The Frankish Kingdoms Under The Carolingians 751 987

An exciting examination of the entire history of the Carolingian 'dynasty' in western Europe. The author shows the whole period to be one of immense political, religious. cultural and intellectual dynamism; not only did it lay the foundations of the governmental and administrative institutions of Europe and the organisation of the Church, but it also securely established the intellectual and cultural traditions which were to dominate western Christendom for centuries to come.

The focus of this volume is the book production of the Frankish regions of Western Europe in the early Middle Ages. By means of a detailed scrutiny of individual manuscripts, groups of manuscripts, and categories of texts, Dr McKitterick shows how they can be used to throw light on questions such as women and literacy, the knowledge of canon and secular law, and the English contribution to the religious culture of the Continent . Some of the studies are more concerned with palaeography and the achievements of particular scriptoria; studies; others look primarily at the fact of production, the dissemination of the texts, and their implications for intellectual and cultural history. Au centre de ce volume se trouve la production du livre dans les régions franques d'Europe occidentale au début du Moyan Age. Au travers d'un examen approfondi de manuscrits individuels, de groupes de manuscrits et de catégories de textes, le docteur McKitterick démontre l'utilisation qui peut en Ãatre faite afin d'éclaircir un certain nombre de questions dont: les femmes et l'alphabétisation, la connaissance du droit canon et séculaire, ainsi que la contribution anglaise à la culture religieuse de continent. Certaines des études s'attachent plus spécifiquement à la paléographie et aux résultats de certains scriptoria; d'autres examinent avant tout le fait mÃame de la production, la dissémination des textes et leurs implications quant à l'histoire intellectuelle et culturelle.

Struggle for Empire explores the contest for kingdoms and power among Charlemagne's descendants that shaped the formation of Europe through the reign of Charlemagne's grandson, Louis the German (826 876)."

A comprehensive survey which begins with the rise of the Franks, then examines the Merovingians.

Drawing on numismatic, diplomatic, liturgical, and iconographic evidence, this book offers a comprehensive view of political signs, images, and fixed formulas in the Carolingian period and of their use in the indirect communication of royal/imperial authority.

Throughout the tenth century, England, as it would be recognized today, formed. No longer many Saxon kingdoms, but rather, just England. Yet, this development masks much in the century in which the Viking raiders were seemingly driven from England’s shores by Alfred, his children and grandchildren, only to return during the reign of his great, great-grandson, the much-maligned Æthelred II. Not one but two kings would be murdered, others would die at a young age, and a child would be named king on four occasions. Two kings would never marry, and a third would be forcefully divorced from his wife. Yet, the development towards ‘England’ did not stop. At no point did it truly fracture back into its constituent parts. Who then ensured this stability? To whom did the witan turn when kings died, and children were raised to the kingship? The royal woman of the House of Wessex came into prominence during the century, perhaps the most well-known being Æthelflæd, daughter of King Alfred. Perhaps the most maligned being Ælfthryth (Elfrida), accused of murdering her stepson to clear the path to the kingdom for her son, Æthelred II, but there were many more women, rich and powerful in their own right, where their names and landholdings can be traced in the scant historical record. Using contemporary source material, The Royal Women Who Made England can be plucked from the obscurity that has seen their names and deeds lost, even within a generation of their own lives.

Although often depicted as a barbaric and uncivilised society, in the full pejorative meaning of these words, Merovingian Gaul was clearly a Christian society and a direct continuation of the Roman civilisation in terms of social standards, morals and culture. Using insights provided by social history, archaeology, palaeography and anthropology, this book studies the problem of Christianisation in early Medieval Gaul from a cultural point of view. While exploiting a huge range of primary and secondary material, Dr. Hen does not confine himself to a functional analysis of various cultural and religious activities in Merovingian Gaul, but goes on to assess the consequences and implications of such activities for the people themselves, and for the subsequent developments in the Carolingian period.

This 2004 book looks at the writing and reading of history during the early middle ages.