Charlemagne

• Charlemagne was born


  748
• Charlemagne became king of the Franks

  768
• Charlemagne died


  814
• Charlemagne was a major character in European history
• Charlemagne's contribution was to succeed to unite the majority of western and central Europe
• Charlemagne was a warrior king, only a year in his reign without a war
• Charlemagne was the first recognized emperor to rule Western Europe after the fall of the Western Roman Empire, 3 centuries earlier
• Charlemagne's reign is well known, thanks to a document written in several languages
• Among the most renowned texts about Charlemagne is the biography by his friend and courtier Einhard
• Merovingians


  Frankish kingdom that became the most powerful of the kingdoms that succeeded the Western Roman Empire
• Mayors of the palace

  Gained substantial power, almost as powerful as the king himself
• Charlemagne's grandfather was Charles Martel, who transmitted the title of mayor of the palace to his son Pepin the Short, the father of Charlemagne</b>
• Pepin deposed the last Merovingian king, Childeric, and replaced him as king of the Franks with the support of the Pope in 751
• The Pope came to visit Pepin and anointed him as well as his sons


  754
• When Pepin died in 768, Charles and his brother Carloman succeeded him, but Carloman quickly died leaving Charles the only king
• War with Saxony begins, relying on religious purposes


  772
• Charlemagne felt he had to win the war with the Saxons, as a loss would be an issue for Christianity
• In 782, Charlemagne killed more than 5,000 Saxon prisoners who did not want to be baptised
• Italy was cut into 3: Eastern, Lombardian and papal states, making it easier for Charlemagne to conquer
• Charlemagne wanted to settle the Iberian peninsula, but it was a difficult context with the Muslims
• Charlemagne also wanted to conquer Central Europe
• Pope Leo III had to flee from Rome due to harsh relations with Roman nobilities


  799
• During Christmas day's mass, Leo acclaimed Charlemagne as emperor and crowned him


  December 25, 800
• Charlemagne became the first reigning emperor since Romulus Augustus in 476
• Leo's main motivations may have been the desire to increase his own standing after his political difficulties, showing himself as a kingmaker and securing Charlemagne as his protector
• The existence of the Byzantine empire was of no problem, as the emperor of the time was an empress
• The imperial coronation of Charlemagne led to a centuries-long ideological conflict between his successors and Constantinople
• Charlemagne's administrative documents were signed with a long phrase with all of his titles, including 'emperor'
• Charlemagne avoided the specific claim of being a Roman emperor to improve the relationship with the Byzantine empire
• After leaving Italy in 801, Charlemagne settled in Aachen (Aix-La-Chapelle), where he expanded and transformed his father's residence into a palace which became the focus of his court and the political centre of his empire
• Charlemagne also built a sumptuous palatine chapel in Aachen, where his remains are considered to still rest today
• The relative peace of the imperial period saw an increased focus on internal governance through the issuing of laws and capitularies
• In 802, Charlemagne reformed the institution of the Missi Dominici (envoys of the law) who were sent and commissioned by him to supervise the local administration
• Charlemagne ruled the empire through his sons as sub-kings
• Charlemagne got his imperial title recognized by the Byzantine emperor Michael


  813
• Charlemagne popularised a new currency system, with the livre carolingienne, divided into sous and divided into 240 deniers
• England adopted Charlemagne's currency system quickly because it was easier and a simple currency to use
• The Carolingian family suffered multiple losses


  810
• In the wake of his sons' deaths, Charlemagne declared his only surviving son Louis as heir to the rest of the empire and eventually crowned him as his co-emperor in late 813
• Charlemagne died and was buried in his palatine chapel in Aachen


  January 814