European Kingdoms

France

The country of France emerged from what had been the Celtic territory known to the Romans as as Gaul or Gallia. The Germanic Franks migrated into north-eastern France and Belgium during the fourth and fifth centuries as the Roman empire was fading, eventually becoming the chief power in the region.

Domination of all of what became modern France followed in the early sixth century, as the Merovingian Franks replaced the Roman empire and the Visigoth kingdom as the main authority in Gaul. That domination was subsequently extended to cover almost all of Western Europe under the Carolingian kings. By the end of the ninth century their empire started to break up. It was officially divided in AD 888, at which point modern France could be said to have truly been created.

Tribal Leaders of the Franks

The Frankish peoples are thought to have originated in the region of the Black Sea. They moved up to the Rhine and were first documented as living on the Lower Rhine valley (on the east bank, in what is now northern Belgium and the southern Netherlands), during the third century (the Period of Migration). They were one of several west Germanic federations, and were formed out of the Salians, Sicambri, Chamavi, Tencteri, Chattuarii, Bructeri, Usipetes, Ampsivarii, and Chatti (the later Hessians). Most of these peoples were living along the Rhine's northern borders in what was then known as Francia. The Salian (Western) Franks led the influx of Frankish and sub-Frankish peoples into the Roman empire from across the Rhine, where they were treated as foederati. They formed a kingdom that was acknowledged by the Romans in AD 358, although in reality it was a confederation of smaller states which were formed along the line of their advance, such as at Cambrai and Yssel.

The Frankish realm underwent many partitions and changes of border, since the Franks divided their property among surviving sons and, lacking a broad sense of a res publica, they primarily conceived of their realm as a large swathe of private property.

(Additional information taken from The Oxford History of England: Roman Britain, Peter Salway.)

c.AD 50

There is an invasion across the Rhine into the Roman empire by a Teutonic people whom the Romans name the Chamavi [tribe or group] of the Franci.

c.250

A group of Franks take advantage of a weakened Roman empire and penetrate as far as Tarragona in modern Spain. They plague this region for about a decade before Roman forces subdue them and expel them from Roman territory.

? - 306

Ascarich / Acaric

Frankish leader. Executed.

? - 306

Merogais

Co-ruler whose existence is uncertain. Executed.

306

Frankish leader Ascarich and his co-ruler lead a raid across the Rhine into Roman southern Gaul, apparently breaking a previous agreement. They are defeated, captured, and executed in an amphitheatre by the simple means of allowing them and their followers to be torn apart by animals to the applause of the crowd. They are the first Frankish leaders to have their names recorded for posterity.

fl 354 - 380

Mallobaudes

Frankish leader who served in the Roman army in Gaul.

358

The Franks are accepted into the northern Roman empire by Julian the Apostate. Also in Gaul is Mallobaudes, another Frankish chief. Between 354 and at least 380, he serves in the Roman army, helping to defeat the Alemanni in 378 and killing Macrian, king of the Bucinobantes in 380.

fl 388

Gendobaud

Frankish leader.

fl 388

Sunno

Frankish leader.

fl 388 - 390s?

Marcomer

Brother. Father of Pharamond?

388

Gendobaud, Sunno and Marcomer lead an invasion of the Roman provinces of Germania and Belgia. their warriors break through the limes, destroying farmlands and killing people around the city of Cologne, before retreating across the border with their booty. Roman general Quintinus mounts a reprisal raid across the border but his troops are surrounded and beaten, and very few of them make it back.

A later source suggests that after the death of Sunno, Marcomer attempts to unite the Frankish tribes by proposing his own son, Pharamond as the first king, or perhaps 'high king' would be more appropriate. His success or failure is unrecorded, but in the early fifth century, Pharamond is certainly regarded as the first (high) king of the Franks.

407

By now the Franks are settled on the west bank of the Rhine in minor 'kingdoms' which cover areas of north-eastern Gaul, along with some groups of Suevi. They defend the Rhine against invading fellow Germans and remain a strong force in support of Rome for most of the century, and eventually, under Clovis, even strive to replace Rome as a European empire-builder.

During the crossing of the Vandals (to avoid the Huns), the Franks attack this apparent threat to their own position. The Alans, also crossing the Rhine, come to the aid of the Vandals and save them from destruction.

fl 417

Merovée

Frankish leader. Sicambrian Frank. Semi-legendary.

409 - 426

Pharamond

Frankish leader. First high king of Salian Franks.

418 - 486

Roman government in the area centered on Soissons is maintained, even though the region becomes more and more isolated from Italy and surrounded by Frankish states to the north-east and by the Visigoths to the south. From 461 it becomes fully independent in all but name.

420

According to Roman historian Prosper Tiro, Pharamond (probable son of Marcomer) leads his people across the Rhine to settle on the west bank. As there are already Franks there (perhaps Sicambrian Franks), Pharamond's arrival could spell the first presence of the Salian Franks inside the Roman empire, leaving the Ripuarian Franks on the east bank.

fl 422

Theudemer / Theudemeres

Frankish leader. Details are unknown.

c.422

Theudemeres is the son of the Roman commander, Ricimer (Richomeres). A Roman army enters Gaul, possibly in retaliation for Frankish support for the Roman usurper, Jovinus. Theudemeres and his mother Ascyla (Ricimer's wife) are executed by the sword.

426 - 448

Chlodion / Clodian / Chlodio VI the Hairy

Pharamond's son. King of Salian Franks of Cambrai.

428

The Franks on the Rhine are defeated by Romans under the command of Aetius.

The fairly insignificant Mosan Franks settled the area between Soissons and the Alemanni, taking the Roman town at Moguntiacum (Metz or Mainz) the gates of which are shown here

432

Gregory of Tours mentions Chlodio as the first king to start the conquest of Gaul by taking Camaracum (Cambrai) and Tournai in north-eastern Gaul (modern Belgium), and expanding the border of Frankish territory south to the Somme. This probably takes some time, and Sidonius relates that the Roman general Aëtius had surprised them at their first attempt in 431 and had driven them back. However, it marks the beginning of Francia as a settled kingdom with a foot on both sides of the Rhine.

448 - 458

Merovée / Merovech / Meerwig the Young

Son of Chlodian. King of the Salian Franks of Yssel (Cambrai).

451

To preserve his new domains, Merovech fights alongside the Visigoths on the side of Rome to halt the advance of the Huns at the Battle of the Catalaunian Plains. Merovech also becomes the founding figure of the Merovingian dynasty of kings.

455

The Ripuarian Franks, less cohesive than their cousins on the west bank of the Rhine, capture the Roman city of Cologne (at the heart of the Rhineland) and make it their capital.

458 - 481

Childeric I

Son. King of the Salian Franks of Yssel (bordering Frisia).

463 - 481

Childeric becomes an important ally for the Roman domain of Soissons on his southern border, probably as foederati. Aegidius helps him defeat the Visigoths in 463. Childeric's death sees his son, Clovis succeed him to forge the main body of Franks into one Merovingian kingdom, killing off rival Minor Kings.

475

The Franks conquer the former Roman capital of Gaul, Trier (Augusta Treverorum). The city had already been sacked by Franks (probably in 413 and 421) and by the Huns in 451. As a result of the conflicts of this period, Trier's population decreases from an estimated 80,000 in the fourth century to 5,000 at the beginning of the sixth century. Its last Roman ruler is Arbogast, descendant of the man of the same name who had been magister militum under Western Emperor Valentinian II in the fourth century. Until its fall it had probably been one of a string of relatively friendly states stretching from Armorica to the Rhine in the mid-fifth century (including Soissons and the Franks themselves).

Frankish Minor Kings
AD 480s - c.509

The Franks who settled on the west bank of the Rhine at the start of the fifth century created minor kingdoms which covered much of north-eastern Gaul. They defended the Rhine against invading fellow Germans and remained a strong force in support of Rome for most of the century. However, when Clovis son of Childeric I of the Salian Franks of Yssel succeeded his father, he pursued an aggressive policy of conquest. He wanted to create a single Frankish kingdom, and his fellow Frankish kings were not going to stand in his way. They were eliminated between the 480s and around 509, fulfilling Clovis' dream of a single Merovingian-controlled Frankish state.

fl 480s

Ragnachar / Ragnacaire

King of the Salian Franks of Cambrai.

