Austregilde

Impact The impact of Queen Austregilde's role in society can be difficult to track, as there is little recorded evidence of her life. The predominant scholar of contemporary Merovingian history, Gregory of Tours, portrays Austregilde as a villainous figure, and even seems to rejoice in her death.

The contrast in Gregory's portrayal of women of different status could have a few different reasons. Of course, Gregory may have very well have preferred to share a social sphere with those he saw as equals. For a woman of common decent to enter the social circle and influence it, Gregory may have had a hard time accepting the social mobility of women. More likely, however, Gregory was more critical of women from common backgrounds because they did not have blood ties to other nobility. As the nobility and Church relied on each other to hold power, it is unlikely that Gregory would have wanted to jeopardize those relationships by diminishing women from a line of nobility within his histories. By putting his emphasis on the common women who had grown to become powerful, Gregory is still able to build his narrative of women in power without offending any of the nobility. This is supported by Wood's theory that Gregory likely did not begin his histories until after the death of Chilperic, as it allowed Gregory to model Chilperic as a bad king, likely as a strategy to advise King Guntram.

It is also interesting to note that because of their lower birth, queens like Austregilde and Fredegund likely had less connection to the organized Christian church, which had become an important aspect of Merovingian politics in maintaining cooperation with the church. As a bishop, this could also account for Gregory’s view of these women. In one instance Gregory was tried for accusing Queen Fredegund of adultery. While ultimately acquitted, having put a bishop on trial shows the extent to which elite woman could influence politics around them. Fredegund’s depicted lack of respect for spiritual authority is another sign of women’s political authority within the Merovingian kingdoms, as elite society was defined by relations between crown and church. Gregory’s writings show a clear disdain for many women of power, yet in his complaints he showed the reach the elite women held in the social and political spheres.

Gregory's depictions of women of power are intentional beyond any personal bias or feelings that Gregory may have had. Gregory depicts women as sacrilegious influences over their respective kings out of preservation of self-interest. Contemporary writers of early medieval history did not simply record events, but were explicit in their choices of what to include and exclude from the narrative. Gregory manipulates history to produce a narrative where women are the antagonists because women were able to influence patriarchal political figures to advance their own agendas. Gregory wanted his readers to see the narrative he painted likely so the Church could secure a better hold on the influence of Kings. For a queen such as Austregilde to hold more influence over the king than the Church did was a legitimate fear of Gregory. Gregory intentionally chooses to display a narrative that weakens the perception of women in power.

The Character of Merovingian rule is quite patriarchal upon first glance. Women themselves had very little to no political and social autonomy. Yet, when presented with the opportunity to marry a king or other influential figure, women were able to break the barriers of the social sphere and accumulate power. Although, this power could not often be exercised directly and required positive cooperation with their spouse and in some cases behind the scenes intrigue tactics.

As evident by The Salic Law’s code of inheritance, women held less social credit than men in Merovingian society. Yet, The Salic Law has more to reveal about the status of women in Merovingian society. In the articles regarding murder of women and children places a tangible value on the cost of a life. The fines for murdering are highest for pregnant women, lesser for woman who have begun bearing children, and lowest for women unable to bear children. As Ian Wood contends, the power of a Merovingian Queen hinged primarily on a positive relationship with her husband, her ability to provide and raise heirs, and their control of wealth. In Austregilde’s case, while we know little of her control of wealth, we do know she satisfied the other two conditions. Providing King Guntram with 2 heirs, and surviving childbirth four times in total, Austregilde served her role as an heir bearer well despite outliving her two sons. Wood also notes that “It was not sufficient to have high born relatives, or even to achieve the status of queen; it was also necessary to have an obedient husband or son." We see from the text of Gregory’s histories that Austregilde was able to extend tremendous influence over King Guntram in the story of her death by having King Guntram follow through with her final request of executing her doctors. Guntram served to be the obedient king Austregilde needed to exercise her power. Austregilde’s positive relationship with King Guntram is highlighted by the inscription of her epitaph, which was likely commissioned by the King himself. Though it is unclear whether Austregilde satisfied Wood’s third condition in holding active control over wealth, it is hard to deny that Austregilde held power as an active political player within the Merovingian elite.