Documents
Document A: Gregory of Tours (539-594): The Conversion of Clovis
Then the queen asked saint Remi, bishop of Rheims, to summon Clovis secretly, urging him to
introduce the king to the word of salvation. And the bishop sent for him secretly and began to urge
him to believe in the true God, maker of heaven and earth, and to cease worshipping idols, which
could help neither themselves nor anyone else. But the king said: "I gladly hear you, most holy father;
but there remains one thing: the people who follow me cannot endure to abandon their gods; but I
shall go and speak to them according to your words." He met with his followers, but before he could
speak the power of God anticipated him, and all the people cried out together:/ "O pious king, we
reject our mortal gods, and we are ready to follow the immortal God whom Remi preaches." This was
reported to the bishop, who was greatly rejoiced, and bade them get ready the baptismal font. The
squares were shaded with tapestried canopies, the churches adorned with white curtains, the
baptistery set in order, the aroma of incense spread, candles of fragrant odour burned brightly, and
the whole shrine of the baptistery was filled with a divine fragrance: and the Lord gave such grace to
those who stood by that they thought they were placed amid the odours of paradise. And the king
was the first to ask to be baptized by the bishop. Another Constantine advanced to the baptismal
font, to terminate the disease of ancient leprosy and wash away with fresh water the foul spots that
had long been borne. And when he entered to be baptized, the saint of God began with ready
speech: "Gently bend your neck, Sigamber; worship what you burned; burn what you worshipped."
The holy bishop Remi was a man of excellent wisdom and especially trained in rhetorical studies, and
of such surpassing holiness that he equalled the miracles of Silvester. For there is extant a book of
his life which tells that he raised a dead man. And so the king confessed all-powerful God in the
Trinity, and was baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and was anointed with the
holy ointment with the sign of the cross of Christ. And of his army more than 3000 were baptized. His
sister also, Albofled, was baptized, who not long after passed to the Lord. And when the king was in
mourning for her, the holy Remi sent a letter of consolation which began in this way: "The reason of
your mourning pains me, and pains me greatly, that Albofled your sister, of good memory, has
passed; away. But I can give you this comfort that her departure from the world was such that she
ought to be envied rather than e mourned." Another sister also was converted, Lanthechild by name,
who had fallen into the heresy of the Arians, and she confessed that the Son and the holy Spirit were
equal to the Father, and was anointed.
Document B: Asser's Life of King Alfred, (the conversion of Guthrum)
Moving his standards thence the next morning, he came to a place called Edington, and with a close
shield-wall fought fiercely against the whole army of the pagans; his attack was long and spirited, and
finally by divine aid he triumphed and overthrew the pagans with a very great slaughter....after the
hostages were taken, the pagans took oath that they would most speedily leave his kingdom, and
also Guthrum, their king, promised to accept Christianity and to receive baptism at the hands of King
Alfred. All these things he and his men fulfilled as they had promised. For after three weeks Guthrum,
king of the pagans, with thirty selected men of his army, came to King Alfred at a place called Aller
near Athelney. And Alfred received him as son by adoption, raising him from the sacred font of
baptism; and his chrism-loosing on the eighth day was in the royal vill called Wedmore. After he was
baptized he stayed with the king twelve nights, and to him and all the men with him the king
generously gave many valuable gifts.
Document C: Einhard: The Life of Charlemagne
[Charles and the Roman Church] ...He cherished the Church of St. Peter the Apostle at Rome above
all other holy and sacred places, and heaped its treasury with a vast wealth of gold, silver, and
precious stones. He sent great and countless gifts to the popes; and throughout his whole reign the
wish that he had nearest at heart was to re-establish the ancient authority of the city of Rome under
his care and by his influence, and to defend and protect the Church of St. Peter, and to beautify and
enrich it out of his own store above all other churches. Although he held it in such veneration, he only
repaired to Rome to pay his vows and make his supplications four times during the whole forty-seven
years that he reigned.
[Charles' Coronation] The Romans had inflicted many injuries upon the Pontiff Leo, tearing out his
eyes and cutting out his tongue; so that he had been comp lied to call upon the King for help. Charles
accordingly went to Rome, to set in order the affairs of the Church, which were in great confusion,
and passed the whole winter there. It was then that he received the titles of Emperor and Augustus,
to which he at first had such an aversion that he declared that he would not have set foot in the
Church the day that they were conferred, although it was a great feast-day, if he could have foreseen
the design of the Pope. He bore very patiently with the jealousy which the Roman emperors showed
upon his assuming these titles, for they took this step very ill; and by dint of frequent embassies and
letters, in which he addressed them as brothers, he made their haughtiness yield to his magnanimity,
a quality in which he was unquestionably much their superior.
