Two Lives of Charlemagne

by The Monk The Monk of St. Gall

Overview

This work contains two separate biographical accounts of Charlemagne, or Charles the Great, the man considered to be the father of Europe. One account was penned by the French, medieval biographer, Einhard, who in 791 joined the royal court to serve as an epic poet, grammarian, mathematician and architect, and ultimately a confidante to the King. Einhard's work is believed to be the most accurate portrayal of Charlemagne, and perhaps more importantly, as the finest biography of its time. This edition also contains the highly anecdotal "life" of Charlemagne, penned by the Monk of Saint Gall, who is now commonly believed to be Notker the Stammerer. This monk, a native-German speaker, wrote the volume at the request of Charles the Fat, great-grandson of Charlemagne. Although its accuracy has been scorned by historians, several of the monk's amusing and witty tales have been revived in modern biographies of this powerful monarch.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781420938111
Publisher:	Neeland Media
Publication date:	01/01/2010
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	96
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 8.00(h) x 0.23(d)

About the Author

Einhard was born of noble parents in the Main valley around A.D. 770. He became a friend of Charlemagne and his family, and was chosen to invite Charlemagne to crown his son as his successor in 813. After Charlemagne’s death he was a loyal servant of Louis the Pious, and he died in 840.

Notker the Stammerer (A.D. 840-912), also called Notker I, Notker the Poet or Notker of Saint Gall, was a musician, author, poet, and Benedictine monk at the Abbey of Saint Gall in modern Switzerland.