Charlemagne

 

Charlemagne's date of birth is not completely clear but it is generally accepted to be around 747. Likewise, there is some doubt over his place of birth. However, the remains in his tomb at Aachen are believed in fact to be those of the man himself and historians have suggested this could also have been where he was born too. Charlemagne's rise to be one of the most significant figures in early medieval European history is not a complete surprise considering his family pedigree. He was the grandson of Charles Martel or Charles the Hammer. Martel himself was an extraordinary man. Islam was very much on the march in Europe during the 8th century conquering virtually all of Spain and was now on the doorstep of the Franks. It was only thanks to Martel's brutal victory at the Battle of Tours in 732 that halted the march of the Muslims and saved the Christian west from further assaults. Charles Martel was an uncompromising type and he put an end to any tyrannic rule in Frankish territory. 

Charlemagne's father died in 768 and he and his brother Carloman divided the succession between them. Carloman didn't last long however and he died just two years later and Charlemagne was elevated to king of the Franks around 770. His first duty was to put a swift end to troublesome areas in his kingdom. There was an uprising in Aquitaine which was put down quickly with a combination of diplomacy and a threat of force. Then, after a difficult progress into Italy via the Alps, he put down further trouble in the Lombard region using siege warfare and bringing Italy into line. His biggest problem in the early years of his reign as king was putting an end the Frankish war with the Saxons which had dragged on for decades. 

The Saxons had been defeated on countless occasions and brought to terms but any time they were, they would almost instantly go back on their word and cause further trouble for the Frankish kings and their people. Charlemagne's dealings with the Saxons in Germany continued until the early 9th century when he put an end to the war by splitting up the Saxon tribes and resettled in different regions across his kingdom. Charlemagne led various other campaigns where he put down uprisings as swiftly as they had arisen. It's worth mentioning here that although Charlemagne was a fantastic military leader, it would be easy to assume that family was completely secondary to him but that was not the case. As a father, he was very close to his children and took them with him on his campaigns. Charlemagne avoided marrying off his daughters despite it being custom at the time to do so. Whether this was because of his love for his children or for other reasons, it can only be speculated. 

His success militarily continued, defeating the Huns in a campaign led largely by his son Pepin which proved to be a shrewd decision by the king as the Franks suffered very little damage in the war. Charlemagne influence was widespread. He had diplomatic relations with King Offa (757-796) of the Mercians. Relations appeared to be good although Offa seems to have overstepped the mark with the Frankish king when he proposed a marriage between his son and Charlemagne's daughter. This obviously irritated Charlemagne who broke off ties in 790 although things were patched up enough for them to conclude a treaty in 795. 

In what would have been one of the most extraordinary events in medieval history was when marriage was proposed to Charlemagne himself. The offer came from the Byzantine Empress Irene. Irene was a self serving and brutal woman, blinding her own son Constantine VI, which eventually killed him, and seized power for herself. Marrying Charlemagne would have not only increased her prestige but also secured her position which would have been extremely vulnerable as not only a murdering usurper but as a woman as well. Ultimately the match didn't happen and Irene lost power in 802. Relations with the Byzantine empire didn't end with Irene and the following emperors also sought an alliance with the now Holy Roman Emperor, a title that the Eastern Roman Empire didn't particular approve of. 

Which brings us onto the story of his being crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Leo III. Being Pope around the 8th, 9th and 10th centuries could be a particularly unpleasant experience. Stories of popes being usurped, murdered or having rival popes installed against them (anti popes) were rife and Leo's story is no less brutal, having nearly been blinded and his tongue almost torn out in a vicious attack on him by the citizens of Rome. Charlemagne went to his aid where Leo offered to crown him Emperor. Charlemagne put on a show of being reluctant to accept but the ceremony went ahead and the institution of Holy Roman Empire had been born and would last a millennium. As i mentioned, the news of this did not go down particularly well in Constantinople and the Byzantine empire. The Byzantines saw themselves as the true continuation of the fallen Western Roman Empire, which had ended in the 5th century, and the elevation of Charles was seen as a threat to their position. However, the fact that alliances continued to be sort in the east with Charlemagne shows how high his standing was as a brilliant military leader, king and now Emperor. By the time of his accession, Charlemagne would have been in his 50s. For his time, he had already reached a good age. 

Time now to think about the future and in 813, he had his son Louis the Pious crowned co emperor alongside him. The crowning of co rulers had been particularly common in the Eastern Roman Empire and would continue through European medieval history. When he died a year later, Charlemagne had his affairs in order and his legacy totally secure as one of the brilliant kings in all history.