The Merovingian Dynasty.

The founding of the Merovingian Empire after the departure of the Romans under Clovis I. Effects of the germanic invasions.

Beauvais, Soissons, Amiens, Troyes, and Reims, with their dependencies, were governed by Syagrius, the Roman, in defiance of the senate; and this was all that remained in Gaul, even in name, to the fallen empire of the west. (Syagrius was the last independent “Roman” ruler in Gaul (“Warlord”).

In 486/87 he was defeated by the Frankish army commander and rexClovis I in the battle of Soissons, and was later executed at his command.)

Alsace and Lorraine, with a large part of Germany, belonged to the Alemanni; Armorica or Brittany, to the Bretons; all the south of Gaul, from the river Loire to the Pyrenees, to the West Goths; and the basin of the Rhone to the Burgundians.

Battle of Soissons (486).

Clovis first directed his arms against Syagrius, and defeated him in a battle near Soissons.

After which he extended his kingdom to the banks of the Seine; moved from Tournay; and made Soissons the capital of his kingdom. As Syagrius, like his father, had been declared the enemy of the empire, the news of his defeat was very acceptable to the Roman senate, which conferred upon the conqueror the titles of consul and patrician.

Battle of Tolbiac (496).

His next expedition was against the Alemanni, whom he repulsed with great slaughter at Tolbiac, now called Zulpich, near Cologne; and compelled the cession of all their territories between the Moselle and the Rhine.

It was in this engagement he made a vow, while his soldiers were wavering, that if the God of his wife Clotilde granted him the victory, he would become a Christian.

When the blood-stained warrior, after the battle, presented himself in the cathedral at Reims, with his sister and 3000 of his followers, the aged prelate said to him “Sigambrian, henceforth shalt thou burn that which thou hast worshipped, and worship that which thou hast despised.”

Sigambrian.

The Sigambri were the chief tribe of the Salian Franks.

We are not to suppose that any change of heart had taken place in Clovis, but it is quite certain that no act could have been more politic. The pope Anastasius saluted him as “The most Christian King;” and the clergy were glad to play him off against the other princes of Gaul, who were of the Arian heresy.

From this moment his success was rapid and almost bloodless. All the cities of the Loire, except those of Amorica, opened their gates to him; and he ruled from the Loire to the river Rhine.

Defeat of the Burgundians (501).

His third great expedition was against the Burgundians, to which he was urged by the bishops of that country.

The ostensible plea for this aggression was vengeance against Gondebaud, their king, for having murdered Chilpéric, the father of queen Clotilde; but the real cause was the hatred of the clergy against him, because he was an Arian.

Gondebaud was easily vanquished; and the only terms imposed upon him were that he and all his subjects should renounce their heretical opinions, and return to the bosom of “holy church.” By this treaty the authority of the pope was restored in all the cities lying between the Rhone and the Saone [Sone].

The kingdom of the Burgundians continued only 33 years longer, and was then seized upon by three of the sons of Clovis and divided among them.

Battle Of Vougle’ (507).

On a similar pretence of zeal for the church, Clovis next attacked Alaric II., king of the West-Goths, who claimed dominion of all the south of France, west of the Rhone up to the river Loire [Lwor]. “It is very annoying,” said he to his warriors,” that these heretics should occupy all the garden-land of Gaul; let us up and drive them out.”

This speech was received with acclamations; and the army followed their favourite leader to Vougle, near Poitiers, where Alaric had halted to give him battle.

The struggle was fierce and sanguinary; Alaric was slain; and the whole territory of the West-Goths in Gaul, was added to the kingdom of the Franks.

Next year Theodore the Great, king of Italy, marched against Clovis, to avenge the death of Alaric his son-in-law; and a battle was fought at Arles [Arl], in which Clovis was defeated (508).

By a treaty of peace the West-Goths were now allowed to retain all that strip of coast which forms the gulf of Lyons, from the mouth of the Rhone to the Pyrenees; but all the rest of their territory was given up to Clovis.

The West-Goths continued to retain this grant for 222 years, when Charles Martel drove them wholly out of France. Some years later they returned to their old quarters, and were finally expelled by Pepin in 759.

EFFECTS OF THE GERMANIC INVASIONS.

The institutions, habits, and organization of the Franks in Gaul, must not be inferred from those of the same race in their native land. The position, wants, and constitution of the two people were totally different; and it would have been impossible to transfer to a war-faring band in a foreign country, the laws and customs of a nation settled and established. Hence a very common error is to be guarded against, that of presuming the Franks in Gaul to be the counterpart of the Franks in Germany.

The Franks in Germany had their chiefs, their leudes or thanes, their staff or antrustions, and their civil judges or mord-domes; but in Gaul they must have resembled, in a great measure at least, a bandit or free company.

