IMPORTANT DATES 768-814. Reign of Charlemagne. 800. Charlemagne crowned Emperor at Rome. 843. Partition of Verdun. 875. End of the Carolingian line in Italy. 884-887. Charlemagne's empire reunited under Charles the Fat. 911. End of the Carolingian line in Germany. 987. End of the Carolingian line in France; Hugh Capet becomes king. TOPICS AND REFERENCES Suggestive Topics.—(1) What did Clovis, Charles Martel, Pepin the Short, and Charlemagne each contribute to the growth of the Frankish power? (2) In what consisted the special greatness of Charlemagne? (3) Compare the extent of the territory ruled over by Charlemagne with that of the Eastern Empire in his day. (4) Why was the papacy more friendly to the Franks than to the other Germans? (5) Why was the coronation of Charlemagne as Emperor so important? (6) Compare the German ideas of law with modern ideas. (7) Why were officers like the "missi" needed to control local officials? (8) Why was Charlemagne's care for education important? (9) Did Charlemagne in his habits of life more nearly resemble a Roman Emperor or barbarian chieftain? Search Topics.- (1) CHARLEMAGNE'S WARS WITH THE SAXONS. Emerton, Introduction, 189–205. - (2) LEGENDARY ACCOUNT OF HIS WAR WITH THE LOMBARDS. Emerton, Introduction, 181-186; Longfellow, Tales of the Wayside Inn, Pt. III (Poet's Tale). — (3) STORY OF ROLAND. Encyclopedia Britannica (11th ed.), XXIII, 464; Sheppard, Fall of Rome, 508-513; Bulfinch, Legends of Charlemagne; Song of Roland. (4) CONTEMPORARY ACCOUNTS OF THE CORONATION OF CHARLEMAGNE. Duncalf and Krey, Parallel Source Problems, Pt. I; Ogg, Source Book, 130-134; Robinson, Readings in European History, I, 131–134. (5) CHARLEMAGNE'S GOVERNMENT. Sargent, The Franks, ch. xviii; Mombert, Charles the Great, Bk. III, ch. i.(6) ALCUIN AND THE PALACE SCHOOL. Ogg, Source Book, 144-145; Mombert, Charles the Great, 241-267; Hodgkin, Charles the Great, 235-238; West, Alcuin, ch. iii; Masterman, Dawn of Medieval Europe, ch. xx. (7) OATHS OF STRASSBURG. Ogg, Source Book, 149-154; Munro, Middle Ages, 20; Emerton, Medieval Europe, 26-28. General Reading. — Mombert's Charles the Great is the best life of Charlemagne in English. Hodgkin's Charles the Great is an excellent brief account; fuller accounts of many subjects are in his Italy and her Invaders. The chapters in Guizot's History of Civilization in France are still of value. Eginhard's contemporary Life of Charlemagne is brief and is easily obtainable in English translation. 42. Causes of the Northmen's raids CHAPTER II RAIDS AND SETTLEMENTS OF THE NORTHMEN A. ON THE CONTINENT ONE of the causes of the breaking up of the Carolingian Empire was a new flood of Germanic invaders (the Northmen) who burst upon western Europe in the ninth century. The newcomers were a sturdy people from the lands about the Baltic Sea, where their descendants- the modern Danes, Norwegians, and Swedes-still dwell. They were closely related to the German tribes whose coming overwhelmed the Roman Empire four hundred years before. During those earlier invasions, the Northmen had remained quiet; but in the latter part of the eighth century they too felt the impulse to conquest. Their lands discouraged agriculture, while the sea invited to distant adventure. Charlemagne's conquest of the Saxons had brought Christianity and Frankish rule close to their doors, and thus the Northmen learned of the booty and glory to be won in the rich lands to the south. The result was a series of raids and expeditions by sea, which may be regarded as the last wave of the Germanic migrations. In their own language the Northmen were called "vikings," or creekmen (vik = creek), because of their habit of sallying forth from the creeks and bays of Scandinavia to plunder and 43. Wide extent destroy. Almost the whole of Christendom suffered at their hands. They plundered the shores alike of Germany, France, England, Scotland, Ireland, Spain. Everywhere their method of attack was much the same. In their light vessels they entered the river mouths and advanced into the heart of the country; then they seized horses and rode far and wide. They directed their attacks especially against the churches and monasteries. In these were rich gold and silver vessels, and fine