THE HISTORY of CHARLEMAGNE

BOOK XI

FROM THE RENEWAL OF THE HUNGARIAN WAR, TO THE ELECTION OF LEO III

794 TO 796.

Having conducted the Saxon war to a conclusion, the history of Charlemagne may proceed with more regularity than it could possibly have done, embarrassed with continual repetitions of similar excursions and similar revolts. It is necessary, however, to retrograde in point of time, and to look back to the year 794, at which period the war already commenced with the Huns, or Avars, had been arrested in its progress, by the conspiracy of Pepin the Hunchback, and the insurrection of the Saxons.

While the monarch in person turned his arms against his more immediate enemies, and met the new danger the moment it appeared, internal dissentions, probably arising in their late defeats, sprang up amongst the Huns, which greatly facilitated the after efforts of the Francs, and soon afforded that nation a favorable opportunity of pursuing the war. During a temporary halt on the banks of the Elbe, in 795, Charlemagne received messengers from one of the chieftains of the Avars, named Thudun, expressing a wish to embrace the Christian religion, and offering to hold his territory of the monarch of the Francs. Though Charlemagne was not yet prepared to lead his armies against Hungary in person, his immediate answer was evidently favorable to the Hunnish prince; but the precise nature of the whole negotiation is not to be ascertained; and an obscure, perhaps impenetrable, veil hangs over the civil dissentions, which opened the way for the entire conquest of Panonia. It became evident to Charlemagne, however, that internal strife reigned amongst his enemies; and every motive induced him to seize the favorable occasion which now presented itself. Thudun is represented, by all accounts, as one of the most wealthy and powerful of the Hunnish chieftains. He willingly submitted himself to France. The rest of the nation were in actual contention amongst themselves; and it was clear, that the moment had now arrived, for pursuing the unconcluded war with every prospect of success.

HERRIC, DUKE OF FRIULI, ORDERED TO INVADE HUNGARY

The subjugation of Saxony, as the enterprife most necessary to the security of his dominions, still occupied the monarch of the Franca himself; and, in consequence, he intrusted the important task of seizing the opportunity, and instantly renewing the war against the Huns, to Herric, Duke of Friuli; but, at the same time, he commanded Pepin, King of Italy, to hasten back from the south, and abandoning his strife with the Beneventines, to complete what Herric was about to commence.

The Lombards and the Huns had been continually at feud, and the accumulated animosity of many years, especially amongst the people of Friuli, soon procured for Herric, Duke of that province, an immense and willing army. Supported by this force, he invaded Hungary, swept the greater part of the country,—which, exhausted by civil wars, made little or no resistance,— and returned, bringing the most immense booty which had ever been captured by any of Charlemagne's armaments.

His steps were followed by Pepin, King of Italy, who, penetrating still farther, broke through all the fortifications of the Huns, whose monarch had been slain in the civil war, captured the royal fortress called the Ring, and carried off all that immense mass of wealth, which the Avars had accumulated, both by plundering the nations round about, and by wringing from the feeble empire of the East, the hoarded riches of centuries of prosperity. All the spoil was brought into France, and laid at the feet of Charlemagne; but that great monarch, after selecting some of the most splendid objects, as offerings to the church, distributed the rest of the enormous prize which had been thus captured, amongst his nobles and soldiers, so that the whole nation of the Francs "became rich, whereas they had been poor before".

At the same time, Thudun, who had betrayed his country probably with the sole purpose of his own aggrandizement, came willingly, with a number of his dependants, to receive baptism, and constitute himself a vassal of the crown of France. Charlemagne treated him with distinction and loaded him with presents, both as an inducement to himself to keep the faith he had voluntscrily embraced, and as an incitement to his countrymen to follow his example, as far as regarded religion. Nevertheless it cannot be doubted, that the monarch of the Francs, though he might look upon the baptism of Thudun as an act of conviction, not of apostacy, could not regard his treason to his country in the same light, and, while he applauded the convert, must have despised the traitor.

