Capetians – French History – Middle Ages
Monogram of Hugh Capet (980s AD) Who was Hugh Capet? When the Carolingians died out in 987 AD, the lords of France met to choose a new king. They chose a man named Hugh [...]
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08, 2017
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08, 2017
Who were the Visigoths? Early Middle Ages
Gold coin minted by King Euric,with the name of the Roman Emperor on it The Visigoths established a kingdom for themselves within the collapsing Roman Empire in 418 AD. They took over most of [...]
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08, 2017
The Vandals – Early Middle Ages
The Rhine river, frozen over The Vandals first entered the collapsing Roman Empire from Germany in the winter of 409 AD. They crossed the frozen Rhine river with a group of Alans and Sueves. The [...]
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08, 2017
Early France: the Franks and the Merovingians
Early France: A Merovingian fibula (a pin to hold a cloak on) from the 500s-600s AD Early France: the Franks invade Gaul Who were the Franks? The Franks had been [...]
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08, 2017
Who was Ingundis? Visigothic Spain
Gold coin of King Leovigild, the father-in-law of Ingundis A religious problem By the late 500s AD, the Visigoths were the only people in Europe who hadn't converted from Arianism to Catholicism. They were [...]
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08, 2017
Who was Charlemagne? Early Middle Ages
Who was Charlemagne? This is Charlemagne, or possibly his grandson (now in the Louvre Museum) What's Charlemagne's real name? Charlemagne's name is really Charles le Magne, or Charles the Great. [...]
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07, 2017
Toulouse – St. Sernin – Romanesque
Church of St. Sernin, Toulouse, France In 1080 AD, the church of St. Sernin in Toulouse was a busy place. Charlemagne had given the church some saints' relics, and many people stopped to pray [...]
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07, 2017
Sainte Chapelle – Paris – Conciergerie
Sainte Chapelle, in Paris The Sainte Chapelle was (and is) a beautiful little church or chapel in France, on the island in the middle of the city of Paris. King Louis [...]
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07, 2017
Rouen cathedral – medieval France
Rouen cathedral (begun 1202 AD) The people of Rouen, in northern France, decided to build themselves a new cathedral in 1200 AD, just after people started building Chartres cathedral, and only about forty years after [...]
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07, 2017
Inside Reims cathedral – Nave and Transept
Elevation of the nave inside Reims cathedral One difference between Chartres cathedral and Reims cathedral was that at Reims they didn't build a deep gallery over the aisle. Instead, they just put [...]
