Leadership and Community in Late Antique Gaul (Transformation of the Classical Heritage, 8) - Hardcover

Van Dam, Raymond

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0520051629 ISBN 13: 9780520051621

Publisher: Univ of California Pr, 1985

Synopsis

The rise of Christianity to the dominant position it held in the Middle Ages remains a paradoxical achievement. Early Christian communities in Gaul had been so restrictive that they sometimes persecuted misfits with accusations of heresy. Yet by the fifth century Gallic aristocrats were becoming bishops to enhance their prestige; and by the sixth century Christian relic cults provided the most comprehensive idiom for articulating values and conventions. To strengthen its appeal, Christianity had absorbed the ideologies of secular authority already familiar in Gallic society.

About this title

About the Author:

Raymond Van Dam is Associate Professor of History at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

Review:

"An outstanding contribution. . . . Here is a fine picture of Gaul in late Roman and early medieval times. . . . I highly recommend this book."--Stephen Benko, "American Historical Review

About this edition

• Publisher: Univ of California Pr
• Publication date: 1985
• ISBN 10: 0520051629
• ISBN 13: 9780520051621
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 400