By the early 10th century, religious commentators had begun to feel that Benedictine monasticism had fallen far from its holy roots. In particular they decried what they saw as excessive involvement of secular leaders in monastic business,* which then led to too many monastic leaders focusing too much on secular politics and not enough on religious matters. The first well-known reform that came out of this was that of the Abbey of Cluny, founded in 910 by William I, Duke of Aquitaine.
Is it just me or are his hands significantly larger than his head?
[St. Odo of Cluny, 11th century, source: Wikimedia Commons]
[St. Odo of Cluny, 11th century, source: Wikimedia Commons]
William took none of the founder’s rights for himself and his family, making the monastery subject only to the Pope. It was their first and second abbots, Berno and St. Odo, who really started the reform, using the version of St. Benedict’s Rule provided by Benedict of Aniane. They wanted to return Cluny to their idea of a more traditional, earlier form of monasticism. Subsequent abbots followed their lead. They refused to involve the community in fief-holding (as it incurred secular obligations) and made liturgy the monks’ main labor. They decorated their church lavishly, to the glory of God. On a broader scale, they worked to reform the Church, speaking out especially against simony and clerical concubinage.
As others began to see what was happening at Cluny, they began asking for help reforming their own monasteries. Cluny began to build its own network of daughter houses, considered priories rather than abbeys, its independence allowing its influence to spread far and wide. By the late 11th century, it was the grandest, most well-endowed monastic community in Europe. It is worth noting, however, that nearly all of the communities Cluny took on, however, were male, with only one community of Cluniac women being founded before 1100.**
As others began to see what was happening at Cluny, they began asking for help reforming their own monasteries. Cluny began to build its own network of daughter houses, considered priories rather than abbeys, its independence allowing its influence to spread far and wide. By the late 11th century, it was the grandest, most well-endowed monastic community in Europe. It is worth noting, however, that nearly all of the communities Cluny took on, however, were male, with only one community of Cluniac women being founded before 1100.**
Now imagine you're a monk trying to sing the hours all day and they're building that nearby.
[Reconstruction of what Cluny III might have looked like, Georg Dehio & Gustav von Bezold, Kirchliche Baukunzt des Abendlandes, 1887, source: Wikimedia Commons]
[Reconstruction of what Cluny III might have looked like, Georg Dehio & Gustav von Bezold, Kirchliche Baukunzt des Abendlandes, 1887, source: Wikimedia Commons]
By the early 12th century, however, Cluny had already begun to face harsh criticism, especially for its extravagance. The mother house was rebuilding its church for the second time and the result was the largest building in Europe,*** and one of the most lavish, to boot. The monks lived in luxury and ate sumptuous meals, while the monastery’s abbots and priors had become statesmen, involving themselves in politics all over Europe. Far from separating themselves from the material and secular, they had become inextricably entwined with them.
*Citing, for example the right claimed by the families of monastic founders to appoint the abbot or abbess, usually installing someone related to them.
**It doesn’t help that this one was only founded to house the wives of men who wanted to become Cluniac monks.
***Until the rebuilding of St. Peter’s in Rome during the 16th century. And then Cluny III went on to be destroyed in the French Revolution.
*Citing, for example the right claimed by the families of monastic founders to appoint the abbot or abbess, usually installing someone related to them.
**It doesn’t help that this one was only founded to house the wives of men who wanted to become Cluniac monks.
***Until the rebuilding of St. Peter’s in Rome during the 16th century. And then Cluny III went on to be destroyed in the French Revolution.
Sources/Further Reading:
Barber, Malcolm. The Two Cities: Medieval Europe 1050-1320. London: Routledge, 1993.
Cook, William R. and Ronald B. Herzman. The Medieval Worldview: an Introduction. New York: Oxford University Press, 2004.
Lawrence, C. H. Medieval Monasticism. London: Longman, 1984.
Stephenson, Carl and Bryce Lyon. Mediaeval History: Europe from the Second to the Sixteenth Century. New York: Harper & Row, 1962.
Barber, Malcolm. The Two Cities: Medieval Europe 1050-1320. London: Routledge, 1993.
Cook, William R. and Ronald B. Herzman. The Medieval Worldview: an Introduction. New York: Oxford University Press, 2004.
Lawrence, C. H. Medieval Monasticism. London: Longman, 1984.
Stephenson, Carl and Bryce Lyon. Mediaeval History: Europe from the Second to the Sixteenth Century. New York: Harper & Row, 1962.
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