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The Middle Of The Frankish Empire

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In 772 C.E., the Carolingian ruler, Charlemagne (Charles “the Great”) sought out to diminish a growing threat in the north of the Frankish Empire. To clarify, the Saxons, a ferocious pagan Germanic tribe, had expanded too close to Charlemagne’s domain (Barbero, 2004). According to Einhard, the little to no natural obstructions between the Franks and Saxons resulted in arson, invasions, and murders committed by both sides (Einhard, 122 C.E. ). These particular events revealed the lack of security in the northern area of the Frankish Empire (Mayr-Harting, 1996), which ultimately, compelled Charlemagne to take action against the Saxons. In order to protect the settlements and economic factors of the northern area of his empire, Charlemagne forced the Saxons to convert to Christianity and integrated them into the Frankish Empire, thus, eliminating the Saxon identity for self-preservation.
In consonance with Henry Mayr-Harting, a medieval ecclesiastical historian, Charlemagne viewed the Saxons as a threat to the settlements and economic factors in the north of the Frankish Empire. For instance, located in the northern region of the Frankish Empire, on the banks of the Rhine River, were the churches of Cologne and Mainz, which were important to the Carolingian civilization (Mayr-Harting, 1996). Additionally, Rhine played a significant role in the economy of the Frankish Empire. Between the 780s and 820s, Rhine experienced large amounts of movement due to Rhenish imports—

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