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The Gauls
But the colonists |
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The Franks
Actually, the first Germanic group to enter Roman territory – and take a permanent position within the Empire – were the Franks (in particular the Salian Franks). This name probably included a number of separate tribes located just east and north of the lower Rhine River as it enters the North Sea. During the 200s they raided deep within Roman territory on several occasions (even reaching Spain during a raid in 250) before being expelled by Roman forces. They settled the lower reaches of the Rhine (today's Netherlands) where they raided shipping to Britain. Finally they were settled down by the legions – though not removed from the territory. In 258 Salian Franks were permitted to settle in northern Gaul as "foederati," offering military service to Rome in exchange for the privilege of settling just within the Empire's northern borders (on the Roman side of the Rhine River). Not much is recorded about them as they seemed to have caused the Romans no particular concern, mostly serving to protect the northern borders of the Empire from other Germanic tribes (including other Frankish sub-tribes ... although more importantly the more violent Saxons). Mostly the resettlement program of the Salian Franks worked ... for, like most of the German tribes, their desire was ultimately to move in and take for themselves the benefits of higher Roman civilization – not to destroy it. They really come into history only with the dazzling conquests of Childeric and his son Clovis ... who finally succeeded later in bringing all of Gaul under Frankish rule (late 400s/early 500s) ...forcing the Visigoths to have to abandon to the Franks that portion of their once-extensive kingdom north of the Pyrenees Mountains. |
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Charles Martel's legacy
In 737, Theuderic, King of the Franks, died ... and Charles Martel neither took the royal title for himself nor selected another member of the declining Merovingian family to take the position. The position of King remained vacant for the rest of Charles's days. But of course Charles was totally in charge of the politics of this vast kingdom ... principally by forcing the rather self governing dukes and counts to acknowledge his sovereign rule over them, or by personal appointments of new dukes and counts ... not infrequently achieved by brutal military action. However he continued to respect the relative autonomy of Odo in Aquitaine ... and his son Hunald who took title as Duke of Aquitaine when Odo died in 735. Charles was also a very active agent of the Catholic Church ... providing heavy support to (Saint) Boniface as archbishop of Charles's extensive holdings east of the Rhine River ... with Boniface offering in return strong church support for Charles's rule. Pepin the Short (or "Lesser")
In 740, a year before his death, Charles designated his two sons as governors of his extensive kingdom: the older Carloman receiving Austrasia, Alemannia and Thuringia and the younger Pepin receiving Neustria, Burgundy, and Provence. Though both sons were devout Christians, educated by the monks of St. Denis (Paris), the quite pious Carloman in 747 took up monastic life at Monte Casino (Italy), leaving all of Francia to Pepin. Then an "understanding" developed between Pepin and Pope Zachary in 751, the latter who in exchange for Pepin's support against the hard-pressing Lombards in Italy declared the useless Merovingian kingship to have ended. This then allowed an assembly of Frankish nobles to elect Pepin as King of the Franks ... and then have his friend Boniface officiate at Pepin's coronation that same year. Thus was established the foundations of the new Carolingian dynasty as Frankish kings. The following year, the new pope Stephen II traveled to St. Denis to officially anoint Pepin as Roman Patrician (and thus protector of the Roman papacy) ... and his sons, the 12-year-old Charles (Charlemagne) and 3-year-old Carloman as eventual inheritors of their father's positions and titles. In return, Pepin forced the Lombard king to return Italian lands taken from the Church ... an action which came to be known as the "Donation of Pepin" ... certifying the Church as a major participant in what was beginning to take shape as the European feudal system. Pepin was naturally busy forcing local rulers to either acknowledge his suzerainty ... or be replaced by Pepin's own appointments. He also took the offensive against the Muslims of Septimania at Narbonne ... requiring seven years (752-759) to drive the Muslims – permanently – from this last bit of territory they held north of the Pyrenees. He then turned his attention to the duchy of Aquitaine in order to force that region as well to submit to his sovereign rule. It would take eight long years (760-768) of bloody warfare and brutal devastation to complete the task ... achieved just before he died in 768. Charlemagne (ruled 768-814)
