Charlemagne - Father of a Continent

The most important study of Charlemagne in a generation, this biography by distinguished medievalist Alessandro Barbero illuminates both the man and the world in which he lived. Charles the Great - Charlemagne - reigned from a.d. 768 to a.d. 814. At the time if his death, his empire stretched across Europe to include Bavaria, Saxony, parts of Spain, and Italy. With a remarkable grasp of detail and a sweeping knowledge of Carolingian institutions and economy, Barbero not only brings Charlemagne to life with accounts of his physical appearance, tastes and habits, family life, and ideas and actions but also conveys what it meant to be king of the Franks and, later, emperor. He recounts how Charlemagne ruled his empire, kept justice, and waged wars. He vividly describes the nature of everyday life at that time, how the economy functioned, and how Christians perceived their religion.

Report

"[Professor Barbero] ... has a lightness of touch indispensable in approaching a subject which has constipated generations of continental scholars. He is particularly good in following through the repercussions of war down the social scale to the peasants who made up at least 90 per cent of the population. . . . Barbero is also a historical novelist, and knows how to hold the attention with arresting details." - The Spectator

Product details

• Authors: Alessandro Barbero, Barbero Alessandro, Barbero/Cameron
• Assisted by: Alessandro Barbero (Editor), Allan Cameron (Editor), Allan Cameron (Translation), Cameron Allan (Translation)
• Publisher: University Of California Press
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 23.02.2018
• EAN: 9780520297210
• ISBN: 978-0-520-29721-0
• No. of pages: 440
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > History > Middle Ages; Europe, European History, Biography: historical, political & military, HISTORY / Europe / General, Early history: c 500 to c 1450/1500, Biography: historical, political and military, European history: medieval period, middle ages, HISTORY / Europe / Medieval, C 500 CE To C 1000 CE, 8th century, c 700 to c 799