The ‘Deeds of the English Kings’ of William of Malmesbury

Summary

The monk William of Malmesbury (c.1090–1143) was both an historian in the tradition of Bede and a recounter of Mirabilia in the manner of later court writers. His De Gestis Regum Anglorum was begun in about the year 1125, and is largely a chronicle of the history of Britain from its earliest times. Among the historical references there are a number of anecdotal accounts of supernatural events in Britain and elsewhere, which William presents as being no less true than the achievements of the kings whose deeds he is chronicling. In the first of the extracts that follow, the spirit of a woman who has led an evil life is claimed by the same hellish emissaries who led her astray in her lifetime. The story that I have called ‘The Jealous Venus’ is a variation on ancient tales of statues which come to life; in William's description of the bizarre procession observed by the young man there are strong overtones of the Hellequin's Hunt motif. The final story presents a warning about the dangers of pacts with the dead and attempts to forestall divine judgment. Indeed, the common theme running through all three stories is William of Malmesbury's disapproval of any activity which might involve the conjuration of spirits. The Witch of Berkeley is punished for sins which included the practices of augury and soothsaying; the Roman magician Palumbus who helps the young man regain conjugal bliss eventually dies a shameful death, punished for his necromancy; and the speculative philosophy in which the Two Clerks of Nantes indulge during their lifetime leads them to make an agreement which will eventually involve the raising of the dead.

The Witch of Berkeley

Book II, Sec. 204

At this time an event occurred in England which was not a celestial miracle, but an infernal wonder. I am sure none of my listeners will doubt the story, although they might in fact wonder at it. I heard of these events from a distinguished man who swore he had seen them for himself, and I would be ashamed not to believe him …

… In Berkeley there was a woman who, so it was later said, was accustomed to wickedness and to the practice of ancient methods of augury and soothsaying. She was a creature of immodesty, who indulged her appetites.