Einhard's Charlemagne and Ibn Battuta's Mansa Sultaiman

Einhard, in his account of Charlemagne, and Ibn Battuta, in his account of Mansa Sulaiman, give witness to the way these two kings ruled their lands and provide an insight on how culture has an effect on people’s views of their leaders. Although each one lived in different cultures, each ruler embodied similar characteristics, such as the influence of religion on their realms. However, there are several distinct differences as well, and each narrative contains cultural bias that cannot be ignored. Overall, each account thoroughly analyzes each ruler and infuses their observations with the culture of the time, which is integral in order to gain an accurate depiction of who these men were.

First, each ruler embodied an aspect of his religion, which stemmed from their respective cultures. Einhard has many references to the way the Frankish king portrayed himself as a Christian ruler, for example, he affords the reader with a detailed account of Charlemagne’s worship habits. On pages 54 and 55, he writes, “He (Charlemagne) was a constant worshipper at this church. . . going morning and evening, even after nightfall…”. In addition to his personal participation in worship, he was also extremely charitable in his own country, and even beyond his own realm. Upon hearing of the impoverished Christians living in Syria, Egypt, and Africa, he immediately became sympathetic and attempted to send money to them. In accordance with the charity within his country, he once donated such a vast number of clerical robes that even those in the least important positions of the Church were obligated to wear them. He undertook maintenance and building projects for the Churches, such as the basilica at Aix-la-Chapelle. Charlemagne also had spec...

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...sions on them. Both authors compliment the effective governments. Ibn Battuta says that the domestic governance is very effective, and Einhard assets that the Franks are a rightly governed society.

Through their books, the authors demonstrate their cultural expectations for the rulers. Einhard believes that a ruler should set an example, and shows forced conversions of people in a positive light. Ibn Battuta’s cultural expectations are much more personal –he judges a culture based upon how well he is treated by the rulers. Since he is a scholar of Sharia Law, he thinks that he inherently deserves gifts from rulers. His knowledge of law also causes him to frown upon instances where Islam is not being strictly followed. Despite this slight since of bias, these books serve as rich records of an archaic period in history filled with magnificent kings and leaders.