DOCSLIB.ORG

Britons in the Gaul of Sidonius Apollinaris

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Britons in the Gaul of Sidonius Apollinaris Britons in the Gaul of Sidonius Apollinaris Edwin Melvyn (Bob) Birks A thesis submitted for the degree of Master of Philosophy of The Australian National University September 2004 Statement This is to certify that, where not otherwise acknowledged, this dissertation is entirely my own work. It is the result of research carried out by me while a candidate for the degree of Master of Philosophy, in the Australian National University. Edwin Melvyn (Bob) Birks Acknowledgments I would first like to express my gratitude to the various teaching, library and administrative staff with whom I have dealt during my time at the Australian National University, and from whom I have received kindness, co-operation and assistance beyond the call of duty. In particular, I must thank my supervisor, Professor Matthew Spriggs of the Department of Archaeology and Anthropology, who has shown exemplary patience and forbearance during periods when the production of this dissertation was interrupted through problems of ill health. I am grateful too for the warmth and generosity and of the staff and fellows of St Cross College, as well as a number of other scholars at Oxford University, where much of the research for this dissertation was accomplished. 1 would like also to thank the many among the international community of scholars of the Late Antique period who have, over time, responded in prompt and kindly fashion to my queries. On a more personal note, I should acknowledge the encouragement of my long-time friend Dr Mark Pallas. But most of all, I am deeply grateful to my wife, Kim, for suffering through the various problems and inconveniences inevitably generated by the presence of an irascible husband trying to complete an apparently endless thesis - and doing so with love. It is to her that this dissertation is dedicated. Table of Contents MAPS................................................................................................................................................... i INTRODUCTORY MATTERS...........................................................................................................1 BRITONS IN THE WORLD OF SIDONIUS APOLLINARIS: CONTEXTUAL BEGINNINGS........................................................................................................13 Introduction ............................................................................................................................ 13 U ‘Britain’, ‘Britons’, ‘British’: meanings in g o n tex t.............................................14 1.1.1 The construction and significance of ethnic identity in Late Antiquity................... 14 1.1.2 Late Antique use of Britanni, Brittones, and related terminology........................... 21 1.2 Sidonius and Post-imperial Br it a in ..........................................................................32 1.2.1 The Separation of the British Diocese from the Empire...........................................32 1.2.2 Sidonius and the ecclesiastical links between Gaul and Britain.................................40 SIDONIUS AND THE CLOSING DECADES OF THE WESTERN EMPIRE..........................51 Introduction............................................................................................................................. 51 1. Sidonius and the E mpire to the d epo sitio n of Avitus (AD 449-56)..................52 2. Patriciate of Ricimer to the accession of Anthemius (AD 457-67)..................56 3. Anthemius, and Sidonius’Prefecture of Rome (AD 467-69).................................61 4. Sidonius’ ordination as Bishop of Clermont (g AD 470).....................................69 5. VlSIGOTHIC CHALLENGE IN GAUL AND IMPERIAL RESPONSE (AD 470-71).................. 71 A BRITISH INTERVENTION IN MID FIFTH CENTURY GAUL: EVIDENCE FROM THE LETTERS OF SIDONIUS APOLLINARIS.......................................79 Introduction............................................................................................................................. 79 3.1 The letter of Arvandus to Euric (Sid onius, E pistulae l.vn.5)........................ 80 3.1.1 Background......................................................................................................................80 3.1.2 The Text: Epistulae I. vii. 5 ........................................................................................82 3.1.3 Discussion........................................................................................................................82 3.2 Sidonius’ letter to Riothamus (Epistulae IILix) .................................................. 85 3.2.1 Background......................................................................................................................85 3.2.2 The Text: Epistulae IILix .................................................... 87 3.2.3 Discussion........................................................................................................................88 3.3 The Le tt e r to Faustus (Sidonius, Epistulae IX.ix . 6)...........................................90 3.3.1 Background......................................................................................................................90 3.3.2 The Text: Epistulae IX.ix.6 ........................................................................................ 94 3.3.3 Discussion........................................................................................................................94 A BRITISH MILITARY INTERVENTION IN MID FIFTH CENTURY GAUL: EVIDENCE FROM JORDANES AND GREGORY OF TOURS............................................... 99 Introduction .................................................................................................................... ....... 