Charlemagne: The Formation of a European Identity Review

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(More customer reviews)Professor McKitterick's magisterial examination of Charlemagne is a welcome addition to literature on the King of the Franks,after 800 Emperor. The book is not a biographical narrative but an examination of five central concepts: (1) Charlemagne's contemporary "representation," that is, how he was portrayed in chronicles and other accounts, (2) the creation of the "Pippinid" dynasty, beginning with Charlemagne's father, Pippin III, and his grandfather Charles Martel, (3) Charlemgne's court, (4)royal communication in the Frankish kingdom and Empire, and (5) the relationship between knowledge and the exercise of power, with special reference to religious authority. This book is best read with a prior understanding of 8th and 9th century Continental history or after first reading a general recent biography on Charlemagne such as Derek Wilson's Charlemagne: A Biography. McKitterick's well-written book will likely serve as a standard reference for years to come. This is an excellent book.

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Charlemagne is often claimed as the greatest ruler in Europe before Napoleon. In this magisterial new study, Rosamond McKitterick re-examines Charlemagne the ruler and his reputation. She analyses the narrative representations of Charlemagne produced after his death, and thereafter focuses on the evidence from Charlemagne's lifetime concerning the creation of the Carolingian dynasty and the growth of the kingdom, the court and the royal household, communications and identities in the Frankish realm in the context of government, and Charlemagne's religious and cultural strategies. She offers a completely fresh and critical examination of the contemporary sources and in so doing transforms our understanding of the development of the Carolingian empire, the formation of Carolingian political identity, and the astonishing changes effected throughout Charlemagne's forty-six year period of rule. This is a major contribution to Carolingian history which will be essential reading for anyone interested in the medieval past. Rosamond McKitterick has also received the 2010 Dr A. H. Heineken Prize for History for her research into the Carolingians.

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