For the purpose of affording religious instruction to the conquered people, Arnon, Bishop of Saltzburg, was commanded to preach the Gospel in Panonia; and both captives and populace were treated with every kind of lenity, in order that the consequences of this warfare—so different from those they were themselves accustomed to inflict—might not disgust the Avars with the religion of their conquerors.

DEATH OF ADRIAN I — ELECTION OF LEO

That portion of the spoil taken by the Duke of Friuli from the Huns which was destined by Charlemagne for the Church of Rome, was carried to Italy by Angelbert, Abbot of St Richarius, or Centulensis, who was also charged to receive the oath of fidelity from the Roman people, and from Leo III, on his elevation to the chair of St Peter. On Christmas day, AD 799 Adrian, the tried and affectionate friend of the French monarch, had closed a long and active papacy, in the course of which, though he manifested several faults, he had exhibited many noble virtues and splendid talents. Though he did not possess the grand dignity of Gregory the Great, neither did he possess many of the petty absurdities which chequered the character of that extraordinary man. He was firm and courageous, keen and clearsighted, humane, charitable, and consistent. He saw deeply into the characters of men, took extended and sagacious views, both in regard to the present and the future; and, had not a monastic education narrowed his mind, and the petty individuality of ecclesiastical policy contracted his feelings, it is probable that, free from the selfishness apparent in some of his negotiations, and the cunning contrivances which occasionally disgraced his pontificate, he would have been one of the greatest men of that or any other age.

When the news of the death of Adrian was conveyed to the ears of Charlemagne, the monarch wept. He afterwards composed the epitaph of hia early friend, which was sent to Rome, engraven on marble in letters of gold; but the noblest epitaph on the dead prelate was to be found in the tears of the hero.

The election of a new Pope had not in that day adquired the extreme importance which it received in after years, when the progressive encroachments of individual pontiffs, had raised the tiara above both the sceptre and the sword. It was a matter of sufficient consequence, however, to cause infinite intrigue and faction in Rome itself. On the death of Adrian, his nephews, who had been elevated by him to the highest ecclesiastical dignities of the Roman church, and who, beyond doubt, expected to obtain the apostolic seat in succession, were nevertheless excluded from the object of their ambition, and Leo, a Roman priest, the son of Arnulphus, was raised to the pontifical throne. No tumult, however, took place at the time : the wrath which the disappointed competitors felt profoundly, was covered with the specious mask of friendship; and the new Pope, secure in possession, instantly sent messengers to the great defender of the Roman See, to announce his election, and to do those acts of homage towards the Patrician, which were usual in feudal times on any new inheritor entering upon the feof of his predecessor. The forms of homage were ever various, according to the different terms of investiture, the different countries in which the territory lay, and the different circumstances under which the feof was granted. In the present instance, as the mark of his subjection, the Pope sent the keys of the tomb of St Peter, and the standard of the city of Rome; but, at the same time, he begged the monarch to dispatch some great man to Italy, who might, in his name, receive the oath of fidelity from the Roman people.

We must pause for a moment here, to consider this transaction, as it has been a matter of great difficulty and controversy amongst critics and historians. One party appeals to the positive testimony of Anastasius, that certain territories were bestowed upon the church of Rome, and to the corroborative allusions of the Codex Carolinus; while the other relies on the acts of sovereignty exercised by Charlemagne in those very territories, and the acts of submission constantly performed by the Pope. The one party declares, that the gift was absolute, the other maintains, that there was no gift at all; and those ambitious of the character of candour and moderation, assume, that Charlemagne gave, in a moment of liberality, what he chose to resume upon reflection. At the same time, both sides pervert the stubborn facts which are opposed, more or less, to every one of the hypotheses, which they uphold, and either corrupt the texts of the historians, mistranslate the passages which they dare hot admit, or violate all the rules of grammar, to give a forced interpretation to the most simple statement.

