Résumé
Résumé de Chronique de Jocelin de Brakelond
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About 4 h 40 min to read.À qui s’adresse-t-il ?
You will love this book if you enjoy true stories of rulers and rivals, the daily life of a medieval monastery, and sharp portraits of real people.
De quoi parle ce livre ?
Picture a great abbey so deep in debt that its dying abbot is left with little more than a coverlet and two torn quilts. His servants have stripped the house before he is even buried.
The Chronicle of Jocelin of Brakelond was written in the late twelfth century by a monk of Bury St Edmunds in eastern England. For six years Jocelin served the new abbot as chaplain, so he watched him closely. You meet an abbot who audits his household, argues law with the king's justices and weeps over his quarrelling monks. Jocelin admires him, doubts him and records the muttering of the cloister.
Dans ce résumé
- 1An old abbot lets debts swallow the abbeyFree
- 2One monk learns to endure while flatterers rule
- 3A vacant abbey tests every monk's judgment
- 4A sealed list and a king choose Samson
- 5The new abbot audits everything and pays the debts
- 6A stern abbot reveals himself through small kindnesses
- 7He defends his liberties against kings and bishops
- 8He takes the cellar into his own hands
- 9A fire at the shrine leads to a night with the saint
- 10Quarrels, a revolt and a prior chosen against advice
Point clé 1 sur 10
An old abbot lets debts swallow the abbey
Jocelin opens with Abbot Hugh, who is old, pious and nearly blind. He is a good monk but a poor manager of worldly business. He trusts his officers too much, and they do as they please.
The abbey's forests are cut down and its manor houses are close to collapse. Hugh can only borrow, and interest is piled on interest. Every official has his own seal and borrows without telling anyone. Silk copes, golden cruets and other church treasures are pawned in secret. One sacrist borrows forty marks to repair a parlour, and the sum grows until it reaches twelve hundred pounds.
The rot is hidden behind fine words. When the king's almoner asks about the abbey's affairs, the prior assures him that all is in order. The monks stay quiet.
A community that will not look at its accounts will soon be ruled by its creditors.
That’s 1 of 10 key points.
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Questions about Chronique de Jocelin de Brakelond
What is the Chronicle of Jocelin of Brakelond about?
It describes life at the abbey of Bury St Edmunds from the weak rule of Abbot Hugh to the long reign of Abbot Samson, covering debts, elections, lawsuits, building work, the shrine of Saint Edmund and the quarrels of monks.
Who was Abbot Samson?
Samson was a monk of Bury St Edmunds who taught the novices and later became abbot in 1182. Jocelin portrays him as a careful, strict and shrewd ruler who cleared the abbey's debts and defended its rights against powerful opponents.
Is the Chronicle easy to read?
It is approachable because Jocelin writes in short scenes, quotes lively speeches and often adds humour and gossip. The chapters include elections, disputes, reforms and personal portraits, with many individual scenes that you can follow step by step.
What is the main message of the Chronicle?
It shows how a community depends on honest accounts, wise leadership and courage in speaking out. Jocelin also shows that even a strong ruler has faults and that people see a leader through both his deeds and his temper.
Cite this edition
Jocelin de Brakelond. The Chronicle of Jocelin of Brakelond. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-chronicle-of-jocelin-of-brakelond.
Jocelin de Brakelond. (2026). The chronicle of Jocelin of Brakelond. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-chronicle-of-jocelin-of-brakelond (Original work published ca. 1203)
Jocelin de Brakelond. The Chronicle of Jocelin of Brakelond. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-chronicle-of-jocelin-of-brakelond.
@book{jocelindebrakelond2026chronicle,
author = {Jocelin de Brakelond},
title = {The Chronicle of Jocelin of Brakelond},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-chronicle-of-jocelin-of-brakelond},
note = {First published ca. 1203}
}
