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Yet he does grow into his role in the company, slowly gains their trust, slowly integrates himself into the fold. The characters around him continue to grow as well, through the series - they stick to their guns, ultimately, but change based on deaths around them, events, occurrences. Salyards is fantastic about characters not having miraculous recoveries from grievous injuries - they suffer the effects of things that happen to them for some time, are hindered by these limitations, begin to compensate for them in other ways. It's hard to discuss 'realism' in a book filled with magic and godlike characters, but Jeff gives the book a feel of probability, a sense that, if the events of the book were real, that these characters were struggling and behaving as real people in that situation would.
It's a breath of fresh air, after hundreds of books where characters get sliced to pieces or have limbs broken, in a pre-hospital era, and yet are back fighting later, often the same day, as if there was no effects of their injuries. The book and series crescendo is epic and heartbreaking. Jeff warned me of 'big twists' towards the end, but even with warning, I was caught totally off-guard by some of the occurrences. The groundlaying for events is subtle, well-crafted, and results in a gut-punch when the big events do happen. While action scenes are not the meat of this series, there are certainly many of them, and they're handled very well.
The craziness of battle is well represented, and while he does not go into the details and brass tacks of large-army or even small platoon logistics as much as he could have, you still end up with a feeling of understanding. I felt like I grasped the Syldoonian military strategies and policies, their communication methods with their troops, the potential for subterfuge and dissent among the ranks of subordinate soldiers. It was largely handled with a deft hand, not spending too much time focusing on what could come across as 'boring' tactical battle pieces, but still giving enough to work with and imagine the scenes.
The ending itself was both heartbreaking, and very satisfying. Even if you guess what's coming, it still hits hard, and is an absolute rollercoaster of emotions, all across the spectrum. It's epic, huge-scale, big implications, exciting. The fade-out epilogue closes things out in a satisfactory manner, leaving the reader with an understanding of the current state of things, without going on too long, being too sappy, being too flat. It was exactly the kind of ending to such an epic and fantastic series that I was hoping for.
There were some steep expectations and hopes for this novel, coming off of the brilliant Veil Of The Deserters, and Salyards delivers in spectacular fashion. Each consecutive book of the series was better and better, and it's hard not to feel like Jeff has set himself up for a long, and hopefully successful, run in fantasy writing. I, for one, am eagerly awaiting his future endeavors. Aug 14, Tracey the Lizard Queen rated it really liked it Shelves: This series is fantastic, and the last installment is, by far, the best. It has all the things you come to expect from Salyards, great worldbuilding, superb characters, and most of all that authentic dialogue.
Plus some added extras. What's the extras I hear you cry? Well, the mystery is solved! Not just any old mystery, the mystery. I was so afraid the conclusion would not live up to the build-up, but I was gladly proven wrong. What st Full review here: What started out as a small company of soldiers planning on inciting a war with a neighbouring country has evolved into something so much more.
This series is totally underrated, more people should know about it. Braylar and his gang find themselves trapped between the enemies and the dreaded Godveil. Gambling on the power of Bloodsounder, they decide to cross over. What they find on the other side is not quite what they expected or hoped for. And that doesn't even begin to deal with the problem of getting to the deposed emporer. Things get mightily complicated for our band of Syldoon soldiers. Dec 01, Zack Parsons rated it really liked it Shelves: The Bloodsounder's Arc is a Dark Military Fantasy through and through, yet the world author Jeff Salyards crafted to go with the brutal battles is no slouch.
Seldom do fantasy worlds feel as enticing as this. We learned just enough to leave us flabbergasted by the world, but little enough to leave us wanting more. I hope to see a return to this world and its characters again one day! Kudos to Jeff for a great trilogy that feels like one long book with the perfect amount of pay off in the end.
Chains of the Heretic is the spectacular denouement to a spectacular -ly underrated series, each instalment of which is more thoughtful, more entertaining and more accomplished than the last. As before, Ch Chains of the Heretic is the spectacular denouement to a spectacular -ly underrated series, each instalment of which is more thoughtful, more entertaining and more accomplished than the last.
As before, Chains picks up right where the previous book left off. The end is in sight for our endearing protagonist Arki, but he still has a long way to go before he completes his journey from insular local scribe to inured military chronicler. The road he travels is rougher and more dangerous than ever before, but so is Arki. Earlier in the trilogy Arki was pathetically grateful when the Syldoon first began to grudgingly toss scraps of knowledge and kindness in his direction — as though Arki were a barely-tolerated mongrel and their non-abusive words, bones. These scant personal victories provided rare clues that helped us first begin to unravel the layers of posturing, and so we the reader were just as grateful as Arki for these little titbits of information.
And then time passes, group dynamics change, and sympathetic gestures and enlightening conversations start to become more frequent though still far from the norm. Arki is no longer someone we feel sorry for, but someone who we admire; no longer a cowering dog but a steadfast jackal. On the other hand, as Arki adapts to his surroundings, so too are the other characters subtly transformed through their interactions with the curious and well-meaning scribe. Instead, each subplot branches off from the main events of the Arc to flourish or to die elsewhere, or else lie unresolved beneath the surface of future conversations.
Coarse but clever, dangerous yet loyal, they thunder into being and charge off the page. After which they grab you by the throat. Then use their free hand to punch you in the balls. But beneath the jokes there lies a surprisingly strong undercurrent of pathos poignantly reminiscent of that which accompanied the closing moments of Scourge of the Betrayer. For example, Salyards creates unique settings, awe-inspiring mythologies and a plot that is stunningly epic and original, and essentially uses them as tools with which to hone and develop his protagonists.
This clever inversion of form — using events that, as they escalate, work to enhance rather than dilute the focus on humanity — ensures two things: Blow-by-blow descriptions, fallible weapons, dodgy armour, long-term injuries and unlucky timing. Suffice it to say that Chains takes everything — everything — to the next level with its larger-than-life anti-heroes, settings both bizarre and beautiful, and an increasingly brutal body count.
And make no mistake: Which is fortunate, since Salyards has made it clear that while he may eventually return to the world of Bloodsounder he has no immediate intention of doing so. In fact, I urge you to do so. I cannot put into words how brilliant this trilogy is. Military Fantasy of the highest quality. There's a ton of reviews that said all I can possibly write. Go read them and then go buy this trilogy!
