Pepin iii biography

Such a restoration might have disarmed opponents by restoring a veneer of legitimacy to the status of the Carolingians, the descendants of Charles Martel. It points to the political vulnerability of the brothers. There is also a possibility, from limited charter evidence, that Carloman may have been the driving force behind Childeric's elevation, suggesting a difference between the brothers as Pepin, alone, was to depose their Merovingian figurehead in The brothers exerted real power under their Merovingian figurehead until when Carloman chose to retire to monastic life.

This was surprising, but there were precedents in Anglo-Saxon kings laying down office and making a pilgrimage to Rome. According to later historiographical tradition, Carloman, having entrusted his son Drogo and his territory to Pepin's care, left for Italy inwhere he entered the monastery at Monte Cassino and became a monk. Pepin's takeover of Austrasia was resisted by Drogo until his capture and imprisonment in In the fluid circumstances surrounding Carloman's abdication, another family member challenged Pepin.

Grifo, his half-brother, escaped or was released from captivity in He fled first to the Saxons, then to Bavaria. On the death of Duke Odilo, Grifo was able to exploit a claim to power through his sister and succeed him. Grifo was treated generously, being ceded rule over 12 counties at Le Mans in Neustria, but remained irreconcilable to Pepin.

He fled to Aquitaine and the protection of Duke Waiofar —whose family had long resisted Carolingian authority. Inafter Pepin had demanded his return, Grifo was cornered and killed by Frankish forces while en route for Italy. Pepin Becomes King. Against this background of continuing unrest within his family and on the peripheral areas of Francia, Pepin took the profoundly significant step of deposing his Merovingian ruler and installing himself as the legitimate king of a new dynasty.

Pepin iii biography: Pepin the Short, Pippin

Inhe was elected king of the Franks, anointed, and raised to the throne at Soissons, while King Childeric III was tonsured and returned to a monastery. The sources describing these events are too late in date, too vague, and too partisan in defense of the Carolingians for a clear understanding of Pepin's actions and intentions. The earliest account the Continuator of the Chronicle of Fredegar reports that Pepin's emissaries went to Rome.

Having obtained this, Pepin was " … chosen as king by all the Franks, consecrated by the bishops and received the homage of the great men. Anointment with consecrated oil was a new element in Frankish ritual practice, which became increasingly important, and, with its biblical connotations, demonstrated the special status of the new king and his line.

To justify the change of dynasty, Pepin needed the seal of divine authority which would come from papal pepin iii biography. In the eighth century the papacy was under constant threat from Lombard kings, especially Liutprand — and Aistulf — Its traditional guardian, the Byzantine empire, was unable to give protection because it was distracted by warfare against Arabs and Avars.

Relations with Constantinople were also soured by Rome's opposition to its religious policy of iconoclasm and to Byzantine moves to increase taxation in Italy. In its quest for support, the papacy seems to have approached the Aquitainians c. By the mid-8th century, the Franks were attractive as allies. There was a long tradition of Franco-papal relations, furthered by the work of Anglo-Saxon missionaries, especially Boniface, and reformist church councils who increased contact between the Franks and Rome.

Papal overtures in to Charles Martel for an alliance failed, as Lombard support against Muslims was evidently held to be more to Frankish advantage. In Pope Zacharias's need for an ally against Lombard encroachment coincided with Pepin's need for a higher authority to sanction his deposition of the Merovingians. Curiously, there is no mention of these events in the Liber pontificalis, with its contemporary 8th-century lives of the popes.

The promotion of Pepin was ultimately made possible by the power, prestige, and wealth that had been accumulated by his family over the past two generations. He was elevated to the throne by the Franks and anointed by their bishops in events that were endorsed, rather than commanded, by the papacy. Further Lombard aggression in Italy tightened Franco-papal ties and produced more tangible results for the papacy.

The Byzantine empire was unable to halt the advance of King Aistulf, who, byhad overrun the exarchate of Ravenna and now threatened the duchy of Rome. Childeric had the title of king, but he was a puppet. As time passed, and his brother bowed out of the picture, Pepin became discontent with the presence of any royal power but himself. At the time of Carloman's retirement, Grifo escaped his imprisonment and fled to Duke Odilo of Bavaria, who was married to Hiltrude, Pepin's sister.

Odilo was forced by Pepin to acknowledge Frankish overlordship, but soon died. Since Pepin had control over the magnates and actually had the power of the king, he decided it was time to do what his father had never bothered to do, make the Carolingian name royal in law as well as fact. Pepin asked Pope Zachary who the royal ruler should be: The person with the title of King, or the person who makes the decisions as King.

Since the Pope depended on the Frankish armies for his independence, and had depended on them for protection from the Lombards since the days of Charles Martel, and Pepin, as his father had, controlled those armies, the Pope's answer was determined well in advance.

Pepin iii biography: King Pepin III expanded

The Pope agreed that the de facto power was more important than the de jure power. Thus, Pepin, having obtained the support of the papacydiscouraged opposition to his house. He was elected King of the Franks by an assembly of Frankish leading-men it must be noted he had a large portion of his army on hand, in the event that the nobility inclined not to honor the Papal Bull and anointed at Soissons, perhaps by Boniface, Archbishop of Mainzwho, along with his niece, Saint Leoba, was a court adviser.

Meanwhile, Grifo continued his rebellion, but was eventually killed in the battle of Saint-Jean de Maurienne, in Childeric III was deposed, his hair was shaved off, and he was confined to a monastery. He was the last of the Merovingians. Pepin added to his power after Pope Stephen II traveled all the way to Paris to anoint him in a lavish ceremony at Saint Denis Basilica, bestowing upon him the additional title of patricius Romanorum Patrician of the Romans.

