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Bishop of Tours Saint Gregory,Lewis Thorpe | 720 pages | 01 Apr 1983 | Penguin Books Ltd | 9780140442953 | English | London, United Kingdom - Wikipedia

Gregory of Tours 30 November c. He was born Georgius Florentius and later added the name Gregorius in honour of his maternal great- grandfather. His most notable work was his Decem Libri Historiarum Ten Books of Historiesbetter known as the Historia Francorum History of the Franksa title that later chroniclers gave to it, but he is The History of the Franks known for his accounts of the miracles of saints, especially four books of the miracles of Martin of Tours. Martin's tomb was a major pilgrimage destination in the 6th century, and St. Gregory's writings had the practical effect of promoting this highly organized devotion. Gregory was The History of the Franks in Clermontin the Auvergne region of central . Gregory had several noted bishops and saints as close relatives his family effectively monopolised the Bishoprics of Tours, Lyons, and Langres at the time of his birthand, according to Gregory, he was connected to thirteen of the eighteen bishops of Tours preceding him by ties of kinship. Gregory's paternal grandmother, Leocadia, descended from Vettius Epagatus, the illustrious martyr of Lyons. His father evidently died while Gregory was young and his widowed mother moved to Burgundy where she had property. Gregory went to live with his paternal uncle St. Gallus, Bishop of Clermontunder whom, and his successor St. Avitus, Gregory had his education. Gregory also received the clerical tonsure from Gallus. Having contracted a serious illness, he made a visit of devotion to the tomb of St. Martin at Tours. Upon his recovery, he began to pursue a clerical career and was ordained deacon by Avitus. Upon the death of St. Euphroniushe was chosen as bishop by the clergy and people, who had been charmed The History of the Franks his piety, learning, The History of the Franks humility. Their deputies overtook him at the court of King Sigebert of Austrasiaand being compelled to acquiesce, though much against his will, Gregory was consecrated by Giles, Bishop of Rheims, on 22 Augustat the age of thirty-four. He spent most of his career at Tours, although he assisted at the council of Paris in Gregory lived also on the border between the Frankish culture of the The History of the Franks to the north and the Gallo- Roman culture of the south of Gaul. At Tours, Gregory could not have been better placed to hear everything and meet everyone of influence in Merovingian culture. Tours lay The History of the Franks the watery highway of the navigable . Five Roman roads radiated from Tours, which lay on the main thoroughfare between the Frankish north and Aquitania, with Spain beyond. At Tours the Frankish influences of the north and the Gallo-Roman influences of the south had their chief contact see map. As the center for the popular cult of St Martin, Tours was a pilgrimage site, hospital, and a political sanctuary to which important leaders fled during periods of violence and turmoil in Merovingian politics. The History of the Franks wrote in Late Latin which departed from classical usage frequently in syntax and spelling with relatively few changes in inflection. Summary- note- this is only a cursory summary of the major events in the royal . Gregory of Tours history is a dense work, full of numerous narratives and characters. Next Gregory covers the history of Christianity in Gaul and some of the major events in Roman-Gallo relations. Book 2- AD Covers the beginnings of the Merovingian dynasty. Book two ends with the death of King Clovis inafter his conquest of large tracts of land in modern day france. Book 3- AD Follows the four male inheritors of King Clovis who equally divide his realms at his death i. AD Despite their disputes, the four brothers can occasionally work together against a outside, such as successful cooperation against the in Eventually Clothar becomes the most powerful King in the Frankish realm. Book three ends with the death of king Theudebert I in He is a grandson of Clovis and son to king Theodoric I, who died in bequesting his kingdom to Theudebert. The kingdom after falls to Theudobald I until At the time of his demise in AD like Clovis before himthe Kingdom is divided equally between four sons of Clothar and again the Kingly sons quarrel for control of the The History of the Franks Kingdom. A truce between the brothers is maintained until after the death of King Charibert I son of Clothar in Clothars remaining sons Kings Sigibert, Guntram, and Chilperic; fight for the supremacy of the kingdom, with King Sigibert showing the strongest military force. Book four ends with the killing of King Sigbert in AD The History of the Franks Gregory of Tours blames Fredegund, the wife of King Chilperic for this assassination. The death leaves King Chilperic as The History of the Franks dominant king. Fredegund has long held a grudge against King Sigibert and his wife Brunhilda. Book 5- AD This book begins the part of the narrative where