Was Charlemagne A Good King?

Charlemagne was “a key figure in European history”. He was the king of the Franks of the Carolingian dynasty. When he reigned (768-814), Charlemagne accomplished much in his own land and outside of it. He is called the Father of Europe and Charles the Great. The Carolingian Dynasty “peaked under… Charlemagne (after whom the dynasty in named)...” But, even with these great accomplishments, was Charlemagne a good king? Before this issue is addressed, it must be known what qualities make a good king. For the purposes of this essay, a good king is defined as a person who keeps his kingdom together and does his best to improve it. In his job of keeping the kingdom together, the king can defeat or keep back enemies and act on the principle that

He was, of course, very good at expanding his kingdom. When he began his rule, he had a pretty good sized kingdom, but by the end of his reign it had grown immensely. Parts of his kingdom included many of the present day countries in Europe- almost all of France, Germany, Belgium, The Netherlands, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Italy, Austria, the Czech Republic, and Hungary. As for protecting his kingdom, Charlemagne was a professional. Commenting on Charlemagne’s actions in the wars with the promise-breaking Saxons, Einhard said, “Not once did he allow anyone who had offended him in this way go unpunished.” This is true for anyone who dared to attack, take over, or harass his people. In this way, Charlemagne was able to protect his people. He also built a fleet to ward off any attacks that Northmen tried to make, and “placed strong points and coastgurad stations at all the ports and at the mouths of all rivers considered large enough for the entry of ships.” In this way Charlemagne was able to improve his

The carolingian miniscule actually “did not catch on in the ninth century, [but] it was resurrected 600 years later and forms the origin of all modern European printed alphabets.” These improvements brought much improvement.

Although the full fruits of the Carolingian Renaissance emerged only after Charlemagne’s death, the consequences of his cultural program appeared already during his lifetime in improved competence in Latin, expanded use of written documents in civil and ecclesiastical administration, advanced levels of discourse and stylistic versatility in formal literary productions, enriched liturgical usages, and variegated techniques and motifs employed in architecture and the visual arts.

By improving the education of the kingdom, Charlemagne helped to influence the Carolingian Renaissance, which had many good effects in his time and in many years to