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Gallus Anonymus

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An artist's impression of Gallus Anonymus' portrait byHenryk Piątkowski[pl]], 1898.

Gallus Anonymus,also known by hisPolonized variantGallAnonim,is the name traditionally given to the anonymous author ofGesta principum Polonorum(Deeds of the Princes of the Poles), composed inLatinbetween 1112 and 1118. Gallusis generally regarded as the firsthistorianto have described thehistoryofPoland.HisChroniclesare an obligatory text for university courses in Polish history. Very little is known of the author himself and it is widely believed that he was a foreigner.

Kromer[edit]

Monument toGall Anonim,Wrocław,Poland

The only source forGallus'real name is a note made byPrince-Bishop of WarmiaMarcin Kromer(1512–89) in the margin of folio 119 of the "Heilsberg manuscript."[1]It reads:Gallus hanc historiam scripsit, monachus, opinor, aliquis, ut ex proemiis coniicere licet qui Boleslai tertii tempore vixit(Galluswrote this history, some monk, in my opinion, who lived in the time ofBoleslaus III Wrymouth,as can be conjectured from the preface.') It is not known whether Kromer intended the word "Gallus" as a proper name or as a reference to the author's nationality (Gallusin this period normally means "a Frenchman" ), nor what he based his identification on.[1]

The Heilsberg manuscript, one of three extant witnesses of theGesta,was written between 1469 and 1471. From the mid-16th to 18th centuries, it was kept in the town of Heilsberg (todayLidzbark Warmiński,Poland). It was later published at the behest ofPrince-Bishop of WarmiaAdam Stanisław Grabowski(1698–1766).[1]

Origin[edit]

The author of theGestawrote little about himself and was not written about in contemporary sources. WhatGallusdid write about himself may be summed up as follows: Before going to Poland, he likely spent some time inHungary,where he met Polish dukeBoleslaus III Wrymouth;he was apilgrim;he reveredSaint Giles;and he knew little aboutScandinavia.

Historians agree thatGallus'writing style indicates a substantial education, available only to nobles and monks; and that he was an experienced writer, thus likely also to have authored earlier works. Theclericus de penna vivens( "cleric living by his pen" ) is suspected byDanuta Borawska[2]andMarian Plezia[3]to have earlier penned theGesta Hungarorum(Deeds of theHungarians) and theTranslatio Sancti Nicolai(The Transfer of St. Nicholas); and his writing style is thought to have been influenced by recent literary developments that were then common only in northern France and theNetherlands.

Statue, inBudapest'sVajdahunyad Castle,ofAnonymus,author ofThe Deeds of the Hungariansand possibly ofGesta principum Polonorum.Sculptor:Miklós Ligeti

Budapest'sVajdahunyad Castlefeatures an evocative bronze statue of a seatedAnonymusin monk's habit, thecowlobscuring his face.

Gallus'place of origin is unknown. Several theories have been advanced. Traditional scholarship has assumed that he was French (henceGallus), perhaps fromFranceorFlanders.[4]Plezia has suggested that he was a monk from Saint Giles' Monastery inProvence,France.[3]

Some scholars have pointed out thatGallus'writing style resembles that ofHildebertof Lavardin (aka Hildebert of Tours) and have thought thatGallushad been educated atLe Mansor, according to Zathey,[5]atChartresorBecinNormandy.

BeforeWorld War II,French historianPierre Davidadvanced a theory that Gallus might have been a Hungarian monk from Saint Giles' Monastery inSomogyvárwho accompanied Boleslaus in his return from Hungary to Poland. This theory enjoys little support.[6]

Another theory has been gaining ground in Poland. Professors Danuta Borawska andTomasz JasińskiofPoznań Universityhave presented a case for aVenetianorigin.[7][8]It has been argued thatGallusmay have been a monk fromSt. Giles' Monastery at theLido,Venice,Italy,[9]and Professor Plezia has subsequently concurred.[10]

The Venetian theory was first broached in 1904 by Polish historianTadeusz Wojciechowski.[8]In 1965 it was proposed again by Borawska but did not win acceptance.[8]In recent years, however, it has been revisited and has now gained positive reviews from several Polish medievalists. It has been supported by ProfessorsJanusz Bieniak,Roman MichałowskiandWojciech Fałkowski.[8][11]Fałkowski has noted that the two theories—French and Italian—may be less mutually exclusive than some think, asGallusmight have been born in Italy, been a monk at theLido,and have later traveled to France and Hungary.[11]

