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Ratkowitsch, Christine (Vienna) I. To the 12th Century (CT) A. The Frankish Kingdom under the Merovingians (CT) [German version] 1. History and Social Development (CT) The Franks were initially integrated into the Roman empire as allies ( foederati). With his victory over Syagrius (486/87), Clovis (466-511) shattered what was left of Roman rule. He is considered the founder of the dynasty of the Merovingians and the great Frankish kingdom, whose area on the Seine and the Loire he increased by the addition of Aquitaine. He had himse…

Bäbler, Balbina (Göttingen) I. Classical Archaeology (CT) [German version] A. Comparative Chronology (CT) Before any artefacts can be placed within an historical time scale, it makes sense to determine their relationship to each other (comparative chronology) by means of stratigraphy and by observing how morphological changes in objects take place. The basic principles of stratigraphy were established by geologists during the first half of the 19th cent. In 1847, J. Boucher de Perthes applied the observations made about the layers of the earth …

Worstbrock, Franz Josef I. History and System (CT) [German version] A. Old European Tradition and New Rhetoric (CT) Ancient rhetoric was constantly present in the European world from the time that world first coalesced in the late 8th cent., and from the beginning it was instrumental as one of the foundations of European literacy. Anchored in the school system, ars rhetorica, however it was delivered, served up or interpreted, was of the essence of any decent education. But knowledge of rhetoric was not merely a tool for the production of texts and was …

Landfester, Manfred (Gießen RWG) I. Greek (CT) A. Byzantine Philology (ca. 800-1453) (CT) [German version] 1. Terminology (CT) As the scientific study of the literature and language of Greek Antiquity, Byzantine philology, in the tradition of ancient Greek philology, meant primarily grammar, constitution of texts and explanation of texts. It was essentially humanistic, for it understood itself as a means for the linguistic, literary, intellectual and moral renewal of the present through texts from Antiquity. The…