Manasses II (archbishop of Reims)

Manasses II (died 17 September 1106) was the Archbishop of Rheims (1096–1106), most significantly at the time of the First Crusade and the Crusade of 1101.

He was of the House of Châtillon, a son of Manasses the Bald, vidame of Rheims. He studied under Bruno at the cathedral school of the city. Bruno himself was a student of the Carthusian order. Manasses was first provost then treasurer of the cathedral. He was elected bishop in 1096 following the death of Renaud de Bellay. At the time he had yet to receive holy orders.

As archbishop, he opposed the independent-minded monks of Saint-Remi. According to Pope Urban II, he was "born . . . full of zeal." He died among the canons of Saint-Denis of Rheims and left behind many letters by which we learn much of his episcopate and the concurrent crusading movement in northern France.

References

• Nouvelle Biographie Générale. Vol 33 Mal-Mar. Paris, 1859.