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Une histoire de tonsures et étain, de bronze et de cloches

Saint Michel, l'Étain et l'Âge des Cloches
Une étude préparée pour la colloque Mont et Merveille
aux Archives départementales de St Lô le 27 novembre 2009.

Par Christopher Long
Traduction par David Nicolas-Méry

English version

See Main Index

Voir: Le Mont Saint-Michel, l'Étain, le Bronze et l'Âge des Cloches

See: Mont Saint-Michel and the Cornish Tin Trade

Voir: Le Mont Saint-Michel et l'Étain de la Cornouaille

See: Mont Saint-Michel and St Michael's Mount


X En 2007, Christopher Long et l'historien de l'architecture David Nicolas-Méry ont entamé une étude consacrée aux liens qui unissaient l'abbaye du Mont Saint-Michel, en Normandie, et le prieuré médiéval du St Michael's Mount de Cornouaille britannique. Dans cette perspective, ils ont été largement aidés et encouragés par James et Mary St Aubyn, Lord St Levan ainsi que le National Trust.

X Dans un premier temps, leur recherche s'est attachée aux connections monastiques entre les deux établissements aux XIIe, XIIIe et XIVe siècles. Alors, D. Nicolas-Méry proposa de considérer les îles anglo-normandes comme des éléments importants de ces liens entre les deux fondations normande et anglaise.

X Explorant cette hypothèse en 2008, l'auteur s'est efforcé de relever le détail des nombreuses propriétés anglaises détenues en Angleterre et dans les îles normandes par le Mont Saint-Michel. En comparant ces données aux quelques documents contemporains ayant survécu, un étonnant état des lieux s'est rapidement fait jour. Il semble, en effet, que les moines normands aient « choisi » leurs possessions anglaises avec beaucoup de soin de manière à se centrer sur l'important potentiel commercial qu'elles offraient.

X Cet article présente l'hypothèse selon laquelle les moines du Mont Saint-Michel étaient fortement impliqués dans le commerce du minerai d'étain. Ainsi, les moines auraient été largement impliqués dans le contrôle d'un marché européen du bronze, de la fonderie des cloches et, peut-être du travail de l'étain.




Pourquoi deux textes médiévaux furent-ils inventés ou falsifiées ?

X

S

elon les sources médiévales, l'abbaye du Mont Saint-Michel possédait un nombre considérable d'établissements, de manoirs, d'églises (23) (24) et de chapelles en Angleterre (voir Appendix). En outre, le Mont détenait deux prieurés ; l'un situé à Otterton dans le sud-est du Devon et le second au St Michael's Mount dans le sud-ouest de la Cornouaille. La majeure partie de ces possessions étaient des dons faits par Guillaume le Conquérant après 1066, ou bien par certains barons normands ; cependant certaines de ces donations aux moines bénédictins furent faites par des seigneurs saxons avant la Conquête et ensuite confirmées par Guillaume (9).

X Toutefois, le St Michael's Mount constitue un cas atypique. Tandis que les moines devaient régulièrement disputer leurs terres contre des rois normands et des barons en Angleterre (ils perdirent des terres en gagnèrent d'autres), ils paraissent avoir longuement attendu avant de fournir la preuve de leur propriété de l'îlot rocheux du St Michael's Mount qui leur avait été soit disant offert par Edward le Confesseur (mais pendant le règne du roi Cnut), c'est-à-dire bien avant la Conquête normande (23). En effet, la charte censée apporter la preuve de cette donation est aujourd'hui unanimement considérée comme un faux (1) certainement produit au Mont Saint-Michel au XIe siècle afin de convaincre le Conquérant et ses successeurs que les moines possédaient d'anciens droits sur des terres de Cornouaille (1). Ceci est important dans le sens où de tels droits, s'ils étaient avérés, seraient demeurés valides depuis les temps saxons jusqu'à l'avènement normand.

X Plus curieux encore, il semble que les moines aient falsifié une seconde charte (2). Au XIIe siècle, bien après la Conquête, ils tentèrent une fois encore d'associer leurs droits inaliénables à des dons anciens de territoires sur le St Michael's Mount et ses environs. Cette fois-ci, la charte incriminée concerne des donations au Mont Saint-Michel concédées par Robert de Mortain (31) le demi-frère de Guillaume le Conquérant qui obtint 248 manoirs en Cornouaille, probablement après 1072.

Il apparaît que les moines ont augmenté le texte d'une charte originale afin d'y inclure leurs droits sur de petites et, apparemment, insignifiantes possessions ensuite revendiquées par des héritiers de Robert de Mortain (sans doute Guillaume de Mortain). Les terres disputées se situaient à Truthwall et Ludgvan, lieux qui étaient réputés pour leur étain et reconnus comme tels jusqu'au XIXe siècle (23). Il est tout à fait possible que les moines aient eu d'anciens droits sur ces domaines depuis le IXe ou le Xe siècle (23). Il se pourrait également que la disparition, en 1072, du prédécesseur de Robert, Brian de Bretagne, fut une source de confusion. Ainsi, la donation de Robert serait à considérer plutôt comme une confirmation des droits préexistants des moines (25). Ce qui semble certain, c'est que les héritiers de Robert ont jugé suffisamment valable de revenir sur les dons paternels en reprenant la moitié du domaine (cf. Domesday), mais également que les moines pensaient ces terres suffisamment intéressantes pour justifier les modifications de la charte originale émise par Robert de Mortain (2).

En 2008, l'auteur considère comme étrange que les deux seules chartes connues invoquant les liens médiévaux entre le Mont Saint-Michel et le St Michael's Mount sont toutes deux considérées comme « suspectes ». Pourquoi les moines du Mont Saint-Michel étaient ils disposés à inventer ou falsifier certaines chartes afin de prouver d'anciens droits et donations, plus particulièrement situés dans cette région de Cornouaille riche en étain ?




Pourquoi le St Michael's Mount était-il si « spécial » ?

X Alors qu'aucune preuve ne permet d'affirmer avec certitude qu'un culte michaëlique n'existait pas sur le St Michael's Mount avant la foundation du prieuré par Bernard du Bec en 1135, la majorité des historiens semblent s'accorder sur le fait que des ermites durent occuper le site de cet îlot rocheux lors de la diffusion du culte à saint Michel aux VIIe et VIIIe siècles. Le monastère insulaire de St Michael on Skellig, situé à 15 kilomètres des côtes irlandaises, fut fondé vers 588 au sommet d'un rocher quasi-inaccessible de 280 pieds de haut. Ses constructions, relativement bien préservées, consistent en un ensemble de structures en pierres. Il est difficile de concevoir que le St Michael's Mount soit resté inoccupé tandis que le lointain mont irlandais faisait l'objet d'une colonisation érémitique à cette époque. Aussi, la théorie selon laquelle les bénédictins du Mont Saint-Michel ont inventé ou falsifié des chartes aux XIe et XIIe siècles, afin d'affirmer de veritables et anciens droits en Cornouaille semble tout à fait crédible. Les communautés bénédictines existaient partout en Angleterre plusieurs siècles avant la Conquête normande, souvent sur des terres fieffées par des rois ou des « earls » Saxons (voire par des Bretons en Cornouaille). Mais la Cornouaille elle-même fut à peine colonisée par les Saxons (ou les Romains avant eux) avant l'arrivée des Normands.

X Ainsi, il semble possible qu'une communauté bénénédictine (peut-être des bénédictins ayant déjà des liens de quelques sorte avec le Mont Saint-Michel) ait pu tenir certains droit sur quelques terres comme celles de Truthwall et Ludgvan (21) (22). Il est également envisageable que la preuve de leur droit sur ces terres n'ait jamais été formalisée ou encore que les documents furent perdus. Un argument similaire pourrait être avancé au sujet de nombreuses autres communautés religieuses de Cornouaille établies en des lieux associés à des saints Celtes tels saint Piran ou saint Petroc (Perreux), etc.

La Cornouaille était la région la plus « industrialisée » de Bretagne au Moyen Âge. Sa principale industrie était l'extraction du minerai d'étain indispensable à la production du bronze et du mobilier d'étain. La Cornouaille avait virtuellement le monopole de l'étain en Europe de l'Ouest ; cette richesse minière avait attiré les marchands méditerranéens (15) (jusqu'à ce que les mines d'Espagne soient exploitées). Au cours de l'époque médiévale, le commerce de l'étain de Cornouaille était bien établi (29) et tout à fait organisé (3). La Cornouaille est connue pour avoir exporté son étain (4) jusqu'à Morlaix en Bretagne, mais aussi, via le Rhin, jusqu'en Europe centrale et peut-être, via la Loire, jusqu'à la vallée du Rhône puis Marseille, afin d'alimenter les marchés du pourtour méditerranéen. Ce minerais pourrait aussi avoir circulé jusqu'en Méditerranée en contournant les péninsules armoricaines et ibériennes. Quoi qu'il en soit, le transport maritime et fluvial était généralement prépondérant sur le transport par voie terrestre. Cette « règle » valait tant pour le transport des biens que des personnes.

X L'extraction du minerai d'étain en Cornouaille s'effectuait en deux temps. Une première extraction du minerai (5) à la mine donnait un produit impure qui était acheminé jusqu'à une forge où une seconde fusion produisait des lingots d'étain pur, appropriés à la transformation biannuelle qui se tenait dans l'une des « villes de l'étain » où était ensuite vendu le métal, localement ou à l'exportation (16). L'étain n'était pas à proprement parler un métal utilisé pour lui-même ; en revanche, mélangé avec du plomb il permettait la production d'objets domestiques courants et, allié au cuivre, il donnait du bronze. Ces deux utilisations furent primordiales durant toute l'époque médiévale. Au cours de cette période, l'étain extrait en Cornouaille fut travaillé et commercialisé sous le contrôle de « maîtres étameurs » (« hommes riches » de la région) qui imposaient des taxes au nom du roi (3). Cependant, le double procédé de fusion réclamait une quantité importante de charbon mais également de bois issu des forêts. Ceci permet d'expliquer très largement la disparition de nombreuses zones boisées, notamment dans le Dartmoor (renommé pour ses mines d'étain), bien que la Cornouaille ait produit dix fois plus d'étain que le Devon au cours du Moyen Âge et peut-être bien avant.

X Voir le récit de Diodorus Siculus au sujet de la commerce d'étain sur une îile ou penisule qui s'appelait Ictis (4).

Dr. H. O'Neil Hencken dans Archaeology of Cornwall and Scilly (1932), suggère que pendant l'Âge du Fer l'île du St. Michael's Mount devint un port d'une grande importance. St. Michael's Mount fut aussi à une époque l'île d'« Ictis » d'où l'étain de Cornouaille était exporté jusqu'aux communautés marchandes grèques en Méditerranée. Toutefois il faut aussi prendre en considération l'observation de John MacCormack qui pense que le nom « Ictis » pourrait être associé aux îles Anglo-normandes (13).

De manière moins convaincante, Canon Taylor dans son History of St. Michael's Mount propose qu'« Ictis » (« Hore Rock in the Wood ») était le Mont Saint-Michel plus que le St Michael's Mount. Cependant, il est, selon lui, peu probable que les Phéniciens et les Carthaginois aient commercé avec la Cornouaille et sa suggestion selon laquelle l'étain était expédié par bâteau jusqu'en Gaule par les Vénètes, un puissant peuple de navigateurs gaulois qui habitait le sud de l'Armorique, est intéressante. Les Vénètes avaient, en effet, d'étroits contacts linguistique et culturel avec la Cornouaille.

Voir également l'article au sujet d'Ictis/Itier par David Nicolas-Méry (37).

La région du Lizard, autour de la ville 'stannaire' d'Helston, connue pour son commerce de l'étain (6), était une des regions de Cornouaille les plus renommées pour ses mines au Moyen Âge (aucune extraction significative du cuivre en Cornouaille ou dans le Devon n'ait attestée avant le XVIe siècle). Aussi n'est-il pas surprenant d'observer que les moines du Mont Saint-Michel détenaient quatre secteurs de cette région (de la même manière, il n'est peut-être pas anodin de trouver à Helston une église dédiée à saint Michel) :

Ces quatre possessions étaient théoriquement sous l'autorité du prieur du St Michael's Mount ; cela dit, aucun document ne mentionne la main mise de l'abbaye sur des églises ou chapelles situées sur ces domaines. Il y eut divers établissement agricoles dans la zone du Lizard (notamment St Keverne), bien que, si l'on en croit les sources médiévales, la plus grande partie de la région était couverte jusqu'à son défrichement (en lien, probablement, avec la production de charbon de bois).

Le St Michael's Mount contrôlait également une autre zone réputée pour son étain, située, cette fois-ci, à une moindre distance :

X Ici encore, aucune preuve n'existe quand à la possession d'église ou de chapelle par les moines, dans ces domaines dont la principale richesse résidait dans la présence d'étain. En effet, nous ne connaissons que trois églises tenues par le prieur du St Michael's en Cornouaille – l'église prieurale du St Michael's Mount lui-même, l'église St Hilary non loin du prieuré et l'église St Clement à Moresk près de Truro – le reste des possessions étaient des terres liées à l'étain.

Malheureusement, nous ne connaîtrons sans doute jamais l'exacte étendue des possessions de l'abbaye du Mont Saint-Michel en Angleterre et, plus particulièrement, de celles détenues dans le Devon et en Cornouaille. Toutes les archives de l'abbaye du Mont ont, en effet, brulé lors de l'incendie des Archives départementales à Saint-Lô, en 1944.

