Charles Martel
Frankish leader who halted the Umayyad advance at Tours and restored centralized rule in Francia.
Charles Martel, whose sobriquet means "The Hammer," was a Frankish political and military leader who ruled as de facto ruler of the Franks from 718 until his death in 741.[1] Pepin of Herstal and a noblewoman named Alpaida were the parents of Charles.[1]
Quick Facts
- Reign
- 718 – 22 October 741
- Predecessor
- Pepin of Herstal
- Successor
- Carloman; Pepin the Short
- Spouse
- Rotrude of Trier; Swanachild
- Issue
- Carloman
- Pepin the Short
- Grifo
- Bernard
- Hieronymus
- Remigius of Rouen
- Hiltrud
- Auda
Facts from the source article.
Life and work
In December 714 Pepin died, having designated his grandson Theudoald as his sole heir.[2] Between 718 and 732, Charles secured his power through a series of victories.[2] Alpaida, possibly Pepin of Herstal's second wife or his mistress, was the mother of Charles.[3]
What the cited sources add
The Catholic Encyclopedia account states that Charles escaped from prison and placed himself at the head of the national Austrasian party.[4] Gerberding suggests that Willibrord decided to support Charles as a better chance to preserve his life's work.[5] McLaughlin states that Charles was granted the nickname "the Hammer" for crushing his enemies.[6] Gibbon also records that a Gallic synod declared Charles Martel was damned, with his soul burning in hell.[7]
References
- Wikipedia, "Charles Martel" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: ; Schulman, "The Rise of the Medieval World, 500–1300: A Biographical Dictionary", Greenwood Publishing Group, 2002, p. 101; Cawthorne, "Military Commanders: The 100 Greatest Throughout History", Enchanted Lion Books, 2004, p. 52–53; Kibler, "Medieval France: An Encyclopedia", Routledge, 1995, p. 205–206 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Charles Martel" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Kurth, Godefroid. "The Franks." The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 6. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Charles Martel" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia", Yorkin Publications, 2002; Hanson, "Carnage and Culture: Landmark Battles in the Rise to Western Power", Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 2007-12-18; Commire, "Alphaida (c. 654–c. 714) – Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia", Yorkin Publications, 2015-09-24 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Kurth, Godefroid. "The Franks." The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 6. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909. facts only, no text reused. newadvent.org
- Wikipedia, "Charles Martel" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Gerberding, Richard. "716: A Crucial Year For Charles Martel", Medievalists.net, November 3, 2014", 3 November 2014 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Mclaughlin, William, "732 Battle of Tours: Charles Martel the 'Hammer' preserves Western Christianity", War History Online.. facts only, no text reused. warhistoryonline.com
- Gibbon, "The History of the Decline And Fall of the Roman Empire". facts only, no text reused. ccel.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Charles Martel (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
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