Document D: Einhard: The Wars of Charlemagne 770-814
After bringing a war in Aquitania to an end, he was persuaded, by the prayers and promptings of
Hadrian, Bishop of Rome, to undertake a war against the Lombard’s. Already before him his father
[Pepin] had assumed this task, at the asking of Pope Stephen, under great difficulties, for certain
Frankish chiefs of his very council had opposed the proposal so vehemently as to threaten to desert
their King and go home. Notwithstanding, the war against Astolf, King of the Lombard’s, had been
undertaken, and promptly brought to an issue. Now [773 A.D.] although Charles had similar, or rather
precisely the same grounds for declaring war that his father had, the war differed from the former
both in its hardships and its results.
Pepin, to be sure, after a brief siege of King Astolf in Pavia, had compelled him to give hostages, to
restore to the people of Rome the cities and castles he had seized, and to swear that he would not try
to take them again. Charles, however, did not turn back---once war was declared---until he had
exhausted King Desidarius by a prolonged siege; then forced him to surrender unconditionally. He
also drove his son Adalgis, the last hope of the Lombard’s, not only from his kingdom, but from all
Italy. He likewise restored to the Romans all they had lost; crushed Henodgans, Duke of Friuli, who
was scheming revolt; reduced all Italy to his sway, and set his son Pepin over it.
The war ended with the subjection of Italy, the banishment of King Desidarius for life, the expulsion of
his son Adalgis from Italy and the restoration to Hadrian, Primate of the Roman Church, of all the
conquests by the Lombard kings.
As to the Saxon war, no war ever undertaken by the Franks was waged with such persistence and
bitterness, or cost so much labour, because the Saxons, like almost all Germans, were a ferocious
folk, given over to devil-worship, hostile to our Faith, and they did not consider it dishonourable to
transgress and violate all law---be it human or divine. Then, too, special circumstances caused a
breach of the peace daily. Accordingly, war was begun against the Saxons and was waged furiously
for thirty-three consecutive years [772-804 A.D.] on the whole to the disadvantage of the Saxons.
Much earlier surely it would have terminated but for the perfidy of the Saxons. It is hard to tell how
often they were conquered, humbly submitted to the King and promised to do what was commanded,
gave the required hostages and received the royal officers. Sometimes they were so abased that
they promised to renounce "devil-worship" and adopt Christianity. Nevertheless, they were as prone
to repudiate these terms as to accept them. It was actually impossible to tell which came easier for
them to do. Hardly a year passed from the beginning of the war without such changes on their part.
The King, however, pressed them with unvarying purpose despite great difficulties and either took the
field against them himself, or sent his counts against them with a host to wreak vengeance and exact
due satisfaction. The war that had lasted so many years at last terminated when the Saxons gave
way to the terms proffered by the King; namely, the renunciation of their native religious cults and
devil-worship, the acceptance of the Christian sacraments, and union with the Franks into one
people.
Document E: From The Annals of St. Bertin, in Monumenta Germaniae Historica Scriptores
843 A.D. Pirates of the Northmen's race came to Nantes, killed the bishop and many of the clergy
and laymen, both men and women, and pillaged the city. Thence they set out to plunder the lands of
lower Aquitaine. At length they arrived at a certain island [the isle of Rhé, near La Rochelle, north of
the mouth of the Garonne], and carried materials thither from the mainland to build themselves
houses; and they settled there for the winter, as if that were to be their permanent dwelling-place.
845. Then the other, came without meeting any resistance to Paris. Charles [the Bald] resolved to
hold out against them; but seeing the impossibility of gaining a victory, he made with them a certain
agreement and by a gift of 7,000 livres he bought them off from advancing farther and persuaded
them to return. Euric, king of the Northmen, advanced, with six hundred vessels, along the course of
the River Elbe to attack Louis of Germany. The Saxons prepared to meet him, gave battle, and with
the aid of our Lord Jesus Christ won the victory. The Northmen returned down the Seine and coming
to the ocean pillaged, destroyed, and burned all the regions along the coast.
859. The Danish pirates having made a long sea-voyage (they sailed between Spain and Africa)
entered the Rhone, where they pillaged many cities and monasteries and established themselves on
the island called Camargue...They devastated everything before them as far as the city of Valence.
Then, after ravaging all these regions, they returned to the island where they had fixed their
habitation. Thence they went on toward Italy, capturing and plundering Pisa and other cities.
Document F: The Chronicle of St. Denis Based on Dudo and William of Jumièges
The king had at first wished to give to Rollo the province of Flanders, but the Norman rejected it as
being too marshy. Rollo refused to kiss the foot of Charles when he received from him the duchy of
Normandy. "He who receives such a gift," said the bishops to him, "ought to kiss the foot of the king."
"Never," replied he, "will I bend the knee to anyone, or kiss anybody's foot." Nevertheless, impelled
by the entreaties of the Franks, he ordered one of his warriors to perform the act in his stead. This
man seized the foot of the king and lifted it to his lips, kissing it without bending and so causing the
king to tumble over backwards. At that there was a loud burst of laughter and a great commotion in
the crowd of onlookers. King Charles, Robert, Duke of the Franks, the counts and magnates, and the
bishops and abbots, bound themselves by the oath of the Catholic faith to Rollo, swearing by their
lives and their bodies and by the honor of all the kingdom, that he might hold the land and transmit it
to his heirs from generation to generation throughout all time to come. When these things had been
satisfactorily performed, the king returned in good spirits into his dominion, and Rollo with Duke
Robert set out for Rouen.
