Page:English Historical Review Volume 35.djvu/341

 1920 PARIS AND CHARTRES, 1136-1146 333 In either case we need not hesitate to accept his quotation of what Gilbert said when he was chancellor as meaning that he heard it himself when he was living at Chartres. On his return to Paris about 1140 John found Gilbert again, but he was too soon taken away. It has almost everywhere been asserted that Gilbert was made master of the schools at Poitiers in 1141 and was then elected bishop in the following year. This statement has grown up from a series of inaccuracies. Otto of Freising, mentioning Gilbert as bishop of Poitiers, says that, ' ex eadem civitate oriundus, ab adolescentia usque ad ultimam senectutem in diversis Galliae locis phylosophiae studium colens, re et nomine magistri officium administrarat noviterque ante hos dies ad culmen pontificale in prefata civitate sublimatus fuerat '.^ Mabillon abridge'd the words as follows : ' Is, Pictavis oriundus, ait Frisingensis, ex discipulo magister, ex magistro tandem eiusdem civitatis episcopus evasit.' ^ In Gallia Christiana ^ Gilbert is said to have been canon of Poitiers cathedral when he was made bishop, and to have at that time been engaged in teaching theology there. The Histoire litteraire de la France * was more precise : it said that Gilbert left Paris in the first months of 1141, having been nominated a la scholastique of the church at Poitiers. Haureau makes a further improvement ; he says that in 1141 Gilbert was sent by his diocesan, the bishop of Chartres, to Poitiers, to govern the abbey of St. Hilary.^ There is, however, no evidence, outside the letter which we have shown to belong to a much earlier date,^ that Gilbert had anything to do with Poitiers after about 1124 until he became bishop, probably in 1142. The exact date of his appointment to the bishopric is uncertain. His predecessor Grimoard was consecrated on 26 January 1141,' and according to the Life of St. Gerald de Salis,^ ' non vixit in cathedra ilia per annum '. As, however, he died on 27 July, this would seem to be an error, for an unpublished charter has been cited, which names him as bishop and is datec^n 1142.* V. William of Conches jddn From what has been said it appears that John of Salisbury became acquainted with Gilbert in the winter of 1137-8 at Chartres. It was at this time that he became the pupil of William of Conches and of Richard I'Eveque ; and it is a probable 1 Oesta Frid. i. 46 (48). ' Praef. in S. Bernardi Opera, i, § Iviii, Paris, 1690. ' ii. 1175. * xii. 467. ' Chron. MaUeac., in Recueil des Hist, de la France, xii. 408. » § 15, in Acta SarMt., Oct. x. (1861) 257 F. • Cfall. Christ, ii. 1175, n. b.
 * Mem. de I' Acad, des Inscr., xxxi. ii. 102. « See above, p. 325.