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Charlemagne - Larger than Life? Quiz

Charlemagne's name has rung out in chansons de geste, ballads, legends and films down the years - but how much do you really know about the great king?

A multiple-choice quiz by Aethelflaed. Estimated time: 4 mins.

Author
Aethelflaed

Time
4 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
180,761

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Average

Avg Score
6 / 10

Plays
755

Last 3 plays: Guest 90 (7/10), JudithCrafard (9/10), Guest 136 (3/10).

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. Charlemagne was crowned emperor on Christmas Day in which year? Hint

500

700

800

600

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Question 2 of 10

2. You probably know Charlemagne was a great soldier - but which of these facts about him is *not* true? Hint

He managed to get the whole of Western Europe to accept his authority

He conducted an innovative campaign against the Avars

He was on military campaigns every year of his reign but two

He expanded his territory vastly

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Question 3 of 10

3. Married three times, Charlemagne fathered a brood of children, but what tradition regarding his many daughters was carried on by many of his successors with their own daughters? Hint

they were given small portions of land to administer

they all became nuns

they were never allowed to marry

they only inherited money, not land

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Question 4 of 10

4. With the eldest daughter of which of his contemporaries did Charlemagne try to arrange a wedding for his eldest son? Hint

Ecgberht of Wessex

Pepin the Hunchback

Desiderius, King of the Lombards

Offa of Mercia

NEXT>

Question 5 of 10

5. How do we know so much about Charlemagne? Hint

He had a biographer

A great wealth of oral tradition

He kept campaign diaries

Popular songs glorified him and were passed down

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Question 6 of 10

6. Which of the following did Charlemagne never learn to do? Hint

Joust

Plan his own battles

Write

Ride a horse

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Question 7 of 10

7. Who succeeded Charlemagne? Hint

Louis the Pious

Lothar I

Robert the Pious

Pepin of Aquitaine

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Question 8 of 10

8. Charlemagne originally had to share his kingdom - what event gave him the opportunity to hold it all? Hint

He murdered his brother Carloman

His brother Carloman died accidentally

The death of his father who had been ruling half the kingdom as his overlord

His marriage allowed him to inherit it

NEXT>

Question 9 of 10

9. Charlemagne's famous father was the first of the family to be king - but what was his grandfather's name and achievement? Hint

Charles Martel, who defeated the Muslims at Poitiers

Charles the Fat, who is the first recorded survivor of trepanning

Pepin the Short, who learnt to ride though only three foot six inches tall

Charles the Good, venerated as a martyr

NEXT>

Question 10 of 10

10. What later empire is Charlemagne widely thought to have inspired? Hint

the Byzantine Empire

the Persian empire

the Parthian empire

the Holy Roman Empire

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Most Recent Scores

Nov 03 2024 : Guest 90: 7/10
Nov 02 2024 : JudithCrafard: 9/10
Oct 15 2024 : Guest 136: 3/10

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Charlemagne was crowned emperor on Christmas Day in which year?

Answer: 800

He was acclaimed emperor and crowned at Rome to provide the papacy with a powerful protector in turbulent times. Incidentally, he was crowned "Caesar augustus" and NOT "Holy Roman Emperor": indeed, the question of what he was emperor of was left singularly vague, probably in order to avoid causing unnecessary friction with Byzantium.

2. You probably know Charlemagne was a great soldier - but which of these facts about him is *not* true?

Answer: He managed to get the whole of Western Europe to accept his authority

The English kings didn't acknowledge his imperial authority, nor did Scandinavia.

3. Married three times, Charlemagne fathered a brood of children, but what tradition regarding his many daughters was carried on by many of his successors with their own daughters?

Answer: they were never allowed to marry

None of the Carolingian girls was allowed to marry. This led to scurrilous rumours that Charlemagne was committing incest with them - but these are generally discredited. He simply didn't want there to be any more claimants to the throne than his sons would produce.

4. With the eldest daughter of which of his contemporaries did Charlemagne try to arrange a wedding for his eldest son?

Answer: Offa of Mercia

Offa was the builder of Offa's Dyke, a great earthen wall that was meant to keep out the Welsh from his kingdom. Offa's daughter was called Bertha, but the wedding plans fell through when Offa insisted that Charlemagne should also send a daughter to wed HIS eldest son. Charlemagne, enraged, refused. Carolingian girls didn't get married, remember?

5. How do we know so much about Charlemagne?

Answer: He had a biographer

His biography was written by one Einhard, nicknamed 'homunculus' or 'manling'. It was modelled on Suetonius' 'Lives of the Caesars' and is a scandalously good read!

6. Which of the following did Charlemagne never learn to do?

Answer: Write

Einhard tells us he kept writing tablets under his pillow so he could practise during his frequent bouts of insomnia, but he never mastered the art of writing.

7. Who succeeded Charlemagne?

Answer: Louis the Pious

Louis was the only one of Charlemagne's sons to outlive his indomitable father, even though Charlemagne would have preferred to divide his vast empire. Robert the Pious was a Capetian (an early eleventh-century king), so much later. Lothar and Pepin were Charlemagne's grandsons.

8. Charlemagne originally had to share his kingdom - what event gave him the opportunity to hold it all?

Answer: His brother Carloman died accidentally

Carloman died entirely by accident very early on, and Charlemagne ruled alone for most of his long reign.

9. Charlemagne's famous father was the first of the family to be king - but what was his grandfather's name and achievement?

Answer: Charles Martel, who defeated the Muslims at Poitiers

Charles Martel gave his name to the Carolingian dynasty. His defeat meant the Muslims never conquered France or the rest of Europe and his nickname 'Martel' means 'little hammer', a tribute to his military strength and lack of size. The rest are all Charlemagne's descendants and all facts given are true.

10. What later empire is Charlemagne widely thought to have inspired?

Answer: the Holy Roman Empire

The earliest recorded use of the expression "Holy Roman Empire", however, is much later. Moreover, Charlemagne's empire fell apart soon after his death, and by the Treat of Verdun (843) it was agreed that the imperial title was to be nothing more than a title.

In Germany and Italy, the two countries that can claim to be sucessor states to the Holy Roman Empire, historians regard the key date in the foundation of the Holy Roman Empire as the coronation of Otto I in 962. That said, some concede that the *inspiration* for a revivial of the Roman empire in Western Europe dates from the coronation of Charlemagne in 800.

Source: Author Aethelflaed

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
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