Page:History of the Franks.djvu/30

 xxiv INTRODUCTION In the History of the Franks attention is given from time to time to natural phenomena. With few exceptions these passages deal with prodigies. Gregory tells for example of the prodigies of the year 587. Most of them are given from his own personal observa- tion.^ Mysterious marks which could not be deleted in any way appeared on dishes ; vines made a new growth and bore deformed fruit in the month of October after the vintage ; at the same time fresh leaves and fruits appeared on fruit trees ; rays of light were seen in the north. In addition Gregory mentions from hearsay that snakes had fallen from the clouds, and that a village with its inhabitants and dwellings had disappeared entirely. He goes on to say, ^'Many other signs appeared such as usually announce a king's death or the destruction of a country." In the same way he tells us of the signs preceding plagues. Sometimes he relates the prodigies without giving any sequel to them. In one case he says, "I do not know what these prodigies foretold." It is evident that the idea which Gregory had of the phenomena of nature was such as to prevent his giving any intelligent attention to them. The supernatural came between him and objective reahties in such a way as to prevent the latter from having a natural effect upon his mind. The inhibiting and paralyzing force of superstitious beliefs penetrated to every department of life, and the most primary and elementary activities of society were influenced. War, for example, was not a simple matter of a test of strength and courage, but super- natural matters had to be taken carefully into consideration. When Clovis said of the Goths in southern Gaul, ''I take it hard that these Arians should hold a part of the Gauls ; let us go with God's aid and conquer them and bring the land under our dominion," ^ he was not speaking in a hypocritical or arrogant manner but in real accordance with the religious sentiment of the time. What he meant was that the Goths, being heretics, were at once enemies of the true God and inferior to the orthodox Franks in their super- natural backing. Considerations of duty, strategy, and self-in- terest all reenforced one another in Clovis's mind. However, it was not always the orthodox side that won. We hear of a battle fought a few years before Gregory became bishop of Tours between
 * IX, 5. » See p. 45.