Austregilde

In 565, after the King of Orléans Guntram’s repudiation from his previous wife, Queen Marcatude, he took Austregilde to be his third wife. Austregilde was not born into high social status. It has been theorized that Austregilde was possibly a servant of Queen Marcatrude, one of Guntram’s courtiers, Objections to this marriage and the legitimacy of Austregilde's children led to the deaths of Marcatrude's brothers and the banishment to a monastery of the Bishop of Gap, both on the orders of Guntram. Austregilde outlived her sons, who died in 577 of illness. She died in 580, Gregory of Tours claimed that she died from dysentery. According to Gregory of Tours, she angrily blamed her doctors Nicolas and Donat, claiming their medicines were responsible for her death. She asked Guntram to kill her doctors after her death, which he did. Gregory compares her actions to those of King Herod, who similarly died of a mysterious illness after ordering mass murder of innocents in Bethlehem. Comparatively, Mark A. Handley contrasts the “glowing” words of Austregilde’s epitaph to question the narrative of Gregory of Tours. == Context ==

Merovingian politics 6th Century Gaul was made up of four main kingdoms: Austrasia, Neustria, Burgundy, and Aquitaine. A precedent established following the death of Clovis, Merovingian kings would partition their holdings after death amongst their children through partible inheritance. These kingdoms were partitioned further beyond the four main kingdoms, and minor kings were established in centers of power in proximity to bishoprics. While Merovingian Kings practiced itinerant kingship, the practice of a "roaming" court to maintain their holdings, they could not be everywhere at once. The common people of 6th century Gaul rarely saw their ruler and instead interacted only with their most immediate landlord, which provided these landlords with a large amount of local social power. Participle inheritance often served as the catalyst for conflict within the Merovingian Kingdoms. The Merovingian Kingdoms were in a constant state of war with each other, as minor kings competed with one another to expand their territory and influence. The largest of these civil wars began following the death of Clothar I in 561, when his sons partitioned Clothar's holdings amongst themselves. Some scholars have also pointed to the role of women and bishops in igniting and prolonging civil war as well. For example, there is some evidence to suggest that Queen Brunhild had influenced her husband Merovech in his decision to start a revolt in Neustria. Chilperic did not suspect of an attempt to supplant the throne by Merovech until after his marriage to Brunhild, which may show that Chilperic suspected Brunhild of negatively influencing Merovech for her own interests. There was also suspicion thrown on Brunhild for her decision to gift treasure to the bishop Praetexatus. Although unclear why Chilperic was suspicious of this act, it may have been a bribe to support the failed rebellion. As such, Bishops used their roles advisors to influence kings in advancing their interests. While Christianity was prominent among the ruling class of Merovingian Gaul and conversion missions continued into Gaul long after Clovis' death, Christianity did not have the same influence on the common population. The Church had a much higher focus on its reach to the elite. As such, much of the common population retained their pagan traditions. == Impact ==

The impact of Queen Austregilde's role in society can be difficult to track, as there is little recorded evidence of her life. The predominant scholar of contemporary Merovingian history, Gregory of Tours, portrays Austregilde as a villainous figure, and even seems to rejoice in her death. The contrast in Gregory's portrayal of women of different status could have a few different reasons. Of course, Gregory may have very well have preferred to share a social sphere with those he saw as equals. For a woman of common decent to enter the social circle and influence it, Gregory may have had a hard time accepting the social mobility of women. More likely, however, Gregory was more critical of women from common backgrounds because they did not have blood ties to other nobility. As the nobility and Church relied on each other to hold power, it is unlikely that Gregory would have wanted to jeopardize those relationships by diminishing women from a line of nobility within his histories. By putting his emphasis on the common women who had grown to become powerful, Gregory is still able to build his narrative of women in power without offending any of the nobility. This is supported by Wood's theory that Gregory likely did not begin his histories until after the death of Chilperic, as it allowed Gregory to model Chilperic as a bad king, likely as a strategy to advise King Guntram. It is also interesting to note that because of their lower birth, queens like Austregilde and Fredegund likely had less connection to the organized Christian church, which had become an important aspect of Merovingian politics in maintaining cooperation with the church. As a bishop, this could also account for Gregory’s view of these women. In one instance Gregory was tried for accusing Queen Fredegund of adultery. While ultimately acquitted, having put a bishop on trial shows the extent to which elite woman could influence politics around them. Fredegund’s depicted lack of respect for spiritual authority is another sign of women’s political authority within the Merovingian kingdoms, as elite society was defined by relations between crown and church. Gregory’s writings show a clear disdain for many women of power, yet in his complaints he showed the reach the elite women held in the social and political spheres. Gregory's depictions of women of power are intentional beyond any personal bias or feelings that Gregory may have had. Gregory depicts women as sacrilegious influences over their respective kings out of preservation of self-interest. Contemporary writers of early medieval history did not simply record events, but were explicit in their choices of what to include and exclude from the narrative. Gregory manipulates history to produce a narrative where women are the antagonists because women were able to influence patriarchal political figures to advance their own agendas. Gregory wanted his readers to see the narrative he painted likely so the Church could secure a better hold on the influence of Kings. For a queen such as Austregilde to hold more influence over the king than the Church did was a legitimate fear of Gregory. Gregory intentionally chooses to display a narrative that weakens the perception of women in power. The Character of Merovingian rule is quite patriarchal upon first glance. Women themselves had very little to no political and social autonomy. Yet, when presented with the opportunity to marry a king or other influential figure, women were able to break the barriers of the social sphere and accumulate power. Although, this power could not often be exercised directly and required positive cooperation with their spouse and in some cases behind the scenes intrigue tactics. As evident by The Salic Law’s code of inheritance, women held less social credit than men in Merovingian society. Yet, The Salic Law has more to reveal about the status of women in Merovingian society. In the articles regarding murder of women and children places a tangible value on the cost of a life. The fines for murdering are highest for pregnant women, lesser for woman who have begun bearing children, and lowest for women unable to bear children. As Ian Wood contends, the power of a Merovingian Queen hinged primarily on a positive relationship with her husband, her ability to provide and raise heirs, and their control of wealth. In Austregilde’s case, while we know little of her control of wealth, we do know she satisfied the other two conditions. Providing King Guntram with 2 heirs, and surviving childbirth four times in total, Austregilde served her role as an heir bearer well despite outliving her two sons. Wood also notes that “It was not sufficient to have high born relatives, or even to achieve the status of queen; it was also necessary to have an obedient husband or son." We see from the text of Gregory’s histories that Austregilde was able to extend tremendous influence over King Guntram in the story of her death by having King Guntram follow through with her final request of executing her doctors. Guntram served to be the obedient king Austregilde needed to exercise her power. Austregilde’s positive relationship with King Guntram is highlighted by the inscription of her epitaph, which was likely commissioned by the King himself. Though it is unclear whether Austregilde satisfied Wood’s third condition in holding active control over wealth, it is hard to deny that Austregilde held power as an active political player within the Merovingian elite. ==Notes==