The Frankish state of the Carolingians. Flowering
The real heyday of the Frankish kingdom reached in the era of the reign of Charlemagne, the son of Pepin the Short. It is by the name of Carla that the royal dynasty, founded by Pepin the Short, is called the Carolingian dynasty.
The nickname “Great” Karl received for his activities, in the interests of the Christian church, and also because of the rather high growth. Throughout the entire Middle Ages, Charlemagne remained the ideal of a ruler, a semi-legendary personality. His deeds were sung in folklore, epic works, knightly literature, etc.
IX century. From the work of the monk Einhard “The Life of Charlemagne”
Karl was broad-shouldered, strong, growing to the best of measure; It is known that his height was seven times the length of his feet. He had a round head, his eyes very large and alive, his nose a little more than average, beautiful hair, a cheerful, attractive face. All this gave him respect and respect…
His health
He was very eloquent and could very clearly express everything he wanted.
Charlemagne was an indefatigable statesman. He actively fought and managed to expand the borders of the Frankish state. During his reign, the Franks carried out 53 campaigns, 27 of which were headed by the monarch. The first successful military operation of Charlemagne was the subordination of the Lombards. In the years 773-774. he fought against the Lombard king Desideria, defeated and forced him to be tonsured into monks. The Lombard Kingdom ceased to exist. His small part was transferred to the Pope, and the rest of the land is annexed to the Frankish Kingdom.
In 778, Charles began military operations against the Arabs in Spain. However, the first campaign
Human memory preserved one episode of the unsuccessful campaign of Charles the Great to Spain in 778. On the return journey through the Pyrenees in the Ronseval Gorge, the rear guard of the Frankish army was attacked by a detachment of local residents – the Basques. The Franks were defeated, among others the Count of Brittany Hrootland was also killed. Three centuries later, in the French heroic epic The Song of Roland, this almost unknown nobleman was sung as the ideal knight, the nephew of King Charles, named Roland. A minor skirmish was presented as a great battle between Christians and Muslims, and an unsuccessful campaign as the conquest of all of Spain.
The hardest thing was Carl’s conquest of the Saxons. The wars with them lasted from 772-804. In those days Saxony was inhabited by pagan tribes. The purpose of Charles was their Christianization. Already after the first campaigns, the Franks occupied almost all of Saxony. The frightened Saxons promised to receive baptism, but instead they unexpectedly rebelled, and fought with unprecedented cruelty. Saxons mercilessly killed both the Franks and the Christian priests. Carl answered the same.
The legend tells how one day Karl, having captured a fortified settlement of the Saxons, thrust his sword in the middle of the square and ordered all men to turn to him in turn. Those who were above the sword were killed on the spot.
Obviously, this is about 782, when Karl destroyed about 4.5 thousand Saxon hostages. Then the leaders of the Saxons obeyed and received baptism, but the struggle lasted almost 20 years.
In 788, Charles annexed his possessions to Bavaria, having liquidated the ducal power there.
The conquest of new territories significantly expanded the borders of the Frankish Kingdom. Now it occupied a significant part of the former Western Roman Empire. In the autumn of 800, Charles went to Rome to help Pope Leo III in his struggle with the local nobility. During the solemn Christmas Mass on December 25, 800, Lev III crowned Charles with the imperial crown. Charlemagne became the first emperor of medieval Europe. The revival of the empire in the West aroused the indignation of Byzantium. And only in 812, Byzantium recognized the imperial title of Charlemagne, for which he gave the Byzantine emperor Venice and Dalmatia.
Carl understood that such a huge empire is hard enough to manage alone, and therefore divided it into counties. Along the borders of his state, Charles created fortified border areas – “stamps”. He did not have a permanent residence. But everywhere in the state, Charles had estates, where he stopped for a short while, and then moved on with his retinue. Most of all Karl loved Aachen.
Twice a year the emperor gathered representatives of the highest nobility, consulted about affairs and coordinated his decrees and special resolutions – the capitulators. In his state, Karl also actively promoted the development of culture.
The capitulations are the laws and orders of Frankish kings, especially the Carolingian dynasty.
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