In coming to power in 768 Charles (eventually "Charlemagne" or "Charles the Great") found himself facing a serious revolt in Aquitaine ... which he was able to put down fairly quickly ... even without the assistance of his brother Carloman, with whom relations became strained. But Carloman would not factor long in the scheme of Carolingian politics, for he died in 771 – only 20 years old. Against the Saxons. Meanwhile Charles had been pressing his borders deeper across Germania, defeating one Saxon tribe after another (pretty much over the entire course of his years of rule) ... bringing the Saxons to convert to Catholic Christianity as a part of his effort to solidify the foundations of his growing domain. But revolts among the Saxons were not uncommon. The Avars. Also, his son Pippin fought the nomadic Asian Avars when they invaded Bavaria and the German lands along the Danube River ... finally defeating them in 796 and bringing them into the Catholic faith. The Slavs. To the West of the Saxons were the Slavs, against whom Charlemagne led his army ... only to have the Slavs offer little resistance – but instead submit rather willingly to his rule, accepting his Catholic faith in the process. Indeed, the Slavs would become important allies in some of Charlemagne's further efforts to put down Saxon rebellions. They also served as allies in Pepin's battles with the Avars. Charlemagne crowned Emperor by Pope Leo III (800). In December of 800 Charlemagne was in Rome visiting his friend Pope Leo III – who had taken refuge at Charlemagne's court the previous year when the Pope found himself in danger from local Romans. On Christmas Day Pope Leo crowned Charlemagne as "Augustus" (Roman Emperor). The "Carolingian Renaissance"
When the Pope crowned Charlemagne as Roman Emperor, it seemed that Europe was possibly on track to restore the lost grandeur of Roman society and culture. Charlemagne's new empire brought political stability ... and consequently economic development. And that in turn stirred to life a dramatic intellectual-cultural revival ... developed largely because Charlemagne himself was extremely interested in cultivating scholarship within his empire ... especially as he himself (typical of Germanic political leadership) could not read. Consequently his capital at Aachen became a gathering place for scholars, artists and builders. They came from all around this diverse empire – and even beyond. His chief minister Alcuin was an English clergyman, scholar, author, poet and teacher of logic from York (not part of his empire). Charlemagne's court included also the Spanish Visigoth poet and scholar Theodulf, the Lombard historian Paul the Deacon, Roman-Italians grammarian Peter of Pisa and master theologian Paulinus of Aquileia, and numerous Franks ... the mathematician Einhard, the librarian Waldo, and the poet Angilbert, among them. Huge number of Latin works were rewritten in a simplified Latin script (not just capitals but also "minuscules" or lower-case letters) ... to make learning easier ... especially among the priests, many of whom were illiterate. And the collection of valuable writings occurred ... producing key libraries. Art and architecture also began a significant revival ... because of the German contact with the Mediterranean world where "Romanesque" architecture was still prevalent. Also, commercial relations with the Muslim world (built heavily on the sale of slaves) exposed the Carolingian world to more sophisticated art and architecture. Overall, the Carolingian building program was immense with numerous new cathedrals, hundreds of monasteries and around a hundred royal residences constructed during the 80-year Carolingian period of Charlemagne and his immediate successors. But perhaps most important – certainly at least to Charlemagne – was the moral and spiritual reform and strengthening of the Church, Charlemagne becoming involved in refinements of the Church's theology and doctrines. Charlemagne understood that a strong empire depended on a strong moral culture at its base. |
Equestrian bronze statuette
of Charlemagne (900s)
From the Treasury of the
Metz Cathedral (France)
He was at least 6
feet in height, with round face, thick in build –
thus physically a very impressive
warrior
Paris, Musée du
Louvre
Raban Maur (left), supported
by Alcuin (middle),
dedicates his work to Archbishop Otgar of Mainz (Right)
The Englishman Alcuin was
considered the unsurpassed scholar in Charlemagne's court
Vienna, Österreichische
Nationalbibliothek
Page from the "Ebbo Gospels"
(St. Matthew) (816-835)
Épernay, Bibliothèque
municipale
The Lorsch Gospels (ca. 780–820)
Lorsch Gospels (Codex Aureus
of Lorsch) 778–820 - Charlemagne's Court School
Ivory front book cover
Vatican, Bibliotheca
Apostolica
The Four Evangelicals (Matthew,
Mark, Luke and John)
from the Aachen Gospels (c. 820)
an example of Carolingian
illumination
A page of text from a Carolingian
Gospel, written in Carolingian miniscule
The text is Luke
23:14-26
British Library
Architecture of the Carolingian "Renaissance"
Charlemagne's Octagon Cathedral
at Aachen
The octagonal interior of
Charlemagne's Cathedral at Aachen
The Lorsch Monastery
Königshalle
(kings Hall)
St. Michael's Church, Fulda
(820-822)
St. Justinus' church in
Frankfurt-Höchst
(830)
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Louis the Pious (814-840)
