Prudentius of Troyes

PRUDENTIUS OF TROYES: Bishop of Troyes from shortly before 847; d. Apr. 6, 861. He was a Spaniard named Galindo, and was educated at the Frankish court-school. In 849 he wrote to Hincmar of Reims and Pardulus of Laon championing Augustinianism in the predestination controversy of the time (see Gottschalk, 1; Hincmar of Reims). god predestinated the wicked not so much to sinning—Adam's fall was entirely free—as to well-merited punishment; the elect alone are redeemed by Christ's death from the massa perditionis (MPL, cxv. 975–976). Nevertheless Prudentius seems to have signed the theses of Hincmar at Quierzy in 853, but in the same year (or in 856) he attacked them in four theses which he presented to a synod at Paris (MPL, cxv. 1365 sqq.). He remained Hincmar's bitter opponent, although he wrote no more in the controversy. His part in the Annales Bertiniani, for which he wrote the years 835–861, is his chief service to history.

(R. Schmid.)

Bibliography: The Annales Bertiniani of Prudentius are best in MGH, Script., i (1826), 429–454, then in MPL. cxv. 1377–1420, cxxv. 1203–1302; also ed. C. Dehaisnes, Paris, 1871, and G. Waitz, Hanover, 1883 the poems are in MGH, Poet. Lat. med. ævi, i (1884), 679–680. There is a Germ. transl., new ed. by W. Wattenbach, Leipsic, 1890, and Fr. transl. in Guizot, Collection des mémoires, vol. iv., Paris, 1824. Consult: J. Lebeuf, Dissertations sur l’Hist. . . .. de Paris, i. 432–497, Paris, 1739; J. C. F. Bähr, Geschichte der römischen Literatur im karolingischen Zeitalter, pp. 167, 453–456, Carlsruhe, 1840; J. C. Pritchard, Life and Times of Hincmar, Littlemore, 1849; J. Girgensohn, Prudentius und die bertinianischen Annalen, Riga, 1875; E. Dümmler, in NA, iv (1879), 314; A. Ebert, Geschichte der Literatur des Mittelalters, ii. 267, 365–368, Leipsic, 1880; Wattenbach, DGQ, i (1885), 196, 263, 277, i (1893), 214–294, 295; idem, in NA, xvi (1891), 607–609.