Later a cardinal and patriarch of Jerusalem, Jacques de Vitry (circa 1160-1240) was a student at Paris in the late twelfth century and left an engaging account of student life at that time:

Almost all the students at Paris, foreigners and natives, did absolutely nothing except learn or hear—something new. Some studied merely to acquire knowledge, which is curiosity; others to acquire fame, which is vanity; others still for the sake of gain, which is cupidity and the vice of simony. Very few studied for their own edification, or that of others. They wrangled and disputed not merely about the various sects or about some discussions; but the differences between the countries also caused dissensions, hatreds and virulent animosities among them and they impudently uttered all kinds of affronts and insults against one another.

They affirmed that the English were...