Charles Martel King of the Franks 1 2 3 4 5
- Born: Abt 676, Herstal, Liège, Austrasia (Belgium)
- Marriage (1): Swanachild
- Marriage (2): Rotrude of Treves
- Died: 22 Oct 741, Ciersy Sur Oise, Austrasia (France) about age 65
- Buried: Monastery of St. Denis, Saint-Denis, [Île-de-France, France]
Other names for Charles were Carollus Martellus and Charles "the Hammer" King of the Franks.
Research Notes:
From http://wc.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=:3174654&id=I593871722:
"Charles is particularly remembered in history for winning the battle of Tours in 732. The battle, near Poitiers on 11 October, ended the invasion of a 90,000 man Moorish [Saracen] army led by the Yemenite Abd ar-Rahman. The Moors had crossed the Pyrenees by 720 when they captured Narbonne. After sacking and burning Bordeaux, they defeated an army under Eudes, Duke of Aquitaine (RIN # 4056). Attracted by its riches, the Moors marched on Tours, but were defeated by Charles (afterwards called Charles the Hammer) then 44 years of age. Abd ar-Rahman is killed and the invaders retreated across the Pyrenees to Spain where they will not be driven from until 1492. In 735, Charles conquered Burgundy, adding its lands to the Kingdom of the Franks.
"!The People's Chronology; 65"
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From Wikipedia - Charles Martel :
Charles Martel (Latin : Carolus Martellus) (ca. 688 - 22 October 741),[1][2][3][4][5] called Charles the Hammer, was a Frankish military and political leader, who served as Mayor of the Palace under the Merovingian kings and ruled de facto during an interregnum (737-43) at the end of his life, using the title Duke and Prince of the Franks . In 739 he was offered the title of Consul by the Pope , but he refused.[6] He is perhaps best remembered for winning the Battle of Tours in 732, in which he defeated an invading Muslim army and halted northward Islamic expansion in western Europe.[7]
A brilliant general-he lost only one battle in his career (the Battle of Cologne )-he is a founding figure of the Middle Ages , often credited with a seminal role in the development of feudalism and knighthood , and laying the groundwork for the Carolingian Empire .[8] [9]
Birth and youth
Martel was born in Herstal , in present-day Belgium , the illegitimate son of the mayor and duke Pippin II and his concubine Alpaida .[10]
The following tale is told of Charles and of the origins of his name:[citation needed ] in 676, Pepin of Herstal and his wife Plectrude were talking together in a room when they were intruded upon by a messenger, bringing news that the Mayor's mistress, Alpaida , had given birth to a son at Herstal. The messenger, fearful of arousing the wrath of Plectrude, decided not to announce the news directly. Instead, he said: "Long live the king, it is a carl" ('man'). Pepin, equally cautious of his wife, dismissed the messenger as follows: "A carl, is it? Then let him be called that." This was done, and, so legend claims, the child was named "Carl". In Germany he's still called "Karl Martell". Alpaida also bore Pepin another son, Childebrand.
<<b>>Contesting for power<</b>>
In December 714, Pepin of Heristal died. Prior to his death, he had, at his wife Plectrude's urging, designated Theudoald , his grandson by their son Grimoald , his heir in the entire realm. This was immediately opposed by the nobles because Theudoald was a child of only eight years of age. To prevent Charles using this unrest to his own advantage, Plectrude had him gaoled in Cologne , the city which was destined to be her capital. This prevented an uprising on his behalf in Austrasia , but not in Neustria .
Death
Charles Martel died on October 22, 741, at Quierzy-sur-Oise in what is today the Aisne département in the Picardy region of France. He was buried at Saint Denis Basilica in Paris . His territories were divided among his adult sons a year earlier: to Carloman he gave Austrasia and Alemannia (with Bavaria as a vassal), to Pippin the Younger Neustria and Burgundy (with Aquitaine as a vassal), and to Grifo nothing, though some sources indicate he intended to give him a strip of land between Neustria and Austrasia.
Gibbon called him "the hero of the age" and declared "Christendom ... delivered ... by the genius and good fortune of one man, Charles Martel."
Family and children
Charles Martel married twice:
His first wife was Rotrude of Treves , (690-724) (daughter of St. Leutwinus, Bishop of Treves ). They had the following children:
Hiltrud (d. 754), married Odilo I , Duke of Bavaria
Carloman
Landrade (Landres), married Sigrand, Count of Hesbania
Auda, Aldana, or Alane, married Thierry IV, Count of Autun and Toulouse
Pippin the Short
His second wife was Swanhild . They had the following child:
Grifo
Charles Martel also had a mistress, Ruodhaid . They had the following children:
Bernard (b. before 732-787)
Hieronymus
Remigius , archbishop of Rouen (d. 771)
Ian (d. 783)
Birth Notes:
Ancestral Roots has b. 676; Wikipedia has abt. 688
Noted events in his life were:
• Mayor of the Palace in Austrasia.
• Victory: over the Saracens at the Battle of Tours, 732, Tours near Poitiers, (Indre-et-Loire), France.
Charles married Swanachild, daughter of Tassilo II of Bavaria and Imma. (Swanachild was born about 691 in Bavaria, (Germany).)
Charles next married Rotrude of Treves, daughter of Saint Leutwinus Bishop of Treves and Unknown. (Rotrude of Treves was born in 690 and died in 724.)
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