1media/keyimage_holytearpanel_donation.jpg2022-12-27T06:11:22-08:00Chapter 1: Founding a Monastery26plain13399562025-02-17T16:10:27-08:00
Chapter 1 sets the stage for the following chapters. I argue that the Holy Tear first came into existence in the mid- to late-twelfth century due to the political ambitions of the abbey and the spiritual priorities of abbot Geoffrey of Vendôme. The primary materials I use to outline the historical and political context for La Trinité’s eleventh-century founding include published volumes of the abbey’s charters, edited by Charles Métais, and an eleventh-century manuscript recording the annals of the abbey, University Oxford, Bodleian Library MS 309. I review the liturgical calendars and the sermons of Geoffrey of Vendôme to reassess the foundation narrative of La Trinité and the creation of the Holy Tear in the twelfth century.