The

Franks file:Frankish arms.JPG, Aristocratic Frankish burial items from the Merovingian dynasty The Franks ( or ; ; ) were originally a group of Germanic peoples who lived near the Rhine river, Rhine-river military border of Germania Inferior, which wa ...

, Germanic peoples that invaded the

Western Roman Empire In modern historiography, the Western Roman Empire was the western provinces of the Roman Empire, collectively, during any period in which they were administered separately from the eastern provinces by a separate, independent imperial court. ...

in the 5th century, were first led by individuals called

dukes Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...

and reguli. The earliest group of Franks that rose to prominence was the

Salian The Salian dynasty or Salic dynasty () was a dynasty in the High Middle Ages. The dynasty provided four kings of Germany (1024–1125), all of whom went on to be crowned Holy Roman emperors (1027–1125). After the death of the last Ottonian ...

Merovingians The Merovingian dynasty () was the ruling family of the Franks from around the middle of the 5th century until Pepin the Short in 751. They first appear as "Kings of the Franks" in the Roman army of northern Gaul. By 509 they had united all the ...

, who conquered most of

Roman Gaul Roman Gaul refers to GaulThe territory of Gaul roughly corresponds to modern-day France, Belgium and Luxembourg, and adjacent parts of the Netherlands, Switzerland and Germany. under provincial rule in the Roman Empire from the 1st century B ...

, as well as the Gaulish territory of the

Visigothic Kingdom The Visigothic Kingdom, Visigothic Spain or Kingdom of the Goths () was a Barbarian kingdoms, barbarian kingdom that occupied what is now southwestern France and the Iberian Peninsula from the 5th to the 8th centuries. One of the Germanic people ...

, following the

Battle of Vouillé The Battle of Vouillé (from Latin ''Campus Vogladensis'') was fought in the northern marches of Visigothic territory, at Vouillé, near Poitiers (Gaul), around Spring 507 between the Franks, commanded by Clovis, and the Visigoths, commanded ...

in 507 AD. The sons of

Clovis I Clovis (; reconstructed Old Frankish, Frankish: ; – 27 November 511) was the first List of Frankish kings, king of the Franks to unite all of the Franks under one ruler, changing the form of leadership from a group of petty kings to rule by a ...

, the first King of the Franks, conquered the Burgundian and the

Alamanni The Alemanni or Alamanni were a confederation of Germanic tribes * * * on the Upper Rhine River during the first millennium. First mentioned by Cassius Dio in the context of the campaign of Roman emperor Caracalla of 213 CE, the Alemanni c ...

Kingdoms. They acquired

Provence Provence is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which stretches from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the France–Italy border, Italian border to the east; it is bordered by the Mediterrane ...

, and went on to make the peoples of the

Bavarii The Baiuvarii or Bavarii, sometimes simply called Bavarians (; ) were a Germanic people who lived in and near present-day southern Bavaria, which is named after them. They began to appear in records by the 6th century AD, and their culture, lang ...

and

Thuringii The Thuringii, or Thuringians were a Germanic people who lived in the kingdom of the Thuringians that appeared during the late Migration Period south of the Harz Mountains of central Germania, a region still known today as Thuringia. The Thuring ...

their clients. The Merovingians were later replaced by the new

Carolingian The Carolingian dynasty ( ; known variously as the Carlovingians, Carolingus, Carolings, Karolinger or Karlings) was a Frankish noble family named after Charles Martel and his grandson Charlemagne, descendants of the Arnulfing and Pippinid c ...

dynasty in the 8th century. By the late 10th century, the Carolingians themselves had been replaced throughout much of their realm by other dynasties. A timeline of Frankish rulers has been difficult to trace since the realm, according to old Germanic practice, was frequently

divided Division is one of the four basic operations of arithmetic. The other operations are addition, subtraction, and multiplication. What is being divided is called the ''dividend'', which is divided by the ''divisor'', and the result is called the ...

among the sons of a king upon the king's death. However, territories were eventually reunited through marriage, treaty or conquest. There were often multiple Frankish kings who ruled different territories, and divisions of the territories were not very consistent over time. As inheritance traditions changed over time, the divisions of

Francia The Kingdom of the Franks (), also known as the Frankish Kingdom, or just Francia, was the largest History of the Roman Empire, post-Roman barbarian kingdom in Western Europe. It was ruled by the Franks, Frankish Merovingian dynasty, Merovingi ...

