[gothic-l] Re: Visigoths

[ingemar.nordgren at EBOX.TNINET.SE]

--- In gothic-l at y..., dirk at s... wrote:


> On the other hand, the conversion to Catholicism allowed for a
greater
> degree of integration with the 'native' population a fact that has
> often been stress as reason for the relative success of the Frankish
> kingdom.

Hello Dirk,
Yes indeed, and that is exactly what happened in the Visigotic realm -
the different groups melted but the preconditions were dissimilar.
What was good in France was bad in Spain. The Goths cesed to be Goths
and so they also ceased to feel loyalty with the king but just with
themselves. They were a small group of Germanic speaking nobles and
warriors ruling a majority of Roman and Jewish population. When they
ceased to stick together  their ethnicity and the central state
control dissapeared gradually. At first they could have opportunity to
grab riches from the Jews and try to make business for themselves but
in lack of good trade contacts they did not succeed in the long run.
Maybe the riches annihilated were used also for imports making a short
flourishing economy and then collaps. Compare Spain before the Dutch
and British took over trade.The pope also may have contributed with
kind of bribes making it more appealing for the kings to follow the
dictate of Rome in spite of an increasing discontent among the
commoners. The copper coinage may be local, isolated communities inner
trade after the collapse of distant trade,  earlier cared for by the
Jews.Also note that free slave labour by the Jews might have in short
sight led to increased revenue of agriculture.

Greetings
Ingemar





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