Crusader treatise
The Directorium ad faciendum passagium transmarinum (or Directorium ad passagium for short) is an anonymous 24,000-word Latin treatise on crusading submitted to King Philip VI of France on 26 July 1330 or 1332. The treatise proposes the conquest of the Holy Land, the Byzantine Empire and Russia and their subjection to the Catholic Church; outlines how this might be achieved; and describes how the conquered territories could be administered.
Two French translations were produced, one by Jean de Vignay in 1333 and another by Jean Miélot in 1455. Both are transmitted in richly illustrated manuscripts. There are a total of 15 surviving manuscripts in Latin or French. The authorship of the treatise has been a matter of much speculation.
Manuscripts.
There are nine known extant manuscripts of the Latin text:
Jean de Vignay's translation survives in a single known manuscript:
Jean Miélot's translation survives in five known manuscripts:
Author.
The author of the "Directorium" is unknown. The French royal register gives him only as "a wise prelate, formerly a Dominican, and now an archbishop in the empire of Constantinople." In the treatise he claims to have traveled far and wide and lived as a missionary in Persia. He visited Constantinople, Socotra and claims to have traveled south as far as Madagascar. His account of Russia suggests first-hand knowledge. He may have been involved in the union of the church of Cilician Armenia with Rome.
The text may have been anonymous from the start. Charles Köhler, who edited the text, presumed that even the king of France did not know the name of the author. It was not known to Jean de Vignay, who translated it in 1333. An early tradition ascribes the "Directorium" to a monk named Burcard or Brochard ("Brocardus monacus"), usually identified with Burchard of Mount Sion. This is untenable, but was propagated by the French translation of Jean Miélot, which attributes it to "Brochard l'Allemand". Köhler therefore refers to the author as Pseudo-Brocardus. He tentatively suggests that its author was William of Adam, but this has been disputed. The modern conjecture that its author was John of Cori, archbishop in Persia, is also unsatisfactory.
Synopsis.
The "Directorium" is divided into two books and twelve parts, corresponding to the "two swords" and the Twelve Apostles. The first book is four times as long as the second and contains eight of the twelve parts. The author begins by praising Philip VI for his intention to lead a crusade. Since he can furnish neither military nor financial aid, he offers the "Directorium" instead. It is based, he says, on his personal experiences after living 24 years in infidel lands. The following is a synopsis of the twelve parts:
Part 1.
The first part enumerates the four reasons or motives for undertaking a crusade:
Part 2.
The second part enumerates the five preambles (preparations or prerequisites) that must precede the crusade:
Part 3.
The third part concerns four possible routes for the crusade. The first two are discussed and rejected.
Part 4.
The fourth part is an extended discussion of the selected routes. Allowance is made for Provençal and Italian contingents to go by way of Italy or the sea (but not by Africa). Adequate preparations for the Adriatic crossing should be made in advance. The king of France should go overland and force his way through Bulgaria.
Part 5.
The fifth part discusses the possibility of negotiating treaties with the Christian but non-Catholic rulers of Byzantium and Serbia. Here the Greeks are treated as the fathers of all heresies (including Arianism), who led the other eastern peoples astray and who have continuously betrayed and maltreated Catholics. The Fourth Crusade (1202–1204) and the sack of Constantinople are treated as just acts. Michael VIII Palaiologos is called a usurper and accused of massacring the Catholics in Constantinople in 1261. The author refers to a recent chronicle of the rulers of Serbia to accuse of them gross misdeeds. His conclusions is that an invasion of the Byzantine Empire and Serbia would be a just war to re-establish the Latin Empire.
Part 6.
The sixth part discusses the ease of conquering Byzantium. He claims to have witnessed the deposition of Emperor Andronikos II in 1328. The same emperor was defeated by the Catalan Company near Adrianople. The emperor under the heirs of Palaiologos was surrounded by enemies and incapable of defending itself. The author himself claims never to have visited a country where he did not see Greek slaves. Persia alone had over 400,000, all forced to abandon their Christian faith. The reigning emperor, Andronikos III, was a fool who paid tribute to the Catalans, the Tatars and the Turks. Moreover, the so-called Ecumenical Patriarchate was subject to such a fool. The Greeks were pusillanimous, effeminate, licentious and vain. Conquering their empire would not be difficult.
