with the authority, of king of the Romans. As a Roman, he had been educated in the liberal studies of rhetoric and jurisprudence: but he was engaged by accident and policy in the familiar use of the Germanic idiom. The independent barbarians resorted to the tribunal of a stranger, who possessed the singular talent of explaining, in their native tongue, the dictates of reason and equity. The diligence and affability of their judge rendered him popular, the impartial wisdom of his decrees obtained their voluntary obedience, and the reign of Syagrius over the Franks and Burgundians, seemed to revive the original institution of civil society. In the midst of these peaceful occupations, Syagrius received, and boldly accepted, the hostile defiance of Clovis; who challenged his rival, in the spirit, and almost in the language, of chivalry, to appoint the day, and the field, of battle. In the time of Cæsar, Soissons would have poured forth a body of fifty thousand horse; and such an army might have been plentifully supplied with shields, cuirasses, and military engines, from the three arsenals, or manufactures, of the city. But the courage and numbers of the Gallic youth were long since exhausted; and the loose bands of volunteers, or mercenaries, who marched under the standard of Syagrius, were incapable of contending with the national valour of the Franks. It would be ungenerous, without some more accurate knowledge of his strength and resources, to condemn the rapid flight of Syagrius, who escaped, after the loss of a battle, to the distant court of Thoulouse. The feeble minority of Alaric could not assist, or protect, an unfortunate fugitive; the pusillanimous Goths were intimidated by the menaces of Clovis; and the Roman king, after a short confinement, was delivered into the hands of the executioner. The Belgic cities surrendered to the king of the Franks; and his dominions were enlarged towards the east by the ample diocese of Tongres," which Clovis subdued in the tenth year of his reign. The name of the Alemanni has been absurdly derived from their imaginary settlement on the banks of the Leman lake. That fortunate district, from the lake to Avenche, and mount Jura, was occupied by the Burgundians. The northern parts of Helvetia had indeed been subdued by the ferocious Alemanni, Defeat and submission of the Alemauni, A. D. 496. the slight evidence of Dubos (tom. ii. p. 54-57.) to deprive him of Beauvais and Amiens. p I may observe that Fredegarius, in his Epitome of Gregory of Tours, (tom. ii. p. 398.) has prudently substituted the name of Patri cius for the incredible title of Rex Romanorum. q Sidonius, (1. v. Epist. 5. in tom. i. p. 794.) who styles him the Solon, the Amphion of the barbarians, addresses this imaginary king in the tone of friendship and equality. From such offices of arbitration, the crafty Dejoces had raised himself to the throne of the Medes. (Herodot. 1. i. c. 96-100.) r Campum sibi præparari jussit. M. Biet (p. 226-251.) has diligent. ly ascertained this field of battle, at Nogent, a benedictine abbey, about ten miles to the north of Soissons. The ground was marked by a circle of pagan sepulchres; and Clovis bestowed the adjacent lands of Leuilly and Coucy on the church of Rheims. See Caesar. Comment. de Bell. Gallic. ii. 4. in tom. i. p. 220. and the Notitia, tom. i. p. 126. The three Fabrice of Soissons were, Scutaria, Balistaria, and Clinabaria. The last supplied the com.. plete armour of the heavy cuirassiers. The epithet must be confined to the circumstances; and history cannot justify the French prejudice of Gregory, (l. ii. c. 27. in tom. ii. p. 175) ut Gothorum pavere mos est. u Dubos has satisfied me (tom. i. p. 277-286.) that Gregory of Tours, who destroyed with their own hands the fruits of their conquest. A province, improved and adorned by the arts of Rome, was again reduced to a savage wilderness; and some vestige of the stately Vindonissa may still be discovered in the fertile and populous valley of the Aar. From the source of the Rhine, to its conflux with the Mien and the Moselle, the formidable swarms of the Alemanni commanded either side of the river, by the right of ancient possession or recent victory. They had spread themselves into Gaul, over the modern provinces of Alsace and Lorraine; and their bold invasion of the kingdom of Cologne summoned the Salic prince to the defence of his Ripuarian allies. Clovis encountered the invaders of Gaul in the plain of Tolbiac, about twenty-four miles from Cologne; and the two fiercest nations of Germany were mutually animated by the memory of