Charles “Martel”

Frankish mayor of the palace.

Events

Date of Birth: perhaps about 688 or 689.

Place of Birth: unknown.

The estimated date is given by Schieffer. Père Anselme (1:23) estimates about 686.

Date of Death: 22 October 741.

Place of Death: Quierzy.

The date and place are given by Schieffer. Père Anselme (1:23) states that the correct date is 15 October.

Place of Burial: Paris, Saint-Denis.

The place is given by père Anselme (1:23) and by Schieffer.

Relationships

Father: Pepin of Herstal (died 714).

This relationship is given by père Anselme (1:23), by Settipani (p. 53), and by Schieffer.

Mother: Chalpaida.

This relationship is given by père Anselme (1:23), by Settipani (p. 53), and by Schieffer.

Spouse: Chrothrude

This relationship is given by père Anselme (1:23), by Schieffer, by Bouchard (p. 102), and by Settipani (pp. 54-55), who considers it a "quasi-certitude", although the evidence for it is somewhat indirect. Gerberding (p. 227 ff.) discusses evidence and describes the assumption that the marriage happened “reasonably safe”.

Spouse: Suanachilde

This relationship is given by père Anselme (1:24) and by Schieffer.

Mistress: Chrothais

This relationship is given (tentatively) by Schieffer.

Children (by Chrotrude):

(Complete source citations for facts about the children on this page are currently outside of the scope of this project.)

Carloman (about 705 or 710 - 4 December 754).

Pepin the Short (about 714 or 715 - 24 September 768), king of the Franks, married Bertrada de Laon.

Chiltrude (died 754) married Odilo, duke of Bavaria.

Children (by Suanchilde):

Grifo (about 726 - 753).

Children (by Chrothais):

Bernard (before 732 - 787).

Children (by an unknown mistress):

Hieronymus.

Remigius (died 771). Bishop of Rouen.

References

Sources (available online):

Liber Historiae Francorum (ed. Bruno Krusch) in Monumenta Germaniae Historica: Scriptores Rerum Merovingicarum tomus II. (Hannover, 1888). (c.51-53)

(Pseudo-) Fredegarius. Chronicarum quae dicunter Fredegarii Scholastici libri IV. cum Continuationes (ed. Bruno Krusch) in Monumenta Germaniae Historica: Scriptores Rerum Merovingicarum tomus II. (Hannover, 1888). (c.7-24)

Literature:

Anselme de Sainte-Marie. Histoire Généalogique et Chronologique de la Maison Royale de France, des Pairs, Grands Officiers de la Couronne, de la Maison du Roy et des Anciens Barons du Royaume. 9 Volumes (Paris: 1726-1733).

Bouchard, Constance Brittain. “Those of My Blood”: Constructing Noble Families in Medieval Francia (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2001).

Bretscher-Gisiger, Ch. genealogical table in volume 9 of Lexikon des Mittelalters. Munich: LexMA-Verlag, 1980-1998.

Gerberding, Richard A. “A Critical Study of the Liber Historie Francorum” (PhD thesis, Oxford, 1982).

Nonne, U. "Karl Martell" in Lexikon des Mittelalters. Band 5 (Stuttgart: 1991).

Schieffer, Theodor. “Karl I. Martell”, in Neue Deutsche Biographie 11 (1977), S. 156 f. [Onlinefassung].

Settipani, Christian. Les ancêtres de Charlemagne. (2nd ed., Prosopographia et Genealogica, 2014).