I'm gonna re-read this very soon. Until some new books by Jeff Salyards pop up on the market. Jesus, these three books made me really happy. Nov 25, Soo rated it really liked it Shelves: I should rate this book 3. The POV for the trilogy never really grew on me. I did grow to like Arky but I wasn't a fan of his viewpoint.
I felt that it stifled the story in many ways. I know many people love this trilogy but I feel like the whole thing set me up to yearn for answers that won't be answered any time soon. There's so much detail given on various aspects of the series an Mini-Review: There's so much detail given on various aspects of the series and yet I still don't have a clear idea of the magic system, the history of the lands on either side of the veil or why a man like Braylar would become a dedicated soldier of the Empire.
The series is called Bloodsounder's Arc. What do I know about Bloodsounder? The story tried to keep a steady pace of scene, Arky's contemplation and action but there was too sharp a contrast between the information that was given vs the ones held back. All of the questions I have about the story, plot and characters are barely touched in the series. The sex scene was subpar. There's no point in going into detail about sex if it's not going to be engaging in some manner.
It was funny in the mean kind of way and just as awkward as the first sex scene in book one. Jan 10, Angela rated it really liked it Shelves: A great conclusion to an engrossing series. I loved how Arki became a part of the troop and he really grew as a character through the series. The ending made complete sense and was a fitting ending for our characters. Salyards created a real mix of characters that were essential to the story and each enriched the story in their own way.
Whether is was the rough speaking Mulldoos or Ven and his obsession with eating eggs. A trilogy well worth giving a go. But for others, they hold on even tighter to the things that burn their insides out regardless of the passage of time, or even in spite of it, as if to curse the very world itself. He has, at least, learned to span a crossbow, and can probably draw a sword without slicing off bits of his own anatomy on a good day , but his talents remain otherwise, and his role remains to assist the Jackals by translating ancient manuscripts in an attempt to help them depose the current emperor who, himself, displaced the Jackals' preferred emperor in a coup by breaking the usurper's hold over the Memoridons, the memory-witches who have been pressed into service to hold the empire together one of whom, it should be noted, is Braylar's not-very-fondly-received sister.
And, of course, to act as archivist and chronicle their travels, which will take them to places none of them could have imagined at the beginning of their journey, and which will ultimately have catastrophic repercussions for the world as a whole. A fine conclusion to a highly recommended trilogy; in this book, necessarily, the scale broadens, but Arki continues to provide an intimate, ground-level view of world-shaking events. Jan 08, Paul Bosonetto rated it it was amazing. Of all the books I've read this series is one of my all time favorites.
I've grown to love the characters, and finishing this last book, I am so sad to leave them behind. I'd read another ten of these If you've read the prior books you know much what to expect, save for a host of truly epic, in scale and awesomeness, and breath catching events. Great action, great characters, great plot, great pacing, an Fantastic book!
Great action, great characters, great plot, great pacing, and great dialogue. I have never been anything less than supremely impressed with this series and the third book is no exception. Thank you, Jeff Salyard. Can't wait to read what you write next. As with each book in this series the one word that comes to mind is unpredictable. And while that is a huge asset, it also held me back from giving this 5 stars.
There were many situations and characters and their relationships that I thought should have been explained and explored more thoroughly throughout this book. Still, I highly recommend this trilogy! I really enjoyed it and will miss these characters now that it is over. Feb 25, Marielle rated it really liked it Shelves: Perfect ending to a wonderful story!
I would certainly like to read more about Arki Dec 04, Scott Hitchcock rated it it was amazing Recommended to Scott by: I should have done it long ago. Phenomenal conclusion to the series. First treat all three books as one and read them back to back to back. They really are one really long book. Second get over any sensibilities you have for crude language. However terms like horsecunt show up a lot which m Book 1: However terms like horsecunt show up a lot which may turn some readers off.
This concluding volume is probably my favorite read of the year minus my Malazan re-reads. The action and grim-darkness go up a notch in each book. The world is unique as is the magic. Recommended to everyone but required if you like Grimdark. Petrik So amazing right? One of my favorite grimdark series! Dec 05, Scott Hitchcock Petrik wrote: It's hard because wh Petrik wrote: It's hard because while I might have given higher stars totals to different trilogies this concluding chapter was a lot better than many of those.
I was provided with an early digital review copy from the author in exchange for my honest opinion and review To put it simply: This novel is leaps and bounds better than Veil! Arki, Braylar, Mulldoos, Vendurro, Glesswick, and few hundred more Slydoon warriors, now find themselves on the run the newly self-imposed emperor Cynead. Having control of the all the Memordians gives Cynead an immense advantage over the Jackals as they are fleeing to reunite with the deposed emperor Thumarr. Cynead, however, is able to trap and force them to the East, where the only place they can head is to the Godveil.
This leaves Captain Killcoin with two decisions: Why was this last book so great? One area no pun intended that comes to mind when I think of the improvements that Salyards made was the location of the story. We have been traveling around in the previous two books -from Anjuria to the Green Sea, and from the Forest to Sunwrack - but this time we get to see the Land of the Deserters; we cross the Godveil!
It was refreshing touch of scenery; literally felt like a whole new world and I was eating up everything that we were learning about it! Major events and twists have happened; the Syldoon empire has changed; Jackals have been killed and we have lost major characters. And because of that, we need to see more of the world; we need to learn of our burning questions; we need new characters to step-up, other characters to take a step a back, and some to adapt.
We cannot have the same characters as before for the story to work. And Soffjian too, as basically the female copy of Braylar. All of these assumptions may have been somewhat right when I first made them - now that I look back at them though, they are all so wrong. They are all right on the bare surface, but these characters are no longer that; they are deep and complex, and incredibly developed to each being a character like their own within this series, and apart from other series too.
Ven runs his mouth, but he does it by bringing up random topics at the most inappropriate times - and he has a love for eggs! D Mulldoos is as bloodthirsty, vulgar, and violent any anything, but dare I say, he has a heart? It is incredible how well Salyards ended up writing these characters - but none were written better than Arki. Do you remember when we first met Arki?
This poor, scared, little boy, who had never left the library, never kissed a girl, would near cry himself when Braylar or Mulldoos would so much as look at him, and hadn't a clue how to hold a crossbow; do you remember? Well, Salyards has been a plaguing sneaky and clever writer, and whether you have been picking up on it or not, he has been changing Arki. It has been ever so slight through out the series, with specific moments here and there as major turning points, but Arki is not the same at all.
Even though both those Arkis are pretty much different characters, I cannot pin point an exact moment when he turned. In case you haven't realized it, I will spell it out for you: I think Jeff Salyards in a phenomenal writer! I haven't been listening to podcast much the past year as I had been before, so I may be out of the loop a little bit for what people are saying about him, but when I first heard of Jeff, all I heard about where his fight scenes.
They are top notch, but as each book came out, he showed how talented he was in so many other areas. One last thing I want to mention is the ending: I really do hope we get another series in this world! I won't say which characters I think it will be staring ; but I did catch several possibilities where the story could be continued.
P Can't wait for whatever Salyard's next book will be! Feb 06, Nickolas rated it it was amazing.
The ultimate coup sends Arki, Captain Killcoin, and the Syldoon soldiers of Jackal Tower fleeing into the unknown where they will confront their own legends. Excellent character progression, unexpected twists and turns, relentless action, bittersweet goodbyes. A little more time spent learning about the Deserters would have been welcome and the final battle could have been longer. I write this review after a page reading binge to finish Chains of the Heretic: Coming in at just over pages this tome dwarves the two previous entries, and rightly so.
We last left off with Arki, our archivist-narrator, fleeing the infamous Captain Braylar Killcoin and a small company of hardbitten warriors fleeing the Syldoon capital of Sunwrack. Hounded by several much larger forces of Imperial soldiers and unable to ditch the Memoridon memory witches trailing them, the outcasts of the Jackal Tower risk an unprecedented crossing beyond the Godveil…and come face to face with the Deserters of myth. Mild spoilers ahead, read at your own risk. If you enjoyed the first two books feel free to go ahead and skip this review altogether because Chains of the Heretic is better than either of those.
A few years ago Jeff Salyards pleasantly surprised me with Scourge of the Betrayer, a very dark and personal dagger punch of a fantasy novel that left me wanting more. Veil of the Deserters, book two, dodged the sophomore slump by continuing to deliver sharp dialogue and sharper action while expanding on the world we caught tantalizing glimpses of during the first go around. But best of all Chains of the Heretic sees our narrator Arki developing in gratifying ways. Back when I first started this series I wondered if we would ever get to cross the Godveil and encounter the Deserters or if it would remain an enigma.
Joined the Cathar Crusade and later led it. Click here for more on Blanche of Castile. Click here for more on Louis IX. Guy and Pierre Des Vaux-de-Cernay. A Crusading Cistercian Abbot Guy and his nephew Peter , a monk who left an invaluable record of the Crusaders actions and their beliefs. Fulk or Folquet de Marseille: A troubadour who later became Bishop of Toulouse. Click here for more on Fulk de Marsielle.
Jacques Fournier, Bishop of Pamiers: Click here for more on Jacques Fournier. Close relative and ally of the Counts of Toulouse. Recognised as the greatest Crusader in Christendom at the time, but opposed to the Crusade against his own vassals. Click here for more on Peter II: Click here for more on Raymond VI. Click here for more on Raymond VII. Relative of the Counts of Toulouse. Click here for more on Raymond-Roger Trencavel. Click here for more on Raymond Trencavel II.
Count of Foix Click here for more on Raymond Roger. Click here for more on Roger Bernard II. Click here for more on Roger IV. Vassal and ally of the Counts of Toulouse. Click here for more on Count of Comminges. Click here for more on Esclarmonde of Foix. Click here for more on Guilhem Belibaste. Click on the following link for the Fransiscan friar Bernard Delicieux. Click on the following link for the heraldry of the Crusade leaders, and other nobles. Like Saint Dominic who followed him, he made it his business to convert the supposedly heretical Cathars of the Languedoc back to the One True Catholic Church.
His preaching, like that of St Dominic , was recognised as a comprehensive and humiliating failure, an inevitable embarrassment for a golden mouthed prince of the Church claiming to be assisted by God himself. As the Song of the Cathar Wars relates, the people of the Languedoc laughed at him and scorned him as a fool [laisse 3]. They paid no attention to him and despised everything he said [laisse 4].
When he preached they commented to each other "Ara roda l'abelha" - "That bee is buzzing around again" [laisse 46]. As with Saint Dominic , Arnaud's reaction was to arrange death and destruction of those responsible for his humiliation. The murder of one of his monks, Pierre de Castelnau, from the Abbey of Fontfroide , provided a pretext, and soon the crime was pinned on Raymond VI, Count of Toulouse , although there was no evidence against him, and no trial was ever held, despite Raymond's request for one.
Pope Innocent III , after meeting with Arnaud, started preaching a formal Crusade against the people of the Languedoc, and also issued secret orders to his notary Milo to the effect that Raymond should be destroyed whatever he did. Arnaud himself was appointed as military leader of the crusaders during the first stages of the war in This was a perfectly normal occurrence at this time, but Arnaud's love of terror and killing was perhaps above average, even for a senior churchman.
God will know his own". He arrived at Minerve just in time to engineer the deaths of people whose lives would otherwise have been spared. That the Crusade was really just a war against the people of Occitania rather than a punishment for a single murder is evident from the fact that it was directed against the lands of Raymond-Roger Trencavel and not those of Raymond VI who himself joined the Crusade. As far as is known Raymond-Roger was given no warning and no opportunity to answer any charges against him.
The first phase of the formal crusade over, Arnaud tried to find a senior French noble to hold the territory, but none would accept. Finally, Arnaud, speaking on behalf of the pope, ordered Simon de Montfort to take on the impossible job. Arnaud later became Archbishop of Narbonne. In recent times some people have started to voice doubts about whether Arnaud Amaury ever spoke the words attributed to him and this has become a point of contention between historians and Catholic apologists. For a summary of the relevant arguments and sources click on this link to "Kill Them All, God will know his own".
