The effect of the spread in the use of paper was evident in the increasing importance of the vernacular. An emphasis on Latin in the monastery and the church widened the gap between the oral and the written tradition. Bilingualism implied lack of ‘clearness of speech and therefore of thought’.[206] ‘One language blunts the other.’ Learned literature was written in a complex script and ‘in the inmost thoughts even of the most learned men, the mother tongue seems always, or nearly always, to have remained uppermost’.[207] Latin was hampered as a medium by the widening gap with the vernacular and its limitations were more severe as it reflected a celibate type of thought. Scholars were concerned with letters rather than sounds and linguistic instruction emphasized eye philology rather than ear philology.[208] The position of Latin had been entrenched as a result of the conflict with the Eastern Church since encouragement of the Slavic liturgy in the East was followed by insistence on Latin in the West.[209] At Toulouse in 1229 the synod decreed that ‘lay people shall not have books of scripture, except the psalter and the divine office; and they shall not have these in the vulgar tongue’. In spite of the policy of the Church, translations were made of portions of the Gospel, and to avoid persecution and to spread its influence large portions were memorized notably by members of the lower classes unable to read. The Waldensians, followers of Peter Waldo of Lyons, after 1150 were particularly concerned as they were inspired by lay reading of the New Testament and were declared heretics by the papal edict of Verona in 1184 and ordered to be delivered to the secular arm. Innocent III declared in a letter in 1199 ‘in this matter certain laymen appear to be justly accused; because they hold secret conventicles, usurp to themselves the office of preaching, elude the simplicity of priests and scorn the company of those who cling not to these things ... the secret mysteries of the faith ought not therefore to be explained to all men in all places’.[210] Feudal courts became increasingly centres of literary activity in the vernacular, particularly with the prominent position occupied by women and the importance of patronage.[211] Charlemagne ordered the preservation of vernacular literature which had been transmitted orally.[212] Alfred the Great wrote in his translation of Gregory's Pastoral Rule:
‘Therefore it seems better to me, if it seems likewise to you, that we turn some books which are most needful for all persons into the tongue which we can all understand; and that you act ... to the end that all the youth now in England of free men who have the wealth to be able to apply themselves to it, be set to learning so long as they are no use for anything else, until the time when they can read English writing well: let those afterwards be instructed further in the Latin language.’
In Provence patronage supported a rich troubadour literature in the twelfth century. Vernacular literature favoured the growth of heretical writings[213] and led to the Albigensian crusade beginning in 1209 and ending with the destruction of the civilization of southern France in the Treaty of Paris in 1229. The Dominican (1215) and the Franciscan (1210) preaching orders were established to bridge the widening gap between the older monasticism and the vernacular. ‘An age of friars succeeded an age of monks’ (Rashdall). In turn the Inquisition[214] was developed to detect heresy with greater facility. The papal bull Ad Extirpanda in 1252 established the Inquisition which had been worked out between 1227 and 1241.
The interest of the Byzantine empire in law was[215] transmitted to Italy as the Church increased in power and the emperor in the West realized its possibilities in resisting the aggression of the papacy. The early teachers in law at Bologna were supported by the patronage of emperors. The teaching of Irnerius (1100-30) led to a systematic study of the Corpus Juris Civilis. The glossators followed and the study of law in Italy made substantial advance at the expense of theology. Study of the jurisprudence of the Digest facilitated the development of law in relation to the demands of trade and commerce and urban communities. As Roman law was developed in the interest of the emperors the Church followed with canon law based on the Decretum of Gratian completed in 1142 and accepted as a code by Gregory IX in 1234. After the breakdown of the German kingdom under the weight of the Roman empire with the death of Frederick II,[216] the Germanic and imperial crown to check the power of the papacy became elective. The Emperor Louis IV resisted the demands of the papacy and was excommunicated, but with the assistance of Marsilius and William of Occam he deposed John XXII and elected a Franciscan pope. The diets at Frankfort in 1338 and 1339 insisted that the empire was held from God alone. Marsilius held that the ultimate source of power was in the people and that the Church consisted of all Christians in contrast with the claims of the papacy.
Roman law was in a sense a continuation of tradition in Italy. Paris became the great centre of theology. The influence of classical civilization[217] shown in the writings of John Scotus Erigena became more powerful following acquaintance with the work of Aristotle and led to the development of scholasticism centring in the University of Paris.[218] The Latin language was made subtle and flexible and became the basis of the rich possibilities of the French vernacular. The Dominicans, notably Albertus Magnus (1193-1280) and Thomas Aquinas (1227-74), pressed ‘the whole Aristotelian philosophy into the service of the church’. Located at the capital of a great state the University of Paris dominated the theology of the Church even to the extent of overawing the papacy. In turn the prestige of Paris gave the king of France an important weapon in resisting the claims of the papacy as expressed in the Unam Sanctam of Boniface VIII in 1302 ‘that it is altogether necessary for salvation for all human creatures, that they should be subject to the Roman pontiff’. Attempts to build up financial strength were resisted by France and became more onerous for England. The French monarchy under Philip the Fair was supported by French lawyers. ‘From a broad political and social point of view one of the most important results of the university was the creation, or at least the enormously increased power and importance of the lawyer class’ (Rashdall). ‘Lawyers, that powerful profession of which historians and politicians do not recognize the permeating influence. No inconsiderable part of history is the record of the illusions of statesmen’ (Morley). In opposition to the papacy and the emperor there emerged a central principle of French law, ‘the King is Emperor within his own realm’. Every power that made supremacy effective was transferred to the king, and the emperor was left in theoretical supremacy. ‘Writing is a witness very hard to corrupt; the customs were therefore reduced to writing.’[219] ‘They were made more general, and they received the stamp of royal authority.’[220] The power of France over the papacy became evident in the ‘Babylonian captivity’ (1308-78) of Avignon, the great schism from 1378 to 1417, repression of the Inquisition, and the hostility of England.