In the year of our Lord 912 Rollo was baptized in holy water in the name of the sacred Trinity by
Franco, archbishop of Rouen. Duke Robert, who was his godfather, gave to him his name. Rollo
devotedly honoured God and the Holy Church with his gifts...The pagans, seeing that their chieftain
had become a Christian, abandoned their idols, received the name of Christ, and with one accord
desired to be baptized. Meanwhile, the Norman duke made ready for a splendid wedding and married
the daughter of the king [Gisela] according to Christian rites.
Rollo gave assurance of security to all those who wished to dwell in his country. The land he divided
among his followers, and, as it had been a long time unused, he improved it by the construction of
new buildings. It was peopled by the Norman warriors and by immigrants from outside regions. The
duke established for his subjects certain inviolable rights and laws, confirmed and published by the
will of the leading men, and he compelled all his people to live peaceably together. He rebuilt the
churches, which had been entirely ruined; he restored the temples, which had been destroyed by the
ravages of the pagans; he repaired and added to the walls and fortifications of the cities; he subdued
the Britons who rebelled against him; and with the provisions obtained from them he supplied all the
country that had been granted to him.
Document G: The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle: The Domesday Book, 1086
The king spent Christmas with his councillors at Gloucester, and held his court there for five days,
which was followed by a three-day synod held by the archbishop and the clergy. At this synod
Maurice was elected bishop of London and William bishop of Norfolk and Robert bishop of Cheshire:
they were all chaplains of the king. After this the king had important deliberations and exhaustive
discussions with his council about this land and how it was peopled, and with what sort of men. Then
he sent his men all over England into every shire to ascertain how many hundreds of 'hides' of land
there were in each shire. He also had it recorded how much land his archbishops had, and his
diocesan bishops, his abbots and his earls, and--though I may be going into too great detail--and
what or how much each man who was a landholder here in England had in land or live-stock, and
how much money it was worth. So very thoroughly did he have the inquiry carried out that there was
not a single 'hide,' not one virgate of land, not even--it is shameful to record it, but it did not seem
shameful for him to do--not even one ox, nor one cow, nor one pig which escaped notice in his
survey. And all the surveys were subsequently brought to him.
Document H: Laws of William the Conqueror, 1066-67
Here is set down what William, king of the English, established in consultation with his magnates
after the conquest of England:
1. First that above all things he wishes one God to be revered throughout his whole realm, one
faith in Christ to be kept ever inviolate, and peace and security to be preserved between
English and Normans.
2. We decree also that every freeman shall affirm by oath and compact that he will be loyal to
king William both within and without England, that he will preserve with him his lands and
honour with all fidelity and defend him against his enemies.
3. I will, moreover, that all the men I have brought with me, or who have come after me, shall be
protected by my peace and shall dwell in quiet. And if any one of them shall be slain, let the
lord of his murderer seize him within five days, if he can; but if he cannot, let him pay me 46
marks of silver so long as his substance avails. And when his substance is exhausted, let the
whole hundred in which the murder took place pay what remains in common.
4. And let every Frenchman who, in the time of King Edward, my kinsman, was a sharer in the
customs of the English; pay what they call "scot and lot", according to the laws of the English.
This decree was ordained in the city of Gloucester.
5. We forbid also that any live cattle shall be bought or sold for money except within cities, and
this shall be done before three faithful witnesses; nor even anything old without surety and
warrant. But if anyone shall do otherwise, let him pay once, and afterwards a second time for a
fine.
6. It was decreed there that if a Frenchman shall charge an Englishman with perjury or murder or
theft or homicide or "ran", as the English call open rapine which cannot be denied, the
Englishman may defend himself, as he shall prefer, either by the ordeal of hot iron or by wager
of battle. But if the Englishman be infirm, let him find another who will take his place. If one of
them shall be vanquished, he shall pay a fine of 40 shillings to the king. If an Englishman shall
charge a Frenchman and be unwilling to prove his accusation either by ordeal or by wager of
battle, I will, nevertheless, that the Frenchman shall acquit himself by a valid oath.
7. This also I command and will, that all shall have and hold the law of the king Edward in respect
of their lands and all their possessions, with the addition of those decrees I have ordained for
the welfare of the English people.
8. Every man who wishes to be considered a freeman shall be in pledge so that his surety shall
hold him and hand him over to justice if he shall offend in any way. And if any such shall
escape, let his sureties see to it that they pay forthwith what is charge against him, and let
them clear themselves of any complicity in his escape.
9. I prohibit the sale of any man by another outside the country on pain of a fine to be paid in full
to me.
10. I also forbid that anyone shall be slain or hanged for any fault, but let his eyes be put out and
let him be castrated. And this command shall not be violated under pain of a fine in full to me.