Kings among kinglets? Carolingian dynastic identity at the dawn of the post-Carolingian age
Résumé
The collapse of the Carolingian Empire in 888 dramatically changed the political and ideological landscape of Western Europe. For the first time since 751, in the kingdoms that formerly formed the Frankish Empire power was taken by non-Carolingian kings, who effectively broke the monopoly on kingship held by the descendants of Pepin the Short. However, the end of the Empire did not mean the end of the royal family itself: after 888, there were still kings who perceived themselves as members of Carolingian stirps regia. This article deals with three of the post-888 rulers, Berengar of Italy, Louis of Provence and Charles the Simple, who aspired to present themselves as the true heirs to the Carolingian tradition. Nonetheless, their not-so-self-evident adherence to the former royal family clearly demonstrates that the crisis of 888 did not only leave its mark on the political shape of the post-Carolingian Europe, but more importantly it touched the very idea of Carolingian familial identity.
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