past exploits, and the prospect of future greatness. The Franks, after an obstinate struggle, gave way; and the Alemanni, raising a shout of victory, impetuously pressed their retreat. But the battle was restored by the valour, the conduct, and perhaps by the piety, of Clovis; and the event of the bloody day decided for ever the alternative of empire or servitude. The last king of the Alemanni was slain in the field, and his people were slaughtered and pursued, till they threw down their arms, and yielded to the mercy of the conqueror. Without discipline it was impossible for them to rally: they had contemptuously demolished the walls and fortifications which might have protected their distress; and they were followed into the heart of their forests, by an enemy not less active, or intrepid, than themselves. The great Theodoric congratulated the victory of Clovis, whose sister Albofleda the king of Italy had lately married; but he mildly interceded with his brother in favour of the suppliants and fugitives, who had implored his protection. The Gallic territories, which were possessed by the Alemanni, became the prize of their conqueror; and the haughty nation, invincible, or rebellious, to the arms of Rome, acknowledged the sovereignty of the Merovingian kings, who graciously permitted them to enjoy their peculiar manners and institutions, under the government of official, and at length of hereditary, dukes. After the conquest of the western provinces, his transcribers or his readers, have repeatedly confounded the German kingdom of Thuringia, beyond the Rhine, and the Gallic city of To gria, on the Meuse, which was more anciently the country of the Ebarones, and more recently the diocese of Liege. x Populi habitantes juxta Lemannum lacum, Alemanni dicuntur. Servius, ad Virgil. Georgic. iv. 278. has only alleged the more recent and corrupt text of Isidore of Dom, Bouquet (tom, i. p. 817.) Seville. y Gregory of Tours sends St. Lupicinus inter illa Jurensis deserti secreta, quæ, inter Burgundiam Alemanniamque sita, Aventic adjacent civitati, in tom. i. p. 648. M. de Watteville (Hist. de la Confederation Helvetique, tom. i. p. 9, 10.) has accurately defined the Helvetian limits of the duchy of Alemannia, and the Tranjurane Burgundy. They were commensurate with the dioceses of Constance and Avenche, or Lau sanne, and are still discriminated, in modern Switzerland, by the use of the German, or French, language. the ancient walls of Vindonissa, the castle of Habsburgh, the abbey of z See Guilliman. de Rebus Helveticis, I. i. c. 3. p. 11, 12. Within Konigsfield, and the town of Bruck, have successively arisen. The phi losophic traveller may compare the monuments of Roman conquest, of feudal or Austrian tyranny, of monkish superstition, and of industrious freedom. If he be truly a philosopher, he will applaud the merit and happiness of his own times." CHAP. XXXVIII. Conversion of OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE. But 621 the Franks alone maintained their ancient habita- | example was imitated by the remainder of the gentle tions beyond the Rhine. They gradually subdued, | barbarians, who, in obedience to the victorious preand civilized, the exhausted countries, as far as the late, adored the cross which they had burnt, and Elbe, and the mountains of Bohemia; and the peace burnt the idols which they had formerly adored." of Europe was secured by the obedience of Germany. The mind of Clovis was susceptible of transient Till the thirteenth year of his age, fervour: he was exasperated by the pathetic tale of Clovis continued to worship the gods the passion and death of Christ; and, instead of A. D. 496. of his ancestors. His disbelief, or weighing the salutary consequences of that mysterather disregard, of christianity, might encourage rious sacrifice, he exclaimed, with indiscreet fury, him to pillage with less remorse the churches of a "Had I been present at the head of my valiant hostile territory but his subjects of Gaul enjoyed Franks, I would have revenged his injuries." the free exercise of religious worship; and the the savage conqueror of Gaul was incapable of exbishops entertained a more favourable hope of the amining the proofs of a religion, which depends on idolater, than of the heretics. The Merovingian the laborious investigation of historic evidence, and prince had contracted a fortunate alliance with the speculative theology. He was still more incapable fair Clotilda, the niece of the king of Burgundy, of feeling the mild influence of the gospel, which who, in the midst of an Arian court, was educated