Art. 116, De martirio sancti Wistani

by: Susanna Greer Fein (Editor)

from: The Complete Harley 2253 Manuscript, Volume 3  2015

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De martirio sancti Wistani. Wiglafus rex Merciorum, vir illustris, genuit de Kyneswytha regina uxore sua filium      nomine Wygmundum. Defuncto Wiglafo rege Merciorum anno regni sui terciodecimo sepultrique apud Repedone, Wigmundus filius eius successit in regnum Merciorum et duxit in uxorem Ealfledam filiam Cheolwolfi regis, de qua generavit Wystanum. Qui sese tota animi diligencia divino mancipavit obsequio. Deinde, defuncto Wigmundo patre suo, comprovinciales Wistanum pecierunt ut regni que iure hereditario sibi competere debebant gubernacula reciperet. Puer vero Wistanus, malens celestis regni quam temporalis fieri coheres, singula mundana neglexit imperia. Quod audiens, quidam consul nomine Brithfardus, cognatus et compater Wistani, misit nuncios, scilicet, Wibaldum, Man, et Ethulfum, ad Ealfledam reginam, matrem Wistani, ut eam duceret in uxorem et sic regnum Merciorum sibi adquireret. Quod audiens, Wistanus dixit matri sue, “Mater mea dulcissima, habuisti patrem meum regem Wigmundum in maritum, qui iam mortuus est. Pro cuius morte dolores infinitos sustinuisti et adhuc sustines in presenti. Operare de meo concilio, et maritum habebis immortalem pro quo nunquam dolere set eternaliter gaudere videberis.” Cuius concilio regina se promisit adquiescere. Tunc Wistanus, filiolus et cognatus Brithfardi consulis, per legatos suos predictos sibi notificavit commatrem uxoremque cognati ducere non posse. Quod cum audivisset Brithfardus consul, misit amicabiliter ad Wistanum ut specialiter ad certum locum assignatum cum tribus sociis de necessariis diversis secum colloquiturum adveniret. Quem cum vidisset Brithfardus in loco assignato, accessit et osculatus est. Cum quo facto, extraxit gladium quem latenter habuit, et Wistani capitis summitatem in cono amputavit, et socios eius qui secum venerant perforavit. Et statim amens effectus est. Corpus vero Wistani apud Reopedune monasterium, tunc temporis famosum, delatum est, et in mausoleo Wiglafi regis avi sui tumulatum est. De loco nempe ubi innocenter occisus est, columpna lucis — usque ad oculum porrecta — omnibus eiusdem loci incolis per triginta dies conspicua stabat. Passus est puer sanctus sub die kalendas Iunii prima feria anno incarnationis Dominice octingentesimo quinquagesimo. Pro quo Deus diversa et infinita operatur miracula.

On the martyrdom of Saint Wistan. King Wiglaf of the Mercians, a noble man, fathered by his wife Queen Cyneswitha a son named Wigmund. When King Wiglaf of the Mercians died in the thirteenth year of his reign and was buried at Repton, his son Wigmund succeeded him in the realm of the Mercians and took as wife Elfleda, daughter of King Ceolwulf, by whom he fathered Wistan. Wistan dedicated himself with the entire steadfastness of his soul to the worship of God. Then, when his father Wigmund died, his fellow Mercians asked Wistan to accept the direction of the realm which by right of inheritance was owed to him. But the boy Wistan, preferring to become coheir of a heavenly rather than temporal realm, neglected every earthly rule. Hearing this, a certain consul named Brithfard, a relation and godfather of Wistan, sent messengers, that is, Wibald, Man, and Ethulf, to Queen Elfleda, Wistan’s mother, that he intended to take her as his wife and thus acquire the realm of the Mercians for himself. Hearing this, Wistan said to his mother, “My sweet, sweet mother, you had as husband my father King Wigmund, who has now died. For his death you endured countless sorrows and you still endure them even now. Act in accord with my counsel, and you will have an undying husband for whom you will be seen never to grieve but rather to rejoice everlastingly.” The queen promised to accept his counsel. Then Wistan, her young son and the relative of the consul Brithfard, made known to him through his legates that he could not marry the mother and wife of his relation. When consul Brithfard had heard this, he send word in friendly fashion to Wistan that he should come to a certain designated place with three companions to confer with him about various important matters. When Brithfard had seen him in the designated place, he approached and kissed him. With that done, he drew a sword that he had hidden, and he cut off the peak of Wistan’s head at the apex of his helmet, and he pierced through the companions who had come with him. And at once he was made insane. But the body of Wistan was conveyed to the monastery of Repton, which was at that time famous, and was entombed in the mausoleum of his grandfather King Wiglaf. From the place where he was innocently slain, a column of light — stretched out as far as the eye could see — was visible thirty days to all the inhabitants of the place. The saintly boy suffered his death on the calends of June in the 850th year of the Lord’s incarnation. On his account God performs countless miracles of different types.