the author Bishop Gregory of Tourshas much personal knowledge about the events in the Frankish Kingdom. This book and the ones hereafter, are considerably longer and more detailed than previous, whilst covering a smaller amount of time. This book also contains Gregories impressions of ecclesiastical issues he saw in person and The History of the Franks some bearing on. This book describes a possible debate that Gregory had with a rival Arian church leader. Childebert is taken along with Brunhilda under the protection of King Gunthram, brother and sometime rival of King Chilperic. Now Childebert forms an alliance with his uncle, King Chilperic, who had often been an enemy of King Sigibert. Later, King Chilperic is murdered under mysterious circumstances in AD In the future The History of the Franks will be king of all franks until his death inbut that is beyond gregories narrative which end in roughly AD Fredegund and her son are under the protection of King Gunthram. She remains in power until her death in AD The History of the Franks in this book is the rebellion of Gundovald and its failure. Gundovald claimed to be a lost illegitimate son of dead King Chlothar I. Many of the Frankish nobles and the Byzantine emperors Maurice gave some support to this rebellion; however, it is swiftly crushed by King Guntram. Book 9- AD Brunhilda also formally allies with Guntram and comes under his protection. The 18 Bishops of Tours are named and described. Book ten ends with a summary of Gregorys previous written works. The Historia Francorum is made up of ten books. Books I to IV initially recount the world's history from the Creation as was traditional ; [5] but move quickly on to the Christianization of Gaulthe life and times of Saint Martin of Toursthe conversion of the Franks and the conquest of Gaul under Clovis[6] and the more detailed history of the Frankish kings down to the death of Sigebert I in At this date Gregory had been bishop of Tours for two years. After hearing rumours that the Bishop of Tours had slandered his wife, FredegundChilperic had Gregory arrested and tried for treason—a charge which threatened both Gregory's bishopric and his life. The third part, comprising books VII to X, takes his increasingly personal account to the yearand concludes with a plea for further chroniclers to The History of the Franks his work in entirety as indeed would be done. Readers of the Historia Francorum must decide whether this is a royal history and whether Gregory was writing to please his patrons. It is likely that one royal Frankish house is more generously treated than others. Gregory was also a Catholic bishop, and his writing reveals views typical of someone in his position. His views on perceived dangers of Arianismstill strong among the [10] led him to preface the Historia with a detailed expression of his orthodoxy on the nature of Christ. In addition, his ridiculing of pagans and Jews reflected how his works were used to spread the Christian faith. For example, in book 2, chaptershe describes the pagans as incestuous and weak and then describes the process by which newly converted King Clovis leads a much better life than that of a pagan and is healed of all the conundrums he experienced as a pagan. Gregory's education was the standard Latin one of Late Antiquityfocusing on Virgil 's Aeneid and Martianus Capella 's Liber de Nuptiis Mercurii et Philologiaebut also other key texts such as Orosius ' Chronicleswhich his Historia continues, and Sallust ; he refers to all these works in his own. His education, as was typical for the time, did not extend to a broad acquaintance with the pagan classics, [11] but rather progressed to mastery of the Vulgate Bible. Though he had read Virgil, considered the greatest Latin stylist, he cautions that "We ought not to relate their lying fables, lest we fall under sentence of eternal death. The main impression that historians once retained from the Historia focused on Gregory's anecdotes about The History of the Franks [14] until recently, historians tended to conclude that Merovingian Gaul was a chaotic, brutal mess. Recent scholarship has refuted that view. Through more careful readings, scholars have concluded that Gregory's underlying purpose was to highlight the vanity of secular life and contrast it with the miracles of the Saints. His Life of the Fathers comprises twenty hagiographies of the most prominent men of the preceding generation, taking in a wide range the spiritual community of early medieval Gaul, including lives of bishops, clerics, monks, abbots, holy men and hermits. Illidius is praised for his purity of heart, St. Brachio the abbot for his discipline and determination in study of the scriptures, St Patroclus for his unwavering faith in the face of weakness, and St. Nicetiusbishop of Lyonfor his justice. It is the life of St. Nicetius of Trierthough, which dominates this book; his great authority and sense of episcopal responsibility which is the focus of Gregory's account as his figure, predestined to be great, bestrides the lives of the others. It is told that he The History of