De-gendering female violence: Merovingian female honour as an ‘exchange of violence’
Nira Gradowicz-Pancer
The phenomenon of female violence in the Early Middle Ages has notbeen properly explored, largely because a feminist ethic which correctlyfocuses on women as victims, rather than perpetrators, ofviolence. traditional gendered dividing line is transcended whenfemale violence, like male regarded class characteristic orstrategy, and when practice can be explained by code behav–iour shared both sexes. Several case studies from early Merovingianperiod, drawn work Gregory Tours, are here analysed inorder to demonstrate how royal Merovingian could preservehonour through pursuit violence. How far Tours’saccount may taken depict social reality further issue discussedin relation studies. These involve Clothild Fredegund,and show normal feature society,especially where single had no immediate protectors, but didhave great deal personal honour defend. In Fredegund,violence was result premeditated revenge publicly restoredher maintained her precedence hierarchy. Itseems clear that women, unlike later times, couldparticipate cycle
Early Medieval Europe