Merovingian Settlements between Local and supra-regional Elites. A Landscape Archaeological Comparison of the Rhineland with its Neighbouring Regions. (04)

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The subproject focuses on phenomena of power and domination in Merovingian rural areas. The results obtained in the first phase of the project from the Rhineland will be compared in several landscape archaeological studies with results from northwestern Europe. Based on models such as Soft Power and Limited Statehood, it is assumed that local communities have a great capacity for self-organisation. Governance is not only understood as a top-down process of control by supreme leaders, but the voluntary integration of local elites into supra-regional networks is also regarded as important.