Charlemagne Identity

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Pages: 6

Charlemagne: The Formation of a European Identity More than a simple biography of a Frankish king, Charlemagne: The Formation of a European Identity targets centuries-old assumptions and accumulated arguments about the great king and sheds new light on the formation of a single, more cohesive Europe as a result of his rule. Rosamond McKitterick charts the formation of Frankish political identity during the reign of Charlemagne, studying the development of the Carolingian empire from its beginnings. McKitterick advances the research of Charlemagne to leave readers with a fresh perspective on a man whose legacy lives on today. Any scholar of the Carolingian era is faced with the many assumptions-turned-facts concerning Charlemagne and his …show more content…
The first, the Vita Karoli, was written by Einhard between the years 814 and 823. He was a courtier who personally knew Charlemagne. The Vita was written just a few years after the death of the emperor, and McKitterick places great emphasis on this narrative account. Einhard’s purpose in writing the Vita was to celebrate Charlemagne’s life, his way of life, his accomplishments, good deeds, and habits. Einhard also wrote to express his gratitude to Charlemagne. In addition, the Vita was written with several political purposes, including underscoring Louis the Pious’s legitimacy, and explaining Charlemagne’s imperial rule and the regularity of succession. Of the three texts McKitterick examines, Einhard’s Vita held a special significance to its immediate audience: the text addressed a subject that they knew well. As a result of this ‘audience familiarity’ and context, McKitterick points out that Einhard could have left details out of his narrative that may have seemed inconsequential at the time. She cautions that although the Vita Karoli is an extraordinarily influential representation of Charlemagne, it should be approached with careful attention to this