99 4. l T he question of source d e p e n d e n c e .................................................................... loo 4.2 T he D e ORIGINE A CÜBUSQUE Ge TARUM OF JORDANES: XLV. 237-38.................... 102 4.2.1 The Author.................................................................................................................... 102 4.2.2 Source Background and Reliability..............................................................................103 4.2.3 The Text: Jordanes, Getica XLV. 237-38..................................................................107 4.2.4 Discussion......................................................................................................................107 4.3 T he H istqriae [FrancorumJ of G regory of Tours (II. 18)............................... 114 4.3.1 The Author.................................................................................................................... 114 4.3.2 Background and Source Reliability..............................................................................114 4.3.3 The Text (Gregory, Historia Francorumll. 18)......................................................115 4.3.4 Discussion......................................................................................................................116 4.4 T he Q uestion of O r ig in s............................................................................................ 118 4.5 RlOTHAMUS: NAME OR TITLE?......................................................................................... 122 THE END OF ROMAN CLERMONT: A BRITISH ROLE?....................................................127 Introduction ...........................................................................................................................127 5.1 D ating the Go n fu ct at Bourges.............................................................................128 5.1.1 The Contribution of John of Antioch........................................................................128 5.1.2 The Contribution of Sidonius Apollinaris..................................................................130 5.2 ECDiaUS AVITUS AND THE DEFENCE OF THE AUVERGNE (AD 471-74)...................135 5.3 The Burgundian Ascendancy (AD 472-74)............................................................. 139 5.4 RlOTHAMUS AND HIS MEN AFTER BOURGES (AD G471-74)........................................143 5.5 T he END OF THE WESTERN EMPIRE AND AFTERWARD (AD 475-85)..........................146 CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................. 151 BIBLIOGRAPHY............................................................................................................................. 157 1. Primary Sources................................................................................................................. 157 2. Com pendia of Primary Sources and Refer e n c e s...................................................160 3. Secondary Sources............................................................................................................161 Maps 1. Western Roman Empire - Early 5™ Century........................................................... i 2. Late 5™ century Gaul (Physical).............................................................................ii 3. Late 5™ century Gaul (Ecclesiastical)................................................................. iii 4. Britain - Intensity of Romanisahon..................................................................... iv 5. Britain - ‘Anglo-saxon’ cemetries g AD 525..................................................... iv 6. Britain - class 1 inscribed stones..............................................................................v
Load more

Recommended publications
  • An N U Al R Ep O R T 2018 Annual Report
    ANNUAL REPORT 2018 ANNUAL REPORT The Annual Report in English is a translation of the French Document de référence provided for information purposes. This translation is qualified in its entirety by reference to the Document de référence. The Annual Report is available on the Company’s website www.vivendi.com II –— VIVENDI –— ANNUAL REPORT 2018 –— –— VIVENDI –— ANNUAL REPORT 2018 –— 01 Content QUESTIONS FOR YANNICK BOLLORÉ AND ARNAUD DE PUYFONTAINE 02 PROFILE OF THE GROUP — STRATEGY AND VALUE CREATION — BUSINESSES, FINANCIAL COMMUNICATION, TAX POLICY AND REGULATORY ENVIRONMENT — NON-FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE 04 1. Profile of the Group 06 1 2. Strategy and Value Creation 12 3. Businesses – Financial Communication – Tax Policy and Regulatory Environment 24 4. Non-financial Performance 48 RISK FACTORS — INTERNAL CONTROL AND RISK MANAGEMENT — COMPLIANCE POLICY 96 1. Risk Factors 98 2. Internal Control and Risk Management 102 2 3. Compliance Policy 108 CORPORATE GOVERNANCE OF VIVENDI — COMPENSATION OF CORPORATE OFFICERS OF VIVENDI — GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE COMPANY 112 1. Corporate Governance of Vivendi 114 2. Compensation of Corporate Officers of Vivendi 150 3 3. General Information about the Company 184 FINANCIAL REPORT — STATUTORY AUDITORS’ REPORT ON THE CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS — CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS — STATUTORY AUDITORS’ REPORT ON THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS — STATUTORY FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 196 Key Consolidated Financial Data for the last five years 198 4 I – 2018 Financial Report 199 II – Appendix to the Financial Report 222 III – Audited Consolidated Financial Statements for the year ended December 31, 2018 223 IV – 2018 Statutory Financial Statements 319 RECENT EVENTS — OUTLOOK 358 1. Recent Events 360 5 2. Outlook 361 RESPONSIBILITY FOR AUDITING THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 362 1.