The king or captain of a band had no regal rank or prescriptive authority. His followers were not his subjects, but his companions; who ranged under him of their own accord; left him when they liked; and undertook no expedition against their will. In such a society there must of necessity be much of the spirit of clanship, a very loose moral discipline, a strict military one, and a prodigality in the leader more binding than law.

Of course pillage would be the prime object of such adventurers; and though the leader would take the largest share, he would not of necessity be the richest man, as he would be expected to reward every service with ungrudging liberality.

When Clovis became master of Gaul, his chief followers would gradually become the proprietors of the soil. He would reward from time to time his distinguished warriors with grants of land, called fees.

The persons thus provided for would depart to inhabit their tenement, carrying with them a host of companions and retainers. A village would gather round the great house, not a village of free cotters, but one of the labourers and servants employed upon the estate.

The operation of such a system in a few years would be felt in the following manner:

(1) The leader or captain, being no longer kept in check by his great warriors, would grow more arrogant; and the royal principle would be rapidly developed.

(2) The feofees would grow into a landed aristocracy, powerful, wealthy, and ungovernable.

(3) The people, dispossessed of their estates, robbed and plundered without redress, and cared for by no one, would sink lower and lower, and become more abject and servile, as the line between them and their foreign lords became more broadly marked.

(4) Lastly, the unity of the original band would be broken up. Each landed proprietor would have his own separate interest. And the nation would become an ill-cemented throng of isolated lords, apt to be disturbed whenever one more ambitious than the rest chose to make aggressions. The following anecdote will shew how limited was the kingly power of Clovis.

After the Battle of Soissons, he wished to appropriate a valuable vase, but one of the warriors stepped forward, and broke it to atoms with his battle-axe, saying, “Thou shalt have thy share only, like the rest of us.” Clovis dissembled his anger, but did not forget the insult; and one day finding the same warrior had neglected to clean his axe, snatched it out of his hand and split his skull, saying, “Remember the vase of Soissons.”

THE INFLUENCE OF THE CHURCH IN THE BARBARIAN PERIOD.

The only power which struggled against barbarism, and the only check upon the fierce passions of the conquerors, was the church. The bishops were the natural chiefs of the large towns.

They governed them as magistrates; protected them by their power; and represented them before the barbarians. When Clovis was baptized they became his chief counsellors, and advised him how to act towards the vanquished people; and thus were they the moulders of the nascent royalty.

A third position now opened to them, that of landed proprietors. They shared with the warriors in the possession of the soil. Thus was their influence three-fold: They were the advisers of the crown; the protectors of the people; and the rivals of the warrior chiefs. There can be no doubt that in those times they were the salt of the earth.

They were the most learned, intelligent, and experienced body in the nation; and their influence on a whole was directed to laudable objects.

Prosperity and power, brought with them their usual consequences, arrogance and corruption. And later kings had to do battle with the church, not for its defence of liberty and letters, but for its obstinate resistance of progress, and its efforts to enslave.

Of course the wild hordes which were baptized in masses without having received religious instruction, could know very little of the doctrines and spirit of Christianity. They had been brought up in idolatry; and naturally looked upon God as a sort of Odin, and Jesus Christ as a deified hero.

They treated their new “deities” according to their knowledge; and when they acted wickedly thought to avert their displeasure by bribes. Hence their lavish presents to the clergy, their magnificent churches, and their religious foundations. Being wholly unable to write and read, the clergy had to instruct them by sensible objects; and hence the pomp and pageantry, the signs and symbols, the carnal threats and promises, introduced.

To us who have been taught from infancy the simplicity and spirituality of the gospel, this show and grandeur seem inconsistent; but they were not without their wholesome influence among those gross and barbarous people.

CELEBRITIES IN THE REIGNS OF THE ROIS FAINEANTS.

St. Eloi (588 – 659), the “patron saint of smiths and artists,” lived in this period. He was master of the mint in the reign of Clotaire II., and the intimate friend of the 1st Dagobert.

He carried the art of working in the precious metals to great perfection; and several specimens of his skill are still extant: such as the bas-relief on the tomb of St. Germain, bishop of Paris; several gold and silver shrines; and a golden throne enriched with precious stones, made for king Clotaire.

Disgusted with the world, he retired to a monastery; from which he was afterwards drawn to preside over the see of Noyon; in which high office he acquitted himself with such piety and judgment, that he was canonized after death.

Dunkirk or Dune-kirk, according to tradition, receives its name from the kirk or church built by St. Eloi on the dunes or hills.

LITERATURE IN FRANCE PRIOR TO THE REIGN OF CHARLEMAGNE.

