2The Collegia and theBarbarian InvasionsWhat happened to the collegia, particularly the organiza-
tion of builders, when the Western Empire collapsed under repeated
waves of invasion? The fate of Roman institutions varied by region.
Obviously, they survived in those countries that were not occupied by
conquering forces, which is how, in those parts of Italy that remained
"Roman" (those transferred to the protection of the Eastern Empire
and Byzantium—notably Ravenna, Rome, and Venice) the collegia con-
tinued to develop in the form of scholoe or scuole (schools). In the
region of Gaul, Roman influence continued to be strongly felt in the
kingdoms of the Visigoths and the Burgundians. They managed to sur-
vive to a much lesser extent in the kingdom of the Franks. In Great
Britain, it does not appear that Roman institutions survived the inva-
sions of the Picts, the Angles, and the Saxons. We will now look more
closely at the situation in each of these areas.
The Fate of the Collegia in the Frankish KingdomWe know that the Franks first penetrated Gaul as foederati (Frankish
mercenaries) in service to Rome and that they contributed to the pro-