    [Show full text]
  • Conomor Et Méliau, Des Mythes Insulaires À La Littérature Hagiographique Goulven Péron
    Conomor et Méliau, des mythes insulaires à la littérature hagiographique Goulven Péron To cite this version: Goulven Péron. Conomor et Méliau, des mythes insulaires à la littérature hagiographique. André- Yves Bourgès et Valéry Raydon. Hagiographie bretonne et mythologie celtique, Terre de Promesse, pp.317-340, 2016, Au cœur des mythes„ 978-2954162560. hal-01918634 HAL Id: hal-01918634 https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01918634 Submitted on 11 Nov 2018 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. Goulven PÉRON, "Conomor et Méliau, des mythes insulaires à la littérature hagiographique" (André-Yves Bourgès et Valéry Raydon éd.), Hagiographie bretonne et mythologie celtique, éditions du Cénacle et Terre de Promesse (Collection Au cœur des mythes, 4), septembre 2016, p. 317-340 CONOMOR ET MÉLIAU, DES MYTHES INSULAIRES À LA LITTÉRATURE HAGIOGRAPHIQUE Si les historiens sont peu nombreux aujourd’hui à douter de l’historicité du comte breton Conomor et de son protégé, le bien moins connu Méliau, et cela en dépit du fait que ces deux chefs bretons apparaissent principalement dans la littérature hagiographique, source qui répond d’ordinaire assez peu aux critères d’exigence scientifique, c’est que leur participation à la vie politique bretonne du VIe siècle semble attestée par une mention dans l’Historia Francorum « Histoire des Francs » de Grégoire de Tours.
    [Show full text]
  • Addenda Et Corrigenda
    Christian Settipani CONTINUITE GENTILICE ET CONTINUITE FAMILIALE DANS LES FAMILLES SENATORIALES ROMAINES A L’EPOQUE IMPERIALE MYTHE ET REALITE Addenda I - III (juillet 2000- octobre 2002) P & G Prosopographica et Genealogica 2002 ADDENDA I (juillet 2000 - août 2001) Introduction Un an après la publication de mon livre, il apparaît opportun de donner un premier état des compléments et des corrections que l’on peut y apporter1. Je ne dirais qu’un mot des erreurs de forme, bien trop nombreuses hélas, mais qu’il reste toujours possible d’éliminer. J’ai répertorié ici celles que j’ai relevées au hasard des lectures. En revanche, les corrections de fond s’avèrent un mal rédhibitoire. La mise à jour de nouveaux documents (et on verra que plusieurs inscriptions importantes doivent être ajoutées au dossier), la prise en compte de publications qui m’avaient échappées ou simplement une réflexion différente rendront toujours l’œuvre mouvante et inachevée. Il m’a semblé que pour garder au livre son caractère d’actualité il fallait impérativement tenir à jour des addenda. Une publication traditionnelle aurait pour conséquence que ces addenda seraient eux-mêmes rapidement rendus insuffisants voire obsolètes dans un temps très court, à peine publiés sans doute2. La meilleure solution s’impose donc naturellement : une publication en ligne avec une remise à niveau régulière que l’on trouvera, pour l’instant, sur : http://www.linacre.ox.ac.uk/research/prosop/addrome.doc Il est bien entendu que cet état reste provisoire et ne s’assimile pas encore à une publication formelle et que je reste à l’écoute des suggestions, critiques ou corrections que l’on voudra bien me faire, et que j’essaierai d’en tenir compte du mieux possible3.