Pepin iii biography: Pippin III was the first

As life expectancies were short in those days, and Pepin wanted family continuity, the Pope also anointed Pepin's sons, Charles eventually known as Charlemagne and Carloman. Pepin's upbringing was distinguished by the ecclesiastical education he had received from the Christian monks of the Abbey Church of St. Denisnear Paris. Succeeding his father as the Mayor of the Palace inPepin reigned over Francia jointly with his elder brother, Carloman.

Pepin ruled in NeustriaBurgundyand Provencewhile his older brother Carloman established himself in AustrasiaAlemanniaand Thuringia. The brothers were active in suppressing revolts led by the BavariansAquitaniansSaxonsand the Alemanni in the early years of their reign. Being well disposed towards the Christian Church and Papacy on account of their ecclesiastical upbringing, Pepin and Carloman continued their father's work in supporting Saint Boniface in reforming the Frankish church and evangelizing the Saxons.

After Carloman, an intensely pious man, retired to religious life inPepin became the sole ruler of the Franks. He suppressed a revolt led by his half-brother Grifo and succeeded in becoming the undisputed master of all Francia. Giving up pretense, Pepin then forced Childeric into a monastery and had himself proclaimed King of the Franks with the support of Pope Zachary in Not all members of the Carolingian family supported the decision, and Pepin had to put down a revolt led by Carloman's son, Drogo[ citation needed ] and again by Grifo.

As King of the Franks, Pepin embarked on an ambitious program to expand his power. He reformed the Franks' legislation and continued Boniface's ecclesiastical reforms. Denisand the Pope formally forbade the Franks ever to elect as king anyone who was not of the sacred race of Pepin. He also bestowed upon Pepin and his pepin iii biographies the title of Patrician of Rome.

This formed the legal basis for the Papal States in the Middle Ages. The Byzantine Greekskeen to make good relations with the growing power of the Frankish Empire, gave Pepin the title of Patricius. In wars of expansion for the Frankish realmPepin conquered Septimania from the Umayyad and Andalusian Muslims and defeated them at the siege of Narbonne in[ 6 ] [ 7 ] and proceeded to subjugate the southern realms by repeatedly defeating Waiofar and his Gascon troops, after which the Gascon and Aquitanian lords saw no option but to pledge loyalty to the Franks.

Pepin was, however, troubled by the relentless pepin iii biographies of the Saxons and the Bavarians. He campaigned tirelessly in Germania as well, but the final subjugation of the Germanic tribes was left to his successors. Pepin died in from unknown causes and was succeeded by his sons Charlemagne and Carloman. Although Pepin was one of the most powerful and successful rulers of his time, his reign is largely overshadowed by that of his more famous son, Charlemagne.

Pepin's father Charles Martel died in He divided the rule of the Frankish kingdom between Pepin and his elder brother, Carlomanhis surviving sons by his first wife: Carloman became Mayor of the Palace of Austrasia, Pepin became Mayor of the Palace of Neustria. GrifoCharles's son by his second wife, Swanahild also known as Swanhildedemanded a share in the inheritance, but he was besieged in Laonforced to surrender and imprisoned in a monastery by his two half-brothers.

In the Frankish realm, the kingdom's unity was essentially connected with the king's person. So Carloman, to secure this unity, raised the Merovingian Childeric to the throne Then, inCarloman resolved to enter a monastery after years of consideration. At the time of Carloman's retirement, Grifo escaped his imprisonment and fled to Duke Odilo of Bavariawho was married to Hiltrude, Pepin's sister.

Pepin put down the renewed revolt led by his half-brother and successfully restored the kingdom's boundaries. Under the reorganization of Francia by Charles Martel, the dux et princeps Francorum was the commander of the kingdom's armies, in addition to his administrative duties as mayor of the palace. As mayor of the palace, Pepin was formally subject to the decisions of Childeric IIIwho had only the title of king, with no power.

Since Pepin had control over the magnates and had the power of a king, he now addressed to Pope Zachary a suggestive question:. Hard pressed by the LombardsPope Zachary welcomed this move by the Franks to end an intolerable condition and lay the constitutional foundations for exercising royal power. The Pope replied that such a state of things is not proper.

Under these circumstances, the wielder of actual power should be called King. After this decision, Childeric III was deposed and confined to a monastery. Martel who held the title Duke and Price of the Franks, as well as Mayor of the Palace, was the de facto ruler of Francia from until his death. Pepin ruled the regions of Burgundy, Neustria and Provence.

Meanwhile, Carloman managed Alemannia, Austrasia, and Thuringia. In the first few years of their joint rule, the brothers had to be vigilant as they put down various revolts led by the Alemanni, Aquitanians, Bavarians, and Saxons. They also removed their half-brother Grifo from making any claims on a portion of the kingdom by imprisoning him into a monastery in The two brothers mostly worked together, as they took military actions in support of each other, against the aforementioned revolts unlike in many medieval instances where fraternal power-sharing ended badly.

Pepin iii biography: ); he became sole de

Being holy men they also both worked to continue support Saint Boniface c. InCarloman renounced his positions and went to Rome to retire and live a monastic life. However, some historians believed that he was encouraged to stay by Pope Zachary as a political favor to Pepin. That same year, Grifo escaped his imprisonment and was given support by Duke Odilo of Bavaria?

Following these events, Pepin became the undisputed de facto ruler of Francia.