According to Tomasz Jasiński, who in 2008 published a book on Gallus,[12]the chronicler came to Poland over theVia Egnatiaacross theSlavic-speaking countries of "Epirus,Thrace,Dalmatia,Croatia,Istria."When Jasiński compared theChroniclewith theTransfer of St. Nicholas,he found over 100 similarities. Jasiński has concluded thatGallus,like many Venetianclergymenof the time, had a native knowledge of bothItalianandSlavic languages.[13]

However,Paul W. KnollandFrank Schaerregard the Venetian suggestion as "too weak to be considered seriously."[14]In Poland, medievalist ProfessorJacek Banaszkiewiczsupports a French over an Italian origin forGallus Anonymus.[11]

Influence[edit]

The anonymous author of theGestainfluenced the subsequent course ofPoland's history,in that his version of early Polish history held theruler's authority to be inferior to that ofGod,as expressed by the voice of thepeople(as in theLatinproverb,"Vox populi, vox Dei").

This concept reinforced Poles' electoral traditions and their tendency to disobey and question authority. Via theChroniclesofWincenty Kadłubekand theSermonsofStanisław of Skarbimierz,it contributed to the development of the unique "Golden Liberty"that would characterize thePolish–Lithuanian Commonwealth,whose kings wereelectedand were obliged to obey theSejm(parliament).

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^abcPaul W. Knoll and Frank Schaer, eds.,Gesta Principum Polonorum: The Deeds of the Princes of the Poles,Budapest, 2003, pp. xxiv—v.
  2. ^Danuta Borawska,"Gallus Anonim czy Italus Anonim?"( "Gallus AnonimusorItalus Anonimus?"),Przegląd Historyczny(Historical Review), 1965.
  3. ^abMarian Plezia, ed.,Anonim tzw. Gall,translated [from the Latin into Polish] by Roman Grodecki, Ossolineum, 2003,ISBN83-7316-258-5.
  4. ^Paul W. Knoll and Frank Schaer, eds.,Gesta Principum Polonorum...,pp. xxvii—ix.
  5. ^J. Zathey,"W jakich szkołach uczył się Gall Anonim?"( "What Schools DidGallus AnonimusAttend? "),Sprawozdania Polskiej Akademii Umiejętności(Proceedings of thePolish Academy of Learning), 1952,z.7-10, p. 555.
  6. ^Pierre David, "La Pologne dans l’obituaire de Saint-Gilles en Languedoc au XII e sičcle",Revue des Études Slaves,19 (1939).
  7. ^Danuta Borawska,Mała Historia Literatury Polskiej(A Brief History of Polish Literature), Warsaw,PWN,2005, pp. 52-53.
  8. ^abcd(in Polish)Roman Sidorski,Interview with Professor Tadeusz Jasiński: Kierunek – Wenecja!,Histmag,2006-04-10.
  9. ^"Historians Know Who Gallus Anonymus Was".Archived fromthe originalon 2009-03-06.Retrieved2007-01-17.
  10. ^"Nowe studia nad Gallem-Anonimem"( "New Studies aboutGallus Anonymus"), inMente et litteris. O kulturze i społeczeństwie wieków średnich(Mente et litteris:On Culture and Society in the Middle Ages), Poznań, 1984, pp. 111-20;Anonim tzw. Gall, Kronika polska(The Anonymous "Gaul," The Polish Chronicle), edited by Marian Plezia, translated [from the Latin into Polish] by Roman Grodecki, Wrocław, 1996.
  11. ^abcNa tropie tajemnicy Galla AnonimaArchived2018-02-12 at theWayback Machine,Polish Press Agency, 2006-02-15.
  12. ^Tomasz Jasiński,O pochodzeniu Galla Anonima(On the Origins of Gallus Anonymus), Avalon, 2008,ISBN978-83-60448-37-3.
  13. ^Gallus Anonymus'cursus veloxis also in accord with aVenetianorigin.Feliks Pohoreckiin 1930 formulated a hypothesis that if one found an author usingcursus spondiacus(spondee?) simultaneously withcursus velox,that fact might identifyAnonymus.The SwedishLatinistTore Jansonfoundcursus spondiacusin the school ofHildebert of Tours,and the anonymous author wrote in theTransfer of St. Nicholasabout a stay atToursand the celebration of amassat theLido.Jasiński concludes, "There is no reason, therefore, to doubt thatGallus Anonymous[the Anonymous Gaul] wasMonachus Littorensis[theLittoralMonk]. "See Tomasz Jasiński," WasGallus Anonymus, Monachus Littorensis?"Summaries,Kwartalnik Historyczny(Historical Quarterly), CXII, 2005, 3. (abstract 1Archived2007-09-26 at theWayback Machine,abstract 2Archived2007-04-27 at theWayback Machine)
  14. ^Paul W. Knoll and Frank Schaer, eds.,Gesta Principum Polonorum...,p. xxix.

External links[edit]

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