    [Show full text]
  • ROMAN EMPERORS in POPULAR JARGON: SEARCHING for CONTEMPORARY NICKNAMES (1)1 by CHRISTER BRUUN
    ROMAN EMPERORS IN POPULAR JARGON: SEARCHING FOR CONTEMPORARY NICKNAMES (1)1 By CHRISTER BRUUN Popular culture and opposite views of the emperor How was the reigning Emperor regarded by his subjects, above all by the common people? As is well known, genuine popular sentiments and feelings in antiquity are not easy to uncover. This is why I shall start with a quote from a recent work by Tessa Watt on English 16th-century 'popular culture': "There are undoubtedly certain sources which can bring us closer to ordinary people as cultural 'creators' rather than as creative 'consumers'. Historians are paying increasing attention to records of slanderous rhymes, skimmingtons and other ritualized protests of festivities which show people using established symbols in a resourceful way.,,2 The ancient historian cannot use the same kind of sources, for instance large numbers of cheap prints, as the early modern historian can. 3 But we should try to identify related forms of 'popular culture'. The question of the Roman Emperor's popularity might appear to be a moot one in some people's view. Someone could argue that in a highly 1 TIlls study contains a reworking of only part of my presentation at the workshop in Rome. For reasons of space, only Part (I) of the material can be presented and discussed here, while Part (IT) (' Imperial Nicknames in the Histaria Augusta') and Part (III) (,Late-antique Imperial Nicknames') will be published separately. These two chapters contain issues different from those discussed here, which makes it feasible to create the di vision. The nicknames in the Histaria Augusta are largely literary inventions (but that work does contain fragments from Marius Maximus' imperial biographies, see now AR.
    [Show full text]
  • Age for Daniela Urem's Ancestors Back to Charts
    Geni - Ancestors 2/21/17, 2:34 Daniela Urem ▾ Search People 0 Geni Basic Home Tree Family ▾ Research ▾ PRO Upgrade Age for Daniela Urem's Ancestors Back to charts Select a Chart to View Age Click a region on the chart to view Chart: the profiles in that section. Life Expectancy This chart is based on 2681 Group: profiles with lifespan entered for Ancestors your Ancestors. Your tree has 2318 profiles with Slice: missing lifespan data. Make this All chart data chart better by adding missing data. View Profiles Edit Profiles 581-600 of 2681 people «Previous 1 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 135 Next» Photo Name Relationship Managed By Immediate Family Gender Birth Date Daughter of Edward I "The Elder", King of the Anglo-Saxons and Ælfflæd Eadgyth MP Wife of Otto I, Holy (908 - 946) Roman emperor "Princess Edith of Mother of Liudolf, Duke of England", Swabia; Liutgarde and "Edgitha", Richlint von Sachsen, "Editha", "Edith", Herzogin von Schwaben your 32nd great Sister of Aelfgifu between 908 "Ēadgȳð", Erin Spiceland Female grandmother AElfgar's wife of England; and 1/910 "Eadgyth", Eadwin; Æthelflæda, nun "Ēadgith", "Ædgyth", at Romsey; Ælfweard, "Ēadgy", king of the English and 5 "Eadgdith", "Edit others av England" Half sister of Æthelstan 'the Glorious', 1st King of the English; Ælfred; N.N.; Eadburgha, Nun at Nunnaminster and 3 others Daughter of Aëpa II, Khan of the Kumans and N.N. Wife of Yuri I Vladimirovich Dolgorukiy N.N. Aepovna, (the Long Arm) Kuman Princess Mother of Andrei I MP (c.1092 - your 28th great Bogolyubsky; Rostislav Bjørn P.