persuades and purifies the heart of a genuine conin the profession of the catholic faith. It was her vert. His ambitious reign was a perpetual violainterest, as well as her duty, to achieve the con- tion of moral and christian duties; his hands were version of a pagan husband; and Clovis insensibly stained with blood, in peace as well as in war; and, listened to the voice of love and religion. He con- as soon as Clovis had dismissed a synod of the Galsented (perhaps such terms had been previously | lican church, he calmly assassinated all the princes stipulated) to the baptism of his eldest son; and of the Merovingian race. Yet the king of the though the sudden death of the infant excited some Franks might sincerely worship the christian God, superstitious fears, he was persuaded, a second time, as a being more excellent and powerful than his to repeat the dangerous experiment. In the distress national deities; and the signal deliverance and of the battle of Tolbiac, Clovis loudly invoked the victory of Tolbiac encouraged Clovis to confide in God of Clotilda and the christians; and victory dis- the future protection of the Lord of hosts. Martin, posed him to hear, with respectful gratitude, the the most popular of the saints, had filled the westeloquent Remigius, bishop of Rheims, who forci- ern world with the fame of those miracles which bly displayed the temporal and spiritual advantages were incessantly performed at his holy sepulchre of his conversion. The king declared himself satis- of Tours. His visible or invisible aid promoted the fied of the truth of the catholic faith; and the poli- cause of a liberal and orthodox prince; and the tical reasons which might have suspended his public profane remark of Clovis himself, that St. Martin profession, were removed by the devout or loyal was an expensive friend, need not be interpreted acclamations of the Franks, who showed themselves as the symptom of any permanent or rational scepalike prepared to follow their heroic leader, to the ticism. But earth, as well as heaven, rejoiced in field of battle, or to the baptismal font. The impor- the conversion of the Franks. On the memorable tant ceremony was performed in the cathedral of day, when Clovis ascended from the baptismal font, Rheims, with every circumstance of magnificence he alone, in the christian world, deserved the name and solemnity, that could impress an awful sense of and prerogatives of a catholic king. The emperor religion on the minds of its rude proselytes. The Anastasius entertained some dangerous errors connew Constantine was immediately baptized, with cerning the nature of the divine incarnation; and three thousand of his warlike subjects; and their the barbarians of Italy, Africa, Spain, and Gaul, e f Gregory of Tours, (1. ii. 30, 37. in tom. ii. p. 176, 177. 182.) the Gesta Francorum, (in tom. ii. p. 551.) and the epistle of Theodoric, (Cas siodor. Variar. I. ii. c. 41. in tom. iv. p. 4.) represent the defeat of the Alemanni. Some of their tribes settled in Rhætia, under the protec tion of Theodoric; whose successors ceded the colony and their country to the grandson of Clovis. The state of the Alemanni under the Merovingian kings, may be seen in Mascou, (Hist. of the Ancient Germans, xi. 8, &c. Annotation xxxvi.) and Guilliman, (de Reb. Helvet. 1. ii. c. 10-12. p. 72-80.) Clotilda, or rather Gregory, supposes that Clovis worshipped the gods of Greece and Rome. The fact is incredible, and the mistake only shows how completely, in less than a century, the national religion of the Franks had been abolished, and even forgotten. Gregory of Tours relates the marriage and conversion of Clovis, (1. ii. c. 28-31, in tom. ii. p. 175-178.) Even Fredegarius, or the nameless Epitomizer, in tom. ii. p. 398-400.) the author of the Gesta Francorum, (in tom. ii. p. 548-552.) and Aimoin himself, (1. i. c. 13. in tom. iii. p. 37-40.) may be heard without disdain. Tradition might long preserve some curious circumstances of these important transactions. A traveller, who returned from Rheims to Auvergne, had stolen a copy of his Declamations from the secretary or bookseller of the mo dest archbishop, (Sidonius Apollinar. I. ix. epist. 7.) Four epistles of Remigius, which are still extant, (in tom. iv. p. 51-53.) do not correspond with the splendid praise of Sidonius. e Hincmar, one of the successors of Remigius, (A. D. 845-882.) has composed his life, (in tom. iii. p. 373-380.) The authority of ancient MSS. of the church of Rheims might inspire some confidence, which is destroyed, however, by the selfish and audacious fictions of Hincmar. It is remarkable enough, that Remigius, who was consecrated at the age of twenty-two, (A. D. 457.) filled the episcopal chair seventy-four years, (Pagi Critica, in Baron. tom. ii. p. 384. 