Charlemagne and The Vikings

Charlemagne: 742 – 814 A.D.
King of the Franks

Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire
“By sword and cross.”
• 1. Born April 2, 742 in Northern
Europe.
• 2. Charles was the youngest
son of Pepin the Short and
Bertrada of Laon.
• 3. Grandson of Charles Martel
“The Hammer”.
• 4. Bertrada gave Charles
some education and as a
result he had a thirst for more.
– He was devoted to the Church
which became the driving
force behind his life
• 5. In 768, when Charlemagne
was 26, he inherited the
throne and became KING of
Franks.
Europe was in turmoil!!
• 6. Charlemagne became the sole • http://cdn.history.com/sites/2/2013/11/charle
ruler of the kingdom. magne-hero-H.jpeg
• 7. At this time, the Franks were
falling back into their barbaric ways
and traditions neglecting religion
and education:
• 8. Saxons in the north were pagans
and the Catholic Church in the
south was trying to recover lost
land to the Lombards. There were
infidels in Spain. The Vikings are
raiding!! WTH!!!!!!
Vikings
• From the 800’s to 1100’s
the kingdoms were under
constant attack from
1.Muslims in the south, 2.
Magyars from the east,
the 3. Vikings from
Scandinavia in the north.
Viking = Norsemen= Men of the
North
• 1. Vikings, also called
Norseman, 2. colonized
huge areas of Europe from
the 8th century to the 12th
century in a period known
as the Viking Age . In Old
Norse, the word 3. “Viking”
means “to go on an
expedition” and that’s what
the Vikings did! 4.They
spent most of their time
raiding and exploring.
Scandinavia
Where = Sweden, Denmark,
and Norway
2. Long jagged coastline
with step-sided valleys
which are inlets to the sea =
fjords
•Viking people lived in
villages in the fjords
3. They were known as
Norsemen, Men of the North
Viking Song
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=8qSkaAwKMD4
700 to 1100 AD
Viking means “raiding”
1. Vikings began raiding
Europe more than likely
because their population had
grown too big to support itself.
2. The robbed villages and
churches, carrying off grain,
animals, and anything else of
value
3. The Vikings conquered
parts of western France and
England.
* We know this area as
Normandy = Norsemen?!
To plunder and pillage…WHY?
• 1. Terrain Their land was usually
poor for farming or too
mountainous to live on, and the
climate was very cold.
• 2. Population pressures
Population pressure caused
squabbles between various clans
and kingdoms within Scandinavia,
and it caused others to leave
home, explore and conquer new
lands.
• 3. Tradition Young men were
expected to test/prove themselves
by going on raids.
• 4. Greed The Vikings wanted
things: coins, livestock, treasures,
spices, works of art, raw materials.
With their skill at sea and violent
tendencies, they often found
themselves in a position to take
whatever they wanted
Viking History
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=hMg3w6x2Ch4
Charlemagne’s character was contradictory. In an age where there was a penalty of
death for defeat, several times he would spare the lives of his enemy. In 782, he ordered
that 5,000 Saxons to beheaded.. He compelled his kingdom to reform but divorced 2 of
his 4 wives without just cause. He forced kings and princes to kneel at his feet yet his
mother and favorite wives ruled him with an iron fist.
• 9. Charlemagne was determined
to strengthen his realm and bring
order back to Europe.
• In 772 he launched a 30 year
campaign to accomplish his
objective:
772 - Conquers Saxons in
the north
773 – Invades Italy and
defeats Lombards. Restores Papal
States.
778 – Secures Spain
782 – Charlemagne is once
again attacked by the Saxons but
holds fast
800 – Political and religious
unity of Europe
To Charles the August, crowned by God, great and pacific emperor, long
life, and victory!!”
• 10. By 800 Charlemagne was the

undisputed ruler of Western
Europe!
• His vast realm now covered
France, Switzerland, Belgium,
Netherlands, half of present-day
Italy and Germany, part of Austria
and Spain.
• 11. On Christmas Day in A.D.
800, while Charlemagne knelt in
prayer in Saint Peter’s in Rome,
Pope Leo III seized a golden
crown from the alter and placed it
on the head of Charlemagne.
– He was quite surprised by the
coronation and would not have
gone to church if he would have
known of the pope’s plan.
Papacy vs. Monarchy
What is the Papacy = The
ruling of the Pope; head of the
Catholic Church.
Monarchy = The King’s rule.
The growing role of church
leaders in Europe’s politics
caused many arguments over
who was in charge ruling
Western Europe.
Kings wanted church leaders
to obey them while the Pope
claimed he could crown kings.
Papacy vs. Monarchy
• One of the greatest • Life in the Middle Ages
weapons in the Pope’s was harsh all people had
arsenal was was their faith and going
excommunication = to to heaven.
exclude a person from • Being excommunicated
church membership. meant that you couldn’t
• Being excommunicated go to church and
from the church would participate in the
have been devastating to sacraments which was
any European person mandatory for entering
during the Middle Ages heaven.
because...
Papacy vs. Monarchy
• The coronation of
Charlemagne is just
one example of the
power struggle
between Popes and
kings.
The coronation was the foundation
of the Holy Roman Empire
Charlemagne
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=cTTaVnZyG2g
Viking Raids led to Feudalism
• 1. People of Europe
feared constant attacks
from Viking invaders
• 2. Europeans looked to
local leaders (landowning
nobles) to protect them
• 3. This led to feudalism –
nobles governed and
protected the people in
return for services like
fighting or farming

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Charlemagne: 742 – 814 A.D.

King of the Franks

• 10. By 800 Charlemagne was the

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