Research Paper On Charlemagne

Charlemagne and the Holy Roman Empire Charlemagne, or Charles the Great, was a Medieval Emperor that ruled over Western Europe from 768 to 814. Charlemagne was born around 742 and was the son of Pepin the Short and Bertrada of Laon. Pepin the Short was the ruler of the Franks from 751 until his death in 768. After the death of Pepin the Short, Charlemagne and his brother, Carloman I, became the rulers of the Franconians. The death of Carloman I in 771 allowed Charlemagne to become the sole leader of the Franks. Once becoming the leader of the Franks, Charlemagne wanted to unite the Germanic people into one kingdom and convert them to Christianity. He ordered anyone who did not follow Christian traditions be put to death. Charlemagne united

Peter’s Basilica in Rome. This was the beginning of the Holy Roman Empire. As emperor of the Romans, Charlemagne promoted education and instituted economic and religious reforms. The decline of the original Roman Empire crippled the Western economy and broke the region into different states, while the East flourished under the Byzantine Empire. Charlemagne sought to fix this issue by establishing a standard currency for all of Europe. The new currency made trade easier and the Empire prospered. Charlemagne also encouraged the Carolingian Renaissance, which was a period of renewed emphasis on scholarship and culture. Charlemagne promoted the Carolingian miniscule, which became a basis for the modern printed alphabet. In 813, Charlemagne crowned his son Louis the Pious as co-emperor. After the death of Charlemagne in 814, Louis became the new emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. At that time, Charlemagne’s empire spanned across much of Western Europe and allowed Christianity to survive and spread throughout the West. Today, Charlemagne is considered to be the father of Europe for his ability to unite most of Western Europe. The Holy Roman Empire lasted from 800

Since the Holy Roman Empire lasted for about a thousand years, there are bound to be multiple cultures throughout the time period. In the early parts of the empire, the people would have followed the cultures of the tribes such as the Franks, Saxons, Lombards, Bavarians, and the Avars. Charlemagne would have most likely followed the Frankish culture since he was born into that tribe. All of these tribes have a different culture, but they are all considered a part of the Holy Roman Empire. The entire empire would have most likely followed Christianity because it was required by Charlemagne. In the later stages of the Empire, the citizens might have had followed the new culture of their time or followed the culture of their ancestors. The Holy Roman Empire and Charlemagne believed that Christianity was the only acceptable religion. The tribes of the empire would most likely have spoke different languages such as Old Franconian, Breton, Gascon etc. The different cultures of each tribe would also have different traditions and