(the lands of the Franks) started to become kingdoms that were more permanent.

West Francia In medieval historiography, West Francia (Medieval Latin: ) or the Kingdom of the West Franks () constitutes the initial stage of the Kingdom of France and extends from the year 843, from the Treaty of Verdun, to 987, the beginning of the Capet ...

formed the heart of what was to become the

Kingdom of France The Kingdom of France is the historiographical name or umbrella term given to various political entities of France in the Middle Ages, medieval and Early modern France, early modern period. It was one of the most powerful states in Europe from th ...

;

East Francia East Francia (Latin: ) or the Kingdom of the East Franks () was a successor state of Charlemagne's empire created in 843 and ruled by the Carolingian dynasty until 911. It was established through the Treaty of Verdun (843) which divided the for ...

evolved into the

Kingdom of Germany The Kingdom of Germany or German Kingdom ( 'kingdom of the Germans', 'German kingdom', "kingdom of Germany", ) was the mostly Germanic language-speaking East Frankish kingdom, which was formed by the Treaty of Verdun in 843. The king was elec ...

; and

Middle Francia Middle Francia () was a short-lived Frankish kingdom which was created in 843 by the Treaty of Verdun after an intermittent civil war between the grandsons of Charlemagne resulted in division of the united empire. Middle Francia was allocated ...

became the

Kingdom of Lotharingia Lotharingia was a historical region and an early medieval polity that existed during the late Carolingian and early Ottonian era, from the middle of the 9th to the middle of the 10th century. It was established in 855 by the Treaty of Prüm, as ...

in the north, the

Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy (, ) was a unitary state that existed from 17 March 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 10 June 1946, when the monarchy wa ...

in the south, and the

Kingdom of Provence Lower Burgundy (; ) was a historical region in the early medieval Burgundy, and a distinctive realm known as the ''Kingdom of Lower Burgundy'', that existed from 879 to 933, when it was incorporated into the reunited Kingdom of Burgundy. During t ...

in the west. West and East Francia soon divided up the area of Middle Francia. The idea of a "King of the Franks" (''Rex Francorum'') gradually disappeared. The title "King of the Franks" is attested in the Kingdom of France until 1190, that of "Queen of the Franks" (for queen consorts) until 1227. That represented a shift in thinking about the monarchy from that of a

popular monarchy Popular monarchy is a term used by Kingsley Martin (1936) for monarchical titles referring to a people rather than a territory.. This was the norm in classical antiquity and throughout much of the Middle Ages, and such titles were retained in s ...

, the leader of a people, sometimes without a defined territory to rule, to that of a monarchy tied to a specific territory.

Early Frankish rulers

Orthouad (1st century?) * Genobaud (3rd century?) *

Merogais Merogais (, ) was an early Frankish king, who, along with his co-ruler Ascaric, is the earliest Frankish ruler known. He was an enemy of the Roman Empire. Merogais is mentioned in the '' Panegyrici latini'' (anonymous VI and VII) and by Eutropius ...

and

Ascaric Ascaric or Ascarich () was an early List of Frankish kings, Frankish war leader, who, along with his co-leader, Merogais, are the earliest known leaders explicitly called Frankish, although the name of the Franks is earlier. The Germanic name is ...

(4th century) *

Marcomer Marcomer, also spelled Marcomeres, Marchomer, or Marchomir (c. ? - 392) was a Frankish Dux in the late 4th century who assisted in an invasion of the Roman Empire in the year 388, as the usurper and leader of the whole of Roman Gaul, Magnus Max ...

(4th century), ''

dux ''Dux'' (, : ''ducēs'') is Latin for "leader" (from the noun ''dux, ducis'', "leader, general") and later for duke and its variant forms (doge, duce, etc.). During the Roman Republic and for the first centuries of the Roman Empire, ''dux'' coul ...

'' *

Sunno Sunno was a leader ( dux) of the Franks in the late 4th century who invaded the Roman Empire in the year 388 when the usurper and leader of the whole of Roman Gaul, Magnus Maximus was surrounded in Aquileia by Theodosius I. History The invas ...

(4th century), ''

'' * Genobaud (4th century), ''

'' *

Mallobaudes Mallobaudes or Mellobaudes was a 4th-century Frankish king who also held the Roman title of ''comes domesticorum''. In 354 he was a ''tribunus armaturarum'' in the Roman army in Gaul, where he served under Silvanus, who usurped power in 355. Mal ...

(4th century) * Theodemer (5th century) *

Ragnachar Ragnachar or Ragnarius (died 509) was a Frankish petty king (''regulus'') who ruled from Cambrai. According to Gregory of Tours, Ragnachar "was so unrestrained in his wantonness that he scarcely had mercy for his own near relatives".Gregory, II, 4 ...

(died 509), killed by Clovis * Chararic (died 509), killed by Clovis

Salian Franks The Salian Franks, or Salians, sometimes referred to using the Latin word or , were a Frankish people who lived in what was is now the Netherlands in the fourth century. They are only mentioned under this name in historical records relating to ...

Chlodio Chlodio (probably died after 450), also Clodio, Clodius, Clodion, Cloio or Chlogio, was a Frankish king who attacked and then apparently ruled Roman-inhabited lands around Cambrai and Tournai, near the modern border of Belgium and France. He is ...

(5th century) *

Merovech Merovech (; ; 411 – 458) was the ancestor of the Merovingian dynasty. He was reportedly a king of the Salian Franks, but records of his existence are mixed with legend and myth. The most important written source, Gregory of Tours, recorded that ...

( 450–457), perhaps a son of Chlodio *

Childeric I Childeric I (died 481 AD) was a Frankish leader in the northern part of imperial Roman Gaul and a member of the Merovingian dynasty, described as a king (Latin ''rex''), both on his Roman-style seal ring, which was buried with him, and in fragm ...

( 457–481), son of Merovech *

( 481–511), the first Merovingian king, who united all Franks by 509

Ripuarian Franks The Rhineland or Ripuarian Franks, also often referred to using the Latin plurals ''Ribuarii'', or ''Ripuarii'', were the Franks who established themselves in and around the formerly Roman city of Cologne, on the Rhine river in what is now Germa ...

* Childebert (5th century) *

Sigobert the Lame Sigobert the Lame (also ''Sigibert'' or ''Sigebert'') (died c. 508 or 509) was a king of the Ripuarian Franks in the area of Zülpich () and Cologne. History His father's name was "Childebert". He was presumably wounded in the knee at the Bat ...

(died 509), killed at the instigation of Clovis *

Chlodoric the Parricide Chlodoric (or Chloderic) the Parricide (died c. 509) was a son of Sigobert the Lame, a Frankish king. History According to Gregory of Tours, Chlodoric murdered his own father in order to take his kingdom of Ripuarian Franks, acting upon the inst ...

(died 509), son of Sigobert, killed by Clovis

Merovingian dynasty

Early Kings of the Franks (509–613)

Clovis I united all the Frankish petty kingdoms as well as most of

under his rule, conquering the

Domain of Soissons The Kingdom or Domain of Soissons is the historiographical name for the de facto independent Roman remnant of the Diocese of Gaul, which existed during late antiquity as a rump state of the Western Roman Empire until its conquest by the Franks ...

of the Roman general

Syagrius Syagrius (c. 430 – 486 or 487 or 493–4) was a Roman general and the last ruler of a Western Roman rump state in northern Gaul, now called the Kingdom of Soissons. Gregory of Tours referred to him as King of the Romans. Syagrius's defeat by K ...

as well as the

Visigothic The Visigoths (; ) were a Germanic people united under the rule of a king and living within the Roman Empire during late antiquity. The Visigoths first appeared in the Balkans, as a Roman-allied barbarian military group united under the comman ...

