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Clovis I

Type Figure Region Gaul Time c. 466–511 Also known as 克洛维一世、Chlodovech、Chlodwig、Clovis the Frank、克洛维斯一世

Clovis I (c. 466–511) was the founder of the Merovingian dynasty of the Frankish Kingdom and king of the Salian Franks.…

Timeline

  1. c. 466–481Tournai · BelgiumClovis was born into the Salian Frankish royal family, his father being Childeric I. After his father's death around 481, Clovis, aged about 15, inherited the throne of the Salian Franks, beginning his campaign to unite the Frankish tribes.
  2. 481–496Soissons · Northern GaulIn 486, Clovis defeated the Roman commander Syagrius at the Battle of Soissons, destroying the last remnants of the Western Roman Empire in Gaul and extending his territory to the Loire River. He then campaigned east against the Thuringians and the Ripuarian Franks, gradually consolidating Frankish power, and around 493 married the Burgundian princess Clotilde.
  3. c. 496–511Reims · ChampagneAround 496, following the Battle of Tolbiac, Clovis was baptized at Reims by Bishop Remigius, converting to Catholicism and becoming the first Germanic barbarian king to accept Nicene Christianity, winning the support of the Roman papacy and the local bishops of Gaul. In 507 he defeated the Visigoth king Alaric II at the Battle of Vouillé, driving the Visigoths out of most of Gaul. He died in Paris in 511, and his will divided the kingdom among his four sons.

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