In 813 Charlemagne had his only surviving son Louis the Pious (king of Aquitaine) elevated to the position of co-emperor with himself ... shortly before he died at the beginning of 814. Louis had gained a lot of experience holding the Carolingian line against the rather rebellious Basques and the expansive Islamic Moors of Spain ... Louis even led the Carolingian expansion across the Pyrenees in Northeastern Spain (Catalonia ... or the "Spanish March"). He also was redirected at one point to fight alongside his father at Beneventum in Italy. Nonetheless, Louis grew up understanding that he was to share his father's empire with his brothers, Charles the Younger, who was expected to take the emperorship and the heart of the Empire, and Pepin, who would rule over the Carolingian lands in Italy. But both brothers died just shortly before their father did (Pepin in 810 and Charles in 811) ... leaving Louis little time to get ready to take over his father's huge realm. Upon arriving at Aachen to take over the realm, one of the first things he did was move swiftly to remove potential sources of challenge to his rule – relatives mostly, and women was well as men – largely by forcing them to take monastic orders and sending them to nunneries and monasteries ... or at least priestly positions within the Church. But he would still have problems ... not only among independent-minded dukes but over the question of inheritance among his sons – particularly after he nearly died in an accident in 817, and decided to publish a will outlining his inheritance among his three sons. His oldest son Lothair was to receive the imperial title and the greatest portion of the Empire. Pepin was assigned Aquitaine and Louis was assigned Bavaria. Furthermore, in accordance with Salian law,1 the children of his own sons were then to receive the right to their fathers' lands. Supposedly all this then provided for an orderly transfer of the realm in case of his own death. That was not to be. It became virtually the declaration of war among his sons as they maneuvered to improve their inheritance ... mostly against Lothair and his privileged position in all this. But in fact the first person to rebel against this assignment was a nephew Bernard, who realized that he was destined to lose his position as King of Italy (received from his deceased father Pepin). When Louis moved his army toward Italy, Bernard surrendered to his uncle ... only to have himself tried and condemned to death for treason ... although Louis had the sentence reduced to blinding – which nonetheless caused Bernard to die from his wounds a few days later. Subsequently (822), Louis became extremely penitent for his actions against his nephew and appeared before the Pope and a gathering of bishops and noblemen to repent of this great sin. His penitence included the release of noblemen sent to monasteries ... sources of future problems. The act of "piety" also made him appear merely weak in the eyes of his people. In 820 he remarried after the death of his wife two years earlier ... and soon (823) had a fourth son, Charles,2 from this marriage. He thus revised his will, granting Alemannia to Charles in 829 ... taking it from Lothair's inheritance. At this point his empire fell into civil war, the brothers, joined by other political and ecclesiastical (Church) figures, maneuvering to improve their positions in this scramble for position in the empire. When Louis promised greater portions of the empire to his sons Louis and Pepin (also taken from Lothair's designated portion) the brothers then joined him against Lothair ... and Louis was finally able to end the rebellion (830). But the "peace" was shaky ... and war broke out again in 832 ... with Louis reassigning lands in an attempt to control the conflict – merely making things worse for himself. He was finally defeated by his son Lothair (833) ... and forced again to do penance when Louis was abandoned by his supporters. He thus also was forced to give up his throne. But Louis's humiliation brought out his supporters in force, and the next year (834) Lothair was forced to step aside to let his father resume his throne. Lothair ended up losing all but Italy as his realm ... but the family finally was reconciled (836) ... just in time to meet a new problem: Viking attacks coming from the North (beginning in 837). Louis was quick to construct a new navy ... to protect Frankish interests in the North Sea. Another effort by Louis to reapportion the inheritance of his realm in 837 brought forth yet another or "third civil war." Louis's massive increase in Charles's inheritance once again sparked rebellion among Charles's brothers (and opened the way for more Viking mischief). This time, with Lothair's help, Louis was able to put down the rebellion (840) ... not that Louis was able to long enjoy the fruits of his victory, for he died that same year. The Treaty of Verdun (843) dividing the empire