Ricchar

Brother.

after 486

Rignomer / Rigomer

Brother. King of the Franks of Le Mans.

before 509

Ragnachar is a king of the Salian Franks of Cambrai who aids the Merovingian king, Clovis, in the conquest of Soissons in 486. As he has the same title as Childeric I, it is possible that Ragnachar has either inherited a portion of his territory, or captured it, or is a relative in some way who governs territory nearby. Seen as a rival by Childeric's son, Clovis, he is swiftly dispatched some time before 509, along with his two brothers. Le Mans cannot have been a Frankish kingdom until after 486, placing the event between these two dates. Their territories are annexed by Clovis.

pre-486 - c.509

Chararic

King of the Salian Franks of a location close to Yssel?

486

Chararic and his son wait to see the outcome of the battle between the Merovingian king, Clovis, and the domain of Soissons before taking sides. By then it is too late and Clovis has him and his son imprisoned. They are tonsured and ordained as priests, and when they rebel by growing back their hair, Clovis has them killed (in about 509) and annexes their lands.

? - c.509

Sigobert / Sigibert the Lame

King of the Ripuarian Franks of Zülpich & Cologne.

c.509

Sigobert is murdered by his son, Chlodoric, at the instigation of the Merovingian king, Clovis. Clovis then publicly accuses Chlodoric of the murder and mounts a campaign against the Salian Franks, killing both Chlodoric and another king, Chararic, and absorbing Zülpich & Cologne into his kingdom.

c.509

Chlodoric the Parricide

Son. King of the Ripuarian Franks of Zülpich & Cologne.

509

By this time the Merovingian king, Clovis, counts himself master of all the Salian Franks, and a single kingdom has clearly emerged in north-eastern Gaul.

Merovingian Kings of the Franks
AD 481 - 751

The Frankish leader, Clovis, united the Salian Franks with the Ripuarian (Eastern) Franks and they were converted to Catholic Christianity in 497. Rival Minor Kings were ruthlessly eliminated. The kingdom was aggressively expanded by Clovis and his sons to include Neustria (northern France), Austrasia (Netherlands, Austria, northern Germany), Burgundy, and Provence by 714. The Franks quickly became the dominant Germanic tribe not only in Gaul but throughout Central and Western Europe. The territory that forms modern-day France and Germany, and south to central Italy, became known as Francia.

481 - 511

Clovis I / Chlodwig / Chlodovech

Son of Childeric. Founded kingdom. m Chlothild.

486

Clovis occupies the remnants of northern Gaul which are still outside his kingdom. This includes the Roman administration of Soissons. He moves the Frankish capital to Paris, former capital of the Gallic Parisii.

491

Clovis achieves victory over a small group of Thuringians who border the Franks to the east. By this stage he has also conquered all of the Frankish Minor Kings west of the Maas, leaving just the Ripuarian Franks independent.

496 - 505

The Franks conquer the Alemanni at the Battle of Tolbiac (496), although the victory is a narrow one and Clovis is aided by fellow Frankish Minor Kings, including Sigobert the Lame. Clovis also expands his kingdom to the Loire and is able to defeat the last of the allies of Soissons. In 500 he inflicts a defeat on the Burgundians, and by 505, the Alemanni have been absorbed into the Frankish kingdom.

The baptism of Clovis in Reims in 496 made him the only barbarian Christian king and won him increased support from his former Roman subjects in Gaul. This romantic recreation of the event was by François-Louis Dejuinne (1786-1844), completed in 1837

507

In alliance with the related royal Frankish house at Cologne, Clovis defeats the Visigoths, forcing them out of Gaul and securing a dominant Frankish kingdom in their place. Saxon pressure from the north has slowly been forcing the Frankish peoples southwards from their original territory around Cologne and Cambrai, so that the northern border now lies along the Somme, giving them the same border as the former domain of Soissons.

509 - 510

The Ostrogoths intervene at Narbonne, driving out both Visigoths and Burgundians. This forces the Franks and Burgundians to withdraw from the Mediterranean coast. Clovis mounts a minor campaign to wipe out some of his rival Frankish Minor Kings, including Sigobert the Lame and his son, and Chararic and his son, annexing their territories.

511

On the death of Clovis, the kingdom is divided between his four sons, each ruling Austrasia, Orleans, Paris, and Soissons. Chlothar, king of Soissons is nominally the senior king of the Franks (Chlothar is also credited with establishing the basis of early Frankish monarchy in Gaul). Three other Frankish regions, Bordeaux, Aquitaine and Auvergne lie to the south of Orleans. Bordeaux is held by the king of Paris, while Auvergne is part of the territory of Austrasia. Who holds Aquitaine is not known, but it seems likely that it is Frankish vassals who are contesting with the Visigoths to secure the region.

511 - 561

Chlothar / Clotaire I the Old

Fourth son. King of Soissons, and of all Franks (558-561).

524

Following the death of his brother, Chlodomer of Orleans, Chlothar marries his widow and has two of his children killed, although the third escapes. Much of Orleans is annexed by Childebert I, king of Paris, but Chlothar takes Turonensis (Tours) and Pictavia (Poitiers).

531

The Thuringians are conquered.

534

The Burgundians are conquered by Chlothar, and he incorporates them directly under his rule.

537

Provence is won, apparently from the Burgundians shortly after they take it from the Ostrogoths.

555

The Bavarians are conquered, and Chlothar inherits the kingdom of Austrasia on the death of his nephew, Theudebald, briefly reunifying it with Soissons until his death. By this stage, he is clearly the most powerful of the surviving Frankish kings and the superiority of Soissons is fully established.

558 - 561

Paris and Orleans are drawn back under Chlothar's control until his death, making him king of all the Franks. Then his domains are divided between his sons as per Frankish law. Charibert gains Paris and Orleans as Neustria, Sigisbert I gains Austrasia, Chilperic I gains Soissons, and Chlothar's third son, Gunthchramn, gains the Burgundian kingdom. The partition unleashes further internecine rivalries and conflict.

561 - 584

Chilperic I

Son. King of Soissons, and of Neustria (from 567). Assassinated.

573 - 575

Rivalry between Sigisbert of Austrasia and Chilperic flares up, and not for the first time. The two go to war, with Sigisbert winning Poitiers and Touraine, and much of the kingdom, before being assassinated.

584 - 629

Chlothar / Clotaire II the Young

Son. King of Soissons & Neustria.

613

With the acquisition of Austrasia & Burgundy, the Frankish empire is reunified under Chlothar II's rule. Neustria and Soissons are combined to form its heartland. Austrasia becomes semi-independent again in 622.

622

Chlothar II gives Austrasia to his son, Dagobert I, effectively granting the kingdom semi-autonomy in repayment for the support of its nobles, most notably Pepin I, mayor of the palace of Austrasia.

629

Dagobert I rapidly secures Neustria on his father's death, preventing his half-brother Charibert II from gaining it. Charibert instead is given Aquitaine. With that, Dagobert becomes sole king of the Franks, although he is also defeated in battle by Carinthian Slavs in 631/632.

629 - 638

Dagobert I

Son of Chlothar II. King of Austrasia, Neustria & Burgundy.

632

Dagobert is probably behind the assassination of Charibert II of Aquitaine and that of his infant son. The kingdom then passes to him.

638

Dagobert I has managed to re-establish a strong and stable sovereignty. After his death his sons once more tear the empire apart. Sigisbert III in Austrasia, and Clovis II in Neustria & Burgundy. They abandon power to the kingdoms' great dignitaries, in particular the mayors of the palace who had started as heads of the royal household and now hold the reigns of power.

638 - 656

Clovis II

Son. King of Neustria & Burgundy.

656

Dagobert II

Son of Sigisbert III. King of Austrasia.

656 - 661

Childebert Adoptivus

Son of Grimoald, mayor of the palace of Austrasia.

661 - 662

Chlothar / Clotaire III

Son of Clovis II. King of Neustria & Burgundy, and the Franks (661).

662 - 675

Childerich / Childeric II

Son of Clovis II. King of Austrasia. Assassinated while hunting.

675 - 691

Theuderich / Thierry III

Brother. King of Neustria, Burgundy, & Austrasia.

680 - 714

Pepin II of Herstal (the Fat)

Grandson of Pepin I of Austrasia. Carolingian mayor of the palace.

689 - 719

The Franks conquer the kingdom of Friesland which borders Neustria to the north.

691

With the accession of Clovis IV, Merovingian power begins a downward spiral. Clovis is the first of the fainéants, the do-nothing kings, the others being Childebert III, Dagobert III, Chilperic II, Chlothar IV, and Theuderich IV. Instead, power is increasingly assumed by the Carolingian mayors of the palace, with Pepin of Herstal fully imposing his authority from 680.