572.) f A phial (the Sainte Ampoulle) of holy, or rather celestial, oil, was brought down by a white dove, for the baptism of Clovis; and it is still used, and renewed, in the coronation of the kings of France. Hincmar (he aspired to the primacy of Gaul) is the first author of this fable, (in tom. iii. p. 377.) whose slight foundations the Abbé de Vertot (Memoires de l'Academie des Inscriptions, tom. ii. p 619-633.) has undermined, with profound respect and consummate dexterity. g Mitis depone colla, Sicamber; adora quod incendisti, incende quod adorasti. Greg. Turon. 1. ii, c. 31. in tom. ii. p. 177. h Si ego ibidem cum Francis meis fuissem, injurias ejus vindicassem. This rash expression, which Gregory has prudently concealed, is celebrated by Fredegarius. (Epitom. c. 21. in tom. ii. p. 400.) Aimoin, (l. i. c. 16. in tom iii. p. 40.) and the Chroniques de St. Denys, (l. i. c. 20. in tom. iii. p. 171.) as an admirable effusion of christian zeal. i Gregory, (l. ii. c. 40-43. in tom. ii. p. 183-185.) after coolly relating the repeated crimes, and affected remorse, of Clovis, concludes, perhaps undesignedly, with a lesson, which ambition will never hear; "His ita transactis... obiit." k After the Gothic victory, Clovis made rich offerings to St. Martin of Tours. He wished to redeem his war-horse by the gift of one hundred pieces of gold, but the enchanted steed could not move from the stable till the price of his redemption had been doubled. This miracle provoked the king to exclaim, Vere B. Martinus est bonus in auxilia, sed carus in negotio. (Gesta Francorum, in tom. ii. p. 554, 555.) were involved in the Arian heresy. The eldest, or | gradual operation of war and treaty; and Clovis rather the only, son of the church, was acknowledged by the clergy as their lawful sovereign, or glorious deliverer; and the arms of Clovis were strenuously supported by the zeal and favour of the catholic faction.' Submission of and the Roman troops, A. D. 497, &c. Under the Roman empire, the wealth the Armoricans and jurisdiction of the bishops, their sacred character, and perpetual office, their numerous dependents, popular eloquence, and provincial assemblies, had rendered them always respectable, and sometimes dangerous. Their influence was augmented with the progress of superstition, and the establishment of the French monarchy may, in some degree, be ascribed to the firm alliance of a hundred prelates, who reigned in the discontented, or independent, cities of Gaul. The slight foundations of the Armorican republic had been repeatedly shaken, or overthrown; but the same people still guarded their domestic freedom; asserted the dignity of the Roman name; and bravely resisted the predatory inroads, and regular attacks, of Clovis, who laboured to extend his conquests from the Seine to the Loire. Their successful opposition introduced an equal and honourable union. The Franks esteemed the valour of the Armoricans,TM and the Armoricans were reconciled by the religion of the Franks. The military force, which had been stationed for the defence of Gaul, consisted of one hundred different bands of cavalry or infantry; and these troops, while they assumed the title and privileges of Roman soldiers, were renewed by an incessant supply of the barbarian youth. The extreme fortifications, and scattered fragments, of the empire, were still defended by their hopeless courage. But their retreat was intercepted, and their communication was impracticable: they were abandoned by the Greek princes of Constantinople, and they piously disclaimed all connexion with the Arian usurpers of Gaul. They accepted, without shame or reluctance, the generous capitulation, which was proposed by a catholic hero; and this spurious, or legitimate, progeny of the Roman legions, was distinguished in the succeeding age by their arms, their ensigns, and their peculiar dress and institutions. But the national strength was increased by these powerful and voluntary accessions; and the neighbouring kingdoms dreaded the numbers, as well as the spirit, of the Franks. The reduction of the northern provinces of Gaul, instead of being decided by the chance of a single battle, appears to have been slowly effected by the 1 See the epistle from pope Anastasius to the royal convert, (in tom. iv. p. 50, 51.) Avitus, bishop of Vienna, addressed Clovis on the same subject, (p. 49.) and many of the Latin bishops would assure him of their joy and attachment. m Instead of the Apßopuxoi, an unknown people, who now appear in the text of Procopius, Hadrian de Valois has restored the proper name of the Apuopuxor; and this easy correction has been almost universally approved. Yet an unprejudiced reader would naturally suppose, that Procopius means to describe a tribe of Germans in the alliance of Rome; and not a confederacy of Gallic cities, which had revolted from the empire. This important digression of Procopius (de Bell. Gothic. 1. i. c. 12. in tom, ii. p. 29-36) illustrates the origin of the French monarchy. Yet I must observe, 1. That the Greek historian hetrays an inexcusable iguorance of the geography of the west. 2. That these treaties and pri acquired each object of his ambition, by such efforts, or such concessions, as were adequate to its real value. His savage character, and the virtues of Henry IV. suggest the most opposite ideas of human nature; yet some resemblance may be found in the situation of two princes, who conquered France by their valour, their policy, and the merits of a seasonable conversion." war. A. D. 499. The kingdom of the Burgundians, The Burgundian which was defined by the course of two Gallic rivers, the Saone and the Rhone, extended from the forest of Vosges to the Alps and the sea of Marseilles. The sceptre was in the hands of Gundobald. That valiant and ambitious prince had reduced the number of royal candidates by the death of two brothers, one of whom was the father of Clotilda ;P but his imperfect prudence still permitted Godegcsil, the youngest of his brothers, to possess the dependent principality of Geneva. The Arian monarch was justly alarmed by the satisfaction, and the hopes, which seemed to animate his clergy and people, after the conversion of Clovis; and Gundobald convened at Lyons an assembly of his bishops, to reconcile, if it were possible, their religious and political discontents. A vain conference was agitated between the two factions. The Arians upbraided the catholics with the worship of three gods: the catholics defended their cause by theological distinctions; and the usual arguments, objections, and replies were reverberated with obstinate clamour; till the king revealed his secret apprehensions, by an abrupt but decisive question, which he addressed to the orthodox bishops. "If you truly profess the christian religion, why do you not restrain the king of the Franks? He has declared war against me, and forms alliances with my enemies for my destruction. A sanguinary and covetous mind is not the symptom of a sincere conversion : let him show his faith by his works." The answer of Avitus, bishop of Vienna, who spoke in the name of his brethren, was delivered with the voice and countenance of an angel. "We are ignorant of the motives and intentions of the king of the Franks: but we are taught by Scripture, that the kingdoms which abandon the divine law, are frequently subverted; and that enemies will arise on every side against those who have made God their enemy. Return, with thy people, to the law of God, and he will give peace and security to thy dominions." The king of Burgundy, who was not prepared to accept the convileges, which should leave some lasting traces, are totally invisible in Gregory of Tours, the Salic laws, &c. Regnum circa Rhodanum aut Ararim eum provinciâ Massiliensi retinebant. Greg. Turon. 1. ii. c. 32. in tom. ii. p. 178. The province of Marseilles, as far as the Durance, was afterwards ceded to the Ostrogoths and the signatures of twenty-five bishops are supposed to represent the kingdom of Burgundy, A. D. 519. (Concil. Epaon, in tom. iv. p. 104, 105.) Yet I would except Vindonissa. The bishop, who lived under the pagan Alemanni, would naturally resort to the synods of the next christian kingdom. Mascon (in his four first annotations) has explained many circumstances relative to the Burgundian monarchy. p Mascou, (Hist. of the Germans, xi. 10.) who very reasonably dis trusts the testimony of Gregory of Tours, has produced a passage from Avitus, (epist. v.) to prove that Gundobald affected to deplore the tragic event, which his subjects affected to applaud. the se 袋 at Law the the is the dition, which the catholics considered as essential | their accomplishment to the last moment of his life, I am impatient to pursue the final Final conquest ruin of that kingdom, which was acof Burgundy by the Franks, complished under the reign of Sigis- A. D. 532. mond, the son of Gundobald. The catholic Sigismond has acquired the honours of a saint and martyr;" but