The Odd Frankish Siege of Saragossa

In 541 or 542, the Frankish co-kings Chlotar (r. 511-561) and Childebert (r. 511-558) crossed the Pyrenees and invaded the Visigothic Kingdom in Spain. The 6th-century bishop and historian, Gregory of Tours, highly embellished his account of the campaign, stating, “they succeeded in conquering a large part of Spain and they returned to Gaul with immense booty” (History of the Franks, Book III, section 29). In truth, the Frankish incursion into Spain turned out to be little more than a glorified raid. Nevertheless, the Franks did reach at least as far as the city of Saragossa, and it was there that Childebert and Chlotar reportedly witnessed a bizarre sight that left them stunned.

As the Franks neared Saragossa, the invading army found themselves anchored to the ground in shock and bewilderment by a powerful display of sight and sound emanating from the city. According to Gregory of Tours, the people of Saragossa had decided to call on God’s aid against the Franks and their method for inspiring divine intervention was apparently to flock en masse to the outskirts of the city and embark on a parade of desperate holy supplication. Consequently, when the Franks arrived on the scene, they were met with the peculiar sight of the population of Saragossa marching around their city walls while dressed in black clothes and hairshirts (rough and itchy garments worn for self-punishment). The darkly-clad mass of bodies was reportedly unkempt in appearance, and many of the city dwellers went a step further by smearing their faces with ashes. When they were not weeping, wailing or pleading toward the heavens, the people marching around Saragossa also spent time singing psalms and hymns. At the head of the parade, curiously enough, was a tunic that the worshippers were handling with great veneration. Despite the self-punishing hairshirts, the faces covered in ashes, and the soulfully sung hymns, it was the tunic that seemed to give the city the greatest sense of hope.

According to Gregory of Tours, Kings Chlotar and Childebert had an odd first assessment of what they were witnessing. He wrote, “as they watched them march round the walls they imagined that it was some curious kind of black magic” (History of the Franks, Book III, section 29). Yet, this first assumption was apparently erased when they captured a local peasant, who told the Franks that the people of Saragossa were not crying out to the Devil, but to God. From the same captive, the Franks also learned that the peculiar tunic which was hoisted with such reverence by the inhabitants of Saragossa was none other than the holy dalmatic vestments of St. Vincent (d. 304), a martyr from the persecutions of Emperor Diocletian.

The Franks, at least according to Bishop Gregory of Tours, were more afraid of St. Vincent’s tunic than of witchcraft or sorcery. Gregory ended his account of the siege of Saragossa by misleadingly stating, “This [St. Vincent’s tunic] scared the troops and they withdrew from the city” (History of the Franks, Book III, section 29). The Franks did eventually leave Spain, but not before seizing the holy tunic of St. Vincent for themselves and bringing it back to France as plunder. King Childebert brought it to Paris and enshrined it in the church that would come to be known as Saint-Germain-des-Prés.

Written by C. Keith Hansley.

Picture Attribution: (Miniature from the Chronicle of Aegidius Li Musis in the Library of Brussels, c.1349, [Public Domain] via Creative Commons).

Sources:

• The History of the Franks by Gregory of Tours, translated by Lewis Thorpe. New York: Penguin Classics, 1971.
• https://www.britannica.com/biography/Chlotar-I 
• https://www.britannica.com/biography/Childebert-I 
• https://www.encyclopedia.com/reference/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/childebert-i 
• https://www.britannica.com/topic/Merovingian-dynasty 
• https://www.britannica.com/biography/Theudis 
• https://www.britannica.com/place/Spain/Iberians#ref587114 
• https://www.ancient.eu/visigoth/ 
• http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15434b.htm  

The Revenge Of King Theuderic I Against Clermont

Theuderic I and his brothers, Chlodomer, Childebert and Chlotar jointly ruled the empire of the Franks after the death of their famous father, King Clovis (r. 481-511/513). Although they were co-rulers of the empire, they operated from separate kingdoms and, despite their coordination together in military campaigns against foreign threats, the brothers were also known to be quite conniving when it came to internal politics in the Frankish Empire. This was made most clear by the fate of King Chlodomer’s children after his death in 524—two of his sons (Theudovald and Gunthar) were murdered and a third (Chlodovald) was forced into a monastery so that Theuderic, Childebert and Chlotar could divide their late brother’s kingdom amongst themselves. Miraculously, the brothers rarely took up arms against each other, but that did not stop them from being paranoid. Additionally, as each brother was covetous of the brothers’ domains, a false rumor of a monarch’s death was a very serious affair and could be deadly for the king’s children.

One such false rumor of a regal death apparently occurred in 531, while Kings Theuderic and Chlotar were campaigning against Thuringia. Although the war was going extremely well and both kings were safe, troubling gossip began to spread that Theuderic had died. In the event of the king’s death, Theuderic’s kingdom was supposed to pass to his son, Theudebert. Yet, many knew that succession could be a tricky subject and that the late king’s last will and testament might not be respected.

Spurred on by the rumor of Theuderic’s death, the region of Clermont-Ferrand decided to prepare for the inevitable political struggle. Surveying their option of lieges, the leadership in Clermont apparently did not rank Theuderic’s son, Theudebert, high on their list of preferred rulers. Therefore, the people of Clermont were said to have invited King Childebert to take control over the Clermont-Ferrand district.

Childebert had not been involved in the Thuringian campaign with his brothers and therefore had no information to disprove the gossip that Theuderic was dead. Consequently, he eagerly took the bait and agreed to take control of Clermont. Childebert reportedly traveled to the district and was on the verge of occupying the city when messengers arrived with news that Theuderic was still very much alive and had just returned home from Thuringia. After discovering the truth, Childebert slipped away from Clermont as quickly as he could and spent the rest of his year attacking Visigoths in the south of France.

When King Theuderic learned of Clermont’s attempted defection, he was extremely angry. In fact, Gregory of Tours (c. 539-594) reported that Theuderic raised his army and launched a punitive campaign against the disloyal district in 532. The furious king and his army entered Clermont and hunted down the leaders who had invited Childebert to take control. He then was said to have attacked fortresses in the region that had garrisons of questionable loyalty. Among his targets were the fortress of Vollore and the forces at Chastel-Marlhac. Along with besieging local forts, Theuderic reportedly let his army ravage the district. Gregory of Tours wrote, “The army ran riot through the whole region, attacking everything, destroying everything” (History of the Franks, Book III, section 12). When Theuderic had finished meting out revenge on the local population, he placed a trusted kinsman named Sigivald in charge of a loyal garrison and tasked them with keeping an eye on Clermont.

Written by C. Keith Hansley

Picture Attribution: (15th-century depiction of Childebert and Clotar from BL Royal 20 E I, f. 47, [Public Domain] via picryl.com and Creative Commons).

Sources:

• The History of the Franks by Gregory of Tours, translated by Lewis Thorpe. New York: Penguin Classics, 1971.
• https://www.britannica.com/biography/Theodoric-I-king-of-Reims 
• https://www.britannica.com/biography/Childebert-I