Charlemagne was born April 2, 741 in Northern Europe to Pippin III and Bertrada of Laon. In 768 his father died and divided his empire between Charlemagne and his brother Carloman. The two brothers did not get along and separately ruled other halfs of the empire while communicating through their mother. Then in 771 Carloman died. The cause of his death is unknown, but some suspect Charlemagne had something to do with it. During this time in Europe religion and education were being neglected by the population, but Charlemagne decided to fix this by building many new schools and enforcing Christianity to his people. From 772 to 802 he held a military campaign to bring order to a Chaotic Europe. He never lost a battle and conquered modern day France, Switzerland, Belgium, and the Netherlands, as well as parts of Germany, Austria, and Spain. These victories were bloody, for Charlemagne ordered the execution of thousands of people who did not accept Christianity or that he was their new leader. On Christmas day in 800 Pope Leo III crowned Charlemagne King of the Empire. Some suspect that the king had no idea he was being crowned, while others think they would have never done this if Charlemagne did not know of it. King Charlemagne, unlike many other rulers during this time, took time out to learn to read and write. Over time be was able to read both Latin and Greek. Rather than watch jesters preform during meals, he had scholars give lectures over different academic areas.Overall, Charlemagne was a very powerful ruler that united a torn empire.Works Cited
- Chew, Robin. "Charlemagne | King of the Franks | Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire." Lucidcafé Interactive Café and Information Resource. Web. 15 May 2011. <http://www.lucidcafe.com/library/96apr/charlemagne.html>.
- The Dark Ages - Part 8 - The Greatest King. www.youtube.com, 6 June 2009. Web. 15 May 2011. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XGkUNK8kmDw&feature=youtu.be>.#
- Web. <http://laboringinthelord.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/charlemagne.jpg>.
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