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Footnotes

ART. 116, DE MARTIRIO SANCTI WISTANI: EXPLANATORY NOTES

Abbreviations: AND: Anglo-Norman Dictionary; ANL: Anglo-Norman Literature: A Guide to Texts and Manuscripts (R. Dean and Boulton); BL: British Library (London); Bodl.: Bodleian Library (Oxford); CT: Chaucer, Canterbury Tales; CUL: Cambridge University Library (Cambridge); DOML: Dumbarton Oaks Medieval Library; FDT: French Devotional Texts of the Middle Ages (Sinclair 1979); FDT-1: French Devotional Texts of the Middle Ages, . . . First Supplement (Sinclair 1982); IMEV: The Index of Middle English Verse (Brown and Robbins); MED: Middle English Dictionary; MWME: A Manual of the Writings in Middle English, 1050–1500 (Severs et al.); NIMEV: A New Index of Middle English Verse (Boffey and Edwards); NLS: National Library of Scotland (Edinburgh).

2 Wiglafus rex Merciorum. Wiglaf was King of Mercia, 827–840. His son Wigmund succeeded him, but died in the same year, leaving the throne to a kinsman Brithwulf [Berhtwulf], who ruled Mercia 840–52. The background of the tale involves three rival lineages of ninth-century Mercia: King Ceolwulf I (821–823) and his daughter Elfleda [Ælfflæd]; Ceolwulf’s successor Wiglaf and his son Wigmund (who married Elfleda); and Wigmund’s successor Brithwulf and his son Brithfard [Berhtfrith]. In his ambition to marry Elfleda and secure the Mercian kingdom — a plan opposed by Wistan — Brithfard becomes the villain of the legend.

23 By divine punishment, Brithfard is struck with insanity as soon as he commits the murders.

31 die kalendas Iunii prima feria. Wistan’s feast day is June 1, the day of his martyrdom. Modern historians set the year of his death in 849, not 850.

ART. 116, DE MARTIRIO SANCTI WISTANI: TEXTUAL NOTES

ABBREVIATIONS: As: Aspin; Bö: Böddeker; Br: Brook; BS: Bennett and Smithers; BZ: Brandl and Zippel; B13: Brown 1937; Dea: J. M. Dean; Do: Dove 1969; Fl: Flood; Fö: Förster; Fu: Furnivall; HB: Hunt and Bliss; Kem: Kemble; Ken: Kennedy; Mi: Millett; Mo: Morris and Skeat; MS: MS Harley 2253; Mu¹: H. J. R. Murray; Mu²: J. A. H. Murray; NB: Noomen and van den Boogard; Pa: Patterson; Rev: Revard 2005a; Ri: Ritson 1877; Ro: Robbins 1959; SP: Short and Pearcy; Si: Silverstein; St: Stemmler 1970; Tu: Turville-Petre 1989; Ul: Ulrich; W¹: Wright 1839; W²: Wright 1841; W³: Wright 1842; WH: Wright and Halliwell.

4 Repedone. So MS (ne written on stub; see Ker, p. xvi).

15 mortuus. So MS (s written on stub; see Ker, p. xvi).

16 sustinuisti. MS: sustinusti.

20 notificavit. So MS (first i written on stub; see Ker, p. xvi).