The Carolingian Empire

At the end of the eighth century, most of the Germanic kingdoms had disappeared. The
Ostrogoth and vandal succumbed to the Byzantine thrust. The Visigoths in Spain fell into
the hands of Muslims. Only the Frankish kingdom, located in the region of present
France, managed to consolidate.

The kingdom of the Franks

The Frankish kingdom was unified by Clovis, whom the Merovingian dynasty, the name
given in honor of his grandfather Meroveo. When Clovis died in the year 511, the kingdom
was divided into four regions, each headed by a king. The struggles between these
caused them to lose prestige and power.

Given the decline of royal authority, the nobles became the true wielders of power. They
received the title of palace butlers, title that distinguished them as real advisors. Kings
used to donate lands to ensure their obedience and strengthen their loyalty. One of these
noble, Charles Martel stopped the advance of the Arabs, which came to conquer Spainat the Battle of Poitiers in 732. His son Pepin dethroned the last of the Merovingian kings
in 751, he joined again the kingdom and king of the Franks was crowned. Thus began the
Carolingian dynasty.

Charlemagne and the formation of the empire

Charlemagne, son of Pepin, took the throne in 768 and began an expansion policy to
restore political unity of the ancient Roman Empire, but on the basis of Christianity and
Germanic cultural heritage. He made successful military campaigns against other
Germanic peoples, followed by missions of Christianization. In the year 800 was crowned
Emperor by Pope Leo III in St. Peter's Cathedral.
To achieve the formation of a great Christian empire, he created a solid resistance against
the advance of the Muslims. Charlemagne ruled absolutist, although freemen of his
empire met twice a year in an assembly which approved the laws of the empire, called
Chapter. In Aachen, the imperial capital, Charlemagne had officials as chancellor, who
was his secretary and the chamberlain, who was responsible for his personal service.

For a more effective administration of the State, the territory was divided into provinces

or counties, which were governed by counts, who had civil and military power over their
districts. Border areas, known as marks, guarding the rule of the invaders and were
governed by Marquises. Two special officers, missi dominicia layman and priest,
supervised them.
The Carolingian cultural renaissance
Political stability enabled cultural development of the empire. At that time, most of the
population was illiterate, including Charlemagne himself, who decided therefore
encourage the founding of schools to train officials. The most famous of all was the
Palace School at Aachen, which brought together a group of scholars led by the
philosopher Alcuin of York. There Charlemagne, his sons and all Court officials were
educated. In this school, which became a model for the foundation of others in Europe,
the arts, science, literature and knowledge of antiquity were taught. schools were
founded in churches and monasteries. Charlemagne encouraged the development of the
arts: he built many churches that mimicked the Roman and Byzantine style, as the chapel
of his palace in Aachen.

The dissolution of the empire

After the death of Charlemagne (814), the Carolingian state began to show signs of
exhaustion. Over time, the nobility began to withhold the charges and had delegated them
to accumulate large tracts of land through the fiefs granted by the monarch or
smallholdings which betrayed the peasantry. Louis the Pious, son and successor of
Charlemagne, faced violent conflict with an increasingly powerful nobility. After his death
the Treaty of Verdun (843), ordering divide and divide the empire among his three sons
was signed: Lothario, who accounted Lotaringia; Charles the Bald, who received the
Western France; and Louis the German, who won the Eastern France or Germany (which
would be born the future Germany).