The Birth

1. The Birth Of France and Germany And The Formation Of the European Continent

2. France and Germany • The collapse of the Carolingian Empire left a political vacuum in Europe. • It resulted in the emergence of the Capetians and the Ottonians as the new ruling dynasties. • After the Carolingian dynasty died out in the male line in East Francia in 911, Conrad I, the first of a series of territorial dukes, was elected king.

3. France and Germany • Conrad was followed a vigorous line of ambitious Saxon rulers; the most successful Saxon was Otto I; • Claimed the Lombard Kingdom in Italy; • Defeated an Hungarian (Magyar) army in 955AD; • Had himself crowned Holy Roman Emperor in Rome in 962AD.

4. France and Germany • In contrast in West Francia the last of the Carolingian rulers was succeeded by Hugh Capet, or the Capetian dynasty. • Ruled in mostly the River Seine valley and Paris. • Though powerful in their local regions, mostly overshadowed by other stronger territorial Lords and Barons. Essentially shared power with other castellans or castle dwellers.

5. France and Germany • East Francia would be different, Otto I managed to avoid sharing power. • And, for a time became the strongest Christian Dynasty on the European continent; • The Ottonians became the corner stone of the Holy Roman Empire; They hijacked the emperor title for themselves and their heirs.

6. France and Germany • Each section developed different identities; • Different political and social structures; • Different nationalist identities; • They became uniquely German and French

7. France and Germany • As the Carolingian Empire eroded into memory; Various local aristocrats began to seize local power forming small familial dynasties; • This dissolution of Carolingian power is known as Devolution. Power in the hands of the Counts not Carolingian Rulers; everyday power now held at lower level; • West Francia (France) would always be weaker for the most part than East Francia (Germany)

8. France and Germany • 64$ question is how and why did each geographical region develop the way it did? • It begins with the Treaty of Verdun—Francia is divided equally—three in the beginning, but quickly became just two regions—east and west. • 9th century Carolingians lost control and loyalty of the west to the Counts, especially the Capetians at first.

9. France and Germany • Counts essentially seized power; • Recall Charlemagne gave each Count a county to administer, as did Louis the Pious; • However, the sons wishing to attract alliances gave Counts several counties to administer for their loyalty; • This backfired on them

10. France and Germany • The Counts exacted a hereditary order to the office or title of Count; • Charlemagne and Louis had always appointed the counts—so they could fire them; • Now the Count title would be passed on to male heirs; no longer accountable to Carolingian rulers

11. France and Germany • These Counts would take Gavelkind to the next level; • They assumed all royal lands, property, estates for themselves; Passed along in primogeniture and entail; • Stopped paying tribute, fines and taxes to the Carolingian rulers; • Assumed control of the ecclesiastical appointments; created their own law courts—used to be kingly powers were now held in the hands of the Counts at the local level; Devolution of power.

12. France and Germany • First true creation of the landed gentry and Aristocracy; would from then always be a thorn in any Monarch’s side; • how does one gain respect of the peasantry—one must first now gain respect of the Aristocracy; • Louis XVI-be his undoing

13. France and Germany • By 900AD, there were over 30 independent principalities in West Francia; mostly squabbling; • No longer answered or acknowledged Carolingian rule; • Carolingian Rulers were not welcomed in their area of influence.

14. France and Germany • East Francia developed very differently; • Dukes became administers of Duchies; Duchies were an area consuming several counties; • Dukes over saw several Duchies; this limited the amount of devolution of power; • They too, appointed Bishops and Abbotts; • Essentially east Francia did not fragment as much as West Francia, where West had over 30 political units, the East had five or six; easier to manage and colelctively secure.

