Visio Karoli Grossi
Encyclopedia
The Visio Karoli Crassi or Visio Karoli Grossi (meaning "Vision of Charles the Fat"), also called the Visio Karoli (Tertii) Imperatoris , is an anonymous work of Latin
prose
from around 900. It was composed at Reims
and depicts a vision of his ancestors warning the Emperor
Charles the Fat
of the coming downfall of his family, the Carolingian
s.
The work was produced in or near Reims, possibly by someone in the circle of Fulk the Venerable, the Archbishop of Reims
, because the Visio credits the intercession of Saints Peter
and Remigius
(the patron saint of Reims) with preserving the Carolingian line. Fulk was also a Carolingian partisan in 888. Among the works that probably influenced the vision of Charles the Fat prominence can be given to the De visione Bernoldi presbyteri written by Hincmar of Reims in the middle of the ninth century.
Among the ancestors who appear to Charles in his vision are his father, Louis the German
; uncle, Lothair I
; and cousin, Louis the Younger. He is also visited by Louis the Younger's daughter, Ermengard
, and her husband, Boso
, and son, Louis of Provence
. Charles had recognised the right of the latter to inherit Provence
after Boso died on 11 January 887, but Charles himself was deposed in November and died in January 888, leaving the young Louis and his mother without a defender. The Visio appears to have been written as a defence of the young Louis's claim.
The Visio was widely transcribed in the ninth through fifteenth centuries, especially in the High Middle Ages
(11th–13th). Versions were inserted into the Gesta Regum Anglorum of William of Malmesbury
, the Chronicon Centulense of Hariulf of Oudenbourg, and the anonymous Annals of Saint Neots as pieces of historical information. From Wiliam and Hariulf the story was extracted and placed in the universal Chronicon of Helinand of Froidmont
under the year 888 and in the Speculum historiale of Vincent of Beauvais
. A complete English
translation of the Visio was included in The Birth of Purgatory by Jacques Le Goff
as evidence of the need, as early as the ninth century, for a realm lying between Hell and Paradies (i.e. Purgatory
) wherein good men could reside in the hereafter.
The Visio may also have been an inspiration to Dante Alighieri
. In his Divine Comedy (Inferno, XII, 100–126), in the first ring of the seventh circle of Hell
, Dante, guided by Virgil
and Nessus
, visits those sinners, tiranni / che dier nel sangue e ne l' aver di piglio ("tyrants /
who dealt in bloodshed and in pillaging"), who are immersed to varying depths in boiling water. This punishment was not typically ascribed in Dante's age to such sinners, but the Visio attaches it to those who facere praelia et homicidia et rapinas pro cupiditate terrena ("make battle and murder and rapine because of worldly cupidity"). Theodore Silverstein, who first identified the connexion between Dante and the Visio, suggests that Dante's apparent interest in contemporary politics would have attracted him to a piece like the Visio. Its popularity assures that Dante would have had access to it.
Latin literature
Latin literature includes the essays, histories, poems, plays, and other writings of the ancient Romans. In many ways, it seems to be a continuation of Greek literature, using many of the same forms...
prose
Prose
Prose is the most typical form of written language, applying ordinary grammatical structure and natural flow of speech rather than rhythmic structure...
from around 900. It was composed at Reims
Reims
Reims , a city in the Champagne-Ardenne region of France, lies east-northeast of Paris. Founded by the Gauls, it became a major city during the period of the Roman Empire....
and depicts a vision of his ancestors warning the Emperor
Carolingian Empire
Carolingian Empire is a historiographical term which has been used to refer to the realm of the Franks under the Carolingian dynasty in the Early Middle Ages. This dynasty is seen as the founders of France and Germany, and its beginning date is based on the crowning of Charlemagne, or Charles the...
Charles the Fat
Charles the Fat
Charles the Fat was the King of Alemannia from 876, King of Italy from 879, western Emperor from 881, King of East Francia from 882, and King of West Francia from 884. In 887, he was deposed in East Francia, Lotharingia, and possibly Italy, where the records are not clear...
of the coming downfall of his family, the Carolingian
Carolingian
The Carolingian dynasty was a Frankish noble family with origins in the Arnulfing and Pippinid clans of the 7th century AD. The name "Carolingian", Medieval Latin karolingi, an altered form of an unattested Old High German *karling, kerling The Carolingian dynasty (known variously as the...
s.
The work was produced in or near Reims, possibly by someone in the circle of Fulk the Venerable, the Archbishop of Reims
Archbishop of Reims
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Reims is an archdiocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in France. Erected as a diocese around 250 by St. Sixtus, the diocese was elevated to an archdiocese around 750...
, because the Visio credits the intercession of Saints Peter
Saint Peter
Saint Peter or Simon Peter was an early Christian leader, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The son of John or of Jonah and from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, his brother Andrew was also an apostle...
and Remigius
Saint Remigius
Saint Remigius, Remy or Remi, , was Bishop of Reims and Apostle of the Franks, . On 24 December 496 he baptised Clovis I, King of the Franks...
(the patron saint of Reims) with preserving the Carolingian line. Fulk was also a Carolingian partisan in 888. Among the works that probably influenced the vision of Charles the Fat prominence can be given to the De visione Bernoldi presbyteri written by Hincmar of Reims in the middle of the ninth century.