With their father dead, the three surviving brothers (Pepin had died in 838) once again turned on each other. Lothair claimed the entire inheritance ... minus Aquitaine, which he assigned to his nephew Pepin II. But neither Charles nor Louis acknowledged Lothair's claim and war broke out again among the brothers. In 841 Charles and Louis defeated Lothair at the Battle of Fontenay ... and the following year (842) they were so bold as to declare Lothair unfit as emperor. At this point Lothair was willing to yield to negotiations ... held at Verdun, awarding Louis the sections of the Empire East of the Rhine River, Charles the Western sections of the Empire (basically modern France) and Lothair a central strip of land reaching from the Netherlands in the North, then south along the Western bank of the Rhine ("Lotharingia" or "Lorraine"), then Burgundy and Italy in the South ... plus the right to keep his imperial title. Whereas Lothair's territory lacked any centralizing tendency (plus having the grand impediment of the Swiss Alps positioned in the middle), Louis was able to take control of a land that would remain culturally largely "German" (thus his title, "Louis the German'). At the same time Charles's more Latin-based Western territory would become the foundation for the country of France. This division would weaken greatly the peace, stability and prosperity of the Carolingian Empire ... gradually driving Northern Europe back into something of another "Dark Age" ... especially with the Vikings taking advantage tremendously of the disunited and thus greatly weakened Empire. 1On the other hand, in England the Saxons practiced primogeniture, in which the oldest son inherited all of the father’s lands. That certainly was viewed as unfair by the other sons ... but it kept the work and thus inheritance of the father intact from one generation to the next. The Salian law of the Franks was "fairer" to the sons ... but left the father’s legacy greatly weakened when it was divided fairly equally among his sons. However, the Franks eventually were forced to adopt primogeniture as the only serious solution to the problems caused by a constant dividing of the family’s feudal inheritance. 2He would eventually come to be known as Karolus Calvus, Charles the Bald ... although it had nothing to do with his hair ... of which he always had plenty! Speculation today is that instead it was in reference to the fact that at one time he was a son without any holding of land. But no one knows for sure why the title. |
Europe at the time of Charlemagne's death in
814
Wikipedia - "Treaty
of Verdun"
Charles the Bald (grandson
of Charlemagne) - King of France - 843-877
An illustration in the First
or "Vivian' Bible of Charles the Bald, painted ca. 845-851
(the Bible was the
sole surviving manuscript of a Viking raid in 853)
Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale
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The Vikings in France
Charlemagne's feuding grandsons gave the Danes next door to the north the opportunity in the 830s and 840s to conduct raids of Frankish coastal cities (while they were doing the same across the channel in Saxon England). In 850 a huge Viking raiding party (5,000 men) under Ragnar sailed all the way up the Seine River to attack the strategic city of Paris ... sacking and slaughtering in the process. Only a major plague – and Carolingian King Charles the Bald's payment of 7000 livres (pounds) of silver and gold, and the promise of continuing payments after that (eventually termed the Danegeld) cause the Danes to leave. Vikings would return again and again ... but encountering much more secure town walls guarding Paris. Then in 885 the Danes returned with hundreds of ships and tens of thousands of warriors to attack Paris but even then found the Parisians, led by Count Odo, able to hold out against this massive onslaught. Months went by (Vikings venturing from there to sack and plunder in the region). Only the next summer did the Carolingian King Charles the Fat arrive ... not to fight the Vikings but to let them continue upriver to attack the rebellious Burgundians, and to offer a huge payment in silver. This was hardly a satisfactory solution to the Parisians ... and when in 888 Charles died, the stronger Odo was elected King of West Francia – the first non-Carolingian to take that title. Also of note was the last Viking leader to vacate the siege of Paris was Rollo ... who would come to play a huge part in the rise of these Vikings or "Northmen" (or "Normans") in France. Rollo
Rollo in 876 had already taken control of the city of Rouen (downriver from Paris) and the coastal city of Bayeux probably prior to even that ... where he captured, married and had a son, William, by the daughter of the local Frankish count. He also seems to have had some kind of working relationship with Guthrum, the Danish king of East Anglia across the channel. In short, Rollo was busy establishing himself as something of a local lord in northwestern coastal Francia. In 911 French king Charles III of West Francia (France) finally came up with the brilliant idea of negotiating a deal with Viking leader Rollo after he and his Vikings had burned and sacked Paris (again). He gave formal recognition by Rollo and his Norman warriors and their families (after being baptized) of the ducal rule (under the sovereignty of the king himself, however) of the region at the mouth of the Seine River (eventually "Normandy"), understanding that with a vested interest in the peace of the region, Viking military prowess would be the best way of keeping Paris from being regularly sacked and burned by future Viking predators. It worked. And eventually the Norman Vikings were assimilated into French culture. |