Roman law strengthened the position of the monarchy in France, but it had limited importance in England where the oral tradition was more strongly entrenched. The common law was developed from customs which had emerged over a long period and which, as in the case of the formative period of Roman law, were carried in the memories of men.[221] ‘While, however, they use leges and a written law in almost all lands, in England alone there has been used within its boundaries an unwritten law and custom. In England legal right is based on an unwritten law which usage has approved.... For the English hold many things by customary law which they do not hold by lex’ (Bracton).[222] ‘To reduce in every instance the laws (leges) and rights (jura) of the Realm into writing would be, in our times, absolutely impossible, as well on account of the ignorance of writers, as of the confused multiplicity of the laws’ (Glanville).[223] As late as 1628 Sir John Davis wrote: ‘So the customary law of England, which we doe likewise call jus commune as comming neerest to the lawe of nature, which is the root and touchstone of all good lawes, and which is also jus non scriptum and written onely in the memory of man ... doth far excell our written lawes, namely our statutes or Acts of Parliament.’[224] G. B. Adams has emphasized the necessity of calling men together to give a true account of customs and events und
er conditions in which writing did not exist. ‘The law was not made, it was only proved’ (McIlwain). From this emerged the strength of the jury system and the growth of parliament. Representatives of smaller communities before the county court were followed by representatives of boroughs and counties in parliament which provided a knowledge of men, customs, and opinions. ‘A foundation of common law was indispensable to a house of common politics’ (Pollard). Common law escaped the powerful influence of lawyers such as had isolated property in Roman law and retained the complex concept of ownership with far-reaching significance to the growth of trade and politics.
As the court in France strengthened the position of French in contrast with Latin, the court in England, particularly as a result of the war with France, strengthened the position of English in contrast with French.[225] In 1362 a statute ordered all pleading at law courts to be in English and in the same year the Lord Chancellor first opened parliament in English. The influence of the vernacular was evident in literature, and in its struggle against Latin in religion. Wycliffe believed that Dominion is founded in grace and that all human authority is conditioned by the worthiness of the person exercising it, and advocated withdrawal of allegiance to such unworthiness as was evident in monastic foundations and the papacy. Since the immediate responsibility of every Christian was to follow the life of Christ the Bible must be made available in the vernacular. Under his influence a first version was produced in 1382, and a later version completed by 1395 provided the unlearned with scriptures which could be memorized. Though the unlicensed possession of books in English dealing with theology was prohibited in 1408[226] the influence of the translation persisted in England and spread to Prague. The popular preaching of the friars was checked by a direct appeal to the scriptures.
A civilization dominated by parchment as a medium developed its monopoly of knowledge through monasticism. The power of the Church was reflected in its success in the struggle with Frederick II, in the development of the Gothic cathedral from 1040 to 1245, and in the work of Albertus Magnus and Thomas Aquinas. Its monopoly position had been weakened by the introduction and spread of paper,[227] but reorganizations and counter-attacks, notably in the Inquisition, delayed its collapse. Paper supported the growth of trade and of cities and of education beyond the control of the monasteries, and in turn of the Church and the cathedrals. The rise of the vernacular was reflected in the patronage of literature by the courts and in the increasing role of lawyers. The Dominicans and the Franciscans attempted on the one hand to dominate the universities and on the other to reach large numbers by preaching in the vernacular.[228] Institutions were designed to bridge the widening gap between the Church which emphasized Latin and the demands of increasing literacy in the vernacular reflected in the spread of heresy. The problems were evident in the increasing division between the old monastic orders and the new and between the new orders. The influence of the Dominicans in Paris was offset by that of the Franciscans in Oxford. Emphasis on vows of poverty brought division in the Church which was exploited by monarchies and political writers. Literature supported by the patronage of the courts reinforced the position of the vernacular in the poetry of the troubadours, and in that of such writers as Dante, Petrarch, Boccaccio, and Chaucer. In contrast with the significance of celibacy in the Church, the importance of women in the courts favoured a vernacular literature.[229] ‘A man's proper vernacular is nearest unto him in as much as it is more closely united to him, for it is singly and alone in his mind before any other’ (Dante).
