...History of Germany

Preface

It is right for me to say that this volume of the series has been carefully revised by Mr. A. W. Ward, than whom England can supply no one better fitted to deal with matters of German History of all dates. Mr. Ward must be understood as guaranteeing only the general accuracy of the narrative. In other respects the volume falls imder the same rules as its fellows. As I have already said in the Preface to the History of England, this volume, like the others, is strictly the work of its own author, subject only to the requirement of a general agreement in form and treatment with the other volumes of the series.

EDWARD A. FREEMAN.

SOMERLEAZE, WELLS,

February iithj i8j^

Contents

CHAPTER L

»AG1I

ANCIENT GERMANY • ^ ^ 9 • • • I

Chapter II. The Germans And The Romans

Arioz'isfiis ; C. yiiliiis CcBsar ; Gernians in the Roman service (i) — Dnisns tries to conquer Germafiy (2) — Tiberius in Germany; Arniinius defeats Varus (3) — Gennanicus atid Arminius (4) — Maroboduus; defeated by Arminius; death of Arminius ; (5) Claudius Civilis rebels against the Romans; encouraged by Vclleda ; is defeated (6) — the Marcomannic War (7).

I. Ariovistus. C. Julius Csesar. — The first German name that appears in history is that of Ariovistics^ a Suevic king whose fame had spread beyond the bounds of Germany. The Seqttcini and ^dui^ two GaUic tribes, having fallen out, the former begged this great chief to come to their aid. He did so, but in the end, in 60 B.C., conquered both *' tribes. He thus made himself master of the whole territory between the Upper Rhine and the Loire. The Romans at first treated him as a friend ; but, in the year 58 B.C., y^ C. Julius CcBsar, to whom the Gauls had appealed for help, marched against him, and defeated him. Csesar conquered the Germans on the left bank of the Rhine as completely as the Celtic inhabitants of Gaul. He twice crossed the Rhine; but he did not do much harm either time. He formed a high opinion of German bravery, and got many warriors to enter the Roman service. From this time it became common for Germans to serve as Roman soldiers ; and in the end they formed by far the best part of the Roman army.

12 THE GERMANS AND THE ROMANS. [chap.

2. Drusus. — About the beginning of the Christian sera the Romans tried hard to make Germany a Roman province. The first general who made the attempt was D?^usus^ the step-son of the Emperor Augustus. He cut a canal between the Rhine and the Yssel^ and in the year 12 B.C. sailed along the coasts of the North Sea. He defeated the Bructeri^ who had collected a fleet in the Ems for the purpose of opposing him. Drusus afterwards made three different expeditions into the heart of Germany. In the year 9 B.C. he defeated the Chatti with their allies the Marcomanni^ and advanced as far as the Elbe. On his way back he was killed by a fall from his horse. Had Drusus lived, he would probably have conquered a considerable part of Germany. He had built no fewer than fifty fortresses along the Rhine, besides others in different parts of the country.

3. Tiberius. Varus. Arminius. — The struggle begun by Drusus was carried on by Tibeidus, In 8 B.C. the latter conquered the Tencteid and Usipetes. The Sica^ibri bravely opposed him ; but having got their chiefs in his power by treacher}^, he easily overcame the people. In order to make them harmless for the future, he sent about 40,000 of them into Gaul, near the mouths of the Rhine, where they remained unwilling subjects of Rome. After this several tribes became allies of the Romans, and it seemed for a time as if Germany were soon, like Gaul, to form part of the Roman Empire. It was the foolish conduct of Qiniictilius Varus^ a Roman general, that kept this from coming about. Varus came to Germany in the year 6 A.D., and, fancying that the people were thoroughly subdued, began to rule as he had formerly done among the eastern subjects of Rome. He even claimed the right to put German freemen to death. The Germans were indignant at this treatment, and longed to throw off the foreign yoke. At last

II.] GERMANICUS, " 13

a young Cheruscan chief, called Armimiis, who had served in the Roman army, and Jiad been made a Roman citizen and knight, resolved to win back the freedom of his people. He spoke in secret with the chiefs of his own and other tribes, and found them more than willing to support him. When everything was ready, Vams, w^ho was in the land of the Cherusci, not far from the Weser, was told that a tribe in the north had revolted. At the head of a large army he at once set out to punish the rebels. He was led, with his legions, into the depths of the Teutoburg Wood. Heavy rains had been falling for some time, so that marching was difficult. Suddenly, when no' one dreamed of danger, the Romans looked up, and saw that the wooded heights above and around them were covered by armed men. The Germans fiercely avenged the wrongs they had suffered. Of the whole Roman army scarcely a man escaped. Varus, severely wounded, fell upon his sword and killed himself.

