Why You Should Be Thinking About The Holy Roman Empire
This is the first episode in a series covering the Holy Roman Empire.
Many consider Charlemagne's imperial coronation in Rome as the starting point of the Holy Roman Empire, but the real story begins further even further back in time. In this video, we wind the clock back to late antiquity, when ancient Rome was still around and a people known as the Franks emerged under the infamous Merovingian dynasty.
Sources & further reading:
History of the Franks (Gregory of Tours)
Chronicle of Fredegar + Continuations
Liber Historiae Francorum
Heart of Europe: A History of the Holy Roman Empire (Peter H. Wilson)
The Merovingian Kingdoms (Ian Wood)
From Roman to Merovingian Gaul: A Reader (Alexander Callander Murray)
Music & footage:
Scenes from Rome HBO
Mussolini: The First Fascist | Trailer (PBS)
Gioachino Rossini : The Barber Of Seville - Overture
Beethoven - Symphony No.7 in A major op.92 - II, Allegretto
Verdi's Requiem: II. Dies Irae
Camille Saint-Saëns - Danse Macabre
Dvorak - Sinfonia dal Nuovo mondo - Allegro con fuoco
0:00 - Guys are thinking about the Roman Empire right now
1:17 - There is another empire worth thinking about
5:15 - Origins of the Franks
9:05 - Introducing the Merovingians
12:45 - Gregory of Tours, the "Father of Frankish History"
14:35 - Clovis I, the first king of the Franks
19:15 - What made Clovis a "Great Man"
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