Politics and Power in Early Medieval Europe: Alsace and the Frankish Realm, 600–1000 (Cambridge Studies in Medieval Life and Thought: Fourth Series, Series Number 65)

Having a university education and a tourist's focus I bought this book seeking a broad view of Frankish rule to "flesh out" an upcoming visit to the area. I learned a great deal about the conditional nature of noble gifts to monasteries (the noble family often retained beneficial use of the land for generations) but I did not expect such close and professional attention to recounting the evidence supporting this and other aspects of the author's presentation on the Frankish world. Still, what I learned added to my store of information and I will use it when I look at castles and monasteries on my tour. From the standpoint of scholarly research and writing, I do have a great deal of interest in the Middle Ages and I was also interested in seeing what a "modern" take on the period and on a historian's methods would show. For me, the writing often belabors a point and the text reads like a loosely reworked dissertation. How exactly did political power operate in early medieval Europe? Taking Alsace as his focus, Hans Hummer offers an intriguing new case study on localised and centralised power and the relationship between the two from c. 600–1000. Providing a panoramic survey of the sources from the region, which include charters, notarial formulas, royal instruments, and Old High German literature, he untangles the networks of monasteries and kin groups which made up the political landscape of Alsace, and shows the significance of monastic control in shaping that landscape. He also investigates this local structure in light of comparative evidence from other regions. He tracks the emergence of the distinctive local order during the seventh century to its eventual decline in the late tenth century in the face of radical monastic reform. Highly original and well balanced, this 2006 work is of interest to all students of medieval political structures.

In this powerfully argued, original and well-balanced study, Hans Hummer investigates the operation of political power in early medieval Europe, from 600 to 1000AD. Focusing on the region of Alsace, Hummer elucidates the networks of monasteries and kin-groups that formed the basis of the local political order and demonstrates the importance of monastic control. Standing on a recurrent political fault line, Alsace is a fascinating case study upon which to base an exploration of the relationship between local and central power over these four centuries.

Taking Alsace as its focus, this innovative 2006 study offers a unique snapshot of localised and centralised political structures in early medieval Europe. Providing a comprehensive exploration of the regional sources, it tracks the development and eventual demise of a distinctive political culture derived from networks of monasteries and kin-groups. In 751, Pippin III deposed the last Merovingian king, Childeric III (743-51), assumed the kingship of the Franks and, three years later, along with his wife and two sons Charlemagne and Carloman, was anointed with holy oil when he received the sacrament of confirmation from Pope Stephen.