Francia, also known as the Kingdom of the Franks or the Frankish Empire (usually used after AD 800) was a Germanic kingdom which ruled over much of Western Europe from around 509 to 843, with Paris serving as its capital until 768, and Aachen from 768 to 843.
After the Treaty of Verdun of 843, the children of Louis I the Pious divided the kingdom into West Francia, East Francia, Lotharingia, Italy, and the Aquitaine. East Francia became the Holy Roman Empire (Germany) in 962, leaving the western half as the only Francia left. After a few centuries, West Francia will begin to be known as the Kingdom of France.
Formation and early expansion (481–768)[]
Francia at the time of Clovis I death on 27 November 511
After the fall of Rome, Gaul was divided among many warring barbaric states. One of them, the Salian Franks, began to rise to prominence during the last years of the Western Roman Empire. In 481, Clovis I was crowned "King of the Salian Franks". He quickly began to expand his domains, first conquering the Roman Domain of Soissons under Syagrius in 486. Clovis converted the pagan Franks to Catholic Christianity after conquering the Alemanni of Germany at the Battle of Tolbiac (496). Then he defeated the Visigoths of southern France at the Battle of Vouille (507) and vassalized the Bretons. In 509, Clovis was recognized as Rex Francorum by the Ripuarian Franks, effectively uniting all frankish tribes under.
At the end of his life, Clovis ruled over all of Gaul except for Septimania and the Kingdom of the Burgundians. Clovis' successors proceeded to conquer the Thuringii in 532, the Burgundii in 534, and the Saxons and Frisians in 560. Under Theudebert I, Francia severed its ties to the Byzantine Empire and became a power in its own right. Under Pepin of Herstal, Charles Martel and Pepin the Short, the Franks greatly expanded their kingdom. But it was really during the rule of Charlemagne that the kingdom really reached its peak.
Charlemagne and the Carolingian Empire (768–843)[]
Francia before the Treaty of Verdun
Charlemagne conquered Saxony, Italy, northern Spain, and large parts of Central Europe from the Saxons, the Kingdom of the Lombards, the Basques, the Avar Khaganate, and other regional opponents. He is often referred as the "father of Europe", as his conquest directly led to the formation of modern countries such as modern France or Germany.
In 799, Pope Leo III was victim of a plot orchestrated by Roman nobles. He fled to Francia, where he was received by Charlemagne himself. By that time, the Roman Church was totally alienated from the Easter Roman Empire, which became increasingly hellenized. The Church had a direct dispute with the Emperor, who he was considered by the Byzantines as the messenger of God. All this factors led to Leo III becoming and ally of the Franks, who in return helped him to defeat the Lombards in North Italy. This led to the creation of the Papal States in 751, which managed to survive more than a thousand years until 1870. On Christmas Day of the year 800, the pope crowned Charlemagne as "Emperor of the Romans". The last 43 years of the Frankish State is commonly known as the "Carolingian Empire", referring to the Carolingian dynasty that ruled it (although they continued to use the title of "King of Franks"). Finally, the huge Frankish Kingdom came to an end after a bloody civil war between the sons of Louis I the Pious, who divided the land among them.
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