and caliphs, and forge an identity for themselves as leaders of the Christian people.
Their successes bore striking resemblance to contemporary achievements at
Constantinople and Baghdad. How was this possible? The answer is at least
threefold: the Carolingians took advantage of the same gentle economic upturn that
seems to have taken place generally; they exploited to the full the institutions of
Roman culture and political life that remained to them; and at the same time, they
were willing to experiment with new institutions and take advantage of unexpected
opportunities.
THE MAKING OF THE CAROLINGIANS
The Carolingian take-over was a “palace coup.” After a battle (at Tertry, in 687)
between Neustrian and Austrasian noble factions, one powerful family with vast
estates in Austrasia came to monopolize the high office of mayor for the Merovingian
kings in both places. In the first half of the eighth century these mayors took over
much of the power and most of the responsibilities of the kings.
Charles Martel (mayor 714–741) gave the name Carolingian (from Carolus, Latin
for Charles) to the dynasty. In 732 he won a battle near Poitiers against an army led
by the Muslim governor of al-Andalus, ending raids from al-Andalus. But Charles
had other enemies: he spent most of his time fighting vigorously against regional
Frankish aristocrats intent on carving out independent lordships for themselves.
Playing powerful factions against one another, rewarding supporters, defeating
enemies, and dominating whole regions by controlling monasteries and bishoprics that
served as focal points for both religious piety and land donations, the Carolingians
created a tight network of supporters.
Moreover, they chose their allies well, reaching beyond Francia to the popes and
to Anglo-Saxon churchmen, who (as we have seen) were closely tied to Rome. When
the Anglo-Saxon missionary Boniface (d.754) wanted to preach in Frisia (today the
Netherlands) and Germany, the Carolingians readily supported him as a prelude to
their own conquests. Although many of the areas where Boniface missionized had
long been Christian, their practices were local rather than tied to Rome. By contrast,
Boniface’s newly appointed bishops were loyal to Rome and the Carolingians, not to
regional aristocracies. They knew that their power came from papal and royal fiat
rather than from local power centers.
Men like Boniface opened the way to a more direct alliance between the
Carolingians and the pope. Historians used to think that Pippin III (d.768), the son of
