Customer Reviews

Province and Empire: Brittany and the Carolingians (Cambridge Studies in Medieval Life and Thought: Fourth Series)

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For any college/university student, graduate student, or anyone simply interested in the Carolingian period of the early Middle Ages, Smith's book is a must-read. The Carolingian Empire was vast, covering most of western Europe, so the best way to understand how things worked is through regional studies. Smith admirably accomplishes her task of describing the structures of power relations inside Brittany as well as how this region played a role in the wider civilization. She shows how kings and emperors dealt with rebellious nobles and managed the distribution of lands and offices to secure their power. Just as important, she illustrates how Bretons used their relationships with Frankish kings to strengthen their own positions. In the early Middle Ages, churches and monasteries were major players in the game of power politics, and by no means does Smith neglect these entities. What is more, her view encompasses more than just the elite, taking in people whose sphere of activity was more localized as well. Since the Carolingians initiated a program of cultural reform, Smith reserves a chapter to illustrate the Breton conditions of that as well. All in all, this is a first-rate study.