X Il n'y a pas de preuve non plus quant à l'existence de la forêt légendaire qui entourait le St Michael's Mount et couvrait la baie de Penzance en Cornouaille (comme la mythique forêt de scissy qui englobait le Mont Saint-Michel dans sa baie, avant le légendaire raz-de-marée de 709) (17). Il n'y a pas plus de chance qu'une telle forêt ait été détruite consécutivement à l'exploitation minière et aux importants besoins en bois (4). Toutefois, un témoin occulaire sérieux, au XVIIIe siècle, affirme avoir observé un nombre important de troncs d'arbres semi-fossilisés dans la baie de Penzance au cours de marées exceptionellement basses. En outre, des archéologues ont effectivement découvert des lingots d'étain ainsi qu'un ancien fourneau non loin de Penzance et de Marazion, les deux agglomérations côtières situées face au St Michael's Mount. Le nom de Marazion lui-même pourrait signifier « Thursday market » ou « Jew's market » ; aussi, si des marchands venus de Méditerranée avaient été les principaux acteurs de ce commerce, depuis l'Antiquité jusqu'au Moyen Âge classique, il est envisageable que de tels marchands aient été assimilés à des « Juifs ». Jusqu'au XIXe siècle, l'industrie minière de l'étain en Cornouaille fait régulièrement référence au « Jew house » (i.e. fourneaux) « Jew house tin » (i.e. lingots) ainsi qu'au « Jew market » (i.e. le village de Marazion lui-même – « market-zion » ? – le marché du St Michael's Mount ?). Cependant, le terme plus ancien de « Forum Jovis » pourrait également avoir donné « Market Jew » (10).

X L'histoire industrielle de l'étain en Cornouaille est aujourd'hui bien étudiée, connue et documentée. Et, si l'on a bien établi que les mines étaient généralement exploitées à l'intérieur des terres, il apparait que les ports considérés comme praticables et accessibles à de larges navires, sur le rivage sud ouest de la Cornouaille, face aux côtes européennes, se situaient à Mousehole (près de l'île de St Clement, à Penzance), au St Michael's Mount (face à Marazion) et à St Clement de Moresk (sur le fleuve Tresillian non loin de Truro). En outre, comme nous l'avons vu, les quatre secteurs miniers du Lizard disposaient d'un accès facile à des ports côtiers ou sur le fleuve Helford.

Selon Michel Mollat, les moines montois possédaient et contrôlaient le port de Trevalga, une donation de Guillaume le Conquérant, sur la côte septentrionale de la Cornouaille à quelque distance de Tintagel. Il se pourrait que cette donation soit la simple confirmation d'un bien obtenu avant la Conquête (25). Le saint irlandais du VIe siècle, Piran (saint-patron des miniers d'étain et de la Cornouaille) donna son nom à la « St Piran's Old Church » et à « Perranzabuloe », près de Travalga – une paroisse qui incluait les villages de Perranporth and Perrancoombe.

Les églises (23) (24) de Perranuthno and Perranarworthal étaient également dédiée à saint Piran et son nom fut également donné à des « fontaines sacrées » (holy wells) situées à Perranwell et Probus mais aussi aux églises de St Piran, Trethevy, et Tintagel. Si les moines et leurs prédécesseurs contrôlaient le port de Trevalga, à une date précoce, sans nécessairement détenir de mines à proximité, cela suppose qu'ils avaient au moins certains droits sur le commerce et l'exportation de l'étain. [Note: D. Nicolas-Méry knows of St Piran's equivalents in Brittany. Presumably these are St. Peran, Loperan and Saint-Perran.]

In July 2009, after this study was first published, an important horde of bronze objects was found hidden among rocks on St Michael's Mount by gardener and amateur archaeologist Darren Little. The Late Bronze Age horde, now on show at St Michael's Mount, includes socketed axe heads, sword and knife fragments, a gouge, bronze ingots and a buckle (the buckle being extremely rare if not unique). While there is no doubt whatever as to the significance of Cornwall throughout the Bronze Age, a find such as this may add to our understanding of the significance of St Michael's Mount itself in the processing of, and/or trade in, tin and its products such as bronze.




Le rôle du prieuré d'Otterton dans le Devon

De la meme manière que la Cornouaille était connue pour ses mines d'étain (Depuis l'Antiquité jusqu'au XIXe siècle), le sud-ouest du Devon était réputé pour ses mines de plomb. Lorsque le plomb est ajouté à l'étain (dans un ratio approximativement d'1 pour 6) il produit le matériau communément appelé étain, « pewter » en Anglais, qui fut largement utilisé depuis le Moyen Âge, à travers toute l'Europe, dans la fabrication d'objets d'usage quotidien – pour des cuillères, des coupes, des gobelets, des pichets, des assiettes et des bols. Alors que le plomb était utilisé dans la production du verre, appliqué aux huisseries notamment, une grande quantité de cet alliage était également indispensable pour assurer l'étancheité des toitures au Moyen Âge. Et malgré l'inadéquation de cet alliage de plomb et d'étain à la préparation culinaire au-dessus d'un feu, il restait moins honéreux que le cuivre ou le bronze et, par conséquent, largement employé dans l'univers domestique jusqu'à l'avènement de la porcelaine.

Si les moines étaient impliqués dans l'extraction de l'étain en Cornouaille et peut-être meme était partie prenante dans le monopole du commerce de l'étain vers la Normandie et la Bretagne, il est séduisant d'envisager qu'ils aient également essayé d'étendre leur main-mise sur le commerce du plomb et de l'étain du Devon. Cependant, le Dr Roger Burt, specialiste de l'histoire minière de l'université d'Exeter, emmet de sérieux doutes quant au rôle joué par les ports de Sidmouth et d'Otterton, tous deux contrôlés par les moines (ports autour desquels les moines tenaient aussi une douzaine ou plus de manoirs), dans ce commerce du plomb. Son point de vue ne nous surprend pas dans le sens où le prieuré d'Otterton ne parait pas avoir prospéré au Moyen Âge.




Les moines deviennent « seigneurs maritimes »

X L'archéologue Daniel Levalet [d'après Loïc Langouët Le Centre Régional d'Archéologie d'Alet] a étudié et mis en avant l'importante route commerciale maritime (26) (27) qui reliait les deux rives de la Manche via les îles anglo-normandes durant l'Antiquité et sans doute le haut Moyen Âge.

D. Levalet a, quant à lui, mis en lumière le formidable réseau defensif établi sur le littoral occidental du Cotentin à la même époque. Les raisons de ce dispositif sont liées à la défense des côtes, c'est avéré, mais probablement également à la sécurisation d'un commerce maritime dans ce secteur. Le contrôle de cette route maritime échu plus tard au monastère bénédictin du Mont Saint-Michel bien que les ports de ses principaux domaines soient situés sur le continent, comme St Père-sur-Mer, Genêts et Avranches, par exemple.

D. Levalet pense que le principal objectif de ces forts côtiers était la protection du littoral contre d'éventuels attaques maritimes – et plus particulièrement celles de pirates Saxons. Il ne mentionne cependant pas les convois qui auraient mérité une égale protection, surtout dans le cas d'un transport de richesses comme l'étain de Cornouaille et le plomb du Devon. Le Dr Burt affirme que la Germanie et la Scandinavie étaient d'importants fournisseurs de cuivre, métal essentiel pour la production de bronze.

X Peu après, au Xe siècle, les Normands (descendants de colons Vikings) établirent dans les regions côtières de l'actuelle Normandie et de la Picardie l'embryon d'un puissant Etat, avec l'assentiment des rois de France et à la condition de garantir la protection des rivages de la Seine et de la côte septentrionale du royaume franc contre d'éventuels nouveaux raids scandinaves. Il semble certain (cf. Millenaire ll) que les moines bénédictins du Mont Saint-Michel, installés en 966 par Richard Ier, troisième duc de Normandie, s'emparèrent rapidement du commerce maritime le long du Cotentin jusqu'à la Baie du Mont Saint-Michel. John McCormack pense que des moines Cisterciens sont à l'origine de la remise en route d'un navigational aux Écrehous à Guernsey en 1203 (13).

X Ce n'est sans doute pas le fruit du hasard si les moines du Mont furent possessionés de domaines hautement stratégiques mais aussi de ports à Aurigny, Guernesey, Jersey et Chausey (e.g. donations des ducs Richard I, Robert le Magnifique, Guillaume le Conquérant ou encore Philippe de Carteret, voir les annexes) mais également de propriétés équivalentes sur le continent où ils fondèrent de nombreux prieurés littoraux. On peut s'interroger sur les raisons pour lesquels les moines endossèrent les lourdes responsabilités de cette véritable seigneurie maritime qui incluait une importante voie commerciale trans-Manche ; à moins qu'ils n'aient eu un quelconque intérêt dans ce commerce (14).

Il est certain que l'abbaye montoise détenait d'importants droits sur des pêcheries mais aussi sur la production du sel dans la baie du Mont Saint-Michel, cependant ces produits alimentaient principalement un marché très local voire régional. Il est improbable que de telles productions aient été destinées à l'Angleterre ou à l'Europe du Nord où le sel et le poisson se trouvaient en abondance (19), même s'il faut reconnaître que la Cornouaille fut importatrice de sel à la fin du Moyen Âge.

L'explication la plus satisfaisante concernant la persistence d'un système côtier aussi élaboré destiné à defender un commerce maritime (27) et plus particulièrement des matières premières comme l'étain, le cuivre ou le plomb et peut-être l'export de bronze. De manière forte intéressante, le Dr Burt explique que la fonte de cuivre et la production de bronze ne vit pas le jour en Angleterre avant le XVIe siècle. En conséquence de quoi, on présume que le bronze était importé en Cornouaille et ailleur en Angleterre jusqu'à cette époque.




Le commerce de l'étain depuis la Cornouaille vers la Normandie et la Bretagne via Guernesey

Il est donc possible que le commerce de l'étain entre la Cornouaille et les côtes normandes et bretonnes ait été en partie contrôlé par l'abbaye du Mont Saint-Michel, ses prieurés et d'autres communautés satellites de divers ordres, depuis au moins le IXe siècle jusqu'à la guerre de Cent Ans, cinq siècles plus tard. Les preuves suivantes (factuelles ou circonstancielles) sont à savoir :

Les moines étaient officiellement seigneurs maritimes de tous les territories reliant la Cornouaille à la Normandie et à la Bretagne du nord est. Ils possédaient le St Michael's Mount et ses marchés, probablement le marché de Marazion (28) (10) et, plus précisément, des mines d'étain située sur leurs propres terres (Truthwall et Ludgvan ainsi que les quatre domaines du Lizard, non loin de la « ville de l'étain » d'Helston). Ils possédaient également les havres de St Hilary (l'estuaire navigable le plus proche du St Michael's Mount), celui de St Clement à Moresk (l'estuaire navigable le plus proche de la ville de Truro) et enfin Trevalga (le port associé à Tintagel sur la côte nord de la Cornouaille).

X Les moines détenaient également, avec droits portuaires, le meilleur port naturel à Guernesey, Grand Havre à côté de leur prieuré de St Michael (35), celui de Vale (lle siècle). Cette port était fermé et assêché par les Anglais à des fins défensives au tout début du XlXe siècle) (13) ainsi que le prieuré St Clement à Jersey. Ces ports permettaient une traversée entre Cornouaille et Normandie de 400kms sans sortir des domaines de l'abbaye, et, par conséquent, rendaient le voyage plus sûr avec la certitude d'échapper à d'éventuelles taxes payables à d'autres seigneurs.

Any vessel crossing the Channel from Mont Saint-Michel to the Cornish coast faced a straight-line passage of about 250 miles in some of the most treacherous coasts and most unpredictable weather in European waters. At a speed of four or five miles per hour this voyage would take at least two days (perhaps four days in unfavourable winds). It seems inconceivable that mediaeval seamen would not have broken their passage along the way if possible and especially in foul weather. The only useful intermediate ports would have been in the Channel Islands. While St Peter Port in Guernsey (used by the Romans) would have served their purpose, the monks of Mont Saint-Michel in fact owned their own ideal sheltered port at the Grand Havre at St Michael Vale in the north-east corner of Guernsey. This harbour (see map above right) is still visible, though now mostly dry since it was drained by the British in the early 1800s as a defence measure against Napoleonic invasion.

X The history of the priory of St Michael's Vale is unclear. While the well-preserved C12th parish church of St Michael's survives, it is unclear whether the monks had a separate and probably earlier priory church close by. In the retaining wall immediately south of the church there is evidence of what was very probably part of the priory buildings. These appear to have lain around what was almost certainly a courtyard (still visible), while the remains of a large gateway leading from the harbour into the courtyard has also survived. This gateway almost certainly had a room above it which in mediaeval Normandy and England almost always served as a court of justice. The author believes it quite likely that the foundations of an assembly of C11th or C12th priory buildings, perhaps with their own priory chapel, lie to the south of the present church around the surviving courtyard space.

