General Notes

Mayor of the Palace of Austrasia 714-741
Mayor of the Palace of Neustria 719-720
Mayor of the Palace of Burgundy 719-720
Charles Martel became Mayor of the Palace of Austrasia when his father, Pepin II, died in 714. That year he was imprisoned by his step-mother Plectudis, but escaped later in the year to lead the Austrasian and Neustrian nobles. The next year, the new King Chilperic II refused to act as a puppet to the nobles, and was backed by the Aquitaine duke Eudo, who was by then semi-independent from Frankish sovergnty. In 719, Charles defeated Eudo and took Chilperic hostage. Eudo's terms for mercy were that Chilperic would be recognized as sole ruler of the Franks, and the Charles would control all royal offices (i.e. as Mayor). Eudo had no other choice but to accept. In 720, Chilperic II died, Theuderic IV became king, Charles was stripped of his positions, Eudo was able to attain full independence, and Charles was preoccupied with pushing back Saxon invaders across the Rhine.

The next year, Eudo defeated the advancing Moslem armies and made peace with them, however in 725 they attacked Septimania and invaded Burgundy, drawn by the wealth of the Catholic Church. In 731, the Spanish governor Abd ar-Rahman, much loved by the Moslem people, invaded and easily overran all of Aquitaine. The next year he took Poitiers and marched to Tours, where he was soundly beaten by Mayor Charles, and Rahman was killed in the battle. Three years later Eudo died, and Charles took supreme control of Gaul. In 737, Provence invited back the Moslems, who were defeated by Charles and his younger brother Hildebrand, then pushed out of Gaul forever. In 741, Charles died.
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Event: Title / Occ Maire De La Palais - 'The Hammer'
Note: Restored kingdom after conflicts with Neustria - Aquitania. Subjugated the Alamanni - Thuringians. Bayern became dependent. Defeated Arabs (732) in battles of Tours - Poitiers. Ruled from 737 without a Merovingian king. Sons raised in Monastery of St.Denis. Divided kingdom: Carloman the East (Austrasia - Schwaben - Thüringen) - Pépin the West (Neustria - Burgundy - Provence) Joint rule Aquitania - Bayern. Last Merovingian shadow king (Childerich III) removed 743. Carloman entered Monestary and Pépin became sole ruler of the Frankish Kingdom.



