Theobald of Étampes

Theobald of Étampes (

Biography

Theobald's biography has been reconstructed by Bernard Gineste.

Two are written in Caen. The first is a letter written to a certain Philipp, who had committed an undetermined sexual deviation and sustained harassment accordingly; consoling him Theobald develops the idea that the faults of this kind are not the most serious, and that pride is a far more dangerous sin; he very clearly suggests that those who make profession of chastity often fall into pedophilia. The second letter is sent to a Queen Margarita, thought until recently to be Saint Margaret of Scotland, died in 1093, but Gineste has shown she is Margaret Fredkulla, Queen of Denmark, still alive in 1116.^[2] He thanked the Queen of liberality of the Abbey of Saint-Étienne of Caen and seems to make service offerings.

Four are written from

This last quite short letter has subjected to an anonymous monk an endless answer, partly written in verses[3] which strongly supports the clerics and the canons of the time, and praise in return for the monks, trimmed of all virtues.

Place in the history of ideas and traditions

• Theobald of Étampes is not a major author, but is one such early intellectual who has paved the way to the great
  12th century Renaissance. The major principles of teaching are respect and methodical, in other words reasoned exposure (in Latin rationabiliter) of the Catholic doctrine
  .
• His thoughts should be seen in the great debate of his time: for or against the great
  Popes
  are former monks and attempt to impose by force throughout the clergy their ascetic designs.
• Also Oxfordian historiography often saw him as the founder of the university, and in 1907 a skit was composed and performed presenting him as the introducer of the enlightenment in Oxford, in opposition to the forces of darkness represented by the monks of Abingdon.^[4]
• He attracted the sympathy of the
  celibacy of the priests
  , celibacy that met resistance in fact in Northern Europe until the end of the Middle Ages, while in Catholic France his work was gradually forgotten.

References

Further reading

• Luc d'Achery, "Theobaldi Stampensis [Epistolae]", in Veterum Aliquot Scriptorum qui in Galliae Bibliothecis, maxime Benedictorum, latuerant, Spicilegium: Tomus tertius, Paris, 1659, pp. 132–145 (reedited by Migne in his Patrologia Latina, vol. 163, col. 759–770).
• "Thibaud d'Etampes," in Histoire littéraire de la France: XIIe siècle. Tome XI, Paris, Nyon, 1757, pp. 90–94.
• Robert Bridges, "Theobaldus Stampensis (The Beginnings of the University)," in The Oxford Historical Pageant, Oxford, Pageant Committee, 1907, pp. 27–34.
• Raymonde Foreville, "L'École de Caen au XIe siècle et les origines normandes de l'Université d'Oxford", in Mélanges Augustin Fliche, Montpellier, 1952, pp 81–100.
• Raymonde de Foreville and dom Jean Leclerc, "Un débat sur le sacerdoce des moines au XIIe siècle," in Studia Anselmania 41 (1957), pp. 8–118.
• T. H. Aston, The History of the University of Oxford: The early Oxford schools, Volume 1: The early Oxford Schools, Oxford University Press, 1985, pp. 5 and 27.
• Bernard Gineste, "Thibaud d'Étampes," in Cahiers d'Étampes-Histoire 10 (2009), pp. 43–58 online.
• Ulla Haastrup & John Lind, "Dronning Margrete Fredkulla Politisk magthaver og mæcen for byzantisk kunst i danske kirker i 1100-tallets begyndelse", in Lars Hermanson & Auður Magnúsdóttir (red.), Medeltidens genus. Kvinnors och mäns roller inom kultur, rätt och samhälle. Norden och Europa ca 300–1500, Göteborgs Universitet, Acta Universitatis Gothoburgensis ["Skrifter Utgivna Av Medeltidskommittén" I], 2016, pp. 29–71 online, spec. pp. 33–35.