(ca 960-1028). Born of humble parents probably in Aquitaine, perhaps Poitou, Fulbert studied at Reims under Gerbert of Aurillac (later Pope Sylvester II), the outstanding master of the day. Fulbert became master of the cathedral school at Chartres in the 990s and served as master and chancellor before becoming bishop of Chartres in 1006. He had a close association with King Robert II the Pious of France, a schoolmate of Fulbert’s at Reims. Fulbert was particularly well versed in law and medicine and was familiar with the astronomical works that had been recently translated from the Arabic. Although intellectually conservative (he avoided the new discipline of dialectics), his teaching attracted one of the most dialectical thinkers of the time: Berengar of Tours, condemned for his novel eucharistic opinions.
After the cathedral burned in 1020, Fulbert began a campaign to rebuild it, a project made possible by the generosity of King Canute of England and Denmark, as well as King Robert of France. The new, spacious crypt constructed by Fulbert remains the largest crypt in France and became the basis for all further construction at the site. The new crypt was meant to accommodate the pilgrims who came to venerate the holy relic of the sancta camisia, a garment reputed to have been worn by Mary when she gave birth to Jesus; it was enshrined at Chartres from the 9th century forward and is still possessed by the cathedral. Fulbert was an avid promoter of devotion to the Virgin.
Fulbert was also a reformer who campaigned against simony (buying and selling church offices) and clerical marriage. Like most bishops of his day, Fulbert was both a churchman and a feudal lord, and he knew first-hand the tension of dual allegiances. In a well-known letter to Duke William V of Aquitaine, his long-time benefactor, Fulbert explains the meaning of the feudal oath. But in another, he is highly critical of ecclesiastics who are intent on bearing arms rather than on keeping the peace of the church. In several letters, he rebukes Foulques III Nerra, count of Anjou, for his depredations.
Of Fulbert’s sermons, the best known is that composed for the feast of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, in which he recounts the history of Theophile, a Christian who after selling his soul to the Devil was rescued by the Virgin. Fulbert’s legend of Theophile is the subject of Rutebeuf’s Miracle de Theophile. An excellent latinist and one of the best writers of his day, Fulbert left behind a substantial body of correspondence, some 140 letters, with leading churchmen, including abbots Abbo of Fleury, Richard of Saint-Vannes, and Odilo of Cluny. He also wrote several poems and a few other miscellaneous works.
Mark Zier
[See also: ABBO OF FLEURY; ARABIC PHILOSOPHY, INFLUENCE OF: BERENGAR OF TOURS; CHARTRES: GERBERT OF AURILLAC; ODILO; SCHOOLS, CATHEDRAL]
Fulbert of Chartres. Opera omnia. PL 141.185-368.
The Letters and Poems of Fulbert of Chartres, ed. and trans. Frederick Behrends. Oxford: Clarendon, 1976.
MacKinney, Loren Carey. Bishop Fulbert and Education at the School of Chartres. Notre Dame: Mediaeval Institute, University of Notre Dame, 1957.
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