been known as kings of the Franks, but from 1190 onward, Philip became the first French m ...
and Emperor
Frederick Barbarossa Frederick Barbarossa (December 1122 – 10 June 1190), also known as Frederick I (german: link=no, Friedrich I, it, Federico I), was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1155 until his death 35 years later. He was elected King of Germany in Frankfurt on ...
. Gislebert's concerns for noble marriages make his chronicle an irreplaceable source for genealogical information, and in passing he gives details of the crusaders, politics, noble women, the lives of saints, relationships between lord and tenant, traditions and customs and especially military matters, with detailed accounts of sieges, campaigns and tournaments.


References

*
''Chronicle of Hainaut by Gilbert of Mons''
translated to English Laura Napran (Boydell, 2005). This English translation is from the Latin in edition by Vanderkindere (1904) which is in Latin a
Archive.org
{{Authority control 1150s births 1225 deaths Chroniclers from the Holy Roman Empire 13th-century historians from the Holy Roman Empire