Kingdom of Toulouse The Visigothic Kingdom, Visigothic Spain or Kingdom of the Goths () was a barbarian kingdom that occupied what is now southwestern France and the Iberian Peninsula from the 5th to the 8th centuries. One of the Germanic successor states to the W ...

(Aquitaine). He took his seat at Paris, which along with

Soissons Soissons () is a commune in the northern French department of Aisne, in the region of Hauts-de-France. Located on the river Aisne, about northeast of Paris, it is one of the most ancient towns of France, and is probably the ancient capital ...

Reims Reims ( ; ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French Departments of France, department of Marne (department), Marne, and the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, 12th most populous city in Fran ...

Metz Metz ( , , , then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle (river), Moselle and the Seille (Moselle), Seille rivers. Metz is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Moselle (department), Moselle Departments ...

, and

Orléans Orléans (,"Orleans"
(US) and * * * *

Kings in Neustria and Burgundy (613–679)

Chlothar II defeated

Brunhilda Brunhilda may refer to: * Brunhild, a figure in Germanic heroic legend * Brunhilda of Austrasia (c. 543–613), Frankish queen * ''Brunhilda'' (bird), a genus of birds See also * * * Broom-Hilda, an American newspaper comic strip * Broomhild ...

and her great-grandson, Sigibert II, reunifying the kingdom. By that time the realms of

Neustria Neustria was the western part of the Kingdom of the Franks during the Early Middle Ages, in contrast to the eastern Frankish kingdom, Austrasia. It initially included land between the Loire and the Silva Carbonaria, in the north of present-day ...

, Burgundy and Austrasia had developed regional identities. In order to appease the local nobility, Austrasia was usually ruled by separate king, often a son or brother of the king ruling in Neustria and Burgundy. A similar arrangement for Aquitaine was short-lived.

Kings in Austrasia (623–679)

Chlothar II had reunified the kingdom in 613. By that time the realms of

, Burgundy and Austrasia had developed regional identities. In order to appease the local nobility, Clothar made his young son,

Dagobert I Dagobert I (; 603/605 – 19 January 639) was King of the Franks. He ruled Austrasia (623–634) and Neustria and Burgundy (629–639). He has been described as the last king of the Merovingian dynasty to wield real royal power, after which the ...

, king of Austrasia. Austrasia was usually ruled by a separate king, often a son or brother of the king ruling in Neustria and Burgundy, for the following decades.

Later Kings of the Franks (679–751)

Theuderic III was recognized as king of all the Franks in 679. From then on, the kingdom of the Franks can be treated as a unit again for all but a very brief period of civil war. This is the period of the ''

roi fainéant ''Roi fainéant'' ( "do-nothing king", "lazy king") is a French term primarily used to refer to the later kings of the Merovingian dynasty after they seemed to have lost their initial powers of dominion. It is usually applied to those Frankish rul ...

'', "do-nothing kings" who were increasingly overshadowed by their

mayors of the palace Under the Merovingian dynasty, the mayor of the palace or majordomo, ( or ) was the manager of the household of the Frankish king. He was the head of the Merovingian administrative ladder and orchestrated the operation of the entire court. He ...

Carolingian dynasty

The

Carolingians The Carolingian dynasty ( ; known variously as the Carlovingians, Carolingus, Carolings, Karolinger or Karlings) was a Frankish noble family named after Charles Martel and his grandson Charlemagne, descendants of the Arnulfing and Pippinid ...

were initially

under the Merovingian kings, first in Austrasia and later in Neustria and Burgundy. In 687

Pepin of Heristal Pepin II (c. 635 – 16 December 714), commonly known as Pepin of Herstal, was a Frankish statesman and military leader who was the de facto ruler of Francia as the Mayor of the Palace from 680 until his death. He took the title Duke and P ...

took the title

Duke and Prince of the Franks Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ...

