The Memory of the "Holy Men" in Hispanic Monasticism: the Case of the Bierzo Region

Abstract

This article analyses the use of the memory of the "holy men" through the study of monasticism in the Bierzo region. The 7th-century cases of Fructuosus and Valerius are examined, along with the use of these two Visigoth "holy men" in the monastic restoration undertaken by Gennadius at the end of the 9th and beginning of the 10th centuries. Lastly, the use of this memory in the Tumbo Viejo of San Pedro de Montes is dealt with, as is the substitution of the "holy men" by the kings as the legitimating reference in the mid 12th century. This social memory played an important role in the struggle for social prestige in a setting marked by the multiplicity of Christian models, understood as microchristendoms.