Rethinking The Carolingian Reforms

The carolingian period c. 750-900 Has traditionally been described as one of reform’ or renaissance’, where cultural and intellectual changes were imposed from above in a programme of correctio.This view leans heavily on prescriptive texts issued by kings and their entourages, foregrounding royal initiative and the cultural products of a small intellectual elite.However, attention to understudied texts and manuscripts of the period reveals a vibrant striving for moral improvement and positive change at all levels of society.This expressed itself in a variety of ways for different individuals and communities, whose personal relationships could be just as influential as top-down prescription.The often anonymous creators and copyists in a huge range of centres emerge as active participants in shaping and re-shaping the ideals of their world. -- .

The carolingian period c. 750-900 Has traditionally been described as one of reform’ or renaissance’, where cultural and intellectual changes were imposed from above in