Charlemagne
748 – 814
Medieval Era
I took a broken realm and welded it into an empire. I used wars, laws, and schools to bind fierce peoples under one faith and one order. I traded the rider’s dash for the judge’s chair and made the pen serve the sword.
Chapters
Chapter 1687 – 747
Anointed in a Shifting World
Power slips from old kings to new hands. Battles on rivers and prayers in basilicas set the stage for a child not yet born.
Chapter 2748 – 768
Two Kings, One Crown
A child opens his eyes under holy oil and heavy expectations. A father’s crown will split. A brother will stand across the aisle.
Turning points
Rule With or Against My Brother769
Aquitaine burns while two fresh kings eye each other across the Loire. Bertrada urges caution. Carloman stays cold and distant. Messengers beg for a plan before the campaigning season starts.
Chapter 3768 – 771
Fraternal Fault Lines
A choice hardens into a rift. A mother’s deal in Italy lights Rome’s anger. Then fate clears a path with a sudden death.
Turning points
Unite a Realm or Share It771
Carloman is dead. His widow Gerberga flees to Pavia with their sons. Desiderius offers shelter and leverage. Bishops whisper about stability while lords circle for favor.
Chapter 4771 – 774
Across the Alps
A widow’s flight turns to a siege. Saxon shrines fall. Rome pleads. Snow and stone test a king’s resolve at Pavia’s walls.
Turning points
Topple Pavia or Tolerate It774
Pavia starves while oaths to Pope Adrian I still ring in St. Peter’s. Desiderius will bargain. Rome needs safety. My banners shadow the Ticino.
Chapter 5774 – 778
Pyrenean Shadows
New crowns weigh heavy. Saxon raids bite. Envoys from al‑Andalus open a door south that might be a pit.
Turning points
Chase Spain’s Promise or Hold Back778
Sulayman al‑Arabi dangles cities. The Pyrenees glisten with rain. Supply trains creak. Saxony smolders behind me while the road south opens.
Chapter 6778 – 782
Iron Faith at the Elbe
A mountain pass teaches humility. Rome crowns my sons. Then Saxony shatters a Frankish force and dares me to answer.
Turning points
Break Saxony by Fear or Patience782
A Frankish host lies smashed. Autumn closes in on the Aller. Prisoners crowd a churned field. Priests quote law. Captains mutter about terror.
Chapter 7782 – 789
Correcting a People
Steel wins land, but minds must be taught. A rebel bows. Bavaria falls in line. A king turns schoolmaster to hold what he took.
Turning points
Impose One Liturgy and School789
Scrolls cover a long table. Alcuin argues for teaching every parish. Theodulf drafts clauses. Counts mutter about costs and pride.
Chapter 8789 – 796
The Ring Breaks
Plots flare at home. Councils fix coin and creed. Eastward, the Avar ring cracks and pours treasure like a river.
Turning points
Contain the Avars or Break Them796
Earthworks loom over flat land. Gerold of Bavaria rides in from the north. From the south, Eric of Friuli reports the khagan’s weakness. Carts wait for orders.
Chapter 9796 – 800
A Crown Above Kings
Knives in Rome drive a pope north. A king becomes judge. Then Christmas in St. Peter’s offers a title that can never be set down.
Turning points
Wear an Emperor’s Crown800
Pope Leo III stands ready at the altar on Christmas. Rome watches. News of Empress Irene in Constantinople lingers like a shadow on the wall.
Chapter 10800 – 802
From Sword to Stylus
An empire needs more than banners. Elephants and embassies stir talk at Aachen. New oaths and roaming judges promise order over reach.
Turning points
Ride Forever or Build the System802
Courtiers crowd the palace. Drafts of new oaths and the Capitulare missorum generale lie ready. Some lords fear losing local sway if inspectors ride.
Chapter 11802 – 813
The Heir and the Horizon
Maps settle. Sons do not. Deaths tear the plan. The North quiets. A father looks across the years and chooses a single line.
Turning points
One Heir or Many Pieces813
Deaths have shredded the 806 plan. Louis stands ready. Bernard holds Italy. The hall fills for a decision that cannot be undone.
Chapter 12813 – 814
Winter in Aachen
A torch passes warm. Then breath shortens. A final winter of prayer, fasting, and instructions ends under a stone dome.
Chapter 13814 – 2010
After the Emperor
An old crown becomes an idea. Schools, councils, and oaths echo in modern rooms. The argument for Europe keeps breathing.
Key Relationships
Pepin the Short
family
Modeled pragmatic, papally sanctioned kingship that Charlemagne later amplified.
Bertrada of Laon
family
Brokered key marriages and alliances that positioned Charlemagne in Italian politics.
Carloman I
family
His rivalry shaped Charlemagne’s early assertion of independent policy.
Pope Adrian I
patron
Legitimated intervention in Italy and anchored Frankish-papal partnership.
Pope Leo III
patron
His alliance culminated in the imperial coronation of 800.
Desiderius of Lombardy
adversary
Opposition forced Charlemagne’s decisive alpine campaign and annexation.
Widukind
adversary
His resistance catalyzed Verden and hardened Saxon policy.
Alcuin of York
mentor
Shaped the educational and ecclesiastical reforms underpinning the Carolingian Renaissance.
Einhard
collaborator
Courtier and biographer who framed Charlemagne’s image for posterity.
Harun al-Rashid
diplomatic counterpart
His gifts and coordination over pilgrimage sites augmented Charlemagne’s global prestige.
Offa of Mercia
diplomatic counterpart
Negotiations set precedents for commerce and pilgrimage between England and Francia.
Louis the Pious
family
As designated heir and co-emperor, he embodied Charlemagne’s turn from conquest to continuity.