Gerard Pucelle

Gerard Pucelle († January 13, 1184 in Coventry ) was a clergyman and canon lawyer who worked in France, Germany and England in the 12th century. From 1183 he was bishop of the English diocese of Coventry .

Teaching activity in Paris and Cologne

The origin of Gerard Pucelle is unknown. According to his first name, he was either an English or French. Before 1156 he taught canon law , perhaps also theology and Roman law in schools in Paris. He won the special favor of the French King Louis VII. Probably under Archbishop Thomas Becket of Canterbury, who gave him several benefices , he came to England. But when Becket fell out with King Henry II and went into exile in France in November 1164, Pucelle accompanied him. At the beginning of 1166 he stayed in Germany, which was then the antipope Paschal III. against Pope Alexander III. supported. Pucelle was solemnly received in Cologne, whose Archbishop Rainald von Dassel served the Emperor as Chancellor. John of Salisbury , a friend of Pucelle, protested against this visit to the opponents of Alexander III. and declined Pucelle's invitation to come to Germany as well. Pucelle, however, stayed in Cologne, where he probably taught as a schoolmaster at the cathedral school . During this time Cologne was one of the centers for canon law in Germany.

In a letter to Becket in 1167, Pucelle confirmed his loyalty to Becket, who continued to live in exile. In 1168, however, Pucelle returned to England, where he swore allegiance to King Henry II. In the course of the year, however, he managed to reconcile with the angry Becket. At the request of Becket, Pope Alexander III. Pucelle the absolution that he had supported the antipope. In return, he had to renounce the benefices he had received in Germany. Becket and the Pope now campaigned for Pucelle with King Louis VII, who then probably taught in France again. Pucelle now wanted to arrange a meeting of Becket with Geoffrey Ridel , Archdeacon of Canterbury and Bishop Froger of Sées . John of Salisbury criticized him again for supporting the antipope and warned that the Church would not forgive him a second time. The meeting did not take place.

In the service of Archbishop Richard of Dover

Between 1174 and 1183 Gerard Pucelle testified to at least 56 documents from Archbishop Richard of Dover , who had been elected Archbishop of Canterbury after Becket's assassination. With it he testified about a quarter of the archbishop's documents received, whereby he was usually mentioned as the first of the witnesses. Pucelle was not always part of the archbishop's entourage. In early 1178 he was in Rome with Peter von Blois , where he represented Richard of Dover in a dispute with St Augustine's Abbey in Canterbury. Pope Alexander III praised Pucelles erudition and knowledge and allowed him in February 1178 to receive the income of his English benefices for four years while he was again active as a teacher. In March 1178 the Pope again allowed him to receive the income from his benefices in Germany. Cardinal Pietro da Pavia , the papal legate in France, also recommended Pucelle to the Pope around this time. In March 1179 Pucelle took part in the Third Lateran Council as Richard of Dovers representative . In Rome he campaigned in vain for Master Bertram , the elected Archbishop of Bremen, who was presumably a student of his in Cologne, but who ultimately did not become archbishop. From 1180 Pucelle presumably taught again in Cologne before he returned to England before September 1181.

Bishop of Coventry

In May or June 1183, Pucelle was elected bishop of the English diocese of Coventry . He was ordained bishop in Canterbury on September 25th. However, he died a few months later. He was buried in Coventry Cathedral. The circumstances of his death were so suspicious that it was suggested that he was poisoned.

rating

According to the chronicler Herbert of Bosham († around 1194), Pucelle was a celebrated lawyer and teacher. The reasons for his fame, however, are not entirely clear. As a specialist in canon law, Pucelle is considered an early decretist , but although he had taught in Paris and Cologne, no writings are known of him. However, various other canon lawyers refer to him and quote teachings from him. As the only canon lawyer of the 12th century he knew the teachings of Cresconius Africanus , an obscure canon lawyer of the 6th or 7th century from Africa. The other canon lawyer who knew this Cresconius Africanus was possibly one of his students.

Pucelle was apparently an apolitical person. His first stay in Cologne, which at that time supported the antipope, can at best be described as unwise. He was just as disloyal to Becket when he swore allegiance to King Henry II. Perhaps he believed he could serve as a mediator, and in fact he succeeded in getting both Pope Alexander III. as also Becket forgave him. Archbishop Richard of Dover was later one of his sponsors. Still, Pucelle stood up for Battle Abbey , which - arguably rightly - claimed that a Richard of Dover charter was invalid. If he was really poisoned, he was probably the victim of local machinations in his diocese.

literature

• Johannes Fried: Gerard Pucelle and Cologne . In: Journal of the Savigny Foundation for Legal History. Canonical department . tape 68 , 1982, pp. 125–135 , doi : 10.7767 / zrgka.1982.68.1.125 .
• Charles Donahue: Gerard Pucelle as a canon lawyer: life and the Battle Abbey case. In: R. Helmholz, P. Mikat, J. Müller and M. Stolleis: Fundamentals of law: Festschrift for Peter Landau on his 65th birthday . Schöningh, Paderborn 2000, ISBN 3-506-73392-3 , p. 333-348 .

Web links

• Charles Donahue jun .: Pucelle, Gerard (d. 1184). In: Henry Colin Gray Matthew, Brian Harrison (Eds.): Oxford Dictionary of National Biography , from the earliest times to the year 2000 (ODNB). Oxford University Press, Oxford 2004, ISBN 0-19-861411-X , ( oxforddnb.com license required ), as of 2004

Individual evidence

1. ^ Anne J. Duggan: De consultationibus. The Role of Episcopal Consultation in the Shaping of Canon Law in the Twelfth Century . In: Martin Brett, Bruce Clark Brasington, Kathleen G. Cushing: Bishops, texts and the use of canon law around 1100: essays in honor of Martin Brett . Ashgate, Burlington 2008. ISBN 978-0-7546-6015-6 , p. 202

predecessor	Office	successor
Richard Peche	Bishop of Coventry 1183–1184	Hugh de Nonant