    [Show full text]
  • 6255 Kelly and Van Waarden Part 1.Indd
    See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344523990 “Sidonius’ People" Chapter · October 2020 CITATIONS READS 0 58 1 author: Ralph Mathisen University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign 77 PUBLICATIONS 382 CITATIONS SEE PROFILE Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects: Romans, Barbarians, and the End of the Western Roman Empire: Emperors, Tyrants, Generals, Potentates, and Kings View project All content following this page was uploaded by Ralph Mathisen on 07 October 2020. The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file. 2 SIDONIUS’ P EOPLE Ralph Mathisen 1 Introduction N THE LATE fi fth century, in his ‘Sermon on the saintly martyr Vincent’, bishop Faustus of IRiez (c. 460-90 CE) gave his opinion on the value of being named in a saint’s life: ‘What present-day realm, what transmarine province, however far the Roman Empire or the Christian religion extends, does not rejoice to celebrate the birth of Vincentius? Who today, however, has ever heard even the name of [the praeses] Datianus, unless he has read the passion of Vincent?’1 As far as Faustus was concerned, Datianus’ appearance in a saint’s life would be his only chance for remembrance.2 The same can be said for nearly all of the people who appear in the works of Sidonius Apollinaris. Late antique Gaul was a busy place.3 A lot was happening: the rise of the Christian church as the most signifi cant social and cultural institution; the creation of barbarian kingdoms cou- pled with the fi nal precipitous decline and end of Roman authority; and a social world that was very much in fl ux, as previously unprivileged social groups gained greater opportunities and means of self-expression.4 The 24 poems, and in particular the 147 letters, of Sidonius offer an unparalleled window on the world of late antique Gaul, and provide readers with a wealth of material about the people who populated it.5 Sidonius was well positioned to gather this kind of information.
    [Show full text]
  • King Arthur and Medieval Knights
    Renata Jawniak KING ARTHUR AND MEDIEVAL KNIGHTS 1. Uwagi ogólne Zestaw materiałów opatrzony wspólnym tytułem King Arthur and Medieval Knights jest adresowany do studentów uzupełniających studiów magisterskich na kierun- kach humanistycznych. Przedstawione ćwiczenia mogą być wykorzystane do pracy z grupami studentów filologii, kulturoznawstwa, historii i innych kierunków hu- manistycznych jako materiał przedstawiający kulturę Wielkiej Brytanii. 2. Poziom zaawansowania: B2+/C1 3. Czas trwania opisanych ćwiczeń Ćwiczenia zaprezentowane w tym artykule są przeznaczone na trzy lub cztery jednostki lekcyjne po 90 minut każda. Czas trwania został ustalony na podstawie doświadcze- nia wynikającego z pracy nad poniższymi ćwiczeniami w grupach na poziomie B2+. 4. Cele dydaktyczne W swoim założeniu zajęcia mają rozwijać podstawowe umiejętności językowe, takie jak czytanie, mówienie, słuchanie oraz pisanie. Przy układaniu poszczegól- nych ćwiczeń miałam również na uwadze poszerzanie zasobu słownictwa, dlatego przy tekstach zostały umieszczone krótkie słowniczki, ćwiczenia na odnajdywa- nie słów w tekście oraz związki wyrazowe. Kolejnym celem jest cel poznawczy, czyli poszerzenie wiedzy studentów na temat postaci króla Artura, jego legendy oraz średniowiecznego rycerstwa. 5. Uwagi i sugestie Materiały King Arthur and Medieval Knights obejmują pięć tekstów tematycznych z ćwiczeniami oraz dwie audycje z ćwiczeniami na rozwijanie umiejętności słucha- nia. Przewidziane są tu zadania na interakcję student–nauczyciel, student–student oraz na pracę indywidualną. Ćwiczenia w zależności od poziomu grupy, stopnia 182 IV. O HISTORII I KULTURZE zaangażowania studentów w zajęcia i kierunku mogą być odpowiednio zmodyfiko- wane. Teksty tu zamieszczone możemy czytać i omawiać na zajęciach (zwłaszcza z grupami mniej zaawansowanymi językowo, tak by studenci się nie zniechęcili stopniem trudności) lub część przedstawionych ćwiczeń zadać jako pracę domo- wą, jeżeli nie chcemy poświęcać zbyt dużo czasu na zajęciach.