Unfortunately, the only interesting account of the establishment of the St Michael's priory is that recounted in Jonathan Duncan's The History of Guernsey (London, 1841) which Guernsey historians today regard as highly suspect. Duncan claims to cite a survey dated 1309 by John Ditton and John Fressingfield and another charter dated 1358. While the contents of these are fascinating and appear entirely credible, it is thought that Duncan was quoting the entirely unreliable (virtually fictional?) work of a C17th writer, Fouaschin. Nevertheless, Duncan's account is summarised in the following paragraph:

X According to John Ditton and John Fressingfield, in their survey dated 1309, (35) the monks and canons Mont Saint-Michel were banished from Mont Saint-Michel by Richard l of Normandy on account of their dissolute behaviour and settled at Vale where they built a chapel and a house on what had once been a neolithic burial site overlooking the entrance to the harbour. [The original priory chapel may have been a separate building from the C12th church we know today, or else lie beneath it, but there is still clear evidence of a mediaeval structure in a retaining wall on the south side of the parish church, perhaps set around a courtyard but certainly served by the obvious remains of a gatehouse – CAL]. These canons or monks found several pious hermits already established on the island and were so much influenced by them that Guernsey became known as the 'Holy Island'. They apparently encouraged the local residents to fortify the harbour area against pirates while they themselves fortified a castle to the east of the harbour, immediately fronting the isle of Herm, which was placed under the protection of the archangel Saint Michael (presumably in or near present-day St Sampson). At first, it is said (35), the monks were sitting tenants but their tenure was authorised by Prince Robert (later Robert l of Normandy) after he and his storm-bound fleet took shelter with the monks at Vale. He gave them full proprietorship of the lands of the Vale which the monks then let out on perpetual heritable tenures in return for tythes and taxes. In 1061, the 'abbot' of the Vale also received a grant of land, conjointly with Sampson d'Anneville, from William l, for performing the office of ducal chaplain, whenever the duke visited Guernsey. Records now at the Tower of London, dated 25th January, 1358, show that the abbot's proportion of this grant consisted chiefly of property in the Vale, St. Mary de Castro [Câtel], St. Saviour, and St. Peter-in-the-Wood and that the revenues of St Michael Vale amounted to £24 3s. The fact that the monks had well-recorded rights over the port, fisheries, mills, three other churches and the village of 'Gouale' suggest an important fief. In addition it appears almost certain that there was once a room above what remains of the priory gate-house – usually the site of a court of justice – indicating that the monks held a well-established lordship of the manor of Vale. It would be interesting to know whether the nearby St Clement's Road is indicative of a former church or chapel dedicated to St Clement – as one might almost expect to be the case (see below).

L'histoire des évêques de Coutances says that the monks first settled in Vale around 962 and confusingly (perhaps wrongly) says that the gift of land, known as the Fief-Saint-Michel, was made by Robert ll who was not in fact the prince who took shelter at Vale. It also states that St Mary's church (Sainte-Vierge) of Lih es ou (Lihou) was consacrated on 4 Aout, 1114.




St Clement

Il pourrait s'agir d'une coincidence, toutefois il semble que le culte à saint Michel (en Cornouaille, dans les îles anglo-normandes et en Normandie) est lié à celui de saint Clément (36). Le culte de ce saint « Romain oriental » est associé aux « eaux calmes » (au temps « clément ») et aurait été important pour les marins et plus spécialement pour les navigateurs amenés à traverser la Manche notoirement réputée dangereuse. On rencontre une Île St Clement non loin du port naturel de Mousehole (face au St Michael's Mount dans la baie de Penzance) qui constitue un repère visuel pour les marins qui abordent cette côte. Il existe aussi une église St Clement dans l'autre port de Cornouaille appartenant aux moines à Moresk (près de Truro). Un troisième site dédié à St Clement apparait avec le prieuré montois de Jersey, qui offrait un abri aux moines et aux navigateurs ; enfin un quatrième site dédié à St Clement's existe sur l'Île de Wight, est constitue, ici encore, un amer pour les navires voyageant depuis Southampton, où était le port formant le terminus d'un trafic anglo-normand vers les très nombreux domaines du Hampshire détenus par des seigneurs continentaux ((voir les annexes)). De manière tout à fait intéressante dans ce contexte, la principale église médiévale sur le quai de Southampton est dédiée à saint Michel.




De bronze et de cloches

X Les cloches, comme moyen de rythmer la vie monastique, se sont imposées au Xe siècle avant de se répendre très largement au commencement du XIe siècle. La fonte des cloches est connue comme une spécialité de moines-artisans depuis au moins l'époque carolingienne jusqu'au XIIe siècle (12) avant de devenir peu à peu une affaire commerciale. Les moines cisterciens étaient particulièrement renommés pour leur grande connaissance dans le domaine de la métallurgie et de la fonte des métaux. L'étain était un élément essentiel dans la production du bronze et, de ce fait, dans la fonte des cloches, et devait être associé au cuivre dans un ratio de 23% d'étain pour 77% de cuivre (7). Si la baie du Mont Saint-Michel constituait le terminus d'une route de l'étain en provenance de Cornouaille, D. Nicolas-Méry précise que plusieurs abbayes bénédictines de la vallée de la Loire possédaient des prieurés dans les environs proches du Mont (Saint-Malo, le Brégain, Antrain, Sacey, Saint-James de Beuvron, etc.) de manière, peut-être, à bénéficier de ce transit important du minerai dans la Baie (14).

Les cloches ont toujours eu une importance grandissante durant l'époque médiévale. Comme l'influence de petites communautés monastiques éloignées allait en déclinant, elles ouvrèrent la voie à de grandes revolutions de l'histoire européenne: la construction de centaines de cathédrales urbaines et de milliers d'églises paroissiales dans presques toutes les villes et tous les villages. De la meme manière, les relativement petites cloches qui orchestraient la vie monastique cédèrent la place à de plus grandes et de plus lourdes cloches capables d'atteindre les oreilles de populations disséminées – avec parfois avec des sonneries de cloches à six ou huit tons (34). Les besoins en bronze afin de répondre à la demande de tant d'églises et de cathédrales, depuis le XIIe siècle, durent être absolument prodigieux. D'ailleurs la silhouette traditionnelle de l'« église », telle que nous la connaissons aujourd'hui (avec sa tour surmontant une nef et un chœur) est la conséquence directe de cette « révolution des cloches ». Sans l'appel des populations éloignées par les cloches nul besoin d'une tour – toutefois la tour pouvait également server de poste de guet et ainsi revêtir une vocation défensive ; dans un tel cas, les cloches pouvait faire office de signal, d'avertissement sonore.

X Bien qu'il soit indéniable qu'un alliage de bronze pouvait être sans cesse recyclé, il semble que le bronze des cloches ne fut pas si facilement réutilisé. En effet, les cloches étaient généralement considérées comme sacrées, bénies, ou « baptisées », et quasiment traîtées comme des « être vivants » qui souvent portaient le nom de leurs parrains ou maraines, également financeurs de la fonte. Donc, véritablement, pour ces nouvelles fabrications de cloches de grandes quantités de nouveau bronze, donc de nouvel étain, un besoin important se fit sentir à compter de la fin du XIe siècle et du début du XIIe siècle.

X Les preuves archéologiques apportées par de nombreuses abbayes anglaises et françaises montrèrent que de larges cloches pour des abbayes et des églises étaient généralement fondues in situ, souvent dans l'espace situé sous la tour (34). Cependant, le bronze réclamé pour la fonte devait être préparé dans un premier temps sous forme de lingots. Le cuivre était un métal de grande valeur et l'on possède de multiples informations sur la manière dont les vieux objets en cuivre était recyclé à une échelle industrielle (8). L'agglomération médiévale de Villedieu-les-Poêles, à une vingtaine de kilomètres d'Avranches et de la biae du Mont Saint-Michel, fut spécialement créé pour cette raison sous le règne de Henry Ier Beauclerc et demeure de nos jours un centre important de travail du cuivre et de fondrie de cloches.

X La raison pour laquelle les chevaliers de Saint-Jean (qui deviendront plus tard chevaliers de Malte) furent requis pour contrôler et protéger Villedieu-les-Poêles peut s'expliquer par l'importance économique de cette industrie. Situé sur la principale route de pèlerinage allant de Caen au Mont Saint-Michel, la ville pourrait également avoir été installée à cet emplacement en raison de la proximité de la Sienne, fleuve navigable se jetant à l'ouest de Coutances, et de l'abondance du bois fourni par les forêts environnantes – bois nécessaire au fonctionnement des fourneaux. L'étain aurait pu être acheminé par voie fluviale sur des bardes jusqu'à Villedieu, ou par voie terrestre, puis converti en lingots de bronze pour les fondeurs de cloches. Un vieux chemin, qui s'appelle la route des Fondeurs de Cloches, passe de Villedieu vers les hauteurs au nord de Montabot et plus loin à l'est, dont la significance n'est pas encore établie.

David Nicolas-Méry rappelle que les moines du Mont Saint-Michel accordaient une grande importance aux forêts qui recouvraient une bonne partie de leurs possessions situées dans la Baie (notamment dans la lande de Beuvais). L'auteur quant à lui précise que les moines abandonnèrent leur prieuré de Domjean dès 1180 (ce prieuré était une donation de Gonnor au Mont vers 1015  et se situait à environ 45 km de l'abbaye) mais qu'ils gardèrent cependant la main-mise sur les terres et les paroisses des alentours (comme à Fourneaux et Beuvrigny entre autres, ainsi que des terres autour de Pleines-Oeuvres).

X Cette région vallonée était aussi l'une des plus boisées de la Normandie occidentale et, détail d'importance, en plusieurs points de ce secteur on rencontre des pierres très rouges, apparemment riches en fer. Il est probable que le nom du village de Fourneaux mais aussi de Pleines-Oeuvres (mines à ciel ouvert ?) soit liés à l'intérêt minier de ces sites relevant du Mont Saint-Michel. L'archéologue Colin Wells a entrepris un relevé toponymique dans la region de Domjean ; il a relevé quelques noms tout a fait évocateurs tels « Le bois de l'abbé », « Le Bosq de l'abbé » et « Le Prioret ». L'auteur fera une enquête similaire dans les secteurs de Fourneaux, Beuvrigny et Pleines-Oeuvres.




La fin de l'aventure Anglo-Normand

X En dépit de la somptueuse architecture du Mont mise en oeuvre au cour des XIIe et XIIIe siècles, il est admis que les finances de l'abbaye déclina assez vite après la conquête de l'Angleterre, en 1066, (14) et plus en encore au cours de la guerre de Cent Ans (18). Ce déclin de la fortune du Mont Saint-Michel entre les XIIe et XVe siècles reflète celui de nombreux autres établissements religieux dû à un certain nombre de facteurs, comme la fin des grandes donations princières, ou l'augmentation des tensions politiques qui s'accentuairent avec le développement des villes épiscopales et des paroisses. Mais le Mont Saint-Michel devint particulièrement vulnérable après sa rupture avec l'Angleterre. Le transfert de revenus anglais vers la Normandie fut de plus en plus sporadique au XIVe siècle et cessa totalement au XVe siècle. James St Aubyn fait remarquer que l'accroissement des revenus du St Michael's Mount coïncide avec la fin des relations avec la France, pendant la guerre de Cent Ans. On peut supposer que le marché internationnal de l'étain, en Cornouaille, ne fut plus accessible aux Français devenus les ennemis de l'Angleterre. De façon très nette, les revenus des églises et des manoirs anglais, ainsi que de leurs activités agricoles (cf. Domesday Book) ne contribuaient pas véritablement à la prospérité du Mont Saint-Michel aux XIe et XIIe siècles. La disparition de ces revenus modestes, au XVe siècle, ne constitua pas, en elle-même, une énorme perte pour les finances de l'abbaye. Cependant, c'est plus certainement la fin d'un contrôle d'un marché comme celui de l'étain de Cornouaille (et peut-être du plomb du Devon) qui aurait pu contribué véritablement au déclin final de l'abbaye.




Résumé des hypothèses de l'auteur :

1. Les moines du Mont Saint-Michel seraient fortement impliqués dans le trafic trans-Manche du marché de l'étain de Cornouaille avant la Conquête de l'Angleterre. Une partie du minerai proviendrait de leurs propres mines (mines identifies par l'auteur dans si lieux différents) mais le quasi-monopole serait également lié à la main-mise des religieux sur les principaux ports de la côte de la Cornouaille. Cette activité économique serait née dès le IXe ou le Xe siècle – pour cette raison, les moines auraient souhaité ultérieurement prouver leurs droits anciens en Angleterre en créant ou falsifiant deux importantes chartes rédigées après la Conquête de 1066. Si la production de l'étain ne relevait pas directement d'eux, l'auteur conçoit que les moines aient pu réactiver une route commerciale qui existait déjà à l'Âge du Fer et à l'époque gallo-romaine.

2. Les moines montois, en tant que seigneurs maritimes, avaient clairement l'opportunité, voire l'obligation, de contrôler la route commerciale qui longeait la péninsule du Cotentin, via les îles Anglo-normandes. En effet, les terres et domaines dont ils étaient possessionnés dans la Normandie occidentale et dans les îles Anglo-normandes s'inscrivaient parfaitement dans cette logique (14).

3. Les religieux, qu'ils aient ou non possédé leur propre flotte, contrôlaient l'importation et l'exportation, percevaient des taxes, et usaient de leurs possessions insulaires et anglaises pour circuler librement à travers la mer de la Manche. Quoi qu'il en soit, il ne semble pas anodin que des chapelles et des églises dédiées à saint Clément aient été fréquemment associées aux ports et aux routes maritimes contrôlées et utilisées par les moines du Mont Saint-Michel, tant en Angleterre que dans les îles.

4. Les moines contrôlaient aussi le passage de l'étain et de ses produits aussi loin que la vallée de la Loire, grâce à un réseau de prieurés d'abbayes liguriennes, en irrigant l'intérieur des terres françaises. L'abbaye montoise détenait dans la Baie le terminus du trafic trans-Manche de l'étain et alimentait ainsi un réseau de prieurés d'abbayes liguriennes qui se chargeaient ensuite d'acheminer le précieux métal vers la vallée de la Loire.

