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Eigil (died 29 May 870), also spelled Eigel, Eogil, Egil, Egilo or Heigil, was the abbot of Prüm from 853 to 860, abbot of Flavigny from 860 to 865 and
archbishop of Sens The Archdiocese of Sens and Auxerre (Latin: ''Archidioecesis Senonensis et Antissiodorensis''; French language, French: ''Archidiocèse de Sens et Auxerre'') is a Latin Church, Latin archdiocese of the Catholic Church in France. The archdiocese co ...
from 865 until his death. Eigil was a monk at Prüm in August 843, when he was the recipient of two letters from
Lupus of Ferrières Lupus Servatus, also Servatus Lupus ( 805 – c. 862), in French Loup, was a Benedictine monk and Abbot of Ferrières Abbey during the Carolingian dynasty, who was also a member of Charles the Bald's court and a noted theological author of the 9t ...
. Like his fellow monk Ansbald and Abbot , he cooperated with Lupus to collate classical texts. In a letter to Markward, Lupus writes that "Eigil, the faithful interpreter of my affairs, will explain what I want you to do in regard to
Suetonius Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus (), commonly referred to as Suetonius ( ; – after AD 122), was a Roman historian who wrote during the early Imperial era of the Roman Empire. His most important surviving work is ''De vita Caesarum'', common ...
and
Josephus Flavius Josephus (; , ; ), born Yosef ben Mattityahu (), was a Roman–Jewish historian and military leader. Best known for writing '' The Jewish War'', he was born in Jerusalem—then part of the Roman province of Judea—to a father of pr ...
." Eigil and several other monks of Prüm visited the abbey of Ferrières in the summer of 847, after having recovered from a serious illness. Eigil succeeded Markward as abbot in 853. Five diplomas in favour of Prüm were issued by the Emperor
Lothair I Lothair I (9th. C. Frankish: ''Ludher'' and Medieval Latin: ''Lodharius''; Dutch and Medieval Latin: ''Lotharius''; German: ''Lothar''; French: ''Lothaire''; Italian: ''Lotario''; 795 – 29 September 855) was a 9th-century emperor of the ...
during 853–855. He fell out with his successor, King
Lothair II Lothair II (835 – 8 August 869) was a Carolingian king and ruler of northern parts of Middle Francia, that came to be known as Lotharingia, reigning there from 855 until his death in 869. He also ruled over Burgundy, holding from 855 just th ...
, over the latter's divorce from Theutberga. Eigil was still abbot of Prüm when he attended the
Council of Aachen A number of significant councils of the Latin Church were held at Aachen (also known in French as ''Aix-la-Chapelle'') in the early Middle Ages. In the mixed council of 798, Charlemagne proclaimed a capitulary of eighty-one chapters, largely a repe ...
on 9 January 860, which dealt with Lothair's attempted divorce. Not long after, he voluntarily resigned his abbacy and relocated to
West Francia In medieval historiography, West Francia (Medieval Latin: ) or the Kingdom of the West Franks () constitutes the initial stage of the Kingdom of France and extends from the year 843, from the Treaty of Verdun, to 987, the beginning of the Capet ...
, perhaps claiming illness. He was granted the abbacy of Flavigny by King
Charles the Bald Charles the Bald (; 13 June 823 – 6 October 877), also known as CharlesII, was a 9th-century king of West Francia (843–877), King of Italy (875–877) and emperor of the Carolingian Empire (875–877). After a series of civil wars during t ...
later that year or in 861. He was present when the king gave the original copy of the ''
Annals of Saint-Bertin ''Annales Bertiniani'' (''Annals of Saint Bertin'') are late Carolingian, Frankish annals that were found in the Abbey of Saint Bertin, Saint-Omer, France, after which they are named. Their account is taken to cover the period 830-82, thus conti ...
'' to Archbishop
Hincmar of Reims Hincmar (; ; ; 806 – 21 December 882), archbishop of Reims, was a Frankish jurist and theologian, as well as the friend, advisor and propagandist of Charles the Bald. He belonged to a noble family of northern Francia. Biography Early life Hincm ...
. He transferred the relics of Saint Regina to Flavigny. Eigil succeeded Wenilo as archbishop of Sens in 865. He discontinued Wenilo's rivalry with Hincmar. He presided over the Council of Soissons in 866 concerning the dispute over clerics ordained by
Ebbo Ebbo, Ebo or Epo ( – 20 March 851) was the Archbishop of Rheims from 816 until 835 and again from 840 to 841. He was born a German serf on the royal demesne of Charlemagne. He was educated at his court and became the librarian and counc ...
. He crossed the Alps to deliver the council's letter to
Pope Nicholas I Pope Nicholas I (; c. 800 – 13 November 867), called Nicholas the Great, was the bishop of Rome and ruler of the Papal States from 24 April 858 until his death on 13 November 867. He is the last of the three popes listed in the Annuario Pontif ...
and also to act as Charles the Bald's envoy in the case of the divorce of Lothair II. In two letters of 866, Hincmar wrote to him about the prison conditions of the accused heretic
Gottschalk of Orbais Gottschalk of Orbais (, ''Gotteschalchus''; c. 808 – 30 October 868) was a Saxon theologian, monk and poet. Gottschalk was an early advocate for the doctrine of Predestination (Calvinism)#Double predestination, double predestination, an issue t ...
and about the case of Ebbo's clerics.. Gottschalk had been a friend of Lupus. See . On 20 May 867, according to the ''Annals of Saint-Bertin'', Eigil "brought to the lord Charles letters from Pope Nicholas to Lothar and the bishops of his realm concerning the case of his wives ... ndtransmitted the pope's command that
Waldrada Waldrada or Walderada (French ''Waldrade'', Italian ''Gualdrada'') is a feminine given name A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle n ...
be sent to Rome."


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* * * * * * * * {{refend 870 deaths Frankish abbots Archbishops of Sens