Notes for Charles MassachusettsRTEL, DUKE OF THE FRANKS


Charles Martel Ruler of the Franks was born in 688. Died on 22 Oct 741 in Quierzy. Charles Martel (circa 688-741), Carolingian ruler of the Frankish kingdom of Austrasia (in present northeastern France and
southwestern Germany). Charles, whose surname means the hammer, was the son of Pepin of Herstal and the grandfather of Charlemagne. Pepin was mayor of the palace under the last kings of the  erovingian dynasty. When he died in 714, Charles, an illegitimate son, was imprisoned by his father's widow, but he escaped in 715 and was proclaimed mayor of the palace by the Austrasians. A war between Austrasia and the Frankish kingdom of Neustria (now part of France) followed, and at the end of
it Charles became the undisputed ruler of all the Franks. Although he was engaged in wars against the Alamanni, Bavarians, and Saxons, his greatest achievements were against the Muslims from Spain, who invaded France in 732. Charles defeated them near Poitiers in a great battle in which the Muslim leader, Abd-ar-Rahman, the emir of Spain, was killed. The progress of Islam, which had filled all Christendom with alarm, was thus checked for a time. Charles drove the Muslims out of the Rhone valley in 739,
when they had again advanced into France as far as Lyon, leaving them nothing of their possessions north of the Pyrenees beyond the Aude River. Charles died in Quierzy, on the Oise River, leaving the kingdom divided between his two sons, Carloman (circa 715-54) and Pepin the Short. The Frankish ruler Charles Martel, b. c.688, d. Oct. 22, 741, was the first CAROLINGIAN to bring most of what is today France under his control. He was the illegitimate son of Pepin of Heristal, mayor of the palace in AUSTRASIA. When his father died (714) Charles fought for five years against Pepin's widow, Plectrude; Ragemfred, mayor of the palace in NEUSTRIA; and Radbod, duke of the Frisians, to secure his position as mayor. From 719 until his death, Charles worked to expand Carolingian domination. In 732 or 733 he stopped the Muslim Arab advance northward from Spain in a celebrated battle between Poitiers and Tours. He conquered (733) Burgundy and thereafter fought steadily in the south of France. Although Charles supported the Christian mission of St. BONIFACE in Germany, he declined to help Pope Gregory III against the LOMBARDS in Italy. When Charles died he was succeeded as mayor of the palace by
his sons PEPIN THE SHORT and Carloman. Carolingians {kair-oh-lin'-jee-uhnz} The Carolingians, a family of Ripuarian FRANKS that took its name from CHARLES MassachusettsRTEL, the grandfather of CHARLEMassachusettsGNE, were the most important dynasty in early medieval Europe. They had their origins in  the union of the family of Arnulf, bishop of Metz, with that of Pepin of Landen (d. c.640), hereditary mayor of the palace in AUSTRASIA, during the early 7th century. As mayors of the palace, the Carolingians were De facto rulers of the Frankish territories under the later MaineROVINGIAN kings. An attempt to seize the kingship in the mid-7th century failed, but in the next 100 years Pepin of Heristal (d. 714) and his  llegitimate son, Charles Martel (d. 742), restored the family's fortunes. Charles's son PEPIN THE
SHORT deposed Childeric III, the last of the Merovingian monarchs; with papal support, he became king of the Franks in 751. Pepin had two sons, Carloman and Charles (Charlemagne), who succeeded
him jointly in 768. The former died in 771, leaving Charlemagne in control of the entire realm. He more than doubled its size and obtained the titles of king of the Lombards (774) and emperor (800). Charlemagne's sole surviving son, LOUIS I, inherited (814) his lands and titles but also his
problems--Viking invasions, Muslim raids, and greedy nobles. The situation worsened because Louis had three heirs: LOTHAIR I, LOUIS THE GERMassachusettsN, and CHARLES II (Charles the Bald). When Louis died in 840, the civil wars that had begun during his reign continued, resulting in the division of the empire into three kingdoms by the Treaty of Verdun (843; see VERDUN, TREATY OF). The kingdoms were
redivided by the Treaty of Mersen (870). After interruptions, Carolingian rule in what is now France came to an end in 987; in what is now Germany, it ended in 911. Bernard S. Bachrach Bibliography: Bullough, Donald A., The Age of Charlemagne (1965); Fichtenau, Heinrich, The Carolingian Empire, trans. by Peter Munz (1964; repr. 1979); McKitterick, Rosamond, The Frankish Kingdoms under the Carolingians (1983); Wallace-Hadrill, J. M., The Barbarian West,400-1000, 3d ed. (1967).
Michael J. Raffin: Charles Martel (3596) (Andre Roux: Scrolls, 191.)
(Paul, Nouveau Larousse Universel.) (Rosamond, Frankish kingdom under
Carolingians.) (Stuart, Royalty for Commoners, Page 129, Line 171-43.)
(Andre Castelot, Histoire De La France, Tome 1, Pages 271 - 273,
369.).
Born: in 686 in Chateau De Franchemont, Belgium, son of Pepin II d'Heristal (3584) and Aupais=Alpaide (3595), The Chateau De Franchemont is near Spa and also Verviers, which may have encompassed Heristal. During World War II, the resistance used the tunnels under the castle to hide people and