Let God Sort 'em Out". Arnaud Amaury , other Cistercian abbots and St-Dominic. Print by Adrian Melaer, ,? Cathar Origins, History, Theology. Simon de Montfort succeeded his father as Baron de Montfort in The city was sacked and plundered in Simon did not participate in the sacking, and soon he left the Crusade, continuing to the Holy Land.
His fellow Crusaders went on to sack the city of Constantinople. At the time of the Cathar Crusade , Simon had already built a reputation. He was a rare commodity within the Catholic fold. He was not only a fearsome warrior, but also a good tactician and strategist. Further, he had distinguished himself in the Fourth Crusade by refusing to attack his fellow Christians in Byzantium. None of them was prepared to take on what appeared to be an impossible task, especially as it involved a feudal dispossession that many considered not only illegal but also a dangerous precendent.
As Simon had distinguished himself once again in battle he was offered the leadership and effectively ordered to accept it. Simon had no choice. He accepted and over the following nine years confirmed his reputation for tactical brilliance. Simon held only a small estate in France, north of the forest of Yveline. Her brother Robert de Beaumont succeeded as 4th Earl of Leicester, but after his death without children in , she inherited half of his estates and a claim to the earldom.
The estate was divided early in , and under the division the rights to the earldom were assigned to Amicia and Simon. However, King John of England took possession of the lands himself in February , and confiscated its revenues. Later, in , the lands were passed into the hands of Simon's nephew, Ranulph de Meschines, 4th Earl of Chester.
Simon IV de Montfort claimed the earldom of Leicester, and so is often referred to as a Count in general or specifically the Earl of Leicester a French count corresponding to an English Earl. Simon became known and feared for his cruelty and for his "treachery, harshness, and bad faith. He was a man of extreme Catholic orthodoxy, committed to the Dominican Order and to the suppression of what he believed to be heresy. The southern armies were now crushed, but Simon carried on the campaign as a war of conquest, being appointed lord over all the newly acquired territory with Raymond VI 's titles as Count of Toulouse and Duke of Narbonne Responding to rumours that Raymond VI was on his way to Toulouse in September , Simon abandoned the siege of Beaucaire , and sacked the city of Toulouse.
Raymond returned to take possession of Toulouse a year later in October and Simon again hastened to the city, this time to besiege it. After maintaining the siege for nine months Simon was killed on 25 June His head was smashed by a stone from a mangonel operated by the women of Toulouse - "donas e tozas e mulhers" noblewomen, little girls and men's wives.
He was initially buried in the Cathedral of Saint-Nazaire at Carcassonne but his body was soon removed to his home in France. In the nineteenth century the Capitouls of Toulouse commissioned a series of historical murals. One of them shows a lion representing Simon de Montfort pierced through the body by a pole surmounted by the cross of Toulouse.
The symbolism is drawn from the arms of the Montfort and Toulouse. The banner reads "Montfort is dead. Long live Toulouse Montfort est mort. It is a striking image and suggests a strong identification with Count Raymond against Simon. Click here for more about the heraldry and genealogy of Simon IV de Montfort and other Crusader nobles. Click on the following link for more on the Seal of Simon de Montfort. Click here for more about the heraldry and genealogy of Simon's brother Guy de Montfort. Click here for more about the heraldry and genealogy of Simon's son Amaury de Montfort. The Counts of Toulouse issued charters promising their subjects protection, justice and respect for established custom a generation before Magna Carta.
The statute of Pamiers, imitating this tradition, was issued at Pamiers, near Toulouse, in December by Simon de Montfort. This charter, sealed and guaranteed by half a dozen French bishops, includes more than 50 clauses, prohibiting the sale of justice, dealing with the rights of heirs and widows, and promising not to demand military service from his tenants save by grace and in return for pay. Ten of its 11 opening clauses guarantee freedoms to the Church. Attached to it is a letter commanding publication, sealed by Simon himself. It was almost certainly known in England.
In the English barons planned to depose King John and to make Simon de Montfort king in his stead. In , 50 years after Magna Carta, the younger Simon played a crucial role in the emergence of the English Parliament. This is the son of Simon de Montfort the Albigensian Crusader. On his surcoat technically his "coat of arms" you can see two separate heraldic devices. The Cross of Toulouse, heraldic device of the Count of Toulouse.
The lion of de Montfort, heraldic device of the Lord de Montfort. Seal of Simon IV de Montfort. An allegoric painting of the lamb of the Languedoc killing the lion of de Montfort , by Jean-Paul Laurens , on the ceiling of the salle des Illustres, Capitole, Toulouse. Today, the spot where Simon de Montfort met his end is marked by a plaque set into a wall of pink Toulouse brick see left. The last two lines are a quotation from the Song of the Cathar Wars , laisse , cited above: Simon was roundly hated in the Languedoc for his cruelty and ambition.
Here is a description of his death from the contemporary Song of the Cathar Wars , laisse , written in Occitan:. There was in the town a mangonel built by our carpenters And dragged with its platform from St Sernin. It was operated by noblewomen, by little girls and men's wives, And now a stone hit just where it was needed Striking Count Simon on his steel helmet Shattering his eyes, brains, and back teeth, And splintering his forehead and jaw. Bleeding and black, the Count dropped dead on the ground.
Simon de Montfort left few friends in the lands he pillaged and tried to rule. He continues to be hated to this day. The consensus is that the writer of the Song of the Cathar Wars had it about right [laisse ]. Click here to learn about the untranslatable Occitan word paratge. Amaury de Montfort accompanied his father Simon and mother Alix de Montmorency on the Crusade against the gathers.
He was just a boy at the beginning of the war, but was 18 and ready to become a knight by His knighthood was notable as it marked an important transition. Making a knight had been a rough-and-ready secular ceremony, but Simon turned the ceremony into a religious one, performed during a mass at the alter, and referring to passages in the Old Testament where God requires the first born to be dedicated to him. From now on knighthood would have a more distinctive Christian character.
