E06145: A substantially authentic Merovingian royal diploma in the name of Theuderic III, king of the Franks, records a dispute over a women's monastery in Tuffé (north-west Gaul) dedicated to *Mary (mother of Christ, S00033) and other *unnamed saints (S00518). Written in Latin, probably at Compiègne (north-east Gaul), 677.

MGH DD Mer. 118 (excerpt)

Theodericus rex Francorum v. inl. In hoc semper regalis celsitudo debet prospicere, ut quodcumque contra Dei decretum vel instituta patrum fuit actum, debeat esse restauratum. Ideoque ad aures clementię nostrę fuit patefactum, eo quod Ulphaldus et Ingobertus obtimates nostri illustri Deo sacrata Adidola abbatissa seu et genitrice sua Ingane, quę in monasterio puellarum, quod in honore sanctę Marie vel ceterorum domnorum in loco nuncupante Thusphiaco constructum, una cum turba plurima monacharum sub sancta regula conversare videntur, vel ipsa congregatione tale testamentum facere coegisset, ut quodcumque predicti viri ad ipsas ancillas Dei facere ordinabant, aliud nullatenus pontificium faciendi haberent, nisi presentaliter in perpetuum, ut omni tempore iussionem de qualibet causa facere et adimplere deberent. Econtra vero asserebat vir apostolicus Aiglibertus, Cenomannice urbis episcopus, quod predictum monasterium suę aecclesię esse deberet, et Loppa Deo sacrata, relicta videlicet Egigni, illud ibidem legibus tradidisset, ostendensque nobis strumenta cartarum, quę predicta Loppa de iamdicto monasterio Cenomannice matris aecclesię perpetualiter tenendum et aecclesiastice dominandum ac possidendum f[ec]erit [...] Datum quod fecit mense December dies VI, anno III regni nostri, Compendio , in Dei nomine feliciter .

'Theuderic, king of the Franks, to his noble men. Royal majesty should always understand this: that whatever has been done against God or the decrees and institutes of the fathers must be restored. And so this was laid open to the ears of our clemency by Ulfald and Ingobert, our illustrious nobles, concerning Abbess Adidola, consecrated to God, and her mother Inga, who are seen to live as one in a monastery of women, built in honour of Saint Mary and other lords in the place called Tuffé, together with a troop of nuns living under a holy rule, that together that congregation had made a statement, that whatever those aforesaid men set out to do for those handmaidens of God, the bishopric would not be able to do otherwise, but that presently and in the future they would have to enact and fulfil their commands concerning whatever cause. And against this the apostolic man Agilbert, bishop of the city of Le Mans, asserted that the aforesaid monastery ought to be [under the control] of his church, and that Lobba, consecrated to God, the widow of Egignus, had handed that same place over to him by law. And he showed to us the charters which the aforesaid Lobba had drawn up, by which that aforesaid monastery was to be perpetually held and possessed and put under the ecclesiastical lordship of the mother church of Le Mans ... Given on the 6th day of the month of December, in the 3rd year of our reign, at Compiègne, happily in God's name.'

Text: Kölzer 2001, 302-4. Translation: B. Savill.