    [Show full text]
  • Family Tree Maker
    Descendants of Beli Mawr Beli Mawr LLud Caswallon [1] [2] [2] [1] Penardun Llyr Adminius Llyr Penardun [3] Bran the [3] Bran the Blessed Blessed [4] [4] Beli Beli [5] [5] Amalech Amalech [6] [7] [6] [7] Eudelen Eugein Eudelen Eugein [8] [9] [8] [9] Eudaf Brithguein Eudaf Brithguein [10] [11] [10] [11] Eliud Dyfwyn Eliud Dyfwyn [12] [13] [12] [13] Outigern Oumun Outigern Oumun [14] [15] [14] [15] Oudicant Anguerit Oudicant Anguerit [16] [17] [16] [17] Ritigern Amgualoyt Ritigern Amgualoyt [18] [19] [18] [19] Iumetal Gurdumn Iumetal Gurdumn [20] [21] [20] [21] Gratus Dyfwn Gratus Dyfwn [22] [23] [22] [23] Erb Guordoli Erb Guordoli [24] [25] [24] [25] Telpuil Doli Telpuil Doli [26] [27] [26] [27] Teuhvant Guorcein Teuhvant Guorcein [28] [29] [28] [29] Tegfan Cein Tegfan Cein [30] [31] [30] [31] Guotepauc Tacit Guotepauc Tacit [32] Coel [33] [34] [32] Coel [33] [34] Hen Ystradwal Paternus Hen Ystradwal Paternus [35] [36] [37] [38] [39] [35] [36] [37] [38] [39] Gwawl Cunedda Garbaniawn Ceneu Edern Gwawl Cunedda Garbaniawn Ceneu Edern [40] Dumnagual [41] [42] [43] [44] [45] [36] [35] [40] Dumnagual [41] [42] [43] [44] [45] [36] [35] Moilmut Gurgust Ceneu Masguic Mor Pabo Cunedda Gwawl Moilmut Gurgust Ceneu Masguic Mor Pabo Cunedda Gwawl [46] Bran [47] [48] [49] [50] [51] [52] [53] [54] [55] [56] [57] Tybion ap [58] Edern ap [59] Rhufon ap [60] Dunant ap [61] Einion ap [62] Dogfael ap [63] Ceredig ap [64] Osfael ap [65] Afloeg ap [46] Bran [47] [48] [49] [50] [51] [52] [53] [54] [55] [56] [57] Tybion ap [58] Edern ap [59] Rhufon ap [60] Dunant
    [Show full text]
  • Writing to Survive PUBL2
    UvA-DARE (Digital Academic Repository) Writing to survive: A commentary on Sidonius Apollinaris, Letters Book 7, volume 1: The episcopal letters 1-11 van Waarden, J.A. Publication date 2009 Link to publication Citation for published version (APA): van Waarden, J. A. (2009). Writing to survive: A commentary on Sidonius Apollinaris, Letters Book 7, volume 1: The episcopal letters 1-11. General rights It is not permitted to download or to forward/distribute the text or part of it without the consent of the author(s) and/or copyright holder(s), other than for strictly personal, individual use, unless the work is under an open content license (like Creative Commons). Disclaimer/Complaints regulations If you believe that digital publication of certain material infringes any of your rights or (privacy) interests, please let the Library know, stating your reasons. In case of a legitimate complaint, the Library will make the material inaccessible and/or remove it from the website. Please Ask the Library: https://uba.uva.nl/en/contact, or a letter to: Library of the University of Amsterdam, Secretariat, Singel 425, 1012 WP Amsterdam, The Netherlands. You will be contacted as soon as possible. UvA-DARE is a service provided by the library of the University of Amsterdam (https://dare.uva.nl) Download date:27 Sep 2021 Letter 1 ‘Acts of War and Weapons of Faith’ Introduction 1 Overview • Subject matter and addressee The war, the bishop, and faith. These are the themes, not only of the opening letter of book 7, but of all of the episcopal letters contained in it, although they vary in approach.