691 - 695

Clovis IV (III)

Son of Theuderich III.

691 - 695

With the acquisition of Neustria & Austrasia by his father, the Frankish empire remains fully reunited under Clovis IV, although he exercises little power himself as the mayor of the palace, Pepin of Herstal, holds the reigns. Clovis is succeeded by his brother, Childebert III, and the empire also remains united under Childebert's son, Dagobert III. Both are dominated by the mayor of the palace.

695 - 711

Childebert III

Brother. King of Neustria, Burgundy, & Austrasia.

711 - 715

Dagobert III

Son. King of Neustria, Burgundy, & Austrasia.

714 - 741

Charles Martel (the Hammer)

Son of Pepin II. Carolingian mayor of the palace.

715 - 721

Daniel Chilperich / Chilperic II

Son of Childerich II. King of Neustria.

718

Chilperich is initially protected by the mayor of the palace, Charles Martel, but is later abandoned in favour of Chlothar IV, son of Theuderich III. Charles Martel proclaims Chlothar king of Austrasia, dividing the empire for the first time since 691. In the civil war that follows, Chilperich is defeated and surrenders, handing Charles Martel unquestioned control over the empire. Chlothar apparently dies in 719, so Charles Martel keeps the defeated Chilperich as his figurehead king.

721 - 737

Theuderich / Thierry IV of Chelles

Son of Dagobert III. King of Neustria, Burgundy, & Austrasia.

732

Effectively leading the Regnum Francorum (kingdom of the Franks) himself, the Carolingian mayor of the palace, Charles Martel, defeats an army of 90,000 Saracens at Tours in France, ending the northwards expansion of the Islamic empire through Spain and into Aquitaine in southern France.

Charles Martel defeats the Moors at the Battle of Tours

c.735

Duke Hunald of Aquitaine refuses to acknowledge the authority of Charles Martel, so the latter marches against him. Bordeaux is taken, as is Blaye, but Hunald is allowed to remain in Aquitaine after swearing to remain loyal.

737 - 743

There is a seven year interregnum during which the Carolingian mayors govern the empire. So sure are they now of their power that they don't feel the need for a figurehead Merovingian king on the throne. By 737, Iberian Navarre is formed as a Frankish march county in the face of the Islamic invasion of the peninsula.

741 - 747

Carloman

Son of Charles. Carolingian mayor of the palace. Abdicated.

741 - 751

Pepin III the Short

Brother. Last mayor of the palace. Title abolished.

743 - 751

Childerich / Childeric III le Fainéant

Son of Chilperich II. King of Neustria, Burgundy, & Austrasia.

743 - 744

The mayors of the palace, Pepin the Short and Carloman, march first against the Bavarians and then the Saxons to bring them both back into line under Frankish domination.

751

With the blessing of Pope Zachary, Pepin III, the Carolingian mayor of the palace deposes Childeric and the Merovingian royal house and takes control of the empire (Childeric is sent to a monastery and dies in 755). Pepin is crowned at Soissons in 752 and Saint-Denis in 754, and thereafter benefits from the legitimacy acquired by the creator of the Frankish kingdom, Clovis I. Neustria, Austrasia & Burgundy are merged permanently within the empire, and the former two names fade from common use.

755 - ?

Theuderic

Son of Childerich III. Last direct heir to the Merovingian crown.

755

With the eventual death of Theuderic, whose life is all but unknown, the Merovingian line of descent ends.

Carolingian (Frankish) Empire
AD 751 - 888

The early eighth century saw the rapid diminution of Merovingian power and influence. Instead it was their deputies, the Carolingian mayors of the palace, who exercised real authority throughout the Frankish kingdom. A palace usurpation took place, with the full backing of the Pope, in which the mayor, Pepin III was able to send the last Merovingian king to a monastery and become the first Carolingian king of the Franks in his place. Not a notable general, Pepin nevertheless remained undefeated in battle, but it was his son, Charles, later known as Charles the Great, or Charlemagne, who really reversed Frankish fortunes and created a vast European empire.

751 - 768

Pepin III

Former mayor of the palace.

760 - 768

Pepin III conquers Aquitaine between these dates. Following his death, the kingdom is divided between his two sons, with Charlemagne gaining parts of Aquitaine, plus Neustria, Austrasia, and the Germanic dependencies, and Carloman gaining the remainder: Soissons, the Massif Central, the Languedoc, the rest of Aquitaine, Provence, Burgundy, southern Austrasia, Alsace and Alemannia.

768 - 814

Charles the Great / Charlemagne

Son. King of West Francia. French HRE (800-814).

768 - 771

Carloman I

Brother. King of East Francia.

768 - 769

After leading an abortive uprising against increasingly powerful Carolingian rule in Francia, Duke Hunald of Aquitaine is captured thanks to the dislike of him by his neighbour, Lupus, duke of Gascony.

771

Carloman's death allows Charlemagne to inherit his territories at the expense of Carloman's son, Pepin, and the Frankish territories are fully reunited as one empire. Charlemagne proceeds to expand the empire over the following years, fighting the Lombards (from 771), the Saxons (777-804), the Arabs in Spain (778), the Bavarians, and the Avars in Hungary (791-796), whom he virtually exterminates.

781

Pepin (born Carloman but renamed in this year by his father, Charlemagne), is given command of the Italian portion of the empire after the successful conquest of the Lombards. Charlemagne's youngest son, Louis the Pious, is given Aquitaine.

789

Charlemagne leads an expedition against Dragovit, king of the Veleti. Charlemagne defeats him and makes him a vassal in the only venture he makes into Slavic lands.

806 - 814

By the Act of Thionville in 806, Charlemagne announces the division of his vast empire between his three sons. By 814, Pepin in Italy has already predeceased his father (810), as has Charles (813), so Louis the Pious is crowned Frankish emperor at Aix-la-Chapelle.

814 - 840

Louis I the Pious or Debonnair

I of France, Italy, Germany, Burgundy, & Empire. Lost Croatia.

840 - 843

Before his death, Louis promulgates the Ordinatio Imperii in 817, proclaiming, despite the ancient Frankish custom of dividing territory between surviving sons, that his eldest son, Lothar, will be sole beneficiary of the imperial dignity and sole inheritor of the empire. By means of this he hopes to avoid the fragmentation of territory that so weakened the Merovingians. The new idea proves too much, provoking rebellions and rivalries between all four of Louis' sons which last until after the king's death. One of the sons, Pepin of Aquitaine, predeceases his father.

Lothar initially claims overlordship over all three regions and Louis and Charles have to go to war to convince him to relent. He does so in 843, and the Treaty of Verdun confirms the official division of the empire between Charlemagne's surviving three grandsons, with rule over the empire as a whole being nominal. Lothar receives Middle Francia (the Rhine corridor, the kingdom of Burgundy, and Italy); Charles the Bald receives Western Francia (France and the duchy of Burgundy); and Louis the German receives Eastern Francia (Germany).

Carolingian Kings of the Western Franks (France)
AD 840 - 987

The death of Louis I, Carolingian ruler of the Frankish empire, caused the break-up of that empire. Frankish law demanded that the territory be divided amongst Louis' sons, with Lothar receiving Middle Francia (formed of the Rhine corridor and Italy), Charles the Bald receiving Western Francia (later to become France), and Louis the German receiving Eastern Francia (later to become Germany). Charles the Bald was the younger son of Louis I and Judith of Bavaria, and under him the early French court became a brilliant centre of culture.

840 - 877

Charles II the Bald

Son of Louis I. Frankish Roman Emperor (875-877).

840 - 855

Lothar I of the Middle (Italian) Franks nominally rules the empire.

845

Paris is sacked by the army of the Danish Viking king, Ragnarr Lothbrok (father of Ivarr the Boneless and Halfdan, rulers in succession of the Viking kingdom of Dublin).

855 - 875

Louis II of the Middle (Italian) Franks nominally rules the empire.

856 - 862

Charles gives his daughter, Judith, in marriage to Aethulwulf of Wessex. In the same year Aethulwulf is forced to abdicate by his son, Aethelbald, and dies in 858. Aethelbald quickly marries his widowed stepmother but the marriage is annulled in 860. Judith returns home and elopes with Baldwin Iron Arm and Charles grants the couple the county of Flanders.

875 - 877

Charles II is crowned emperor of the Romans by Pope John VIII and thereafter nominally rules the empire. His son, Louis II, after revolting against his father, succeeds him with difficulty and proves a weak king. During his reign, the kingdom weakens, with local lords gaining much more power at the expense of the throne.

