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Charles martel and charlemagne

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Charles Martel

686–741
CHARLESTHE HAMMER
Charles Martel—literally, "Charles the Hammer"—was an important military and political leader who, although he never claimed any throne for himself, effectively ruled all of the Frankish kingdoms by the end of his reign. He was born the illegitimate son of duke Pepin II, and after his father's death he was imprisoned in Cologne to prevent him from seizing power during the period of political unrest that followed the Duke's passing. Only a year later, a civil war broke out, and Charles escaped; still much loved by the Austrasian nobles, they made him their mayor. When the opposing army—the Neustrians—invaded, Charles prepared to meet them but found himself grossly outnumbered. The Battle of Cologne was a disastrous one for Charles, but it would the only loss in his long and successful military career.

One year after his defeat at Cologne, Charles and his army returned and defeated the Neustrains in the decisive Battle of Vincy. He then set out to deal with Plectrude, the late Duke's wife and his original jailer. He took

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The Hammer Falls | Charles Martel

“The men of the north stood as motionless as a wall, they were like a belt of ice frozen together, and not to be dissolved...The Austrasians, vast of limb, and iron of hand, hewed on bravely in the thick of the fight.”

- The Chronicle of 754, description of the Frankish army at Tours, author unknown -

The Duke of Aquitaine and Gascony sat with his council of war. Together they had seen more than two hundred summers. Their swords had flashed as one in their youth, but now the flames which burned in their hearts had dimmed with age. And yet, they continued to take the field with their armies to protect the people they governed—this was the oath they had sworn before God. They would die to protect their land from any invader, be they Christian or pagan.

Now, a great host of enemies from Iberia was gathering beyond the mountains, its eyes fixed upon Aquitaine and the riches of its cities and churches. The duke’s daughter had been taken prisoner and sent to a far-off land to be a prostitute for godless men in a harem. He still mourned the loss, but

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Charles Martel

Frankish military and political leader (c. 688–741)

This article is about the Frankish ruler. For other uses, see Charles Martel (disambiguation).

Charles Martel (; c. 688 – 22 October 741),[3]Martel being a sobriquet in Old French for "The Hammer", was a Frankish political and military leader who, as Duke and Prince of the Franks and Mayor of the Palace, was the de facto ruler of the Franks from 718 until his death.[4][5][6] He was a son of the Frankish statesman Pepin of Herstal and a noblewoman named Alpaida. Charles successfully asserted his claims to power as successor to his father as the power behind the throne in Frankish politics. Continuing and building on his father's work, he restored centralized government in Francia and began the series of military campaigns that re-established the Franks as the undisputed masters of all Gaul. According to a near-contemporary source, the Liber Historiae Francorum, Charles was "a warrior who was uncommonly ... effective in battle".[7]

Charles gained a v

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