SAINT, MAYOR OF THE PALACE OF AUSTRASIA CHARLES MARTEL "THE HAMMER"
676-741
Born: HERISTAL, LIEGE, BELGIUM
Died: QUIERZY, AISNE FRANCE
676-741
Born: HERISTAL, LIEGE, BELGIUM
Died: QUIERZY, AISNE FRANCE
<strong>Alpaida</strong> (<em>Elfide, Chalpaida</em>) was Pepin II's (635 or 640 - December 16, 714) concubine and mother to Pepin II's illegitimate son, Charles Martel (Charles the Hammer) (August 23, 686 - October 22, 741). She was daughter of Dodo.
<span><p>Charles Martel (Latin: Carolus Martellus) (ca. 688 – 22 October 741), 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.[</p><p>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. He was also the grandfather of Charlemagne.</p></span>
Charles Martel (aka Karl Martel Carolingian), was a forceful leader who was never crowned the king of the Franks. When his father, Pepin De Heristal, died in 714, Charles (an illegitimate son) was imprisoned by his father's widow, but he escaped in 715 and usurping the throne, was proclaimed Mayor of the Palace by the Austraisians. (Mayors ruled while the kings merely held titles). As Mayor under ineffectual Merovingian kings, however, he was the true ruler of the Frankish kingdom of Austrasia (in present northeastern France and southwestern Germany). He increased the influence of the Frankish kingdom in wars against Alemanni, Bavarians, and Saxons. These and other Germanic tribes had overrun Europe when the Roman Empire crumbled. Only the Franks established a permanent kingdom. In 732 Charles and his barbarian Frankish army fought a battle near Tours, France, that affected the history of Europe. Their foes were inspired by Muslim, or Saracen, troops who were bent on world conquest for the religion of Islam. In a hundred years, the Saracens had established a vast empire that stretched from Persia (now Iran) westward across northern Africa. They had gained a foothold in Europe by taking Spain. As they advanced into the region that is now France, the fate of Christian Europe hung in the balance. Charles met the Muslim forces between Poitiers and Tours. In a fierce and bloody battle the Muslims were defeated and their leader, Gaul (also known as Abd-ar-Rahman, the emir of Spain), was killed. In later campaigns, Charles drove them back into Spain. His vigorous blows earned him the nickname, "MARTEL", from a French word meaning "hammer". The progress of Islam, which had filled all Christendom with alarm, was thus checked for a time. Charles drove the Muslims out of the Rhone valley in 739, when they had again advanced into France as far as Lyon, leaving them nothing of their possessions north of the Pyrenees beyond the Aude River. A war between Austrasia and the Frankish kingdom of Neustria (now part of France) followed, and at the end of it Charles became the undisputed ruler of all Franks, united the tribes of the Merovingians and laid the basis for the feudal system. Charles aided St. Boniface and other missionaries in spreading Christianity and civilization among the barbarians. He strengthened the hold of the kingdom over the powerful nobles and bishops who sought to set up independent rule in their districts. He distributed land to his nobles to gain their loyalty and service as warriors. Charles prepared the way for his son, Pepin the Short, to gain the Frankish throne. Together they laid the foundation for the reign of Pepin's son, Charlemagne. Charles died in Quierzy, on the Oise River, leaving the kingdom divided between his two sons, Carloman and Pepin.
<span style="line-height: 16px">"CHARLES MARTEL WAS A FAMOUS RULER OF THE FRANKS. HE WON THE TITLE OF "MARTEL", MEANING "THE HAMMER", BY HIS DEFEAT OF THE ARABS ON THE PLAIN OF TOURS, IN A.D. 732. THIS BATTLE HAS BEEN CONSIDERED ONE OF THE DECICIVE BATTLES OF THE WORLD, BECAUSE IT SAVED CHRISTIAN CIVILIZATION IN WESTERN EUROPE FROM BEING OVERWHELMED BY THE MOSLEMS. CHARLES MARTEL WAS ONLY MAYOR OF THE PALACE, BUT HE EXCERCISED ROYAL AUTHORITY UNDER THE PUPPET KINGS OF THE MEROVINGIAN LINE. HE PREPARED THE WAY FOR THE CORONATION OF HIS SON PEPIN THE SHORT AND THE REIGN OF HIS GRANDSON CHARLEMAGNE."<br></span>