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The Council of Clermont (1095)
There were a number of factors that came together in 1095 to cause Pope Urban to call for a great crusade to liberate Jerusalem and the surrounding Holy Land. Most directly was the appeal issued during the Council of Clermont held that year by the visiting Byzantine emperor (1081-1118) Alexius Comnenus. He asked the Pope and other nobles who were present at this Council to send aid to the East to deliver the Holy Land from the grip of the Seljuk Turks. Since the military defeat of the Byzantine army by these Turks at the Battle of Manzikert in 1071, these Muslim Seljuk Turks had seized Antioch, had pushed deeply into Asia Minor, and had cut off or badly disrupted the important paths of Christian pilgrimage to Jerusalem. This came at a time when the population of Europe was expanding rapidly, not only among the common peasantry but also among the nobility, whose third and fourth sons were promised no inheritance or income – outside of what they personally could gain through battle or military service to another, wealthier noble. It was also a time of pilgrimage, enabled by more stable political conditions in Europe, and favored by the Christian as a means of receiving special grace or favor in the reducing the penalty of one's sins. Also, Pope Urban made it very clear at the Council that if the French knights were to devote their energies to fighting the Turkish Muslim infidels rather than each other, God would be greatly pleased. In fact, God willed it (Deus vult). And thus the Pope declared a full indulgence (forgiveness of sins) for those who took up the call to this "crusade." So it was that the idea of a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, especially to free Christ's lands from the infidel Muslim, seemed to be a highly rewarding proposition to many of Europe's young, devout adventurers. The result was an enthusiastic response which hugely exceeded the expectations of both the Roman Pope and the Byzantine Emperor. |
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The First Crusade (1096-1099)
Planning and organizing such a major undertaking fell to a number of individuals, mostly European noblemen of fairly high rank (kings, however, did not participate in this first crusade). An exception was Peter the Hermit, who organized a huge band of common soldiers and peasants, and marched them through southeastern Europe to Constantinople. Rather than await the rest of the crusader force, Peter's soldiers insisted on pushing on ahead toward their goal of Jerusalem – so confident were they that God was going to bless their rather unruly undertaking with glorious victory. But instead of victory, they walked into a Turkish ambush at Cibotus (August 1096) and were annihilated. There were other rather spontaneous massings of commoner crusaders, but most of those failed even to reach Constantinople. A much more organized undertaking originating in the French German borderlands was led by Duke Godfrey of Bouillon and his brothers Baldwin and Eustice and their cousin Baldwin of Le Bourg. Another group, mostly Norman in character, was organized in Southern Italy by Bohemond, son of the notorious Norman raider Robert Guiscard. Another largely Norman group was led by Robert of Flanders, his cousin Robert of Normandy, Stephen of Blois and Tancred, nephew of Bohemond. A fourth group from southern France was led by Count Raymond of St. Gilles and Bishop Adhemar – who together had been commissioned by the Pope to be the overall leaders of the crusade. All of these French speaking noblemen would set an indelible mark on the crusading tradition, in that the crusaders' land holdings in the Holy Lands would eventually become known as "Frankish" domains. With about 4,000 knights and 25,000 foot-soldiers they left Constantinople for the Holy Lands in May of 1097. With the assistance of Greek warriors, they began to throw back the Turks that came out to meet them as they advanced through Asia Minor. By October they reached Antioch. (Baldwin broke company with the crusaders to join the Armenians and take command of the all important city of Edessa in eastern Syria) Not until next June did their siege of Antioch finally bring the collapse of the city, as Bohemond was finally able to breach the walls and lead his troops – to a massacre of the Muslim inhabitants of the city. But the Antioch citadel held out – though a relief force of Muslims was thrown back by the crusaders. At the end of the month the Muslim defenders surrendered the Antioch citadel under a promise of safe conduct if they left the city. So the city was delivered into the hands of Bohemond. But the victory was spoiled by an epidemic that broke out among the crusaders, taking the life of Bishop Adhemar. Early the following year (1098) the other crusader leaders and their armies set out for Jerusalem (accompanied by the fiery preacher, Peter the Hermit). Here they encountered not the Seljuk