877 - 879

Louis II the Stammerer

Son.

879 - 882

Louis III

Son.

879 - 882

The sons of Louis II, Louis III and Carloman, rule the kingdom together, confronting Vikings on the Loire and in Normandy. On the death of Louis III, Carloman reigns alone.

879 - 884

Carloman II

Brother.

881 - 888

Charles III the Fat of the Eastern Franks nominally rules the empire.

884

The son of Louis III is Charles the Simple. His right to succeed his father and uncle is contested by Charles the Fat, Charles III of the Eastern Franks (his numbering is not counted within the list of French monarchs), and it is the latter who wins the throne.

884

Charles III the Simple

Son of Louis II.

884 - 888

Charles the Fat

Son of Louis III of Germany and king of the Eastern Franks.

885

Charles refuses to oppose the siege of Paris by Vikings. Instead he withdraws to Alsace. The task of repelling the Vikings is left to the count of Paris, Odo.

888

The rule of the Holy Roman Empire (the former Eastern Franks) falls to non-Frankish emperors when the weak Charles is deposed by the Germans at the Diet of Tribur (November 887). the Frankish empire is officially divided between East and West. The western section becomes France, the eastern section, the Holy Roman Empire (modern Germany). Odo, son of Robert the Strong (a branch which founds the Capetian dynasty in 987), is offered the western section by the great lords. Charles the Fat takes refuge in the monastery of Reichenau in Swabia where he dies the following year.

888 - 898

Odo / Eudes

Count of Paris. Elected by the nobility. Capetian ancestor.

893

The archbishop of Reims crowns Charles the Simple king of France. A confused struggle ensues between his forces and those of Odo until the latter, noticeably ill, treats with Charles and arranges a power-sharing deal. Odo dies the following year, having recommended that his vassals recognise his former rival.

896 - 922

Charles III the Simple

Posthumous son of Louis III. Also king of Lotharingia.

911

To keep the peace in the face of Viking attacks, Charles grants territory in the north to the Danish Viking chieftain, Rollo (in modern Upper Normandy) under the terms of the Treaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte The resulting duchy of Normandy proves to be far more powerful than the king could have feared.

The Vikings who settled in Normandy would have seemed a rough and ready lot to the relatively sophisticated French court

920 - 922

The legitimacy of Charles is contested by Robert, count of Paris, brother of the former king, Odo. Robert is crowned in Reims in 922, but is attacked by Charles near Soissons. Robert is killed while defeating the forces of Charles, and the latter flees. He is subsequently caught in an ambush at Chateau-Thierry, and is imprisoned in Peronne, where he dies. His wife flees with his infant son to England, which gains the boy the name 'Outremer' or 'over the sea'.

922 - 923

Robert I

Brother of Odo. Count of Paris. Killed in battle.

923 - 936

Rudolf / Raoul / Rodolphe

m Emma, daughter of Robert I. Duke of Burgundy (921-936).

936

Rudolf, the son-in-law of Robert I, has ruled with the agreement of Robert's son, Hugh the White, fighting the Hungarians, the Germans, and the Normans, but he dies without an heir. Hugh the White, expecting to become king in his place, is forced to lead a coalition against the rightful heir, Louis IV d'Outremer. Louis allies himself to Otto I of Saxony and Conrad the Peaceful, king of Burgundy, and takes possession of Reims, whereas Hugh is excommunicated by the Pope.

936 - 954

Louis IV d'Outremer

Son of Charles III. Had been exiled in England.

954 - 986

Lothair V

Son. Acceded aged 14.

954 - 962

Bruno I

Regent and archbishop of Cologne.

978

Lothair's foreign policy causes Otto II to invade Lorraine. The king manages to repulse him, aided by Hugh Capet, count of Paris. In return, Lothair later tries to destabilise the Holy Roman Empire when Otto's infant son succeeds to the throne.

986 - 987

Louis V le Fainéant

Son of Lothair. Died without an heir.

987

By this time the Carolingian kings and those drawn from the House of Paris have so weakened the effectiveness of the monarchy in France that it owns little land outside Paris. The Carolingian son of Louis V, Charles of Lower Lorraine, is ignored in favour of passing the crown permanently to the House of Paris in the form of the Capetians.

Capetian Dynasty
AD 987 - 1328

Elder son of Hugh the Great, count of Paris, Hugh Capet was descended from the Carolingian Robert the Strong, his son, Odo, and Robert I ( the last were two both kings of the French, in 888 and 922 respectively). The family already possessed vast domains, and numerous vassals when Hugh was crowned king at Noyon and consecrated at Reims in 987. He associated his son, Robert, with power from the start, creating a principle of dynastic hereditary which would last as long as the monarchy.

By now the French throne held power only in a very weakened state. It had already given away Normandy to Vikings and watched them become more and more powerful, and little other territory in France actually remained in the hands of the king. Then, in 1152, Eleanor of Aquitaine married Henry Anjou, heir to the throne of England. When he became king two years later he also owned much of France, and the French monarchy faced potential extinction.

987 - 996

Hugh Capet

Grandson of Carolingian king, Robert I.

987 - 991

The Carolingian son of Louis V, Charles duke of Lower Lorraine, struggles to regain 'his' throne, but he is captured and imprisoned, and dies in Orleans. However, Hugh himself is little more than a feudal lord, and he relies on the support of other equally powerful personages in the kingdom.

996 - 1031

Robert II the Pious

Son.

1031 - 1060

Henry I

Son.

1061

Despite reigning for nearly thirty years, Henry is unable to achieve anything more than the preservation of the Capetian dynasty after facing incessant conflict with rebel lords. Many of them have shown pretensions for independence, including Henry's brother, Robert I, duke of Burgundy, the count of Blois, William, duke of Normandy, the duke of Brittany, and the duke of Aquitaine.

1060 - 1108

Philip I

Son.

1066

The duke of Normandy, William the Bastard, invades England and defeats the last Anglo-Saxon king, gaining the kingdom for himself. Philip I now has a very powerful neighbour in Normandy.

1084

The princes of Cornouaille become rulers of Brittany, dukes by appointment of France, as Philip takes the first concrete steps to solidify the foundations of royal power.

1098

The First Crusade finds a divided Islamic empire governed by the Seljuq Turks, and quickly and forcefully carves a large swathe of territory out of it. However, Philip I takes no part in the crusade, and loses the opportunity to become involved in the creation of the kingdom of Jerusalem.

1108 - 1137

Louis VI the Fat

Son.

1119

Henry I of England defeats an invasion of his Norman lands by Louis VI at the Battle of Brémule.

The coronation of Louis VI at Orleans, taken from the twelfth-thirteenth century Chronique de Saint-Denis

1137 - 1180

Louis VII the Young

Son.

1147 - 1149

Louis departs the country for two years as he takes part in the Second Crusade against the enemies of the kingdom of Jerusalem.

1152 - 1154

Aquitaine, Anjou, and much of the rest of France becomes the possession of Henry II of England, although Louis manages to complete the submission of the feudal lords in the Ile-de-France, the area surrounding Paris.

1180 - 1223

Philip II Augustus

Son.

1180

Upon his coronation, Philip is master of a prosperous but limited domain, comprising the Ile-de-France, the Orleanais, and a part of Berry. The rest of the kingdom is split into a dozen fiefs over which the king has little authority, while the territories of the west and Aquitaine still belong to the English king, Henry II. Over the course of his reign, Philip turns this situation around, properly establishing the monarchy as a power with which to be reckoned.

1202 - 1214

In a conflict which is vital to the French monarchy, the 'War' of Bouvines leads to victory for France at the Battle of Bouvines on 27 July 1214, when John of England loses the duchy of Normandy and his other French possessions.

1217

Philip sends his son, Louis, and the count de Perche to invade England via Dover in order to defeat the child king, Henry III, and his regent, the famed knight, William Marshal. The Battle of Lincoln sees William lead the charge, and he personally kills de Perche and escorts the defeated French noblemen to a ship bound for France.

1223 - 1226

Louis VIII the Lion

Son.

1226

With the Papal crusade against the Albigensian Cathar and Vaudois 'heresy' well underway (1209-1229), Louis joins in. He invades the Languedoc and campaigns against the towns and lords who support the Albigensians, although his participation is merely a pretext for the preparation of his annexation of the Toulousain.

1226 - 1270

Louis IX / Saint Louis

Son.

1226 - 1236

Blanche of Castile

Mother and regent.