The following account comes from the Historia:. In the year of the Incarnation of the Word , the noble Count of Montfort and numerous of his barons and knights gathered together at Castelnaudary on the feast of the nativity of John the Baptist [24 June]. The Count was accompanied by the two venerable bishops [of Auxerre and Orleans] and some crusader knights. Our most Christian Count wished the Bishop of Orleans to appoint his son a knight of Christ and personally hand him the belt of knighthood. The bishop for some time resisted this request but was at length vanquished by the prayers of the Count and our people, and yielded to their request.
As it was summertime and Castelnaudary was too small to hold the huge crowd in attendance not least because it had previously been destroyed once or even twice the Count had a number of pavilions erected on a pleasant level place nearby. Everyone, knights as well as clergy, gathered to hear the mass.
As the Bishop stood at the alter performing the mass, the Count took Amaury, his eldest son, by his right hand, and the Countess by his left hand; they approached the alter and offered him to the Lord, requesting the Bishop to appoint him a knight in the service of Christ. The Bishops of Orleans and Auxerre, bowing before the alter, put the belt of knighthood round the youth, and with great devotion led the Veni Creator Spiritus.
Indeed a novel and unprecedented form of induction into knighthood! Who that was present could not refrain from tears? In this way, with great ceremony, Amaury became a knight. Simon died on 25th June while besieging Toulouse. During a typically brave action to retrieve a siege engine called a "cat" he was struck full on the head by a stone from a trebuchet, traditionally claimed to have been operated by the women of Toulouse.
Amaury had participated in the Albigensian Crusade under his father's command. Now he inherited the County of Toulouse, and was elected as the new leader of the Crusade, as the people of the Languedoc celebrated his father's death. Amaury could not fill his father's shoes. Only with the help of France could he avoid utter defeat. He removed his father's body from the Cathedral at Carcassonne probably fearing what would happen to it if he left it there and took it with him to his ancestral home near Paris. In he participated in the Sixth Crusade and was taken prisoner after the defeat at Gaza.
He was imprisoned in Cairo and was freed in , but died the same year in Calabria while on his way home. According to later stories, his birth and infancy were attended by many marvels forecasting his great sanctity. In Saint Dominic entered the University of Palencia, where he remained for ten years.
We do not know the date of his ordination, but he became a cannon of the Cathedral of Osma in Passing through the Midi on his way back from Denmark in he started preaching against the Cathars of the Languedoc. He had planned, with the help of God, he said to convert Cathars to the Roman faith by preaching to them. Despite God's help his preaching proved a failure.
Spurred by his lack of success he hit on the idea of using schools to teach people the Catholic faith - one of many ideas he was to copy from the Cathars. At this time the Catholic Church did not normally encourage education for the laity, and indeed actively discouraged it, especially for women.
But the Languedoc was a special case. Dominic's establishment was in effect the first Dominican nunnery. The Church also tried open debates as a way of winning converts. Debates were permitted because the Roman clergy thought that they could humiliate the opposition intellectually and so facilitate mass defections to the Roman Church. This did not happen.
Once again the the Roman Church made no progress, and if anything confirmed its role as a figure of fun and reservoir of ignorance and bigotry. It is not proper for you to speak in a debate of this sort". Such attitudes voiced in front of a liberal educated audience succeeded only in confirming the extent of the gulf between the Roman Church and the general population of the Languedoc. In any case, even with God's personal help, the Roman Church once again failed to secure mass conversions, or indeed any conversions at all among the Parfaits. More vigorous action was called for.
The great Bernard of Clairvaux St Bernard had asserted that "The Christian glories in the death of a pagan, because Christ is thereby glorified". Were not heretics even worse than pagans, even more deserving of death. Dominic was a friend and companion of the famously brutal Simon de Montfort.
We find him by de Montfort's side at the siege of Lavaur in , and at the capture of La Penne d'Ajen in In the latter part of he was at Pamiers at the invitation of de Montfort. By this time he had attracted a small group of disciples. He had never forgotten his purpose, formulated eleven years before, of founding a religious order. Dominic had several times been offered, and had refused, the office of bishop. He had bigger plans. Foulques, the Bishop of Toulouse, made him chaplain of Fanjeaux and in July, , where he established the community whose mission was the propagation of the Roman Catholic faith and the extermination of heretics.
In this same year a wealthy citizen of Toulouse put a house at their disposal. In this way the first convent of the Order of Preachers was founded on 25th April A year later Foulques established them in the church of Saint Romanus. Dominic had dreamed of a world-wide Order.
In November, , a General Council The Fourth Lateran was to meet at Rome "to deliberate on the improvement of morals, the extinction of heresy, and the strengthening of the faith". Dominic was present at its deliberations hoping to win permission to establish his new Order.
The council was opposed to the institution of any new religious orders, and legislated to that effect. Dominic's petition was refused. This reversal did not stop Dominic. He simply found a way around what the Catholic Church holds to be an infallible ruling. Returning to Languedoc at the close of the Council in December, , Dominic and his followers adopted the rule of St Augustine , which, because of its generality, could be adapted to any form Dominic might wish to give it. On 22 December, , a Bull of confirmation was issued.
He became a favourite of the new pope. The following year he received the office and title of Master of the Sacred Palace , or as it is more commonly called, the Pope's Theologian , In he formulated a plan to disperse his seventeen followers over all Europe. The following year, to facilitate the spread of the order, Honorius III, addressed a Bull to all archbishops, bishops, abbots, and priors, requesting their favour on behalf of Dominic's new Order. By another Bull later in Honorius bestowed on the order the church of Saint Sixtus in Rome, which thus became the first monastery of the Order in Rome.
Shortly after taking possession of this church, Dominic was given the apparently difficult task of cleaning up the activities of Catholic nuns in Rome. As the Catholic Encyclopedia gnomically puts it " Dominic began the somewhat difficult task of restoring the pristine observance of religious discipline among the various Roman communities of women". With the support of the pope, Dominic next started a campaign of rapid expansion of his Order, attracting large numbers of followers keen to be associated with a movement sponsored by the papacy.
