The European dark age and the war against paganism
As said before, western Christian civilization got indeed a very poor starts. The lost of military capabilities in
the Roman empire creates a situation where incappable to fight against local
brigands, pict scottish invader and german tribue. Despite their small numerical number, german warrior was accepted as King
and the western world submit to their authorities. Anglo-saxon invades the Great Brittany and the celtic local Britain
had to face an ethic cleaning as so we can not find any celtic genes in current British people. The briatin celtes immigrates
to Scottland, Wales and French Brittany.
The force of the fight is developped in the King Arthur legends under the background of (facism) nordic paganism against christian
(political) ideology. Pagan win the military war but Christian win the propaganda.
In the 500 AD France, the King
Clovis Ier converts to catholicism and develops the most powerful catholic Kingdom. In 732 AD, Charles the martel stops the
muslim invasion in 688 AD and by preventing the islamisation of Europe, the Frank
Kingdom become the champion of the catholic Christian culture. His grandson,
Charlemagne starts war against the saxons in Germany
in 773 AD. The german invasion was followed by force conversion. During the Bloody Verdict of Verden, in 782, Charlemagne
beheaded 4500 saxons to revert back to paganism. The war was long more than 30 years. It might have leaded to 1 million deathes
like the Gaullic War of Jules Ceasar and the capitulation of the German world to the catholic belief. Then, Charlemagne fight
the Slave, the Avar in Hungary and the Vicking Danes in Denmark.
The victory over german pagan did not stop the war. German invasion were followed by Viking invasion coming from as
far than Scandinavia from the 8th to 10th. But, the Viking finally
accepts the catholic faith and with the lost of their gods. They lost their habits of raiding.
Snorri Sturluson in the saga of St. Olafr chapter 73, describes the brutal process of Christianisation in Norway: “…those who did not give up paganism were banished, with others he (St. Olafr) cut off their hands or their
feet or extirpated their eyes, others he ordered hanged or decapitated, but did not leave unpunished any of those who did
not want to serve God (…) he afflicted them with great punishments (…) He gave them clerks and instituted some
in the districts.”
The roman empire limits itself to the German border. The catholic Christian civilisation extends itself to all part
of Europe. The catholic christian world was bordered by the pacific orthodoxe christian byzantin
roman world developed from turkey and extend into the slave russian world. The only exception is Spain
were Muslim dispareas in 1492 with the fail of Granada.
The medevial catholic Europe
The catholic culture enjoys the advantage of isolation and centralised itself under the pope in Rome. With the division of the empire of Charlemagne between his sons, the catholic world
enjoys the benefit of a multiple state in a single cultural world. In XI century, European speaks many languages but the clerical
and the educate noble speaks latine and later French which guarantees communication and diplomacy inter marriage inside King
Families. This unity of the noble class face is in sharp contrast to the disunity of common people who are separated by languages
and traditions.
Many case of European war came from unification by marriage followed by a rebellion of the people. The western part of France and England got unified by marriage of the heirest Eleanor of Aquitaine with the King of England Henry II. And, it leads to 100 years of War between France
and England. The war end up by the acquisition
by the Kingdom of France, the part of France inherit by the English King. A similar situation took
place in the XVI century when the Hasbourg emperor Charles Quint inherit Austria,
Netherland, the French Burgondy and Spain.
Charles Quint grows up in the low countries(Netherland) but in 1517, he inherits of the Kingdom of Spain. He decided to relocate itself
in Spain. His son Philips II grows up
as a Spanish catholic King during a time while the low countries move to calvinist christian beliefs
The States-General of the Dutch provinces, united in the 1579 Union of Utrecht, passed an Oath of Abjuration of their Spanish-based king, who was also Sovereign over the Netherlands,
in 1581. The Netherlands at this time had been a personal union under King
Philip since the Pragmatic Sanction of 1549; he was lord of each separate Dutch Province
(e.g., Duke of Guelders and Count of Holland). Nevertheless, the Dutch forces continued to fight on, and increasingly used
their substantial naval resources to plunder Spanish ships and blockade the Spanish-controlled southern provinces.
The outcome became the independence of the Netherland in a separate state.
Now, let looks more to the political situation of Europe. Europe
did have many wars but most war was fight with mercenary and knight army of very low effective. In 1346, during the battle
of Crecy considered to by the first major battle of Hundred
Years War, the 10 000 men of the British defeats a French Army of 35000 men of the French army. The population of France was 20 millions and Great Britian 5 millions. In 1453,
the battle of Castillon endep up by the battle of the 100 years war with 6000 Britishs against 10 000 mens. To put those effective
in perspectives in 1219-21 AD, the mongol invades Persia
with an army 250 000 cavaltry. Persia
got an army of 400 000 mens. In 200 AD, during the second Punic war, the roman lost 200 000 mens against Hannibal. During 52 BC battle of Alesia, Jules Caesar defeat Vercingetory Gaullist army of
200 000 mens with an 40 000 army. In 1812 AD, the French emperor Napoleon Ier lost the invasion of Russia with an army of 850000 mens.