embroidered cloths; and since the Northmen were still worshipers of the not fighting men. The terror inspired by the Northmen's pitiless ravages, by their lust for fighting, by their cruelty and faithlessness, led to the insertion of this prayer in the church services: "From the fury of the Northmen, good Lord, deliver us." At first the Northmen came only during the summer season, sailing home when the winter storms were due. Before long they began to spend the winter also in Christian lands. They would seize upon an island lying off the coast by a river's mouth, and from this as headquarters would go forth at all times of the year to ravage the surrounding country. In the Frankish lands they established such headquarters at the mouth of the Scheldt River, and soon had taken possession of all Frisia. In 843,- the year of the Partition of Verdun, they seized the mouth of the river Loire, and extended their ravages to the valleys of the Seine and Garonne. Great stretches of country fell out of cultivation, and a large part of the population perished through massacre and starvation. In one of their raids they took and sacked the royal city of Aachen, stabled their horses in its cathedral, and despoiled the tomb of Charlemagne. The most famous struggle came at Paris in the years 885886. Paris was not yet the capital of France, but its situation made it already important. It was built on a low island in the Seine, with a fortified bridge connecting it with each bank. Although the city had already been twice sacked, its governor 44. Great siege of Paris (885886) 45. Grant of Normandy to Rolf (911) (Count Odo) and its bishop encouraged the people to resist. The viking ships are said to have numbered seven hundred, and to have carried an army of 40,000 men. For eleven months the city held out. Then the "cowardly, unwieldy, incompetent" Emperor, Charles the Fat (§ 40), bribed the Northmen to withdraw. The bravery displayed by Count Odo in the defense of Paris was one of the things that brought into prominence the Robertian family, to which he belonged. It was one of a chain of events which enabled his grandnephew Hugh Capet, a century later, to wrest the throne of France from Charlemagne's enfeebled descendants (41). The withdrawal of the Northmen from Paris did not prevent them from settling in increasing numbers in the lands about the lower Seine. Their chief leader was Rolf (or Rollo), called "the Walker" because his gigantic size prevented his finding a horse to carry him. For nearly fifty years he had plundered Frisia, England, Scotland, France; at the great siege of Paris he had been one of the chiefs. Rolf, however, was something more than a mere pirate and robber. When he captured a town he strengthened its walls, rebuilt its churches, and sought to rule it as a conquering prince. In this way he secured a number of towns north and south of the mouth of the river Seine. In the year 911, the Carolingian king of France, despairing of securing peace by other means, granted him a wide stretch of country in that region, with the title of duke. The grant was made on three conditions: first, Rolf must settle his Northmen there and leave the rest of the land at peace; second, he must become a Christian; and third, he must do homage to the French king as his lord.1 The settlement of the Northmen in "Normandy," as this 1 There is a story that Rolf was asked to do homage by kneeling down and kissing the French king's foot. Rolf refused to do this, but commanded one of his followers to perform the humiliating act. The follower had no more liking for the ceremony than his chief; and the story runs that when he lifted the king's foot to touch it to his lips he raised it so high that he toppled the king over on his back! land was soon called, proved a most fortunate step for France. NORSE ART Carved door from an old church in Iceland; now in Copenhagen Museum. From Du Chaillu's The Viking Age. Note the dragon above and the "world-serpent" (Midgard) below. Rolf's followers settled The energy and dar- the Northmen's 46. North fested itself also in more distant expeditions. lished reigned over Russia for more than seven hundred years. Others of these restless warriors found an outlet for their en |