Saint Maximinus Village

The village of Saint Maximinus is the bustling town on the lands of the monastery where the people who work the land dwell. They are primarily a separate economic unit than the monastery itself, but there is some sharing of resources that is negotiated by the abbot, as landlord, and the monastery's cellarer who is in charge of keeping the monks and nuns fed. The greatest amount of contact between the village and the monastery occurs on Sundays, when the villagers, who have no separate parish, attend weekly mass in St. Maximinus Chapel.

Demographics

Two thirds of the residents of St. Maximin come from old Gallo-Roman stalk, with the remaining third of Frankish or indeterminate origin. Many of the old Roman families have been peasants for generations, but some, like Lucius's family, used to wealthy but fell on hard times during shifts to the econimic landscape of Trier. The unusual demographic makeup of St Maximinus is due in part to the conservative Roman identity of Trier in general and partly to the fall into obsolescence of nearby villas in late Merovingian times, leading the residents of the villas to settle in the shadow of the monastery.

Government

St. Maximin is governed by a small town council comprising the leading members of village society. Each year they elect from among themselves a representative to liase between the village and the abbot of the monastery, who is the de facto ruler of the village as the owner of the lands. The abbot holds an annual court outside St. Maximinus Chapel where the villagers can settle their disputes.

Founding Date

565

Alternative Name(s)

Saint Maximin

Population

87 at the beginning of Breaking the Silence

Location under

St Maximinus

Related Traditions

• Saint John's Eve

It was dark. All Stephen could see when he looked around were the stars in the sky and an orange bonfire off in the distance. He took Fredegund’s hand again and the two of them jumped down and followed Lucius across the field toward the bonfire.
Stephen grinned as he got close enough to the bonfire to feel its heat. In the shadowy light he could make out the shapes of people dancing, children playing, and big strong women carrying platters of food around to all the villagers.