the hands of the royal saint were stained with the blood of his innocent son, whom he inhumanly sacrificed to the pride and resentment of a stepmother. He soon discovered his error, and bewailed the irreparable loss. While Sigismond embraced the corpse of the unfortunate youth, he received a severe admonition from one of his attendants: It is not his situation, O king! it is thine, which deserves pity and lamentation." The reproaches of a guilty conscience were alleviated, however, by his liberal donations to the monastery of Agaunum, or St. Maurice, in Vallais; which he himself had founded in honour of the imaginary martyrs of the Thebaan legion. A full chorus of perpetual psalmody was instituted by the pious king; he assiduously practised the austere devotion of the monks; and it was his humble prayer, that Heaven would inflict in this world the punishment of his sins. His prayer was heard: the avengers were at hand; and the provinces of Burgundy were overwhelmed by an army of victorious Franks. After the event of an unsuccessful battle, Sigismond, who wished to protract his life that he might pro Victory of Clovis, The allegiance of his brother was A. D. 500. already seduced; and the obedience of Godegesil, who joined the royal standard with the troops of Geneva, more effectually promoted the success of the conspiracy. While the Franks and Burgundians contended with equal valour, his seasonable desertion decided the event of the battle; and as Gundobald was faintly supported by the disaffected Gauls, he yielded to the arms of Clovis, and hastily retreated from the field, which appears to have been situate between Langres and Dijon. He distrusted the strength of Dijon, a quadrangular fortress, encompassed by two rivers, and by a wall thirty feet high, and fifteen thick, with four gates, and thirty-three towers: he abandoned to the pursuit of Clovis the important cities of Lyons and Vienna; and Gundobald still fled with precipitation, till he had reached Avignon, at the distance of two hundred and fifty miles from the field of battle. A long siege, and an artful negociation, admonished the king of the Franks of the danger and difficulty of his enterprise. He imposed a tribute on the Burgundian prince, compelled him to pardon and reward his brother's treachery, and proudly returned to his own dominions, with the spoils and captives of the southern provinces. This splendid triumph was soon clouded by the intelli-long his penance, concealed himself in the desert gence, that Gundobald had violated his recent obligations, and that the unfortunate Godegesil, who was left at Vienna with a garrison of five thousand Franks, had been besieged, surprised, and massacred by his inhuman brother. Such an outrage might have exasperated the patience of the most peaceful sovereign; yet the conqueror of Gaul dissembled the injury, released the tribute, and accepted the alliance, and military service, of the king of Burgundy. Clovis no longer possessed those advantages which had assured the success of the preceding war; and his rival, instructed by adversity, had found new resources in the affections of his people. The Gauls or Romans applauded the mild and impartial laws of Gundobald, which almost raised them to the same level with their conquerors. The bishops were reconciled, and flattered, by the hopes, which he artfully suggested, of his approaching conversion; and though he eluded 4 See the original conference, (in tom. iv. p. 99-102.) Avitus the principal actor, and probably the secretary of the meeting, was bishop of Vienna. A short account of his person and works may be found in Dupin. (Bibliotheque Ecclesiastique, tom. v. p. 5–10.) Gregory of Tours (l. iii. c. 19. in tom. ii. p. 197.) indulges his gebius, or rather transcribes some more eloquent writer, in the description of Dijon; a castle, which already deserved the title of a city. It depended on the bishops of Longres till the twelfth century, and afterwards became the capital of the dukes of Burgundy. Longuerue, Description de la France, part i. p. 280. The Epitomizer of Gregory of Tours (in tom. ii. p. 401.) has supplied the number of Franks; but he rashly supposes that they were cut in pieces by Gundobald. The prudent Burgundian spared the soldiers of Clovis, and sent these captives to the king of the Visigoths, who settled them in the territory of Thoulouse. In this Burgundian war I have followed Gregory of Tours, (l. ii. c. 32, 33. in tom. ii. p. 178, 179.) whose narrative appears so incompatible in a religious habit, till he was discovered and betrayed by his subjects, who