(''dux et princeps Francorum'') after his conquest of Neustria in at the

Battle of Tertry The Battle of Tertry was an important engagement in Merovingian Gaul between the forces of Austrasia under Pepin of Herstal, Pepin II on one side and those of Neustria and Kingdom of Burgundy, Burgundy on the other. It took place in 687 at Tertry ...

, which was cited by contemporary chroniclers as the beginning of Pepin's reign. Between 715 and 716, the descendants of Pepin disputed the succession. Finally, in 747

Pepin the Short the Short (; ; ; – 24 September 768), was King of the Franks from 751 until his death in 768. He was the first Carolingian dynasty, Carolingian to become king. Pepin was the son of the Frankish prince Charles Martel and his wife Rotrude of H ...

became Mayor of the Palace of Austrasia in addition to that of Neustria, making him ruler of the entire Frankish kingdom. He arranged for the deposition of the Merovingian king Childeric III and in March 752,Claudio Rendina & Paul McCusker, ''The Popes: Histories and Secrets'', (New York : 2002), p. 145 Pepin was himself anointed King of the Franks. The office of Mayor was absorbed into the Crown, and this marked the start of the Carolingians as the ruling dynasty. Charlemagne was crowned emperor in the year 800, beginning the line of

Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans (disambiguation), Emperor of the Romans (; ) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period (; ), was the ruler and h ...

s that lasted (with some interruptions) until 1806, although the title was held by

German monarchs This is a list of monarchs who ruled over East Francia, and the Kingdom of Germany (), from Treaty of Verdun, the division of the Francia, Frankish Empire in 843 and Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, the collapse of the Holy Roman Empire in ...

after 962. Louis the Pious made many divisions of his empire during his lifetime. The final division, pronounced at

Worms The World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) is a taxonomic database that aims to provide an authoritative and comprehensive catalogue and list of names of marine organisms. Content The content of the registry is edited and maintained by scien ...

in 838, made Charles the Bald heir to the west, including Aquitaine, and Lothair heir to the east, including Italy and excluding Bavaria, which was left for

Louis the German Louis the German (German language, German: ''Ludwig der Deutsche''; c. 806/810 – 28 August 876), also known as Louis II of Germany (German language, German: ''Ludwig II. von Deutschland''), was the first king of East Francia, and ruled from 8 ...

. However, following the emperor's death in 840, the empire was plunged into a civil war that lasted three years. The Frankish kingdom was then divided by the

Treaty of Verdun The Treaty of Verdun (; ), agreed to on 10 August 843, ended the Carolingian civil war and divided the Carolingian Empire between Lothair I, Louis the German, Louis II and Charles the Bald, Charles II, the surviving sons of the emperor Louis the ...

in 843. Lothair was allowed to keep his imperial title and his kingdom of Italy, and granted the newly created Kingdom of

, a corridor of land stretching from Italy to the North Sea, and including the Low Countries, the Rhineland (including Aachen), Burgundy, and Provence. Charles was confirmed in Aquitaine, where Pepin I's son Pepin II was opposing him, and granted

(modern France), the lands west of Lothair's Kingdom. Louis the German was confirmed in Bavaria and granted

(modern Germany), the lands east of Lothair's kingdom. The following table does not provide a complete listing for some of the various ''regna'' of the empire, especially those who were ''subregna'' of the Western, Middle, or Eastern kingdom such as

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, and

Aquitaine Aquitaine (, ; ; ; ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Aguiéne''), archaic Guyenne or Guienne (), is a historical region of southwestern France and a former Regions of France, administrative region. Since 1 January 2016 it has been part of the administ ...

Kings of all Franks (simplified)

( 509–511) *

Chlothar I Chlothar I, sometime called "the Old" (French: le Vieux), (died December 561) also anglicised as Clotaire from the original French version, was a king of the Franks of the Merovingian dynasty and one of the four sons of Clovis I. With his eldes ...

(558–561) *

(632–634) *

Chlothar III Chlothar III (also spelled ''Chlotar'', ''Clothar'', ''Clotaire'', ''Chlotochar'', or ''Hlothar''; 652–673) was King of the Franks, ruling in Neustria and Burgundy from 657 to his death. He also briefly ruled Austrasia. He was the eldest son of ...

