Editing Clovis I (section)

==Background==
Clovis was the son of [[Childeric I]], a king of the [[Salian Franks]], and [[Basina of Thuringia|Basina]], a [[Duchy of Thuringia|Thuringia]]n princess. The dynasty he founded is, however, named after his supposed ancestor, [[Merovech]]. Some sources claim that Clovis' grandfather was [[Chlodio]], but his exact relation with Merovech is not known.

Numerous small Frankish [[petty king]]doms existed during the 5th century. The [[Salian Franks]] was the first-known Frankish tribe that settled with official Roman permission within the empire, first in [[Batavia (region)|Batavia]] in the Rhine-Maas delta, and then in 375 in [[Toxandria]], which in the present day consists of the province of [[North Brabant]] in the Netherlands and parts of neighbouring provinces of [[Antwerp Province|Antwerp]] and [[Limburg (Belgium)|Limburg]] in Belgium. This put them in the northern part of the Roman [[civitas Tungrorum]], with the Romanized population still dominant south of the military highway Boulogne-Cologne. Later, [[Chlodio]] seems to have attacked westwards from this area to take control of the Roman populations in [[Tournai]], then southwards to [[Artois]], and [[Cambrai]], eventually controlling an area stretching to the [[Somme river]].

Childeric I, Clovis's father, was reputed to be a relative of Chlodio and was known as the king of the Franks who fought as an army within northern Gaul. In 463, he fought in conjunction with [[Aegidius]], the [[magister militum]] of northern Gaul, to defeat the [[Visigoths]] in [[Orléans]]. Childeric died in 481 and was buried in Tournai; Clovis succeeded him as king, aged just 15. Historians believe that Childeric and Clovis were both commanders of the Roman military in the province of [[Belgica Secunda]] and were subordinate to the magister militum.<ref>{{cite book|last=Rosenwein|first=Barbara|title=A Short History of the Middle Ages|year=2004|publisher=University of Toronto Press|location=Canada|page=43}}{{ISBN?}}</ref> The Franks of Tournai came to dominate their neighbours, initially aided by the association with Aegidius.{{sfn|Bachrach|1972|pp=3–4}}

The death of [[Aetius (magister militum)|Aetius]] in 454 led to the decline of imperial power in Gaul; leaving [[Visigothic Kingdom|the Visigoths]] and [[Kingdom of the Burgundians|the Burgundians]] competing for predominance in the area. The part of Gaul still under Roman control emerged as a kingdom under Syagrius, Aegidius's son.{{sfn|Bachrach|1972|pp=3–4}}

Though no primary sources expounding on the language spoken by Clovis exist, historical linguists consider it likely that, based on his family history and core territories, he spoke a form of [[Old Dutch]].<ref>Jelle Stegeman: Grote geschiedenis van de Nederlandse taal, Amsterdam 2021, §3.1.1.1.</ref> In this, the early [[Merovingians]] can be contrasted with the later [[Carolingians]], such as [[Charlemagne]], of the late [[8th century]] and onward, who probably spoke various forms of [[Old High German]].<ref>Einhard, Vita Karoli 25. & Janet Nelson: King and Emperor. London 2019, pp. 68.</ref>