The Carolingians were named in honor of their patriarch, Pippin’s father Charles Martel (Carolus Martellus): the man who had smashed the Umayyads at the battle of Tours. They produced more than one famous Charles, including Charles the Bald, Charles the Fat, and Charles the Simple. But the most illustrious of all was Charlemagne (Carolus Magnus). During a reign that spanned forty years, Charlemagne united the lands we now know as France, Germany, northern Italy, Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands into a European superstate under his own command.
