ombards, and Saracens, were exposed to every
invader, and every sea and land were invaded by the adventurous spirit
of the Scandinavian pirates. After a long indulgence of rapine and
slaughter, a fair and ample territory was accepted, occupied, and named,
by the Normans of France: they renounced their gods for the God of the
Christians; [16] and the dukes of Normandy acknowledged themselves
the vassals of the successors of Charlemagne and Capet. The savage
fierceness which they had brought from the snowy mountains of Norway was
refined, without being corrupted, in a warmer climate; the companions
of Rollo insensibly mingled with the natives; they imbibed the manners,
language, [17] and gallantry, of the French nation; and in a
martial age, the Normans might claim the palm of valor and glorious
achievements. Of the fashionable superstitions, they embraced with ardor
the pilgrimages of Rome, Italy, and the Holy Land. [171] In this active
devotion, the minds and bodies were invigorated by exercise: danger was
the incentive, novelty the recompense; and the prospect of the world was
decorated by wonder, credulity, and ambitious hope. They confederated
for their mutual defence; and the robbers of the Alps, who had been
allured by the garb of a pilgrim, were often chastised by the arm of a
warrior. In one of these pious visits to the cavern of Mount Garganus
in Apulia, which had been sanctified by the apparition of the archangel
Michael, [18] they were accosted by a stranger in the Greek habit, but
who soon revealed himself as a rebel, a fugitive, and a mortal foe of
the Greek empire. His name was Melo; a noble citizen of Bari, who, after
an unsuccessful revolt, was compelled to seek new allies and avengers
of his country. The bold appearance of the Normans revived his hopes
and solicited his confidence: they listened to the complaints, and
still more to the promises, of the patriot. The assurance of wealth
demonstrated the justice of his cause; and they viewed, as the
inheritance of the brave, the fruitful land which was oppressed by
effeminate tyrants. On their return to Normandy, they kindled a spark of
enterprise, and a small but intrepid band was freely associated for the
deliverance of Apulia. They passed the Alps by separate roads, and in
the disguise of pilgrims; but in the neighborhood of Rome they were
saluted by the chief of Bari, who supplied the more indigent with arms
and horses, and instantly led them to the field