Pitcher from Soissons

The Soissons jug ( called urceus in the Latin text ) is a Christian cult object in a probably jar- like form from the treasury of Reims , which appears in an anecdote in the "Ten Books of Stories" ( Historiae ) by Gregory of Tours . In the French-speaking world, it is also known as the Soissons vase .

description

On the campaigns of the Merovingian king Clovis I against the Roman governor Syagrius in Gaul in 486/7, Clovis's troops also plundered the city of Reims in what is now northern France and, among other things, stole a jug from the church treasure, which Bishop Remigius reclaimed from Clovis I. On the March field in 486/87 near Soissons , Clovis I demanded this jug as part of his share of the booty, which his followers also wanted to allow him. Then a simple military man came out, smashed the jar with his sword and announced to the king that he would get nothing more than his share.

The king initially accepted this. On the March field of the following year, the king recognized the military man and criticized him for his neglected clothing and weapons. He threw the man's weapons on the ground, and when he wanted to take them up again, he struck the soldier with a blow on the head and with the words: "This as you did the jug in Soissons".

interpretation

This story shows the changing balance of power among the Franks at the end of the 5th century. According to Germanic custom, the booty of a campaign was distributed among the participants by lot, everyone was entitled to a share. When the king tried to get special treatment, he could only ask for it ; he had no right to it. This was then rightly refused to him by a simple military man - the king initially submitted and left the destruction of the jug unpunished. Only in the coming year did he kill the military man with reference to the past deed. This use of his personal strength strengthened his position and earned him increased awe of his followers.

As a king he was the chief judge and stood above the law, so he had no need to fear prosecution for the crime. His royal dignity and thus special rights were only slowly emerging at this time; this story is a sign of this change. History is also used to speculate about the increasing importance of the Christian church for Clovis I, as he is the first Merovingian king, who was also to be baptized by Remigius.

Web links

Wikisource: Historiarum Francorum libri X - Liber II - Sources and full texts (Latin)

Remarks

Jump up ↑ Gregory of Tours, Ten Books of Stories , Book 2, Chapter 27.
↑ Hans Peter Drexler: Metamorphoses of Power. The emergence of rule, classes and state is examined using the example of the Germanic-Franconian social history. Marburg 2001, p. 101.
↑ Hellmuth Mayer: The sociable nature of man. Social anthropology from a criminological point of view. In: Kriminologische Forschungen Vol. 10, 1977, page 95.
^ Reinhard Schneider: King and royal rule among the Franks. In: Franz-Reiner Erkens and Hartmut Wolff (eds.): From Sacerdotium and regnum: spiritual and secular violence in the early and high Middle Ages. Cologne 2002, p. 25.

[1] Jump up ↑ Gregory of Tours, Ten Books of Stories , Book 2, Chapter 27.

[2] Hans Peter Drexler: Metamorphoses of Power. The emergence of rule, classes and state is examined using the example of the Germanic-Franconian social history. Marburg 2001, p. 101.

[3] Hellmuth Mayer: The sociable nature of man. Social anthropology from a criminological point of view. In: Kriminologische Forschungen Vol. 10, 1977, page 95.

[4] Reinhard Schneider: King and royal rule among the Franks. In: Franz-Reiner Erkens and Hartmut Wolff (eds.): From Sacerdotium and regnum: spiritual and secular violence in the early and high Middle Ages. Cologne 2002, p. 25.