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Period: Jan 1, 700 to
Carolingian Renaissance
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Oct 10, 732
Battle of Tours
Charles "The Hammer" Martel went up against the Muslim Moors advancing from the south, and by some miracle, he won after 6 days. It was one of the very few times in history that an infantry won against a calvary. This solidified the Carolingian's power within the Frankish Empire. -
Nov 6, 751
Pepin Asks for the Kingship
Pepin the Short, son of Charles Martel, calls upon the Pope to annoint him king of the Franks. This would be the first time that someone officially tried to take power from the Merovians. However, the Pope wasn't bothered enough to come annoint Pepin himself, and sent St. Boniface instead. -
Feb 9, 754
The Papal States
The Lombards threaten the city of Rome, and the Pope asks Pepin for protection. As is it only thanks to Pope Stephen II for officially annointing Pepin and his sons as the new royalty of the Franks, Pepin comes down and defeats the Lombards, driving them back up into northern Italy. He presents the Pope with the Papal States of rome, Ravenna and Perugia as a gift, from which the Lombards were driven from. -
Charlemagne Crowned King
Pepin the Short had two sons, Carolman and Charles, who had the empire split between them at the time of his death. However, Carolman dies in 771, and leaves the empire to his brother who assumes the name "Charlemange" meaning "Charles the Great". He become sthe first to unite all of the Germanic tribes, and was crowned as "Emperor of Rome" by Pope Leo III on christmas Day. -
The Bloody Verdict of Verden
Charlemagne had defeated the Saxons and forced them to swear oasths of loyalty to him. But some 4,500 Saxons rebeled against this oath, chiefly by practicing their pagan ways. Charlemange had them arrested and beheaded, and his briographer reports that the local rivier ran red with blood for days.