A foundation near the University of Paris was followed by another at the University of Bologna where the church of Santa Maria della Mascarella was placed at the disposal of the Dominicans. In Rome the basilica of Santa Sabina was handed over to them. Next a convent was established at Lyons and then a monastery in Spain. Next came a convent for women at Madrid, similar to the one at Prouille. At the same time a foundation at Viterbo was authorised. In Lombardy large numbers of people were abandoning the Roman Catholic Church for the Cathar Church, as they had done a few years earlier in the Languedoc.
Honorius III addressed letters to the abbeys and priories of San Vittorio, Sillia, Mansu, Floria, Vallombrosa, and Aquila, ordering that members be deputed to begin a preaching crusade under the leadership of Saint Dominic. As it turned out no support was forthcoming, and despite propaganda to the contrary involving a series of wondrous miracles, Dominic's mission failed. As in the Languedoc, those who committed the crime of choosing a religion for themselves would eventually be extirpated by Dominican Inquisitors.
Towards the end of Dominic returned to Rome. Here he received more concessions for his order. In January, February, and March of three consecutive Bulls were issued commending the order to all the prelates of the Church. In at Bologna he contracted an illness and died three weeks later. His faithful Dominicans spawned the Medieval Inquisition , with all its horrors, pioneering new methods of torture and creating new crimes. Ordinances were passed which imposed new penalties for heresy. It was the beginning of the first modern police state in the world.
The role of Dominic himself is debated. When the Catholic Church was less sensitive about the record of the Inquisition , Dominic was hailed as its founder and his role as an Inquisitor was undoubted. Berruguete painted panels on the life of Dominic Guzman which originally formed part of an altarpiece in the monastery, and this panel may have been one of these.
Saint Dominic, recognisable by his mantle ornamented with stars, is seated on a throne presiding over the tribunal, surrounded by other judges, one of them bearing the standard of the Inquisition. Below, two of Dominic's victims are tied to stakes awaiting their fate, being burned alive, having been sentenced by Saint Dominic. As the record of the Inquisition becomes more ever more out of step with modern sensibilities, there has been a tendency on the part of the Catholic Church to dissociate Dominic from his role as father of the Medieval Inquisition - sometimes pointing out that earlier Inquisitions had existed suggesting that he could not therefore be the founder of "The Inquisition " , sometimes that the Medieval Inquisition was not given formal papal sanction until after his death suggesting that "The Inquisition " did not exist in his lifetime, so he could not have been any part of it.
A third option for exculpation is employed by the Catholic Encyclopedia under the entry on Saint Dominic "If he was for a certain time identified with the operations of the Inquisition , it was only in the capacity of a theologian passing judgement upon the orthodoxy of the accused. Whatever influence he may have had with the judges of that much maligned institution was always employed on the side of mercy and forbearance, as witness the classic case of Ponce Roger [sic].
Nor does the letter show him as as being particularly merciful, forbearing or lenient - see box to the right. Dominic explicitly claims for Saint Dominic the title of First Inquisitor. The Dominicans were allowed to set up their Inquisition at Toulouse, at Albi and at Narbonne; large numbers of heretics were arrested and examined and the majority of them were burnt.
Dominic is now venerated as St Dominic, and is regarded by many Christians as one of the most holy men ever to have lived. Dominic's legacy has certainly been spectacular. As well as running various Inquisitions , Dominicans monopolised medieval philosophy leading it into the barren desert of scholasticism where it languished until revived by Enlightenment thinkers, not a single significant advance having been made for centuries except, arguably, by heretical Franciscans.
Modern Dominicans consistently deny that Dominic ever exercised the office of Inquisitor, pointing out that the Papal Inquisition was formally constituted only after Dominic's death. Some see this as perhaps a little disingenouous, since Inquisitors were operating on the authority of papal legates under Innocent III well before the institution of the Inquisition reporting directly to the Pope was given a formal charter.
Below is conclusive evidence that Dominic was an authorised Inquisitor even before the start of the Wars against the Cathars in For Cathars who chose not to deny their faith the penalty was death. So too for those who recanted but then returned to their chosen faith. For confessed first-offender heretics judgements were less harsh - often in the form of penances - but with a more severe reserve judgement if the penances were not fulfilled.
This letter was written by Dominic about the year and concerns a converted Cathar called Pons Roger. In virtue of the Sacrament which has been administered, we command that, three Sundays or days of major feasts, a priest march him, stripped to the waist and under continuous flogging, from the entrance to the city to the church. Moreover, we command him to abstain at all times from meat, eggs, and cheeses, or all things which are conceived from the seed of flesh, except on Easter Sunday, Pentecost Sunday, and Christmas, when, for the rejection of his former error, we command him to eat these things.
He should keep three Lents each year, fasting and abstaining from fish. Three days every week, perpetually, he should fast and abstain from fish, olive-oil, and wine, unless bodily infirmity or summer heat makes a dispensation necessary. He should wear clothes which are religious in both their style and colour, with a small cross sewed on each side over the breast.
If it is opportune, he should hear Mass daily and, on major feast days, he should go to church for Vespers. Wherever he may be, he should praise God at all hours of night and day in the following way: He should observe total chastity and live at Treveille. He should show this letter to his chaplain every month.
Moreover, we command the chaplain to supervise his life with diligent care, until the Lord Legate otherwise expresses his will on these matters. Should he refuse to observe these directives, we command that he be deemed a perjurer and a heretic excommunicated from association with the faithful. There several notable points in this letter:. No other role fits the circumstances. Most of the penances oblige Pons Roger to live in the same manner as a Cathar Parfait. There are several theories as why Dominic should have required Pons Roger to do this, but they lie outside of the present discussion.
Note also the use of the word "command".
Genuine penance is by definition voluntary. Sentences of death were rarely committed to writing, but we know that Inquisitors were responsible for burning countless people to death. This sentence has survived possibly because it was passed on someone who was now a Catholic. A relapsed and excommunicated heretic would be burned alive. Note also the use of the word "command" again, this time the command is to a third party - something an Inquisitor could do but a simple preacher could not.
