Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
AboutthetimeofChrist,Romans“Latinized”thelandoftheGauls.Withthefifth-century
fallofRome,thebarbarianFranksandBurgundiansinvaded.Today'sFranceevolvedfrom
this unique mix of Latin and Celtic cultures.
While France wallowed with the rest of Europe in medieval darkness, it got a head
start in its development as a nation-state. In 507, Clovis, the king of the Franks, estab-
lished Paris as the capital of his Christian Merovingian dynasty. Clovis and the Franks
wouldeventuallybecomeLouisandtheFrench.TheFrankishmilitaryleaderCharlesMar-
tel stopped the spread of Islam by beating the North African Moors at the Battle of Tours
(a.k.a. the Battle of Poitiers). And Charlemagne (“Charles the Great”), the most important
ofthe“DarkAge”Frankishkings,wascrownedHolyRomanEmperorbythepopein800.
Charlemagnepresidedoverthe“CarolingianRenaissance”andeffectivelyruledanempire
that was vast for its time.
The Treaty of Verdun (843), which divided Charlemagne's empire among his grand-
sons, marks what could be considered the birth of Europe. For the first time, a treaty was
signed in vernacular languages (French and German), rather than in Latin. This split es-
tablished a Franco-Germanic divide, and heralded an age of fragmentation. While petty
princes took the reigns, the Frankish king ruled only Ile de France, a small region around
Paris.
Vikings,orNorsemen,settledinwhatbecameNormandy.Later,in1066,these“Nor-
mans” invaded England. The Norman king, William the Conqueror, consolidated his Eng-
lish domain, accelerating the formation of modern England. But his rule also muddied
the political waters between England and France, kicking off a centuries-long struggle
between the two nations.
In the 12th century, Eleanor of Aquitaine (a separate country in southwest France)
married Louis VII, king of France, bringing Aquitaine under French rule. They divorced,
and she married Henry of Normandy (soon to be Henry II of England). This marital union
gave England control of a huge swath of land from the English Channel to the Pyrenees.
