Dhuoda

[1] Dhuoda, author of the Liber Manualis, was a significant Carolingian woman and writer from a powerful Austrasian family in Aachen.

[2] Her husband Bernard was the son of William of Gellone, Duke of Toulouse and Charlemagne's cousin,[2] who was later named the patron saint of knights.

[4] Bernard was a Count of Barcelona and during their marriage he was advisor to Emperor Louis and protector of the Empress Judith as well as being appointed to the office of chamberlain.

[7] Although Dhuoda was married to the most prominent Frankish magistrate at the time, she is not mentioned in any contemporary works from that period except her own.

[3] It was a work written when Dhuoda had been separated from both her husband and her two sons, the victim of the conflicting ambitions of Charlemagne's descendants.

Louis would hold onto authority over the eastern Franks, Charles established himself in the west, and Lothar received territory that cut north to south from the Low Countries to Italy.

[3] Some historians also believe that in addition to her son Dhuoda intended to have the extended audience of his peers at court including Charles the Bald.

[10] In addition to being a guide for William, Dhuoda provides examples of her knowledge on Christian texts like the Bible and other topics, like the Latin language.

(Book 3)[3] Dhuoda often references works by thinkers including Alcuin of York, Gregory of Tours, and Augustine of Hippo, among many others.

[3] Dhuoda's work was not widely studied until 1975 when Pierre Riché translated the text in French in 1975 and it was available for wider distribution.

[citation needed] Duoda is the name given to the Duoda Women’s Research Centre or Centre for Research on Women at the University of Barcelona, Spain[11] The Liber manualis (full title: Liber manualis Dhuodane quem ad filium suum transmisit Wilhelmum) has been edited and translated: A selection of secondary literature in English and French: