Certainly there were bishops, and others, who have heard something
about this book and about some of my other writings; leaving them
aside, my greatest wish was to reach you. In reading this you should
consider that, if I occasionally have deviated from common
grammatical practice, I have done it to correct the vices, the style
that slithers along the ground, of the earlier history. I see
villages, cities, towns, fervently studying grammar, for which reason
I tried, to the best of my abilities, not to deviate from the ancient
historians. Finally, consider that while taking care of my household
duties, listening to the many cases brought to my attention, I burned
with the desire to write, and, even more, to pass the story along;
and while I was compelled outwardly to listen to various problems,
presented with biting urgency, inwardly I was steadily compelled to
persist in what I had begun. No one should be surprised that I make
use of a style very much different from that of the Commentaries on
Genesis or the other little treatises; for it is proper and
permissible to ornament history with the crafted elegance of words;
however, the mysteries of sacred eloquence should be treated not with
poetic loquacity, but with ecclesiastical plainess. Therefore I ask
you to accept this graciously, and to keep it as a perpetual monument
to your name.




Preface to the book of the deeds of God by means of the Franks

In trying to compose the present small work, I have placed my faith
not in my literary knowledge, of which I have very little, but rather
in the spiritual authority of the history events themselves, for I