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Although the last official Augustus in the West, Julius Nepos, was overthrown in 475 AD, ancient Rome’s legacy endured. Following the brief rule of a final usurper, Romulus Augustulus, the Germanic general Odoacer crowned himself King of Italy. Odoacer maintained many of imperial Rome’s structures and customs, as did his replacement, Theoderic, who founded his own Ostrogothic Kingdom that controlled the Italian peninsula until mid 6th century AD. Concurrently, several other tribes rose in prominence to fill the leadership gap across Europe, while also promulgating traditions of imperial Rome. Of particular note in this regard is the dynasty that would preluded a rebooted Holy Roman Empire, and that clan was the Merovingians.
First of the line was Merovech, King of the Salian Franks, whose history is shrouded in myth and legend. Merovech’s grandson, Clovis I, united the Franks in Germania and proceeded to conquer Gaul, including the suppression of the Visigoths. Along the way, Clovis consolidated his position by marrying a Burgundian princess and arranging his sister’s marriage to Ostrogothic King Theoderic. Clovis, who was born a pagan, converted to the Roman Catholic faith, which further helped him gain support with the Pope as well as the local Gallo-Roman aristocracy. Clovis died around 511 AD, and was laid to rest in Paris, which remains Francia’s seat of power to this day. Surviving Clovis were his four sons, each inheriting their own portion of the up-and-coming Kingdom of the Franks.
Clovis’ descendants ruled over a Frankish realm that was comprised of various territories - Austrasia, Neustria, Burgundy, and Aquitaine - although for brief periods in the 6th and 7th centuries, there was a dominant Merovingian monarch. The lack of centralized rule was a contributing factor in the diminution of Merovingian’s influence over time. Consequently by the turn of the 8th century AD, true power was increasingly wielded by the king’s highest ranking official, namely the Mayor of the Palace.
Similar to the Roman Emperors, the Merovingian rulers produced coins. This specimen bears a distinctively Merovingian style, in particular the reverse depiction of a cross ancrée (a cross with horizonal cross-arms turning downward, and upper cross-arm bifurcating downward in the style of anchor flukes). This cross-anchor symbol is sometimes referred to as a Eligius Cross. Eligius (588 AD to 660 AD) was a Frankish goldsmith and bishop who became the chief counsellor to Merovingian King Dagobert I. More than metalworking and politics, Eligius was renowned for kindness towards the disadvantaged; today, he is considered the patron saint of goldsmiths, metalworkers, and coin collectors.
By the time this coin was struck a century after Eligius’ time, the role of the Merovingians was largely ceremonial. Since the helmeted figure depicted on the obverse is not identified - the only marking is [PARIS-I]VSO, indicating the Paris mint - it is possible that this coin was struck during the interregnum period between 737-741 AD when, instead of a king, authority resided in the powerful Mayor of the Palace, Charles Martel. Also known by the aptonym “The Hammer” (
martel, in the old Frankish tongue), Charles followed in the footsteps of his father, Pepin of Herstal, in ruling ruling from behind the Frankish throne. Interestingly, the situation was parallel to the role of Germanic
magister militum Ricimer during the death throes of the Western Roman Empire.
Unlike Ricimer who focused on making and unmaking rulers to desperately preserve his shrinking realm, Charles strove for his kingdom’s re-unification and resurgence. To do so, he consolidated the Palace Mayor’s office and embarked on a series of impressive military campaigns that re-established the Frank’s grip over Gaul. After Martel’s death, a final Merovingian dynast, Childeric III, was crowned. However, Childeric was merely the puppet of Charles son, Pepin the Short. Thus, the king had no real political or economic power to speak of. Pipin eventually convinced Pope Zachary to dethrone Childeric, which was accomplished by tonsure, a medieval buzzcut of sorts. Since long hair was a Merovingian symbol of power, the dynast’s new coiffure marked the ignominious end of Merovech’s line.
In the aftermath, Pope Zachary crowned Pepin as the new King of the Franks and
Defensor Civitatis (protector of oppressed citizens), heralding a new Carolingian dynasty (denoting the descendants of Charles). Apparently, this was the first time a Pope had anointed a civil ruler. Pepin was now the designated defender of the Church, and he exploited his status to re-expand the Frankish realm. The effort to further expand and consolidate power over Europe was continued by Pepin’s son Charlemagne, who became the first ruler in three centuries to earn the title of Emperor in Rome. Details of the latter's rise to power, which set the stage for the Holy Roman Empire, is the subject of the next coin in the Collection.
Coin Deails: MEROVINGIANS, Paris (region), Circa 725-750, AR Denier (11.5mm, 1.18 g, 12h), PCGS Grade: AU58, Obverse: Diademed head right, + PAR[I(horizontal S)I]V(horizontal S)O, Reverse: Cross ancrée with pendilia hanging from crossbar; pellets under each arc and below each pendilium; annulets at end of each bar. References: cf. Belfort 3427; MEC 1, 598.
Image: NGC Photo Vision Plus.