Chess in the writings of Salimbene di Adam; a franciscan chronicler from Parma of the 13th c.
Salimbene di Adam [1221 – c. 1290], was born in Parma and dwelled in the central - northern Italy during the 13th c. Member of the Franciscan order, he experienced events of the Guelph - Ghibelline wars and the Italian expedition of Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor. He seems to be an eye witness of the siege of Parma [1247-1248] for some time.
Hic chronicle is covering the years 1167–1287 and one of its characteristics is the vivid descriptions with personal elements. Written in latin it seems surviving only in one manuscript [Vat.lat. 7260 in https://opac.vatlib.it/mss/detail/Vat.lat.7260 ].
I was browsing through the text, as I was looking for other historical events of that time, and I've noticed that he was at least familiar with chess terminology, probably the Italian one. I thought to record some instances of his writings. These include historical facts and phrases, but also every-day expressions.
* latin translations by me, trying to keep balance between easy-reading and accuracy. I used Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Scriptores, vol. 32 [1905], p. 1ff in https://www.dmgh.de/mgh_ss_32/index.htm#page/(1)/mode/1up , for the transcription.
Chess players
• Salimbene di Adam is mentioning two persons who explicitly knew how to play chess. One was Obizzo Sanvitale [Obico], bishop of Parma and previously of Tripoli in the mid 13th c.
| Hic fuit litteratus homo, maxime in iure canonico et in ecclesiastico offitio valde expertus; et de ludo scaccorum noverat... | This [Obizzo] was a cultured man, truly expert especially in canon law and in ecclesiastical service; and he knew of the game of chess... |
• The other was some Beatrix, for whom Salimbene is providing some details. She was a rich and beautiful woman, whom Ghiberto da Gente, podesta of Parma, wanted for wife; but in the end she was married wiht his son Pino. Salimbene had met her many times in the monastery of Monte-Falcone of Friars Minor, as she was residing in the Bianello castle [Emilia-Romagna]. And she had confessed to him that they wanted to kill her. Once her husband Pino going to the town Corigie [that is possibly Correggio?], took his wife with him; and there a squire [scutifer] named Martinelus strangled her with a feather pillow.
| Hec dicebatur domina Beatrix et erat de Apulia et morabatur in Anchona, et thesaurum habebat et erat pulcra domina et alacris et solatiosa et liberalis et curialis, et de ludo scaccorum et alearum optime noverat. | She was called lady Beatrix, and she was from Apulia, living in Ancona. She had treasures and was a beautiful lady, lively, pleasant, liberal and courteous. And she knew very well the game of chess and of hazard [alea]. |
A dangerous game of chess
When Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, was born in 1194, there were rumors that he wasn't true child of Henry VI, & Constance, but inter alia that of a butcher. Salimbene trying to justify these, he used as an argument the following story with Frederick II, John of Brienne and Walter IV of Brienne:
| Tertium quia rex Iohannes, qui fuit rex lerosolimitanus et socer imperatoris, quadam die irato animo et fronte rugosa in Gallico suo appellavit imperatorem beccarii filium, pro eo quod Guauterottum consanguineum suum volebat occidere. Et quia cum veneno non poterat, cum gladio debebat fieri, quando cum imperatore ad ludum scacchorum sederet. Timebat enim imperator, ne quando aliquo casu regnum Ierosolimitanum devolveretur ad istum. Quod regem Iohannem non latuit. Qui ivit et accepit nepotem per brachium, qui cum imperatore ludebat, et amovit eum a ludo et acriter imperatorem redarguit dicendo in Gallico suo: ‘Fi de becer diabele!’ | Thirdly, because king John, who was the king of Jerusalem and father-in-law of the emperor [=Frederick II], some day with an angry mind and a wrinkled brow he called the emperor 'son of a butcher' in his french language, because Frederick wanted to kill Walter, John's kinsman. And since Frederick couldn't do this with poison, he had to do it with the sword, when Walter would sit with the emperor for a game of chess. For the emperor feared the time that the kingdom of Jerusalem would devolve to that man by some chance; which king John knew. So John went and took his nephew by the arm, who was playing with the emperor, and removed him from the game; and he sharply rebuked the emperor by saying in his french 'son of butcher devil'! |
Checking & checkmating
Salimbene recorded some instances where the chess - terms 'scaccum' [check] & 'scaccum-mattum' [checkmate] were used out of chess, probably to denote a strong or decisive move in war, quarrel or conflict.
• For the year 1239 during emperor's Frederick II expedition in Italy, Salimbene is describing the warfare of the Ghibellines Modena and Parma against the Guelph Bologna. The castles between the neighboring rivals Modena and Bologna were at stake. Ghibellines took and destroyed the Bolognese castles of Piumazzo and Crevalcore; while most possibly the Modenese castle of Vignola was under siege by Bologna, but indecisively at the time, as Bologna was defeated a little later. For this intermediate instance it was written in latin-italian:
| Inde exivit proverbium, ut dicerent hi qui in ludo scaccorum ludebant: Scacco per Vignola aven Plumaco | From there is derived the proverb, that the chess-players say: 'check for Vignola, they have Piumazzo' |
• At a further point Salimbene is narrating past events of 1195-1200, about the disputes over Sicily between Henry VI, Holy Roman Emperor, and his wife empress Constance, Queen of Sicily. And he's recalling a saying of that time, which seems to be based on the way that the medieval chess queen-ferza was used, underlining the bad relationship between king and queen:
| Ioculatores vero dicebant: ‘Si quis modo diceret regi scaccum, regina non defenderet eum' | Jesters indeed were saying: 'If one now would say check to the king, the queen wouldn't defend him'. |
• In 1250 Parma was under church/Guelph rule and accepted back the pro-imperial/Ghibelline Parmense-exiles. The latter after a while started thinking to bring to the city as a ruler Oberto Pallavicino, emperor's supporter. The Guelphs panicked, began hiding their belongings and planning to leave the city. But meanwhile Pallavicino was taking the control of nearby cities and territories...
| quibus captis et occupatis Parmenses qui erant ex parte ecclesie, si de Parma recessissent, quo diverterent, non habebant; et ita scaccum mattum acceperant, quia serpentem in sinu nutrierant. | with these [cities] captured and occupied, Parmenses of the church party, didn't have where to turn, if they would leave from Parma; therefore they had received checkmate, because they had nourished the serpent in the bosom |
• During a dispute with strong arguments Salimbene heard from Matulinus:
| Et conclusistis michi et scaccum michi dixistis, nec habeo amplius quid respondeam. | and you silenced me and you said to me check, and I have nothing to respond |
- front image: the city of Parma, in Beschreibung vnd Contrafactur der vornembster Stät der Welt (Band 1), by Braun, Georg; Hogenberg, Franz; Novellanus, Simon, 1574 - 1582, p. 49v, in https://digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/diglit/braun1582bd1/0107/image,info
- Salimbene di Adam Cronica, in Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Scriptores, vol. 32 [1905], p. 1ff, in https://www.dmgh.de/mgh_ss_32/index.htm#page/(1)/mode/1up
- BAV Vat. lat. 7260 in https://opac.vatlib.it/mss/detail/Vat.lat.7260
thank you for reading....
