The Collapse of the Carolingian Empire after Charlemagne

Infighting between Louis the Pious’s sons and external threats from different civilizations contributed to the collapse. Introduction The Germanic tribe known as the Franks established and ruled the Frankish Empire from the fifth through the tenth century in the ancient territory of Gaul(encompassing portions of modern-day France, Belgium, Switzerland, Germany, and the Netherlands). The Carolingian[…]

Illuminating the Carolingian Era: The Artistic Diversity of Charlemagne’s Renaissance

These luxurious manuscripts were written and illuminated between the late eighth century and the first quarter of the ninth century. Abstract Comparing information from the ancient texts about the illumination of the manuscripts to the analysis of the components used to create colour in illuminations sheds interesting light. Our research team studied several manuscripts from[…]

Charlemagne’s Educational, Economic, Religious, and Political Reforms

Charlemagne took a serious interest in scholarship, promoting the liberal arts at the court, and encouraging education. Introduction – The Carolingian Renaissance As emperor, Charlemagne stood out for his many reforms—monetary, governmental, military, cultural, and ecclesiastical. He was the main initiator and proponent of the “Carolingian Renaissance,” the first of three medieval renaissances. It was[…]

Charlemagne and Europe: Man and Myth in the Middle Ages

Reexamining Charlemagne through evidence from his own time, as a ruler of a recognizably European empire and as a political figure. This paper, ‘Charlemagne and Europe’, is a revised and expanded form of the lecture I read on 12 November 2013. I begin by asking what Europe has meant to medieval historians in recent times,[…]