Among the ancestors who appear to Charles in his vision are his father, Louis the German
Louis the German
Louis the German , also known as Louis II or Louis the Bavarian, was a grandson of Charlemagne and the third son of the succeeding Frankish Emperor Louis the Pious and his first wife, Ermengarde of Hesbaye.He received the appellation 'Germanicus' shortly after his death in recognition of the fact...
; uncle, Lothair I
Lothair I
Lothair I or Lothar I was the Emperor of the Romans , co-ruling with his father until 840, and the King of Bavaria , Italy and Middle Francia...
; and cousin, Louis the Younger. He is also visited by Louis the Younger's daughter, Ermengard
Ermengard of Provence
Ermengard was the only surviving daughter of Louis II, Holy Roman Emperor. In 876, she married Boso, from the Bosonid, Count of Vienne, who declared himself King of Provence in 879....
, and her husband, Boso
Boso of Provence
Boso was a Frankish nobleman from the Bosonid-family, who was related to the Carolingian dynasty, who rose to become King of Provence ....
, and son, Louis of Provence
Louis the Blind
Louis the Blind was the king of Provence from January 11, 887, King of Italy from October 12, 900, and briefly Holy Roman Emperor, as Louis III, between 901 and 905. He was the son of Boso, the usurper king of Provence, and Ermengard, a daughter of the Emperor Louis II. Through his father, he was...
. Charles had recognised the right of the latter to inherit Provence
Provence
Provence ; Provençal: Provença in classical norm or Prouvènço in Mistralian norm) is a region of south eastern France on the Mediterranean adjacent to Italy. It is part of the administrative région of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur...
after Boso died on 11 January 887, but Charles himself was deposed in November and died in January 888, leaving the young Louis and his mother without a defender. The Visio appears to have been written as a defence of the young Louis's claim.
The Visio was widely transcribed in the ninth through fifteenth centuries, especially in the High Middle Ages
High Middle Ages
The High Middle Ages was the period of European history around the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries . The High Middle Ages were preceded by the Early Middle Ages and followed by the Late Middle Ages, which by convention end around 1500....
(11th–13th). Versions were inserted into the Gesta Regum Anglorum of William of Malmesbury
William of Malmesbury
William of Malmesbury was the foremost English historian of the 12th century. C. Warren Hollister so ranks him among the most talented generation of writers of history since Bede, "a gifted historical scholar and an omnivorous reader, impressively well versed in the literature of classical,...
, the Chronicon Centulense of Hariulf of Oudenbourg, and the anonymous Annals of Saint Neots as pieces of historical information. From Wiliam and Hariulf the story was extracted and placed in the universal Chronicon of Helinand of Froidmont
Helinand of Froidmont
Helinand of Froidmont was a medieval poet, chronicler, and ecclesiastical writer.-Life:He was born of Flemish parents at Pronleroy in Oise in France c. 1150; his date of death is said to be 3 February 1223, or 1229, or 1237...
under the year 888 and in the Speculum historiale of Vincent of Beauvais
Vincent of Beauvais
The Dominican friar Vincent of Beauvais wrote the Speculum Maius, the main encyclopedia that was used in the Middle Ages.-Early life:...
. A complete English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
translation of the Visio was included in The Birth of Purgatory by Jacques Le Goff
Jacques Le Goff
Jacques Le Goff is a prolific French historian specializing in the Middle Ages, particularly the 12th and 13th centuries....
as evidence of the need, as early as the ninth century, for a realm lying between Hell and Paradies (i.e. Purgatory
Purgatory
Purgatory is the condition or process of purification or temporary punishment in which, it is believed, the souls of those who die in a state of grace are made ready for Heaven...
) wherein good men could reside in the hereafter.
The Visio may also have been an inspiration to Dante Alighieri
Dante Alighieri
Durante degli Alighieri, mononymously referred to as Dante , was an Italian poet, prose writer, literary theorist, moral philosopher, and political thinker. He is best known for the monumental epic poem La commedia, later named La divina commedia ...
. In his Divine Comedy (Inferno, XII, 100–126), in the first ring of the seventh circle of Hell
Hell
In many religious traditions, a hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hells as endless. Religions with a cyclic history often depict a hell as an intermediary period between incarnations...
, Dante, guided by Virgil
Virgil
Publius Vergilius Maro, usually called Virgil or Vergil in English , was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He is known for three major works of Latin literature, the Eclogues , the Georgics, and the epic Aeneid...
and Nessus
Nessus (mythology)
In Greek mythology, Nessus was a famous centaur who was killed by Heracles, and whose tainted blood in turn killed Heracles. He was the son of Centauros. He fought in the battle with the Lapiths. He became a ferryman on the river Euenos....
, visits those sinners, tiranni / che dier nel sangue e ne l' aver di piglio ("tyrants /
who dealt in bloodshed and in pillaging"), who are immersed to varying depths in boiling water. This punishment was not typically ascribed in Dante's age to such sinners, but the Visio attaches it to those who facere praelia et homicidia et rapinas pro cupiditate terrena ("make battle and murder and rapine because of worldly cupidity"). Theodore Silverstein, who first identified the connexion between Dante and the Visio, suggests that Dante's apparent interest in contemporary politics would have attracted him to a piece like the Visio. Its popularity assures that Dante would have had access to it.