Annales Fuldenses
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TheAnnales FuldensesorAnnals of FuldaareEast Frankishchroniclesthat cover independently the period from the last years ofLouis the Pious(died 840) to shortly after the end of effectiveCarolingianrule in East Francia with the accession of the child-king,Louis III,in 900. Throughout this period they are a near contemporary record of the events they describe and a primary source for Carolingian historiography. They are usually read as a counterpart to the narrative found in the West FrankishAnnales Bertiniani.
Authorship and manuscripts
[edit]TheAnnalswere composed at theAbbey of FuldainHesse.A note in one manuscript has been taken to prove that the entries down to 838 were composed byEinhard(Enhardin the MS), yet it has been convincingly argued that this might only have been a copyist'scolophonthat has abusively entered the manuscript tradition, a sort of accident far from uncommon in medievalscriptoria.Be that as it may, a second note sets on more solid grounds the attribution of the annals down to 864 toRudolf of Fulda,whose manuscript, though not conserved, is mentioned in independent sources and has left traces in the tradition. Some scholars believe that the whole work was first put together by an unknown compiler only in the 870s. It has also been suggested that they were continued after 864 byMeinhard,but very little is known of this continuator of Rudolf's work. However, already after 863 the three (Kurze) or two (Hellman) manuscript groups of theAnnalsbreak off into different overlapping versions, continuing Rudolf's work down to 882 (or 887) and 896 (or 901). The two alleged principal extensions have been styled the "Mainz" and "Bavarian" continuations respectively. The Mainz version shows strong links with the circle ofLiutbert, Archbishop of Mainz,and is written from a Franconian perspective and are partisan to Liutbert and the kings he served. The Bavarian continuation was probably written inRegensburguntil 896 and thereafter inNiederalteich.A new edition is eagerly awaited.
Sources
[edit]The years 714 to 830 are largely based on theRoyal Frankish Annals(741–829) and theAnnals of Lorsch(703–803, including continuations). After that date theAnnals of Fuldaare relatively independent.
Content
[edit]The events recorded in the annals include the death of Louis the Pious and the subsequent dividing of the Frankish Empire into three parts at theTreaty of Verdun.After 860, the annals focus mainly on events in eastern Francia and on its kingLouis the Germanand the king's sons. The Annales also describe in some detail raids conducted by theVikingsin the Frankish Empire from 845 onward. Other events recorded in the Annales include various 'miraculous' events such as comets, earthquakes, and disease. The annals end in 901, a year after the succession of Louis the Child.
Importance
[edit]Along with theAnnales Bertiniani(Annals of Saint-Bertin), the West Frankish narratives of the same events, theAnnals of Fuldaare the principal historical primary source for ninth-century Carolingian studies.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- Reuter, Timothy(1992).The Annals of Fulda.Manchester: Manchester University Press.ISBN9780719034589.
- The Annals of the Holy Roman Empire. The Annals of Fulda: The Annals of Fulda parts 1-5 (714-901 A.D.), The Funeral Annals of Fulda (992 A.D.), The Oldest Annals of Fulda (742-922 A.D.) transl. and annotated by Grzegorz Kazimierz Walkowski (Walkowski,Bydgoszcz,2014)ISBN978-83-930932-6-7
- Catholic Encyclopedia:"Rudolf of Fulda."