Pepin of Heristol (Liege, Belgium); Mayor Of The Palace Of Austrasia.
Pepin of Herstal (635?-714), Carolingian mayor of the palace, who reunited the Frankish realms in the late Merovingian period. A grandson of Pepin the Elder, he succeeded to his position in the kingdom of Austrasia around 680. In 687 he extended Carolingian rule to the other Frankish kingdoms, Neustria and Burgundy, but retained members of the Merovingian dynasty as figurehead monarchs in all three. Two years later he extended his control over the Frisians, a pagan people living on the North Sea coast. Pepin's death was followed by a civil war and the succession of his illegitimate son Charles Martel.
Source: 'Pepin of Herstal,' Microsoft (R) Encarta. Copyright (c) 1993 Microsoft Corporation. Copyright (c) 1993 Funk & Wagnall's Corporation 'Royalty for Commoners', Roderick W. Stuart, 1993, p 129.