the Franks a weight on his head, but he was unable to see what it was when turning around, though upon smelling its sweet The History of the Franks he realised that it was the weight of episcopal responsibility. Life of the FathersXVII, 1 He surmounts the others in the glory of his miracles, and was chosen by God to have the entire succession of past and future Frankish kings revealed to him. A further aspect of this work to note is the appearance of Gregory himself in certain sections, notably in the life of St. This is for two reasons: Firstly, it creates a distinct link between the temporal and the spiritual worlds, firmly placing the accounts The History of the Franks the lives in a world which is understandable and recognisable, or, seen from The History of the Franks other angle, confirming the presence of miracles in the temporal world. Secondly, the intercession of Gregory serves to set Leobardus straight, after he had been tempted by the devil Life of the FathersXX, 3and so this act The History of the Franks enhances the authority of bishops as a whole. Gregory's avowed aim in writing this book was to "fire others with that enthusiasm by which the saints deservedly climbed to heaven", though this was not his sole purpose, and he most surely did not expect his entire audience to show promise of such piety as to witness the power of God flowing through them in the way that it did for the fathers. More immediate concerns were at the forefront of his mind as he sought to create a further layer of religious commitment, not only to the Church at Rome, but to local churches and cathedrals throughout Gaul. Martinmeticulous attention is paid to the local as opposed to the universal Christian experience. Within these grandiloquent lives are tales and anecdotes which tie miracles, saints and their relics to a great diversity of local areas, furnishing his audience with greater knowledge of their local shrine, and providing them with evidence of the work of God in their immediate vicinity, thus greatly expanding their connection with and understanding of their faith. Attacks on heresy also appear throughout his hagiographies, and is taken to be the common face of heresy across Europe, exposed to great ridicule. Often, the scenes which expose the weaknesses of heresy Glory of the Martyrs79, 80 focus on images of fire and burning, whilst the Catholics are proved right by the protection lavished on them by God. This was of great relevance to Gregory himself as he presided over the important see of Tours, where extensive use was made of the cult of St. Martin in establishing the authority of the bishopric with the congregation and in the context of the Frankish church. Franks - Wikipedia

By Earnest Brehaut, [ from his translation ]pp. Students should not rely on this Introduction as a guide. Gregory of Tours :. History of the Franks. With liberal culture on the wane, or rather perishing in the Gallic cities there were many deeds being done both good and evil: the heathen were raging fiercely; kings were growing more cruel; the church. I have decided also that for the reckoning of the years the first book shall begin with the very beginning of the world, and I have given its chapters below. BOOK I. The captivity of the people of Israel and the generations to David. Hadrian and the heretics' lies and the martyrdom of Saint Polycarp and Justin. As I am about to describe the struggles of kings with the heathen enemy, of martyrs with pagans, of churches with heretics, I desire first of all to declare my faith so that my reader may have no doubt that I am Catholic. I have also decided, on account of those who are losing hope The History of the Franks the approaching end of the The History of the Franks, to collect the total of past years from chronicles and histories and set forth clearly how many years there are from the beginning of the world. But I first beg pardon of my readers if either in letter or in syllable I transgress the rules of the grammatic art in which I have not been fully instructed, since I have been eager only for this, to hold fast, without any subterfuge or irresolution of heart, to that which we are bidden in the church to believe, because I know that he who is liable to punishment The History of the Franks his sin can obtain pardon from God by untainted faith. I believe, then, in God the Father omnipotent. For the Father could not have been so named unless he had a son; and there could be The History of the Franks son without a father. But as for those who say: "There was a time when he was not," [ note: A leading belief of Arian Christology. I believe The History of the Franks the word of the Father by which all things were made was Christ. I believe that this word was made fresh and by its suffering the world was redeemed, and I believe that humanity, not deity, was subject to the The History of the Franks. I believe that he rose again on the third day, that he freed sinful man, that he ascended to heaven, that he sits on the right hand of the Father, The History of the Franks he will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe that this holy Trinity exists with separation of persons, and one person is that of the Father, another that the Son, another that of the The History of the Franks Spirit. And in this Trinity confess that there is one Deity, one power, one essence. I believe that the blessed Mary The History of the Franks a virgin after the birth as she was a virgin before. I believe that the soul is immortal but that nevertheless it has no part in deity. But as to the end of the world I hold beliefs which I learned from our forefathers, that Antichrist will come first. An Antichrist will first propose circumcision, asserting that he is Christ; next he will place his statue in the temple at Jerusalem to be worshipped, just as we read that the Lord said: "You shall see the abomination of desolation standing in the holy place. Let them learn then The History of the Franks Son here is the name applied to the Christian people, of whom God says: "I shall be to them a father and they shall be to me for sons. For he uses these words: "Not even the angels in heaven nor the Son," showing that he spoke these words not of the only-begotten but of the people of adoption. But our end is Christ himself, who will graciously bestow eternal life on us if we turn to him. Orosius toosearching into these matters very carefully, collects the whole number of years from the beginning of the world down to his own time. Victor also examined into this in connection with the time of the Easter festival. And so we The History of the Franks the works of the writers mentioned above and desire to reckon the complete series of years from the creation of the first man down to our own time, if the Lord shall deign to lend his aid. And this we shall more easily accomplish if we begin with Adam himself. In the beginning the Lord shaped the heaven and the earth in his The History of the Franks, who is the beginning of all things, that is, in his son; and after creating the elements of the whole universe, taking a frail clod he formed man after his own image and likeness, and breathed upon his face the breath of life and he was made into a living soul. And while he slept a rib was taken from him and the woman, Eve, was created. There is no doubt that this first man Adam before he sinned typified the Redeemer. For as the Redeemer slept in the stupor of suffering and caused water and blood to issue from his side, he brought into existence the virgin and unspotted church, redeemed by blood, purified by water, having no spot or wrinkle, that is, washed with water to avoid a spot, stretched on the cross to avoid a wrinkle. These first human beings, who were living happily amid the pleasant scenes of Paradise, were tempted by the craft of the serpent. They transgressed the divine precepts and were cast out from the abode of angels and condemned to the labors of the world. Through intercourse with her companion the woman conceived and bore two sons. But when God received the sacrifice of the one The History of the Franks honor, the other was inflamed with envy; he rushed on his brother, overcame and killed him, becoming the first parricide by shedding a brother's blood. Then the whole race rushed into accursed crime, except the just Enoch, who walked in the ways of God and was taken up from the midst by The History of the Franks Lord himself on account of his uprightness, and reed from a sinful people. For we read: " Enoch walked with the Lord, and he did not appear for God took him. And so the Lord, being angered against the iniquities of the people who did not walk in his ways, sent a flood, and by its waters destroyed every living soul from the face of the earth; only Noah, who was most faithful and especially belonged to him and bore the stamp of his image, he saved in the ark, with his wife and those of his three sons, that they might restore posterity. Here the heretics upbraid us because the holy Scripture says that the Lord was angry. Let them know therefore that our God is not angry like a man; for he is aroused in order to inspire fear; he drives away to summon back; he is angry in order to amend. Furthermore I have no doubt that the ark typified the mother church. For passing amidst the waves and rocks of this world it protects us in The History of the Franks motherly arms from threatening ills, and guards us with its holy embrace and protection. In these ten generations years are included. The book Joshua clearly indicates that Adam was buried in the land of Enacim, which before was called Hebron. Noah had after the flood three sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth. From Japheth issued nations, and likewise from Ham and from Shem. And, as ancient history says, from these the human race was scattered under the whole heaven. The first-born of Ham was Cush. He was the first inventor of the whole art of magic and of idolatry, being instructed by the devil. He was the first to set up an idol to be worshipped, at the instigation of the devil, and by his false power he showed to men stars and fire falling from heaven. He passed over to the Persians. The Persians