solicited the favour of their new masters. The captive monarch, with his wife and two children, were transported to Orleans, and buried alive in a deep well, by the stern command of the sons of Clovis; whose cruelty might derive some excuse from the maxims, and examples, of their barbarous age. Their ambition, which urged them to achieve the conquest of Burgundy, was inflamed, or disguised, by filial piety: and Clotilda, whose sanctity did not consist in the forgiveness of injuries, pressed them to revenge her father's death on the family of his assassin. The rebellious Burgundians, for they attempted to break their chains, were still permitted to enjoy their national laws under the obligation of tribute and military service; and the Merovingian princes peaceably reigned over a kingdom, whose glory and greatness had been first overthrown by the arms of Clovis." with that of Procopius, (de Bell. Goth. 1. i. c. 12. in tom. ii, p. 31, 32.) that some critics have supposed two different wars. The Abbé Dubos (Hist. Critique, &c. tom. ii. p. 126-162.) has distinctly represented the causes and the events. u See his life or legend, (in tom. iii. p. 402.) A martyr! how strangely has that word been distorted from its original sense of a common wit ness. St. Sigismond was remarkable for the cure of fevers. x Before the end of the fifth century, the church of St. Maurice, and his Thebaan legion, had rendered Agaunum a place of devout pilgrimage. A promiscuous community of both sexes had introduced some deeds of darkness, which were abolished, (A. D. 515.) by the regular monastery of Sigismond. Within fifty years, his angels of light made a nocturnal sally to murder their bishop, and his clergy. See in the Bibliotheque Raisonnée, (tom. xxxvi. p. 435–438.) the curious remark of a learned librarian of Geneva. y Marius, bishop of Avenche, (Chron. in tom. ii. p. 15.) has marked the authentic dates, and Gregory of Tours (1. iii. c. 5, 6. in tom. ii. p. The Gothic war, ous than the military powers of Clovis. The Visigoths resumed the exercise of arms, which they had neglected in a long and luxurious peace: a select band of valiant and robust slaves attended their masters to the field; and the cities of Gaul were compelled to furnish their doubtful and reluctant aid. Theodoric, king of the Ostrogoths, who reigned in Italy, had laboured to maintain the tranquillity of Gaul; and he assumed, or affected for that purpose, the impartial character of a mediator. But the sagacious monarch dreaded the rising empire of Clovis, and he was firmly engaged to support the national and religious cause of the Goths. The first victory of Clovis had in- | dians, Alaric collected his troops, far more numersulted the honour of the Goths. They viewed his rapid progress with jealousy and terror; and the youthful fame of Alaric was oppressed by the more potent genius of his rival. Some disputes inevitably arose on the edge of their contiguous dominions; and after the delays of fruitless negociation, a personal interview of the two kings was proposed and accepted. This conference of Clovis and Alaric was held in a small island of the Loire, near Amboise. They embraced, familiarly conversed, and feasted together; and separated with the warmest professions of peace and brotherly love. But their apparent confidence concealed a dark suspicion of hostile and treacherous designs; and their mutual complaints solicited, eluded, and disclaimed, a final arbitration. At Paris, which he already considered as his royal seat, Clovis declared to an assembly of the princes and warriors, the pretence, and the motive, of a Gothic war. "It grieves me to see that the Arians still possess the fairest portion of Gaul. Let us march against them with the aid of God; and, having vanquished the heretics, we will possess, and divide, their fertile provinces.” The Franks, who were inspired by hereditary valour and recent zeal, applauded the generous design of their monarch; expressed their resolution to conquer or die, since death and conquest would be equally profitable; and solemnly protested that they would never shave their beards, till victory should absolve them from that inconvenient vow. The enterprise was promoted by the public or private exhortations of Clotilda. She reminded her husband, how effectually some pious foundation would propitiate the Deity, and his servants: and the christian hero, darting his battle-axe with a skilful and nervous hand, " There, (said he,) on that spot where my Francisca shall fall, will I erect a church in honour of the holy apostles." This ostentatious piety