4. Germanicus. — In consequence of this defeat, the Romans did not even enter Germany for some years. But when Tiberitis became Emperor, Gennanicus^ the son of Drusus, tried- to follow in the steps of his father. In the year 14 he suddenly attacked the Marsi, a tribe on the right bank of the Middle Rhine, and defeated them. The neighbouring tribes at once rose against him, and compelled him to withdraw. Next year he returned, and was joined by many Germans, the Chanel being especially useful allies. Arminius, whose wife Thusjielda had been sent by Germanicus as a prisoner to Rome, hurried through the land of the Cherusci and allied tribes, and roused the people against the Romans. He attacked the Roman cavalry in the Teutoburg Wood, where Germanicus halted to bury the remains of the warriors v/ho had fallen five years before. The Germans gained no decided victory, but Germanicus

14 . THE GERMANS AND THE ROMANS. [chap.

was weakened, and felt it necessary to retreat. In the year i6, he put forth all his strength against the Germans, and defeated them in a battle near Mmden, The Romans claimed the victory in a second battle, but their losses were so great that they had to retreat to their ships. These were overtaken by a violent storm, and greater part of the fleet perished. After this the Romans did not again try to conquer Germany.

5. Maroboduus. Death of Arminius. — Meanwhile, a new danger had arisen within Germany itself After being defeated by Drusus, the Marcomanni, headed by their chief Marobodims^ had wandered eastwards and taken possession of the country now called Bohemia, Maroboduus became a very powerful king, and conquered the leading Suevic tribes. He might have brought all Germany under his rule ; but after the withdrawal of Germanicus, Arminius made war on him, and so utterly defeated him that his kingdom was broken up, and he himself had to seek refuge in Rome, Arminius thus probably saved the freedom of the Germans a second time. We know nothing of the last years of Arminius. In the year 21, at the age of thirtyseven, he was murdered. He was a true hero, to whom the whole Teutonic race owes a debt of gratitude.

6. Claudius Civilis. — In the year 69 the Batavians and the Germans on the left bank of the Rhine rebelled against the Romans. The rebellion was headed by Claudius Civilis^ a Batavian who had for many years served in the Roman army, but had been harshly treated by the Emperor Ne7'o. Some Gallic tribes joined him ; and the Bructeri and other Germans on the right bank of the Rhine gladly sent him aid. A Bmcterian maid, Velleda^ who lived in a lonely tower in the forests near the Lippe^ and was looked up to as a prophetess, encouraged him and his followers by highsounding promises. For a time Civilis was successful ; but

11.] THE MARCOMANNIC WAR, 15

fortune soon turned. The Roman general Cerealis twice defeated him. Civihs still held out for a time ; but in the end the Batavians had to return to their allegiance. They v/ere not asked to pay tribute, but had to send men to ti e Roman army.

7. The Marcomannic Waf.- — In the second century there were new wars between the Romans and the Germans, but now the latter, not the former, were the aggressors. Of these wars the chief was the Marcomannic war^ carried on by Marcus Aurelitis for thirteen years against a va^t body of Germans, headed by the Marcoman7ii and the Quadi, and joined by various non-German tribes. Ths invasion which led to this war may be looked on as the first of those which were afterwards to break up the Empire.

CHAPTER III. THE FRANKS, y

German tribes leave the mother country (l) — the Alemanni ; the Franks ; the Saxons and Frisians ; the Thiwingians ; the Bavarians (2) — the Franks the most important group of tribes ; the Ripitarians (3)— //^^ Salian Franks (4) — King Chlodio ; state of Society among the Salians about Chlodio'' s time (5) — Aleroivig; Childe7'ic (6) — Chlodwig; conquers Gaid {"]) — becomes Christian (8) — conquers the Alemanni; unites all Frankish tribes {')) — lands seized by Chlodwig; allodial and fiscal lands (10) — Chlodivig^s successors (11)— power of the Merowi?/gian Kings (12) — Cans and Duchies ; Dukes and Counts (13) — Benefices (14) — Officers of the royal household (15).