I have adopted, in the third book of this history, the opinion, that the territories were granted to the church of Rome, but that they were still held by feudal tenure from Charlemagne, in the same manner that other territories were held by his various vassals. My strongest reason for admitting this idea at first was, because it reconciled all the apparent difficulties which were opposed to every other hypothesis; and each event which I have since had occasion to notice, confirms my belief, that the monarch of the Francs, always reserving to himself the absolute sovereignty, had bestowed upon the Popes and their successors the Exarchate, the Pentapolis, and the Duchy of Rome, merely as feofs. Thus the donation stated by Anastasius, and alluded to by the Codex Carolinus, is admitted, and yet the acts of sovereignty exercised by Charlemagne explained, while the despatch of the keys and the banner appears as an ordinary act of homage from the new vassal to his sovereign. Neither does the fact of the Roman people having sworn allegiance personally to Charlemagne, at all prove that the monarch had made no donation, as some writers have imagined, nor at all militate against the opinion, that the provinces specified were granted as feudal lands. On the contrary, we find that it was the common custom, in the cases of high feofs, not only for the great vassal himself, but for all his principal nobles also, to take an oath of fidelity to the general sovereign,—an instance of which may be found in the homage of Tassilo, Duke of Bavaria, mentioned in the former part of this work.

BUILDING OF THE PALACE AT AIX-LA- CHAPELLE

We must now turn for a moment to the internal occupations of the French monarch. With Adrian, the late Pope, Charlemagne had lived in that constant reciprocation of friendly offices, which we seldom find between men of so elevated a station; and it has been supposed, that the presents selected from the spoil of the Huns, though afterwards conveyed by the monarch's command to Leo, were originally reserved for his predecessor. Indeed, a gift had been conferred by the prelate shortly before his death, which Charlemagne was not likely to leave long unrequited. This consisted of the beautiful marbles and mosaics of the ancient palace of Ravenna, which had been sent to France by the pontiff, for the purpose of ornamenting the superb buildings then about to be raised at Aix-la-Chapelle. These specimens were, in every respect, invaluable, for although, as I have before shown, architecture, as a science, was by no means unknown in France at that time, and though the kind of mixed Roman, which has been sometimes denominated Lombard, was then making great progress in that country, yet no such works could be produced in any branch of art as those which were still to be seen at Rome and Ravenna, accomplished when the united powers of the East and the West had brought knowledge land skill to their highest perfection.

At Aix-la-Chapelle, situated nearly in the centre of his vast dominions, and in a salubrious climate, Charlemagne had fixed upon a spot for building a palace, in the neighborhood of some natural warm baths,—a Roman luxury, in which the Frankish monarch particularly delighted. All that the great conception of Charlemagne could devise, and the art of the age could execute, was done, to render this structure, and the church attached to it, worthy of their magnificent founder. But no account can be given; for nothing has come down to the present age which can justify any thing like detailed description. Nevertheless, a number of circumstances in regard to this building are occasionally mentioned in the historians of the time, that convey an idea of vastness and splendor, which probably might have been lost had minute examination been possible. Immense halls—magnificent galleries—a college—a library —baths, where a hundred persons could swim at large— a theatre, and a cathedral— a profuse display of the finest marble—gates and doors of wrought brass—columns from Rome, and pavements from Ravenna,—such, we know, to have been some of the many things which that great palace displayed.

Workmen were gathered together from every part of Europe; and, though but small reliance can be placed upon the anecdotes related by the Monk of St Gall, it is evident, from every account, that the building must have been the most magnificent architectural effort which Europe had beheld since the days of the splendor of ancient Rome.

Besides the palace itself, we find, that an immense number of buildings were constructed around it, for the accommodation of every one in any way connected with the court; and adjoining, were particular halls, open at all times, and in which all classes and conditions might find a refuge from the cold of night, or from the wintry storm.

