First, a little rant from an old history teacher:
As a historian and discerning writer, you must choose precise words.
Here are some imprecise words that one hears every day: “awesome”, “amazing”, “extraordinary”, “wonderful”, “good”, “marvellous”, “terrible”, “bad” – and so on. In speech, such words are easy to use, even though they sometimes fail to convey exact meanings. I’m not saying that you should never use them. Just be sparing with them.
In writing, some of the words below might allow you to express finer shades of meaning and capture the nuances of human experience. That’s what words are for. Choosing an exact word or phrase is a powerful mental act that will allow you to express yourself with conviction and even formulate ideas in a more rigorous way. Weigh your words as you choose them. In this way you will become a memorable writer, not a pedestrian one.
| Positive words for describing the life and legacy of people in history – for describing admirable actions and characteristics | Negative words for describing the life and legacy of people in history – for describing people or actions that you deplore or condemn |
| influential, determined, resolute, purposeful, tenacious, brave, courageous, astute, quick-witted, insightful, discerning, far-sighted, ingenious, unconventional, visionary, forward-thinking, enlightened, inventive, innovative, industrious | unwise, thoughtless, inhumane, ruthless, callous, cowardly, hasty, immoral, misguided, ill-judged, senseless, cruel, ill-considered, foolish, mistaken, dangerous, imprudent, irresponsible |
Dear S2Z,
During that short clip from “Blood of the Vikings”, you may recall hearing Charlemagne’s name. The commentators mentioned that his military campaigns and slaughters of so-called pagans were possible factors in the Vikings’ increasingly violent raids, which began in the late eighth century. At just that time, Charlemagne was establishing what came to be known as the “Holy Roman Empire”. “Establishing” is such a clean, neat word, but in reality Charlemagne conducted many military campaigns that were far from gentle, orderly and merciful; his “establishment” of his empire entailed a great deal of force and bloodshed. In a sense, the word “establishment” here is rather euphemistic, just like the phrase “surgical bombing” as it was employed during the Iraq War.
While many accounts of Charlemagne present him in a glowing light as the father and founder of European culture, some historians view him as a brutal warlord. Which of these extremes is most clearly supported by the evidence? Can one argue that he somehow combined some elements of both extremes? Which view would you support more?
In reality, of course, all historical characters are likely to have positive and negative sides, although the preponderance of violent, murderous dictators in the twentieth century makes it difficult to maintain one’s faith in human character.
Your task is to decide what kind of man Charlemagne was and describe him in all his complexity and contradictions.
Charlemagne set up a significant and powerful empire and was influential in the development of Europe.
Even though Charlemagne is remembered for his contributions to law, justice and education, he sometimes took harsh measures against those who resisted his power. For instance, he forced people to be baptised as Christians and executed thousands of Saxon prisoners in one day.
So on the one hand, Charlemagne encouraged learning and admired scholars. On the other, he was prepared to act viciously to strengthen and consolidate his power.
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Find out more by reading the websites below.
♦Then create a word document in which you write a careful, considered paragraph (or two) on the life, character and legacy of Charlemagne. Ensure that you include answers to these questions:
- What do you admire about him?
- Which actions, if any, would you criticise? Use the words in the table provided above.
- Show me your paragraph during our next class, before adding it as a comment to this blog post.
- You may choose to select, instead of Charlemagne, one of the other people listed on pages 256-8 of your text: Leif Ericson, Suleiman the Magnificent or Galileo Galilei.
I chose Charlemagne for this task because of the complexity of his moral character, but I am willing to concede that each of these other characters is worthy of your mature contemplation.
Here are some recommended websites:
- http://www.lucidcafe.com/library/96apr/charlemagne.html
- http://www.historyforkids.org/learn/medieval/history/earlymiddle/charlemagne.htm
- http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/charlemagne.shtml
- http://historymedren.about.com/od/charlemagnestudyguide/p/sg_biography.htm
- http://historymedren.about.com/od/charlemagnestudyguide/p/sg_people.htm
- http://www.findingdulcinea.com/features/profiles/c/charlemagne.html
- http://www.history.com/topics/charlemagne
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http://www.reportret.info/gallery/charlemagne1.html
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[wmd-buttons style=”stiched” button_color=”#1279b5″ font_color=”#ffffff” size=”2″ border_radius=”4″ position=”center” target=”_self” ls-id=”55de99fdc7f3f”][wmd-buttons-button label=”Kahoot” link=”https://create.kahoot.it/?_ga=1.135484466.2077747923.1437027700#/preview/cd32a504-9e1d-4ec3-835d-020022c68445″/][/wmd-buttons] The Vikings Play alone in Preview Mode | Play with others in Class Mode To play alone, make an account here To play with others, teachers can click on Class Mode, while students can enter the game by inputting the game pin at kahoot.it.
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Charlemagne: The Man
Charlemagne was regarded by his people as a charming, good willed character, and I admire him for keeping his cool in his stressful and evidently dangerous position as the “Holy Roman Emperor”.