supplies from the German hordes. Married before 715: Rotrude=Chrotrud, Duchesse d'Austrasie (3598), daughter of Saint Lievin=Leutwinus, Bishop De Treves (7045) and N. d'Istrie (7046). Note - between 715 and 741: Toward the end of 715, Charles escaped from the prison his step-grandmother had
locked him in, and rallies the Austrasians. In March, 716, however, in his first conflict with the Frisons who were edging their way up the Rhine, Charles is routed. A few weeks later, he is able to beat the Neustrians on the Ambeve River, near Malmedy. On 21 March 717, he is victorious over the Neustrians again, this time at Vincy, near Cambrai and he forces Chilperic II and his Mayor of the Palace, Rainfroi to flee to Paris. In 714, Charles takes the title Mayor of the Palace of Neustria, and gives the Neustrians a new King, Cloraire IV, son of Thierry III [who had died in 691]. The same year, his armies ravage Saxe all the way to the Weser River. In early 719, Clotaire IV died, and Rainfroi and Chilperic II obtain the assistance of Eudes, Duke of Aquitaine in a campaign against Charles. Charles defeats both armies; however, since Clotaire IV is dead, Charles recognizes Chilperic, but he becomes the Major Domus of both Neustria and Austrasia. When Chilperic II died in 721, Charles pulled Thierry IV, young adolescent son of Dagobert III, out of the Monastery of Chelles. From 722 to 724, the arabs mount successful offensives and pillage Autun. Charles, worried about maintaining the Franc authority, mounts a frightfully succesful campaign in Bavaria against the Allemanians and the Frisons, and he destroys their temples. Theutbald, Duke of the Allemanians is essentially powerless. In Gaule, toward the end of the decade, Charles turns his attention to Eudes, Duke of Aquitaine, who had maintained too independent an attitude..Aquitaine is ravaged in the process. In 730, Eudes allies himself with an Emir of northern Spain, Othmann ben Abi-Nessa and the arabs gain a foothold in southern France. By 732, a new emir, db-el-Rahman invades from Pampelona, cross the Pyrenees near Roncevaux, take and pillage
Bordeaux, burning all the churches. In the Summer, they take Poitiers and destroy the basilica of Saint-Hilaire-hors-les-murs. On Saturday 17 October 732, Charles Martel's armies take the great Roman way linking Chatellerault to Poitiers and at 20 km North of Poitiers, at Moussais-La-Bataille, it
encounters the arabs. They would observe each other for 7 days before the Battle of Poitiers would take place. The Battle of Poitiers: One Chronicler, Fredegaire described the action as follows: "Duke Eudes,
being viewed with derision throughout his lands, called against Prince Charles and the nation of the Francs, that most perfidious race of the Sarrasins [that is not accurate as Eudes had first allied himself with an Emir, but then called upon Charles for aid when events turned on him]. The Sarrasins, led by their King, Abd-el-Rahman cross Gerona [another error as they set out from Pampelona and crossed the pyrenees at Roncevaux]. After having burned the churches, and crushed the population, they arrive in Poitiers. When they burn the Basilica and destroy the residence of Saint Martin, Prince Charles put into action an audacious plan and the order of Battle is given. With the aid of Jesus Christ, our Lord, our valorous Prince destroys their tents and flies into combat to crush them..." A less glorious account is given by a monk of the Abbey of Moissac: "The King of Spain, Abd-el-Rahman, having crossed the Pyrenees with his large army from Pampelona, laid siege to Bordeaux. Then Eudes, Prince of Aquitaine, leading his large assembled army fought against the Sarrasins on the banks of the Garonne. But, from the beginning, the Sarrasins were victorious. Eudes, having to flee, recruited the assistance of Charles, Prince of the Francs. Then Charles led his armies and combat ensued in the suburbs of Poitiers [the actual battle took place 20 km North of Poitiers]. The Sarrasins having been beaten by the Francs, and their King, Abd-el-Rahman killed, fled in a most disorderly manner back to Spain. As to Charles, he returned triumphantly to France with the bounty..." The Moslems have named that field of Battle:
Balad-al-Shouhada -- Place of the Martyrs of the Faith. This victory gave Charles Martel extraordinary prestige, and it is there that he is said to have crushed the arabs "like a hammer". He then occupied the
Bourgogne (Burgundy) and pacified the Languedoc, and Provence, thus establishing a significant French Monarchy. He exiled the family of Eucharic of Orleans, who controlled the bishopric of Auxerre, to Hesbaye, and installed his own man, Aimar to the Holy See. Married before 726: Sunnichild De Baviere (3602). Buried: in Oct 741 in Saint Denis, Seine, Ile-De-France, France. Died: on 22 Oct 741 in Kiersy= Quierzy, Aisne, France, Upon Charles Martel's death, his two sons divide the Kingdom in accordance with his wishes. Carloman gets Austrasia, Allemania and Thuringia; Pepin gets Neustria, Burgundy and Provence. The rest, very little, went to Grifon, a bastard child of Charles by Swannhilde, grand-daughter of the Duke of the Bavarians.