I. Wanderings of German Tribes. -^Between the third and the sixth centuries great changes took place in Germany. Whole tribes and confederations of tribes left the mother country and founded powerful kingdoms elsewhere. The Goths were the first to set the example. They pushed towards the south-east. In the fourth century their great King Eor?ne7i7'ic ruled over a kingdom reaching from the Baltic to the Black Sea. This kingdom was broken up by the Huns, to whom the East Goths became for a time subject, while the West Goths crossed the Danube and settled within Roman territory. Early in the fifth century the Vandals, the Burgujidians, and various Stievic peoples wandered westwards into Ganl. The Suevi and the Vandals entered Spain^ and conquered it. The Vandals

[CH. III.] GROUPS OF TRIBES, 17

afterwards founded a kingdom in Africa^ the capital of A'hich was Carthaj^e. The Burgimdians remained in Gaul, and founded a kingdom which in the end took in the valley of the Rhone and the Saone^ and the western half oi Helvetia. These tribes were followed by the West Goths, who conquered Spain and the southern part of Gaul. The East Goths, under their King Theodoric, established a great kingdom in Italy, Some years after they were driven from Italy, in the sixth century, their place was taken by the Lombards^ whose power proved firmer and more enduring. In the fifth century our own forefathers began to leave their seats on the shores of the North Sea, and to settle in Britain. Many of the lands which these tribes had held fell into the hands of the Sclaves, so that the Elbe and the Saal became the eastern boundary of Germany. ^

2. Groups of Tribes. — We hear very little, after the third century, of the many tribes formerly scattered over Germany. They still existed, but they were joined together in groups or confederations. How these were formed, w^e do not know. The tie which united the members of a confederation was very loose. Still, the members of each confederation had a certain sense of kinship, and this prepared the way for a closer political connexion. The Alemanni^ who took in a number of Suevic tribes, were one of the most powerful of the confederations. In the third century they held the country between the Danube and the Main, and from thence made many incursions into Roman territory. They gradually advanced southwards and westwards as far as the Upper Rhine^ the Aar^ and the Vosges 7itountams. To the north of the Alemanni, from the Main to the mouths of the Rhine, were the Fy-anks. The land to the east of the Franks was held by the Saxojis and Frisians. The latter held ■ the whole line of coast from the Rhine to the Elbe ; the former,

B iS THE FRANKS. [chap.

the basins of the Lower Elbe, the Weser, and the Ems. The centre of what is now Germany was in the hands of the Thn7'ingians. They held the wooded mountains w^hich are still called by their name, and some part of the country to the north and south. These various confederations may probably be identified with the groups into which the Germans, in the time of Tacitus, divided themselves. If so, the Saxons and Frisians would represent the ancient Ingaevones ; the Franks the htaevones^ and the Alemanni and Thuringians the He-nninones, Another confederation was gradually formed by the Goths who remained in Germany, the Marcomanni, and others. These were the Bojoarii or Bavarians^ whose country took in greater part of the basin of the Ittn^ and who became subject in turn to Odoacer and to Theodoric the Great.

3. The Franks. The Ripuarians* — Of these groups of tribes, the Fi'anks were by far the most important. The history of the Franks is for several centuries the histoiy of Germany. They conquered the Gauls and their own kinsmen, and laid the foundation of the future kingdoms of Germany and France, From the. third century the Franks on the right bank of the Middle Rhine often broke into Gaul, and attacked the Romans. They several times conquered Kbln^ Mainz, and Trier, and harried the neighbouring lands. In the fourth century they were driven back by Constantine and yulian, and in the fifth by the great general Aetius; but in the latter half of the fifth century they were masters of the whole country between the Middle Rhine and the Maes. They held also part of the banks of the Moselle, and had lands as far south as the northern boundaries of the Alemanni and Burgundians. At this time their chief town was Kolnj and they were called (probably from Ripa, a bank) Riparii or Ripuarii.