confirmed and justified the attachment of the catholics, with whom he secretly corresponded; and their devout wishes were gradually ripened into a formidable conspiracy. The people of Aquitain were alarmed by the indiscreet reproaches of their Gothic tyrants, who justly accused them of preferring the dominion of the Franks; and their zealous adherent Quintianus, bishop of Rodez,b preached more forcibly in his exile than in his diocese. To resist these foreign and domestic enemies, who were fortified by the alliance of the Burgun188, 189.) has expressed the principal facts, of the life of Sigismond, and the conquest of Burgundy. Procopius (in tom. ii. p. 34.) and Agathias (in tom. ii. p. 49.) show their remote and imperfect knowledge. Gregory of Tours (1. ii. c. 37. in tom. ii. p. 181.) inserts the short but persuasive speech of Clovis. Valde moleste fero, quod hi Ariani partem teneant Galliarum, (the author of the Gesta Francorum, in tom. ii. 553. adds the precious epithet of optimam,) eamus cum Dei adju. P. torio, et, superatis eis, redigamus terram in ditiouem nostram. a Tunc rex projecit a se in directum Bipennem suam quod est Francisca, &c. (Gesta Frauc. in tom. ii. p. 554.) The form and use of this weapon, are clearly described by Procopius, (in tom. ii. p. 37.) Examples of its national appellation in Latin and French, may be found in the Glossary of Ducange, and the large Dictionnaire de Trevoux. b It is singular enough that some important and authentic facts should be found in a Life of Quintianus, composed in rhyme in the old Patois of Rouergue, (Dubos, Hist. Critique, &c. tom. ii. p. 179.) e Quamvis fortitudini vestræ confidentiam tribuat parentum vestrorum innumerabilis multitudo; quamvis Attilam potentem reminisca The accidental, or artificial, pro- Victory of Clovis, A. D. 507. digies, which adorned the expedition of Clovis, were accepted, by a superstitious age, as the manifest declaration of the divine favour. He marched from Paris; and as he proceeded with decent reverence through the holy diocese of Tours, his anxiety tempted him to consult the shrine of St. Martin, the sanctuary, and the oracle of Gaul. His messengers were instructed to remark the words of the Psalm, which should happen to be chanted at the precise moment when they entered the church. Those words most fortunately expressed the valour and victory of the champions of heaven, and the application was easily transferred to the new Joshua, the new Gideon, who went forth to battle against the enemies of the Lord. Orleans secured to the Franks a bridge on the Loire; but, at the distance of forty miles from Poitiers, their progress was intercepted by an extraordinary swell of the river Vigenna, or Vienne; and the opposite banks were covered by the encampment of the Visigoths. Delay must be always dangerous to barbarians, who consume the country through which they march; and had Clovis possessed leisure and materials, it might have been impracticable to construct a bridge, or to force a passage, in the face of a superior enemy. But the affectionate peasants, who were impatient to welcome their deliverer, could easily betray some unknown, or unguarded, ford: the merit of the discovery was enhanced by the useful interposition of fraud or fiction; and a white hart, of singular size and beauty, appeared to guide and animate the march of the catholic army. The counsels of the Visigoths were irresolute and distracted. A crowd of impatient warriors, presumptuous in their strength, and disdaining to fly before mini Visigotharum viribus inclinatum; tamen quia populorum ferocia corda longa pace mollescunt, cavete subito in aleam mittere, quos colistat tantis temporibus exercitia non habere. Such was the salutary, but fruitless, advice of peace, of reason, and of Theodoric. (Cassiodor. 1. iii. ep. 2.) d Montesquieu (Esprit des Loix, 1. xv. c. 14.) mentions and approves the law of the Visigoths, (1. ix. tit. 2, in tom. iv. p. 425.) which obliged all masters to arm, and send or lead into the field, a tenth of their slaves. eThis mode of divination, by accepting as an omen the first sacred words, which in particular circumstances should be presented to the eye or ear, was derived from the pagans, and the Psalter, or Bible, was substituted to the poems of Homer, and Virgil. From the fourth to the fourteenth century, these sortes sanctorum, as they are styled, were repeatedly condemned by the decrees of councils, and repeatedly practised by kings, bishops, and saints. See a curions dissertation of the Abbé du Resnel, in the Memoires de l'Academie, tom, xix. §. 287-310. |