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The Germanic World Patrick Geary Summary

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Patrick Geary starts his innovative study with, “The Germanic World was perhaps the greatest and most enduring creation of Roman political and military genius” (Geary, 1988, vi). Clovis, King of the Franks, constructed this Germanic World with distinct Roman influence. Throughout his study, Geary argues that Clovis is a complex mixture of both Frankish and Roman traditions. This mixture would lead to the foundation of a powerful Germanic dynasty, the ultimate creation of France, and a western civilization still recognized in the modern world. Clovis, a Barbarian referred to as “Augustus” syncretized these Germanic and Roman worlds by maintaining his Germans roots while fashioning his rule off Roman traditions.

I believe that Clovis owes a great deal of his success to his father and predecessor, Childeric. Childeric was the last Frankish commander in the Roman military tradition, which was the “primary means of Romanization” (Geary, 1998, 79). This service in the Roman army was a catalyst for the Romanization of Clovis during his rule. One funeral inscription in particular shows the depth of Roman influence on the Frankish commanders reading, “I am a Frank by nationality, but a Roman soldier under the arms” (Geary, 1998, 79.) Childeric set more examples for his son as he maintained positive relations …show more content…

Controlled by Arian Christians, Clovis prayed to God to take Gaul saying, “Let us go with God’s help and conquer them and bring the land under control” (Tierney, 1999, 36). Clovis claimed victory and shortly thereafter received a quintessential Roman title. Emperor Anastasius presented Clovis with an official document that acknowledged him as an honorary consul (Geary, 1998). As Gregory of Tours details, he was now called “Augustus”, a Roman title often given to emperors (Tierney, 1999, 37). This new title only strengthened Clovis’ power over the Gallo-Roman aristocracy, which was essential to his success as a Barbarian

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Author of the book, Becoming Charlemagne, by Jeff Sypeck provides a clear glimpse into the life of one of the world’s greatest kings and ruler and later emperor Charlemagne, otherwise known as Karl or Charles the Great. Sypeck creates a vivid and strong look into the time of Charlemagne, early medieval Europe and some other important world leaders, including Pope Leo III, Irene the Byzantine emperor, Alcuin the scholar and Harun al-Rashid ruler of Baghdad. These figures are crucial to the story of Karl becoming Charlemagne, and their stories included in the book help form and symbolize Charlemagne the Ruler. Understanding Charlemagne and early medieval Europe is presented vibrantly throughout the book by in-depth stories, facts and a clear

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Easton, Stewart C., and Helene Wieruszowski. The Era of Charlemagne: Frankish State and Society. Robert E. Krieger Publishing, 1961. Questia School, Accessed Apr 14, 2018. Mombert, J. I. A History of Charles the Great (Charlemagne).

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Clovis first wanted to increase his power. Clovis killed the chiefs of other Frankish tribes, and assumed over over all the Frankish tribes. Clovis defeated Syagrius in a battle near Soissons, northeast of Paris. 2. Why did Clovis convert to Christianity?

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I. Introduction Charlemagne, also known as Charles the Great, was a medieval ruler who served as the King of the Franks and later the first Holy Roman Emperor from 768 to 814 CE. He is known for his military conquests, religious reforms, and promotion of education and culture in Europe. On the other hand, the Caesars were the rulers of the Roman Empire, one of the most significant civilizations in human history. They ruled from the foundation of the Roman Republic in 509 BCE to the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 CE. The purpose of this essay is to compare and contrast the achievements, reigns, and legacies of Charlemagne and the Caesars.

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As an official in the palace and one of the king’s friends, Einhard had one of the best possible views of Charlemagne and his rule. In this “public history of this most distinguished and deservedly most famous king” (Einhard 51), Einhard writes to Charlemagne’s descendants and the rest of posterity about the fame of the Frankish Empire and to preserve the memory of its mightiest ruler. Einhard is an extremely biased author, however. Once upon a time, Charlemagne offered shelter and kindness to Einhard in his court, and in return Einhard ignored the more shocking facts about Charlemagne, like his true motives in practicing Catholicism and his dysfunctional family, specifically his daughters and grandchildren, even after Charlemagne’s death in

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Whether it is the characterization of the Merovingians, the early life of Charlemagne, and his illegitimacy, or his failed campaign as part of an attempt to aid a Muslim ally in Spain, Einhard chooses to skip over facts that may be damaging to Charlemagne, and instead focus on the great deeds of the man he describes as a foster-father. For this reason, it is important to understand, when studying Einhard’s The Life of Charlemagne, that, while it is the single best source for information on Charlemagne as Einhard was indeed a contemporary with great access to the subject, it is written with a specific agenda. This leads to omissions in order to show the greatness of the character of Charlemagne, at the expense of a full accounting of events.   Bibliography Bouchard, Constance. “Images of the Merovingians and Carolingians.”

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In her chapter on the historiography of Roman exemplarity, Christina Shuttleworth Kraus examines this loss of power through the transition of exempla as the res gestae populi Romani to the res gestae divi Augusti (Kraus, 2). In early Roman history, exemplarity rested in the hands of popular consciousness; the citizens of Rome had the sole power of deciding which events or people to raise up to the status of exempla. This system of exemplarity that is explained in detail by Matthew Roller’s four stage model of the creation of exempla by public discourse (Roller, 216-217). However, Roller’s framework begins to collapse when Augustus intentionally influences exemplary power through his coercive Res Gestae. Rather than looking to the past for the great deeds of common people like the Sabine women or Lucretia, Roman citizens of the Augustan period had their attention directed towards the persona of one man, an exemplar in the form of an emperor.

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