著者

加納 修 KANO Osamu

出版者

名古屋大学人文学研究科

雑誌

名古屋大学人文学研究論集 (ISSN:2433233X)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.1, pp.193-211, 2018-03-31

---

The works of Gregory of Tours feature many slaves fulfilling various tasks. The society he describes was a slave-owning society. In sixth-century Gaul society that he describes, slave owning was common not only in the middle class but also at local village level. This paper focuses on the activities of these slaves and asks why some tasks were committed to slave labour. It is remarkable that Gregory of Tours mentions few slaves fulfilling agricultural labours. Instead, his works depict slaves in manufacturing roles. To work by one’s own hands was considered dishonourable for both the descendants of Roman aristocracy and for Germanic men of influence in sixth-century Gaul. Social custom sometimes forced tasks to be undertaken by slaves. One example is marriage by abduction, a continuation of Roman tradition wherein slaves would abduct a girl for marriage. Finally, it is interesting to note that slaves were also active in the execution of royal orders. Merovingian kings relied on slaves in their