5. Villedieu-les-Poêles pourrait avoir été créé, à proximité du Mont Saint-Michel, afin de participer à la transformation de l'étain et du cuivre, mais aussi du plomb, en bronze ; la cité devenant ainsi un haut lieu de la fonte de cloche et de la production d'objets domestiques en cuivre et en étain (en fait un alliage d'étain et de plomb appelé « pewter » en Anglais) mais aussi pour les supports des vitraux. Les origines de la ville reposent sur son rôle premier de collectage et de recyclage de ces métaux, son implantation en un lieu aussi spécifique confirme la préexistence d'un commerce bien établi. D'autes ordres monastiques, tels les Cisterciens (metallurgistes réputés), pourraient avoir été des clients importants pour Villedieu.

6. Les moines seraient les héritiers d'un système bien établi et fonctionnant depuis un millénaire, avant l'arrivée des premiers bénédictins en Angleterre, au VIIIe siècle. Ainsi, la célèbre île d'Ictis, mentionnée dans l'Antiquité par Diodorus comme un important marché de l'étain, pourrait être, comme l'affirme certains, le St Michael's Mount. Autre hypothèse, « Ictis » pourrait aussi être localisée dans les îles Anglo-normandes (13) ou bien être (de manière beaucoup moins certaine) le Mont Saint-Michel lui-même, surtout si l'étain de Cornouaille fut de longue date transporté via la route des îles jusqu'à la baie du Mont Saint-Michel par des tribus de marins gaulois d'Armorique tels les Vénètes ou les Coriosolites.

7. La pèriode la plus prospère pour les moines du Mont Saint-Michel impliqués dans l'étain de Cornouaille semble coïncider avec les deux siècles qui précédèrent la Conquête de l'Angleterre, à la suite de laquelle leur succès parait avoir décliné (22). Donc, les moines normands en Angleterre seraient les principaux perdants de 1066. Les descendants des barons normands apparaissent comme les adversaries des moines et plus particulièrement de leurs établissements anglais. Alors qu'ils affirmaient leur autorité en Angleterre (30) (31) (32), ils devaient inmanquablement avoir des difficultés à maintenir leurs profits sur le commerce de l'étain face à de redoutables « outsiders » (18).

8. Il existe très peu d'indices, en Cornouaille et dans le Devon, quant à une utilisation locale de l'étain et du cuivre pour la production de bronze, dumoins avant le XVIe siècle. Il est envisageable que des matériaux bruts aient été exportés vers le continent pour une production d'alliages ensuite réimportés vers le monde insulaire. Curieusement, des indices permettent d'envisager cette circulation un millénaire auparavant (20).

9. Le Grand Havre, un grand port naturel qui aurait existé durant l'époque médiévale à Vale, Guernsey, était géré par les moines du Prieuré de Saint Michael Vale (35) qui tenaient ses droits portuaires (35). Cet 'havre' stratégique aurait protégé tout vaisseau faisant la traversée du Mont Saint-Michel vers la côte de Cornouaille (160 km du M-S-M et 256 km de SMM). Des recherches faites par l'auteur en 2009 montrent que l'importance du prieuré de St Michael Vale et de son port aurait été ignoré depuis quelques siècles.

10. Si ce qui vient d'être exposé ci-dessus est pour la plupart vrai, il est raisonnable de conclure en proposant qu'une partie du bronze indispensable à la production de cloches, dans un contexte monastique ouest-européen, ait été, dans une certaine mesure un monopole des moines du Mont Saint-Michel, au moins avant la Conquête. Il est aussi possible, toutefois sans l'appui de preuves, qu'il en fut de meme pour le commerce de l'alliage de plomb et d'étain destine à la fabrication d'objets domestiques. En d'autres termes, si la Cornouaille et son étain furent incontournables durant l'époque que l'on appelle « Âge du Bronze », les moines du Mont Saint-Michel pourraient avoir joué un rôle essentiel au cours de cette période que l'auteur est tenté d'appeler « l'Âge des Cloches » (circa 900-1200).




Notes:

1. Re: Edward The Confessor's charter: P.L. Hull, archivist to Cornwall County Council, (in Millénaire l) says there is no evidence that Edward ever visited MSM, that he would not have called himself king while Canute was still on the throne and that he would have had no title to the lands concerned. Furthermore, at the date suggested by Mme Fauroux (who believes that Edward the Confessor must have visited MSM, that the charter is genuine and who dates it to 1027-1035 or more likely 1033-1034) how could the solemn curse on infringers of the charter be promulgated?
Similarly, M.D.J.A. Matthew (in Norman Monasteries) is not convinced by Mme Fauroux: "In the late eleventh century the monks appear to have been in serious trouble with the mighty Robert of Mortain and it is tempting possibility that this charter was concocted about the same time, to defend claims to lands which their canon predecessors on the Cornish Mount may even have enjoyed, but for which the monks could find no documentary proof. This would explain the violence of 'Edward's' language; the monks may also have preferred to compose a Norman charter and not to risk too much by inventing an English one."

2. Re: Robert de Mortain's charter: H.W.C. Davis and R.J. Whitwell (in Ragesta) consider the 'gift' by Robert de Mortain as spurious: "The fabrication of a charter attributed to Robert would, however, have been made only after his death, and probably after the death of Henry l, who might have remembered that he had witnessed no such document, even as a lad."
P.L. Hull, (in Millénaire l), is not convinced by the authenticity of the "inflated and spurious" copy in the MSM Cartulary of the so-called gift by Robert de Mortain. But while he sees inconsistencies in its supposed 'original' he remains open to its authenticity and certainly he sees no evidence for the claim that the original donors were the Breton counts who appear to have held much of Cornwall prior to the arrival of Robert de Mortain. However, he also finds serious problems with a supposed copy of the original, now preserved in Exeter. The arguments he presents are complicated, going as far as suggesting someone's adulterated copy of the supposed original became the source for someone else's adulterated and supposedly authentic copy of the original. But he is uncertain whether the forgery was begun in Normandy (well accustomed to forgery) or in England under Norman influence. However, even if Robert de Mortain did not found the priory at SMM, he sees no reason to doubt that Robert de Mortain, with his second wife Almodis, made this possible and made grants to "St Michael and the monks" (of the Norman abbey) including: "the manor of Ludgvan and the holding of Bloyou in the manor of Truthwall in Ludgvan and St Hilary and both the fairs of the Mount". This accords with the Domesday account. For detailed analysis of his arguments, see his intriguing article in Millénaire Monastique du Mont Saint-Michel (1967).

3. The Stannary Charter 1198: Know that the sheriff of Devon and Cornwall has received by the hand of William de Wrotham, the command of the Lord Archbishop of Canterbury in these words:
Hubert, by the grace of God, Archbishop of Canterbury, Primate of all England, Legate of the Apostolic See, to the sheriff of Devon and Cornwall, greeting. We order you, on behalf of the Lord King, that in place of Geoffrey Fitz-Peter you entrust to William de Wrotham all the stannaries of the Lord King in your bailiwick and all that belongs to those stannaries. And you shall see to it that he has tin miners with that freedom which they should have, and which they have been accustomed to have, and you will see that he has all those lawful men whom the same William will name for you. You shall see that they expedite this matter, that they bring aid and counsel for the keeping of the king's stamps, and all the products of those stannaries, and see to the disposal of the profit from the same. Forbid all men free admission to your bailiwick lest, without permission of the same William, they carry away any tin either by land or sea. You will also give him much help in expediting the present business of the Lord King, that it may prosper, and that your Lord King may not suffer loss through neglect on your part.
Witness, Stephen of Turnham, at Westminster, on the twentieth day of November.
And know also that the sheriff of Devon and Cornwall has received another command of the Lord Archbishop of Canterbury in these words:
Hubert, by the grace of God, Archbishop of Canterbury, Primate of all England and Legate of the Apostolic See, to the sheriff to Devon and Cornwall greeting. We command you that by the oath of twelve free and lawful men of your bailiwick, who know quite well the truth of the matter, that you make diligent inquiries as to what may be the weight of the first and second smeltings and that you cause these weights to be guarded in future as the bearer of these presents, William de Wrotham, will tell you.
Witness, Geoffrey de Bocland, at Salisbury, on the seventh day of January.
Know likewise that we have received letters from Geoffrey Fitz-Peter that we are to be with William de Wrotham in the place of Lord Geoffrey Fitz-Peter as a justice for executing the command of the Lord of Canterbury about the measuring of the weights of the first and second smeltings and the disposal of the profit from the tin of the Lord King, wherefore it is that the sheriff of Devon and I, William de Wrotham, ... greet Lord Hubert, Archbishop of Canterbury, and Lord Geoffrey Fitz-Peter, and all the Barons of the Exchequer of the Lord King.
And we give notice that on the nineteenth day of January in the ninth year of the reign of King Richard, at Exeter in the county of Devon, we inquired upon the oath of . . . wise and prudent men, about the true weights of the tin of Devon, and we inquired about such quantity as was the just and ancient weight of the city of Exeter, by which in ancient times, now and always, it has been customary to weigh the second smelting of tin, and what it always ought to be, and we found that the just and ancient weight of the first smelting formerly, now and always, was eight times the weight of the second smelting, and it ought to be nine times the weight according to the weight of the city of Exeter for this reason, namely, that from any thousand weight weighed by the greater weight thirty denarii are given to the Lord King, according to ancient custom for the ferm of the stannaries of Devon and for the expense of conveyance to market towns, and because the tin at the second smelting was less, and according to their oath it was measured and determined by such measure in our presence in the stannaries and towns of Devon.
[Similar account of the weights of Cornwall. Statement that Wm. De Wrotham began to administer the Stannary in A.D. 1198, and that the administration of the Stannary under the following regulations is as good as can be expected.]
All miners and buyers of black tin, and first smelters of tin and merchants of tin of the first smelting have just and ancient customs and liberties established in Devon and Cornwall. Likewise just and ancient weights of the first and second smelting of tin, determined by the oath of the above-mentioned jurors, and marked with the stamp of the Lord King, shall be kept.
Also all men have the common right of buying tin by just, ancient, and free customs, as they are accustomed to have and ought to have, by the mark from any thousand weight of the second smelting. And in the towns and market towns wherein the chief warden of the stannaries shall have appointed a time for a second smelting, from each thousand weight of which the Lord King ought to have one mark, let the second smelting be weighed by the weight of the city of Exeter, and that weight shall be marked by the stamp of the Lord King. Likewise the established weight of the city of Exeter shall always be kept in the custody of two lawful men in the market towns, and in the custody of the clerk appointed by the Lord King.
And the stamp of the mark, with which the weight and all the tin of the second smelting ought to be stamped, shall always be guarded under the seal of the keeper of the weight of the second smelting and of the clerk appointed by the Lord King, except when they stamp with it. Again, the guards of the second smelting and the clerk shall diligently and mindfully record, as they love themselves, all the thousand and hundred weights and pounds which may be weighed and stamped throughout the year by the weight and stamp of the warden.
And in any town where a second smelting has been decreed let there be two lawful and rich men who shall receive from the merchants the mark of the Lord King, in the presence of the wardens and the clerk of the second smelting and of the stamp for weighing and marking, and both the clerk and the wardens shall not permit the tin to be carried away until the treasurer of the Lord King shall have received the mark of the Lord King and the customary tax on the tin.
And the treasurers of the mark of the Lord King may make statements and chirographs about the money of the Lord King against the wardens and the clerk of the weight and the stamp. And in the chirographs shall be enumerated the day of receiving, and the amount of money received, and the number of thousands and hundreds of pounds of tin received, and the names of the merchants who acquired the tin. Likewise the treasurers of the Lord King by statements and chirographs of this kind shall deliver the money of the Lord King to the chief warden of the stannaries.
Neither the chief warden nor any servant of his shall in any way presume to annoy the treasurers of the Lord King during their lifetime. Nor after the death of those treasurers shall they annoy the heirs until they have reasonably assured themselves about the receipt of the money of the Lord King according to the statements and chirographs made against the wardens of the second smelting and against the clerk of the Lord King.
The keepers of the stamp and the weights, and the clerk of the Lord King shall always safely guard, in common custody under their seals, the statements and chirographs made against the treasurers; and they shall keep them in a receptacle to which each shall have his own key....Likewise in any town, other than the city of Exeter or the town of Bodmin, where there has been a second smelting, a house shall be taken by rent for the Lord King's service. And the whole weighing and marking of the second smelting shall be done there, and let none presume to make a second smelting, weighing, and mark ing elsewhere, as he loves himself and his own...
No one may presume to have in the market towns any weights with which to weigh tin except they have been previously measured in the presence of the keepers of the weights, and judged by the weight of the Lord King, and marked by the stamp of the mark of the Lord King; The wardens and the clerk of the first smelting, as they love themselves and their own, shall diligently and mindfully make a record of the thousands and hundreds and pounds which have been weighed and marked by the weight and stamp of the warden throughout the whole year. And let no Christian man or woman, nor any Jew, presume to buy or sell any tin of the first smelting, nor to give or carry away, outside the stannaries or outside the places appointed for weighing and marking the first smelting, until it shall have been weighed and marked in the presence of the wardens and clerks of the weights and stamp of the ferm.
Let no Christian man or woman, nor any Jew, presume to have within or outside the stannaries any of the first smelting beyond a fortnight unless it be weighed and marked by the wardens and clerk of the weight and seal of the ferm. Let no Christian man or woman, nor any Jew, carry tin in any way, by land or sea, beyond Devon or Cornwall, except he first have permission of the chief warden of the stannaries. Let good and lawful men be appointed in the harbors of Devon and Cornwall to take the oath of all ship-hands and sailors arriving there, that they will not carry away, nor permit to be carried away in their ships, any tin except it be weighed and marked by the royal customs, and except they have the writ of the chief warden of the stannary. The stamp of the ferm shall always be guarded under the seal of the warden and of the clerk except while they are using it at the appointed places. In weighing the tin let the tongue of the scale balance justly between the weight and the tin, so that the scale is not drawn towards the tin, in accordance with the wish of the buyer, on any just scale.
The Stannary Charter 1201: The King to the Archbishops, etc., greeting... John, by the grace of God, King of England, etc., to the archbishops, bishops, abbots, earls, barons, judges, sheriffs, foresters, and to all our bailiffs and faithful people, greeting. Be it known that we have granted that all tin miners of Cornwall and Devon are free of pleas of the natives as long as they work for the profit of our ferm or for the marks for our new tax; for the stannaries are on our demesne. And they may dig for tin, and for turf for smelting it, at all times freely and peaceably without hindrance from any man, on the moors and in the fiefs of bishops, abbots, and earls, as they have been accustomed to do. And they may buy faggots to smelt the tin, without waste of forest, and they may divert streams for their work just as they have been accustomed to do by ancient usage. Nor shall they desist from their work by reason of any summons, except those of the chief warden of the stannaries or his bailiffs. We have granted also that the chief warden of the stannaries and his bailiffs have plenary power over the miners to do justice to them and to hold them to the law. And if it should happen that any of the miners ought to be seized and imprisoned for breach of the law they should be received in our prisons; and if any of them should become a fugitive or outlaw let his chattels be delivered to us by the hands of the warden of the stannaries because the miners are of our ferm and always in our demesne. Moreover, we have granted to the treasurer and the weighers, so that they might be more faithful and attentive to our service in guarding our areasure in market towns, that they shall be quit in all towns in which they stay of aids and tallages as long as they are in our service as treasurers and weighers; for they have and can have nothing else throughout the year for their services to us. Witnesses, etc.