called him Zoroaster, that is, living star. They were trained by him to worship fire, and they reverence The History of the Franks a god the man The History of the Franks was himself consumed by the divine fire. Since men had multiplied and were spreading over all the earth they passed out from the East and found the grassy plain of Senachar. There they built a city and strove to raise a tower which should reach the heavens. And God brought confusion both to their vain enterprise and their language, and scattered them over the wide world, and the city was called Babyl, that is, confusion, because there God had confused their tongues. This is Babylonia, built by the giant Nebron, son The History of the Franks Cush. As the history of Orosius tells, it is laid out foursquare on a very level plain. Its wall, made of baked brick cemented with pitch, is fifty cubits wide, two hundred high, and four hundred and seventy stades in circumference. A stade contains five agripennes. Twenty-five gates are situated on each side, which make in all one hundred. The doors of these gates, which are of wonderful size, are cast in bronze. The same historian tells many other tales of this city, and says: "Although such was the glory of its building still it was conquered and destroyed. Abraham, who is described as "the beginning of our faith. Isaac, Esau, Jacob, Job. The twelve patriarchs, the story of Joseph, and the coming out of Egypt to the crossing of the Red Sea. Since many authorities have made varying statements about this crossing of the sea I have decided to give here some information concerning the situation of the place and the crossing itself. And many travelers say its shores are filled at the present time with holy monasteries. And on its bank is situated, not the Babylonia of which we spoke above, but the city of Babylonia in which Joseph built wonderful granaries of squared stone and rubble. From this city the king set out in pursuit of the Hebrews with armies of chariots and a great infantry force. Now the stream mentioned above coming from the east passes in a westerly The History of the Franks towards the Red Sea; and from the west a lake or arm of the Red Sea juts out and stretches to the east, being about fifty miles long and eighteen wide. Toward this arm the Hebrews hastened through the wilderness, and they came to the sea itself and encamped, finding fresh water. It was it this The History of the Franks, shut in by the wilderness as well as by the sea, that they encamped, as it is written: "Pharaoh, hearing that the sea and the wilderness shut them in and that they had no way by which they could go, set out in pursuit of them. And many tales are told of this The History of the Franks, as I have said. But we desire to insert in this account what we have learned as true from the wise, and especially from those who have visited the place. They actually say that the furrows which the wheels of the chariots made remain to the present time and are seen in the deep water as far as the eye can trace them. And if the roughness of the sea obliterates them in a slight degree, when the sea is calm they are divinely renewed again as they were. Others say that they returned to the very bank where they had entered, making a small circuit through the sea. And others assert that all entered by one way; and a good many, that a separate way opened to each tribe, giving this evidence from the Psalms: "Who divided the Red Sea in parts. For there are many parts in this world, which is figuratively called a sea. For all cannot pass to life; equally or by one way. Some pass in the first hour, that is those who are born anew by baptism and are able to endure to the departure from this life unspotted by any defilement The History of the Franks the flesh. Others in the third hour, plainly those who are converted later in life; others in the sixth hour, being those who hold in check the heat of wanton living. And in each of these hours, as the evangelist relates, they are hired for the work of the Lord's vineyard, each according to his faith. These are the parts in which the passage is made across this sea. As to the opinion that upon entering the sea they kept close to the shore and returned, these are the words which the Lord said to Moses: "Let them turn back and encamp before Phiahiroth which is between Magdalum and the sea before Belsephon. Now from the birth of Abraham to the The History of the Franks forth of the children of Israel from Egypt and the crossing of the Red Sea, which was in the eightieth year of Moses, there are reckoned four hundred and sixty-two years. The Israelites spend forty years in the wilderness. From the crossing of the Jordan to David. The captivity. From the captivity to the birth of Christ. In order not to seem to have knowledge of the Hebrew race alone [ note: Gregory's purpose is not realized ] we shall tell what the remaining kingdoms were in the time of The History of the Franks Israelites. In the time of Abraham Ninus ruled over the Assyrians; Eorops over the Sitiones; among the Egyptians it was the sixteenth government, which they call in their The History of the Franks tongue dynasty. It is dear that Gregory had not much sense of the historical perspective in spite of a list of states Which might impress his audience. He passes directly from "Servius the sixth king of Rome " to the founder of the empire. Frank | People, Definition, & Maps | Britannica

