Abstract
Ancient and medieval Frisia was an ethno-linguistic entity far larger than the modern province of Friesland, Netherlands. Water outweighed land over its geographical extent, and its marginal political status, unconquered by the Romans and without the feudal social structure typical of the Middle Ages, made Frisia independent and strange to its would-be conquerors. This article opens with Frisia’s encounters with Rome, and its portrayal in Latin texts as a wretched land of water-logged beggars, ultimately unworthy of annexation. Next, the early medieval conflict between the Frisians and the Danes/Geats, featured in Beowulf and other epic fragments, is examined. Pagan Frisia became of interest during Frankish territorial expansion via a combination of missionary activity and warfare from the seventh century onward. The vitae of saints Willibrord, Boniface, Liudger and Wulfram provide insights into the conversion of Frisia, and the resistance to Christianity and Frankish overlordship of Radbod, its last Pagan king. It is contended that the watery terrain and distinctive culture of Frisia (pastoralism, seafaring, Pagan religion) as noted in ancient and medieval texts rendered it “other” to politically centralized entities such as Rome and Francia. Frisia was eventually tamed and integrated through conversion to Christianity and absorption into Francia after the death of Radbod.
Highlights
Rome and Frisia10.3390/rel12080580The modern province of Friesland in the Netherlands is 5741 square kilometres of thinly populated, low-lying land, the occupants of which possess a language and customs separate from those of the Dutch
Modern Friesland is smaller than medieval Frisia, which included the province of Groningen in the Netherlands and the provinces of Ostfriesland and Nordfriesland in Germany
Sources for the Frisian missions portray Radbod primarily as a Pagan and an opponent of conversion to Christianity (Broome 2014). This is always contextualized in terms of Frankish political ambitions and patronage of missions; Bede describes the missions of Wilfrid, Wihtberht and Willibrord, and notes that as “Pippin had recently occupied Frisia citerior and driven out King Radbod, he sent Willibrord and his companions there to preach; and he assisted them with his imperial authority so that no troubles would interfere with their preaching” (Colgrave and Mynors 1969, Book X)
Summary
The modern province of Friesland in the Netherlands is 5741 square kilometres of thinly populated, low-lying land, the occupants of which possess a language and customs separate from those of the Dutch. The Roman general Nero Claudius Drusus conquered Frisia in 12 BCE and Roman texts shed some light on Frisian culture and politics from that date onward. Nero gave the leaders Roman citizenship and ordered them to vacate the land They refused and the Romans expelled them; another tribe, the Ampsivarii, occupied the site, which suggests resentment of. Erdrich claimed Roman finds were imported briefly and at specific times, as there was no regular trade between Rome and Frisia Frisian veterans brought Roman artefacts home, and trade with Rome decreased as the empire faded in the fourth and fifth centuries. Frisia was a decentralized society lacking unified government, and settlements were small and separated by waters; the construction of dykes began in the eleventh century but land reclamation was not successfully achieved until the fourteenth century or later. Frisia is usually viewed—questionably, as will be seen—in terms of Frankish overlordship (Croix and Ijssennagger-Van Der Pluijm 2019)
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