Turks (Sunni Muslims) but the Fatimids (Shi'ite Muslims) from Egypt, who had recently seized Jerusalem from the Turks. Despite the crusaders' greatly reduced numbers (about half of what they had left Constantinople with) they were able to breach the walls of Jerusalem in mid-July – and proceeded to massacre the city's Muslim and Jewish inhabitants – despite Tancred's efforts to hold the crusaders to a promise of safe conduct he had given the city's leaders.2 2The sheer barbarity of the crusaders shook the Muslim sense of religious toleration of the Christian communities in their midst ... and eventually the word "crusader" would become for the Muslim a term of sheer ugliness and spite, representing in the mind of the Muslim the lurking danger of barbarity in the Christian heart. |
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Louis VII (rule 1137-1180)
Although he was well-educated early in anticipation of a future role as church clergy, when his older brother died, this put Louis in line for the French kingship. He would remain a devout Christian (considered rather "monkish" in nature) … and, in the early years of his reign, close to his (and his father's) religious advisor, the Abbot Suger. Louis was early on (1137) married to Eleanor of Aquitaine, with the expectation this this would add enormously to the holdings of the Capetian family. Following his coronation as French king that same year, he found himself involved in the typical feudal contests for land and titles across France … most notably with the Plantagenet Henry II. In 1147, Louis – accompanied by his wife Eleanor – joined the Second Crusade and headed overland through Germany and Hungary, joining Conrad III at that point. Battling the Turks along the way, they finally arrived at the Holy Lands in 1148 … laying siege to Damascus – which ended disastrously. Despite Eleanor's wanting him to stay and continue the effort with her uncle Raymond of Poitiers, at this point he decided to give up the effort and head them home. In all, the Second Crusade proved ruinous, to both the French royal treasury and to his marriage with Eleanor. After the annulment of the marriage with Eleanor, he married Constance of Castile, who birthed only two girls before dying during a third childbirth. He immediately married a third time … finally securing a male heir, Philip, in the process. Although politics always challenged his rule (he seemed to be constantly caught up in competition with English King Henry II), his heart was heavily in the world of religion and education. Thus he not only undertook the building of the Notre Dame Cathedral of Paris (construction beginning in 1163) but also the founding of a college in 1150 as an annex to the Cathedral – which would combine with the Sainte-Geneviève Abbey and the School of Saint-Victor to become the future University of Paris (by the edict of his son Philip Augustus in 1200) – to which hundreds would then flock for study. In later years he found himself very sick, had his 14-year-old son Philip crowned French king at the Cathedral of Reims in 1180, and then died the following year.
Philip II Augustus (r. 1180-1223)
When Philip II was crowned in 1180, approximately the Western half of today's France was held by the Angevin dynasty – under the rule of English King Henry II. The young Philip was determined to change this political relationship, not just in bringing the Angevin dukes back under Capetian royal authority … but ultimately in pushing them entirely out of France … extending Capetian rule tremendously in the process. Indeed, by the time of his death in 1220, the Angevins held only a small portion of French territory in southwestern France. At this point most all of France was held by Philip as the Capetian inheritance. Philip performed this amazing political feat both in increasing massively the size of his royal army (adding to it a sizeable navy – and by playing on the feudal rivalries going on not only around the larger North-European realm but also within the Angevin family itself … for instance in allying himself with Richard and John in their rebellion against their father Henry – and then later in allying with John in his dispute with his brother Richard. He took on independent feudal lords, forcing them under tighter royal control … again both militarily and diplomatically. We've seen that he joined Richard in the ill-fated Third Crusade … and then turned against Richard at every opportunity thereafter, step by step reducing Richard's Angevin holdings. But it was not until John took the English throne in 1199 that the largest part of the Angevin family territorial turnover to Philip occurred … most securely so as a result of the Battle of Bouvines in 1214 – when John and some of his feudal allies failed horribly in their effort to retake territory lost to Philip. Louis IV - "Saint Louis" (r. 1226-1270)
