Charlemagne Becomes Emperor Introduction Pepin the Short a
Charlemagne Becomes Emperor
Introduction • Pepin the Short, a Frankish King, dies in 768 • He left his kingdom to his 2 sons • The oldest dies, leaving Charles the Great, AKA Charlemagne, the new king
Charlemagne Extends His Empire • He built an empire that challenged that of Rome • He conquered new lands, spreading Christianity • He reunited western Europe and by 800 AD, he had an empire larger that the Byzantine • He was without a doubt, the most powerful king in Western Europe
Charlemagne and the Pope • In 800, he traveled to Rome to defend a mob that was attacking the pope • Pope Leo III thanked him by crowning him “Emperor” • This was a historic event because the pope was expressing his authority to crown a western European a “Roman Emperor” • This event joined 3 forces: – Germanic Power – The Catholic Church – The Roman Empire
Charlemagne Leads a Revival • He strengthened his power by weakening that of the nobles • To do this, he hired royal agents to ensure that landowners were governing justly • He kept a close watch on large estates • Regularly visited every part of his kingdom • He encouraged learning and opened schools
Charlemagne’s Death • A year before his death, he crowned his son Emperor • His son proved to be a weak leader, and left his kingdom to his 3 sons who fought for control of it • In 843, they signed the Treaty of Verdun which divided the Kingdom into 3 parts • As a result, Kings lost power, and central authority ended • The lack of strong rulers led to a new system of governing and landowning called: Feudalism
- Slides: 10