The European feudal order was based on a class of warrior knight which had enslaved peasons and force them to pay taxes.
The numerous peasants frequently rebels against tax excess but never master fighting skills and so rebellion were always break
down. In the classic world, Athena and Roma were defended by peasant/legionary eager to defend their rights and their lands
and have the capacity to mobilize most of their men for the war. Medieval war could have generate in national war but it never
happens. War was made by knight and then by professional standing army of mercenaries. It makes us consider the new organize
of european social power. European Knight fight each other but were submitted to the authorities of the Church and the pope.
Pope and high cardinal were also choosen between nobles famillies. The Church structure Europe
under its diplomacy. The Church had the capacities to influence the people by the Sunday mass. Warrior noble wre challenged
by the Church who hold most of the lands and integrate a large number of individuals. The Church was the real center of power
and the factor to resolve most conflicts by diplomaticy and internal politics.
Inside the source, another kind of competition took place, this competition was not facism but politics.
In Matthew 12.33-37 (Lc 6.44-45), Jesus fixes the new objectives in term of achievement:
33] Either make the tree good, and his fruit
good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit.
[34] O generation
of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.
[35]
A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth
forth evil things.
[36] But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof
in the day of judgment.
[37] For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.
The
gospel is cleared on the objectifs. The objectif are not to win war. They are not either to produce more. The “good
fruits are words. What matters is to say the right words in a nice manner. In so on, most of the competition for power stop
to be military but politics. Priest have the right to be listened and influence all european court. By the secret of the confession,
the church could gather critical information about european matters and than had the capacity to set up diplomatic arrangement
to solve major conflicts. The church also set up the morale and could excommuniate rebelious King. Then, it become clear that
the Church was the right place to do a political carrier. In France, The
Cardinal-Duc
de Richelieu, became the Secretary of the State in 1616, and the real leader of France
under the Reign of the passive King Louis XIII
In 1614, the clergymen of Poitou elected Richelieu as one of their representatives to
the States-General. There, he was a vigorous advocate of the Church, arguing that it should be exempt from taxes and that bishops should have more political power. He was the most prominent clergyman to support the adoption of the decrees
of the Council of Trent throughout France;
the Third Estate (commoners) was his chief opponent in this endeavour. At the end of the assembly, the First Estate (the clergy) chose him to deliver the address enumerating its petitions and decisions. Soon after the dissolution of the
States-General, Richelieu entered the service of King Louis XIII's wife, Anne of Austria, as her almoner.
Richelieu advanced politically by faithfully serving Concino Concini, the most powerful minister in the kingdom. In 1616, Richelieu was made Secretary of State,
and was given responsibility for foreign affairs. Like Concini, the Bishop was one of the closest advisors of Louis XIII's
mother, Marie de Médicis.
[…]
After the death of the King's favourite, the duc de Luynes, in 1621, Richelieu began to rise to power quickly. Next year, the King
nominated Richelieu for a cardinalate, which Pope Gregory XV accordingly granted on 19 April 1622. Crises in France, including a rebellion of the Huguenots, rendered Richelieu a nearly indispensable advisor to the King. After he was appointed to
the royal council of ministers in April 1624, he intrigued against the chief minister, Charles, duc de La Vieuville. In August of the same year, La Vieuville was arrested on charges of corruption, and Cardinal Richelieu took his place as
the King's principal minister.
Richeulieu
allienate the pope by supporting the Swiss protestant Rebellion.In 1641, the pope nominate a new cardinale Jules Mazarin which succeed to Richeulieu in influencing the Kingdom of France.
So, it can be consider that the Catholic church did achieve the objective end up a world rule by facism and military
achievement, a world were city state produced warrior in order to destroy competing state. Power stops to be a matter of warfar
but a question of politics
Political competition
.The competition inside communities and latter in the Church is now on the individual marketing
skills and the one who has the most persuasive will move to the top of the society. As the Church rapidly did it, he will
also provide some service to help the riches to unload his wealth. As mentioned to the rich men in Matthew 19.16 (cite before),
it is difficult for a rich men to distribute his wealth directly to the poor and to follow Jesus. If it does not select his
poor careful, the poor might take him as an idiot. So, Christian community will solve the problems by accepting rich disciple
and their wealth and distribute the collect wealth to the poor member and prospect. We do see the start of the meditative
competitive logic which is the based of the social structure of the catholic world. The priest is a chief marketer and advance
according to their capacities to collect funds and will be promote according to their success. The poor beggar is also submitting
to a Sharpe competition to give a good image of themselves to deserve those funds. In both case, the capacity to persuade
is the source of success and hard working entrepreneur will deprive his children for their heritage to the benefit of the
churches.