4. Ictis: St Aubyn writes: "St Michael's Mount was widely known as a port and trading market from very early times. Prehistoric traders passing between the western parts of Britain and the Continent would not have wished to risk the rough and dangerous voyage around Land's End, and so sent their cargoes across the narrowest and most level part of Cornwall from the Hayle estuary to St. Michael's Mount. Ireland was rich in gold and copper, and the Irish traders would have found transport by sea much simpler than the journey along the tracks through the almost impassable forests and swamps of England and Wales. Dr. H. O'Neil Hencken in his book Archaeology of Cornwall and Scilly, published in 1932, suggested that by the Iron Age the island of St. Michael's Mount would have become a highly important port. St. Michael's Mount was also at one time probably the island of "Ictis" from which Cornish tin was exported to the Greek trading communities in the Mediterranean. Towards the end of the fourth century B.C., shortly after the death of Alexander the Great, Pytheas, a Greek geographer from Marseilles, had made a voyage of exploration round the coast of Britain looking for the source of amber in the Baltic. Unfortunately, the records of his voyage were lost but they were known to later classical writers such as Timaeus, Posidonius and Pliny. The evidence of these writings is vague and conflicting but represents all that was known about the tin trade in the ancient classical world. In particular, Diodorus, a Sicilian Greek historian, writing in the first quarter of the first century A. D., gives an account which is probably a description of the working of Cornish tin (by streaming from the rocks) about the time of the voyage of Pytheas, and how it was carried over to St. Michael's Mount. "The inhabitants of that part of Britain which is called Belerion" [that is to say Land's End]. Diodorus says, "are very fond of strangers and from their intercourse with foreign merchants are civilised in their manner of life. They prepare the tin, working very carefully the earth in which it is produced. The ground is rocky but it contains earthy veins, the produce of which is ground down, smelted and purified. They beat the metal into masses shaped like astralgi [knuckle-bones] and carry it off to a certain island off Britain called Ictis. During the ebb of the tide the intervening space is left dry and they carry over to the island the tin in abundance in their wagons." In a later passage in the same context Diodorus says, "Here then the merchants buy the tin from the natives and carry it over to Gaul, and after travelling overland for about thirty days, they finally bring their loads on horses to the mouth of the Rhone." Diodorus mentioned both Marseilles and Narbonne by name as places to which Cornish tin was sent on the Mediterranean coast. "St. Michael's Mount, the trading station of the ancients," Dr. Hencken wrote, "rises from Mount's Bay in full view of the early tin streamers' forts and villages." However, he pointed out that it must be admitted that not many signs of the rather advanced civilisation of the foreign merchants have come down to us. One of the main difficulties of identifying St. Michael's Mount with the island of Ictis was the legend that St. Michael's Mount was within historic memory five or six miles inland from the sea in the middle of a dense forest. When William of Worcester visited the Mount in 1478 he recorded that it was formerly called "the Hore-Rock in the wood". Also the old Cornish name for the Mount meant "the grey rock in the forest". However, Sir Gavin de Beer, F.R.S., a former Director of the Natural History Museum, wrote in his book Reflections of A Darwinian, published in 1962, that scientific methods of analysing the traces of old tree trunks still found in Mount's Bay had indicated that the forest was submerged by the sea at least 1, 500 years before Pytheas came there on his voyage of exploration in about 325 B.C. The most likely alternative to St. Michael's Mount as the island of Ictis was the Isle of Wight, the Roman name of which was Vectis, but Sir Gavin de Beer suggested that it had not been possible to cross to the Isle of Wight by foot from the mainland since the days of neolithic man. Also it is most unlikely that Cornish tin should have been carried so far to the port of embarkation. Canon Taylor in his History of St. Michael's Mount suggests that William of Worcester may have confused the English St. Michael's Mount with Mont St. Michel on the coast of Normandy and that the 'Hore-Rock in the wood', referred to the French and not to the English Mount. It is improbable that the merchants who bought the tin at St. Michaels Mount were Phoenicians or Carthaginians. Probably the tin was shipped to Gaul by the Veneti, a powerful sea-faring people who inhabited Southern Brittany. The Veneti had close linguistic and cultural contacts with Cornwall. Their ships were described by Julius Caesar who fought a naval battle with them in 56 B.C. They were built solidly of oak with high prows and leather brown sails. Julius Caesar was the last classical writer to mention Cornish tin, probably because the tin trade was ended by the defeat of the Veneti and the Romans had discovered the other sources of tin in Spain. In 1995 an archaeological watching brief of a sewer trench found Later Iron Age pottery, of the Ictis period, and its distribution drew attention to a group of six possible round house platforms - perhaps the site of Ictis itself - on the south-eastern slopes of the Mount. A Neolithic flint arrowhead (circa 3500 B.C.) was also found, adding some support to the suggestion that somewhere as dramatic as the Mount, whether rising from sea or forest, would have been from earliest times a central place of authority similar to Carn Brea, the Neolithic hill-top enclosure near Redruth."

5. Tin sulphides: According to geologists F. Moore & R.A. Howie of King's College, London, writing in Mineralogical Magazine (Sep 1984), tin sulphides described as coming from St Michael's Mount are 'kesterite' and a yellow sulphide from the same area (and from Cligga Head) is 'zincian stannite'.

6. Cornish Stannary Courts: These existed at Penwith (Helston), Tinwarnhail (Truro), Blackmoor (Launceston) and Foweymore (Lostwithiel). Later a Stannary Court was opened in Penzance.

7. Bell founding: The highly specialised skills used in bell-founding have not changed in at least 400 years. Two moulds are made representing the inner and outer surfaces of the bell and molten bronze, at about 1,200 degrees C, is poured between them in such a way as to avoid cracking the moulds or the bronze itself as it cools. The bell is then tuned by careful removal of bronze around the rim. Dedications and devices (often named for a sponsor or 'god-parent') were usually included. The remains of bell moulds found beneath bell-towers or on adjacent sites show that temporary founderies were established in situ, requiring a furnace, moulds, timber, charcoal, bellows and bronze ingots to be assembled for each bell. Very early bells, struck manually with a hammer, were made from four sheets of metal bent to shape, rivetted together and sometimes coated in liquid bronze to give resonance.

8. Recycling copper and bronze: "In 1318 (1319?) a new bell at Bridgwater, Somerset, was made from 180 lbs of pots, platters, basins, lavers, kettles, brass mortars and mill-pots; an old bell weighing 425 lbs; 40 lbs of 'brass', 896 lbs of copper and 320 lbs of tin, giving a ration of new tin to new copper of more than 1 : 3." (T.D. Dilks Bridgwater Borough Archives, i, 1200-1377 Somerset Record Society xlviii 1933). However, Theophilus recommended a ration of 1 : 4 which remains the norm.

9. Domesday: "At the time of the Domesday survey, the landed property of Cornwall was chiefly divided between the King, Robert Earl of Mortain, in Normandy, (by English writers called Moreton,) and of Cornwall, the King's half brother, and those who held under him; the Bishop of Exeter, the Prior and convent of Bodmin; the Abbot and convent of Tavistock; and a few other monasteries and colleges. Twenty manors were held by various persons under the Earl, who held them under the King's great manor of Wineton (Wynianton). This, and fourteen other manors, then in the crown, had belonged to Earl Harold. The Queen, Matilda, had four manors in her own hand, and a fifth was held under her, as described in the Exeter MS.: after her death, in 1083, these fell to the crown. The Bishop of Exeter held seven manors in his own hand; four others were held under him. The Prior and convent of Bodmin held six in their own hands; nine manors were held under them by the Earl of Cornwall, and three by other persons; seven manors, which had been taken away from that church, were then held under the Earl. The Abbot and convent of Tavistock held six manors; four others are stated to have been unjustly taken away from them by the Earl of Cornwall. The Prior and convent of St. Michael had one manor; another had been taken away from them by the Earl."

10. St Michael's markets: "The charter attributed to Robert, Count of Mortain granted lands and liberties to St Michael's Mount opposite Marazion and included a market on Thursdays. This appears to have been held from the first on the mainland. From it is probably derived the Marghasbigan (Parvum Forum) of the earlier and the Marghasyewe or Marketjew (Forum Jovis) of the later charters. It may be added that a Jewish origin has been ascribed to the place from the name Marketjew. It is certain that Richard, Earl of Cornwall provided that the three fairs, on the two feasts of St Michael and at Mid-Lent, and the three markets which had hitherto been held by the priors of St Michael's Mount on land not their own at Marghasbighan, should in future be held on their own land at Marchadyou. He transferred in fact the fairs and markets from the demesne lands of the Bloyous in Marazion to those of the prior. To remedy the loss incurred by this measure Ralph Bloyou in 1331 procured for himself and his heirs a market on Mondays and a fair on the vigil, feast and morrow of St Andrew at Marghasyon. In Leland's time the market was held at Marhasdeythyow (Forum Jovis), and both Norden (1582) and Carew (1602) tell us that Marcajewe signifies the Thursday's market, which, whether etymologically sound or not, shows that the prior's market had prevailed over its rival. In 1595 Queen Elizabeth granted to Marazion a charter of incorporation. This ratified the grant of St Andrew's fair, provided for another on the Feast of St Barnabas and established a market on Saturdays."

11. Constantine Retallack Farm, 1km north of Constantine is just uphill from a 16th century tin stamping mill that has been studied in detail by industrial archaeologists (Gerrard, 1985, 1989; Penhallick, 1986). The old farmhouse of massive granite blocks is said to include both rounded arches of Norman design (1066-1189) and pointed arches of early Gothic design (1189-1307).

12. Benedictine bells. One of the earliest works on experiments in casting bells and the problems of harmonics was written by the Benedictine monk Theophilus Presbyter in the latter part of the C11th. It demonstrates the concern at the time for the correct mixture of copper and tin for producing the best ring. It also shows a basic understanding of how to change a bell's pitch by varying its dimensions and wall thickness.

13. John MacCormack: Commenting on the above article, John MacCormack strongly favours the Channel Islands as 'Ictis', the place where the natives sold tin to merchants who carried it across to Gaul. He believes that the much lower sea-level around the English Channel in Roman times would have given these islands the appearance described by Diodorus Siculus writing in circa 30 BC. MacCormack, a renowned expert on Channel Islands' history, agrees that 'Grand Havre' at Vale, would have provided an ideal harbour on Guernsey, though less so in a westerly gale when St Peter Port would have been better sheltered. MacCormack also believes that the Cistercians may have been responsible for the navigational light on Les Écrehous which was re-founded by Val Richer in 1203. Finally, MacCormack reports historian Richard Hocart of the Historic Buildings Section of La Société Guernesiaise as suggesting that since both the Lihou and Vale Priories were effectively cut off from most of Guernsey at high tide, the chapel of St. George might have served Mont Saint-Michel and its officers as a place from which to oversee their possessions which were mostly in the Castel parish where the land around St. George forms a separate sub-fief.

14. Julien Deshayes: Archaeologist Julien Deshayes comments: "...De manière générale, je me demande si l'indéniable lien qui relie les possessions du Mont aux grands axes de circulation maritime établis entre la neustrie, le monde anglo-saxon et l'ensemble de la mer du Nord doivent être rattachée au commerce de l'étain ou élargi aux vastes courants d'échanges commerciaux qui, de manière générale, se développent dans ce secteur durant le haut Moyen âge (crapois, sel, cuires...). A ce titre, le Mont n'était d'ailleurs pas la seule abbaye en lisse : on sait par les sources écrites que Fleury-sur-Loire, Saint-Germain-des-Près ou Fontenelle ont largement bénéficié de ces courants commerciaux. Par opposition avec Dole de bretagne, qui a aussi laissé des informations à ce sujet, le Mont n'apparait-il pas finalement assez en retrait avant le Xe siècle? La constitution de son patrimoine n'est-il pas le reflet d'un phénomène d'émergence postérieur, à rattacher plutôt à l'avènement de l'autorité ducale en Normandie, et tout particulièrement à Guillaume Longue Epée puis à ses successeurs? ... pour le Cotentin, j'ai le sentiment que l'influence exercée par le Mont fut essentielle, mais qu'elle nous apparait largement atténuée, comme si elle constituait une strate antérieure au grand phénomène d'implantation monastique perceptible à partir du règne de Guillaume le Batard. Bref, comme si on lui avait taillé un short après le Val-ès-Dune. On se souvient que son implantation à Guernsey résulte d'une donation de Robert 1er, qu'ils ne récupèrent la 'baronnie' de Saint-Pair que vers 1025, etc... Cela rejoint peut-être aussi la question de la diffusion du culte de Germain le Scott, puisque, étrangement, le Mont Saint-Michel possède des biens aussi bien à Saint-Germain-sur-Ay qu'à Carteret et Flamanville, autant de sites majeurs du culte voué à ce saint..."

15. Phoenicians in Cornwall?: Despite a report of a stone bowl with a handle being reported as found in the harbour at St Michael's Mount, identified by the British Museum as of Phoenician origin (perhaps ca. 1500 BC), I am most grateful to mediaeval historian Dr Joanna Mattingly who assures me that there is no evidence of the presence of Phoenicians themselves in Cornwall ( and that the actual reference to their trade concerns Spain). In this view she is supported by Canon Taylor in his History of St. Michael's Mount.

16. Tin ingots: The shape of a tin ingot, said to weigh 158 lbs and dredged from St Mawes harbour in 1812, indicates that ingots were slung on either side of an animal for transportation, though the date of this ingot is not specified.

17. Sea levels: The coastlines around Cornwall and much of the English Channel are thought to have altered significantly even within the last 2,000 years. There is a report that William Camden, writing in 1586, identified a land mass lying between St Michael's Mount and the Scilly Isles, while the same report mentions a catastrophic tsunami which occurred in 709 AD which severely damaged the coasts of Cornwall and Brittany.

18. Woes of alien houses: In the early C14th, long before the 1414 Act of Suppression, the prior of Otterton wrote to his abbot at Mont Saint-Michel: "Woe is me! that I ever came to England, for troubles assail me on all sides". Pressure was mounting on the Benedictine monks in England at this time: "The monks wrote to defend their order and their houses against enemies and critics... They found critics among their rivals, the regular and secular canons and the mendicants. Criticism was particularly virulent in the late fourteenth century, when a new enemy emerged, the Lollards. Individually each monastery had enemies, actual or potential: the diocesan, royal and papal agents (especially tax collectors), and neighbouring landlords..." [Gransden (1982) cf. Coates (1999)]. Monasticism in general was suspect, but 'alien' communities in particular – Edward lll stating that they did more harm to England than all the Jews and Saracens in the world.

19. Salt working: Domesday records that Otterton had 33 salt workers, apparently the highest number of any manor in the south-west of England.

20. Bronze Age trade: Two Bronze Age wrecks are reported to have been found in the English Channel (off the coasts of Dover and Devon), both dated to circa 1200 BC. Their cargoes appear to have been of bronze artifacts of types found on the continent of Europe. The wrecks suggest that there was maritime trade in bronze between Britain and Europe at that time.

Mediaeval Cornwall: Grateful thanks to Anne Preston-Jones & Peter Rose for the following notes (21-33) taken from their invaluable Mediaeval Cornwall (Cornwall Archaeology No. 25, 1986):

21. Earliest Cornish Christianity: It is suggested from Chi-Rho and inscribed stones that Christianity was introduced to Cornwall from the Mediterranean and Gaul, but more influentially from Wales (perhaps aided by Irish settlers in Wales). The earliest Christian settlements, small communities dedicated to a religious life, usually called'lanns' in Cornwall, probably date from the late C5th or C6th and that the greatest concentrations of them are around the estuaries on the south coast. They usually consisted of a chapel, housing and a cemetery. The arrival of 'eglos' churches may be slightly later and they are more often found inland on well-drained hill-sides (rather than valley bottoms), surrounded by a 'churchyard' and perhaps serving a secular community. Some such as Ludgvan are clearly manorial churches or chapels and date perhaps from the C8th or C9th. By the C10th or C11th every small group of hamlets may have had its own cemetery. Preston-Jones/Rose

22. Effects of the Norman invasion: "... But by 1086, most Celtic religious communities had disappeared from Cornwall, presumably as their estates were appropriated by the land-hungry English and Normans. Domesday Book actually bears witness to the demise of one community. Sanctus Goranus, mentioned as a land-owner in the Inquisitio Geldi of 1084, failed to be recorded in Domesday Book in 1086, and was never heard of again. Gradually, therefore, the communities would have been replaced by a parish priest supported by payments of tithe, burial fees and a small area of glebe. Such a process would inevitably have been linked with the firmer definition of parochial boundaries and the demise of small local cemeteries. There is some evidence to suggest that this may already have taken place, in a Cornish context, in some areas. The process was completed in the Norman period, but it is clear that the roots of the later medieval pattern of parishes and churches lie firmly in the pre-Norman period..." Preston-Jones/Rose

23. Monasticism after 1066: "A handful of Cornish religious houses survived the Norman Conquest, to be recorded in Domesday Book. "... A significant proportion have names in lann, indicating their early, post-Roman origin, while the generally large sizes of their modern churchyards indicate that those which survived until 1086 may have been some of the most important from the beginning... some... continued to exist as collegiate churches... [or] as houses of Augustinian canons and entirely new communities founded... Friaries were founded... on sites of probably pre-Norman communities not recorded in Domesday Book... and alien cells at St Michael's and Tregony... From the C14th it became common for welathy landowners who would previously have endowed a monastic community to found chantries..." Preston-Jones/Rose

24. Norman churches: Although most mediaeval parish churches in Cornwall were almost entirely rebuilt in the 19th century "... almost 50% of Cornish churches retain traces of 12th and 13th century architecture, despite subsequent phases of re-building. In contrast, the fact that scarcely any remains are known of pre-Norman churches may indicate how humble were the structures they replaced..." Preston-Jones/Rose

25. Confirmation of ancient rights?: "... Charters confirming borough status, and the associated privileges that protected the townsfolk from feudal restrictions, became common from the end of the 12th century..." Preston-Jones/Rose

26. Import and export: "... In addition to coastal trade, Cornwall exported tin, fish, slate and some cloth, and imported salt, linen and canvas from Brittany, white fish, mantles and wood from Ireland, wine from France, wine and fruit from Spain. Smuggling and piracy were the traditional supplements to trade..." Preston-Jones/Rose

27. Stannary towns and early trade centres: "... Helston, Truro, Liskeard and Lostwithiel were stannary coinage towns, and also at Lostwithiel was the Duchy's administrative centre, the 'Duchy Palace'..." and "... Gwithian, with its estuarine location, range of imported wares and evidence for industrial activity (see below) may perhaps be one such site. Tintagel may be another. If it can be regarded as a 'royal' seat where mediterranean wines were exchanged for local goods, most probably tin, then one of its roles may have been as a royally controlled emporium. Contact between Wales, Cornwall and Brittany is also apparent at an early date, and the frequent waterside location of early churchyard sites, the lanns, suggests that they are looking out to the sea rather than in to the land. Were these contacts largely cultural or also based on trade? Preston-Jones/Rose

28. C10th and C11th markets: "Five markets are recorded at the time of the Norman conquest, at Launceston, Liskeard, Bodmin, St Germans and Marazion. Bodmin, Helston and St Stephen by Launceston can also be regarded by implication as boroughs... All except Liskeard were at important ecclesiastical centres. It is likely that similar sites... acted as markets from a very early date... some of them in the later medieval period could indeed be a continuation of a function that had existed unofficially and unrecorded at the time of Domesday Book and later, though perhaps diminished by the pre-Conquest suppression of Celtic monasteries..." Preston-Jones/Rose

29. Early medieval tin industry: Preston-Jones & Rose appear to accept that the industry in the Dark Ages was 'healthy and thriving', noting the documented use of tin in northern Europe and Cornwall's trading links with Gaul, Iberia and the Mediterranean paralled by imported post-Roman pottery. They also cite dateable finds from AD 635 to 1045 and another circa AD 660-670. Preston-Jones/Rose

30. Norman Lords: "Most Cornish castles belong to the uncertain times of the late 11th and 12th centuries, built by the new Norman Lords as badges of rank, symbols of dominion, and strongholds against their enemies. From the 13th century the four major castles, Launceston, Trematon, Restormel and Tintagel were in the hands of the Earls and then the Dukes of Cornwall, but in the 13th and 14th centuries some of the leading Cornish families also provided their residences with some form of defence..." Preston-Jones/Rose

31. Robert de Mortain: "In 1086 Robert of Mortain held some 277 of the 350 or so Cornish manors, and had castles at Launceston and Trematon. Some of the castles can probably be associated with his major tenants, who between them held most of the manors: Richard FitzTurold — Cardinham, Week St Mary and Penhallam; Reginald de Valletort — Trematon; Turstin the Sheriff or his son Baldwin — Restormel, Hamelin and perhaps Truro (in his manor of Trehaverne). Other castles can be attached to important families of the 12th century, the Pomeroys at Tregony, Richard de Lucy at Truro, the Botreaux at Botreaux Castle. Killchampton may be an adulterine castle of Robert of Gloucester or perhaps the Granvilles. The ringwork at Bossiney could be either a 12th century predecessor to Tintagel or a minor castle of Robert of Mortain, as he held the manor from St Petroc's in 1086. Upton was probably the 12th century residence of the Uptons..." Preston-Jones/Rose

32. Fortification: "In the late 13th and early 14th centuries local gentry were again (or still?) providing themselves with fortification... In Cornwall five Royal Licences to Crenellate were granted, all between 1330 and 1336, and all to prominent and active local families: William Basset at Tehidy (1330), Ranulph Blancluninster of Binhamy, Stratton (1335), John Lercedekne of Ruan Lanihome (1335), Ralph de Bloyou of Truthwall, Ludgvan (1335), John Dawney of Sheviock (1336). Sheviock, Truthwall and probably Tehidy have completely disappeared..." Preston-Jones/Rose

33. Constantine: "... In the west of the county the remarkable collection of late medieval processing works at Retallack, Constantine has been recorded and discussed by Gerrard (1985)..." Preston-Jones/Rose

34. St Pair-sur-Mer: The author is grateful to David Nicolas-Méry who showed him a bell-shaped hole near the top of the mediaeval tower of the church at St Pair-sur-Mer on the Cotentin coast (once a priory belonging to Mont Saint-Michel). Clearly at least one bell had been cast in the nave of the priory church from where it had been hoisted by a gantry to the roof above and then up against the church tower. Here an existing C12th opening had been altered to make the bell-shaped form which allowed the bell to pass from the nave into the belfry. Since this enlarged opening must have been made after the construction of the tower, it is more than probable that a smaller priory bell (serving the needs of a close community) was replaced by a larger bell at a time when the priory is known to have become a parish church – and so needed to appeal (appeller/peel) to a far wider community.

