Theodoric the Monk
Theodoricus Monachus, Theodericus, Theodricus was a spiritual chronicler in the second half of the 12th century. Year of his birth, his place of birth, year of his death and his place of death are unknown.
Theodoricus Monachus wrote the Historia de antiquitate regum Norwagiensium, a small Norwegian history in Latin.
About his person nothing sure is known. He was probably the name " Þórir ", which then leads to "gates" was at his baptism. According to the custom of his time, he later Latinized his name to " Theodoric ", which should also take on the Gothic king Theoderik reference.
In St. Victor monastery, as the name Theodoric, both for the doors Guðmundsson Bishop of Hamar as well as for the Archbishop gates Gudmundsson, who studied there. It is believed that one of the two the author of the historical work was. Some works cited by Theodoric, were in the 12th century, in St. Victor. Theodoric also mentions a connection to Trøndelag, what would speak highly for the Archbishop. The historian Johnsen saw strong evidence to identify Theodoricus with the Archbishop, although a great deal of uncertainty remains.
The epithet " monachus " suggests that he was actually a monk. Ludvig Daae said that he had been Munkholmen in the monastery. It is also possible that the epithet is only added by later copyists, so even this is not certain.
Historia de antiquitate regum Norwagiensium treated the kings of Norway by Harald Hårfagre to Sigurd Jórsalafari, ie the period from the end of the 9th century to 1130. Fact that Theodoric ends there, so that is because he did not want to write about the turmoil of the incipient civil war, as he says.
The Chronicle is Archbishop Øystein Erlendsson dedicated, indicating a date of composition before 1180. The earliest Abfassungszeitpunt is the slaying of Nikulas Sigurðsson in Nidaros by Øystein Møyla 1176th Theodoricus also writes that he was the first to compose a work of history in Norway. He quotes a Catalogus regum Norwagiensium, apparently a annalistisches list that was passed to the Bishop of seats and the bodyguard. The Catalogus is not obtained.
In the introduction Theodoricus writes that he trusted the Icelandic traditions because they have preserved the memory of the ancient kings in many poems. This proves that existed before Snorri Sturluson a long tradition of using the poems of the Icelandic skald as the source. But he certainly also used oral traditions. However, it is not sure that he knew contemporary Icelandic texts. In his historical work he often refers to the Bible, to scholars and poets of earlier times. He knew Plato, Chrysippus, Pliny, Lucan, Horace, Ovid, Virgil, the Church Fathers, such as Origen, Eusebius, Jerome, and Augustine, and medieval authors Boëthius, Paul the Deacon, Isidore of Seville, Bede, Remigius of Auxerre, Hugh of St. Sigbert Victor and Gembloux. This means that the library of the archbishop in Nidaros was well stocked and there were good relations to France, especially to the monastery of St. Victor.
Theodoric was in many ways in a double tradition, the tradition of the home and the Latin tradition. This place different demands on the author, and it seems as if its Theodoricus was well aware. For while he constantly quoted from the Latin tradition, it uses the text makes no direct quotations from the poetry of the bards that he uses. The Latin quotes and rambling digressions make up almost a quarter of the entire text. He is a mix of historiography, hagiography, secular history and church history. Also, he is not short of moral judgments. The greed and ambition of princes are his view, the cause of all the evil in Norwegian history. He takes the ideas of Augustine on the rex justus for scale. The intention, it is a propaganda piece for the Norwegian Church.