What prompted your interest in the discoveries made by these French archaeologists, and what unique insights can you share with us? BE: One of the challenges offered by mortuary archaeology is that we rarely find burials in connection with the grave markers that might have once existed to identify the occupants of particular sepulchers. The conversion of Clovis to Catholicism made him more acceptable to the Gallo Romans. Gregory of Tours, the historian, placed the emergence of the Merovingians at the conclusion of the Frankish migration. They built lavish Roman styled amphitheaters in Paris and Soissons. [30][54], Swanson presents a Jesus who was the son of an English- or Irish-born Mary, and who visited England to study Druidism before wedding Mary Magdalene. [62], In reaction to The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail, The Da Vinci Code, and other controversial books, websites and films on the same theme, a significant number of individuals in the late 20th and early 21st centuries have adhered to a Jesus bloodline hypothesis despite its lack of substantiation. On his return he received consular office from the eastern emperor (the Western Roman Empire had ceased to exist) and he established Paris as his capital. Let us look at the mixed reputations of Merovingian queens known from the historical accounts of authors such as Gregory of Tours. What I discovered was the complex network created by local archaeologists and historians that existed in the form of learned societies all across France (and in fact across Western Europe). Such legends were utilized by King Dagobert II and his descendants to ensure the continuation of their royal dynasty. It was the kingdom of the Franks which was to exercise the most influence for the longest time. The Pope then ordered that by apostolic authority Pippin III, or Pippin the Younger, or Pippin the Short, be created King of all the Franks, thus betraying the pact which had been made with Clovis. She gave birth to a son, whom she named Merovech. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Given Franco-German rivalry, before and after the Fin de sicle, I would not be surprised that many would have liked to suppress such finds! "[26] The Lost Gospel was described as historical nonsense by Markus Bockmuehl. JW: I thank you so much for speaking with us. [34][35] The role of the Priory was inspired by earlier writings primarily by Pierre Plantard, who in the 1960s and 1970s had publicized documents from the secretive Priory that demonstrated its long history and his own descent from the lineage they had protected that traced to the Merovingian kings, and earlier, the biblical Tribe of Benjamin. [56] Accepting as valid the testimony of an amateur archaeologist codenamed "Ben Hammott" relating to his discoveries made in the vicinity of Rennes-le-Chteau since 1999; Burgess claimed Ben had found the treasure of Brenger Saunire: a mummified corpse, which they believe is Mary Magdalene, in an underground tomb they claim is connected to both the Knights Templar and the Priory of Sion. When Clovis died in 511, the Frankish kingdom was the most powerful in Gaul. "[30][54] He nonetheless drew heavily from the same pseudohistorical grail framework as Holy Blood, combining it with concepts related to British Israelism, beliefs of the early Mormon fathers, and modern genetic genealogy. In 1913, Reynolds Tobacco Company came up with a great innovationthe packaged cigarette called Camel cigarettes. Trained as a historian and researcher, and previously a professor of history, James is also a freelance writer who is keenly interested in cross-cultural exchange. . Childeric's grave was found in 1653 in Tournai and was filled with weapons, gold, jewelry, Byzantine coins, and gold cicadas or bees. In 740 he married Bertrada of Laon. It seems that the Merovingians, while happy to claim descent from fantastical mythological beasts, did not believe they weredivine in a Christian sense. Gaius Julius Caesar. Eventually she fled her royal spouse, who apparently kept several wives or concubines simultaneously, to found a monastery in Poitiers, France. [1] Bart D. Ehrman, chair of the Department of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina, commented that, although there are some historical scholars who claim that it is likely that Jesus was married, the vast majority of New Testament and early Christianity scholars find such a claim to be historically unreliable. The views presented here are not necessarily those of the Ancient History Encyclopedia. Charles Martel The most important Mayor of the Palace and an extremely important historical figure was Charles Martel, or Charles the Hammer who was born 686 and died 741. Can you comment briefly on the powerful role of Merovingian queens and the symbolism of the kinds of objects with which they were buried? Donovan Joyce's 1972 best-seller, The Jesus Scroll, presented an alternative timeline for Jesus that arose from a mysterious document. James Blake Wiener is the Communications Director of the Ancient History Encyclopedia, providing a continuous listing of must-read articles, exciting museum exhibitions, and interviews with experts in the field. Greece Usurpation by the Carolingians First Carolingian King [39][40][41] The actual lineage claimed for the portion of the Plantard and Holy Blood bloodline that passes through the medieval era received highly-negative reviews in the genealogical literature, being viewed as consisting of numerous inaccurate linkages that were unsupported, or even directly contradicted, by the authentic historical record. What Caused The Patomskiy Crater in Siberia? In 872, he was made a Saint. [18] The claims that Jesus and Mary Magdalene fled to France parallel other legends about the flight of disciples to distant lands, such as the one depicting Joseph of Arimathea traveling to England after the death of Jesus, taking with him a piece of thorn from the Crown of Thorns, which he later planted in Glastonbury. It should be pointed out that the last ice age ended about 9,000 to 10,000 years ago, or about the 8 th millennium BC. While some simply entertain it as a novel intellectual proposition, others hold it as an established belief thought to be authoritative and not to be disputed. Brown had made no secret that the bloodline material in his work drew largely on Holy Blood, directly citing the work in his book and naming the novel's historical expert after Baigent (in anagram form) and Leigh, but Random House argued that since Baigent and Leigh had presented their ideas as non-fiction, consisting of historical facts, however speculative, then Brown was free to reproduce these concepts just as other works of historical fiction treat underlying historical events. It has been shown that the Scythians landed in Cornwall. He has written for 8 years in a variety of fields including history, health and politics. Interesting history topics are just a click away. When graves were uncovered by engineers or agricultural workers, whether during the building of railroads or the planting of vineyards, the first question often posed by those involved was whose body they had found. Mythologized and circumscribed for over 1500 years, the Merovingians were a powerful Frankish dynasty, which exercised control much of modern-day France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and the Low Countries. The people east of the Rhine were also subject to the Merovingians. Master of Tours by Sigibert I, King of Austrasia (561-576). For the most part, however, families continued to bury their dead much as they had before conversion. Ideas that Jesus Christ might have been married have a long history in Christian theology, though the historical record says nothing on the subject. These wars were described in the Iliad by Homer, who was a blind Greek historian. However, we must not forget that aristocratic marriages were often the product of temporary political alliances, and women (and their children) often became the victims of these arrangements when they were no longer desirable or profitable.