The following offers us a contemporary look into life in 12th century France. This section deals with the Cottereux and King Phillip Augustus of France

In the same year as above, moreover, the year of the Lord's incarnation 1183, the fourth year of the reign of the most Christian king Phillip, it happened that the same king on requests from many and especially at the suggestion of a certain servant who appeared at that time to be the most faithful at carrying on the king's business, bought from the lepers living outside the city of Paris the fairs for himself and his successors, and had them transferred to the market-place called "Campellis" [Champeaux?]. There he had the same most experienced servant build two great houses which the populace call "halls" ["halas". Can this be les Halles?], because he felt it appropriate and likely to be extremely helpful to those who worked there, where the merchants could sell their wares in the dry when it was raining and keep them safe from the incursions of thieves at night.

For even greater security, he ordered a wall to be built around the same halls, with gates made so that they could always be shut at night, and between this exterior wall and the actual halls he had covered stalls erected for the merchants so that they would not have to stop buying and selling on rainy days and suffer loss thereby.

On the circuit of the wall around the Forest of Vincenne

The forest of Vincennes had never been enclosed in the time of all his predecessors and had been quite open to anyone passing through it. At much this time, Phillip Augustus king of the Franks, concerned for the development and improvement of the realm, had it ringed with a very fine wall. When Henry (II) king of the English, who had succeeded king Stephen as ruler of the kingdom of England, had wild beasts collected from all over Normandy and Aquitaine, stag fawns, young does and wild goats, placed in a great ship with the utmost care and cleverly protected and provided there with the necessary fodder. He then sent them along the Seine by water to king Phillip his lord at Paris. The most Christian king received this gift kindly and had them enclosed in the forest of Vincennes near the city, placing a permanent watch over them.

Incidentals

Many heretics were burned at this time in Flanders by William the reverend archbishop of Rheims, titular cardinal-priest of Sancta Sabina and papal legate, and by Philli the illustrious count of the Flemings.

Another incident

In the same year in the region of Cahors, in a castle commonly known as Martel [Lot], there died on the 13th kalends of June [actually 11 June not 20 May as indicated here] Henry the young king of England. His corpse was carried to the city of Rouen in the province formerly known as Neustria and now Normandy. On the killing of the Cottereaux near the city of "Biturica"

In the same year, more than seven thousand Cottereaux were killed in the region of the Beauce (?) [near Châteaudun, 20 August 1183] by the local inhabitants allied together against the enemies of God. They were taking booty and wasting the king's lands, dragging their captives vilely after them and (Oh, Horrors!) sleeping with their wives as they watched. What is even worse, they would set fire to churches consecrated to God, and take the priests and religious along with them, calling them in mockery "Choirboys" (Cantores) and ridiculing them in their torments by saying: "Sing to us choirboys, sing!", incessantly boxing their ears or hitting them in a disgraceful manner with big sticks. Some of those beaten in this way gave up their blessed souls to the Lord. Others after long captivity got themselves released from custody by giving money for ransom, and returned to their own. But how can we tell the story without tears and deep sighs? More on the same.

So at the same time, to punish our sins these Cottereaux were invading and despoiling churches, and were, at the Devil's prodding and with rash daring, even taking the body of Our Lord, which was reserved, as it should be, for the emergency needs of the sick in gold or silver vessels, extracting it from them with hands (Oh, so painful!) polluted by human blood, throwing it vilely on the ground and crushing it under foot. Their concubines would concoct robes for their heads with that holy linen covering which is called the "corporal" (altar cloth), and carried around with them the gold and silver vessels in which (the eucharist) was conserved and made ready, to smash them up with hammers or break apart with stones. When the local inhabitants saw this, they reported all these evils to their lord Phillip the most Christian king of the Franks, and once he had heard what they were saying he was fired with the zeal of Go to send his army to their assistance. The royal army joined up with them and they mounted a united assault on the enemy, killed them all from the least to the greatest, and were greatly enriched from their spoils. Then the people, seeing what they had achieved, returned home glorifying and praising God for all the things they had seen and heard [cf. Luc., ii. 20].

Oeuvres de Rigord et de Guillaume le Breton, ed. H. Francoise Delaborde, I (Libr. Renouard: Paris, 1882). Translation © Paul R. Hyams 1998