Few figures loom larger in medieval history than Charlemagne (c. 742–814). From Frankish king to Emperor of the Romans, he built one of the largest empires in Europe since antiquity. His reign combined conquest; wars against the Saxons, Lombards, and Avars; with reforms in law, governance, and learning. Through vision and force, Charlemagne united much of Western and Central Europe, laying the groundwork for centuries of political and cultural development.

In this episode of The History in Motion Podcast, we trace his rise: the rivalry with his brother Carloman, his alliance with the papacy, and the dramatic Christmas Day of 800 when Pope Leo III crowned him Emperor, reviving the idea of a Western empire and setting the stage for the Holy Roman Empire.

Yet Charlemagne was more than a conqueror. He sparked the Carolingian Renaissance, a revival of scholarship and culture that standardized Latin learning, preserved classical texts, and reshaped the church and schools of Europe.

After his death in 814, his empire fractured, but his legend only grew. Einhard praised him as an ideal ruler, medieval epics cast him as a Christian hero, and later leaders from Napoleon to modern Europe claimed him as a forefather. Remembered as the “Father of Europe,” Charlemagne became a lasting symbol of unity and cultural renewal.

This episode asks: Who was the real Charlemagne? Ruthless conqueror, pious reformer, or legend shaped by myth? Join us as we uncover the man who remade the West and left a legacy still felt more than 1,200 years later.