Charlemagne, or Charles the Great, King of the Franks

Charlemagne, or Charles the Great, King of the Franks

Charlemagne, or Charles the Great, King of the Franks (742-814), was a strong

leader who unified Western Europe through military power and the blessing of the

Church. His belief in the need for education among the Frankish people was to

bring about religious, political, and educational reforms that would change the

history of Europe.

Charlemagne was born in 742 at Aachen, the son of Pepin(or Pippin) the Short and

grandson of Charles Martel. His grandfather, Charles, had begun the process of

unifying western Europe, in the belief that all people should be Christian.

Charlemagne's father, Pepin, continued this process throughout his rule and

passed his beliefs on to Charlemagne. All three, in addition to the political

unification, believed that the church should be reformed and reorganized under

the Pope, which helped their rise to power as the Carolingian Dynasty. (Holmes

74)

Upon Pepin's death in 768, Charlemagne and his brother, Carloman, each inherited

half of the Frankish kingdom. Pepin, in the Merovingian tradition of the time,

split his kingdom between his two sons. Three years later Carloman died and

Charlemagne took control of the entire kingdom. He inherited great wealth and a

powerful army, built by his father and grandfather. Charlemagne used the army

and his own skillful planning to more than double the size of the Frankish

Kingdom. (Halsall 15)

The world of Charlemagne was a heathen one, with many warring tribes or kingdoms.

Many of these tribes were conquered by Charlemagne, among them the Aquitanians,

the Lombards, the Saxons, the Bretons, the Bavarians, the Huns, and the Danes.

The longest of these battles was against the Saxons, lasting thirty-three years.

Charlemagne actually defeated them many times, but due to their faithlessness

and their propensity to return to their pagan lifestyle, the Saxons lost many

lives in the prolonged battles with the Franks. With each conquest the Frankish

kingdom grew, and with growth came additional power and responsibility for

Charlemagne. In each area of Europe that was taken over by Charlemagne, he

removed the leaders if they would not convert to Christianity and appointed new

ones, usually someone with high position in the Church. Those people who

refused to convert or be baptized in the church were put to death. (Holmes 75)

The Church played a vital role in the kingdom of Charlemagne. It gave a sense

of stability to Charlemagne's rule, and he in turn provided stability in the

Church. The people conquered by Charlemagne, after being converted to

Christianity, were taught through the Bible a unified code of right and wrong.

It was necessary for the Church to play a role in this education of the people,