Includes bibliographical references and index.

Preliminary Material / Alexander Callander Murray -- Introduction / Alexander Callander Murray -- Gregory of Tours: The Elements of a Biography / Martin Heinzelmann -- Venantius Fortunatus and Gregory of Tours: Poetry and Patronage / Michael Roberts -- The Composition of the Histories of Gregory of Tours and Its Bearing on the Political Narrative / Alexander Callander Murray -- Chronology, Composition, and Authorial Conception in the Miracula / Richard Shaw -- The Works of Gregory of Tours: Manuscripts, Language, and Style / Pascale Bourgain -- The Merovingian State and Administration in the Times of Gregory of Tours / Alexander Callander Murray -- The Church in Sixth-Century Gaul / Yitzhak Hen -- Landscape and Material Culture of Gaul in the Times of Gregory of Tours According to Archaeology / Patrick Périn -- The Works of Gregory of Tours and Patristic Tradition / Martin Heinzelmann -- Gregory of Tours and the Literary Imagination: Genre, Narrative Style, Sources, and Models in the Histories / Joaquín Martínez Pizarro -- Gregory of Tours, Hagiography, and the Cult of the Saints in the Sixth Century / J.K. Kitchen -- Gallic Politics in the Sixth Century / Stefan Esders -- Gregory of Tours, Italy, and the Empire / S.T Loseby -- Gregory of Tours and Spain / Roger Collins -- The Early Medieval Editions of Gregory of Tours’ Histories / Helmut Reimitz -- Gregory’s Works in the High Medieval and Early Modern Periods / John J. Contreni -- Maps / Alexander Callander Murray -- Genealogies / Alexander Callander Murray -- References / Alexander Callander Murray -- Index / Alexander Callander Murray.

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Gregory, bishop of Tours (573-594), was among the most prolific writers of his age and uniquely managed to cover the genres of history, hagiography, and ecclesiastical instruction. He not only wrote about events (of the secular, spiritual, and even natural variety) but about himself as an actor and witness. Though his work (especially the Histories ) has been recycled and studied for centuries, our grasp of an even basic understanding of it, never mind Gregory’s significance in the history of the late antique West, has hardly yet attained a definitive perspective. A Companion to Gregory of Tours brings together fourteen scholars who provide an expert guide to interpreting his works, his period, and his legacy in religious and historical studies. Contributors are: Pascale Bourgain, Roger Collins, John J. Contreni, Stefan Esders, Martin Heinzelmann, Yitzhak Hen, John K. Kitchen, Simon Loseby, Alexander Callander Murray, Patrick Périn, Joachim Pizarro, Helmut Reimitz, Michael Roberts, Richard Shaw.