Within the walls, was that famous domestic college, on the maintenance, extension, and direction of which Charlemagne, amidst all the multiplicity of his occupations, found means to bestow so much of his time and attention. But every trace of his actions tends to prove, that his first and greatest object—to which even conquest wasd secondary, if not subservient—was to civilize his dominions, and to raise mankind in general from that state of dark ignorance into which barbarian invasion had cast the world. The great primary step which he had taken had been the restoration of general order, and the re-establishment of individual security by a variety of laws—perhaps not the best that could be framed upon abstract principles, but beyond doubt the best which could be adapted to the age and society in which he lived. By his care the disorders which had pervaded France, even under his father's reign, were speedily done away; and security opened the way for literature and art. These we have seen encouraged by the monarch in their advance; and by this time, his efforts were beginning to bear fruit. The schools which he had established in every different province and cure, throughout his dominions, had now made great progress. Alcuin had returned from England to fix his perpetual abode in France. St Benedict, the younger, had already distinguished the school established by his monastery, had gathered together a considerable library, and had rendered his success a matter of emulation. The college of Orleans, under the care of Theodulphus, bishop of that city, had by this time acquired a name in Europe; and while science had become an object of ambition throughout the whole of France, the means of acquiring it were multiplied in every province. So much, indeed, had been the progress made by the French people since the commencement of the reign of Charlemagne, that, whereas at his accession letters were unknown, and all was darkness, at the present period we find innumerable efforts in literature, comprising both poetry and prose, which, though rude and dusty with ages of forgetfulness, still show the human mind struggling up like a Titan from the mountains which had been thrown upon its head.

During the first ten or fifteen years after its establishment, the college of the palace had probably followed the court during its frequent migrations, notwithstanding the number of members, and the difficulty of transporting the library, which soon became considerable. Many circumstances, however, seem to show, that after the construction of the great palace at Aix-la-Chapelle, it became fixed in that place. The library, we know, was there concentrated; and several of the books thus collected, such as the Codex Carolinus, &c. have come down through a long line of emperors to the present day. Indeed, a great part of the most valuable literature of former ages, was preserved alone by the efforts of the French monarch for the revival of science; and the link of connection between ancient and modern civilization, owes its existence, as much to the endeavors of Charlemagne, as even to the papal preservation of antique Rome.

In speaking of the domestic college thus established by the Frankish King, I must not omit to notice a curious trait, of even childish levity, which mingled with some of his grandest efforts, for the improvement of his people. Amongst a number of very doubtful anecdotes concerning this institution, we find one fact mentioned, of which we have incontestable proof in the letters of the monarch himself, and which may well go to swell the long catalogue of the puerilities of philosophers, and follies of the wise. This was the adoption of emblematical names by all the persons connected with the palace college; so that we find Alcuin himself writing to Charlemagne as David, and the monarch of the Francs addressing Angelbert, his chancellor, as Homer.

STUDIES OF CHARLEMAGNE

Notwithstanding this little absurdity, which may be conceded to the darkness of the age, Charlemagne gave an example to his subjects of that ardent and indefatigable zeal in the pursuit of knowledge, which alone could lead others on the path along which he sought to guide them. Even the most dry and fatiguing parts of studies, which now form the very rudiments of education, he went through, when he had arrived at manhood. Under Peter of Pisa, whom he brought with him into France, after the conquest of Lombardy, he studied grammar; and Alcuin, at a still later period, became his teacher of rhetoric, dialectics, and astronomy; in the latter of which sciences, the scholar soon excelled his master. Gifted naturally with great eloquence, Charlemagne assiduously cultivated a knowledge of various languages, spoke Latin with the same facility as his own tongue; and acquired a thorough acquaintance with Greek, though the soft sounds of that musical language were difficult of pronunciation to the lips of the Frankish King. At the same time, the national dialect of the Francs was not neglected by the monarch. Licentious and irregular, it was at once corrupt and barren; and Charlemagne applied himself earnestly both to purify and enrich it. The names of the months and of the winds, which had formerly comprised both Latin and barbarian terms, he changed to others of a Teutonic origin. A grammar of the language was commenced under his inspection; and he ordered the old and barbarous poems, which sang the wars and actions of the ancient kings, and which had previously been only transmitted by tradition, to be preserved in registers for the benefit of posterity.