4. The Salian Franks. — The Franks who held the

III.] KING CHLODIO. THE SALIC CODE. 19

banks of the Lower Rhine were called by the Romans Salia7is. The Ripuarians were more numerous than the Salians ; but it was the Salians who founded the great Frankish kingdom. They sprang for the most part from those Sicambri whom Tiberius settled near the mouths of the Rhine, and were probably called Salians from a tribe which wandered westwards from the Yssel or Isala^ and united to form one people with the Sicambri. The Salians were nominally subject to the Romans, and served in the Roman army ; but they kept their native institutions, and always tried, when they had a chance, to become independent. At the time of Julian they held the country from the Lower Rhine to the west of the Maes. Julian advanced against them, and defeated them ; but he allowed them to keep the land they had seized. About the beginning of the fifth century they still served in the Roman army, but no longer recognised Roman supremacy. They probably then held the whole country between the Lower Rhine and the Schelde.

5. King Chlodio. The Salic code. — The Salians were governed by Kings. Probably their first King — at all events, the first of whom we know anything — was Chlodio. He reigned about the middle of the fifth century. He was defeated by the Romans under Aetius ; but he succeeded in pushing his boundaries as far west as the Soinnie. He became a faithful ally of the Romans, who often afterwards — especially in the great battle fought in 451 against Atiila — received important aid from the Salians. The famous Salic Code was probably drawn up about the time of Chlodio. The state of soc'ety which it represents is in many respects the same as that described by Tacitus. The people, like all their kinsmen who had not left Germany, are still heathens. The tribe is divided into Hundreds, and these again into villages ; and the

20 THE FRANKS. [chap.

occupation of the people, when they are not engaged in war, continues mainly agricultural. But the position of the King has changed. He no longer receives his authority from the people ; he inherits it, and exercises it as a right. He appoints the chiefs, who are called Grafs or Counts^ and decides cases of justice which the Meeting of the Hundred — the largest that seems now to be held — cannot settle. There is no trace of the old noble class ; what raises men above their fellows is connexion with the King. Those whom he appoints to an office, and the members of his " Gefolge" or " Com.itatus," hold a very high position. The "Wergeld'^ of a Graf and of a follower of the King is three times as large as that of a common freeman. The King has thus already become the central element in the constitution. He exercises supreme authority, and is the fountain of honour. This great increase of the royal power was perhaps partly due to the influence of Roman ideas, for the Salians in the Roman army would naturally learn habits of strict obedience.

6. Merowig". Childeric. — The successor of Chlodio is said to have been Merowig. We know nothing certainly of this King. If he really existed, he must have made a deep impression on the men of his time, for the future Kings of the Franks were called after him Merowingiaiis. Childei'ic^ whose capital was Totcrnay^ was a great Salian King in the latter half of the fifth century. He aided the Romans against the West Goths, and is said also to have opposed the Alernanni, who were threatening Italy. The close connexion of the Salians with the Romans at this time prepared the way for the great career on which they were about to enter.

7. Chlodwig. Conquest of Gaul. — Childeric was succeeded, in 481, by his son, Chlodovech or Chlodwig.

III.] CAUSES OF CHLOD WIG'S SUCCESS. 21

Chlodwig was a mere boy when he became King, but he was destined to become one of the greatest conquerors in the history of the world. He began his career by attacking Syagriiis^ the governor of the part of Gaul which was still directly subject to Rome. Having defeated Syagrius near Soissons^ Chlodwig took possession of the country as far as the Seine, He afterwards became master of the land between the Seme and the Loii'e^ where the Armorican Republic is said to have been established. He also defeated the Burgundians, and made their King pay him tribute. Crossing the Loire, he defeated the West Goths in a battle near Poitiers. Chlodwig was unable to conquer the southern part of Gaul ; but after the defeat of the West Goths his kingdom reached as far south as the Garonne. Thus, within a short time, he had conquered nearly the whole of Gaul.

