50 Things to Know about the Merovingians

1. The Merovingians got there name from their leader Merovee, they were first called Franks after there King Francus, and before that there name was; the Sicambrians after there Queen Cambra.

2.The origin of the Merovingian/Franks Royal House goes back to Troy/Greece.

3. After the fall of Troy they settled on the Black Sea around the Donau river. They were eventually pushed westwards by the Goths and followed the Donau river into Pannonia, present day Hungary.

4. There were several Frankish Kings/Dukes who founded important European cities like Rotterdam, Frankfurt, Cologne, Brandenburg, Duisburg and Dresden, among others.

5. Francus in his days was able to assemble an army of 300.000 men to fight the Romans.

6. The Merovingians Dynasty had a mythical status in the Ancient World.

7. The Merovingian Kings were considered Magicians, Priest/Kings.

8. When they traveled, they always used an oxcart.

9. That one of the most important things for the Merovingian Kings was their hair, it was long and red and symbolisches their power and right to reign over their people.

10. They were married to multiple women at once and had many concubines to ensure offspring.

11. They had there own Royal Bodyguard, the Antrustions.

12.  The language of there era was called Old Dutch.

13. Some of the more important men in Frankish society had high positions in the Roman Army and society and could speak the Latin language fluently.

14. They were fearsome fighters and had a special technique of throwing multiple axes at there enemy, the ax was called Franziska and weighed about 700 gram.

15. Whenever they went to war the treasure of the King was always carried with them, and so did the opponent.

16. Franks raided and fought in many countries as soldiers, as far as North Africa.

17. They buried there Kings with Horses, Gold and Jewelry, the more powerful the King was the more Horses, Gold and Jewelry were buried with him, in the tomb of King Childeric in Tournai they found a total of 63 kilos of Gold and 15 Horses.

18. In the old days when a new King was crowned he was carried around on a shield as a celebration.

19. Anyone wishing to become a bodyguard (Antrustion) of a Merovingian King had to present himself fully armed to the King and with his hands in the King’s hand had to swear an oath of allegiance to the King.

20. The “collapse” of the Rome Empire was a very gradual process where the Merovingian Kings already governed the lands in the name of Rome.

21. The Country of France was named after the Franks.

22. Paris is named after the forefather of the Merovingian Kings, “the famous Prince Paris, of Troy”, of Paris and Helena fame. Paris is still called the city of Love.

23. People in this era of our European history were healthier then the people living before or after this period.

24. There were trade routes to many countries, England, Denmark, Norway and to the East as far as into India.

 25.  Clovis married Clotilde, a Visigoth Princess; she was an Orthodox Christian, despite most of her own people, the Visigoth being Arian Christian.

26. Clovis converted to the Orthodox Christian faith after lengthy negotiations with the Bishop of Reims.

27. Clovis was crowned in Reims by the Bishop of Reims and was in fact the first Holy Roman Empire, his title was “the New Constantine”, as head of the Church in his Kingdom.

28. Territories of the lands under control of the Merovingian Kings reached under Clovis as far as Hungaria, Frisia, Switzerland and Spain.

29. There were many marriages between Merovingian family members and Princes/Princesses from Thuringia, Burgundy and the Visigoth Kingdom.

30. The Roman Orthodox Church was struggling to survive in the early days.

31. King Clovis became the sword of the Roman Orthodox Christian Church. 

32. There were two groups of Franks, the Salien Franks and the Ripurian Franks, they later merged into one group.

33. Merovingian craftsmanship was renowned in Europe.

34. They built many monasteries and Churches in there Kingdom.

35. That Merovingian Kings appointed the Bischops of the Church.

36. They would rather be killed then to allow their hair to be cut.

37. Their administrative organisation was very decentralized.

38. Merovingian Kings didn’t pay members of their staff, it was an honor to be working for the King.

39. Truth and Honor were great virtues in the Merovingian times.

40. The sophistication of the Merovingian Kingdom could rival that of Byzantium and other great civilizations.

41. The treasure of the King was considered the treasure of the people.

42. There is still a city in France that’s called: Troy.

43. The Merovingian Kings Reigned, not Ruled over their people.

44. Lords/Dukes of the Merovingian Kings were important men in the affairs of the Kingdom.

45. The Roman Catholic Church became more and more involved in politics in the Kingdom.

46. The Merovingian Kings had a warm relationship with the Eastern Orthodox Christian Church in Constantinople that was much more spiritually orientated.

47. The Majors of the Palace ruled the Kingdom in the name of the King. (A kind of Prime Minister).

48. The later Merovingian Kings managed a peaceful and prosperous Kingdom, they were later described as the do nothing Kings, but that was obviously political motivated. 

49. King Dagobert II’s first wife was Mathilde from Thuringia and that he was later married with Gisela of Razes (Rennes Le Château). Their son Sigisbert later became Count of Razes and was the ancestor of Godfried de Bouillon.

50. Most Royal Families in Europe can trace their lineage back to the Merovingians.

en_USEnglish