Manchester University Press - Monastic experience in twelfth-century Germany

Monastic experience in twelfth-century Germany provides a rare window on to monastery life in the tumultuous world of twelfth-century Swabia. From its founding in 992 through the great fire that ravaged it in 1159 and beyond, Petershausen weathered countless external attacks and internal divisions. Supra-regional clashes between emperors and popes played out at the most local level. Monks struggled against overreaching bishops. Reformers introduced new and unfamiliar customs. Tensions erupted into violence within the community. Through it all the anonymous chronicler struggled to find meaning amid conflict and forge connections to a shared past, enlivening his narrative with colorful anecdotes - sometimes amusing, sometimes disturbing. Translated into English for the first time, this fascinating text is an essential source for the lived experience of medieval monasticism.

Reviews

'Monastic Experience in Twelfth-Century Germany provides a skillfully annotated and translated text of the Petershausen Chronicles. The Chronicles not only provide a glimpse into twelfth-century German monasticism and society, they are a fascinating read: a saint who refuses to give up his relics, a cruel murderer who boils his victim, battle scenes, visions, miracles, and delightfully detailed descriptions make the Chronicles anything but a dry historical account.'
The American Benedictine Review

Introduction
The Chronicle of Petershausen
Prologue
Book One
Book Two
Book Three
Book Four
Translation of the Relics of St. Gebhard
Additional Entries
Book Five
Book Six
Appendix 1: The Life of St. Gebhard
Appendix 2: Concordance of book and chapter numbering
Bibliography
Index

Translators and Editors

Alison I. Beach is Professor of Medieval History at the University of St Andrews
Shannon M. T. Li, PhD is a professional indexer and proprietor of Li Indexing
Samuel S. Sutherland is Assistant Professor of History at Stephen F. Austin State University