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History of the Franks

St Gregory of Tours, tr. Dalton, 1927

Book 6, 45. Of the Betrothal of Rigunth, Daughter of Chilperic

On the kalends of September¹ a numerous embassy of Visigoths came to Chilperic,² who, after his return to Paris,³ ordered many households of serfs to be taken from various royal estates and carried off in wagons. Many of them wept and were loath to go; these he had imprisoned, that he might the more easily send them with his daughter. No small number are said to have hanged themselves in this bitter hour, dreading to be carried off from those near and dear to them. Son was torn from father, mother from daughter; they parted with groans and curses; such was the mourning in the city of Paris, that it might be compared to the lamentation of the Egyptians. Many among those forced to go were of good birth; these made their wills, leaving their property to the churches, and asking that, on the arrival of the princess in Spain, the documents should at once be opened as if they themselves were dead and buried.

Meanwhile envoys from King Childebert came to Paris, warning King Chilperic to remove nothing from the cities which he had taken from his brother’s kingdom,⁴ and bidding him beware of laying a finger on any slaves, or horses, or yokes of oxen, or any other such property. One of these envoys is said to have been secretly murdered; it was unknown by whom, but the king’s influence was suspected. King Chilperic promised that he would touch none of these things, and invited the chief among the Franks and other of his loyal subjects to celebrate the betrothal of his daughter.⁵ He then gave her great treasures, and entrusted her to the envoys. Her mother also brought out an immense weight of gold and silver, with fine raiment; so much, that at sight of it the king deemed nothing was left to him. The queen, seeing him vexed, turned to the Franks and said: ‘Think not that anything here is taken from the treasures of former kings; everything before your eyes I am presenting from my own possessions. For the most glorious king hath given to me generously; but somewhat I have amassed from my own resources, and much I have acquired from the houses granted to me, derived both from the revenues and from the taxes. And ye, too, have yourselves oft-times given me a wealth of gifts; from these sources come the things that now lie before you; nothing here is taken from the public treasure.’ By these words the king was cozened. Such was the multitude of things, that the gold, silver, and other ornaments filled fifty wagons. Moreover, the Franks themselves brought many presents, some gold, some silver, some horses; many offered raiment; each gave according to his means. And now the bride, after tears and embraces, said her farewells; but as she drove out of the gate an axle of her carriage⁶ broke, whereupon all cried, ‘O evil hour!’ and this was taken as an ill omen by many.

The princess, leaving Paris behind, ordered her tents to be pitched at the eighth milestone from the city. That night fifty men arose, and taking a hundred of the best horses and the like number of golden bridles, together with two large basins, escaped and made off to King Childebert. And all the way along, if any man saw a chance of getting away, he took to flight, carrying off with him whatever he could lay his hands upon. Great store of supplies was provided at the cost of the different cities upon the road; the king had given no orders that any of the expense should be borne by the treasury; all was collected from the poor inhabitants. As the king feared that his brother or his nephew might lay some ambush for his daughter, he had commanded an army to act as her escort. With her went men of the highest rank. Duke Bobo,⁷ son of Mummolen, with whom was his wife, went as conductor of the bride; there went also Domigisel, Ansovald,⁸ and Waddo, mayor of the household, formerly count of Saintes; the mass of the escort numbered more than four thousand men. All the other dukes and chamberlains who had accompanied the princess turned back at Poitiers; but the above named, who were to go the whole distance, pushed forward as best they could. On their way they robbed and plundered in a way beyond all description. They pillaged the cottages of the poor, ruined the vineyards by cutting off the vine-stems with the grapes upon them, drove off the herds, and seized everything else within their reach. So was fulfilled that which was spoken by the prophet Joel: ‘That which the locust hath left hath the rust eaten; and that which the rust hath left hath the canker-worm eaten; and that which the canker-worm hath left hath the blight eaten.’⁹ In all that was done at this time, it was as if the storm levelled what the hoar-frost left, the drought burned up what the storm left, the foe carried off what remained after the drought.

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