Where Troubadours Were Bishops

This is the study of a man whose life touched on many of the most important developments of his age. Known by various names, he rose to prominence as a troubadour and was elected Bishop of Toulouse in 1205. He was an active foe of heresy in the region and faced many local political and financial problems in his see, sometimes forced by pressure to leave and preach elsewhere. As a figure, he provides a useful lens through which to see his time and place in an unusually sophisticated light. He allows us to consider why his society developed as it did, and the degree to which those developments were forseen by those who intiated them.