Who's Who of Medieval England shows royalty, wine-loving soldiers and a dark-skinned landowner known as 'Aethelwine the Black' ALL gave to the Church to ensure they got into heaven
Aethelgifu, a 10th-century noblewoman who gave land, 30 gold mancuses, 30 oxen, 20 cows, 250 sheep, a herd of pigs with a swineherd, 2 silver cups, 2 horns, a book, a curtain and a cushion to the Church
A manuscript described as a 'Who's Who of Medieval England' has revealed the faces of royalty, wine-loving soldiers and a landowner known as 'Aethelwine the Black' who all donated to the Church to ensure they went to heaven.
The St Albans Benefactors' Book includes the names and descriptions of around 600 people who gave gifts to the Church from 1380 until approximately 1540.
It also contains more than 200 colourful portraits of those who journeyed to St Albans Abbey in Hertfordshire, including a princess who donated gold and a soldier who 'gave wine liberally.'
The illuminated manuscript, which has now been digitised by the British Library, was made to take pride of place on the Abbey's high altar.
It now provides a rare glimpse into the lives of those who made pilgrimages from London and beyond to give gifts to the Church, with all levels of society who could afford to donate organised by rank.
Eleanor Jackson, curator of illuminated manuscripts at the British Library, said in a blog post: 'Made to take pride of place on the abbey's high altar, the St Albans Benefactors' Book reads like a who's who of medieval England.
'It preserves hundreds of names, details and portraits of people who made gifts to the Abbey of St Albans throughout the Middle Ages.
'Far more than a list of donors, it presents a vivid picture of a community and all the individuals who comprised it. Its pages bustle with the life and colour of medieval society.'
Royalty were found at the start of the manuscript, followed by clergymen, aristocracy, merchants, fishmongers and millers who are pictured alongside the gifts they had presented.
The 'Golden Book of St Albans' was established in around 1380 as a register of members of the Abbey's confraternity by abbot Thomas de la Mare.
Its preface said anyone who made a donation to the Church could be admitted, earning them an induction ceremony, spiritual benefits and a record in the book.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8375783/amp/Whos-Medieval-England.html
A manuscript described as a 'Who's Who of Medieval England' has revealed the faces of royalty, wine-loving soldiers and a landowner known as 'Aethelwine the Black' who all donated to the Church to ensure they went to heaven.
The St Albans Benefactors' Book includes the names and descriptions of around 600 people who gave gifts to the Church from 1380 until approximately 1540.
It also contains more than 200 colourful portraits of those who journeyed to St Albans Abbey in Hertfordshire, including a princess who donated gold and a soldier who 'gave wine liberally.'
The illuminated manuscript, which has now been digitised by the British Library, was made to take pride of place on the Abbey's high altar.
It now provides a rare glimpse into the lives of those who made pilgrimages from London and beyond to give gifts to the Church, with all levels of society who could afford to donate organised by rank.
Eleanor Jackson, curator of illuminated manuscripts at the British Library, said in a blog post: 'Made to take pride of place on the abbey's high altar, the St Albans Benefactors' Book reads like a who's who of medieval England.
'It preserves hundreds of names, details and portraits of people who made gifts to the Abbey of St Albans throughout the Middle Ages.
'Far more than a list of donors, it presents a vivid picture of a community and all the individuals who comprised it. Its pages bustle with the life and colour of medieval society.'
Royalty were found at the start of the manuscript, followed by clergymen, aristocracy, merchants, fishmongers and millers who are pictured alongside the gifts they had presented.
The 'Golden Book of St Albans' was established in around 1380 as a register of members of the Abbey's confraternity by abbot Thomas de la Mare.
Its preface said anyone who made a donation to the Church could be admitted, earning them an induction ceremony, spiritual benefits and a record in the book.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8375783/amp/Whos-Medieval-England.html
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