ABSTRACT
Beginning with the origins of Christianity among the Germani, this chapter follows the Christianization of “Germanic” Europe throughout the Early Middle Ages, with a particular emphasis on methods of conversion and encounters with paganism. Missionary endeavors and ecclesiastical foundations throughout the Frankish world in Gaul, Franconia, Thuringia, Bavaria, and Frisia are chronicled, alongside the conversion of England. The influence of Anglo-Saxon missionaries on the continent is also demonstrated, including their involvement in early missions to the “Old Saxons.” Through these examples, we see various methods used in the Christianization of Europe. The top-down political nature of conversion features prominently, alongside the dehumanizing and demonizing manner in which Christian rulers and ecclesiastics interpreted paganism. That interpretation facilitated antagonistic confrontations with anything deemed pagan, establishing a crusading ethos that subsequent monarchs and governments used to justify imperial ambitions.
