Book dossier

Carolingian Culture

by Rosamond McKitterick

This volume of specially commissioned essays takes as its theme the legacy of Rome in Carolingian culture in eighth- and ninth-century Europe. The authors, all leading scholars in the field, examine the 'Carolingian Renaissance', political theory, the teaching of grammar, Latin and German literature, thought, the writing of history, script and book production, art and music. Each chapter therefore addresses the theme of the legacy of Rome from the vantage point of a particular specialism, incorporates the author's own new research, and provides an introduction to the study of each subject. In every respect the essays demonstrate the creation of firm cultural foundations and the inauguration of a long period of intellectual and artistic creativity. Beside the emulation of Rome, the Carolingians made many remarkable innovations in all aspects of cultural life. Rather than focusing on 'renewal', as has usually been done, this book stresses the vigorous use of a rich heritage to create something new and distinctively Carolingian that provided the bedrock for the subsequent development of medieval European culture.