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History of the Franks: A Captivating Guide to a Group of Germanic Peoples Who Invaded the Western Roman Empire
Did you know that the barbarian tribe known as the Franks were the founders of present-day France?
After assimilating with the Romans in the imperial province of Gaul, the Franks established a unified dominion under King Clovis in the late 5th and early 6th centuries.
Under Clovis’s successors, the Frankish kingdom fractured. Warring factions of Franks, under the leadership of the royal descendants of Clovis, imprisoned or more often killed each other. They forced the luckiest of their rivals into monasteries and removed potential royal wives by exiling them to convents.
The several kings of France not only fought each other but also fought off barbarian and Christian invaders. Their various domains were under continuous threat from warlike ethnic groups who pushed into Frankish territories from the west and south. It was not until the rise of a military genius by the name of Charles Martel in the 8th century that the Franks were able to recreate the unified country that Clovis had established.
This history of the Franks is peppered with assassinations, marriages for political alliance, deception, and intrigue. Battles fought between contending Frankish royal families and against foreign invaders involved strategies and tactics that would form the basis of subsequent knightly militarism in the Middle Ages.
The Franks were both a nasty lot of violent warmongers and generous patrons of the Christian church. They exhibited highly civilized behavior, such as codifying laws and founding monasteries. On the other hand, the kings, their wives, their children, and their aristocratic minions were in a constant struggle to maintain authority. Power was achieved at times through political maneuvering but most often through the simple means of murder.
In this book, you will Scroll up and click the “add to cart” button to learn more about the history of Franks!
After assimilating with the Romans in the imperial province of Gaul, the Franks established a unified dominion under King Clovis in the late 5th and early 6th centuries.
Under Clovis’s successors, the Frankish kingdom fractured. Warring factions of Franks, under the leadership of the royal descendants of Clovis, imprisoned or more often killed each other. They forced the luckiest of their rivals into monasteries and removed potential royal wives by exiling them to convents.
The several kings of France not only fought each other but also fought off barbarian and Christian invaders. Their various domains were under continuous threat from warlike ethnic groups who pushed into Frankish territories from the west and south. It was not until the rise of a military genius by the name of Charles Martel in the 8th century that the Franks were able to recreate the unified country that Clovis had established.
This history of the Franks is peppered with assassinations, marriages for political alliance, deception, and intrigue. Battles fought between contending Frankish royal families and against foreign invaders involved strategies and tactics that would form the basis of subsequent knightly militarism in the Middle Ages.
The Franks were both a nasty lot of violent warmongers and generous patrons of the Christian church. They exhibited highly civilized behavior, such as codifying laws and founding monasteries. On the other hand, the kings, their wives, their children, and their aristocratic minions were in a constant struggle to maintain authority. Power was achieved at times through political maneuvering but most often through the simple means of murder.
In this book, you will Scroll up and click the “add to cart” button to learn more about the history of Franks!
- GenresHistory
100 pages, Paperback
Published May 22, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
May 26, 2021
The modern country we know as France came about through the Franks, a group of "barbarian" Germanic peoples who migrated into northern Gaul (probably Belgium and northern France). It is from the leadership of the Franks that the Carolingian and the Capetian Dynasties emerged. In fact, 'France' is derived from the barbarians (Franks) who unified her.
What an interesting explanation of the phrase "Dark Ages." I appreciated the interesting discussion of what the Dark Ages means now, versus in the 14th-century. There's also an interesting explanation of how various barbarian groups gathered together and migrated, forming the Franks, the Visigoths, the Vandals, and the Ostrogoths.
The author explains that, until the rise of the Christian church, charity towards the lower classes was an unheard-of idea. The harsh lives of the poor, sick, and maimed only began to be lifted when piety was aroused in the Christian soul.
One thing one must admit from reading about these rulers, they weren't afraid of a little fratricide, regicide, or matricide, if the mood struck. On the religious side, it is amazing that there are so many examples of Franks having ecclesiastical decorative art from Byzantium. It seems that the Franks adopted art from pre-Christian pagan tribes, Egyptian Coptic, and Roman styles.
