THE WEST IN THE MIDDLE AGES

The solar calendar of approximately 365¼ days (12 months), which Julius Caesar introduced in 46 b.c., continued in use in the Middle Ages, remaining unchanged in fact until 1582 when it was revised by a commission appointed by Pope Gregory XIII.

Reckoning of years. Throughout this period, however, various methods of reckoning years were employed: (1) Byzantine, counting from the year 5508 b.c. (creation); a method originated in the 7th century and used by the Greeks and the Orthodox Church until 1700.(2) Regnal Year, from the year of office of an authority, such as emperor, pope, king, or magistrate. (3) indiction, a fiscal reckoning of years from 312 (Constantine's triumph), which was widely uses in chanceries, liturgical books, etc., at times in association with other reckonings.(4) Spanish, from 38 b.c., the date of the conquest of Span by Augustus; it was used in Spain, Portugal, and Visigothic Gaul for most of the Middle Ages, but Catalonia abandoned it in favor of (5) in 1180. (5) Christian Era, the dating of years from the birth of Christ (anno Domini, Incarnationis, etc.), a usage that rose incidentally from the Easter computus of dionysius exiguus (526); its gradual adoption in Europe was due largely to Bede's De ratione temporum (715; Patrologia Latina [Paris 1878–90] 90:295–578).

The Beginning of the year. For the beginning of the year itself various styles, generally based on major Christian festivals, were employed: (1) Byzantine (September1), agreeing with the beginning of the Byzantine fiscal year (Indiction) and common outside of Byzantium in Byzantine parts of Italy, e.g., Bari. (2) Venetian (March1), used in Venice until 1797. (3) Circumcision (January1), corresponding to the beginning of the Roman and, since 1582, the modern civil year; it was widely used in Spain and Portugal and in several other places, e.g., Benevento. (5) Florentine Annunciation beginning with March 25 after the Nativity; originating at Arles in the late 9th century, it spread to Burgundy and northern Italy, eventually becoming peculiar to Pisa. (6) Gallican or Easter, a reckoning from the movable feast of Easter (March 11–April 25), introduced in France by Philip II Augustus (1180–1223) and used also in parts of the Rhineland and in the Low Countries, e.g., in Liege until 1333. (7) Bedan or Nativity, dating from Christmas Day (December 25). It was used by Anglo-Saxon and Norman kings until c. 1220, by the Empire until c. 1245, by the papal chancery from 962 to 1088, and at various other places, e.g., at Liege and Louvian, from 1333.

Within each month the Julian fashion of numbering the days in one continuous series (Nones, Ides, Kalends) became quite common but never fully replaced the practice of reckoning by liturgical days: e.g., "in vigilia sancti Lucae" (October 17); "in Dominica Dum clamarem" (10th Sunday after Pentecost, so called from the opening words of the Introit); "This day is call'd the feast of Crispian" (October 25). Hence a handbook, such as that of Grotefend or Cappelli or Cheney, is indispensable.

Bibliography: L'Art de verifier les dates …, 42 v. (Paris 1818–44). r. l. poole, Medieval Reckonings of Time (London 1918); Studies in Chronology and History (Oxford 1934). a. giry, Manuel de diplomatique (new ed. Paris 1925). a. cappelli, Cronologia, cronografia e calendario perpetuo (2d ed. Milan 1930). h. grotefend, Taschenbuch der Zeitrechnung des deutschen Mittelalters und der Neuzeit, ed. t. ulrich (10th ed. Hanover, Ger. 1960). c. r. cheney, ed., A Handbook of Dates for Students of English History (London 1945; repr. 1961). j. augusti y casanovas et al., eds., Manuel de cronologia espanola y universal (Madrid 1952).

[l. e. boyle]