Although Charlemagne was known as a loving father-he had his son Pepin crowned king of Italy in 781-and a man interested in the welfare of his people, he also possessed the requisite brutality of a medieval ruler. Building an EmpireĬharlemagne’s extensive training in war came in handy during the early part of his reign, which he spent fighting the Germanic tribe of the Saxons in the northern part of the kingdom and the Lombards in northern Italy. At first, he shared those shoes with Carloman, but the younger brother died after three years, and Charlemagne was left as the sole ruler of the Franks. This prince stepped into his father’s shoes at the age of 26 when Pepin died. He was known for his piercing blue eyes and his devout Christian piety. Charlemagne Becomes Sole KingĬharlemagne was a giant among the men of his time at 6 feet 4 inches. Dividing the kingdom in this way followed Merovingian precedent. He was nine when Pepin III took the throne, and Charlemagne and his brother Carloman were raised together as joint successors of the Frankish kingdom. As a ruler in training, he did, however, learn to hunt and ride and fight in battle, all relevant attainments for a future Frankish king. Charlemagne was his son.Īs a boy, Charlemagne-who would become renowned for overseeing an intellectual enlightenment under his rule-was illiterate, and he may never have become completely literate, even as an adult. He gave Pepin the go-ahead, and Pepin III promptly took the throne and shifted the dynastic ruling house from the Merovingian line to the Carolingian line in 751. The pope was interested in the more material assistance Pepin could offer in the form of a defense of Italy against the Lombards. Martel’s son, Pepin III, obtained the pope’s blessing to remove a Merovingian king from power. The Merovingians had allowed dilution of their power, placing it in the hands of palace officials called majordomos, and Charlemagne’s grandfather, Charles Martel (known as “The Hammer”), was one of these “mayors of the palace.” (Franks were one of many tribes that invaded what were former Roman territories and eventually conquered what today lies roughly in the boundaries of France.) He was born in 742 under the rule of the Merovingians, a line established by Clovis three hundred years earlier. Background and Early LifeĬharlemagne was a scion of one of the leading families of a nation called the Franks. He also oversaw what became the Carolingian Renaissance, a flowering of literacy, art, and scholarship in the name of Christian education and the fostering of learning through his empire. In addition to this expanded kingdom, he established a historic alliance between king and pope that became the pattern for European leadership for centuries to come. Viking Raids and Norman Conquests (8th to 11th Centuries) Major Figures CharlemagneĪmong the most famous and successful of the Frankish kings, Charlemagne (742–814) took what the previous line in power had accomplished and expanded it to cover the entirety of western Europe.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |