The pope thereupon crossed the Great St. Bernard Pass into the Frankish kingdom. Pepin received his guest at Ponthion, and promised to do all in his power to recover the Exarchate of Ravenna and the other districts seized by Aistulf. The pope then went to St-Denis, near Paris. He concluded a firm alliance of friendship with Pepin and made him the first Carolingian king, probably in January 754. He bound the Franks under the threat of excommunication, never thereafter to choose their kings from any other family than the Carolingian. At the same time he bestowed on Pepin and his sons the title of "Patrician of the Romans", the title the Exarchs, the highest Byzantine officials in Italy, had borne. In their stead now the King of the Franks was to be the protector of the Romans and their Bishop. The pope in bestowing this title probably acted also with authority conferred on him by the Byzantine emperor. However, to fulfil the wishes of the pope, Pepin had eventually to obtain the consent of his nobles to a campaign into Italy. This became imperative, when several embassies attempted by peaceful means to induce the Lombard king to give up his conquests but returned without accomplishing their mission.