1229

The treaty of Meaux-Paris at the conclusion of the crusade against the Albigensians paves the way for effectively joining southern France to the north, under the regency of Blanche of Castile, between the young Louis and Raymond VII, count of Toulouse.

1243

The conquest of the Languedoc is completed with the Treaty of Lorris.

1270

Louis IX leads the Seventh Crusade into Tunisia against the advice of the Pope and the reluctance of his lords, and dies of plague during the siege of Tunis on 25 August 1270. His son is proclaimed king under the walls of Tunis.

1270 - 1285

Philip III the Bold

Son of Louis IX.

1285 - 1314

Philip IV the Fair

Son. m Jeanne I of Navarre.

1295

On 5 July Scotland and France form an alliance, the origin of their 'Auld Alliance', against England.

1307

On Friday 13 October Philip leads the destruction of the Knights Templar in France, under agreement with the French Pope installed at Avignon. The order's riches are confiscated and the grand master of the Temple, Jacques Molay, is arrested and tortured (and burned at the stake in 1314).

1314 - 1316

Louis X the Haughty

Son. Also Luis the Stubborn of Navarre.

1316

Louis X dies without male issue, but his second wife is five months pregnant. The regent, Philip of Poitiers, the dead king's brother, takes advantage of the situation to make the principle of the exclusion of women to the French throne conclusive, even though it is a false interpretation of Salic Law. When the queen gives birth, Jean I lives for only a few days, and Philip is strongly suspected of being the instigator of his death. Philip claims the throne for himself, conducting a hasty coronation on 11 January 1317.

1316

John / Jean I Posthumous

Son. Lived for eight days after his birth.

1317 - 1322

Philip V the Long

Uncle. Also Philip of Navarre.

1322 - 1328

Charles IV the Fair

Brother. Also Charles I of Navarre.

1328

Charles' daughter, Jeanne, is disqualified from occupying the French throne, confirming the new interpretation of Salic Law. Instead, she accedes the throne of Navarre, while the Valois succeed to France.

Valois Dynasty
AD 1328 - 1589

Charles IV had no male heir, and due to the deliberate misinterpretation of Salic Law by his elder brother, Philip V, his daughter was disqualified from ascending the French throne. Instead, the crown passed to his cousin, Philip of Valois, head of a cadet branch of the Capetian dynasty. His son, John II, secured the duchy of Burgundy for the crown, and when he died, it passed to his fourth son, while the eldest gained the French throne. John's grandson was best noted for losing much of France to the English, who actually inherited the French crown upon his death, and for seven years an English monarch governed the country, before the tide of the Hundred Years War turned in France's favour.

1328 - 1350

Philip VI of Valois

Cousin to Charles IV.

1328

A peasant revolt in Flanders forces Philip to fight the Battle of Cassel, 30kms south of Dunkirk, bringing the revolt to an end and bringing Flanders fully under French control.

Philip VI at the Battle of Cassel in Flanders

1337 - 1453

Philip confiscates Gascony from Edward III of England so the English invade France to press their own claim to the French throne. The Hundred Years War begins. In 1346, Edward crushes Philip's army at the Battle of Crecy, but Philip has other problems, too, when the Great Plague and a serious economic crisis strikes the country. In 1347 he institutes a tax on salt in an attempt to build up some revenue.

1350 - 1364

John / Jean II the Good

Son. Also duke of Burgundy (1361-1364)

1356 - 1360

A hesitant and clumsy king, John is taken prisoner by the English at Poitiers during a conflict with Philip, brother of King Charles the Bad of Navarre. Charles himself had been arrested by John while a guest of his son in Rouen. In 1359, John signs a treaty with the English to free himself at the price of a heavy ransom which is refused by the estates of Paris. The subsequent Treaty of Brétigny in 1360 renegotiates his release, allowing him to return to France while leaving his younger son, Duke Louis of Anjou as a hostage. Louis flees, breaking his parole, so the king is forced to return to London where he later dies.

1364 - 1380

Charles V the Wise

Son. Regent (1359-1364).

1380

Charles experiences a difficult but successful reign, as he pacifies a violent and dangerous France, eliminating the Great Companies, bands of brigands who had formerly been soldiers, and putting down a Parisian rebellion and a peasant revolt. At his death only the towns of Calais, Cherbourg, Brest, Bordeaux, and Bayonne remain in English hands.

1380 - 1422

Charles VI the Mad or Beloved

Son. Aged 12 when crowned.

1380 - 1388

Philip II the Bold, duke of Burgundy

Uncle and regent. The dominant figure in the regency.

1380 - 1388

John, duke of Berry

Brother and regent.

1380 - 1388

Louis II, duke of Bourbon

Brother and regent.

1380 - 1384

Louis, duke of Anjou

Brother and regent. Died after fighting to take Naples.

1388

Charles is not able to govern until he reaches his majority in 1388 since his uncles hold power and take maximum advantage of their position. Upon his birthday he has them removed and recalls his late father's advisors into the government. His first episode of madness in 1392 allows the duke of Burgundy to seize power again, but it sparks a long-running dispute between various factions in France.

1392 - 1402

Philip II the Bold, duke of Burgundy

Restored his position after a lapse in the king's mental health.

1415 - 1420

In 1415, Henry V of England wins a surprise victory at the Battle of Agincourt. Five years later, Charles VI cedes France to him in the Treaty of Troyes. Charles VII, apparently dispossessed, refuses to heed his father's commands and sets up a rival claim to the throne.

1422 - 1429

John of Lancaster, duke of Bedford

Regent of France for his nephew, Henry VI of England.

1422 - 1429

Charles VII the Victorious

Son of Charles VI. Led the 'rebel' French faction.

1422 - 1429

France is ruled by the English king, Henry VI, through his regent who is based in Normandy and Paris. Charles VII is little more than a rebel until he is crowned king of France in 1429 following his first meeting with Joan of Arc and the near-miraculous liberation of Orleans from an English siege. Charles' claim suddenly becomes a serious one, and his kingship more and more real as the tide turns in favour of the French.

1429 - 1461

Charles VII the Victorious

Crowned king by Joan of Arc as the war turned in his favour.

1431

Joan of Arc (or Jeanne d'Arc, the Maid of Orleans) is burned at the stake in Rouen after the English find her guilty of heresy.

1461 - 1483

Louis XI

Son.

1482

The duchy of Burgundy reverts to the French throne through the efforts of Louis XI. He also gains Picardy.

1483 - 1498

Charles VIII the Affable

Son. Succeeded aged 13.

1483 - 1491

Pierre II

Seventh duke of Bourbon. Regent.

1483 - 1491

Anne of France / de Beaujeu

Wife of Pierre, sister of Charles VIII, and co-regent.

1491

Anne, the last duchess of Brittany, is forced into an arranged marriage with Charles VIII, following his invasion of the duchy to prevent her marrying the Habsburg HRE, Maximilian I. This gains Charles governance of the region, but does not yet permanent tie it to the French crown.

1495 - 1496

An alliance is formed between Naples, the Pope, Milan, Venice, and the Emperor in order to defend Italy from Charles.

1498 - 1515

Louis XII the Father of the People

Great-grandson of Charles V.

1509

The League of Cambrai is formed with France, Castile, Hungary, the Papal States, the Holy Roman Empire, and Ferrara against Venice. Venice is defeated at Agnadello.

1512 - 1513

The remnants of the kingdom of Navarre now lie within a French department. The following year, Henry VIII of England campaigns in France, capturing two towns and beating off the French in the Battle of the Spurs, named for the sight of the spurs of the French cavalry, as they flee at great speed.

1515 - 1547

Francis I of Angloulême

Great-great-grandson of Charles V & cousin of Louis XII.

1522 - 1523

Francis is persuaded by the Italian explorer, Giovanni da Verrazzano, to allow an expedition to find a western route to China via what will become New France. The following year, Charles III, eighth duke of Bourbon, is dismissed by the king for supporting the Holy Roman Empire against him. Antoine de Bourbon, father of the future Henry IV, from the junior Bourbon-Vendôme is installed in his place.

1528

The town of San German, in the south-west of Puerto Rico, is sacked and burned by the French as part of their efforts to dislodge the Spanish from the strategically important location. Several more towns are subsequently attacked.

1532

Francis secures the duchy of Brittany for France under the terms of the Union Treaty of Vannes, when he marries Claudia of Brittany.

Francis

Son. Died in 1536 after a game of tennis.

1547 - 1559

Henry II

Brother.

1547

The infant Mary, Queen of Scots is smuggled from Scotland to France where she is betrothed to the young dauphin, Francis.

1559 - 1560

Francis II

Son. Died aged 16 without real power.

1560 - 1574

Charles IX

Brother.

1560 - 1589

Catherine de Medici

Mother and regent. The power behind the throne.

1562 - 1565

A massacre of Protestants by Catholics near Paris in 1562 ignites the first of eight French 'wars of religion'. In the same period, one of the first French Colonies in the New World is founded in Florida in 1564, but the Spanish destroy it the following year.

1572

Henry, Duke of Anjou, begins marriage negotiations with Elizabeth Tudor of England, but it comes to nothing and his younger brother takes over before his own untimely death in 1584. Henry goes on to become king of Poland-Lithuania in 1573, and king of France in 1574.

1574 - 1589

Henry III

Son. Previously king of Poland-Lithuania (1573-1574).

1589

Henry recognises the Protestant Henry III of Navarre as his successor. The League and the Guise are far from happy about this, but Henry has the duke of Guise assassinated at Blois in 1588. Henry himself is stabbed to death on 2 August 1589 by the Dominican Jacques Clément.

Bourbon Dynasty
AD 1589 - 1792

The foundation of the House of Bourbon, which takes its name from Bourbon-Archambault, capital of the duchy of Bourbon, dates back to the thirteenth century. It hinges on Robert de Clermont, who died in 1317, sixth son of Louis IX and husband of Béatrice de Bourbon. Two main branches emerged from this: the senior branch and the Marche-Vendôme. Descended from Pierre I (1311-1356), the senior branch notably produced Pierre II, ruler of Beaujeu, seventh duke of Bourbon, husband of Anne of France, and regent of the kingdom with his wife during the minority of the Valois Charles VIII.

Henry IV however was of the Marche-Vendôme line (or Bourbon-Vendôme). His father was Antoine de Bourbon (died 1562), who was given the duchy when Charles III, eighth duke of Bourbon and constable of France, was dismissed in 1523 by King Francis I for siding with the Holy Roman Empire. This line gave birth to a number of collateral branches which included the Spanish Bourbons, which gained the Spanish throne in 1700 with Philip V, Duke of Anjou.

1589 - 1610

Henry IV Green-Gallant of Bourbon

King of French Navarre (1562-1589).

1589 - 1596

The closest inheritor descending from Hugh Capet, Henry of Navarre is the new king of France on the death of Henry III of Valois. However, the League refuse to recognise him and he has to conquer his way to power. His conversion to Catholicism at Saint-Denis (1589) followed by his coronation at Chatres (1594), opens Paris to him. His reconquest continues with the the Edict of Nantes (1594) and the taking of Amiens (1596), which ends the civil wars.

The entrance of Henry IV into Paris in 1594

1610

Following a hugely influential reign which sees a large programme of building work and agricultural improvement in France, Henry is assassinated by Ravaillac. His son succeeds him in France, while his cousin, Charles, becomes lieutenant-governor of the fledgling territories of New France in North America.

1610 - 1643

Louis XIII the Just

Son.

1610 - 1617

Louis XIII, just aged nine when he ascends the throne, is at first excluded from power by his powerful mother who acts as regent. Her co-regent, Concini, is assassinated on Louis' orders in 1617. Further afield during this century, French piracy in the Caribbean, mainly targeted at wealthy Spanish ships and the colony of Hispaniola, becomes firmly established.

1610 - 1617

Marie de Midici

Mother. Regent.

1610 - 1617

Concino Concini, Count della Penna

Regent. Assassinated (24 April 1617).

1627 - 1628

The siege of La Rochelle sees Cardinal Richelieu blockade the city for fourteen months as it protests against the king's central authority.

1643 - 1715

Louis XIV the Great

Son of Louis XIII. The Sun King.

With Louis' agreement, Cardinal Mazarin (along with the king's mother) governs the country until the king is twenty-three. During his reign, Louis establishes an absolute monarchy, but is almost constantly at war internally, owing to the revolts of a people overburdened by taxation and opposition from princes of the blood, disappointed from being progressively excluded from power. This process is accelerated when the king removes his court to the newly-built Palace of Versailles, just outside Paris, where he is able to control the court and small council of the few faithful.

1643 - 1661

Anne of Austria

Mother. Died 1666.

1643 - 1661

Cardinal Mazarin

Regent & Chief Minister. Died 1661.

1665

Shortly after reorganising the administration of New France, Louis XIV officially recognises French colonies on the island of Hispaniola, while Huguenot Protestants are escaping his persecution by leaving for England and the new colonies in the Americas, including New Netherland.

1697

As part of the Treaty of Ryswick, Spain formally cedes the western third of Hispaniola to France.

1702 - 1715

Portugal initially supports France during the War of Spanish Succession but Britain alters the situation with the signing of the Methuen Treaty with Portugal on 16 May 1703. In December 1703 a military alliance between Austria, Britain, and Portugal sees them invade Spain. The allied forces capture Madrid in 1706, although the campaign ends in a defeat at the Battle of Almansa.

1715 - 1774

Louis XV the Loved

Great-grandson. m Marie Lesczinska, heiress of Lorraine.

1715 - 1723

Phillip II Duke of Orléans

Regent for the five year old king. Resigned upon his majority.

1733 - 1735

The Polish War of Succession erupts in which Stanislas Lesczynski is supported by his son-in-law, Louis XV.

1740 - 1748

Henry Pelham, leader of the English government in Parliament, is successful in ending the War of the Austrian Succession, achieving peace with France and trade with Spain.

1756 - 1763

The Seven Years' War - the first truly 'global' conflict - erupts as Britain declares war on France. At the end of it, under the terms of the Treaty of Paris, France cedes the vast and wild Louisiana Territory to Spain, and New France to Britain.

1757 - 1759

The British East India Company are victorious over the nawwab of Bengal, a French ally, which signals the end of any serious French ambitions in what was Moghul India. Two years later, General James Wolfe claims the Canadian territories for the British Colonies with victory over New France near Quebec.

1767

The duchy of Lorraine passes to France through Louis XV's marriage. From 1745, Louis also shares his bed with the greatest of his mistresses, Jeanne-Antoinette Poisson, Marquise (and later Duchess) de Pompadour. Born on 29 December 1721, she is popularly known as Madame de Pompadour. The king remains devoted to her until her death at the age of 43 on 15 April 1764.

1774 - 1792

Louis XVI

m Marie-Antoinette of Austria. Deposed 1792, beheaded 1793.

1778

After being visited by a deputation of American diplomats, Benjamin Franklin and Silas Deane, France declares war on Britain in support of the rebellion in North America, only too glad to make the most of Britain's misfortune.

1789 - 1792

Louis is unable to impose the reforms he wants and fails to support his more competent ministers. An economic crisis aggravated by the American War of Independence leads the government to convene the states general on 5 May 1789. Ill-advised and influenced by the queen, Louis leads the monarchy to its fall. The French Revolution begins on 14 July with the storming of the Bastille prison during a popular uprising in Paris. On 10 August 1792 the Tuileries is taken by the Paris mob, signalling the end of the Ancien Régime. The king is deposed and imprisoned in the Temple with his family, and is condemned to death by a narrow majority.

French First Republic
AD 1792 - 1804

With the monarchy deposed and the mob in control of the streets of Paris, the First Republic was created on 22 September 1792. By that stage the country was already at war with Austria and Prussia (the First Coalition), the two crowned heads having been appalled at the treatment of a brother monarch. The approach of the Prussian army caused chaos in Paris, with the mob of sans-culottes running riot. In the September Massacres, prisons were broken into and the nobility and political prisoners in them were murdered. As a result, the Legislative Assembly was forced to form a National Convention which formally terminated the monarchy, drafted a constitution, and instituted the republic. Then it put the king on trial for crimes of high treason.

1792 - 1795

Louis XVII

Uncrowned son of Louis XVI. Died in the Temple in 1795 aged 10.

1793 - 1794

The ex-king, Louis XVI, is executed by guillotine on 21 January, while his brother (the future Louis XVIII) has already fled the country. On 6 April, the Committee of Public Safety is created, headed by Maximilien Robespierre. Charged with solving the problems of riots, food shortages, military defeats and a demoralised army, Robespierre begins executing 'enemies' of France - mostly from the nobility - in a period which is later known as the Reign of Terror. The former queen, Marie Antoinette is one of the most high-profile victims of the guillotine which is set up in the Place de la Concorde, just to the west of the Tuilleries.

