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Carolingian Kings of the Eastern Franks (East Francia / Kings of Germany)
AD 840 - 911
The eastern half of the
Frankish empire evolved into modern Germany, but Carolingian rule was
relatively brief before a High-German-speaking Teutonic ruling class was
established. In 840, Louis
the Pious left his empire to his sons, but tried to ensure that the eldest
gained the biggest share, in order to avoid the fragmentation of territory
that so weakened the Merovingians.
Lothar received
Middle Francia (the Rhine
corridor including the kingdom of
Burgundy, and Italy), Charles the Bald received
Western Francia
(France and the duchy of
Burgundy), and Louis the German received Eastern Francia (Germany). However,
Lothar initially claimed overlordship over all three regions and Louis and
Charles had to go to war to convince him to relent, which he did in 843. The Treaty of Verdun
confirmed the official division of the empire between the three kings, with rule over the empire as a whole being nominal. |