The Conversion Of Clovis

against the heresy of fellow clergy who deny the third person of the Trinity. Gregory states his

The story of Paquiquineo and his conversion by baptism was the one that led to the opportunity of converting all the

When Constantine was battling for control of Rome, he prayed for divine interference and saw a cross, the sign of Christianity. He put a cross on all of his soldiers, and they were victorious, with Constantine crediting his triumph to the Christian God. After Constantine took power in 313 AD, he announced the end of Christians persecutions. Later, in AD YEAR, Constantine converted, and Christianity grew faster than ever. Of all factors that influenced Christianity development, Constantine’s conversion was one of the most important, because he made it acceptable.

Throughout history, there have been many instances of leaders converting to new religions, but none have had an impact such as the conversion of Constantine I, nor as ground-breaking as that of Clovis I. Constantine I was born in the year 280. During his reign as emperor of the Roman Empire, the state was falling apart. 1 He was the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity. He called the Council of Nicea in 325 to resolve conflicts arising between the Arian Christians and the Athansian Christians. 2 This resulted in the canonization of Athansian Christianity, to which Constantine I converted his empire. 3Clovis I was born in the year 466, he was the king of the Franks and ruled Gaul for 30 years. 4 It is unknown when he converted to Christianity, however he was baptised in 496. Clovis I was the first Germanic king to convert to Christianity, and while he did not convert his entire state, his conversion was a turning point in Frankish and European history. Behind any conversion, is a reason. For Constantine I, it was an empire coming apart at the seams. For Clovis, it was a need to be more palatable to a mostly Christian populous.

According to Gregory, what led to the conversion of Clovis? According to Gregory, the conversion of Clovis was caused by a war between his people and the Alamanni. He believed that his army was in danger of being killed and began to pray for help and a victory in war. He made a promise “that if thou wilt grant me victory over these enemies…, I will believe in thee and be baptized in thy name” (Source 10.1 449) and soon after the Alamanni fled, thus giving Clovis the victory. As a result of this victory, Clovis kept his promise and was baptized into Christianity.

He was the first king of the Franks by uniting all the tribes under one rule, which marked the end of royal chieftains. However, he was converted to Catholicism and Clovis only converted because he won the battle against the Alamanni, Clovis states, “I beseech the glory of thy aid, and the vow that if thou wilt grant me victory over these enemies, […], I will believe in thee and be baptized in thy name (pp.137-138).” This did not bother Gregory of Tours or his subjects because he was seen as the chosen one by God to rule the Franks. In Charles case, he had always been a devout Christian. Clovis became a devout believer of Christianity and practiced with caution, Clovis states, “If you have decreed that this people of unbelievers, who have always been hostile to you, […], show me a propitious sign as these men enter St. Martin’s (pp.142).” They both defended Christianity and tried to convert non-believers through

Gregory of Tours writes in his History of the Franks that Clovis had a change of heart following the defeat of the Alamanni at the Battle of Tolbiac in 496. Supposedly pagan at the time, the king, overwhelmed in battle, begged his gods for aid. When none came, he believed himself forsaken and turned to the Christian god for guidance. His army bounced back and the battle was won. When he returned home and told his Catholic wife, Clotilda, what had happed, she had the Bishop of Reims help her convince her husband to be baptized, to which he finally agreed. First, however, he sought the approval of his people. They, too, agreed and joyously converted alongside him in mass conversions across Gaul. Gregory of Tours likens Clovis to “another Constantine,” the Roman Emperor who had Christianized his

Here, Origen is implying that Gregory should the natural intelligence “the entire natural intelligence of Gregory’ intelligence should be applied to Christianity”. Origen tries to reconcile Philosophy and Theology but above all “placing Theology in a superior position as he gives all the priority to Christianity” throughout his letter. The quote from Adolf Knauber coincides with the reason for Origen’ cautioning and passionate pleading with Gregory when he implies: “that he should extract from philosophy only what is essential, to have a better understanding to interpret Scripture”. “Working from the data provided by Gregory in the Address, Adolf Knauber arrived at the significantly different picture: the students were not Christians or even

By making such a comparison, King is establishing credibility and essentially saying to the clergymen, “listen up”.

In The History of the Franks, Gregory of Tours portrayed Clovis as a leader who, although his conversion to Christianity appeared to be genuine, nonetheless, used his conversion to realize his political aspirations. By converting to Christianity, Clovis, according to Gregory of Tours’ narrative, was able to garner the support of Christian leaders such as Saint Remigius and, consequently, gain powerful political allies. Moreover, as a result of his conversion, Clovis became a king who was more attractive to orthodox Christians. Furthermore, Clovis’ conversion provided him with a reason for conquering territories that were not ruled by orthodox Christians. Thus, Clovis

The reigns of Gregory VII and Innocent III were remarkably similar in their attempts to exert ecclesiastic power over secular rulers. Gregory's outlook was characterized by his reformist behavior, supporting the notion of challenging the sacred character of kings. "Implicit in the concept of ‘lay investiture' was the idea that kings were layman. Yet kings were anointed, and in the eleventh century most people, including ecclesiastics, viewed royal consecration as akin to priestly ordination." Gregory intelligently avoided being named a radical, whereby he took a more complicated position: he did not comment directly on the status of kings, but he believed them semi-laymen, placing their rank below that of the minor clerical order and therefore not in a position to elect or invest bishops or other ecclesiastic officials. He articulated his beliefs through a decree, the Dictatus Papae, which succinctly and articulately stated his demands

In his call at Clermont in 1095, Pope Urban II asked all fellow Christians to join in the aid of the Christians in the East that were then prone to Turkish attacks. Requesting that they all leave their lives and run to their aid, Pope Urban II explained how they would be doing all in the name of God. The Pope let all of the people know that they would all be greatly recompensed in following God's will and fighting for God and in doing so he further led the people to understand that any killing they would do would be forgiven since it was all to be in God's will. In addition, he insisted that if any were to die in this aid, they would all be

Cleofilas definition of marriage is two soul mates in love and living the high expectations of “happily ever after” and Cisneros quickly points out that marriage does not live up to women expectations. In the story, it states that “She had always said she would strike back if a man, any man, were to strike her” (Cisneros 222). Cleofilas had always thought if a man were to ever hit her in any type of way, she would take full action. Unfortunately, however, she endures her husband's abuse. The first time he even hits her, she was too in shock to defend herself or to even shed a small tear. Cisneros wants to bring people's attention about the problems of domestic mistreatment because many women in those cases are helpless when they are in a violent and controlling situations. Cleofilas experiences an extreme amount of unhappiness due to the violent and controlling relationship she was enduring.

The Crusades hold a place in the canon of Western history as valiant wars against the infidel in the East, motivated by an unparalleled pious zeal. Whilst revisions to this history have considered more mundane and ordinary motives, such as a want for land or an attempt to reinforce the Peace of God movement, there is something to be said of the religious motivations of the crusaders. The words ‘conquest’ and ‘conversion’ seem ideologically charged – with conquest being what is done by temporal rulers to physical land and people, and conversion being what is done to the spiritual self, by someone who does not have anything material to gain from the action. However, it can be argued that these lines can be blurred; I wish to present the case of conquest being religiously charged, and the idea that any subsequent conversion is of little importance. By examining the geographical targets of various crusaders, I will conclude that they were more interested in conquest than conversion: but this was not necessarily for earthly reasons alone.

Finally, he addresses to the Emperor by informing that Christians do seek to be member of another kingdom, Kingdom of “God” and not the kingdom of “human one.”