In 1794 the public want an end to the terror, and the only way of achieving this is to execute Robespierre. He is tried and executed on 24 July 1794. Militarily, France's fortunes look shaky when Great Britain, Naples, the Netherlands, and Spain join Austria and Prussia in the First Coalition. But the institution of a poorly trained but highly motivated and enthusiastic national conscript army begins to improve the situation, with Belgium and the HRE's Rhine territories being occupied. The rise of General Napoleon Bonaparte is due to his own military brilliance against seemingly unbeatable odds.

1795

The Directory is established on 3 November 1795, headed by Paul Barras, with some of the harsh restrictions of the previous two years being eased, and a more liberal form of rule being instigated. France's Revolutionary Wars against the monarchies of Europe begins to carve out a new empire for the country, both at home and abroad, where the entire island of Hispaniola is gained from Spain in 1795. The Netherlands is invaded and the puppet Batavian Republic set up, and subsequently a peace agreement is sealed with Prussia and Spain.

1795 - 1799

Paul Barras

Executive leader of the Directory.

1797

Napoleon begins campaigning against Austria in northern Italy, starting with the Battle of Rivoli on 14-15 January. The end of the First Coalition is signalled in the same year.

Napoleon commands at the Battle of Rivoli, 14-15 January 1797, the first French campaign in Italy against Austria

1798 - 1799

Following Napoleon's failed expedition to Egypt, the Directory is swept away by a coup on '18 Brumaire', 9 November. Although several members of the failing Directory support the coup, one of its main instigators is Napoleon himself. He becomes the head of the new government as First Consul. The Second Coalition is formed by Austria and Russia in order to regain HRE and Italian territories.

1799 - 1804

Napoleon Bonaparte

First Consul.

1800

The Louisiana Territory is regained from New Spain for the French Colonies. In Italy, Napoleon defeats the Austrians at the Battle of Marengo, which eventually secures the French client republics in the Netherlands and Italy.

1801

In a major setback for French fortunes overseas, the colony of Hispaniola is lost to rebels.

1803 - 1804

On 30 April 1803, Napoleon sells the French Colonies territory of Louisiana in the Americas to the United States for 80 million francs. He also gravitates the country towards the creation of the First Empire, convinced that creating a new French monarchy and embedding it in the constitution will make a Bourbon restoration much harder.

French First Empire
AD 1804 - 1814

On 18 March 1804 Napoleon Bonaparte was proclaimed emperor of the French. One of the world's greatest military commanders, he also radically reorganised France's legal and administrative system, introducing the Napoleonic Code, large sections of which are still in use today. Europe's crowned heads saw him as an upstart, a symbol of the menace of republicanism, and a direct threat to their sovereign authority, so they waged a series of wars against him and France, but such was the brilliance of his military tactics they were always defeated. Napoleon eventually defeated himself with one campaign too many, invading Russia in pursuit of his policy of a reverse blockade of Britain. Within two years he had been cornered in France and abdicated his throne.

When he married his first wife, Empress Josephine, Napoleon also adopted her two children. The boy was Charles Auguste Eugène de Beauharnais, who ably served Napoleon throughout the wars, and in 1829 his sister, Princess Amelie de Beauharnais von Leuchtenberg, married Emperor Peter I of Brazil. Eugène married Queen Maria II of Portugal in 1834.

1804 - 1814

Napoleon I Bonaparte

Created the empire. Abdicated and exiled.

1805

Napoleon is crowned king of Italy in Milan in May. Then the Third Coalition is formed against France, so in a swift campaign, Napoleon marches east and, in October, the outnumbered Austrian army of General Mack surrenders to him without battle at Ulm in Bavaria. The French go on to occupy Vienna. On 2 December, Napoleon defeats large armies of Austrians and Russians at Austerlitz, and the coalition lays in ruins. Bavaria is raised to a kingdom by Napoleon. However, at sea, the Battle of Trafalgar proves once and for all Britain's supremacy, pounding the French and their Spanish allies in a crushing defeat.

1806

The Bourbon kingdom of the Two Sicilies is conquered in southern Italy and the Napoleonic kingdom of Naples is created in its place, incorporating much of Benevento. In the north, the kingdom of Italy is created out of acquisitions from Austria. Napoleon also heavily defeats Prussia and the Fourth Coalition, and liberates Prussia's holdings in Poland, forming them into an Imperial satellite state. Baden-Durlach is raised to a grand duchy, and Saxony and Württemberg are raised to kingdoms.

1807 - 1811

France defeats the Austrians and Russians at Freidland in 1807, and goes on to occupy Portugal and Pomerania. The following year, Spain falls. An Anglo-Portuguese army is created in Lisbon, eventually under the command of General Wellesley, and by 1811 Portugal has been liberated. Before that, Napoleon divorces the Empress Josephine in an attempt to secure an heir to the throne. He makes what he thinks is an important dynastic link by marrying Archduchess Marie-Louise of Austria, although her father has no intention of voluntarily allowing any unity between the two countries.

1812 - 1813

Incensed by Russia's refusal to join his blockade of Britain, Napoleon invades Russia with one of the largest armies Europe has ever seen. Frustrated by the Russian policy of using the vast space of the country to defeat him, he is forced to retreat to Germany. In early 1813, Europe's armies mobilise against him. His armies are pushed out of Spain by General Wellesley, and out of Germany by the allied armies.

French grenadiers of the line defend against an attack by Prussian infantry in the three-day Battle of Leipzig in October 1813, dubbed the 'Battle of the Nations' due to the number of states involved, in this 1914 painting by Richard Knötel

1814

Napoleon is defeated and the Bourbon monarchy restored under Louis XVIII. The czar of Russia, less antagonistic towards the former emperor than other European monarchs, helps in the choice of the Mediterranean island of Elba as a small kingdom to which Napoleon can retire.

Bourbon Restoration
AD 1814 - 1848

Upon the death of his nephew, Louis XVII, in 1795, Louis XVIII was able to proclaim himself king of France, even though, since 1792, he had successively taken refuge in Koblenz, Italy, Russia, and England. He attempted to mobilise the European monarchs against the revolutionaries, but it was twenty-two years before he was able to return home. France was a very different place: the king was hampered by the constitutional regime of the Charter, and former Bonapartists were watched constantly for signs of trouble. That came during the Hundred Days of 1815, when the king once more had to flee.

The last king of France, Louis Philippe, was a member of the junior line of Bourbon-Orleans, descended from Philip, duke of Orleans, brother of Louis XIV. He actively fought against the king's forces in the July Revolution of 1830, and was seen as a liberal and progressive choice for monarch.

1814 - 1815

Louis XVIII

Brother of Louis XVI.

1814 - 1815

Payments to Napoleon from France towards his upkeep, as promised by the victorious allies, never arrive because Louis XVIII blocks them. The Austrian monarch does his best to ensure Napoleon's wife, Archduchess Marie-Louise, is kept from making any contact with him, so he becomes increasingly isolated and financially weakened.

1815

Napoleon I Bonaparte

Restored. Died 1821, in exile on St Helena.

1815

Napoleon returns from exile for the Hundred Days rule, and Louis XVIII flees to Belgium. Europe mobilises against France and the duke of Wellington's Anglo-Dutch-German army defeats Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo on 18 June in conjunction with the Prussian army, ending twenty-five years of war in Europe. Some weeks afterwards, Napoleon abdicates in favour of his son, Napoleon II of the House of Napoleon Bonaparte, and accepts exile to the Atlantic island of St Helena.

1815 - 1824

Louis XVIII

Restored.

1821

Much of Europe's ruling elite breathes a sigh of relief when the news arrives that Napoleon Bonaparte has died in captivity of the island of St Helena in the south Atlantic.

1824 - 1830

Charles X

Brother. Deposed by July Revolution. Died 1836.

1830

Following his attempt to restore the Ancien Régime in full, the July Revolution overthrows Charles, and he abdicates in favour of his ten year-old grandson, Henri, duke of Bordeaux. He charges his cousin, Louis Philippe of a cadet branch of the House of Bourbon, to announce the succession to the Chamber of Deputies, but Louis Philippe sees that failing to do so will improve his own chances of gaining the throne, so he does nothing. He acts as regent for Henri for eleven days before he is proclaimed 'King of the French' himself.

1830

Henry V, duke of Bordeaux

Grandson. King in name for eleven days. Returned in 1873.

1830

Louis Philippe of Orleans

Cousin and regent, and then king in place of Henri.

1830 - 1848

Louis Philippe of Orleans

Abdicated under pressure.

1834

Algeria is annexed by France.

