Crusade, memory and regional politics in twelfth-century Amboise

This essay takes as its subject two texts, the Gesta Ambaziensium dominorum (Deeds of the lords a Amboise) and the variant manuscript G of the crusade chronicle Historia Jerosolimitana of Baudri of Bourgueil, archbishop of Dol (Paris Bibliotheque Nationale de France [BNFr.] MS Lat. 5513). These two texts represent our only sources of information about the deeds of crusaders from the seigneurial family of Amboise on the First Crusade. The information pertaining to the Amboise crusaders in both texts is presented and it is shown that both refer to a common event that supposedly took place during the difficult siege of Antioch. Unique passages added to the manuscript are cited which pertain not only to the lord of Amboise, Hugh of Chaumont-sur-Loire, but also to other crusaders from the Touraine region and especially to the crusade leader Stephen of Blois. The essay then argues that this variant manuscript, or at least the texts that it contains, may have been created in the mid twelfth century for the Amboise family or their sympathisers. The political crises which confronted the Amboise seigneurial family at this time are provided as the context for the creation of the variant crusade history. The text and translation of unedited verses listing the leaders of the First Crusade found in the variant MS are included at the end of the essay. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.