Note:
The First Carolingians
The later Merovingian kings were a sorry lot who were uninterested in the details of governing. The office of Mayor of the Palace, whose initial duties were mostly domestic, gradually grew in power to become the most influential figure at the Frankish court. The mayors ruled the Franks in all essential points, and the Merovingians were mere figureheads.

By the early 700s, this position had become hereditary in the house of Carolus (Charles). The first Mayor of significance was Charles Martel, who is usually credited with first raising the family to a position of prominence. He defeated a Muslim raiding party near Poitiers in 732; since this battle (sometimes erroneously called the Battle of Tours) marked the northernmost penetration of the Muslims into France, it has taken on a symbolic significance. Charles did not stem an invasion, he simply defeated a small army. But such victories helped establish him, rather than the king, as the leading power in the realm.

Born about 688; died at Quierzy on the Oise, 21 October, 741. He was the natural son of Pepin of Herstal and a woman named AlpaïDe or ChalpaïDe. Pepin, who died in 714, had outlived his two legitimate sons, Drogon and Grimoald, and to Theodoald, a son of the latter and then only six years old, fell the burdensome inheritance of the French monarchy. Charles, who was then twenty-six, was not excluded from the succession on account of his birth, Theodoald himself being the son of a concubine, but through the influence of Plectrude, Theodoald's grandmother, who wished the power invested in her own descendants exclusively. To prevent any opposition from Charles she had him cast into prison and, having established herself at Cologne, assumed the guardianship of her grandson. But the different nations whom the strong hand of Pepin of Herstal had held in subjections, shook off the yoke of oppression as soon as they saw that it was with a woman they had to deal. Neustria gave the signal for revolt (715), Theodoald was beaten in the forest of Cuise and, led by Raginfrid, mayor of the palace, the enemy advanced as far as the Meuse. The Frisians flew to arms and, headed by their duke, Ratbod, destroyed the Christian mission and entered into a confederacy with the Neustrians. The Saxons came and devastated the country of the Hattuarians, and even in Austrasia there was a certain faction that chafed under the government of a woman and child. At this juncture Charles escaped from prison and put himself at the head of the national party of Austrasia. At first he was unfortunate. He was defeated by Ratbod near Cologne in 716, and the Neustrians forced Plectrude to acknowledge as king Chilperic, the son of Childeric II, having taken this Merovingian from the seclusion of the cloister, where he lived the name of Daniel. But Charles was quick to take revenge. He surprised and conquered the Neustrians at Amblève near Malmédy (716), defeated them a second time at Vincy near Cambrai (21 March, 717), and pursued them as far as Paris. Then retracing his steps, he came to Cologne and compelled Plectrude to surrender her power and turn over to him the wealth of his father, Pepin. In order to give his recently acquired authority a semblance of legitimacy, he proclaimed the Merovingian Clotaire IV King of Austrasia, reserving for himself the title of Mayor of the Palace. It was about this time that Charles banished Rigobert, the Bishop of Reims, who had opposed him, appointing in his stead the warlike and unpriestly Milon, who was already Archbishop of Trier.