15. France and Germany • Devolution stopped with the Dukes in the east; • A family dynasty emerged; Otto I (10th century); • Germans have always accepted regimentation and authoritarianism more easily than other Europeans

16. France and Germany • Political structure and devolution did encourage differences and fragmentation; • Need more explanation; The Viking Raids were more severe in the West; Rivers in the west were more navigable and entered big trade centers; • West Francia bordered Al-Andalus (Spain); not easy rivals; mostly warred against one another

17. France and Germany • East Francia, less navigable rivers, less Viking interference; • Frontier with illiterate Pagan Slavs; the slavs were fragmented into many villages and principalities; they were difficult to conquer but easy to raid; • So inward bellicosity could always be turned outward, away from internal Civil War

18. France and Germany • Unexpected; Castellans; • As the Counts ousted the Carolingians, the castellans erected castles and essentially ousted the Counts, at least as the dominant power; • Castellan—someone who possessed a castle or several castles.

19. Castellans • Castellans and their Knights were considered the lowest rank of European Aristocracy; however, wielded great military power. • Charlemagne, if he found a castle, he destroyed it and punished one for erecting it; a castle was viewed as a direct challenge to the Carolingian rule; • To own a castle was akin to owning a tank; powerful and dangerous. Counts saw these as a challenge to their rule—what goes around …

20. Castellans • As did the Counts, the Castellans seized property, monasteries, land and the local courts and placed them under their jurisdiction or armed influence; • For instance, if your Manure Cart was speeding through castellan lands, one did not go to the Count’s courts for fines, it was done under the authority of the castellan and enforced by hid Knights; • How did, Castellans secure this power? I’m glad you asked.

21. Castellans and Knights • He established a Seigneurial Dues; • List of taxes and fines to be paid by all in his jurisdictional area—usually 15-20 mile radius of the castle; • Still enforcement was an issue; he hired armed Thugs (or muscle) to strong arm and enforce this so-called protection and police force. • Knights were more closely resembled to Tony Soprano than Sir Lancelot.

22. Castellans and Knights • Knights did not work for free; • They were given a parcel of land to support themselves; a Fief or Feudum; • This became known as the “Feudal Revolution” so many castellans hired so many Knights for enforcement, large increases in feudal Fiefdoms; • Also created internal jealousy and strife.

23. France and Germany • West Francia would be a political mess for many years; • Eventually the Capetians would after a long tenure of mediocre power establish a claim to the French thrown—for a while the counts and castellans agreed the king as a superior title, but they disregarded any king as worth their time. • Hughs Capet eventually established a line that would rule France for hundreds of years—his reign began in Paris—but would take many years before gaining monarchical power.

24. France and Germany • East Francia developed somewhat differently; • German aristocracy elected one of its own named Conrad—he was ambitious, but spent too much time fighting other German Aristocrats; he ignored a big problem, the eastern frontier and the Magyar invasion; • Henry I confronted the Magyar issue and became the true first Ottonian King; he negotiated a truce with the Magyars; paid a tribute for peace …

25. France and Germany • Just buying time, and in933AD at battle of Riade he defeated the Magyars(related to the Huns); • Crushed them in 955AD Battle of Lechfeld; • Ottonians a legitimate ruling dynasty and very much Christian

26. France and Germany • Otto very ambitious; sought Pope to coronate him as Holy Roman Emperor; birth of the Holy Roman Empire; he defeated the Lombard's in northern Italy and negotiated a deal with the Pope; • To assure his eminence over the Pope, Otto issued a charter, the Ottonianum—gave Monarchical ower over the Pope—for a Pope to be elected, he first would have to notify the King of Germany and await the Kings approval before undergoing consecration—in fact before a Pope could be elected, one must be approved by Otto.

27. France and Germany • Jealous Italian families, however, murdered many German appointed Popes; • East Francia became the new Kingdom of Germany (1st Reich); • No longer the regnum Francorum now the regnum Teutonicum.

28. Conclusion • East Francia or now the Kingdom of Germany had succeeded in consolidating power and established a Holy Roman Empire that looked to be successful for centuries to come; • West Francia, fragmented and squabbling, looked to be weak and negligible at best; • But West Francia, or the Kingdom of France would become the most powerful Kingdom on the European continent—who would’a thunk!!