Louis IX was the grandson of Philip II … and considered a model king in his very "goodness" – both political and personal. In fact, the Catholic Church, only 27 years after his death, proclaimed him as a "saint," the only French king to be honored this way. He came to the French throne at age 12, and had his mother, Blanche of Castile, rule as regent … overseeing and in 1229 bringing to political success the lengthy "crusade" against the Albigensian heresy that had been sweeping Southern France. Finally taking full rule soon thereafter, Louis found himself facing the usual feudal problems with various French nobles … plus English efforts to regain lost Angevin territory in France. He took on those challenges … in a way that was considered at the time exceptionally fair or "just." He was also well-known for his work with the poor within his kingdom, personally rather than just politically involved with them in the process. But his sense of Christian "goodness" extended to the realm of dealing with heretics … a problem still shaking France – even after the successful completion of the Albigensian Crusade. For instance, responding to the call of Pope Gregory IX for action against the Jewish heresy, in 1242 Louis ordered the seizing and burning of some 12,000 copies of the Jewish Talmud and other Jewish writings. He continued to oversee the confiscation of Cathar properties in Southern France – all the way to his departure on the Seventh Crusade in 1250. He expanded the role of the French Inquisition … requiring the mutilation of the tongue and lips of anyone found guilty of blasphemy. But this kind of rigor was exactly what was expected of a "good" Christian king. He also exemplified the role of the crusader king, involved in not just one, but two crusades to the Holy Land. In his involvement in the Seventh Crusade, he first found himself rather quickly defeated in Egypt in 1250 by Ayyubid troops … and released only upon payment of an enormous ransom demand. He did however remain in the Holy Land … helping to strengthen the lines of defense of the crusaders in Jerusalem, Acre and other points in the area. Finally, in 1254, he and his army returned to France. Then he was back at the venture again in 1270 in response to the calling of the Eighth Crusade. But he got no further that Carthage (Tunisia) when he caught dysentery there and died of the disease. |
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The Albigensians (or Cathars)
One of the principal heretical movements, brought back from the East during the crusades, was the Cathars (from Catharos, a Greek word meaning "Pure One") – also known as Albigensians from Albi, a town in southern France where the Cathars were numerous (also, northern Italy and Germany). The Cathars were dualists: believing that historical events were the product of the struggle of two forces, even gods – one good, one evil. Evil had dominion over the visible world; but through good works of extreme asceticism (including the avoidance of all sexual intercourse and the dissolution of marriages), the souls of individuals were restored to the Good God. Membership into the elect required such good works. According to the Cathars, being elect assured one of eternal salvation; but those who died without being saved were merely reborn into life (the living hell) and given another chance to try to achieve eternal salvation. There was no eternal hell to which the damned went. Furthermore, according to the Cathars, Christ did not truly have a human body – for that would have placed him under Satan's dominion; neither did Christ experience true bodily death or bodily resurrection. These particular elements of doctrine were held mostly by the more "sophisticated" of the Cathar community. The common people who followed the Cathar teachings did so mostly for the moral or ethical elements of the faith – not the doctrinal elements, of which they remained largely ignorant. In strong contrast to the times, women were admitted to the caste of "chosen" and could perform priestly rites – since sex was seen as a distinction only of the devil anyway … though usually only the men became evangelists and teachers out in the open world. The Cathars were exemplary people in their personal lives of piety and charity (in obvious contrast to the average run of Christian priests of the times) and well-loved in their communities. In the south of France they may have even become a majority of the population – though most of these Cathar followers would have continued to see themselves as "good Christians" and would have continued their observance of regular Christian worship. The Albigensian crusade (1209-1229)
Distressed at the popularity of this grass-roots spiritual movement and the seeming danger it posed to the all-important authority of the Roman Church, in 1215 dealing with this heresy became a critical part of the business of the powerful Fourth Lateran Council … presided over by Innocent III. The Cathars were thus declared to be heretics … authorizing their brutal suppression (actually already underway at that point). In France, a crusade against the Cathars had already been announced in 1209 by Innocent III … and northern barons took this opportunity to invade the south of France in the quest of new lands. As a result, over the next 20 years southern France's cities and countryside were laid waste … and her culture shattered. In 1243 the last bastion of Catharism in southern France was destroyed. |
| But the colonists |
| But the colonists |
| But the colonists |
Miles
H. Hodges
