Merovingian Letters and Letter Writers (Publications of the Journal of Medieval Latin) (Publications of the Journal of Medieval Latin, 12)

Alice Tyrrell

ISBN 10: 250358358X / ISBN 13: 9782503583587

Published by Brepols Publishers, 2019

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Seller Inventory # ERICA829250358358X6

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Merovingian Letters and Letter Writers (Publications of the Journal of Medieval Latin) (Publications of the Journal of Medieval Latin, 12)
• Publisher: Brepols Publishers
• Publication Date: 2019
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 250358358X
• ISBN 13: 9782503583587
• Binding: paperback
• Condition: New
• Book Type: book

About this title

Synopsis

Primary sources from the Frankish kingdom during the Merovingian era (ca. 500-750) are few and far between. This volume is a survey of more than 600 Latin letters, selected by the author, that were exchanged between persons in Gaul during that time period. Many are almost entirely unknown and have never been translated into any modern language. While most of the letters were authored by clerics and highly-placed laymen, a small but significant number was composed by women, both religious and lay. For elite individuals, letter networks were the social media of their day. Letters were written to maintain the bonds of friendship, to seek or extend patronage and political alliance, to instruct, rebuke, defend, console, and recommend. Many have come down to us in collections; others are strays embedded in other texts or deperdita that come to light only in the replies of others. This book is a valuable tool for scholars and students alike. In seven readable chapters, the author discusses numerous aspects of the letters and explores how they fit with, and enlarge upon, the better-known sources of the period such as the works of Gregory of Tours, Fredegar, the anonymous History of the Franks (LHF), and various saints' vitae. An appendix containing a summary of each letter in translation renders these texts more readily accessible to the English speaker.