Dominic's canonisation in was marked by a revealing incident at Toulouse. The bishop, Raimon de Fauga, and a number of Dominican friars had just solemnly celebrated the admission of their new Saint into heaven. As they were leaving the church for a celebratory feast, news arrived that a dying woman in the city had just received the Cathar Consolamentum. The bishop, the Dominican prior and his Dominican retinue promptly set off to deal with this crime. They found the woman at home in bed, gravely ill. The men of God entered the house where she lay dying.
In her delirium she mistook the Catholic bishop for a Cathar bishop and confessed to him her wish to die a good death. At this, and without any sort of trial, the bishop had her removed from the house. Lying on her deathbed, she was carried to a nearby field and there burned alive still in her bed. Their holy mission complete the bishop, prior and friars retired to enjoy their celebratory banquet, having first given thanks "to God and the Blessed Dominic". As both Catholics and non-Catholics have observed at different times, it was a most suitable way to mark Dominic Guzman's canonisation.
Dominc Guzman's own record is recognised in the special language of the Catholic Encyclopedia , which sometimes appears carefully crafted to carry a subtly different message to the devout reader than it does to those familiar with history:. If he abominated heresy and laboured untiringly for its extirpation it was because he loved truth and loved the souls of those among whom he laboured". From a secular point of view there was no harm at all in the Cathars, and no reason for them to be even mildly persecuted, let alone burned alive.
Yet it is not difficult to find Roman Catholic authorities who seek to justify the Church's genocide and make out that it acted for the best. This is as close as the Catholic Encyclopaedia comes to admitting fault:. His failure as a preacher is not mentioned, nor the fact that even using trickery and torture almost no Parfaits could be induced to abandon their faith. The thousands of Cathar deaths are not referred to except in the most oblique terms:.
The long and arduous task was at length successful, and by the end of the fourteenth century Albigensianism, with all other forms of Catharism, was practically extinct. This anti-human heresy, by destroying the sanctity of the family, would reduce mankind to a horde of unclean beasts Dominic's Preaching Friars Dominicans and their Inquisition were soon operating throughout Europe, introducing their Inquisitorial techniques to new lands: The following text is from a record of the deeds of the Archbishops of Trier contemporary with the events described.
He placed his wife and two sons in monastic institutions as well. By contrast we take in a performance at the Globe Theatre. Rory Clements really does his historical research homework. This was a really well written story, including elements of religion that were handled quite well. Others claim it as a fortuitous event in allowing the Pope to excite popular opinion and to renew his pleas for intervention in the south.
In the year of our Lord began a persecution of heretics throughout the whole of Germany, and over a period of three years many were burned. The guiding genius of this persecution was Master Conrad of Marburg; Throughout various cities the Preaching Friars cooperated with him and with his aforementioned lieutenants; so great was the zeal of all that from no one, even though merely under suspicion, would any excuse or counter plea be accepted, no exception or testimony be admitted, no opportunity for defense be afforded, nor even a recess for deliberation be allowed.
Forthwith, he must confess himself guilty and have his head shaved as a sign of penance, or deny his crime and be burned. Furthermore, one who has thus been shaved must make known his associates, otherwise he again risks the penalty of death by burning. Furthermore, if anyone had once abjured this impiety and was reported to have relapsed, he was apprehended and without any reconsideration was burned.
This extract is from Gesta Treverorum: There is not a hint of remorse or regret for the holocaust, and one can only assume that, if it could, the Roman Church would act in the same way again if similar circumstances arose in the future, lead perhaps by another charismatic leader like Saint Dominic. As Dominicans have become reticent about tradional aspects of their Catholic faith, attempts have been made to minimise associations with practices such as mortification of the flesh, Inquisitions, torture, auto-da-fes, exuming and burning the dead, and persecuting Jews.
Another of these traditional Christian practices was slavery. Dominicans were major slave owners in Spanish, Portuguese and French territories. A prime slave colony on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola what is now Haiti was associated with and previously named in honour of saint Dominic. The economy of Saint-Domingue was based on slavery, and the practice there was known as the most brutal in the world. Escaped slaves there were burned at the stake. Under Article 3 of the famous Code Noir, only Catholics were permitted to own slaves. The present capital of Haiti is still named after its patron saint, Saint Dominic.
Now in the Museo del Prado, Madrid. Detail showing Saint Dominic presiding. Note the fire breathing dog - a portent. His noble mother wears a crown. He wears ahalo originally silver? From the Early Life of St. Commemorative Road Sign at Minerve where - Cathars were burned alive for disagreeing with Catholic theology. It was needful, too, that women converted from heresy should be safeguarded against the evil influence of their own homes.
To supply these deficiencies, Saint Dominic, with the permission of Foulques, Bishop of Toulouse, established a convent at Prouille in To this community, and afterwards to that of Saint Sixtus, at Rome, he gave the rule and constitutions which have ever since guided the nuns of the Second Order of Saint Dominic. A recurring miracle in Catholic Tradition is one in which it proves impossible to burn holy scripture, while heretical works burn like any other books. It is essentially the same miracle as that applied by the medieval Church to humans in certain forms of Trial By Fire.
According to some sources, this miracle occurred at an early Church Council, and enabled the council to establish the correct books to include in the New Testament. A similar miracle was attributed to Dominic at Fanjeaux , where his writings were immune from the flames, and it seems that this miracle is still credited.
The Catholic Encyclopedia under the entry at Saint Dominic refers to "The failure of the fire at Fanjeaux to consume the dissertation he had employed against the heretics, and which was thrice thrown into the flames". See painting on the left. Dominic wears a halo technically an auriole.
An heretical book burns while while the holy one miraculously levitates above the flames. Voltaire noted how unfortunate it was that this sort of miracle no longer seems to be available to distinguish holy writings from any other. Like Lorgar, who was suffering from a Heroic BSoD after the Emperor brutally shattered his desire to worship him by destroying his crown jewel of a city and anyone who refused to leave and reprimanded him and his Legion in public when a few members of his Legion came to him about gods who would gladly accept his worship There are also heretics who deviate from the Imperium's other orthodoxy, the Cult Mechanicus.