Charlemagne: The Leader
Charlemagne inspired mixed responses from different people. He is credited with having ‘established the Holy Roman Empire’, however the simplicity of the word does not reflect the lengths to which he went to have an ‘educated’ society. I would criticise him for some judgements that would later be regarded as misguided, such as his thoughtless decisions that led to the massacre of hundreds of Saxons. Nevertheless, Charlemagne was in many people’s view a far-sighted, influential leader.
Charlemagne: The Legacy
Charlemagne left an astounding legacy through his thirst for knowledge. He accomplished things that still benefit our society today, such as having scripts like the Bible written down, as well as many recounts of the many people that he conquered. Charlemagne is accredited with ending the Dark Ages and supporting the concept of the knowledge-based philosophy that we have today.
Charlemagne
Charlemagne, who became king of the Franks in 751, set off on a mission to unite all Germanic peoples into one kingdom, and convert his subjects to Christianity.
Charlmagne donated money and land to the Christian church and protected the Popes.
But in 782 at the Massacre of Verden, for example, Charlemagne ordered the slaughter of about 4,500 Saxons to force the Saxons to convert to Christianity, and made sure that anyone who didn’t get baptized or follow other Christian traditions be killed.
So on one hand, Charlemagne was a very religious and initiative ruler, but on the other hand he was also very violent and ruthless on his mission to convert the pagans.
Charlemagne was born in Northern Europe on April 2nd, 742, and crowned the King of the Franks in 771. He was considered an astute and forward-thinking man and a charismatic and decisive leader. He has been called ‘the Father of Europe’ – the founder of European culture. The insightful and sensible decision to revive classical studies and improve education was made during his reign (most likely not by him) – yet he was also a brutal, ruthless conqueror. He ordered the death of approximately 4, 500 Saxons in one day, simply because they refused to convert to Christianity. That may be why many German writings dating from that period have quite a low opinion of him. He was said to have governed mainly by improvisation, was not an intellectual and could not write, and regarded his kingdom as personal property.
“‘By the sword and the cross’ Charlemagne became master of Western Europe.”
Paragraph on Charlemagne
Charlemagne’s name means Charles the Great, and he took over the Frankish kingdom when his father, Pippin, died in 768 CE. Charlemagne took over an already powerful civilisation, but made them even more dominant through Europe.
He had a dictatorial government, which helped him to control his people. Although he seemed like a bloodthirsty fighter, Charlemagne had a strong desire to promote learning across his kingdom. He revived Classical Studies, he preserved the Latin culture and established schools to teach. Charlemagne was quite pious; in spite of that he fought his battles with malicious intent.
Charlemagne (c.742-814) also known as Charles the Great was the King of the Franks. He was a skilled military strategist who successfully conquered the Lombard kingdom of Italy and the Saxon tribes of Germany. Charlemagne was the eldest son of Pippin III and Bertrada of Laon. In 768 after Pippin III died, at the age of 26 Charlemagne and his younger brother Carloman inherited the kingdom of the Franks. In 771 Carloman suddenly passed away. Charlemagne became the sole ruler of the Kingdom. Charlemagne was also a ruthless conqueror. During his conquest, he killed many people who didn’t accept Christianity or their new king. In the end thousands were killed.
“He was six feet four inches tall, and built to scale. He had beautiful white hair, animated eyes, a powerful nose…a presence ‘always stately and dignified.’ He was temperate in eating and drinking, abominated drunkenness, and kept in good health despite every exposure and hardship.”
– EINHARD (the King’s secretary) describing Charlemagne
Charlemagne is mostly regarded in history as the King of the Franks. Holy Roman Emperor, the trigger for a cultural renaissance, a man with great interest in learning, a wise and charming man, among many other titles. However, he is shown in a different light by the Germans. They classify him as a ruthless and brutal warlord, who slaughtered many to achieve his goals.
He is acclaimed with the restoration of many ancient Roman texts, being a scholarly, far-sighted man who was one of the founders of European culture, yet also the merciless man who commissioned the massacre of 4500 pagan Saxons in a single go.
Charlemagne may have been sung a hero, but like everyone, he has his dark sides.
Michael Yu S2Z
“Right actions is better than knowledge; but in order to do what is right, we must know what is right.” – Charlemagne
Charlemagne, or Charles the Great, was a pious Christian, a devoted learner, a brilliant military strategist and a visionary whose actions played a heavy role in England’s history for he came, he saw and he conquered Lombard in Northern Italy, Northern Spain, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Modern Hungary, France and even the Avars in the middle Danube. He is also well-known for aiding Pope Leo III when Rome rebelled against him which resulted in Charlemagne being known as the First Emperor of Holy Rome. I admire him for the time that he used in opening more opportunities for education as he built a library for Christians and classical works.
Although he had accomplished many positive things in his lifetime, he was cruel and ruthless. He executed thousands of Saxons in one day and forced people to baptise. If they defied him and decided not to baptise themselves they would be brutally murdered. In the process of conquering, he killed thousands of people mercilessly which brought success to his reign.