1840

Louis Philippe brings the body of Napoleon Bonaparte back to France where it is housed in the Eglise du Dôme in Paris in a state funeral.

The return of Napoleon's ashes in 1840 in a painting by Jacques Guiaud, with the funeral cortege entering the Place de la Concorde

Ferdinand Philippe, duke of Orleans

Son and heir. Killed in a carriage accident in 1842.

Philippe VII, count of Paris

Son and nominated heir. Recognised claimant from 1883.

1843 - 1850

Great Britain and France are forced to go to war against Argentina for blocking their access to Paraguay during the Great War in South America. Assisted by Brazil, both countries blockade Buenos Aires until a peace deal is agreed between Argentina and Britain in 1849 and with France in 1850.

1847 - 1848

An economic crisis in 1847 is the final straw for the working classes, after a steady worsening in their general conditions under the king's rule. In 1848 they revolt against the government and the monarchy is overthrown. Louis Philippe abdicates in favour of his grandson and flees to Britain, mindful of the fate of Louis XVI in 1793. Public opinion is against his grandson being crowned, so on 26 February the French Second Republic is declared.

French Second Republic
AD 1848 - 1852

The French public had the choice in 1848 of accepting another change of monarchy, or accepting a new republic, and they selected the latter. A democratic republic was declared and a constitution drawn up and promulgated on 4 November, albeit a constitution without much experience behind its construction. The remaining three years of the republic was taken up with constant struggles between the Assembly and the Imperialists under the president, Prince Louis Napoleon Bonaparte. Perhaps its most long-lasting achievement was the official adoption of the motto Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité.

1852

Prince Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, who has been president of France since December 1848, now declares himself emperor, and the republic is replaced by the Second Empire.

French Second Empire
AD 1852 - 1871

The Second Empire was created under Louis Napoleon III of the House of Napoleon Bonaparte. Initially, the crowned heads of Europe watched him nervously, worried that he would resume the empire-building of his uncle. What Louis Napoleon had to do was recapture some of the glory of imperial France. To this end he took part in the Crimean War alongside Britain, oversaw the recreation of the Suez Canal, the raising of the Eiffel Tower as part of the World's Fair, the modernisation of Paris (much of which still stands today), and he authorised the invasion of Mexico, supporting a Habsburg archduke who was placed on the throne as emperor. However, the last venture, which ended in embarrassing failure, began a slippery slope towards his downfall.

1852 - 1871

Louis Napoleon III Bonaparte

Founded the Second Empire. Died 1873 in exile.

1854 - 1856

Britain and France join the Ottoman empire in the Crimean War against Russia, to halt Russian expansion. The war ends with the signing of the Treaty of Paris, a severe setback to Russian ambitions.

French Zouaves in the Crimea, as published in The Charleston Mercury, 21 November 1861

1861 - 1863

France invades Mexico under the pretence of collecting loans which are overdue. In 1863, Cambodia becomes a French Protectorate.

1870 - 1871

Napoleon III refuses to accept the possibility of the Prussian Prince Leopold of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen gaining the Spanish throne, and ends up personally insulting the king of Prussia. The disagreement leads to France going to war against Prussia, but the country is humiliated with defeat and an invasion by Prussia's armies, leading to the siege of Paris. The empire collapses and Louis Napoleon goes into exile in England where he later dies and is buried.

French Republics
AD 1871 - Present Day

A series of republics replaced any further attempts at forming a monarchy or empire. The French Third Republic was formed in 1871, although it almost foundered with the crushing of the Paris Commune and the majority decision to select a new king. Henri, count of Chambord and former duke of Bordeaux, who had been unconfirmed king for eleven days in 1830, refused to acknowledge the tricolour as the national flag of France and the restoration was effectively sabotaged. Henri died soon afterwards, without recognising Philippe VII, the other claimant to the throne, as his successor. All recognised claimants to the French throne are shown with a shaded background.

1873 - 1883

Henry V Dieudonné

Count of Chambord. Elected king but refused. Died 1883.

1883

The French establish a Protectorate in Vietnam, annexe Tunisia, and fight the First Franco-Hova War in Madagascar. In the same year, the monarchist claimant, Henry, count of Chambord, dies childless. Most monarchists support Philippe, grandson of King Louis Philippe, as his rightful successor, despite claims from the Spanish Carlists that they have a superior claim.

1883 - 1894

Philippe VII, count of Paris

Grandson of Louis Philippe. Recognised claimant from 1883.

1892 - 1894

France begins take control of the kingdom of Dahomey during the Dahomey War, as well as conquering the Tukulor empire in Mali.

1894 - 1926

Philippe VIII, duke of Orleans

Son.

1900 - 1901

Chad is conquered in 1900, while the following year, the Songhai empire of Niger follows suit.

1910 - 1958

A federation of French colonial possessions in Central Africa is formed which comprises Gabon, Middle Congo, Oubangui-Chari (or Ubangi-Shari, now the Central African Republic) and Chad.

1912

Morocco becomes a French Protectorate.

1914

Having jointly guaranteed in 1839 to support the neutrality of Belgium, when the country is invaded by Germany, Britain, France and Russia are forced to declare war at midnight on 4 August. The German armies head towards Paris before being halted and retreating to what becomes the Western Front just inside French territory.

1918

A ceasefire is agreed with the remnants of the Austro-Hungarian empire by British, French, and Italian forces on 3 November. Germany, now alone, sees its emperor abdicate on 9 November, and an armistice is agreed to come into effect on the eleventh hour of 11 November, signalling the end of the war, although many less widespread wars continue as a result of the upheavals caused by it.

1918 - 1920

A French mandate is established in Lebanon in 1918. Additionally in 1920, to ensure their control over Syria in line with their mandate, France ousts King Faysal of Greater Syria and administers the country directly.

1926 - 1940

John / Jean III, duke of Guise

Cousin and brother-in-law.

1939 - 1944

The Nazi German invasion of Poland on 1 September 1939 is the trigger for the Second World War. With both France and Britain pledged to support Poland, both countries have no option but to declare war on 3 September. After a lightening march through the Netherlands and Belgium, France is occupied by the Nazi war machine in 1940, ending the Third Republic. Vichy (Fascist) rule is allowed as a puppet state in southern France. The French Protectorate in Vietnam ends.

1940 - 1999

Henry VI, count of Paris

Son.

1944 - 1947

A provisional government is established in France. During its existence, in 1943 Lebanon gains full independence from France, in 1945 France re-establishes its protectorate in Vietnam (which lasts until 1954), and Syria gains independence in 1946.

1947 - 1959

The Fourth Republic is declared. This republic is discredited by inflation and colonial defeats, including a major defeat in Vietnam which effectively ends French involvement in Indochina.

1956

Morocco gains independence from France.

1959 - Present

The Fifth Republic is declared.

1960 - 1965

The sixties is a decade of withdrawal from colonial possessions. In 1960, the Central African Republic, Chad, Dahomey (Benin), Madagascar, Mali, and Niger gain full independence. In 1962, Algeria wins independence, while in 1965, Tunisia follows suit.

The spring of revolution in Paris in 1968 brought social change to France

1968

In France, the May 1968 spring revolution witnesses student riots and a general strike which brings the government of Charles de Gaulle to the point of collapse, and triggers social change throughout the country.

1999 - Present

Henry VII, count of Paris, duke of France

Son.

Francis, count of Clermont

Son and heir, but disabled.

Jean, duke of Vendome

Brother and nominated regent.

Heirs of Napoleon Bonaparte
AD 1815 - Present Day

The descendants of the House of Bonaparte retain the title of imperial highness. There are no remaining descendants in the male line from any of Napoleon's brothers other than the youngest, Jérôme. There are, however, numerous descendants of Napoleon's illegitimate, but recognised son, Walewski, from his union with Marie, Countess Walewski. The American Bonapartes were senior in descent from King Jérôme, but the last male of that line died in 1945, although this branch was never considered to be dynastic.

1815 - 1832

Napoleon II

Son of Napoleon Bonaparte. Died aged 21.

1832 - 1873

Louis / Napoleon III

Son of Louis Bonaparte. Emperor of the French 1852-1871.

1873 - 1879

Eugène / Napoleon IV

Son. Died fighting the Zulus in British South Africa on 1 June.

1879 - 1926

Victor / Napoleon V

Grandson of Jérôme Bonaparte by his second marriage.

1926 - 1997

Louis / Napoleon VI

Son. Born 1914.

1997 - Present

Charles / Napoleon VII

Son. Born 1950.

Jean Napoleon

Son. Born 1986.