The Franks Latin : Franci The History of the Franks gens Francorum were a group of [1] whose name was first mentioned in 3rd-century Roman sources, and associated with tribes between the Lower and the Ems Riveron the edge of the . They imposed power over many other post-Roman kingdoms and Germanic peoples. Still later, Frankish rulers were given recognition by the as successors to the old rulers of the Western Roman Empire. Although the Frankish name does not appear until the 3rd century, at least some of the original Frankish tribes had long been known to the Romans under their own names, both as allies providing soldiers, and as enemies. The new name first appears when the Romans and their allies were losing control of the Rhine region. The Franks were first reported as working together to raid Roman territory. However, from the beginning the Franks also suffered attacks upon them from outside their frontier area, by the Saxonsfor example, and as frontier tribes they desired to move into Roman territory, with which they had had centuries of close contact. Frankish The History of the Franks inside Rome's frontier on the Rhine river included the who from their first appearance were permitted to live in Roman territory, and the Ripuarian or Franks who, after many attempts, eventually conquered the Roman frontier city of and took control of the left bank of the Rhine. Later, in a period of factional conflict in the s and s, Childeric Ia Frank, was one of several military leaders commanding Roman forces with various ethnic affiliations in Roman The History of the Franks roughly modern France. Childeric and his son faced competition from the Roman Aegidius as competitor for the "kingship" of the Franks associated with the Roman Loire forces. According to Gregory of Tours The History of the Franks, Aegidius held the kingship of the Franks for 8 years while Childeric was in exile. This new type of kingship, perhaps inspired by Alaric I[9] represents the start of the Merovingian dynasty, which succeeded in conquering most of Gaul in the 6th century, as well as establishing its leadership over all the Frankish kingdoms on the Rhine frontier. It was on the basis of this Merovingian empire that the resurgent Carolingians eventually came to be seen as the new Emperors of Western Europe in Inthe crusader population of Jerusalem mostly comprised French settlers who, at the time, were still referred to as Franks, and other Europeans such as SpaniardsGermans and Hungarians. From the beginning the Frankish kingdoms were politically and legally divided between an eastern more Germanic part, and the western part that the Merovingians had founded on Roman soil. The eastern "Frankish" part came to be known as the new " ", and was from early times occasionally called "". Within "Frankish" Western Europe itself, it was the original Merovingian or "Salian" Western Frankish kingdom, founded in Roman Gaul and speaking Romance languageswhich has continued until today to be referred to as "France" — a name derived directly from the Franks. The name Franci was not a tribal name, but within a few centuries it had eclipsed the names of the original peoples who constituted them. Following the precedents of Edward Gibbon and Jacob Grimm[16] the name of the Franks has been linked with the English adjective " frank ", originally meaning "free". Eumenius addressed the Franks in the matter of the execution of Frankish prisoners in the circus at Trier by Constantine I in and certain other measures: [20] [21] Latin : Ubi nunc est illa ferocia? Ubi semper infida mobilitas? Where is that ever untrustworthy fickleness? Latin : Feroces was used often to describe the The History of the Franks. A formulary written by Marculf about AD described a continuation of national identities within a mixed population when it stated that "all the peoples who dwell [in the official's province], Franks, Romans, Burgundians and those of other nations, live North of the River Loire everyone seems to have been considered a Frank by the mid-7th century at the latest [except Bretons The History of the Franks Romani [Romans] were essentially the inhabitants of Aquitaine after that". Apart from the History The History of the Franks the Franks by Gregory of Tourstwo early sources relate the mythological origin of the Franks: a 7th-century work known as the and the anonymous Liber Historiae Francorumwritten a century later. Many say that the Franks originally came from and first inhabited the banks of the Rhine. Then they crossed the river, marched through Thuringia, and set up in each county district and each city longhaired kings chosen from their foremost and most noble family. The author of the Chronicle of Fredegar claimed that the Franks came originally from and quoted