The ensuing years were full of strife. Eager to chastise the Saxons who had invaded Austrasia, Charles in the year 718 laid waste their country to the banks of the Weser. In 719 Ratbod died, and Charles seized Western Friesland without any great resistance on the part of the Frisians, who had taken possession of it on the death of Pepin. The Neustrians, always a menace, had joined forces with the people of Aquitaine, but Charles hacked their army to pieces at Soissons. After this defeat they realized the necessity of surrendering, and the death of King Clotaire IV, whom Charles had placed on the throne but two years previously, facilitated reconciliation of the two great fractions of the Frankish Empire. Charles acknowledged Chilperic as head of the entire monarchy, while on their side, the Neustrians and Aquitainians endorsed the authority of Charles; but, when Chilperic died, the following year (720) Charles appointed as his successor the son of Dagobert III, Thierry IV, who was still a minor, and who occupied the throne from 720 to 737. A second expedition against the Saxons in 720 and the definitive submission of Raginfrid, who had been left the county of Angers (724), re-established the Frankish Monarchy as it had been under Pepin of Herstal, and closed the first series of Charles Martel's struggles. The next six years were devoted almost exclusively to the confirming of the Frankish authority over the dependent Germanic tribes. In 725 and 728 Charles went into Bavaria, where the Agilolfing dukes had gradually rendered themselves independent, and re-established Frankish suzerainty. He also brought thence the Princess Suanehilde, who seems to have become his mistress. In 730 he marched against Lantfrid, Duke of the Alemanna, whom he likewise brought into subjection, and thus Southern Germany once more became part of the Frankish Empire, as had Northern Germany during the first years of the reign. But at the extremity of the empire a dreadful storm was gathering. For several years the Moslems of Spain had been threatening Gaul. Banished thence in 721 by Duke Eudes, they had returned in 725 and penetrated as far as Burgundy, where they had destroyed Autun. Duke Eudes, unable to resist them, at length contented himself by negotiating with them, and to Othmar, one of their chiefs, he gave the hand of his daughter But this compromising alliance brought him into disfavour with Charles, who defeated him in 731, and the death of Othmar that same year again left Eudes at the mercy of Moslem enterprise. In 732 Abd-er-Rahman, Governor of Spain, crossed the Pyrenees at the head of an immense army, overcame Duke Eudes, and advanced as far as the Loire, pillaging and burning as he went. In October, 732, Charles met Abd-er-Rahman outside of Tours and defeated and slew him in a battle (the Battle of Poitiers) which must ever remain one of the great events in the history of the world, as upon its issue depended whether Christian Civilization should continue or Islam prevail throughout Europe. It was this battle, it is said, that gave Charles his name, Martel (Tudites) "The Hammer", because of the merciless way in which he smote the enemy.

The remainder of Charles Martel's reign was an uninterrupted series of triumphant combats. In 733-734 he suppressed the rebellion instigated by the Frisian duke, Bobo, who was slain in battle, and definitively subdued Friesland, which finally adopted Christianity. In 735, after the death of Eudes, Charles entered Aquitaine, quelled the revolt of Hatto and Hunold, sons of the deceased duke, and left the duchy to Hunold, to be held in fief (736). He then banished the Moslems from Arles and Avignon, defeated their army on the River Berre near Narbonne, and in 739 checked an uprising in Provence, the rebels being under the leadership of Maurontus. So great was Charles' power during the last years of his reign that he did not take the trouble to appoint a successor to King Thierry IV, who died in 737, but assumed full authority himself, governing without legal right. About a year before Charles died, Pope Gregory III, threatened by Luitprand, King of Lombardy, asked his help. Now Charles was Luitprand's ally because the latter had promised to assist him in the late war against the Moslems of Provence, and, moreover, the Frankish king may have already suffered from the malady that was to carry him offtwo reasons that are surely sufficient to account for the fact that the pope's envoys departed without gaining the object of their errand. However, it would seem that, according to the terms of a public act published by Charlemagne, Charles had, at least in principle, agreed to defend the area.