The Fifth-Century Chroniclers: Prosper, Hydatius and the Gallic Chronicle of 452 (ARCA) - Hardcover

Muhlberger, Steven

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0905205766 ISBN 13: 9780905205762

Publisher: Francis Cairns Publications, 1990

Synopsis

The fifth century AD has always been a period of intense interest for historians. At the beginning, the Roman Empire looked as impentrable as it had done for centuries, but by 500AD the world had changed beyond recognition. The western emperor had been deposed and the imperial government had lost control of most of Europe. From now on, inhabitants of western Europe lived in a post-Roman world. The writers of Latin histories in the fifth century were not concerned with the minutiae of politcs, or military affairs, they were Christians who saw the development of the world purely as God's plan for humanity. The connection between present and past was best shown through the new type of historical work, the Christian chronicle, the narrative structure of which was based around extensive lists, with minimal written detail. The three chroniclers whose work is discussed here were amongst the earliest to take up this new literary form, and each wrote a continuation of Jerome's chroncile, itself a translation of Eusebius' Christian world chronicle.

About this title

About the Author

Steven Muhlberger studied history at Michigan State University and at the University of Toronto, where he took his doctorate in medieval history. He has taught at several Canadian universities, including Toronto, Trent, and Brock; he is currently a Professor at Nipissing University College.

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(from Introduction, p.2) Those who wrote history in Latin in the fifth century were not interested in the detailed description and analysis of current politics and military affairs, nor in creating great works of literary history. Christians to a man, they were preoccupied by the sweep of history as a whole, because they saw it as the working out of God's plan for humanity. Recent events had meaning for them only in the context of salvation history. The connection between present and past was for them best and most easily shown in a new type of historical work, the Christian world chronicle. In the chronicle, the narrative structure of literary history was replaced by a chronological framework, usually a list of consuls, emperors, or kings. Events were noted very briefly and were placed in rough chronological order by inserting them at appropriate points in the list. The chronicler could in this manner summarize the events of the recent past, or, for that matter, all of history. The form was as popular with readers as with writers. The Latin reading public had long preferred epitomes to full narrative histories; Christian world chronicles were the ultimate epitomes, since they made it possible to put the highlights of universal history in one small book. The chronicle so well suited the taste of the new Christian culture that it became the most popular historical genre of the Middle Ages.

Edition details

• Publisher: Francis Cairns Publications
• Publication date: 1990
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0905205766
• ISBN 13: 9780905205762
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 341