Caroline Waugh, Spring 2024
A codex full of marvelous and otherworldly tales, written as a gift for an Emperor falling from power, the Otia Imperialia provides a fascinating glimpse into medieval folklore, beliefs, and politics. The Otia Imperialia, also known as the “Book of Marvels,” is an encyclopedic work written by English canon lawyer, courtier, statesman, and cleric, Gervase of Tilbury, for his patron, Holy Roman Emperor Otto IV, in the early 13th century, between 1209-1214 C.E. The piece’s name translates to “Recreation for an Emperor,” or “Imperial Leisure,” in English, and was written primarily for Otto IV’s entertainment and instruction.
There are 30 known extant copies of the Otia Imperialia, all written between the 13th and 17th centuries. The manuscript is typically divided into three books, although there are some variations on this pattern in certain versions of the piece like the copy from the Canonici collection, which is instead divided into six books. The first book focuses on theology and the events in the early chapters of Genesis, from the creation of the world all the way to the flood. The second book details the history, geography, and politics of the known world, starting with the division of the world between Noah’s three sons and ending with the Norman kings of England. The third and final book of Otia Imperialia, and the one that Gervase considered to be the main purpose for the entire piece, was dedicated to select marvels from the many different regions of the world.
Gervase defines marvels and miracles as occurrences that are unexplainable and wonder inspiring, with miracles coming from divine means and marvels being of the natural world. What makes the marvels the Gervase writes about particularly interesting is the fact that he was adamantly against the idea of them being merely curiosities of superstition or fiction. He felt that only the best and truest of marvels were fitting for the Emperor’s ears, and thus, he only included tales that were verified in some way, as he explains in the preface of the third book.
“To be sure, it is not proper that an emperor's leisure should be contaminated with the prating babbling of players; on the contrary, the crude falsehoods of idle tales should be spurned, and only those things which are sanctioned by the authority of age, or confirmed by the authority of scripture, or attested by daily eye-witness accounts, should be brought to his venerable hearing in his leisure hours.” (Banks and Binns, pg. 559)
This declaration of his commitment to only the most reliable and true of sources exists seemingly in stark contrast with the actual contents of the third book, and even the Otia Imperialia as a whole. The marvels Gervase writes about range from curious scientific phenomena that would be easily explainable to a modern audience, to animals and features of foreign lands that were less well known to Europeans at the time, to wild accounts of mythical creatures and tales clearly sourced in folklore and superstition. Some of the tales are his own renditions of well known folk tales like the drinking horn, and others are original accounts from his own travels and experience. Some creatures like the “Neptunes,” “Portunes,” and “Grants,” only really appear in Gervase’s writings, leaving him as the main authority for them in regards to medieval folklore.
The fact that he appears to entirely believe the existence of each of the marvels he mentions means that his writings provide a unique chance for modern audiences to see how someone in that time period would have interacted with the folklore and superstitions of the time. He presents each marvel in a blunt, almost scientific way, even attempting to connect some of them to create a more comprehensive view of these curiosities that ties them down to known and understood features of the world and its history. In relation to this marvel-inclusive worldview, the wonders Gervase writes of in the Otia Imperialia make several appearances in the other two books of the codex. When writing about the kingdom of the Britons, Gervase goes into depth about the prophecies of Merlin, dragons, and even the fabled creation of StoneHenge and references the giants that first made it. In the first book, he includes a plethora of marvels alongside pieces of scripture and holy teachings, often drawing parallels and connections between the two. He writes about fauns and satyrs as types of demons, includes tales that supposedly prove the existence of a sea that rests above the world, and when detailing the temptation of Eve and the fall from paradise, he mentions how it is thought that the snake that the Devil sent had a womans face and how there are women in the world who can turn into snakes. In relation to this last tale, Gervase even goes on to say that “[t]his allegation that women change into serpents is certainly remarkable, but not to be repudiated. For in England we have often seen men change into wolves according to the phases of the moon.” (Binns and Banks, pg. 87). While some tales like those of Morgan le Fay and King Arthur’s fated return to England from Avalon are treated as folktales and traditional beliefs with no real basis in fact, others like the existence of werewolves are written about as if they are well known parts of the world he lives in. Gervase genuinely appears to follow his own criteria and standards in regards to the information he includes in the Otia, and this divided treatment of certain myths is evidence of this, as he is very clear when a tale does not have enough support behind it to prove its truthfulness in his mind.
It is important to remember that Gervase was by no means a folklorist, or at the very least, he never intended to be one, rather, he was a well traveled and educated man who was familiar with the ways of both scripture and imperial courts. He had served several influential people throughout his life, and it would be a discredit to his experience and knowledge to dismiss the Otia Imperialia as merely a curious work full of tall tales and stories written to entertain his patron at the time. When Gervase was working on this piece in the early 13th century, his patron, Holy Roman Emperor Otto IV, had recently been excommunicated by pope Innocent III after going back on his word to not try to conquer Sicily, Otto’s power was failing as allies like the German princes and bishops turned against him, and king Frederick II’s power and support was only growing after the Pope had recognized him as emperor-elect following Otto’s excommunication.
Gervase was known for being a dualist politically; believing that the world is governed by the dual powers of the imperial crown and the papacy, though it is only through the papacy that the crown is given its power. His own political views and attempts to counsel his Emperor in accordance with them can be seen throughout the Otia, along with both subtle and obvious reminders that despite the power the Emperor may hold, it is only his because the Pope granted it to him. He is particularly blunt with his views in the preface of the book as he describes the priestly and kingly powers and the roles of each. He relates the roles of the king and the pope to the division of the body and soul, with the king’s job being to punish the sins of the physical body, and the pope’s job being to forgive the sins of the soul. He reminds Otto that “...the kingly power should know itself to be set alongside, not over, the priestly; to be its adjutant, not its commander; given to be of practical help, not exalted to exercise domination” (Binns and Banks). Gervase presents the dual powers of the divine and the worldly as being a fundamental part of the world itself, as they appear again and again through the division between the body and soul, miracles and marvels, the crown and the papacy, the two heavens and hells, and even the overarching organization of the Otia Imperialia itself. While it cannot be said for certain how many of these parallels were intentional on Gervase’s part, given his background and the context that this piece was written in, it would be naive to assume all of them to be mere coincidence and ignore the underlying motives and messages Gervase would have likely written the manuscript with in mind.
The Otia Imperialia contains a wealth of accounts of medieval folklore beliefs, with traces of many of the tales still being seen in the modern day. Beyond even that, the work provides insight into the values and viewpoints of the time through the underlying theological and intellectual ideas Gervase uses marvels, miracles, and other tales to convey.
Bibliography
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Acknowledgments
This study abroad research project is supported by funding from the University of Alabama in Huntsville Honors College.
Special thanks to the Bodleian libraries in Oxford, the Special Collections Superintendent, Oliver House, and the Tolkein Curator of the Medieval Manuscripts, Matthew Holford.
