Pleaux - Middle Ages

Medieval village in High-Auvergne

Middle Ages from 12th to 14th century

In principle, the prior was the unique lord of Pleaux, but later, the abbot of Charroux was compelled to put its priory under the neighbor lord protection and to abandon them a part of its rights. In 1228, he gives in fief to Astorg of Aurillac, knight, guard of the church, the castle and the parish of Pleaux.

In 1279, the prior associated to the justice of Pleaux, Bernard, Raoul, Pierre and Hugues of Pleaux, that took the title of viguiers. They qualified already co-lords of Pleaux. These concessions do not gave results that the abbot of Charroux and the prior of Pleaux waited some; they had then recourse to a more powerful protector, to the king himself.

In February of the year 1289, a treaty was made between the king Philippe Le Bel and the abbot of Charroux; its dispositions are important and exerted a happy influences on the future of the city of Pleaux. Here is the charter :

Philippe, by the grace of God, king of Francs, make know to all presents and to come, that between us, on the one hand, and religious abbot men, monks of Charroux, the diocese of Poitiers, and their prior of Pleaux, other, have been made the treaty, conventions and regulations that follow, about the establishment of the bastide (fortified town) or new city, namely the ancient city of Pleaux and the place of Peyssines where hold fairs and markets; our house, that the prior and the parish church will make some also leave. All income, annuities, dues, the rent, sale and resale rights, all profits of all things existing in the aforementioned bastide and the ancient city, belonging to tells it prior Pleaux, will be common between us and the prior, and will be divided by equal portions. It will be similarly the aforementioned city memberships and bastide. Tolls, rights of leyde, fair, accustomed market and these that would be established in the future, protest them, the high justice, average and low, fines, measures, emoluments and fortuitous rights of the aforesaid bastide and city, their territory and their memberships, are and been common between us and the prior aforementioned, safe the right of others and that the viguiers, if they some have. The oven or ovens, the mill or mills that exist currently or that will be erected in the bastide and the ancient city or their memberships are and been common, and will belong by equal portions to us and prior aforementioned. None of the residents of the city and bastide will be able to grind its grain out the mill or common mills, neither to cook its bread out the oven or common ovens. We or our representatives will not be able to have neither mill nor oven in the aforementioned city and bastide, neither in memberships of the châtellenie of Pleaux, unless they are common with the aforementioned prior; and, by reciprocity, the prior will not be able to have in the same places neither oven, nor mill, if it is common.

It will be established pitchforks and a pole, where our bailiff and that the prior will make justice; one will not be able without the other to judge, absolve, constrain or to make justice in the district of the aforesaid city and bastide. However, in the absence of one of them, that that will be present will be able to seize, stop and incarcerate, but it will not be able to put in liberty. We will have in the aforementioned bastide and ancient city a bailiff or a provost that, each year, will be held to swear and swears to the prior, by entering in functions, that it will observe exactly regulations and conventions contained in the present treaty, and that it will respect the right and the area of the abbot of Charroux and the prior. Similarly, the prior will have in the aforementioned city and bastide a bailiff that, each year, will make the same oath to our bailiff. The aforementioned bailiffs will render, an or twice in the year, a loyal counts suitable receipts and rights of justice collected in the aforementioned company; they will assert it ahead our bailiff and the prior aforementioned, that will receive totality the aforementioned counts. We and the aforementioned prior will have a common prison in the aforementioned city and bastide, and one not without the other. We will not have neither jurisdiction, nor straight of protests, neither fine on the family of the prior, nor the prior on ours, by explaining however that we and our officials, neither the prior, will be able to stop prosecutions against a member of our house, if it was continued for a crime entailing a corporal sorrow. All inquire them and researches in the aforesaid bastide or city and its territory will be suitable in common by the bailiffs aforementioned, manner that one could not make inquire them or know an affair without the other. Publications and auctions will be suitable our share and that the abbot of Charroux.

It will be created and established consuls in the aforementioned bastide by our bailiff and by the prior; they will be held to swear each year, by entering in functions, to our bailiff and the prior, that they will preserve faithfully our right and our area and these the abbot of Charroux and the prior, and that they will judge following the right and conceded customs or to concede to the aforementioned city. There will be in the aforementioned city and bastide a common seal whose residents will be held to use to the exclusion of any other; the remuneration that will come some will be shared between us and the prior. Guards of this seal will be entrusted to a man that us is faithful, as well as to the prior, which will be chosen by our bailiff and by the aforementioned prior. All villages, farm or manses, with their memberships, cult earth and uncultivated, gardens, forests, meadows, the grazing and other things existing out the aforementioned city memberships and bastide, that are currently held of the prior and that will be held in the future, will reside it clean, even in the case where they would fall commit some, to which case they will be able to be delivered by the prior to persons that could and be held to reply the prior, and not to others, rights of sale, resale, the rent, annuities and other rights that belong it. We and residents of the aforesaid city and bastide will not be able to claim anything neither to claim in things of this. All real estate goods that will fall commit some to reason the high justice out of the aforesaid city and bastide, will be common between us and the aforementioned prior, safe the right of the viguiers, as well as it has been told higher.

As for real estate, they will do owned to the prior. None of these that hold the fiefs or rear fiefs noticing the abbot of Charroux or the prior of Pleaux, or having belonged to the abbot and prior or whose their predecessors have been in possession, will be able to recognize to hold them us or our mobility. If the contrary arrived, we will be able to claim neither claim no right in these fiefs. It will be similarly all the other goods, belongings and mediocre things belonging to the priory of Pleaux. It has been ruled that, in the case where we or our officials would make purchases, acquisitions, the gain, or that donations us would be suitable in the parish, the city, the bastide or the châtellenie of Pleaux, things not belonging to the fief or to the area of the abbot or prior, this last, because of its priory, will have half of these things, which will be common between us, provided however that prior pays half of the price of the thing bought. We will give to residents of the aforesaid city and bastide of customs that will be approved by the abbot and the prior. Our bailiff and that the prior will judge totality the aforementioned following usages or customs, and if it happened that one called these bailiffs, the call will be carried ahead our bailiff and the prior aforementioned, which will hear the cause totality or will hear to commit an other person to judge it. We declare to concede to Pleaux the same exemption that we have granted to the free city of the diocese of Rodez. It is decided that the prison, the oven or ovens, the mill or common mills of the aforesaid city and bastide will be made to common expense; but the prior will fix the expense to make for the construction of these structures, following its will. Present the conventions will be executed following their form and content, safe the right of others and that the viguiers such that it has been ruled in some letters bearing the seal of Pierre of Villemignon (Villamenho), then bailiff of mountains of Auvergne. We, giving our approval to the treaty, regulation, association and conventions that precede, want that they are perpetual, have given them our consent, safe our right in other things and the right of others in all; and, in order that this is stable thing and definite for ever, we have append our seal to letter presents.

Made in Paris, the year of the Lord twelve eighty nine, to the month of February.