Gnostics - The origins of the Merovingians

Okay, this is taken from a site, about the Gnostic sect of Christianity. Apparently Gnostic's and Gnosticsm is heavily put on the Matrix plot, and the script, including Merovingian, of which were a French ruling family of Gnostics in the 7th century, more info about that family will appear soon.

Gnosticism, in the middle of the second century, was an important doctrine, with many followers rivalling the Catholic Church. Polycarp, Justin Martyr, and others inveighed against it, and some of the Fathers of the Church were converts from Gnosticism.

Gnosticism was an esoteric and theosophist religion. Its doctrines were “Mysteries” into whose real meaning only the most learned and most worthy were ever initiated. The stories the Gnostics told were allegories, and not meant to be accepted as history save by the ignorant, who were not regarded as capable of understanding the mysteries. There is nothing unusual in the gradual personification of an abstract idea. Greek mythology was built up by such processes. How it happened in Christian doctrine has been carefully concealed by theologians in control of Christian education.

Students of Christian origins must know about Gnosticism, for the real problem which confronts them is to determine whether the first Christians believed that a man, Jesus, became Christ by inspiration, adoption, or some other method, or whether they believed that Jesus was God, who became man by a miraculous conception or by some other means. They will have to determine what was meant by the authors of our New Testament when they identified Jesus with Christ, or with the “Word.” Knowing Gnostic theories teaches us what the doctrines of some sects of Christians were, and that these doctrines influenced some of the New Testament authors. Catholic doctrines are a blend of Gnosticism with some other form of Christianity.

The origins of Gnosticism, like that of Judaism, were in the Persian religion, which was destroyed as a centralized institution by Alexander in about 330 BC. Before then, besides setting the Greeks thinking, the Persians had set up the temple state of Yehud based on Jerusalem. The social and psychological disruption that accompanied the collapse of the Persian empire and the spread of Greek culture within warring kingdoms in the next 400 years seems to have led to the feeling that evil had totally taken over the world. Many people who knew little or nothing of Greece suddenly came within the Greek cultural sphere and were frightened and confused.

Yes, some of it is just crap, but if any of it helps anyone, the job is done, the job to learn more about The Matrix

The Merovingian Dynasty was the first major royal dynasty of what would eventually become France. Descended from the Salian Franks, and supposedly possessing magical powers derived from long hair1, the Merovingians ruled an empire that included much of modern France and quite a bit of Germany too, from 448 to 751 AD.

Their greatest legacies were the law co

The Merovingian Dynasty was the first major royal dynasty of what would eventually become France. Descended from the Salian Franks, and supposedly possessing magical powers derived from long hair1, the Merovingians ruled an empire that included much of modern France and quite a bit of Germany too, from 448 to 751 AD.

Their greatest legacies were the law codes they issued which neighbouring kingdoms were inspired to issue; and they helped to found the Catholic Church, via the Western Christian Empire.

The Merovingians maintained an uninterrupted, unquestioned reign over Gaul and West Germany for three centuries; but, in spite of their achievements, history largely ignored the likes of Clovis I for the more enigmatic Arthur, or the more imperial Charlemagne, both of whom had better publicists.

Meroveus II

The semi-legendary Meroveus II, otherwise known as Merovech or Merowig, was crowned King of the Franks (or at least of his tribe of Franks) in 448 at the age of 15, and it is from him that the Merovingian Dynasty derives its name. Which was quite an achievement for someone of questionable parentage2.

His father, Clodion VI, was the first to commit his tribe's laws to paper, laws which would later be known as the Salic Laws3

Childeric I

While Meroveus II provided the name, bloodline and quite a bit of mythology, his son Childeric is credited with the actual founding of the dynasty. A sometime Roman ally, his grave, supposedly discovered in Tournai in 1653, yielded hundreds of Byzantine coins, and the accoutrements of Roman nobility, indicating some standing with Roman Empire. However, like his father, Childeric is a figure shrouded in mystery.

Clovis I

Clovis4, who succeeded his father Childeric I in 481, did much to establish Frankish power. Under his rule, the Merovingians carved out a kingdom that spanned from the Pyrenees to the Rhine. His conversion to Catholicism in 496 gave the embattled Church a powerful ally and its first kingly barbarian convert.

Clovis was a militant convert, though only nominally Christian. Despite the Church's objections, he still kept up his favourite hobbies of bigamy, assassinating rivals and conquering his in-laws. He once said of the Crucifixion, 'If I had been there with my Franks, I would have avenged His wrong', proving that he didn't fully grasp the new philosophy.

Clovis died in 511 and was buried in the church of St Genevieve on the Parisian south bank, a church he himself had built. The kingdom was divided among Clovis' sons, as was the style at the time.

Dagobert I

Ascending the throne in 630, Dagobert was the last truly effective Merovingian king. He was responsible for reforming the Frankish economy, exchanging gold coin for silver, and for bringing civilized notions to his neighbours. The Ripuarian Franks, the Alemanni and the Bavarians all had their own law codes written up for them by Dagobert's scholars.

Childeric III

The last Merovingian king, Childeric was a puppet to the man who would eventually replace him and establish a new dynasty. Most of the actual administration of the Merovingian kingdom was carried out by a Mayor of the Palace, a kind of prime minister; and during the last 100 years of Merovingian rule, more and more power slipped into the hands of the mayors.

