A New Probe into the Role of Manumission in the Early Medieval Frankish Kingdom
Slavery had gradually declined in Europe during the 10th to 11th century.Scholars have given different explanations from the perspectives of religion,economy,class struggle and manumission.In terms of manumission,the traditional opinion is that the increase of manumission in the early medieval Western Europe led to the decline of slavery.This view not only simplifies the elaborate and complex slavery system of the Middle Ages into a straight line that begins with enslavement and ends with man-umission,but also ignores the diverse types and roles of manumission.In the early medieval Frankish kingdom,some manumissions were spurious and invalid,while most were accompanied by obligations.Manumission was a strategy of slaveholders to maintain slavery,which helped to alleviate the conflict between slaveholders and slaves,and strengthened the willingness of the lower class of freemen to com-mit themselves to slavery.Therefore,manumission in the Early Middle Ages did not necessarily lead to the decline of slavery,but rather promoted the development of slavery.
Early Middle AgesFrankish KingdomSlaveryManumission
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