Hautvillers, 860-877 AD
Hautvillers, 860-877 ADOur abbot displayed doubt when we told him of our authorisation to visit Gottschalk. After all, he had kept his presence secret from everyone except three trusted brothers sworn not to breathe a word. Reluctantly, he allowed us to enter the small cell, where we saw that the prisoner had a table, parchment, quills and ink.
Understandably, he leapt to his feet at the sight of new faces and his sallow features lit up with joy. When we told him our names, he surprised us by saying, “I know you both. You were at Fulda when I was a novice under Abbot Rabanus Maurus.”
The realisation that this man had the nerve to take out a lawsuit against our formidable former abbot shocked me. What gall! His claim that this learned and benevolent monk was respo