35. St Michael Vale: Extract from Jonathan Duncan's The History of Guernsey (London, 1841) which is regarded by Guernsey historians today as highly unreliable:
"In the second year of the reign of Edward the Second, 1309, John Ditton and John Fressingfield drew up an extent of the revenues of the crown in Guernsey, and they recorded the following facts relating to the ecclesiastical affairs of the island (see note below). The monks and canons of Mount Saint Michael, in Normandy, were banished from the establishment by Richard the First, duke of Normandy, on account of their dissolute behaviour. On their arrival in Guernsey, they found already settled there, several hermits and other pious persons, by whose holy example they profited, and so great was their moral and reformation, that Guernsey, from that time, was called 'the Holy Island'. Several persons of distinction, both English and French, repaired thither from feelings of devotion, bestowing large presents, and contributing munificently to the building and maintenance of parochial churches.
These exiled monks established themselves in the Vale, and founded a chapel and house for their residence, which took the name of the Abbey of the Monks of Mount Saint Michael of the Vale. The island having frequently been pillaged by pirates, who, from time to time, made descents on the coast, the inhabitants, by advice of the monks, built fortifications near to the landing places for their security; the monks also fortified a castle to the eastward of the harbour, immediately fronting the isle of Herm, which was placed under the protection of the archangel Saint Michael.
The monks having taken possession of the lands in the Vale, declared themselves proprietors of it, obliging the inhabitants who cultivated it to pay them the tenth sheaf as tithe, and the eleventh as campart; they also imposed a certain tax on each house, called ponnage, which denoted the number of eggs that a couple of fowls would lay in a year, and the annual average was fixed at forty eggs.
We have mentioned at page 4, the existence of a tradition that Robert the First, sixth duke of Normandy, and father of William the Conqueror, landed at Lancresse, in Guernsey, and we now append the following passage from Du Moulin's History of Normandy &150; a very rare and authentic work &150; which we do in the author's own orthography : "Pendant que Robert avoit encor les armes en main, il pense a remettre ses cousins Alfred & Edward en possession de l'Angleterre, injustement occupée par Kanut: mais avant qu'y apporter de la violence, il tente par une ambassade si la douceur y pouvoit rien ; Kanut ne veut ouyr parler de restitution : parquoy suivy de sa noblesse et sa gendarmerie il s'embarque a Fescan ; sa flotte couloit assez heureusement, quand une tempeste s'elleva & la porta en l'isle de Grenezay ; ou les vents les arresterent quinze jours : voyant le temps totalement contraire pour voguer en Angleterre, il commanda de relascher, & a Rabel ou Tanel comte de Longueuille & Chambellan de Normandie, homme valeureux & grand Capitaine, de courir la coste de Bretagne & piller tout ce qu'il trouveroit, pendant que luy descendu au mont de S. Michel, feroit un gros de cavalerie pour contraindre Alain a luy rendre l'hommage qu'il estoit oblige."
The preceding passage fully confirms the truth of the tradition, and Monsieur Lecanu, in his recent History of the Bishops of Coutances, is mistaken in stating that it was Robert, who commenced his reign in 1087, and who, being shipwrecked in Guernsey, gave land and divers privileges to the monks in return for their hospitable reception, as this prince was Robert the Second, eighth duke of Normandy, and son of William the Conqueror. In undertaking this expedition, Robert the First sought to establish the right of his cousins to the throne of England, which was then usurped by Canute, but a tempest compelled him to seek shelter in Guernsey, and he returned home without effecting his purpose. Being well received by the monks, he gave them the lands of the Vale in full proprietorship, of which, till then, they held only an usurped possession. After this donation, the monks let out these lands on perpetual heritable tenures to the laity, on condition of receiving, as rent, a certain number of measures of wheat, now called chef-rentes. In 1061, the Abbot of St. Michael of the Vale also received a grant of land, conjointly with Sampson D'Anneville, from William, for performing the office of ducal chaplain, whenever the duke visited Guernsey.
By an abstract in the records preserved in the tower of London, dated in the thirty-second year of the reign of Edward the Third, 25th January, 1358, it appears that the abbot's proportion of this grant consisted chiefly of property in the Vale, St. Mary de Castro, St. Saviour, and St. Peter-in-the-Wood. The following are the particulars of that abstract.
An inquest was held before Edmund De Chesney, guardian of the islands, at which twelve men, duly sworn, declared on oath that the priory of the Vale is situate in the Vale parish, and that four churches belong especially to the prior, namely, the church of St. Michael of the Vale, the church of St. Mary of the Castle, the church of St. Saviour, and the church of St. Peter-in-the-Wood : and it is further stated that these twelve jurymen were all parishioners of the four parishes in which these churches were situated. All the rents and emoluments belonging to the prior are enumerated in the following order:
Parish Of St. Michael Of The Vale
All the tithe, one half of the burial fees, and one quarter of the champart, their united value, one year with another, being estimated in livres tournois, at... 60 liv
The corn rent, measure of the island, was valued at 48 quarters, each quarter being worth, one year with another, ten sols tournois
Commuted money rent
Thirty capons, valued at fifteen deniers each
Nineteen hundred eggs, valued at twenty deniers per hundred
A windmill, valued at ...
The privilege of hunting rabbits, valued at
The produce of fish, valued at
Total of the revenues of the church of St. Michael of the Vale, in sterling money, is equal to £24 3s.
Note: the text which Jonathan Duncan disputes): "Des religieux du Mont Saint-Michel fondèrent à Guernsey, vers l'an 962, une abbaye, sous l'invocation de Saint-Michel-Archange. Robert, duc de Normandie, qui commença à régner en 1087, ayant fait naufrage auprès de cette île, fut très bien reçu de l'abbé, auquel il donna, par reconnaissance, des terres et divers privilèges. Les religieux établirent si bien la foi parmi les habitants, que l'île ne tarda pas de s'appeler l'Ile-Sainte. Les biens qui ont appartenu à l'abbaye sont désignés maintenant par le nom du Fief-Saint-Michel. II paraît que le même duc y fonda, avant son départ pour la Terre-Sainte, le prieuré de Lihou, dont l'église fut dédiée en l'honneur de la Sainte-Vierge, le 4 Aout, 1114." — Histoire des évêques de Coutances.

36. St Clement: According to Dr Barbara Crawford (Strathmarine Centre, St Andrews. Fife), the cult of St Clement became popular in Denmark and Norway in the C11th at about the time of the conquest of England by Cnut the Great. Clement had been the third Pope after Peter and was living around 100 AD. His martyrdom was a consequence of his being drowned in the Black Sea near Chersonesus (perhaps with a mill-stone around his neck). His tomb was apparently discovered by St Cyril and St Methodius and his relics were taken to Rome in the 860s. The manner of his death and martyrdom appealed to sea-faring peoples in northern Europe who believed he could protect those in danger of drowning. As a papal martyr his authority may also have appealed to the recently Christianised Danes in Denmark and England. Best remembered in London in the name of St Clement Danes church in Trafalgar Square, many other churches or chapels in Anglo-Saxon towns were dedicated to him (probably in the C11th) though those in Cornwall and along the south coast of England as well as in the Channel Islands are of particular interest to anyone studying trade and relations between England and Normandy in the early/mid mediaeval period. Like the author of this page, Dr Crawford has noted that St Clement particularly makes his appearance close to the sea in harbours, navigable estuaries and areas associated with mariners and fishermen. Interestingly, this particular St Clement appears to have been a North Sea and English Channel phenomenon who did not notably translate to Normandy and France.

37. Mysterious Mount Itier: Press article by David Nicolas-Méry for La Manche Libre (April 2009) translated by CAL "In the south of the Bay of Mont Saint-Michel rises Mount Itier which continues to puzzle many historians. Once the property of the monks of Mont Saint-Michel, this hill takes us back to the origins of our region. Now in the commune of Huisnes-sur-Mer, it was first mentioned in the famous Revelatio which tells of the foundation of Mont Saint-Michel by Saint Aubert, saying that the Itier lands were given by the Bishop of Avranches to the newly founded monastery dedicated to the Archangel. It is also recounts that a certain Bain, living on Mount Itier with his twelve sons, helped Aubert to build his first primitive church. Bain, this 'father' living on Mount Itier with his twelve 'sons' might in fact refer to the abbot of a monastery consiting of twelve brother monks. And close to Huisnes there was indeed the merovingian monastery of Asteriac which possessed a hermitage on 'Mont Tombe' as Mont Saint-Michel was then known. While Asteriac is usually associated with the village of Beauvoir, we should really regard Beauvoir as incorporating the entire coastal area of the Bay from the river Sélune to the Couesnon. And it was on this area that the huge estate of Mont Saint-Michel's vastly profitable Priory of Ardevon was superimposed in the Middle Ages. Even the name 'Itier' (Itius in Latin) is reminiscent of the Island of Ictis described by the Greek geographer Diodorus of Sicily, a contemporary of Julius Caesar. Diodorus says that numerous foreign merchants went to the Island of Ictis to by tin which they then transported to Gaul. Several historians identify the English St Michael's Mount in Cornwall as the Island of Ictis. X Establishing a link between our Mount Itier and this English island of Ictis, which later became a priory of Mont Saint-Michel, would be interesting. Indeed, Mount Itier might have gained its name from its being the terminus of a maritime trade route between Cornwall, famed for its tin mines, and the Bay of Mont Saint-Michel. In 1961 a mass military cemetery, containing the remains of 11,956 German servicemen killed on French soil, was established on Mount Itier. A 47 metre wide crater was dug into the centre of the hill, thus denying archaeologists access to evidence that would surely shed light on the obscure origins of this height."

38. The Prior and the Rector of St Michael Vale: The author is grateful to John McCulloch who provided information from a document dated 1299 recording charges brought against a number of men (others unknown) said to have made an "assault" on the Priory, climbed over its walls, attempted to burn down its gate and committed other "enormities" including the theft of timber from fish-drying racks. The names of those alleged to be involved include: Thomas Destefeld, William Moulton, Ranulphe de la Chapelle, Richard le Gros (charged with stealing timber from the 'éperquerie'), Guillaume Sarre and his sons and the household of Guillaume de la Lande (all charged with breaking down Vale Bridge) and Simon de Maesuer (charged with taking the 'champart' and tythe of the Vale). Most significantly, however, a certain Jourdain, the rector of Vale church is among those charged. He is accused of breaking open a chest belonging to Jean de Paris and stealing its contents. This suggests that in 1299 Vale had both a prior and a rector.


Brismar The Priest, according to Exeter Domesday, held the manor of 'Treuthal' (Truthwall in Sithney). Was this Brismar the Prior of St Michael's Mount? And what significance is there, if any, in another manor 'Trewelle' also held by a Brismar and a 'Treuthal' clearly held by 'The Church of St Michael'. Note however that a Brismar or Brismer (and variants) who was probably not "the priest", was a major land-holder with numerous manors in Cornwall.
Information from: 'Property division at the time of the Domesday Survey', Magna Britannia: volume 3: Cornwall (1814), pp. L-LXIV'.


X


X



English possessions of the Abbey of Mont Saint-Michel

Cholsey, Berkshire — St Mary's church, gift of William l, exchanged for Budleigh in 1123. Described at the last great Saxon abbey. In AD 986, Queen Aelfrith founded a Royal nunnery in the village, in repentance for murdering her step-son, St. Edward, King & Martyr. Its remains may be indicated by 10th century long & short quoins in the lower stages of the present church walls. Nearby was the largest tythe barn ever built. In 1123 Henry l gave monks £12 of land in Budleigh in exchange for Cholsey and another church.

Wargrave, Berkshire, Cambridgeshire (Ely) ** — St Mary's church, exchanged by Henry l for Budleigh in 1123. Belonged to Queen Edith, wife of Edward the Confessor before 1066. 5,000 acre manor worth £27/6/8 in 1086.

Great Wilbraham — parish church of St Nicholas. In c. 970 a monk Wulfhun gave the church with 40 acres to Ramsey Abbey (Hunts.), then given to Aethelwold, Bishop of Winchester, by exchange before 984. Probably attached to the Richmond fee by 1066 and by 1155 the church owed to MSM a £2 pension still due in the mid 13th century.

St Hilary — church. Dedicated to St Hilary of Poitiers, mostly destroyed by fire in 1853 but C13th tower and spire survive. See Dupont.

St Clement, Moresk, Cornwall, Truro — church mentioned in 1207 and later, given by King Edward IV, as part of the possessions of the monastery of SMM, the tythes later passing to the monastery of Syon.

St Michael's Mount — priory. Possibly existed as a priory before the Conquest. Date of its gift to MSM in doubt owing to the dubious nature of charters attributed by MSM monks to Edward The Confessor and Robert de Mortain. Surviving priory built by Bernard du Bec from 1135 (consacrated 1144) for 13 monks but rarely housing more than 4 or 5 by C14th. Parish church today dependant of St Hilary (note: near Mousehole is St Clement's Isle - a small rocky islet which apparently had a St Clement's chapel; also: Piers St Aubyn designed Marazion parish church All Saints, consecrated 1861, the third church on the site, the first recorded in 1309).

Truthwall, Cornwall — land and market in tin mining area lose to St Michael's Mount, perhaps acquired from Robert de Mortain (if not before) [note: Domesday mentions St Michael's Church].

Ludgvan, Cornwall — land in tin mining area, near St Michael's Mount, perhaps acquired from Robert de Mortain (if not before)

Trevalga, Cornwall — Michel Mollat says MSM was granted rights by William the Conqueror over the port of this village on the north Cornish coast near Tintagel. There is no evidence that its C12th church (St Petroc) belonged to MSM.

Constantine, Cornwall — land in tin mining area, Lizard.

St Martin-in-Meneage, Cornwall — land in tin mining area, Lizard.

Ruan Minor, Cornwall — land in tin mining area, Lizard.

St Keverne, Cornwall — land in tin mining area, Lizard.

Otterton, Devon — priory of St Michael, gift of William l, existed before 1087, probably the largest asset of MSM in England, incorporating the parish church and substantial estates nearby and around Sidmouth. Formerly held by Countess Ghida. Navigable from the sea in mediaeval times. Its foundation for four monks by King John is recorded in 1332 when it was temporarily alienated for £120 but may have been reoccupied by a monk. Supressed in 1414 and granted to Syon Abbey. Dupont details its possessions. Michel Mollat says MSM was granted rights to its port and fisheries. The late C11th tower at the east end of the present Victorian church of St Michael's may be a remnant of the mediaeval priory. It is thought that a chancel stood to the east of the tower and that the monks used a passage from the second storey which linked to an arch in the wall of their cell. Several flat tombstones found before 1775 were thought to have lain in the chancel. On the death of a serf the prior took his best beast in his secular capacity and the second-best in his spiritual capacity.

Budleigh, Devon — acquired from Henry l, worth £3, south of Otterton.

Yarcombe, Devon — church of St John the Baptist. Formerly held by Harold, worth £3. Gift of William l. By 1264 the church and a mill were administered by Otterton.

Dennington, Devon — with Stout Hill, Yarcombe, woodland, pasture and land, gift of William l, formerly held by Harold, worth £2 [and church of St Nicholas?] Dupont calls this Donnington or Dotton.

Withycombe, Devon — parcels of land, west of Budleigh and Otterton.

Woodbury, Devon — church of St Swithin plus land worth 20s. Gift of William l, dominated by huge late Iron Age fort, founded in late 7th century when the Saxons colonised East Devon. A royal manor and important enough to have a parish gild in C11th century, north west of Otterton.

