Charlemagne, who was born around 747, was the first recognized emperor to rule from western Europe since the fall of the Western Roman Empire. The expanded Frankish state that Charlemagne founded is called the Carolingian Empire. More than anyone else, it was the great Frankish ruler who provided the basis for the civilization which we today call “Western European” as opposed to the classical European civilization that had preceded it.

Charlemagne is referred to as the "Father of Europe" because he united most of Western Europe for the first time since the classical era. He even united parts of Europe that had never been under Frankish or Roman rule. And his reign spurred the Carolingian Renaissance, a period of energetic, cultural, and intellectual activity within the Western Church. His pursuit of reforms in myriad institutions is legendary: administrative, military, economic, monetary, educational, religious, writing, and political. He kept amazingly accurate accounts of his estates, some of which still survive.

Charlemagne died in 814 and was laid to rest in Aachen Cathedral in his imperial capital city of Aachen, located in present-day Germany. Listen as this great history by Richard Winston, considered the finest in the English language, takes you back to the exciting 8th century and the dynamic adventures of one of history’s greatest men. This recording also includes a brief introduction on the social and religious structure of the 8th century.