The Franks

The Franks conquered much of what was the Roman Province of Gaul (France).

Because it was a Kingdom, the Franks were ruled by royal families, the most famous Frank family was the Merovingians.

The Merovingians ruled for close to 300 years and the most successful ruler was Clovis I (481-511 A.D.)

After the death of Colvis, the Merovingian Kingdom fell apart due to constant infighting or violent bickering between Clovis’ heirs.

The Franks were a violent people, but they had laws to govern themselves. Their law was called the Salic Code.

The Salic Code included slaves, wives and children as property.

The Franks had a very distinct social class that separated the rich from the poor.

The majority of the Franks were Serfs, who are peasant farmers attached to the land and who worked for the land owner or Lord. Pathways ch1 Earlymid 4

The Franks

Directions: Read pages 21-23 in your text Pathways - Civilizations Through Time and answer the following questions:

1. Provide definitions for the following vocabulary words:

wergild plague arson social class betrothal

2. Answer the following questions using COMPLETE SENTENCES:

a. Describe how a typical Frank would dress or look. (2)

b. Who were the Merovingians and why did their kingdom fall apart? (2)

c. Under the Salic Code, crimes were punishable by slavery, banishment, torture, death or most often by a fine. Make a chart that lists the fines for the following crimes; (5 mks)

i) touching a woman’s hand ii) grave robbing iii) killing a pregnant woman iv) killing a boy under twelve v) killing a girl under twelve

d. Who was Gregory of Tours and what is he famous for? Give an example of a primary resource and an example of a secondary resource. (2) 3. Examine the Bar Graph Exercise on page 24 of your text, Pathways - Civilizations Through Time, and create your own bar graph comparing two categories of your choice. Remember, every bar graph has TWO axes. The horizontal axis show the categories (the population under twelve) and the vertical axis shows the values that you measure those categories (pop. %). You will be marked out of 3 for each set of bar graphs, for a total of 6 marks.