Braulio of Saragossa, king Chindasvinthus and Eugenius III of Toledo: imagery and opinion in the Epistularium of Braulio of Saragossa

Abstract

The organization of letters in the Epistularium of Braulio of Saragossa († 651) has thus far been thought not to follow any sort of logical pattern, as anti-timewise order of some epistles seems to confirm, namely, the fact that the letters between Braulio and Eugenius III of Toledo, written when Eugenius was already bishop of the Toledo see, are set before those epistles in which Braulio quarrels whith king Chindasvinthus about Eugenius’ episcopal consecration. The point of departure of this work is the thorough analysis of the order of Braulio’s Epistularium, which shows that this epistolary collection was organized according to a highly elaborated pattern. Within this complex structure, the epistles of Braulio, Eugenius and Chindasvinthus attain new meanings coming from anti-timewise setup and contact with surrounding epistles. In sum, we will try to show that, through careful organization and formal and literary devices, Braulio gives a precise and meaningful image of royal power and expresses his opinion about his relationships with king Chindasvinthus.