About this time, also, the mode of writing underwent a change. The rude characters employed under the Merovingian race were disused, and the small Roman letters were introduced. As the spirit of improvement proceeded, new alterations were sought; and some years afterwards, to write in the large Roman capitals, became the mode of the day, the initial letter of each paragraph being always highly ornamented, and sometimes painted, many specimens of which have come down to the present time. Though at an advanced period of life when this method of writing first began to prevail, Charlemagne endeavored to learn it, and even caused models of the letters to be laid by bis pillow, that during the waking moments of the night, he might practise the art which he sought to acquire.

Nor did the monarch remain satisfied with leading the way himself on the path of knowledge which he desired the whole nation to follow; nor content himself with bestowing on his children a careful and judicious education, both mental and corporeal; but, by constantly proposing in writing questions for solution, addressed to the various prelates and teachers of his realm, he forced them to exercise their talents and cultivate their minds, under the severe penalty of shame and ridicule. On the other hand, literary merit was never without its reward, for though, as far as we can discover, Charlemagne, wise in his generosity, seldom if ever gave more than one profitable charge at once to one man, yet those who distinguished themselves by talent and exertion, were sure to meet with honor, distinction, and competence.

PROGRESS OF LITERATURE IN FRANCE — IN SAXONY

Sometimes the nature of these recompenses must have rendered the conferring of them a painful duty on the part of the monarch, as it inevitably separated him from many of his best loved friends. Thus, in the year 796, to which I have now conducted the history of Charlemagne, his nomination of Alcuin to the abbacy of St Martin, of Tours, deprived him of that society in which he had been long accustomed to delight. Nevertheless, some compensation must have been derived by the monarch in this instance, from perceiving, that the sacrifice he had made produced great benefit of that particular kind which he was most anxious to effect. At Tours, Alcuin immediately established a school, which soon became the most famous of all those that had lately arisen in France. From it, as from a parent, sprang a multitude of others; and knowledge was progressively diffused over a large tract of country, which had previously been destitute of any sufficient means of instruction.

I have before pointed out, that France alone was not the sole object of the monarch's care in these respects; and while speaking on this subject, I may be permitted to cast my view a little farther forward than the precise epoch to which the military and political events of this reign have been conducted. In those countries which Charlemagne had added to his native dominions religion and civilization advanced hand in hand. We have seen, through the whole of his life, that the mitigation of the ferocious character of the Saxons was one of the principal objects of his endeavor; and never, either during the fresh revolts which broke out after the Hungarian campaign, or when the whole of Saxony was at length totally subdued, did Charlemagne relax for a moment in his efforts to soften their barbarism, and court them to a better state.

Schools of various kinds were established throughout Saxony; and though the particular institutions of many of these are now lost, yet we find the instance of one perpetually endowed by the French monarchal Osnaburg in Westphalia, where Greek and Latin were to be taught to all applicants. Such were the means he employed to raise his new territories from a state of barbarism; and the immense progress which we find the Saxons had made within the years after their subjugation justifies the policy of the monarch, and evinces the wisdom with which his endeavors were conducted. Other means however, were at the same time employed, the rich and extensive plains of Germany from a savage wilderness were turned into a polished and cultivated land. Cities and towns rose up on the path of Charlemagne, and a civilized population became generally mingled with the original citizens of the country.

Some of these cities still remain, and some have vanished away beneath the decaying footsteps of time; but while France herself, soon after the death of Charlemagne, relapsed into anarchy and confusion, and sank rapidly down from the height to which he had raised her, the change which the great monarch had wrought in Saxony was never done away; and Germamy has yet to bless him as the guide which first led her from darkness unto light.