The kings of the Late Merovingian period are often referred to as les rois faineants or the feeble kings, partly due to their lack of authority, but mostly because the average age of ascendants was six5.

Childeric was deposed by his own mayor Pepin III, otherwise known as Pepin the Short, in 751. He was imprisoned and given a haircut to deprive him of any mystical powers he might have been hiding, deposit et detonsit. Pepin and his descendants, most notably Charlemagne, went on to establish the better known, but shorter-lived, Carolingian Dynasty. Childeric died four years later.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 Exactly what those powers were is unclear. Super-dandruff perhaps?
2 His mother was a princess, one father a king, the other an unidentified seamonster.
3 Named after the Salian Franks, these laws outlined various crimes and punishments, as well as rules of inheritance. The latter were used to prevent women from claiming the throne.
4 By consolidating the Salian and Ripuarian Franks, Clovis is considered by some to be the founder of the Merovingian Dynasty.
5 Claimants to the throne had an unfortunate tendency of not dying of old age.

Great stuff T.O.A.!

I agree completely in regard to the Gnosticism references and symbolism within the films. Excellent background information.

Well they could have done a bit more research in using Gnostic themes. They didn't even pronounce Merovingian correctly and to me that kinda made it a bit tacky that they didn't get that right. Its a French word and is pronounced like: Merovian as in many French words, the "g" is silent.
A big faux pas in my mind.

Originally posted by TheOnlyAnomaly
The Merovingian Dynasty was the first major royal dynasty of what would eventually become France. Descended from the Salian Franks, and supposedly possessing magical powers derived from long hair1, the Merovingians ruled an empire that included much of modern France and quite a bit of Germany too, from 448 to 751 AD.

Their greatest legacies were the law codes they issued which neighbouring kingdoms were inspired to issue; and they helped to found the Catholic Church, via the Western Christian Empire.

The Merovingians maintained an uninterrupted, unquestioned reign over Gaul and West Germany for three centuries; but, in spite of their achievements, history largely ignored the likes of Clovis I for the more enigmatic Arthur, or the more imperial Charlemagne, both of whom had better publicists.

Meroveus II

The semi-legendary Meroveus II, otherwise known as Merovech or Merowig, was crowned King of the Franks (or at least of his tribe of Franks) in 448 at the age of 15, and it is from him that the Merovingian Dynasty derives its name. Which was quite an achievement for someone of questionable parentage2.

His father, Clodion VI, was the first to commit his tribe's laws to paper, laws which would later be known as the Salic Laws3

Childeric I

While Meroveus II provided the name, bloodline and quite a bit of mythology, his son Childeric is credited with the actual founding of the dynasty. A sometime Roman ally, his grave, supposedly discovered in Tournai in 1653, yielded hundreds of Byzantine coins, and the accoutrements of Roman nobility, indicating some standing with Roman Empire. However, like his father, Childeric is a figure shrouded in mystery.

Clovis I

Clovis4, who succeeded his father Childeric I in 481, did much to establish Frankish power. Under his rule, the Merovingians carved out a kingdom that spanned from the Pyrenees to the Rhine. His conversion to Catholicism in 496 gave the embattled Church a powerful ally and its first kingly barbarian convert.

Clovis was a militant convert, though only nominally Christian. Despite the Church's objections, he still kept up his favourite hobbies of bigamy, assassinating rivals and conquering his in-laws. He once said of the Crucifixion, 'If I had been there with my Franks, I would have avenged His wrong', proving that he didn't fully grasp the new philosophy.

Clovis died in 511 and was buried in the church of St Genevieve on the Parisian south bank, a church he himself had built. The kingdom was divided among Clovis' sons, as was the style at the time.

Dagobert I

Ascending the throne in 630, Dagobert was the last truly effective Merovingian king. He was responsible for reforming the Frankish economy, exchanging gold coin for silver, and for bringing civilized notions to his neighbours. The Ripuarian Franks, the Alemanni and the Bavarians all had their own law codes written up for them by Dagobert's scholars.

Childeric III

The last Merovingian king, Childeric was a puppet to the man who would eventually replace him and establish a new dynasty. Most of the actual administration of the Merovingian kingdom was carried out by a Mayor of the Palace, a kind of prime minister; and during the last 100 years of Merovingian rule, more and more power slipped into the hands of the mayors.

The kings of the Late Merovingian period are often referred to as les rois faineants or the feeble kings, partly due to their lack of authority, but mostly because the average age of ascendants was six5.

Childeric was deposed by his own mayor Pepin III, otherwise known as Pepin the Short, in 751. He was imprisoned and given a haircut to deprive him of any mystical powers he might have been hiding, deposit et detonsit. Pepin and his descendants, most notably Charlemagne, went on to establish the better known, but shorter-lived, Carolingian Dynasty. Childeric died four years later.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 Exactly what those powers were is unclear. Super-dandruff perhaps?
2 His mother was a princess, one father a king, the other an unidentified seamonster.
3 Named after the Salian Franks, these laws outlined various crimes and punishments, as well as rules of inheritance. The latter were used to prevent women from claiming the throne.
4 By consolidating the Salian and Ripuarian Franks, Clovis is considered by some to be the founder of the Merovingian Dynasty.
5 Claimants to the throne had an unfortunate tendency of not dying of old age.

wow 🙂 👆 👆