Until reading this, I was unaware of the role of the monastery in the life of the community. Monastic establishments were often established by aristocrats and served as the center of spiritual life and served as the mortuaries for its wealthy patrons. Thus, by the end of the 6th century, Franks buried their dead in churchyards instead of cemeteries or fields.
The rule of the Frankish kings devolved after Clovis united his realm. As the kings became weaker, the aristocracy increased their power. Before long, they exerted hereditary power. However, as a last hurrah, a Frankish Duke and Prince of the Franks, Charles Martel, once again united the Frank empire. Martel increased his power by turning the ecclesiastical offices from one of caring for the faithful to demonstrating considerable power over the secular world. This book traces the Franks from Clovis to the end of the Merovingian kings and to the dawn of a new dynasty -- the Carolingian.
What an interesting explanation of the phrase "Dark Ages." I appreciated the interesting discussion of what the Dark Ages means now, versus in the 14th-century. There's also an interesting explanation of how various barbarian groups gathered together and migrated, forming the Franks, the Visigoths, the Vandals, and the Ostrogoths.
The author explains that, until the rise of the Christian church, charity towards the lower classes was an unheard-of idea. The harsh lives of the poor, sick, and maimed only began to be lifted when piety was aroused in the Christian soul.
One thing one must admit from reading about these rulers, they weren't afraid of a little fratricide, regicide, or matricide, if the mood struck. On the religious side, it is amazing that there are so many examples of Franks having ecclesiastical decorative art from Byzantium. It seems that the Franks adopted art from pre-Christian pagan tribes, Egyptian Coptic, and Roman styles.
Until reading this, I was unaware of the role of the monastery in the life of the community. Monastic establishments were often established by aristocrats and served as the center of spiritual life and served as the mortuaries for its wealthy patrons. Thus, by the end of the 6th century, Franks buried their dead in churchyards instead of cemeteries or fields.
The rule of the Frankish kings devolved after Clovis united his realm. As the kings became weaker, the aristocracy increased their power. Before long, they exerted hereditary power. However, as a last hurrah, a Frankish Duke and Prince of the Franks, Charles Martel, once again united the Frank empire. Martel increased his power by turning the ecclesiastical offices from one of caring for the faithful to demonstrating considerable power over the secular world. This book traces the Franks from Clovis to the end of the Merovingian kings and to the dawn of a new dynasty -- the Carolingian.
May 24, 2021
At their time, the Franks as an European superpower, had a great influence over the events even in my country. However, my knowledge of their history as such, was very, very brief. And this book changed that significantly.
I was amazed by the bloody competition for the throne and the cold merciless acts between family members just for power. I especially want to highlight the detailed scenes with the Queen Brunhilda and her fate that I truly enjoyed reading.
The range of topic is very wide, thus this book provides us with a great solid foundation of the whole Franks’ history, ready to be researched further. Of course, the book was not meant to cover every single detail of every single aspect of the Frankish empire. By reading this book I received everything I had hoped for, and that was being familiar with the historical and geographical context, the nature of Franks, the kings, the fight over power and much more. Also, I need to pinpoint the amount of research that went into this books, same as into all of Captivating History books. Great historical read indeed.
I was amazed by the bloody competition for the throne and the cold merciless acts between family members just for power. I especially want to highlight the detailed scenes with the Queen Brunhilda and her fate that I truly enjoyed reading.
The range of topic is very wide, thus this book provides us with a great solid foundation of the whole Franks’ history, ready to be researched further. Of course, the book was not meant to cover every single detail of every single aspect of the Frankish empire. By reading this book I received everything I had hoped for, and that was being familiar with the historical and geographical context, the nature of Franks, the kings, the fight over power and much more. Also, I need to pinpoint the amount of research that went into this books, same as into all of Captivating History books. Great historical read indeed.
May 25, 2021
This was another great read. Due to the amount of information and explanations I kept myself scrolling to finish this book. I loved how in depth it went into the successors of Clovis I. The amount of information and tying into almost a story like feel kept me interested. I think this would be enjoyable to many readers who love history and/or one wanting to gain information on this specific topic.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews