El Imperio carolingio es un término historiográfico, que es utilizado para referirse al Imperio de los romanos y los francos, la etapa superior del reino franco bajo el gobierno de la dinastía carolingia
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00:00Carlos, you have created a great kingdom, bigger than your father's.
00:25Really.
00:30But you must open your eyes, and your heart, and look for another path.
00:42If you continue to depend only on the sword, you will cause the fall of our powerful kingdom.
00:50And you, dear son, will fall with him.
01:12His mother, Bertrada, and his wife, Hildegarda, died the same year.
01:19And you, dear son, will be the last one to die.
01:28Charlemagne excludes his son, Pipino el Jorobado, of his first marriage, in favor of the children of Hildegarda.
01:38In the name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
01:44Lord, welcome this humble servant, into the bosom of the kingdom of your glory.
01:52Charlemagne's personality was very complex, due to his way of thinking,
02:01and because he was, on the one hand, a brutal ruler who committed terrible atrocities,
02:07and on the other hand, he was undoubtedly a very attractive and charismatic person.
02:13That he must undoubtedly possess.
02:16Carlos was of great stature.
02:20His eyes, large and vital.
02:26The nose, somewhat long.
02:30The neck, thick and short, and the belly, a little bulging.
02:35But those defects did not break the harmony of his limbs.
02:38His daily meals consisted of four dishes.
02:44And the meat was what he liked the most.
02:50He hated doctors a lot.
02:55Because they told him that he had to eat boiled meat instead of roasted meat.
03:04They used to say that breakfast did not suit him.
03:11You should also take care of your health, Maes Eginardo.
03:18Eginardo's notes are the only contemporary description of the appearance of Charlemagne.
03:24We can also analyze his osamenta, preserved in a reliquary in the cathedral of Aix-Grande,
03:29to know what his true stature was.
03:32The urn was opened in 1988 to study and restore it.
03:37Joachim Schleifling was the anthropologist responsible.
03:43The conclusions of the study were based only on the appearance of the bones.
03:49They were especially robust bones, and with a large-diameter acetabulum.
03:55The length of the bones indicates a stature of more than 1.80 meters.
03:59Various osifications point to an age between 60 and 70 years.
04:11I was surprised that despite the advanced age of Charlemagne,
04:16the skeleton was in great shape.
04:20It showed very few degenerative modifications in the knees and the calcaneus.
04:26It showed no signs of injuries or fractures.
04:32In general, and taking into account his age,
04:36the skeleton was in very good condition.
04:39The overall impression is that he was a man of great stature,
04:43athletic and of advanced age.
04:46A nimble and strong man.
04:56The emperor's cranial vault is also located in the cathedral of Aix-Grande,
05:01and can now be studied.
05:06The state of the sutures confirms that he reached the age of 66 years.
05:12Charlemagne did not exceed the average life expectancy of the Franks of the High Middle Ages
05:17in 37 years.
05:20With a medical study of the tibia,
05:23preserved in the chamber of the treasure,
05:26the scientists completed the description of his stature and health.
05:34For this, the chemist Bernard Blumich and the doctor Frank Rulli
05:39measured the diameter of the bones
05:42and subjected them to a nuclear magnetic resonance analysis.
05:46The studies of Charlemagne's tibia have given different results
05:51and allow us to get a slightly clearer picture of the character.
05:56It is possible to calculate his approximate stature.
06:00From the length of the bone, we believe that he measured 1.84 meters,
06:04or maybe a little less.
06:07It was relatively tall for his time, but nothing out of the ordinary.
06:16He was a slender man, not very robust.
06:20In reality, he was rather thin.
06:23The inner structure of the bones was well preserved.
06:26The tomography allows us to see the inner part of the bone.
06:30A relatively healthy bone and without serious pathologies.
06:371,200 years after his death,
06:40medicine certifies Charlemagne's good health.
06:45He was a very kind man.
07:01A few months after the death of Hildegard,
07:04Charlemagne marries Fastrada, an oriental franca.
07:11They describe her as intelligent and presumptuous.
07:15She made friends among the men of the court.
07:30Forgive me for calling you in the middle of the night, Maestro Alguino.
07:34Your Majesty.
07:38They all torment me.
07:42This world is fair.
07:46Do we really fulfill a divine plan?
07:51And death?
07:54Tell me.
07:56Nothing more absolute awaits us after our existence.
08:08Nothing?
08:11Dear King, you should not worry.
08:14Existence fills everything.
08:17It is harmonious, eternal,
08:20and will never fall into the hands of nothingness.
08:25Governors must behave according to that divine order
08:29and give their kingdoms laws that are inspired by the cosmic law.
08:37Nothingness does not exist and nothing is lost in nothingness.
08:41And violence is not always
08:44the right way to carry out the divine will.
08:50Charlemagne did not believe blindly in the final judgment
08:54and like most of his coetaneans, he was likely to be afraid.
08:58He knew that each person would be alone before the supreme judge
09:03and that he, as king, would also answer for the sins of his subjects.
09:11And that scared him.
09:14I think Charlemagne felt real fear at the end.
09:20Much of the energy dedicated to reforming his kingdom
09:24is due to that fear.
09:27785 B.C.
09:42We are in the year 785.
09:45Charlemagne meets his greatest enemy, the caudillo Sajón Viduquindo.
09:51For the first time, the rivals meet face to face.
09:56785 B.C.
10:27785 B.C.
10:32Medieval society is an agonizing society,
10:36that is, a society in which everything is oriented to the struggle.
10:41At all times, it tries to subdue the rival.
10:46If he surrenders shortly before being defeated,
10:50he has the right to preserve his life
10:53as long as he surrenders voluntarily.
10:56785 B.C.
11:09Your Majesty.
11:11Rise, Count Viduquindo.
11:26Do you believe in God, Almighty Father?
11:29I believe in God, Almighty Father.
11:33Viduquindo agrees to be baptized, and Charlemagne is his godfather.
11:40Do you believe in the Holy Spirit?
11:44I believe in the Holy Spirit.
11:49By sponsoring Viduquindo, Charlemagne makes a gesture of friendship,
11:53of cordiality, of recognition.
11:57It is even a way of honoring the defeated enemy.
12:24In the long run, it was a successful story.
12:29The Saxons had never been very different from the Franks,
12:33except in their religious beliefs and the fact that they did not have a king.
12:37That was important, but the material culture of both peoples was very similar.
12:42They understood each other well, they integrated.
12:46Eginardo says that the Franks and the Saxons became one people.
12:53Viduquindo paid dearly for peace,
12:56and his conversion to the Christian faith cost Charlemagne some precious objects,
13:01paid at the expense of public treasure.
13:04The Berlin Museum of Crafts preserves one of them, the so-called Bursa.
13:10It was one of Charlemagne's baptismal gifts to the Saxon leader.
13:15Charlemagne fought the war against the Saxons under the motto of baptism or death,
13:20and Viduquindo chose baptism.
13:24In this way he renounced to continue to offer resistance,
13:28and submitted to Charlemagne.
13:31Another issue is what he received from the king as a counterpart.
13:35In a sense, he also won,
13:38because he regained his possessions,
13:40in Saxony and was able to return to his land after a long time in exile.
13:54Charlemagne and Viduquindo sealed a peace agreement,
13:58according to which the high class Saxon influenced the Frankish kingdom.
14:02The rebel caudillo became a myth for posterity.
14:06As a defender of Christianity,
14:08Viduquindo founded the church of Enger in Vespalia,
14:13where it is believed that he was buried.
14:20The sculpted tombstone shows it with the ornaments of a priest.
14:39The wars against the Saxons were exhausting for the Franks.
14:43The rebellions took place, and Charlemagne drowned them brutally.
14:48Little by little he came to understand that to earn the loyalty of his new subjects,
14:53he needed something more than repression and violence.
15:02During the reign of Charlemagne,
15:05the Frankish kingdom reached unknown dimensions,
15:08and became the main power of Europe.
15:12He even annexed the powerful duchy of Bavaria,
15:16and parts of the Havard kingdom to the east.
15:19In addition, almost all the neighboring regions depended politically on the Franks.
15:27Today, Charlemagne is considered one of the fathers of Europe.
15:32In the current political sense,
15:34Europe is not something that we can transfer to the Carolingian era.
15:39A poet singing the praises of Charlemagne
15:43refers to him as the lighthouse of Europe.
15:46It is a simply geographical expression,
15:50without political value.
15:53It is given that name
15:55because it reigns over most of the Christian West.
16:05To rule such an extensive kingdom,
16:08Charlemagne and his entourage are almost always on the move.
16:18Unlike Hildelard,
16:20the French queen usually stays in the palace,
16:23from where she supports Charlemagne.
16:26The king's military mail allows them to maintain communication.
16:35Order a litany and a fast in the palace.
16:41Since my departure from Ratisbona, I have not had news from you.
16:46And I am worried about your health.
16:52I hope everything goes well.
16:56I greet you,
16:58in the name of the Lord.
17:00Treasurer Nicholas.
17:02In the absence of Charlemagne,
17:04Fastrada assumes his responsibilities.
17:07Charlemagne had never delegated like this to his previous wives.
17:11He is also late.
17:13Why hasn't the people of Ratisbona arrived yet?
17:16Where are the canteens?
17:18Fastrada was addressed to the only letter from Charlemagne
17:22to one of his wives who survives.
17:26It is a very affectionate letter.
17:29But it also indicates the political importance of the queen.
17:36Fastrada,
17:38Charlemagne's third wife,
17:40who was probably not as young as Hildegard
17:43when she married the king,
17:45seems to have been more politically important.
17:48That is,
17:50he allowed her to get involved more than Hildegard.
17:55In the capitular of Vilis,
17:56it is stated that the queen must be informed,
17:59like the king,
18:01about the origin of the royal goods.
18:05And Eginardo, who was not a supporter of the queen,
18:09the fault of the uprising of the firstborn of Charlemagne,
18:13Pippin the hunchbacked.
18:18The king used to agree with the disrespectful acts of his wife Fastrada.
18:24And it seemed to get away from his kindness
18:28and usual temperance.
18:33With that queen,
18:35to whom Carlos gave so much freedom,
18:38I did not get to live with.
18:40He died before my arrival at the court of Aquisgran.
18:45Then I was the same age as you now, Johannes.
18:54The palace of Aquisgran was already the main residence of the king
18:58when the young Eginardo arrived at the court.
19:13Charlemagne had not gathered in Aquisgran a group of European scholars.
19:18Eginardo was the only Franco.
19:21Charlemagne took advantage of various political circumstances
19:25to attract to the court certain foreign personalities and scholars,
19:30and even to impose a stay there,
19:34as in the case of Paul the Diacon.
19:37But at the same time he tried to make his court
19:40attractive to the great scholars,
19:43such as Alcuino,
19:45who was considered to be one of the best scholars in the world.
19:48Welcome to the kingdom of wisdom.
19:51I am Osulfo.
19:53You must be Eginardo.
19:55Yes, Eginardo del Monasterio.
19:58I am the king of the world.
20:01I am the king of the world.
20:04And you are the king of the world.
20:07Yes, I am the king of the world.
20:10And you are the king of the world.
20:13Yes, I am the king of the world.
20:15And you are Eginardo.
20:17Yes, Eginardo del Monasterio de Fulda.
20:20They send me to Bad Bauwulfo.
20:23I have heard that you are a model student.
20:27This is the great Alcuino de York.
20:30From now on he will be your teacher.
20:36And that old white-haired fox is Pablo el Diacono Lombardo.
20:42That is Angelberto, the lover of the king's daughter.
20:48There are the poet Visigoth Teodulfo and Adelardo de Corbí.
20:56With the help of his sages,
20:59Carlo Magno tries to make the kingdom of the Franks progress
21:02through a great educational reform.
21:06Before Carlo Magno,
21:09many personalities of the Frankish kingdom
21:12were aware of the serious abandonment
21:15in which formal education was found.
21:18That is, the mastery of Latin
21:21and the ability to read and write texts in that language.
21:26The Anglo-Saxon missionaries of the mid-eighth century
21:30were among the first to express that concern.
21:33And Pipino began to take measures to solve it.
21:38But Carlo Magno turned it into a personal project.
21:42And I think one of his main achievements
21:45was not to try to solve the problem of education
21:49counting only on the Franks,
21:52but also to rely on foreign sages.
22:02This document in Latin is addressed to a Bavarian priest.
22:06Borifacio informs us that out of ignorance
22:08he baptized people and named them
22:11Patria et Filia et Spiritus Sancti.
22:14In the name of the fatherland, the daughter and the Holy Spirit?
22:18Amen.
22:20King Carlos was furious.
22:23But the Bavarian priests are not the only ones who do not master Latin.
22:27At the beginning of Carlo Magno's reign,
22:30we can assume that there were very different calligraphies
22:34within the Frankish kingdom.
22:37As Carlo Magno needed to be able to send his decree in writing
22:42to the whole kingdom,
22:45he was interested in creating a unified style,
22:49as legible and simple as possible.
22:53And he did it.
22:59Among the scholars of Carlo Magno's court
23:02one of the main works derived from this educational reform was born.
23:06The so-called Bible of Alcuino,
23:09written in tiny calligraphy, the new calligraphy.
23:13For the first time there was a unified and simple writing style.
23:17This style is the precursor of the styles we use today.
23:27The educational campaign of Carlo Magno in the kingdom of the Franks
23:31also gave rise to the oldest book in German that is preserved.
23:34The Codex Abrogans.
23:37It is an old dictionary of concepts of the ecclesiastical Latin.
23:41Thanks to him, priests and laymen
23:44would understand what the Christian texts actually spoke.
23:58Among the most beautiful works that we can attribute to Carlo Magno
24:01and to the herudites who lived in his court,
24:04because it is not possible to separate the king from his entourage,
24:08there is the cultural reform
24:11known as the Carolingian Renaissance,
24:14which is characterized by the will to improve writing,
24:19to produce beautiful manuscripts
24:23and to dominate the Latin language.
24:27The Carolingian reform
24:29cannot be separated from the program of government of Carlo Magno
24:33nor from the reform of society.
24:45In September 796, Pipino, Carlo Magno's son,
24:49returns from a campaign against the Avars in present-day Hungary.
24:59Father.
25:04At last, my son.
25:08I see that the Avars have left you their signature on your face.
25:12It was worth it.
25:15Wait, I have something to show you.
25:30Carlo Magno gave his son Pipino
25:33the command in the campaign against the Avars.
25:37It was certainly a kind of test
25:40and we can say that Pipino overcame it with a good grade.
25:44The victory against the Avars was a great success.
25:48The loot was incalculable
25:51and was a great boost to Carlo Magno's reputation.
25:54There are seven full carriages of gold.
26:00And this is just the part that belongs to you.
26:04Our princes have also returned home loaded with wealth.
26:08The treasure of the Avars
26:11allowed Carlo Magno to make his projects come true.
26:15He founded bishops throughout the kingdom
26:18to spread his cultural reform.
26:20And he arranged the construction
26:23of a lavish residence in Aguisgrán.
26:27The Christian religion
26:30in which Carlos trusted
26:33since his childhood
26:36was the object of his greatest devotion.
26:39That is why he built the beautiful churches of Aguisgrán
26:43and decorated them with gold and silver.
26:46With lamps, chalices and doors made of solid metal.
26:51It was a wonderful time.
26:56You also have to write all that, Johannes.
27:06For his palace, the king Magno
27:09had to build a palace
27:12in which he would live.
27:14For his palace, the king had to bring
27:17marble and columns of Rome and Ravenna
27:20of a quality that he would not find anywhere else.
27:24I think his intention was to live
27:27like a Roman emperor.
27:30You don't have to write that.
27:34The Pope himself gave him the valuable material
27:39for the happiness of the king
27:41and the mother of God.
27:53The palace is unlike
27:56the most luxurious building of the Carolingian era.
28:01A hall of the throne as a center of government.
28:04A barracks, an audience room
28:07and the octagon, which is still preserved.
28:09A luxurious palatine chapel
28:12in Byzantine Roman style.
28:18More than 200 years after its construction
28:21the dome of the church was still the highest
28:24in the north of the Alps.
28:39The symbolism of the central building speaks for itself.
28:42An octagon as an image of the celestial Jerusalem.
28:46With it, Charlemagne expresses his intention
28:49of governing the whole world.
28:53The position of the throne in the gallery
28:56places the king at the highest point, in a special sphere.
29:02Until the 15th century
29:05more than 31 German rulers
29:07wrote their crown on this throne.
29:13The palatine chapel, the octagon
29:16that can be seen today at the cathedral of Achis Gran,
29:19is clearly inspired by a model of Ravenna.
29:22That is evident.
29:25But we have to doubt the scope of the influence
29:28of the Roman buildings.
29:31There are certain contributions,
29:34but they are not at all wrong.
29:37Charlemagne adopts in times of Charlemagne
29:40a part of the functions that Rome had for the Roman emperors.
29:43But Achis Gran was not at all
29:46an imitation of Rome in an architectural sense.
29:56Charles has already left behind the fiery youth.
29:59Now he is more concerned with seeking knowledge.
30:03And he summons the greatest wise men in Europe
30:05to the philosophical circle of Achis Gran.
30:09The participants used biblical nicknames
30:12or classical antiquity.
30:15Flacus, the faithful priest of eternal bliss in Christ,
30:18has the honor of greeting the beloved king.
30:22I greet you, great Alcuino.
30:25Oh, there is Nomero and Nardulus.
30:29Alcuino, what can you tell me
30:32about the situation of the temporary lords
30:35and spiritual leaders?
30:39Three dignities
30:42are today the greatest in the world.
30:46The first is that of the Pope in Rome.
30:49The second is the imperial in Byzantium.
30:53The third is the royal.
30:57In this last majesty,
31:00God has put you as a guide of Christianity.
31:06And today
31:09your power is greater
31:12than that of all others.
31:15True.
31:19And I know that your words
31:22are not those of a courteous worshiper.
31:27If God wants it, dear Alcuino,
31:30I will reach the maximum temporal power.
31:32With your help.
31:44The plans of Charlemagne to be emperor
31:47matured shortly before the year 800.
31:51The first traces are found
31:54in the imperial annals,
31:57where, if we observe who the king was related to,
31:59we suddenly see all the great rulers
32:02appear from the year 797.
32:05Not only the emperor of Byzantium,
32:08not only the caliph of Baghdad,
32:11not only the emir of Cordoba,
32:14but also other smaller ones.
32:17From the north of Africa, from Italy,
32:20they all suddenly appear.
32:23During the next five years,
32:26the imperial annals show how everything develops.
32:30In April 799,
32:33there is a revolt in Rome
32:36that Charlemagne takes advantage of politically.
32:43The Pope suffers an attack
32:46in which people around him are involved.
32:50They accuse Leon III of sexual abuse,
32:53adultery and perjury.
32:56The problem is that the Pope does not proceed
32:59because of the Roman nobility.
33:02They kidnap the Pope and try to take his eyes
33:05and tongue out to incapacitate him.
33:08But they do not succeed.
33:10A faithful servant helps the Pope
33:13to put himself under the protection
33:16of the ambassadors of the King of the Franks,
33:19who take him through the Alps
33:22to the only safe place,
33:25the palace of Charlemagne,
33:28the protector of the church
33:31and the patron saint of Rome.
33:34The Pope, however,
33:36decides to go to the only safe place,
33:39the palace of Charlemagne,
33:42the protector of the Roman Church.
33:45After eight weeks of travel,
33:48the Pope arrives at the Royal Palace of Paderborn.
33:53The meeting takes place in Paderborn,
33:56far north.
33:59Surely Charlemagne did not choose the place by chance,
34:02but to show the Pope
34:04what he had done for the expansion of Christianity.
34:07That is why he received him in the newly conquered Saxony.
34:11When Leon III arrived,
34:14Charlemagne made him feel his power.
34:17Majesty!
34:20You're kidding!
34:23I would never joke in your presence, Holy Father.
34:26And less on such an important issue.
34:30You save me
34:32from the clutches
34:35of those bastards,
34:38just to put me to trial?
34:44Majesty,
34:47you are the protector of the church
34:50by divine mandate.
34:53You cannot
34:56hand me over to those criminals.
34:58I have never thought of giving you up.
35:02All I seek is truth and justice.
35:05And that
35:08can only be done in Rome.
35:11Stand up, please, Holy Father.
35:17If the accusations of those criminals,
35:20as you call them,
35:23are unfounded,
35:25it is necessary to return your throne to Rome.
35:28The accusations against me
35:31are unfounded.
35:34Then, Holy Father,
35:37you have nothing to fear.
35:40Some historians believe
35:43that Charlemagne planned everything
35:46to receive the crown of emperor in Rome.
35:49I do not believe it.
35:52Charlemagne had already won many victories.
35:55In 1895,
35:58he made him the undisputed sovereign of all the West.
36:02But I can not believe
36:05that a man who controls the old empire of the West,
36:08including Rome,
36:11does not think
36:14of being crowned emperor.
36:17In Rome, no one knows
36:20what Charlemagne's intentions are as Supreme Judge.
36:22It is necessary to declare the innocence of the Pope
36:25in a legal process.
36:28For this, a skilful legal strategy is used.
36:31And the laws of the Holy Mother Church.
36:34Now only justice will be spoken.
36:37And naturally, in this case,
36:40we will submit to the old law that says
36:43Papa Annemine Judicatur.
36:46No one can judge the Pope.
36:49Silence!
36:52Holy Father,
36:55are you willing
36:58to swear before God,
37:01before the Holy Scriptures,
37:04and for your conscience,
37:07that the accusations of perjury and adultery
37:10raised against you
37:13are nothing more than lies?
37:16For everything I consider sacred,
37:19I swear that I am innocent.
37:22I, Leon,
37:25Bishop of the Holy Church of Rome,
37:28purify myself before you
37:31without being forced or forced.
37:34And
37:37I swear by God
37:40that I have not committed any of the criminal acts
37:43of which I am accused.
37:46Nor have I allowed others to commit it.
37:52Leon III, reinstated on the papal throne,
37:55will have the opportunity to show his gratitude
37:58to Charlemagne the next day.
38:03Well,
38:06the trip of King Charles to Rome had more reasons.
38:10The Romans had badly mistreated Pope Leon,
38:13and he asked for protection from the king.
38:17Then Charles went to Rome
38:19to order the confusion
38:22in the church.
38:25And to receive the crown of emperor?
38:28Yes.
38:31On that occasion he received the title of emperor Augustus.
38:34At first he caused such aversion
38:37that he declared
38:40that he would not have set foot in the church
38:43if he had known the intentions of the pope,
38:46even though it was a preceptual day.
38:49Eginardo
38:52narrates the imperial coronation of Charlemagne in a very curious way.
38:55He does not say when
38:58or where it happened.
39:01He only says that Charlemagne said later
39:04that he would not have entered the church that day
39:07if he had known what the intention of the pope was,
39:10even though it was a preceptual day.
39:13The decisive role of the pope
39:16could not have been annoying to him,
39:19but to the Romans.
39:22From the court of Charlemagne came the interpretation
39:25that they had granted him the title of emperor
39:28for something he had achieved by his own means
39:31a long time ago.
39:34I think that's how we should understand this fact.
39:50The morning of Christmas,
39:53December 25, 800,
39:56Charlemagne received from Pope Leo III
39:59the crown of emperor,
40:02the title of Augustus Imperator Romanorum,
40:05Augustus Emperor of the Romans.
40:16The ceremony was attended by a large number of people
40:19with a historical precedent.
40:22From then on, the Pope crowned all emperors
40:25for centuries.
40:28Long live the emperor!
40:31Long live the emperor!
40:34Long live the emperor!
40:37The consequences of what happened
40:40that morning of Christmas
40:43had a great reach.
40:46It was then that the medieval empire was born,
40:49under the name of the Holy Roman Empire.
40:52At the same time, the imperial crown
40:55was linked to the pope,
40:58although perhaps that was not the intention of Charlemagne.
41:02Charlemagne never returned to Rome.
