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Charles the Bald

823 CE – 877 CE

Retrace Charles the Bald's life across the map — 8 events in chronological order, from a cinematic flythrough to a full timeline.

Life journey

1. Battle of Fontenoy841 CE
   The three-year Carolingian Civil War culminated in the decisive Battle of Fontenoy, also called the Battle of Fontenoy-en-Puisaye, fought at Fontenoy, near Auxerre, on 25 June 841. The war was fought to decide the territorial inheritances of Charlemagne's grandsons—the division of the Carolingian Empire among the three surviving sons of Louis the Pious. Despite Louis' provisions for succession, war broke out between his sons and nephews. The battle has been described as a major defeat for the allied forces of Lothair I of Italy and Pepin II of Aquitaine, and a victory for Charles the Bald and Louis the German. Hostilities dragged on for another two years until the Treaty of Verdun, which had a major influence on subsequent European history.
2. Treaty of Verdun843 CE
   The Treaty of Verdun, agreed to on 10 August 843, ended the Carolingian civil war and divided the Carolingian Empire between Lothair I, Louis II and Charles II, the surviving sons of the emperor Louis I. The treaty was the culmination of negotiations lasting more than a year. It was the first in a series of partitions contributing to the dissolution of the empire created by Charlemagne and has been seen as foreshadowing the formation of many of the modern countries of western Europe.
3. Battle of Toulouse844 CE
   The Battle of Toulouse in 844 was part of the campaign by Charles the Bald in Aquitaine to force the submission of Pepin II of Aquitaine, the rebellious son of Pepin, the half-brother of Charles. The historical context of this battle is the three-year Carolingian civil war, culminating in the Battle of Fontenay-en-Puisaye in 841. Here Charles and Louis the German defeated their brother Lothair I, who retreated to the south with his army.
4. Siege of Paris845 CE
   The siege of Paris of 845 was the culmination of a Viking invasion of West Francia. The Viking forces were led by a Norse chieftain named "Reginherus", or Ragnar, who has been tentatively identified with the legendary saga character Ragnar Lodbrok. Reginherus's fleet of 120 Viking ships, carrying thousands of warriors, entered the Seine in March and sailed up the river.
5. Battle of Ballon845 CE
   The Battle of Ballon took place on 22 November 845 between the forces of Charles the Bald, king of West Francia, and Nominoë, Duke of Brittany. Nominoë was appropriating border territory and opposing Charles' attempt to impose Frankish authority. Nominoë defeated Charles, initiating a period of Breton expansion and consolidation of power.
6. Battle of Jengland851 CE
   The Battle of Jengland took place on 22 August 851, between the West Frankish army of Charles the Bald and the Breton army of Erispoe, Duke of Brittany. The Bretons were victorious, leading to the signing of the Treaty of Angers in September 851 and the recognition of Erispoe as the legitimate ruler of the Bretons under Charles.
7. Treaty of Meerssen870 CE
   The Treaty of Mersen or Meerssen, concluded on 8 August 870, was a treaty to partition the realm of Lothair II, known as Lotharingia, by his uncles Louis the German of East Francia and Charles the Bald of West Francia, the two surviving sons of Emperor Louis I the Pious. The treaty followed an earlier Treaty of Prüm which had split Middle Francia between Lothair I's sons after his death in 855.
8. Battle of Andernach876 CE
   The First Battle of Andernach between the West Frankish king Charles the Bald and the East Frankish king Louis the Younger took place on 8 October 876 near Kettig southeast of Andernach and resulted in Charles' defeat.

Event data from Wikipedia/Wikidata (CC-BY-SA). Spotted a mistake? Email [email protected].