The Merovingians (AD 481–751)

A Salian Frankish dynasty, the name Merovingian derives from that of Merovech, Clovis's grandfather. The first historical leader of the dynasty was Merovech's son, Childeric I, the founder of the first Frankish dynasty.

Under the Merovingians, Western Europe began to take shape, and Late Antiquity moved into the Middle Ages. Depending on the places, domains, and the times, these transitions were either continuous or broken up. What elements of classical antiquity did the Merovingians maintain? What was their contribution to civilization? What relations did the Merovingians cultivate with the Mediterranean Basin, which earlier had been the centre of Roman civilization?

Clovis (reigned 481–511), the son of Childeric I, extended the kingdom over the whole of Gaul and converted to Christianity. At Clovis I's death, the territory was divided among his four sons, who continued to extend the territory further. The Franks extended their rule to Provence but kept their four capitals in the north: Reims, Soissons, Paris, and Orléans. The court was itinerant and the kings moved from one royal residence to another.

The kingdom became unified once more with the accession of Chlotar I (reigned 558–561). However, when the kingdom was divided among his sons a period of conflict followed, which only ended with the accession of Chlotar II  (reigned 613–629).

Dagobert I was crowned in 629 (d.639), and appointed as his treasurer Saint Eligius, who established many religious institutions in the diocese of Noyon. At the time, household officials known as mayors of the palace were gaining power over the later Merovingian kings who, weakened and corrupt—Einhard (court scholar close to Charlemagne) famously referred to them as the ‘lazy kings’—, were gradually usurped by the Carolingians. Childeric III  (reigned 743–751) was the last Merovingian king.

The Franks remained a minority who made few changes to the environment they found and adopted. There were influences from classical antiquity in all aspects of daily life. The Franks maintained the town plans, the ramparts, the roads, most of the public and private heritage, and the network of necropolises.

The Merovingians were, however, major builders of intra-muros churches, a phenomenon that had already begun in the Lower Empire. Episcopal complexes were created in the towns (the Saint-Laurent-de-Choulans Basilica, built in Lyon at the end of the fifth century). The church plans varied and show the early developments in the quest to establish a Christian architecture. The basilical plan inherited from the classical civil basilicas seemed to be the most popular model. The use of marble and small rough stone combined with brick remained largely in use, attesting to a continuity in the use of architectural elements inherited from Roman tradition (more romano).

Little remains from the Merovingian period: the Saint-Paul crypt in the Monastery of Jouarre and the hypogeum of the Dunes at Poitiers, dating from the seventh century, are perhaps the most interesting examples.

The new Romano-Germanic aristocracy had many monasteries built (550 founded in Merovingian Gaul). They followed the rule of St. Columban, which was modelled on the Irish monastic rules at the turn of the sixth century and eventually abandoned for the rule of Saint Benedict of Nursia (dating from 640).

The Germanic ritual of clothed burials and placing objects with the dead has provided us with some information on the art of metalwork and goldsmithing. In goldsmithing, the technique of cloisonné, which had come from contact with Eastern Germans at the end of the fifth century, introduced a style that used bright colours, especially red. In the sixth century, goldsmiths added granulation, stamping and filigree, practices that had first been observed in the Levant and ancient Syria. Setting stones in round and four-sided fibulas also began at this time. Damascening was an Egyptian and Greek art taken up by the Romans and developed by the Merovingians, who were probably influenced by eastern artisans. Clothed burials disappeared at the beginning of the eighth century, which makes it difficult to trace the development of these arts.

The art of manuscript illumination was revived in the monasteries in the scriptoria, replacing the ancient stationarii, which had previously ensured the copying and distribution of books. The most famous examples are the scriptoria of Luxeuil, Corbie, and Laon whose style was influenced by a combination of the accomplished works from Ireland, England, and Italy. The manuscripts were distributed throughout Europe.

In sculpture, the ancient traditions of naturalism and high-relief were gradually replaced by flat work, bevelled carving, and engraving—techniques that were better adapted to more stylized and abstract representations. The sarcophagi give us an idea about Merovingian sculpture.

Only a few sculptures, objets d’art, and illuminated manuscripts remain, but they do show the continuity in the production of art from classical antiquity, even though the Merovingians added some technical and stylistic innovations. Artistic works shared the general cultural characteristics of Gaul, but varied considerably according to the region.

The Mediterranean, which was no longer unified, ceased to be the heart of civilization, and entered a period of strong influences from the East. However, there were still links between the different peoples in the Mediterranean. There were diplomatic relations between Clovis and the Byzantine emperor Anastasius, and the so-called 'Syrian' traders were still operating in several provincial ports; jars of oil arrived in Marseille and were sent to the Abbey of Saint-Denis, the Frankish chancellery used papyrus up until the end of the seventh century, and Byzantine gold was used in some of the treasure. Commercial links between the barbarized West and the Byzantine East, which remained a vibrant centre of economic activity, were maintained by Jewish and Syrian merchants. The Franks turned their back on the sea—they were more interested in Frize, Thuringia, Bavaria, and Saxony.

Muslim gold, which came from treasure in Egypt and the Near East and inter-African caravans, probably contributed to an economic boost in the barbarian territories of the West where economic activity had slowed.

In the first decades of the eighth century, Muslims came across the Pyrenees and entered Gaul. The first exchanges between the two peoples were violent, which is particularly important to note, as this cultivated an image of the Muslims as a people who were aggressive and hungered for conquest. The victory of Charles Martel at Poitiers in 732 is commonly associated with the Muslim offensives in Gaul. However, these continued in the Rhone Valley.

The Merovingians incorporated classical elements into their Germanic culture. The other great European powers—the Irish, English, Ostrogoths, Byzantines, Visigoths, and Umayyads—influenced the production of art and contributed to regional trends in Gaul. Relations with the Mediterranean Basin were very limited and often indirect. They were maintained by land, where the artists and their work circulated.

E. D. –P.