Charlemagne Unites Germanic Kingdoms Chapter 13, Unit 1

Middle Ages or Medieval Period  About C.E.  New society emerges  Rooted in  Classical heritage of Rome (Latin)‏  Beliefs of the Roman Catholic Church  Customs of various Germanic tribes

Invasions & Effects  In the 400's (5 th c.) Germanic invaders overran the western half of the Roman Empire  This caused a series of changes  Disruption of trade – businesses collapse, money becomes scarce  Downfall of cities – abandoned as administrative centers  Population shifts – noble retreat to rural areas – population becomes mostly rural

Learning Declines  Germanic invaders could not read or write but did have a rich oral tradition of songs and legends  Romans lost their schools and literacy declined  Priests and other church officials were literate

Loss of a common language  As they mix with the Germans, Latin changes  Different dialects and new words and phrases develop  These evolve into the “romance languages” – Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, and Romanian

Kingdoms replace Provinces  The former provinces of the Roman Empire become kingdoms – the borders change constantly with warfare  The Roman Catholic Church survives and provides order and security

Government changes  No longer is loyalty to the Empire and citizenship important  People value family ties and personal loyalty

Germanic government  Lived in small tribes governed by unwritten rules and traditions  Personal ties – not some emperor they never met  Had a chief & a band of warriors loyal to the chief  Warriors lived in the lord’s hall  Lord gave them food, weapons & treasure  Fought to the death for him – a disgrace to outlive him

Clovis  Franks in Gaul – united into the Frankish kingdom by 511 C.E.  Led by Clovis  He brought Christianity to the region  His wife, Clothilde, urged him to convert  In battle, he prayed to the Christian god and won - Clovis and 3,000 warriors were baptized by the bishop  Beginning of a partnership between the church and the ruler

German people adopt Christianity  Missionaries risked their lives to spread the faith  People who feared the Muslim attacks converted to Christianity  Rural religious communities – built by the Church  Men = monks lived in monasteries  Women = nuns lived in convents

Benedict & Scholastica  Brother and sister  Led a monastery and convent  Benedict writes rules for the monastery and Scholastica adopts them for the convent

Monasteries  Centers for learning  Venerable Bede – English monk – wrote a history of England  Monks made beautiful copies of religious writings – ornate letters, brightly colored pictures

Gregory I or Gregory the Great  Pope  Broadened the authority of the church beyond spiritual matters  Became involved in politics  Used church money to raise armies, repair roads, help the poor  Negotiated peace treaties with the Lombards  Claimed control from Italy to England, Spain to Germany  A churchly kingdom, ruled by the pope

Charles “The Hammer” Martel  Most powerful person in the Franks' kingdom after Clovis dies – a “major domo”  Officially in charge of the royal household & estates  Unofficially, he led armies and pretty much ruled the kingdom

Charles Martel  Extended the boundaries of the kingdom of the Franks  Defeated the Muslims at the Battle of Tours – a loss could have meant losing the western part of Europe  Became a Christian hero

Pepin the Short  Son of Charles Martel  Wanted to be king  Agreed to fight the Lombards who were threatening Rome  In exchange the pope anointed him “king by the grace of God”  Began the Carolingian Dynasty  Ruled from 751 to 987

Charlemagne becomes Emperor  One of two sons of Pepin the Short – his brother, Carolman, died in 771  Charles becomes Charles the Great or Charlemagne  Tall and imposing

Charlemagne’s Empire  Greater than any other since ancient Rome  United western Europe and spread Christianity  In 800, he traveled to Rome to crush a mob that attacked the pope  Pope Leo III crowned him emperor  Joining of Germanic power, the Church and the heritage of the Roman Empire

Revival  Limited authority of the nobles  Made sure the landowners (Counts) governed justly  Regularly visited every part of the kingdom  Watched the management of the large estates – the source of wealth and power  Surrounded himself with English, German, Italian and Spanish scholars  Ordered monasteries to open schools to train future monks and priests

Charlemagne’s heirs  Charlemagne died in 814  Crowned his son, Louis the Pious as emperor  Louis was a devoutly religious man but an ineffective ruler

Division of the Empire  Louis had three sons who fought for control of the kingdom  Lothair  Charles the Bald  Louis the German  Treaty of Verdun broke the empire into three parts  The Carolingian kings lost power and central authority broke down  Feudalism begins