the works of Virgil and Hieronymous :. Blessed Jerome has written about the ancient kings of the Franks, whose story was first told by The History of the Franks poet Virgil: their first king was Priam and, after Troy was captured by trickery, they departed. Afterwards they had as king Friga, then they split into two parts, the first going into Macedonia, the second group, which left Asia with Friga were called the Frigii, settled on the banks of the Danube and the Ocean Sea. Again splitting into, two groups, half of them The History of the Franks Europe with their king Francio. After crossing Europe with their wives and children they occupied the banks of the Rhine and not far from the Rhine began to build the city of "Troy" Colonia Traiana-. According to historian Patrick J. Gearythose two mythological stories are "alike in betraying both the fact that the Franks knew little about their background and that they may have felt some inferiority in comparison with other peoples of antiquity who possessed an ancient name and glorious tradition. Both legends are of course equally fabulous for, even more than most barbarian peoples, the Franks possessed no common history, ancestry, or tradition of a heroic age of migration. Like their Alemannic neighbours, they were by the sixth century a fairly recent creation, a coalition of Rhenish tribal groups who long maintained separate identities and institutions. There they founded a city called Sicambria. The were the most well-known tribe in the Frankish homeland in the time of the early Roman empire, still remembered though defeated and dispersed long before the Frankish name appeared. The Franks are first mentioned in the Augustan Historya collection of biographies of the Roman emperors. None of these sources The History of the Franks a detailed list of which tribes or parts of tribes became Frankish, or concerning the politics and history, but to quote Jamesp. In the emperor Maximian defeated the Salian FranksChamaviFrisians and other Germanic people living along the Rhine and moved them to inferior to provide manpower and prevent the settlement of other Germanic tribes. The History of the Franks were moved to the nearby region of Toxandria. It seems likely that the term Frank in this first period had a broader meaning, sometimes including coastal Frisians. The Franks were described in Roman texts both as allies and enemies dediticii. About the year one group of Franks penetrated as far as Tarragona in present-day Spain, where they plagued the region for about a decade before they were subdued and expelled by the Romans. In orthe Roman Caesar Maximian forced a Frankish leader Genobaud and his people to surrender without a fight. Maximian then forced the Salians in Toxandria the present The History of the Franks Countries to accept imperial authority, but was not able to follow on this success by reconquering Britain. The Life of Aurelianwhich was possibly written by Vopiscus, mentions that inFrankish raiders were captured by the 6th Legion stationed at . As a result of this incident, Franks were killed The History of the Franks were sold into slavery. The Franks are mentioned in the Tabula Peutingerianaan atlas of Roman roads. It is a 13th-century copy of a 4th or 5th century document that reflects information from the 3rd century. The Romans knew the The History of the Franks of Europe, but their knowledge is not evident from the map, which was only a practical guide to the roads to be followed from point to point. In the middle Rhine region of the map, the word is close to a misspelling of . Beyond Mainz is Suevia, the country of the Suebiand beyond that is Alamannia, the country of the Alamanni. Four tribes at the mouth of the Rhine are depicted: the The History of the Franksthe Amsivarii 'Ems dwellers'the and the Chamavifollowed by qui et Pranci 'who are also Franks'. This implies that the were considered Franks. The Tabula was probably based on the Orbis Pictusa map of twenty years' labour commissioned by and then kept by the Roman's treasury department for the assessment of taxes. It did not survive as such. Information about the imperial divisions of Gaul probably derives from it. The Salians were first mentioned by Ammianus Marcellinuswho described Julian 's defeat of "the first Franks of all, those whom custom has called the Salians," in Some decades later, Franks in the same region, possibly the Salians, controlled the River and were disrupting transport links to Britain in the English Channel. Although Roman forces managed to pacify them, they failed to expel the Franks, who continued to be feared The History of the Franks pirates. The Salians are generally seen as the predecessors of the Franks who pushed southwestwards into what is now modern France, who eventually came to be ruled by The History of the Franks Merovingians see below. This is because when the The History of the Franks dynasty published the Salian law Lex Salica it applied in the Neustrian area from the river Liger Loire to the Silva Carbonariathe western kingdom founded by them outside the original area of Frankish