These "hereteks" usually start out as tech-priests who chafe under the Cult's strict restrictions on innovation and study of Xeno technology, and start experimenting with new designs and reverse-engineering captured alien tech, fully intending to better mankind through their work. This being 40k , there's some very good reasons these things are forbidden , and most hereteks end up taking a flying leap off the slippery slope sooner or later and going full over to Chaos, if they don't get themselves killed first.
And if that wasn't enough, there's a very good chance they unknowingly are heretics- the Omnissiah is supposed to be an aspect of the God-Emperor , but it's strongly hinted that it's actually a C'tan Eldritch Abomination known as the Void Dragon, who has power over machines. So while the lower members of the Mechanicus are always happy to discover Necron tomb worlds and poke around until the Necrons wake up, the higher-ups know perfectly well what they're doing.
Seen every now and then in Eberron concerning the Church of the Silver Flame. Occasional Dark Six cults might qualify as this within the Sovereign Host. Anyone from Exalted working with the Anathema that is, anyone working with your player character. There is a growing number of these in Autochthon. And sometimes they are right. In Ironclaw there are several heterodoxies of the Church of S'allumer besides the orthodox Penitence.
While the Monophysismites are considered outright heretics for believing that the church's founders actually came from another world. The eponymous character from Heretic , of course. The Heretics in question were the Sidhe elves, the only race of beings not subject to the sorcerous mind control of the Serpent Riders , and thus targeted for extermination by their minions. The Arbiter is also branded a heretic at the beginning for his failure in the previous game , but that's really just an excuse to have him executed for his failure.
He abandons his own religious beliefs after discovering the truth about the Covenant and ends up leading a splinter faction which allies with the "heathen" humans. Ramza from Final Fantasy Tactics gets branded as a heretic when he runs afoul of their Ancient Conspiracy and kills a demon-possessed bishop in self defense. On the other hand, Olan Durai is also burned at stake for trying to reveal the truth behind The Lion War and Ramza's unsung heroism.
However, both appear to have been Vindicated by History by the time of Vagrant Story 's events later in the Ivalice continuity. Billy from Xenogears rejects the doctrines of his church once he learns of its sponsorship and purpose. Pellegri from Xenosaga stops just short of accusing her superior, Margulis, of heresy when he questions the authority of Lord Heinlein.
On that note, Shion and Jin, who both are likely to have extensive ties to the Ormus religion - physically beat the crap out of The Pope at the end of Episode II. Yuna becomes a heretic in Final Fantasy X when she resolves to reject the teachings of Bevelle and fight Sin to destruction. Happens to quite a few people in that game, notably the Crusaders being excommunicated for their use of machina, despite their perfectly good intentions and their continued belief in Yevon.
Not to mention the clergy actually backed the attempt to use machina to fight Sin. As soon as it failed, they pretended otherwise. Nero rejects the teachings of his church to save his lover, Kyrie, in Devil May Cry 4. It helps that Nero has a better understanding of who Sparda was than the Order's elite, and that Sanctus, the head of the Order, was a power-mad bastard with no understanding of love at all.
Total War , regions where your faith isn't overwhelmingly dominant may spawn Heretics, or even convert a Priest you have stationed there to heresy. Since Heretics spread heresy and cause religious unrest, it's a good idea to have your Priests subject them to trials and burn them at the stake. If you're Catholic and you don't deal with Heretics, The Pope will send Inquisitors to your lands to start examining family members. Byakuren Hijiri from Touhou is a heretic by the virtue of being compassionate to the Youkai.
In this settings, the very presence of Celestial beings can harm Youkai regardless of either sides' morality. Before that, there was Rikako Asakura, who was branded heretical for believing in science over magic. In Mass Effect 2 , it is revealed that the Geth the player had been fighting in Mass Effect were actually a fanatical splinter group called Heretics by the True Geth. Making up about five percent of the total Geth population, Legion emphasises that the Heretics chose to worship the Reapers , instead of upholding the rather non-religious notion of self-determination of the True Geth.
In Crusader Kings 2 , characters can adopt a variety of historical heresies. They tend to be loathed by anyone from the main religion, and imprisoned and forced to convert back. Unless a very powerful king adopts the heresy, in which case the same thing typically happens to the orthodox faithful.
The Sons of Abraham expansion for the game gives heresies the ability to supplant their parent as the mainstream faith, reducing the old beliefs to being seen as heretical themselves in the process. The earlier Legacy of Rome expansion allowed the Great Schism to be mended by a sufficiently successful still-Orthodox Byzantium, reducing Catholicism to a heresy of Orthodoxy. Morrowind , the Dissident Priests were heretics to the Tribunal Temple, disputing several points of dogma though this appears to have been partly a response to being persecuted for questioning Temple policy , which isn't exactly heresy even if the Temple called it that.
The Tribunal Temple also persecutes the Nerevarine Cult as heretics technically they are, just not really of the Temple, seeing as they developed in parallel in response to the same event and from the same source religion. It's actually the Temple who made the most radical changes of dogma, the Nerevarine Cult just explained away the new gods as false gods and added in a messiah figure. Both of those change towards the end of the main quest, with the Dissident Priests acknowledged as having had a point with much of what they said and the Nerevarine Cult recognised as being right about the messiah figure thing, both by one of the gods of the Tribunal himself.
Actually subverted in the case of the Nerevarine prophecy — while the Temple considers it a folk superstition and persecutes the Ashlanders who believe it, when you actually show up and start fulfilling the prophecy, you get a letter from the local Archcanon. You see, they're not sure if you're a legitimate reincarnation of St.
If you really are the Nerevarine, something so petty as a full inquisitorial process could hardly keep you from fulfilling your prophecies, now could it? In League of Legends , Karthus the Deathsinger joined the Order of the Tallymen of Kindred a collection of gravediggers, pyre-builders, corpse collectors and carers for the dying who follow Kindred, the incarnation of death and rose to become quite prominent in the order. Once he decided he could learn no more about death from mortals, he traveled to the Shadow Isles and transformed himself into an immortal lich who trapped the souls of his victims in an undead state like himself, making him an abomination to Kindred, to whom unnatural prolonging of life beyond one's time is the greatest evil.
In Path of Exile , Elreon was banished for his heretical views, notably that thaumaturgy isn't inherently evil and Vol was an idiot for trying to destroy magic.