41:05He dedicated himself only to domestic politics
41:08and carried out numerous reforms
41:11to guarantee the future of his vast empire.
41:14The administration of justice received unified laws.
41:16Silver became the accepted currency
41:19throughout the empire.
41:22The cultivation of cereals and fruit was improved.
41:25Charlemagne promulgated economic laws
41:28that came into force throughout the royal heritage.
41:35Within his extensive program of cultural reform,
41:38Charlemagne also created schools for lay people.
41:40His maxim was
41:43first to know, and then to achieve.
41:50Charlemagne considered that his duty
41:53was to bring salvation to all his people.
41:56It was a Catholic vision of royal power
41:59and at the same time a pragmatic vision.
42:02In his chapters,
42:05Charlemagne wrote that
42:07he was also interested in moral issues
42:10because, as a king,
42:13he was responsible to God
42:16for the accession of all his people to beatitude.
42:19His role, as he says clearly
42:22in his Admonitio Generalis,
42:25is to bring all his people to salvation.
42:32Throughout his life,
42:34Charles faced many blows of fate.
42:37He saw four of his sons die
42:40and one of his most beloved daughters
42:43and shed many tears for them.
42:46He felt a great love for his sons.
43:04Our emperor, Ludovico,
43:07was the only son alive
43:10considered in the succession line.
43:13Already in his father's life, he was co-emperor.
43:16So his coronation did enter
43:19in the plans of Charles.
43:22He was not a pope or a bishop.
43:25He himself put the crown on the head of his son
43:28as a demonstration of his power.
43:31And suddenly,
43:34he died.
43:53A powerful lightning struck
43:56the roof of our church
43:59and the golden sphere of the cusp
44:01broke.
44:04Then the palace suffered frequent tremors
44:07and the roofs of the buildings in which
44:10Charles was, did not stop creaking.
44:15A few months before his death,
44:18some people noticed
44:21that the word
44:24Princes of the inscription on the wall of the cathedral
44:27had been erased and could not be read.
44:29What did the emperor do?
44:32Charles did not pay attention to those omens.
44:35He always behaved as if he had nothing to do with it.
44:54Charlemagne died of a pleuritis at the age of 66.
45:00After 46 years on the throne,
45:03he left a huge empire
45:06in the hands of his son, Ludovico.
45:09As emperor,
45:12Ludovico Pio continued his father's reforms.
45:15But he could not preserve
45:18the unity of the Franco empire.
45:22Only 30 years later,
45:25the empire was divided into three parts.
45:27Western France,
45:30the origin of present-day France,
45:33Eastern France, from which the German empire was born,
45:36and a central kingdom that continued to divide.
45:41Why was Charlemagne great?
45:44There have always been conquerors,
45:47but we must bear in mind that,
45:50despite the internal difficulties after the death of Charlemagne,
45:53especially during the reign of his son,
45:55Ludovico Pio,
45:58when there was an internal conflict,
46:01the state remained united.
46:04He knew how to organize his empire
46:07so that a new reality arose.
46:10A unity.
46:13A feeling of unity.
46:16The Saxons felt part
46:19of the kingdom of the Franks.
46:22The Lombards too.
46:25His importance was exceptional
46:28in cultural renovation.
46:31From the beginning,
46:34he decided to repair,
46:37renovate and restore the culture.
46:40That is, the teaching of Latin,
46:43the sciences.
46:46It was necessary to reform the culture
46:49to make it really accessible,
46:52to correctly understand faith,
46:55and to renew scientific knowledge.
46:58The regeneration of logic,
47:01of rationalism and of the methods of rational thinking
47:05had such an influence on European society
47:08of the 300 years later
47:11that it changed the world.
47:14Charlemagne was buried in Aix-Grande.
47:17So cruel and obsessed with power,
47:20he was for some,
47:22wise and pious for others.
47:26What is clear
47:29is that as the first emperor of the medieval West,
47:32Charlemagne characterized an entire era.
47:36He managed to unite a great empire
47:39through the sword,
47:42and favored a real cultural renaissance.
47:46His contemporaries
47:49considered him a charismatic figure,
47:52so he erected a literary monument for them.
47:57Someone had to tell this story.
48:22To be continued...