settlement. In the 5th century Franks under pushed into Roman lands in and beyond the " " or "Charcoal forest", which ran through the area of modern western . The forest was the The History of the Franks of the original Salian territories to the north and the more Romanized area to the south in the Roman The History of the Franks of Belgica Secunda roughly equivalent to what Julius Caesar had long ago called "". Chlodio conquered TournaiArtoisCambraiand as far as the Somme river. Chlodio is often seen as an ancestor of the future Merovingian dynasty. Childeric Iwho according to Gregory of Tours was a reputed descendant of Chlodio, was later seen as administrative ruler over Roman Belgica Secunda and possibly other areas. Records of Childeric show him to have been active together with Roman forces in the Loire region, quite far to the south. His descendants came to rule Roman Gaul all The History of the Franks way to there, and this became the Frankish kingdom of Neustriathe basis of what would become medieval France. This later became the Frankish kingdom of Austrasiawhere the early legal code was referred to as "Ripuarian". The Rhineland Franks who lived near the stretch of the Rhine from roughly Mainz to Duisburgthe region of the city of Cologneare often considered separately from the Salians, and sometimes in modern texts referred to as . Like the Salians they appear in Roman records both as raiders and as contributors to military units. Unlike the Salii, there is no record of when, if ever, the empire officially accepted their residence within the The History of the Franks. They eventually succeeded to hold the city The History of the Franks Cologne, and at some point seem to have acquired the name Ripuarians, which may have meant "river people". In any case a Merovingian legal code was called the Lex Ribuariabut it probably applied in all the older Frankish lands, including the original Salian areas. Their territory on both sides of the Rhine became a central part of Merovingian Austrasiawhich stretched to include Roman later Germania Secundawhich included the original Salian and Ripuarian lands, and roughly equates to medieval Lower as well as Prima late Roman "Belgium", roughly medieval Upper Lotharingiaand lands on the east bank of the Rhine. The kingdom of the Merovingians eventually came to dominate the others, possibly because of its association with Roman power structures in northern Gaul, which the Frankish military forces were apparently integrated into to some extent. Aegidiuswas originally the magister militum of northern Gaul appointed by Majorianbut The History of the Franks Majorian's death apparently seen as a Roman rebel who relied on Frankish forces. Gregory of Tours reported that was exiled for 8 years while Aegidius held the title of "King of the Franks". Eventually Childeric returned and took the same title. Aegidius died in or Clovis later defeated the son of Aegidius, Syagriusin or and then had the Frankish king Chararic imprisoned and executed. A few years later, he killed Ragnacharthe Frankish king of , and his brothers. By the s, he had conquered all the Frankish kingdoms to the west of the River Maas except for the Ripuarian Franks and was in a position to make the city The History of the Franks Paris his capital. He became the first king of all Franks inafter he had conquered Cologne. Clovis I divided his realm between his four sons, who The History of the Franks to defeat Burgundy in Internecine feuding occurred during the reigns of the brothers Sigebert I and Chilperic Iwhich was largely fuelled by the rivalry of their queens, Brunhilda and Fredegundaand which continued during the reigns of their sons and their grandsons. Three distinct subkingdoms emerged: AustrasiaNeustria and Burgundy, each of which developed independently and sought to exert influence over the others. The influence of the Arnulfing clan of ensured that the political centre of gravity in the kingdom gradually shifted eastwards to the Rhineland. The Frankish realm was reunited in by Chlothar IIthe son of Chilperic, who granted his nobles the Edict of Paris in an effort to reduce corruption and reassert his authority. After the Battle of Tertry ineach mayor of the palacewho had formerly been the king's chief household official, effectively held power until inwith the approval of the Pope and the nobility, Pepin the Short deposed the last Merovingian king Childeric III and had himself crowned. This inaugurated a new dynasty, the Carolingians. The unification achieved by the Merovingians ensured the continuation of what has become known as the Carolingian Renaissance. The was beset by internecine warfare, but the combination of Frankish rule and Roman Christianity ensured that it was fundamentally united. Frankish government and culture depended very much upon each ruler and his aims and so each region of the empire developed differently. Although a ruler's aims depended upon the political alliances of his family, the leading families of Francia shared the same basic beliefs and ideas of government, which had both Roman and Germanic roots.