8. Causes of Chlodwig's success. — At first sight it appears strange that a petty King with comparatively few followers should do such great things ; and that, having conquered such vast territories, he should afterwards be able to hold the people in subjection. The chief cause of Chlodwig's success was that he had become a Christian. On Christmas day of 496 he was baptized with great pomp, with 3,000 of his warriors, at Rheiins. The story is that his baptism was the result of a vow made in the heat of a battle with the Alemanni near Ziilpich., that if the God of the Christians gave him the victory he would give up his gods and accept Christianity. The Franks in the old settlements in the neighbourhood of the Schelde were not converted for some time ; but from the time of his baptism Chlodwig's kingdom was at least nominally Christian. This fact did more for him than ail the bravery of his troops. • The Germans already settled in Gaul were Christians ; but they

22 THE FRANKS, [chap.

were not members of the Catholic- Church. They were Aria US. The Cathohc clergy, therefore, were their enemies, and longed for some ruler who should uphold the true faith. From the beginning they looked to Chlodwig with hope. When he entered the Church they warmly supported him ; and their friendship meant the good-will of the great body of the people. Another circumstance aided Chlodwig. The Emperor Anastasius^ anxious that the barbarian conqueror should have some formal connexion with the Roman Empire, sent him, after his victory over the West Goths, the titles of Consul and Patiidan. This seemed to make Chlodwig the lawful ruler of Gaul, and probably won over some whom even the Church might have failed to influence.

9. Conquest of the Alemanni. Union of all Prankish Tribes. — Chlodwig was far more than the conqueror of Gaul. The Saxons, Thuringians, and Bavarians, did not fall under his power; but he subdued the Alemanni, and seems to have colonized the part of their territory between the Neckar and the Main with a Prankish population. He also united all the Frankish tribes under his rule. When he began his reign there was no political connexion between the Salians and the Ripuarians ; and the Salians themselves had other Kings besides Chlodwig. Chlodwig slew these Kings, and the King of the Ripuarians, together with their heirs. He appears to have taken possession of Salian territory as a right ; the Ripuarians elected him to be their King. The Franks of every tribe thus acknowledged one lord, and began to feel themselves bound together by many common interests. As the centre of a great kingdom, destined to be the most enduring of all the States founded by the Germans in foreign countries, they could not but learn to be proud of the common Frankish name.

10. Lands seized by Chlodwig. — Chlodwig was not

III.] CHLODWIG'S SUCCESSORS. 23

followed into the heart of Gaul by the Salians as a people. He was accompanied .only by his *' Gefolge " and an army of freemen. He did not, therefore, like other German conquerors demand any particular proportion of the conquered territory. But he took possession of all public lands and of lands which had no certain owner. These w^ere divided between himself and those who accompanied him. Land allotted to, or seized by, a freeman, was called allodial. Allodial land was the absolute property of the possessor, held by him subject to no condition except that of aiding, when necessary, in the defence of the State. The lands kept for the King must have been very extensive. They were zzSi^d. fiscal lands, and became the chief source of the royal revenue.

II. Chlodwi^s success6rs. — Chlodwig died in 511 in Paris. His kingdom was divided among his four sons. This division did not break up the unity of the kingdom. The subjects of the four brothers continued to look on themselves as members of one State. The East or Rhenish Franks, and those Germans to the east of the Rhine whom Chlodwig had conquered, were placed under Chlodwig's eldest son, Theodoric. His was by far the most powerful of the four divisions. He made the bulk of Thuringia tributary ; and his son and successor, Theudebert^ subdued the Bavarians^ and completed the subjection of the Alejnamn. Thus the greater part of Germany was brought under the rule of the Franks. The Saxons and Frisians alone remained independent. Theodoric^s brothers, who, after the death of Theodoric the Great in 526, found little hindrance to their schemes of conquest, thoroughly mastered Burgundyy and gained possession of the southern part of Gaul. Chlotachar^ or Clothair /., Chlodwig^s youngest son, joined together again the whole Frankish kingdom. Under him the kingdom was almost as extensive as at any

24 THE FRANKS, [chap.

time for more than two centuries afterwards. Like his father, he was succeeded by his four sons ; but when one of these died, the kingdom was again divided. After this the different parts of the kingdom were several times brought together under one King ; but more usually there were three kingdoms — AnsU^asia^ the kingdom of the East Franks, Neustria^ the kingdom of the West Franks, and Burgundy, Neustria and Burgundy often went together, but Austrasia always tried to have a King of its own, and became more and more separated from the other kingdoms.