    [Show full text]
  • Sidonius' World
    Cambridge University Press 978-1-108-42921-4 — Reading Sidonius' Epistles M. P. Hanaghan Excerpt More Information 1 CHAPTER 1 Sidonius’ World As a young man in the 440s and 450s Sidonius enjoyed all the traditional markers of the Roman elite: a noble birth, a classical education, a good marriage, privilege, and wealth. 1 By his death in the mid to late 480s the great secular Gallo- Roman aristocrat of his age was a bishop. 2 Barbarians likely lodged in his villa. 3 h ey certainly occupied his see, Clermont. His wife’s father had been murdered shortly after becoming emperor. 4 h e last Roman emperor in the West was dead, and the next generation inspired Sidonius with little coni dence that his belletrism would continue in the family, or even the Gallo- Roman aristocracy. Documenting accurately this fascinating period was not Sidonius’ aim – he checked himself from writing history. 5 If he was, as McLynn claims “Fifth Century Gaul’s … great historian manqué ,” this miss is of his own making. 6 Events during the 1 h e exact date of Sidonius’ marriage to Papianilla, the daughter of Fl. Eparchius Avitus is unclear. Loyen ( 1970a : x) suggested that Sidonius was twenty, Stevens ( 1933 : 19) proposes a slightly later date. For two later assessments of Sidonius’ life see Gregory of Tours 2.22 and Gennadius of Marseilles 92, neither of which may be relied upon with any certainity; Gregory manipulates Sidonius as a source when it suits him and on occasion misreads his meaning, for an example of which see Moorhead ( 2007 : 331), and for detailed analysis Furbetta ( 2015c ).
    [Show full text]
  • The Early Arthur: History and Myth
    1 RONALD HUTTON The early Arthur: history and myth For anybody concerned with the origins of the Arthurian legend, one literary work should represent the point of embarkation: the Historia Brittonum or History of the British . It is both the earliest clearly dated text to refer to Arthur, and the one upon which most efforts to locate and identify a histor- ical fi gure behind the name have been based. From it, three different routes of enquiry proceed, which may be characterised as the textual, the folkloric and the archaeological, and each of these will now be followed in turn. The Arthur of literature Any pursuit of Arthur through written texts needs to begin with the Historia itself; and thanks primarily to the researches of David Dumville and Nicholas Higham, we now know more or less exactly when and why it was produced in its present form. It was completed in Gwynedd, the north-western king- dom of Wales, at the behest of its monarch, Merfyn, during the year 830. Merfyn was no ordinary Welsh ruler of the age, but an able and ruthless newcomer, an adventurer who had just planted himself and his dynasty on the throne of Gwynedd, and had ambitions to lead all the Welsh. As such, he sponsored something that nobody had apparently written before: a com- plete history of the Welsh people. To suit Merfyn’s ambitions for them, and for himself, it represented the Welsh as the natural and rightful owners of all Britain: pious, warlike and gallant folk who had lost control of most of their land to the invading English, because of a mixture of treachery and overwhelming numbers on the part of the invaders.
    [Show full text]
  • Chapter 1 Barbarian Agency and Imperial Withdrawal: the Causes And
    Chapter 1 Barbarian agency and imperial withdrawal: the causes and consequences of political change in fourth- and fifth-century Trier and Cologne Introduction Snapshots from the years 310, 410, and 510 reveal that the political landscape of the Rhineland changed almost beyond recognition over the course of three centuries. In 310 AD, Trier was one of the foremost cities of the Roman Empire, acting as a main residence of the Emperor Constantine and the seat of the Gallic praetorian prefecture. In Cologne, meanwhile, the completion of the fortress of Divitia just across the Rhine reinforced the city’s significance in the context of imperial defensive strategy. By 410 AD, however, both the imperial residence and the praetorian prefecture had been removed from Trier, and many frontier troops who had been stationed near Cologne were gone. The Rhineland had suffered an apparently devastating barbarian invasion, that of the Vandals, Alans, and Sueves in 406, and was to face many more attacks in the coming half-century. After the invasion, the legitimate emperors were never to re- establish their firm control in the region, and the reign of the usurper Constantine III (407 - 411) marked the last period of effective imperial rule. Around 510 AD, the last vestiges of imperial political power had vanished, and both Trier and Cologne were part of the Frankish kingdom of Clovis. The speed and extent of this change must have dramatically affected many aspects of life within the cities, and, as such, it is crucial that we seek to understand what brought it about. In so doing, we must consider the fundamental question of whether responsibility for the collapse of imperial power in the Rhineland ultimately lies with the imperial authorities themselves, who withdrew from the region, or with the 11 various barbarian groups, who launched attacks on the frontier provinces and undermined the Empire’s control.
    [Show full text]