Cullen J. Chandler is the Frank and Helen Lowry Professor of History at Lycoming College in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, USA, where he also serves as director of the Lycoming Scholars program. He researches Carolingian political and cultural history and is the author of “Charlemagne: Already a Legend” (2022), “Charlemagne’s Table: The Carolingian Royal Court and Food Culture” (2020), and Carolingian Catalonia: politics, culture and identity in an imperial province, 778-987 (2019), among other studies.

‘A lucid, lively and up-to-date account of a key period of early medieval European history. Professor Chandler makes the complexities of Carolingian politics and culture comprehensible for students new to the subject and anyone needing an accessible review of the subject. This will be a valued part of undergraduate reading lists for years to come.’James T. Palmer, University of St Andrews, UK‘Ideal for students with no prior knowledge of late antique or early medieval history, or of their geographies. This book offers a solid foundation of essential knowledge, on which instructors can layer studies and primary sources to problematize or thicken particular areas of enquiry. Although unburdened by scholarly apparatus other than a well-selected bibliography, the work is deeply informed by the important innovations of recent research, bringing to students deft integration of topics such as ethnogenesis, global contexts, biblical models in political theory, theological disputes, strategies for projecting power and securing resources, and the frictions generated by the political aspirations of the élite. Chandler’s gift for concise summation of a wide range of issues is admirable.’Abigail Firey, University of Kentucky, USA

• Prologue: Late Antiquity 1. The Frankish World 2. The Age of Charlemagne 3. Louis the Pious and Imperium Christianum 4. Life and Society 5. The Family Business (840-876) 6. The End of the Carolingian Empire (877-888) 7. Epilogue: The Dawn of a New Age

Cullen J. Chandler is the Frank and Helen Lowry Professor of History at Lycoming College in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, USA, where he also serves as director of the Lycoming Scholars program. He researches Carolingian political and cultural history and is the author of “Charlemagne: Already a Legend” (2022), “Charlemagne’s Table: The Carolingian Royal Court and Food Culture” (2020), and Carolingian Catalonia: politics, culture and identity in an imperial province, 778-987 (2019), among other studies.

‘A lucid, lively and up-to-date account of a key period of early medieval European history. Professor Chandler makes the complexities of Carolingian politics and culture comprehensible for students new to the subject and anyone needing an accessible review of the subject. This will be a valued part of undergraduate reading lists for years to come.’James T. Palmer, University of St Andrews, UK‘Ideal for students with no prior knowledge of late antique or early medieval history, or of their geographies. This book offers a solid foundation of essential knowledge, on which instructors can layer studies and primary sources to problematize or thicken particular areas of enquiry. Although unburdened by scholarly apparatus other than a well-selected bibliography, the work is deeply informed by the important innovations of recent research, bringing to students deft integration of topics such as ethnogenesis, global contexts, biblical models in political theory, theological disputes, strategies for projecting power and securing resources, and the frictions generated by the political aspirations of the élite. Chandler’s gift for concise summation of a wide range of issues is admirable.’Abigail Firey, University of Kentucky, USA

• Prologue: Late Antiquity 1. The Frankish World 2. The Age of Charlemagne 3. Louis the Pious and Imperium Christianum 4. Life and Society 5. The Family Business (840-876) 6. The End of the Carolingian Empire (877-888) 7. Epilogue: The Dawn of a New Age

Cullen J. Chandler is the Frank and Helen Lowry Professor of History at Lycoming College in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, USA, where he also serves as director of the Lycoming Scholars program. He researches Carolingian political and cultural history and is the author of “Charlemagne: Already a Legend” (2022), “Charlemagne’s Table: The Carolingian Royal Court and Food Culture” (2020), and Carolingian Catalonia: politics, culture and identity in an imperial province, 778-987 (2019), among other studies.

‘A lucid, lively and up-to-date account of a key period of early medieval European history. Professor Chandler makes the complexities of Carolingian politics and culture comprehensible for students new to the subject and anyone needing an accessible review of the subject. This will be a valued part of undergraduate reading lists for years to come.’James T. Palmer, University of St Andrews, UK‘Ideal for students with no prior knowledge of late antique or early medieval history, or of their geographies. This book offers a solid foundation of essential knowledge, on which instructors can layer studies and primary sources to problematize or thicken particular areas of enquiry. Although unburdened by scholarly apparatus other than a well-selected bibliography, the work is deeply informed by the important innovations of recent research, bringing to students deft integration of topics such as ethnogenesis, global contexts, biblical models in political theory, theological disputes, strategies for projecting power and securing resources, and the frictions generated by the political aspirations of the élite. Chandler’s gift for concise summation of a wide range of issues is admirable.’Abigail Firey, University of Kentucky, USA

• Prologue: Late Antiquity 1. The Frankish World 2. The Age of Charlemagne 3. Louis the Pious and Imperium Christianum 4. Life and Society 5. The Family Business (840-876) 6. The End of the Carolingian Empire (877-888) 7. Epilogue: The Dawn of a New Age