12. The Merowingian King^s. — The Merowingian Kings were usually very bad rulers, but at first they had great power. There was for a time a yearly gathering of Frankish freemen, called, from the fact that it met in March, the MarcJifield. This was soon given up in Neustria, because the Franks lived at great distances from one another, and could not easily go to Meetings far away from their homes. In Austrasia the Marchfield was probably only a military assembly. Thus the power which had once belonged to all freemen gradually passed into the hands of the King. The position of the Kings was further raised by their Roman subjects readily. conceding to them some of the powers which had belonged to the Emperors.

13. Dukes and Counts. — The Frankish kingdoms were divided into Gaus or Districts^ each of which was governed by a Count. A number of Gaus made a Duchy^ over which was a Herzog or Duke. Each of the great groups or confederations of tribes in Germany formed a separate Duchy. The Dukes and Counts in Gaul were appointed solely by the King, and were looked on as his officers. The Bavarians elected their own Dukes ; and they always chose them from one noble family, the Agiloljijtgs. The Alemanni and Thurino^ians had also some share in the

III.] BENEFICES. ' 25

appointment of their Dukes. The freemen of each German Duchy mxt their Duke once in the year, and consulted with him on affairs of importance. Thus the Gemians to the east of the Rhine kept more of the old freedom than their Frankish conquerors.

14. Benefices. — The Merowingian Kings soon adopted the Roman custom of granting lands on condition of military service. Such grants were called at first -benefices.^ but afterwards ^^''jr. They were made from the royal lands, and wxre usually given to the King's mat or vassals — that is, to the Dukes, Counts, and members of the " Gefolge.'^ Thus the service required by a Merowingian King from the holder of a benefice was not, like that required for lands granted by the Roman Government, service to the State ; it was the service of a vassal to his lord. The relation between the tw^o w^as w^holly personal in its character. Those who did not already hold this personal relation to the King, on receiving a benefice, became his men, and swore to be faithful to him and to give him service in war. From this combination of Roman and Teutonic ideas sprang the system of feudal te7iiires. [See the Gejieral Sketch of European History in this Series.] When benefices became hereditary, the holders usually granted pieces of land to others, who entered into the same relation to them that they held to the King. And in times of confusion, freemen very often gave up their lands to some powerful lord, and received them back asyf<f/Gr, thus binding themselves to serve him in war while he undertook to protect them against their enemies. In the end, the Dukes and Counts came to hold their Duchies and Counties in fief and thus looked on all fief-holders within their districts as their vassals. But this was not for some time yet.

15. The Royal household. — The Merowingian Kings,

26 THE FRANKS, [ch. hi.]

having become rich and great, Hved in a style of which the early German Kings and chiefs had never dreamed. The duties of their household were divided among a large number of officers, among whom were the Seneschal^ the Marshal^ and the Chancellor. Over all officers of the court was the Major Do7nus^ or Mayor of the Palace, An officer oi less importance, at this time, was the Palsgrave^ or Count of the Palace^ whose duties had to do with the royal tribunal. These, and all other great officers, were taken chiefly from the members of the " Gefolge." They formed a Council which aided the King in administering justice and in carrying on the affairs of the State.

Chapter IV. The Mayors Of The Palace, And Dukes Of The

FRANKS*

A new aristocracy arises ; the poiuer of the Kings lessened ( I ) — tht Mayors of the Palace the real rulers of the Frankish kittg- . doms (2) — Pippin of Her stall rules the East Franks; defeats the West Franks at Testri {3) — Charles Martel ; victory over the Arabs {^—Pippin the Short beco77ies King (5) — conversion of German tribes through the preaching of English. missionaries ; Winfrith ; the See of Mainz the head Church of Ger7?tany (6)»

I. The rise of a new aristocracy. — The holders of benefices tried from the beginning to make their lands hereditary ; and many of them soon succeeded in doing so. Thus a great new aristocracy arose which took the place among the Franks of the old noble class. This aristocracy soon lessened the kingly power. Its leading members often met, and not only shared the government with the King, but sometimes forced him to confirm them in right-s which they had seized. Such gatherings took the place, to some extent, of the old national Meetings. The various Kings had given away so many lands as benefices that they were soon too poor to defend themselves. They were also weakened by carrying on many cruel wars with each other. Thus it came about that by the middle of the seventh century the Merovvingian Kings, who had for a time been so great, had lost nearly all their power. The