The rise of vernacular literature hastened and was hastened by the growth of nationalism. The Church had broken the German empire and in turn had been dominated by the French king.[230] Opposition to French supremacy was evident in the resistance of English nationalism to pleas of the papacy for financial support[231] and in the encouragement of universities to offset the influence of Paris. Opposition of the papacy to French control led on the one hand to the establishment of universities in Spain and in Germany and on the other to the growth of a Gallican Church under the control of the French crown. The papacy triumphed over the Council as representative of the Church through the support of canon lawyers in 1448, but its success led to the Reformation. ‘The worst corruption of the Middle Ages lay in the transformation of the sacerdotal hierarchy into a hierarchy of lawyers’ (Rashdall).
The growth of bureaucracy in the Roman empire had followed dependence on the papyrus roll, but stability assumed a fusion with religious organization based on the parchment codex. Bureaucracy in terms of the state implied an emphasis on space and a neglect of the problems of time and in terms of religion an emphasis on time and a neglect of the problems of space. The tenacity of the Byzantine empire assumed the achievement of a balance which recognized the role of space and of time. The dominance of parchment in the West involved an exaggeration of the significance of time. A monopoly of knowledge based on parchment invited competition from a new medium such as paper which emphasized the significance of space as reflected in the growth of nationalist monarchies. A fusion between a monopoly of knowledge developed by ecclesiastical organization with emphasis on parchment and a rural monasticism, and a monopoly of knowledge developed by political organization with emphasis on paper and urban industry and trade gave power and influence to the French empire.
In its struggle to maintain the supremacy of Latin the Church was concerned not only with opposition to the vernaculars but also with opposition to other learned languages, notably Greek and Hebrew. The iconoclastic controversies had been accompanied by the migration of monks to Italy, and the weakening of the Byzantine empire was marked by the transmission of manuscripts of classical writings. In 1395 Emmanuel Chrysoloras became a teacher of Greek in Florence and manuscripts were brought in large numbers to Italy in the fifteenth century. Scholars from the East introduced a new respect for Plato and the overwhelming influence of Aristotle in the West came to an end.
Paper ‘permitted the old costly material by which thought was transmitted to be superseded by an economical substance, which was to facilitate the diffusion of the works of human intelligence’.[232] It brought a ‘revolution ... of high importance without which the art of writing would have been much less practised, and the invention of printing less serviceable to mankind’.[233] The spread of writing was accompanied by improvement in instruments. In the sixth century reed pens were being displaced by quills. Iron pens were perfected in the fourteenth century. The demands of trade in the thirteenth century were met by increasing supplies of paper and the rise of clerks skilled in cursive writing and accounting.
Parchment was slowly displaced by paper in the universities, churches, and monasteries. The Greeks began to use paper in manuscripts in the twelfth century and Italians in the thirteenth century, but it was sparingly used, in spite of the very high cost of parchment notably in the thirteenth century, until the fifteenth century. Monasteries continued to support the slow and costly production of parchment manuscripts. Writing on parchment required strength and effort. ‘Their fingers hold the pen but the whole body toils.’ Working six hours a day the scribe produced from two to four pages and required from ten months to a year and a quarter to copy a Bible. The size of the scriptures absorbed the energies of monasteries. Libraries were slowly built up and uniform rules in the care of books were generally adopted in the thirteenth century. Demands for space led to the standing of books upright on the shelves in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries and to the rush of library construction in the fifteenth century.[234]
Universities demanded text-books on a large scale and by the end of the thirteenth century monastic began to be replaced by lay scribes. In 1275 the University of Paris made provision for a group of copyists and calligraphy became the concern of a corporation of copyists. Dialectical discussion in class characteristic of a bookless age declined with the increasing importance of the authority of the text-book. The universities favoured dictation and the preparation of a number of copies in a shor
t period. The effect of text-books on lectures was evident in a statute of the University of Paris in 1355 against the abuses of dictating word for word. The University of Paris controlled the sale of parchment, fixed the number of booksellers and copyists, and regulated their activities in making, renting, and selling books. The demands of universities and lawyers were met by the development of a book trade in theology, medicine, and law. It was estimated that Paris had 10,000 copyists by the middle of the fifteenth century.
In cities without the restrictions of university regulations an important market was built up. In Florence and Venice an important trade in manuscripts was developed in the early part of the fifteenth century, and at Frankfort and Nordlingen manuscripts in the German vernacular were manifolded and sold on a large scale. In Florence Vespasiano da Bisticci had a staff of copyists producing manuscripts in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew. The manuscript trade assumed the development of a large number of private libraries built up by wealthy merchants and noblemen of Church and state. Such demands were accompanied by the rapid advance of illumination in Italy in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. The example was followed in France where illumination reached its peak in the first half of the fifteenth century. ‘The production of illuminated manuscripts had become in France almost a staple industry. Books of Hours in particular were produced in vast numbers not only to the order of wealthy patrons but also for booksellers.’[235] In the latter part of the fifteenth century Flemish illuminators surpassed French and Italian craftsmen especially in ‘the delicacy of their handling of landscape and portraiture’.[236]
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