Harpford, Devon — church of St Nicholas. Held by 1206 when mentioned in a charter. Manor formerly held by canons of Coutances. "...the Church (St. Gregory,) is a venerable fabric, with a tower and three bells, and was appropriated in 1205 to the Abbey of St Michael de Monte, and afterwards to Sion monastery...", 5km NW of Sidmouth.

Venn Ottery, Devon — chapel dependent of Harpford church, very close to Harpford. Its status is cited in 1267 (and also a little earlier).

Sidmouth, Devon — church. Held in 1086 by canons of Rouen, granted in 1212 by Bishop Marshall to MSM, of which the Priory of Otterton was a cell. It held revenues in the church, town, mills, woods, market, fishing and everything pertaining to it. Church rebuilt in 1859/60, only the tower and arcade on each side of the nave are original. [See Dupont]. The Otterton market recorded in 1086 may have been held at Sidmouth and in 1281 the Sidmouth market was recorded as if it were at Otterton. The chapel of St Peter recorded in 1322 was demolished in 1805 but part of a wall remains visible at the Esplanade.

Stoodleigh, Devon — church, near West Buckland, not mentioned after 1179, probably exchanged for Harpford.

Forsham, Devon — land held from Baldwin the Sheriff, worth 30s (check... no references...)

Hederland, Devon — chapel of ease dependent of St Michael's church, Otterton, mentioned in 1206 charter, mention of chapels 1257 and of 'land'.

Basing, Hampshire — church, tithes and land worth £4 5s. Dupont says church plus chapels or maybe three churches. Not noted by Millénaire St Mary's Church Old Basing?]

Basingstoke, Hampshire — church and dependent chapels, gift of William l [note important C14th St Michael's Church in Basingstoke]

Selborne, Hampshire — church and possible chapels. In Robert de Torigny's gift of Basing church he says he also held Selborne church and the fruits of both were given to MSM. Impressive C12th St Mary's Church is still in existance.

Martock, Somerset — All Saints Church and dependent chapels, the church the second largest in Somerset. Mentioned in 1175 by Bishop of Winchester as given (re-given?) to MSM.

South Heighton, Sussex (Salisbury) — church [not noted by Millénaire] appears to have been lost/abandoned: "Land at The Hall, Heighton Road, South Heighton, East Sussex. Archaeological Evaluation Report Score, D Oxford : Oxford Archaeological Unit, 2000, 16pp, figs, tabs, refs Work undertaken by: Oxford Archaeological Unit. An archaeological evaluation was undertaken in respect of a planning application for two residential dwellings. The evaluation revealed the remains of a substantial flint and mortar wall foundation, which was interpreted as the west end of St Martin's Church, a building identified from historical maps. The line of the north wall return was also noted and appeared to have been constructed on a chalk platform cut into the natural slope of the hill. A feature interpreted as the foundation pit for a buttress and deposits inside the church area forming a make-up for what would have been the church floor were also recorded as well as robber trench and demolition deposits. A number of post holes to the north of the church were seen and probably related to a building contemporaneous with the church. A stone baptismal font still in existence at the site was also photographed but no evidence for associated burials was found in the evaluation trenches. MD, PM, MO, UD."
Wooton Rivers, Wiltshire (Salisbury) — two churches and some land, gift of William l, See Wooton Rivers. [Dupont records only one un-named church.] "A church belonging to the abbey of Mont St. Michel (Manche) stood at Wootton Rivers in 1086; it was one of two churches on the estate called Wootton, the second of which may have stood at Easton. In the Middle Ages the rectory was poor: it was valued at £5 in 1291, was exempt from taxation because of its poverty in the late 15th century, and was valued at £8 in 1535. In the early 13th century Wootton Rivers church was served by a rector, and the abbey was entitled to a pension from its revenues. In 1212 the abbey of Mont St. Michel and Walter de Rivers, lord of Wootton Rivers manor, agreed that each should present alternate rectors. There is no evidence that the abbey ever presented, and the advowson descended with the lordship of the manor. Besides the village, the parish contains East Wick Farm, which possibly stands on the site of what was a small village in the Middle Ages. The suffix in the parish's name is the surname of lords of the principal manor and was in use in the 14th century. In 1300 the land between the eastern arms at the north and south ends of the parish, which either was or might soon have become part of the parish, was probably woodland and was defined as a southern tail of Savernake forest. It remained part of the forest in 1330, when the land east and west of it was disafforested, and as Brimslade it remained extra-parochial until the 19th century. Wootton Rivers parish measured 1,200 a. (486 ha.)... Sharp bends in the boundary with Milton Lilbourne may be partly the result of a compromise between the rector of Wootton Rivers and the appropriator of Milton Lilbourne church who disputed tithes c. 1215 and c. 1327... There were 51 poll-tax payers at Wootton Rivers in 1377; they presumably included the inhabitants of East Wick... The church, the rectory house, and the demesne farmstead of Wootton Rivers manor stand as a group at the south end of the village. The church stands on rising ground and, when it was built in the 14th century, replaced a church which may have stood on a lower site."

Wath, Yorkshire (Durham or York), Ripon — St Mary's church. [See Dupont who cites confusions over three places called Wath in Yorkshire and whether the church depended from York or Durham.] Perhaps the gift of Breton Count Brien or Alan, dedicated to St Mary, see Wath: "Before the Conquest a 'manor' and 6 carucates in Wath were held by Archil and Roschil, but in 1086 they were part of the demesne of Count Alan, and the overlordship remained with his successors. The whole of Wath and the church were granted before 1156 to the abbey of Mont St. Michel. In spite of this it seems clear that Alan, the fourth Lord of Richmond, who died in 1146, granted it to Brian, Lord of Bedale, whose successors retained a mesne lordship here, and that Brian or his son enfeoffed of it one of the ancestors of the Marmions, probably Gernegan son of Hugh, against whom the monks of Mont St. Michel brought a plea concerning land in Wath in 1176–77. Brian's elder brother, Conan Earl of Richmond, had confirmed his predecessor's grant to the abbey, but the dispute was carried on for more than sixty years. In 1239 the matter was carried to the Papal Court. It was then stated on behalf of the abbot and convent that the grant of the manor by the late Earl of Richmond had been confirmed by successive Kings of England, and that they had always had two monks on the manor, but that Sir Robert Marmion, kt., claimed it in right of his wife Avis daughter of Gernegan. The predecessor of the then abbot had been summoned before the king's court, and Robert Marmion 'offered to prove by duel that the manor was his, which challenge, although he had other defence, the late abbot indiscreetly accepted. The combatants fought in a place appointed by the king, the knight bringing a multitude of armed men, and the knight's champion was more than once brought to the ground, on which the knight's party interfered to rescue him, and threatened death to the abbot and his champion, so that the abbot, fearing that death would ensue, came to the spot and renounced his right, which renunciation the knight would not admit save by way of peace and payment of a sum of money.' The abbot and convent prayed that the renunciation, made without the consent of the convent, might be annulled, and the pope summoned the parties before him. The Marmions were apparently the successful claimants. From at least 1243, when Avis Marmion obtained a grant of free warren in her demesne lands here, the manor followed the descent of West Tanfield until the latter part of the 19th century, when it was purchased from the trustees of the third Marquess of Ailesbury by the family of Newsome of Dewsbury, who are now in possession."
Wyberton, Lincolnshire — church and 12 acres, perhaps from the Breton Count Brien or Alan, church of St Leger/Leodgar...

Channel Island possessions of the Abbey of Mont Saint-Michel

St Michael Vale, Guernsey (Coutances) — priory of St Michael Vale may have had a priory church separate from the parish church of St Michael mentioned by Adrian lV and Alexander lll which records its rights to three other churches, its mills, fishing, port, etc. It appears the priory held the churches of Castel, St Pierre-du-Bois, St Saviour and Vale as well as the village of Goualle. Christianity arrived here at least by ca. AD 600, perhaps introduced by St Magloire to whom a chapel was dedicated which later belonged to MSM now vanished. Benedictine monks of MSM came to Guernsey ca. 968 establishing a Priory of Mont St Michel in the north of the Guernsey which then formed a separate island at high tide. The last remaining evidence is a piece of buttressed wall and part of a gateway south of the church, perhaps the site of the priory buildings and a separate priory church. There appears to have been a room over the gateway, indicate perhaps a court of justice. [See Dupont]. The author, Christopher Long, remains convinced that archaeological research in these precincts would prove rewarding.

Castel, Guernsey (Coutances) — parish church of Ste Marie de Castel (Guernésiais: Lé CastÉ French: Sainte-Marie-du-Câtel). Largest parish in Guernsey, renowned for medieval frescos and pre-Christian neolithic menhir in the churchyard, thought to be carved to represent a female fertility symbol. Mentioned in papal documents in 1158. Mentioned as dependant of MSM by 1280.

St Saviour, Guernsey (Coutances) — parish church, islands part of the Duchy of Normandy in AD 933, St Saviour's Church mentioned in a charter ca. 1030 by which Duke Robert of Normandy assigned the church, and three others in Guernsey, to the Benedictine Abbey of Mont St Michel in Normandy, the gift confirmed by his son Duke William (the Conqueror) in 1048, and by Pope Adrian IV (Nicholas Breakspeare, the only English Pope) in 1155, the present church containing C12th elements.

St Peter, Guernsey — St Pierre du Bois parish church. Given to MSM in ca. 1280, the present church was built around 1375 and added to in the 15th century. [See Dupont]

Lihou, Guernsey (Coutances) — the priory of St. Mary, probably ruined in C18th, was situated on island of Notre Dame de Lihou accessible at low tide. Believed to have been established by Benedictine monks in the 12th century. The unpopularity of the monks with the local people may have be due to the monks' insistence on rights of wreck. Approaching sailors said to have dipped their masts to it. Until 1415 it was under the control of MSM, thereafter under Eton College until the Reformation when it was closed and fell into disrepair. Remains of priory walls and a chapel visible. The house on Lihou was used for target practice by heavy artillery during the German Occupation of the Channel Islands during World War II. Now an educational resource.

St George, Guernsey (Coutances) — chapel, one of two chapels (St Anne's at King's Mills) in St Saviour's [JM says Câtel] parish on Route Deslisles, demolished in the 18th century, near the estate bearing his name can be found the feudal courthouse of the Fief Le Compte and the holy well of St George thought to have healing properties. See Dupont re Comte/Earl of Chester.

Jethou, Island of the Bailliwick of Guernsey (Coutances) — church. Archaeological traces of what may have been the chapel or church, mentioned in a papal bull in 1156, were discovered in 2007. Michel Mollat says this island of hermits was granted to the monks around 1100 by Rastaud, one of Duke Robert's sea captains, who nevertheless retained its revenues for his lifetime.
Sark, Island of the Bailliwick of Guernsey (Coutances) — chapel of St Magloire. Richard de Vernon confirms, ca. 1190, his father's earlier gift of the chapel to MSM in 1160 but this is not, says Dupont, the parish church of St Magloire mentioned in C12th charters. Michel Mollat says that Duke Robert accorded rights to the monks on Alderney and Sark in return for taking back half of Guernsey.

St Clement, Jersey (Coutances) — priory. Scarcely ever more than two monks. Traces of foundations have been found in the south-west of the parish, near the cemetery. There is a Priory Farm in the parish today. See Dupont for details of building of an oratory in 1172. In 2012 archaeologists on Jersey announced that a dig had revealed masonry whose form, position and alignment convinced them that they had struck part of former priory.

St Ouen, Jersey (Coutances) — parish church (originally cruciform in shape). Given to MSM with its land and a house at the same time as St Mary at Lecq by Philippe de Carteret (see charter 1167, or maybe as early as 1156... see Dupont). In 1285 his son Renaud dropped proceedings to reclaim it. The gift was probably associated with a member of his family becoming a monk at MSM. The chapel of St George at Vinchelez de Bas was given to MSM by Alain de Vinchelez at the same time. At that time he owned Vinchelez 'de Bas' and 'de Haut', then one manor. The chapel disappeared long ago (though described in 1606) but its cemetery is beside the entrance to the Manoir de Bas. The Clos St George is still well-known. [Dom de Camps says MSM lost the church to "the puritan heretics"!]

Lecq, Jersey (Coutances) — priory and chapel of St Mary in parish of St Ouen of which it may have held the curacy. Given to MSM in 1167 by Philippe de Carteret.

[Not all the estates noted by André Dupont in Essai d'un Catalogue Critique des Églises et Chapelles dont le Patronage Appartenait à l'Abbaye du Mont Saint-Michel (1979) appear in the Millénaire Monastique du Mont Saint-Michel (1966). But his findings do generally accord with much more detailed English records to which he has, however, made no reference.]




X The above article presents an hypothesis only.

The author has greatly appreciated the generous advice and help of: Norman historians and archaeologists David Nicolas-Méry, Daniel Levalet and Julien Deshayes; historian of Saint Michael's Mount Lord St Levan; English mediaevalist Dr Joanna Mattingly; historian of mining, Professor Emeritus at the University of Exeter, Dr Roger Burt; Cornwall historians Peter Rose and Anne Preston-Jones; and Channel Islands historian John MacCormack.

The purpose of this article is to record our current state of ignorance! It simply demonstrates some of the avenues we are currently exploring. The author accepts – without apology – that far more research is needed before he can assert with confidence that the ideas proposed here are firmly supported by evidence. Informed and constructive comments are warmly welcomed.


Voir: Le Mont Saint-Michel, l'Étain, le Bronze et l'Âge des Cloches

See: Mont Saint-Michel and the Cornish Tin Trade

Voir: Le Mont Saint-Michel et l'Étain de la Cornouaille

See: Mont Saint-Michel and St Michael's Mount

See Main Index


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