Part 7.
The seventh part is a detailed discussion of how to besiege Constantinople. The city was large but its population small. A landward assault should be made against the Golden Gate, assisted by a naval assault. Battering rams and scaling materials would be required, and the ships should be fitted for siege engines. The author suggests the use of covered ships called "barbotae" and siege engines called "uxeria". These included rams with pointed iron caps suspended from ropes so they could be swung against gates. He outlines a means of putting 500 men on the wall at once through "castles" on the ships. He claims to have seen this method employed successfully against the Turks by Martino Zaccaria, several of whose victories he witnessed. He expects that Constantinople could be taken in one day. Afterwards, Thessalonica and Adrianople would not resist long.
Part 8.
The eight part, concluding the first book, outlines the administration of the conquered lands. It also treats the neglected topic of conquering Serbia in a sort of appendix.
Part 9.
The second book begins, in the ninth part, with a discussion of the various eastern peoples. The most untrustworthy were the Armenians—with the partial exception of the Uniates of Cilicia. The author himself was one of two Dominicans tasked by Pope John XXII with bringing about their union with Rome in 1318. He claims that this union was brought about more by fear than love. After the Armenians come the "Gasinuli" (of mixed Latin and Greek parentage), the Syrians (i.e., Jacobites), the "Murtati" (of mixed Turkish and Greek parentage) and converts from Islam (who are called "baptized neophytes"). The author has a low opinion of all of them. They are, however, all useful to the crusade and Philip should use every stratagem and indulgence to win them over. The Assassins, of whom the author has heard but never seen, should not be admitted to the king's presence.
Part 10.
The tenth part (second of the second book) is devoted to the advantages of going through Turkish Anatolia rather than Egypt. The idea of sailing to Cilician Armenia is rejected on account of the poor port facilities. Only the Portus Palorum is mentioned, the port of Laiazzo being ignored. In attacking the Turks, the crusaders need not fear the Egyptians, since they would not dare open up Syria to attack from Persia. The author reminds his readers that the Persian khan Ghazan, expecting help from the West, had invaded Syria in 1299–1300, capturing Damascus.
Part 11.
The eleventh part (third of the second book) describes the places which the crusade would use as centres of supply and revictualling. In Thrace, there was a grain emporium at Rodosto and one for wine at Ganos. The most important city in Macedonia was Thessalonica, which had grain and vegetables. The Lordship of Negroponte and the Catalan Duchy of Athens had wine, oil and cheese. The author points out that the land known in the Bible as Asia Minor and to the Greek as Anatolia had come to be known as Turkey ("Turquia"). Its northern shore had plenty of grain, meat, fish, honey and wax.
Part 12.
The twelfth part (fourth of the second book) gives six reasons for expecting a quick victory over the Turks.
Historical interest.
There is much of historical interest in the "Directorium". For example, it records that "the Albanians indeed have a language quite different from Latin, however they use Latin letters in all their books", which has been taken to imply that Albanian was already a written language by the 14th century. It may, however, merely indicate that whatever literature circulated in Albania was in Latin.
Old French translations.
Jean de Vignay made an Old French translation, "Le Directoire pour faire le passage de la Terre Sainte", for Philip VI in 1333. If he wrote a prologue, it has been lost. The translation was almost certainly commissioned by the king, who probably could not read Latin. That it was made in haste is apparent from its sloppiness and literalness compared to Vignay's other works. The sole surviving manuscript of this translation is a copy and not the original presented to the king. The copyist mistakenly inserted a line from the "Travels" of Marco Polo.
Jean Miélot also made a French translation, "L'Advis directif pour faire le passage d'oultremer", in 1455 for Duke Philip the Good of Burgundy. It is a superior translation, literal but elegant. Miélot did not make use of Vignay's work.
Editions.
The French translation of Jean Miélot was the first version to be printed in 1846. The first edition of the Latin translation, printed side-by-side with Miélot's translation, was printed in 1906. An edition based exclusively on BnF lat. 5138 was published the following year.
Notes.
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Bibliography.
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