Page:Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire vol 6 (1897).djvu/118

 98 THE DECLINE AND FALL A name of some German tribes between the Rhine and the Weser had spread its victorious influence over the greatest part of Gaul, Germany, and Italy ; and the common appellation of Franks ^^ was applied by the Greeks and Arabians to the Christians of the Latin church, the nations of the West, who stretched beyond their knowledge to the shores of the Atlantic Ocean. The vast body had been inspired and united by the soul of Charlemagne ; but the division and degeneracy of his race soon annihilated the Imperial power, which would have rivalled the Caesars of Byzantium and revenged the indignities of the Christian name. The enemies no longer feared, nor could the subjects any longer trust, the application of a public revenue, the labours of trade and manuftictures in the military service, the mutual aid of provinces and armies, and the naval squadrons which were regularly stationed from the mouth of the Elbe to that of the Tiber. In the beginning of the tenth century, the family of Charlemagne had almost disappeared ; his monarchy was broken into many hostile and independent states ; the regal title was assumed by the most ambitious chiefs ; their revolt was imitated in a long subordination of anarchy and discord ; and the nobles of every province disobeyed their sovereign, oppressed their vassals, and exercised perpetual hostilities against their equals and neighbours. Their private wars, which overturned the fabric of government, fomented the martial spirit of the nation. In the system of modern Europe, the jiower of the sword is possessed, at least in fact, by five or six mighty potentates ; their operations are conducted on a distant frontier by an order of men who devote their lives to the study and practice of the military art ; the rest of the counti'y and community enjoys in the midst of war the tranquillity of peace, and is only made sensible of the change by the aggrava- tion or decrease of the public taxes. In the disorders of the tenth and eleventh centuries, every peasant was a soldier, and eveiy village a fortification ; each wood or valley was a scene of murder and rapine ; and the lords of each castle were com- pelled to assume the character of princes and warriors. To their own courage and policy they boldly trusted for the safety '■'■* Ex Francis, quo nomine tain Latinos quam Teutones comprehendit, luduni habuit (Liutprand in Legal, ad Imp. Nicepiiorum, p. 483, 484 [c. 33]). This exten- sion of the name may be confirmed from Constantine (de administrando Imperio, 1. ii. c. 27, 28) and Eutychius (Annal. tom. i. p. 55, 56), who both hved before the crusades. The testimonies of Abnlpharagir.s (Dynast, p. 69) and Abulfeda (Frefat. ad Geosraph.) are more recent.