(662–663) *

Childeric II Childeric II ( 653 – 675) was List of Frankish kings, King of the Franks in the 7th century. He ruled Austrasia from 662 and Neustria and Kingdom of Burgundy, Burgundy from 673 until his death, making him sole king for the final two years o ...

(673–675) *

Theuderic III Theuderic III (also spelled Theuderich, Theoderic or Theodoric; , 651–691) was King of the Franks in the 7th century. He ruled Neustria and Burgundy on two occasions (in 673 and again from 675 to 691), as well as Austrasia from 679 until his ...

(679–691) *

Clovis IV Clovis IV ( 677–694/695) was the king of the Franks from 690 or 691 until his death. If the brief reign of Clovis III (675) is ignored as a usurpation, then Clovis IV may be numbered Clovis III. A member of the Merovingian dynasty, Clovis was ...

(691–695) * Childebert IV (695–711) *

Dagobert III Dagobert III ( 699–715) was Merovingian king of the Franks (711–715). He was a son of Childebert III. He succeeded his father as the head of the three Frankish kingdoms— Neustria and Austrasia, unified since Pippin's victory at T ...

(711–715) *

Chilperic II Chilperic II ( 672 – 13 February 721) was King of the Franks from 715 until his death. He was a son of Childeric II and his half-cousin wife, Bilichild, both of whom were assassinated, along with their eldest son Dagobert, in 675. Still a ...

(715–717, 719–721) *

Theuderic IV Theuderic IV ( – 737, French, ''Thierry'') was the Merovingian king of the Franks from 721 until his death i737 He was the son of Dagobert III. During his reign, his realm was controlled by the mayor of the palace, Charles Martel. The kin ...

(721–737) * ''

Charles Martel Charles Martel (; – 22 October 741), ''Martel'' being a sobriquet in Old French for "The Hammer", was a Franks, Frankish political and military leader who, as Duke and Prince of the Franks and Mayor of the Palace, was the de facto ruler of ...

'' (regent, 737–741) *

Childeric III Childeric III ( 717 – 754) was King of the Franks from 743 until he was deposed in 751 by Pepin the Short. He was the last Frankish king from the Merovingian dynasty. Once Childeric was deposed, Pepin became king, initiating the Carolingian dy ...

(743–751) *

(751–768) *

Charles the Great Charlemagne ( ; 2 April 748 – 28 January 814) was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and Emperor of what is now known as the Carolingian Empire from 800, holding these titles until his death in 814. He united mo ...

(771–814) *

Louis the Pious Louis the Pious (; ; ; 16 April 778 – 20 June 840), also called the Fair and the Debonaire, was King of the Franks and Holy Roman Emperor, co-emperor with his father, Charlemagne, from 813. He was also King of Aquitaine from 781. As the only ...

(814–840) *

Charles the Fat Charles the Fat (839 – 13 January 888) was the emperor of the Carolingian Empire from 881 to 887. A member of the Carolingian dynasty, Charles was the youngest son of Louis the German and Hemma, and a great-grandson of Charlemagne. He was t ...

Early Frankish rulers

Salian Franks The Salian Franks, or Salians, sometimes referred to using the Latin word or , were a Frankish people who lived in what was is now the Netherlands in the fourth century. They are only mentioned under this name in historical records relating to ...

Ripuarian Franks The Rhineland or Ripuarian Franks, also often referred to using the Latin plurals ''Ribuarii'', or ''Ripuarii'', were the Franks who established themselves in and around the formerly Roman city of Cologne, on the Rhine river in what is now Germa ...

Merovingian dynasty

Early Kings of the Franks (509–613)

Kings in Neustria and Burgundy (613–679)

Kings in Austrasia (623–679)

Later Kings of the Franks (679–751)

Carolingian dynasty

Kings of all Franks (simplified)

Graphic lists

Successors of Clovis I (511–561)

Successors of Chlothar I (561–634)

Successors of Dagobert I (634–751)

Successors of Louis I (840–987)

See also

References

Sources

Further reading

External links