This book tells the story of the Carolingian dynasty which reigned over the Frankish Kingdom which is modern day France and the Rhineland of Germany. Starting with the earliest ancestors of Pippin II (Pippin of Herstal 635-714 C.E. [Current Era]), the book really gets going with the life of Charles Martel (The Hammer) (688 C.E.- 741 C.E.), one of the illegitimate sons of Pippin II who contested for power with the legitimate grandson of Pippin II in the Frankish Kingdom following the death of Pippin II. Charles Martel won this struggle and proceeded to establish his line of the family as the "royal line." Martel's son Pippin III (Pippin the Short) followed Charles Martel to the Frankish throne in 741 when he reigned together with his brother and reigned alone after 751 as the first actual Carolingian "King of the Franks" until his death in 768 C.E.
The most famous King of the Franks, Charles I or Charlemagne reigned as King after the death of his father Pippin the Short. However, in the most remembered date of the History of the Middle Ages, December 25, 800 C.E., Charlemagne was crowned "Emperor of the newly restored "Roman Empire" which now took the name "Holy Roman Empire." Charlemagne's Empire was expanded to include all of modern day France and most of modern day Germany and also northern Italy.
This empire was too big to held together by anyone other than Charlemagne and after his death in 814, and following the tumultuous reign of Charlemagne's son--Louis II (The Pious) (778-840 C.E.), the Empire was divide between Louis the Pious' grandsons--Charles the Bald (823-877 C.E.) and Louis the German (810-876 C.E.). Thus, began the downfall of the Carolingian Dynasty. The book continues on to describe the rise of the First Reich under Otto I (The Great, 912-973 C.E.) in the eastern part of Charlemagne's empire, which continued to be the Holy Roman Empire, and the book continues on to describe the rise of Hugh Capet, (941-996 C.E.) in the western part of Charlemagne's empire. Hugh Capet became the first king of the new "Capetian Dynasty" of area that would become modern France.
During my undergraduate days, I took a course on the history of the Early Middle Ages, which I found very interesting. Only recently have I begun again to study this period of time. This book has much more in depth into that time than anything that I studied as a undergraduate. However, the book is far from being dull or foreboding. On the contrary the book continued to draw me in and would not let me go until I finished the book.
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