The Cartulary of Premontre

The Cartulary of Prémontré is a critical edition of the thirteenth-century cartulary of the abbey of Saint-Jean-Baptiste de Prémontré, offering a window into daily life in medieval France and revealing the socio-economic and religious history of the Picardy and Champagne regions. It also highlights the complexities of cartulary production within a larger institutional and archival context.

Format: Hardback
Length: 1016 pages
Publication date: 19 June 2023
Publisher: University of Toronto Press

The Cartulary of Prémontré presents a comprehensive critical edition, encompassing a transcription of the cartulary's 509 charters, accompanied by historical annotations and apparatus. Among the few surviving manuscripts from the thirteenth-century abbey of Saint-Jean-Baptiste de Prémontré, this cartulary offers a unique glimpse into the daily life of medieval France and the practices of contemporary documentation. As a valuable resource for the socio-economic and religious history of the Picardy and Champagne regions during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, the cartulary of Prémontré sheds light on the functioning of this prominent northern French abbey as a mother house for the Premonstratensian Order and its interactions with a diverse range of individuals, including both elites and non-elites, as well as secular and ecclesiastical figures.

The charters contained within the cartulary provide valuable insights into the operations of this major northern French abbey, revealing how it served as a central hub for the Premonstratensian Order and how it interacted with a wide spectrum of people. These charters illustrate the complexities of cartulary production within a broader institutional and archival context, highlighting the role of the abbey in preserving and disseminating legal documents.

In an introductory essay, Heather Wacha and Yvonne Seale delve into the history of the manuscript and the abbey of Prémontré, while also exploring the materiality of the cartulary, its position within the broader field of cartulary studies, and what it reveals about women's roles in contemporary society. By doing so, this volume establishes new connections between cartulary studies and feminist studies, offering a fresh perspective on the historical significance of these manuscripts.

Weight: 1632g
Dimension: 162 x 240 x 64 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781487544836