Oath-Sworn: The concept of oath-taking in early medieval
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Transcript Oath-Sworn: The concept of oath-taking in early medieval
By
Christopher A. Rogers
“I swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing
but the truth, so help me God.”
Binding oaths
Providing social stability
Oaths bound people together to create social stability
and were kept through the fear of the gods, legal
penalties and one’s own sense of honor.
Ordeals – a physical test where God will quickly
determine the verdict
Compurgation – Swearing oaths with oath-helpers
who swore to a litigant’s innocence
Guilt determined by the gods, not the people
Eventual punishment by the gods
Aistulf, King of the Lombards (r. 749-756), smited by
God for breaking his oath to Pippin the Short
Sworn on sacred items
Christians: relic, bible, cross
Pagans: weapons, ships
Sworn in the name of the gods
Self-curse
Precise wording
Beowulf – bound himself, through oath, to defeat
Grendel and defend Hrothgar’s kingdom
Oaths of fealty, brotherhood, friendship
Bound people to a course of action
Created artificial support groups
1-fold, 3-fold, 6-fold, 12-fold
6-fold oath = litigant + 5 oath-helpers (compurgators)
More serious crimes needed more compurgators
Serious crimes threatened the stability of society
Swore not to the truth, but to the belief in innocence
Show of support for the litigant by his support groups
Temporal punishment needed the will of the people
Delegated judgment to the gods
Prevented the outbreak of blood feud
Physical survival depended on people working
together
Oath-breaking – breaking an oath
Perjury – knowingly swearing a false oath
Threatened the stability of society
Disdained the fear of gods
Real belief that the gods would enforce the terms of
the oath
Fear of divine punishment
How well they were known
Currency of medieval life
All strove to gain more and often dictated actions
Perjury and oath-breaking caused great dishonor
Fines for minor oaths broken/perjured
Lesser/major outlawry for major oaths
broken/perjured
Property forfeited, death could not be avenged
No longer eligible to clear their name through oaths,
must use ordeals
Oaths created stability
Through bonds and creation of support groups
Enforced through legal codes, sense of honor and fear of
the gods
Compurgation lessened as states became centralized
Oaths still integral to modern society
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