The darkest periods of literature in France were those which preceded and followed the reign of Charlemagne. Latin was universally employed for all literary purposes, not so much from choice, as from necessity; for what we now term French was not then formed into a language. In the former of these two dark periods there were but three names which stand out with any degree of prominence, Gregory of Tours, Frédégaire, and Avitus.

Gregory (539 – 595) bishop of Tours, has left us one of the most valuable relics of antiquity, an Ecclesiastical History from the death of St. Martin in 397 to the close of the fifth century. There is no art or method in this work, which is simply jottings of what the author saw or was told. The Latin is barbarous, the style harsh and undignified, the narrative crowded with “lying wonders,” yet is it both amusing and instinctive; and shews a fine imagination, and most accurate knowledge of human nature.

Frédégaire (592 – 660) continued, in his fifth book, the history of Gregory; but the continuation is in every respect inferior to the first part: nevertheless it fills up a gap which no other author supplies. His first four books are worthless chronicles beginning with creation.

St. Avitus (460 – 525) was the most distinguished poet from the sixth to the 8th century. His poems (in Latin hexameters) called The Creation, The Fall, and The Expulsion from Paradise, resemble in many points our own “Paradise Lost.”

Summary:

Fashion and Clothing

Clothing in the Merovingian period reflected social status and was heavily influenced by Gallo-Roman and Frankish traditions. The website clearly distinguishes between the clothing of the nobility, the middle class, and the common population.

Nobility and Upper Class:
The fashion of the nobility was magnificent and served as a status symbol.

• Men: Noblemen often wore a tunic decorated with elaborate braids, as well as trousers. Over this, a richly decorated cloak was worn, fastened at the shoulder with a fibula (a type of brooch). Goldsmithing and jewelry were essential components of the noble appearance.
• Women: Noblewomen also dressed in long tunics, which were often layered. Their garments were made of finer fabrics and adorned with embroidery and decorative elements. Special emphasis was placed on jewelry, including fibulae, necklaces of glass beads and precious stones, and large earrings.

Common People and Peasants:
The clothing of the common population was primarily functional and made from coarser materials such as wool and linen.

• Men wore simple, knee-length smocks or tunics and long trousers.
• Women wore long, plain dresses.
• For protection against the weather, simple coats or cloaks made of thick wool were used. The Gallic tradition of comfortable and practical clothing, such as the Gallic cloak, was continued here.

Weapons of the Merovingian Period

Weaponry was a central element of Frankish and Merovingian culture, especially for warriors and nobles. The typical equipment of a Frankish warrior included:

• Scramasax: A short sword or long knife that served as both a weapon and a tool.
• Spatha: A long, double-edged sword adopted from the Roman cavalry.
• Francisca: A special throwing axe that was a characteristic weapon of the Franks.
• Shield: A round or oval wooden shield, often with a metal boss in the center.
• Lance: A thrusting weapon used by both infantry and cavalry.

The Life of Nobles and Common People

Society was strictly divided into hierarchical estates, which was clearly evident in daily life.

The Life of the Nobility:
The life of the nobility was characterized by political and military leadership, as well as land ownership.

• Residences: Nobles lived in fortified manors or in the remains of Roman villas. These served as administrative centers for their lands.
• Duties: The main tasks of the nobility consisted of warfare, managing their territories, and administering justice. Hunting was a popular pastime and also served as military training.
• Royal Court: A portion of the nobility lived at the king’s court to participate in political decisions and to show their loyalty.

The Life of the Common People:
The vast majority of the population consisted of peasants, who were either free farmers cultivating their own land or unfree peasants dependent on a landlord.

• Work: Their life was defined by hard agricultural labor, which was dictated by the seasons. They grew grain, vegetables, and fruit, and raised livestock.
• Housing: They lived in simple wooden houses or sunken-featured huts in small villages.
• Tributes and Services: Unfree peasants had to give a portion of their harvest to the landlord and perform corvée labor, meaning unpaid work on the lord’s lands. Their lives were marked by poverty and low social mobility.

Source:

• The political, social, and literary history of France. Brought down to the middle of the year 1874. By the Rev. Dr. Cobham Brewer
• Les mémoires de la roine Marguerite. Marguerite de Valois (reine de France; 1553-1615). Published 1628.
• Queen Margot, wife of Henry of Navarre, by Williams, Hugh Noel (1870-1925). Published 1911.
• Costumes civils et militaires des Français à travers les siècles. 1883. Author: Jean Baptiste Marie Augustin Challamel. Engraver: Meunier, Jean-Baptiste. Ouvrage couronné par l’Académie francaise.
• Paris à travers les siècles. Histoire nationale de Paris et des Parisiens depuis la fondation de Lutèce jusqu’à nos jours, etc. Author: Nicolas Jules Henri, Gourdon de Genouillac. Paris 1879.