ARGENTERIE
. See HÔTEL DU ROI,
ARGENTEUIL
. A suburb of Paris on the Seine, Argenteuil (Val d’Oise) was during the Middle Ages the
site of a Benedictine priory of women. Its early history is sketchy, though it was in
existence by the late 7th century; it is mentioned only rarely in the succeeding centuries.
At the beginning of the 12th century, Abbot Suger of Saint-Denis claimed that from its
foundation the priory had belonged to his abbey. He produced a charter of the emperors
Louis I and Lothair I to support his claim, and in 1129 Argenteuil was “returned” to
Saint-Denis and the nuns expelled. There is, however, evidence that Suger fabricated the
story and the document that supported his claim. It was to this priory that Abélard led
Héloïse after their marriage; it was where she took the veil; and she was the superior
when the nuns were expelled.
From the mid-12th-century, the church at Argenteuil claimed to possess the relic of
the Holy Tunic, the seamless robe that Christ had at the Crucifixion and that the monks
claimed had been given to the priory by a daughter of Charlemagne. Though in the
Middle Ages the priory possessed extensive domains, from the time of the Hundred
Years’ War it suffered losses. In 1686, Argenteuil was joined to the royal foundation at
Saint-Cyr. At the Revolution, the priory was suppressed and destroyed, and today only a
few fragments of sculpture remain.
Thomas G.Waldman
[See also: HÉLOÏSE; SAINT-DENIS; SUGER]
Waldman, Thomas. “Abbot Suger and the Nuns of Argenteuil.” Traditio 41(1985):239–72.
ARISTOCRATIC REVOLT
. Potential for the resort to force of arms characterized 15th-century French politics. Great
magnates and princes of the blood regularly assembled coalitions of lesser men anxiously
seeking patronage and protection. Those who openly challenged royal authority in 1439,
1465, and 1488 typically cloaked their rebellion in a demand for “reform” but were
motivated less by ideology than self-interest. Wishing to dominate rather than resist the
monarchy, such rebels demanded a role in crown governance and access to crown
resources.
Medieval france: an encyclopedia 116