Culture et politique (II). Gogo et ses amis: Écriture, échanges et ambitions dans un réseau aristocratique de la fin du VI ^e siècle

Between the years 560 and 590, a small group made of frankish bishops and aristocrats sustains privileged relationships, without them having any institutional bond. Gogo, a regent of Austrasia (576-581), seems to be its main figure, but his contacts stretch beyond the boundaries of the Regnum Francorum. A high cultural level is mandatory to enter this correspondence circle, which regroups both heirs and a new learned elite. Those «friends of Gogo» join together in political, diplomatic, and social strategies. However, the group seems devoid of any ideology and its main purpose is to protect its members' personal interests. It shows weaknesses in times of trouble, even though it re-forms when the situation gets back to stability. Such a light but efficient structure probes the concept of network in the high Middle Ages.