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Medieval Europe

Medieval Europe. Germanic Tribes and Charlemagne. Why the Dark Ages?. After the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476, things are not so sunny in Europe No strong central government to manage: Roads Bridges Law Education Currency Economy. Germanic Societies. Germanic Influences.

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Medieval Europe

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  1. Medieval Europe Germanic Tribes and Charlemagne

  2. Why the Dark Ages? • After the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476, things are not so sunny in Europe • No strong central government to manage: • Roads • Bridges • Law • Education • Currency • Economy

  3. Germanic Societies

  4. Germanic Influences • Loss of literacy and common language as territory is divided up, societies become more rural • Shifting borders as kingdoms fight over territory • Loyalty to family or personal allies, rather than the state • No “greater good” as in Roman Republic

  5. Loss of Greek and Roman scholarship (The development of various languages mirrored the continued breakup of a once unified empire) Divisions and differences in culture reflect the crumbling of Rome Germanic Influences

  6. The Merovingians • The Merovingians were the first dynasty of Frankish kings • Located in Gaul • Clovis (466-511) becomes king at 15 • Brutal, warlike • Converts to Christianity-uses Roman Church to his advantage • support him in war “I take it very hard that these Arians hold part of Gaul. Let us go with God’s help and conquer them and bring the land under our control”

  7. Baptism of Clovis by Saint Remy in 496 (artist unknown, 1500) • Clothilde (Clovis’ wife) praying to St. Martin of Tours

  8. Merovingians • Clovis’ four sons divide the territory he united • Rulers that follow Clovis are ineffective “Do Nothing” kings • Power is held by the major domo-mayor of the palace • Pepin of Herstal (Pepin the II) - gained territory throughout modern France

  9. Merovingians • Pepin’s illegitimate son, Charles Marteltakes power in 719 • Defeats Muslims at Battle of Tours, stops expansion into Europe • Charles’ victories earn church support • Charles’ son, Pepin the Short succeeds him • Shaves the head of the actual king, forces him into a monastery, where he dies within a year. How convenient…

  10. Carolingians • Pepin is crowned king with the pope’s blessing, first Carolingian king(from the Latin for Charles, Carolus) • “Donation of Pepin”-land given by Pepin to the pope, becomes papal state Coronation of Pepin by Boniface

  11. Carolingians • Pepin divided his kingdom between his sons, Carloman and Charles • Charles becomes known as “Charles the Great,” “Charlemagne” in French • Over 60 successful military campaigns secure his legacy

  12. “He was large and strong, and of lofty stature, though not disproportionately tall (seven-feet tall). His head was round and well-formed, his eyes very large and vivacious, his nose a little long, his hair white, and his face jovial. His appearance was always stately and very dignified, whether he was standing or sitting…His gait was firm, his whole carriage manly, and his voice clear.” Einhard, Life of Charlemagne, (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1880. “Then, one could see the Charlemagne of iron, with his head covered by a iron helmet, his arms bearing iron protectors; in his left hand he carried an iron lance, and in the right his always victorious steel sword. His muscles were covered with iron plates, and his shield made of pure iron. "When he appeared, the inhabitants of Pavia cried out with fear: O, the Iron Man! O, the Iron Man!” Historia Universal, Spanish Edition, vol. IV, pg. 790. Charlemagne

  13. Charlemagne • Physically: tall, athletic, strong horseman • Socially: gregarious, honest, calm • Religiously: devout, reformed the Church

  14. Charlemagne • Intellectually: illiterate, could speak Frankish, Latin, and Greek • Hobbies: War! • Father of the “Carolingian Renaissance”

  15. Charlemagne • Crowned “Roman” emperor in 800 on Christmas day by Pope Leo III • First time a pope had crowned a king • Establishes the Church’s power over EVERYTHING

  16. Charlemagne • Charlemagne had 3 main goals for his new “Roman Empire” • Uniformity: standardization of writing, language (Latin!), currency, measurements • Education: schools, imported scholars, free public education, based around Church • Diplomacy: contact with the pope, emperor in Constantinople, caliph in Baghdad • Accomplished through complex bureaucracy, “missi dominici”-messengers of the lord”

  17. Left: Charlemagne’s palace chapel • Right: Charlemagne’s palace complex at Aachen

  18. Charlemagne • Charlemagne appoints his son, Louis, emperor in 813 • Louis is ineffective as a ruler, territory is divided between his 3 sons : Lothair, Charles the Bald, and Louis the German

  19. Treaty of Verdun • Charlemagne’s grandsons divide the empire officially in 843 • Lack of central authority, empire grows weak • Vulnerable to attack by Vikings Magyars, Slavs • Need for protection from invaders in an agrarian society leads to FEUDALISM!

  20. Gregarious: (adj.) fond of the company of others; sociable.

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