Charlemagne: Charles The Great

Charlemagne, also commonly referred to also as “Charles the Great,” was a medieval emperor who ruled much of Western Europe from A.D. 768 to 814. His goal was to become powerful enough so that he could bring together all germanic people into one kingdom and convert them into Christianity. In 771, he became King of the Franks (a germanic tribe) after his father who was the past ruler had passed away. At first his brother Carloman (751-771) also got a share of the kingdom after their father died, but Charlamagne ultimately took over after his brother too died. Charlemagne was determined to accomplish his goals of becoming a powerful ruler, so he spent most of his time in the battlefield. This paid off in the end because in 800, Pope Leo III

He took over the Lombards who were located in present day of Northern Italy. He also took over the Avars (in modern-day Austria and Hungary) and Bavaria, along with other smaller bodies of villages and communities. Charlemagne soon became known for being ruthless and somewhat evil after waging war against the Saxons for three decades. The Saxons were known to be a Germanic tribe of Pagan worshipers who believed in many Gods (Ancient History Encyclopedia). In 782 at the Massacre of Verden, Charlemagne granted an ultimatum towards the Saxons. He decided that anyone who didn’t agree to become baptized into Christianity and follow by the traditions and customs of the religion would be put to death. Charlemagne had then ordered the murder of 4,500

This is when he started experiencing different illnesses along with frequent fevers. During the final four years of his life, he also started limping around and cursed his doctors because they wanted him to eat boiled instead of roasted meat. Obviously the boiled meat would be a healthier option but he wasn’t going to conform to what the doctors wanted. However, with Charlemagne deteriorating day by day he decided to crown his don Louis the Pious, king of Aquitaine, as co-emperor in the year of 813. Louis became main emperor when Charlemagne died in January 814, which had ended his reign of more than four decades. At the time of his death, his empire encompassed much of Western Europe. Charlemagne was buried at the cathedral in Aachen. In the decades after his death, his empire was divided up among his children, and by the late 800s, it had all ended. Even though his ruling kingdom was over and gone, he was still an influential figure in history. In 1165, under Emperor Frederick Barbarossa (1122-1190), Charlemagne was canonized which is the process in which someone is named a Saint in the Catholic Church, (Merriam-Webster). But today the church doesn’t recognize his