divinorum officiorum, which explains liturgical ceremonies for the benefit of both clergy
and laity, with special attention to the symbolism of architecture, liturgical vestments and
vessels, rituals, and the like. The Rationale is divided into eight parts: the church
building, orders of clergy (bishop, priest, deacon, etc.), vestments, the Mass, the yearly
liturgical cycle, the feast days of saints, computus, and calendar. While bishop of Mende,
Guillaume produced a revision of the Roman Pontifical (ca. 1293–95) that was used at
the papal court and served as the basis of the official text of the Roman Pontifical printed
in 1485.
He should not be confused with his nephew, also named Guillaume Durand, who
administered the bishopric of Mende in our Guillaume’s absence.
Grover A.Zinn
[See also: CANON LAW; COMPUTUS; LITURGICAL BOOKS; LITURGICAL
COMMENTATORS; MASS, CHANTS AND TEXTS]
Guillaume Durand. The Symbolism of Churches and Church Ornaments: A Translation of the First
Book of the Rationale divinorum officiorum Written by William Durandus, trans. John Mason
Neale and Benjamin Webb. 3rd ed. London: Gibbings, 1906.
——. Rational ou Manuel des divins offices...ou, Raisons mystiques et historiques de la liturgie
catholique, trans. Charles Barthélemy. 5 vols. Paris: Vivès, 1854.
——. Le pontifical de Guillaume Durand, ed. Michel Andrieu. Vol. 3 of Le pontifical romain au
moyen âge.Vatican City: Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, 1940.
——. The Sacred Vestments, trans. Thomas H.Passmore. London: Sampson Low, Marston, 1899.
Douteil, Herbert. Studien zu Durantis Rationale divinorum officiorum als kirchenmusikalischer
Quelle. Regensburg: Bosse, 1969.
GUILLAUME LE BRETON
(fl. 1220s). The author of a Latin chronicle of the kings of France and a Latin poem on
Philip II Augustus, the Philippide (ca. 1224), Guillaume was Philip’s chaplain and tutor
to his illegitimate son. His chronicle (1207–20) continues that of Rigord. (A continuation
from 1220 to 1222 is almost certainly not Guillaume’s work.) There are eight
manuscripts, which represent four redactions (1207–27), but Guillaume’s work circulated
more widely indirectly, for some of his material was incorporated into the Grandes
chroniques de France. The Philippide, extant in three manuscripts, is more detailed than
the chronicle.
Leah Shopkow
[See also: HISTORIOGRAPHY]
de la Borde, H.François. Œuvres de Rigord et de Guillaume le Breton, historiens de Philippe-
Auguste. 2 vols. Paris: Renouard, 1882.
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