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Abstract
Humbert of Romans (1190/1200-1277), the fifth Master General of the Dominican Order, proclaimed that a good preacher needs knowledge of historical stories. Dominican intellectuals molded this all-encompassing taxonomy into comprehensive and accessible resources. Vincent of Beauvais (c. 1190-c. 1264) compiled the Speculum historiale with the aim of rectifying the lack of comprehensive accounts among his contemporaries of early Christian history, especially the narratives of Christian persecution by Christian heretics and the pagan Roman emperors. As Vincent had access to Dominican and Cistercian archives and the patronage of King Louis IX of France, who was particularly interested in the historical volume of the work, the encyclopedia served as a highly utilitarian history. The Speculum historiale presented a chronologically organized narrative containing historical exempla, or edifying stories, for internal use in Dominican convents and in public preaching. According to Vincent, history and historical exempla without precise chronological evidence can be dismissed as “aniles fabulas” or old wives’ tales. Analysis of the Speculum historiale reveals the critical role of usable history, specifically the martyr narratives of past persecution under the Roman emperors, in the identity formation of the early Dominican Order and the Dominican project of preaching and conversion. Contemporary engagement with historical martyrdom was a constantly shifting discourse with texts and memories of the past that formed a common Christian “identity-marker.” As resistance to the mendicant orders increased, the fractious history of the early Church was refashioned to engender and buttress both internal conceptions of the order but also rebut anti-mendicant voices. The larger Dominican intellectual project promoted both past narratives of Christian martyrs and current narratives of new Dominican inquisitor martyrs (such as Peter Martyr). Through careful compilation the Speculum historiale provided accessible and authoritative materials needed for the defense of the Dominican Order.