First Council of Orléans

The First Council of Orléans was convoked by Clovis I, King of the Franks, in 511. Clovis called for this synod four years after his victory over the Visigoths under Alaric II at the Battle of Vouillé in 507. The council was attended by thirty-two bishops, including four metropolitans, from across Gaul, and together they passed thirty-one decrees. The bishops met at Orléans to reform the church and construct a strong relationship between the crown and the Catholic episcopate, the majority of the canons reflecting compromise between these two institutions.

The 511 Council of Orléans was the first national Merovingian church council. It was an important milestone in creating a unified Gallic Church under Frankish rule, and accordingly the matters addressed at the council reflected the concerns of the Catholic episcopate in this new political context. The council established a Merovingian conciliar tradition, being the first of ‘no less than forty-five provincial and national Church councils’ in the sixth century.

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