"Long-haired kings" - this was the name of the first dynasty of French kings, descended from the Salic Franks, an independent branch living in Tosandria (the interfluve of the Meuse and Scheld rivers) since 420, whose leader was the founder of the Merovingian family - Pharamond, according to many scientists, the character is mythical. From the 5th to the middle of the 8th centuries, the Merovingians ruled the territories of modern France and Belgium.
Legends of ancient France
This semi-legendary dynasty of French kings is surrounded by mystery, myth and fiction. The Merovingians called themselves "new magicians".
They were considered miracle workers, seers and sorcerers, all the powerful power of which was in long hair. The figure of Pharamond, the son of Marcomir, as well as his descendants, including Merovei himself, is controversial. The existence of many of them, as well as the fact that they take their family directly from the Trojan king Priam, or, onat worst, from his relative, the hero of the Trojan War, Aeneas, is not documented in any way. As well as the fact that the Merovingians are descended from Jesus Christ. Some people call them northern Ruses. In some articles it is said that the dynasty takes its family from Merovei, which is why it is called so. Others claim that Merovei was the 13th in this line.
Historical evidence
The first historical figure, many researchers consider only the son of Merovei - Childeric. Many, but not all. Most consider the true founder of the kingdom to be his son, that is, the grandson of Merovee - Clovis (481-511), who successfully ruled for 30 years and was buried in the church of Peter and Paul built by him in Paris (now the church of St. Genevieve). This dynasty of French kings was glorified by Holdwig I. And not only because France adopted Catholicism under him, and his baptism was the birth of a new Roman Empire. Under him, the Frankish (translated as "free") state significantly increased in size, it is even compared with the "high civilization" of Byzantium. It flourished. The literacy of the population was five times higher than 500 years later.
Strong and weak representatives of the glorious dynasty
Kings from the Merovingian family were, as a rule, outstanding and highly educated people. Wise and sometimes tough rulers, such as Dagobert II (676-679), who ruled not for long, but boldly. He concentrated all power in the hands of the monarch, which made the state strong, but did not please the aristocratic circles and the church. This king was martyred. According to one version, he waskilled in his sleep by his godson, who pierced his eye with a spear. The Church, which condoned regicide, canonized him in 872. After this, one might say the last true representative of the Merovingians, the time of the reign of the mayordoms begins. Childeric III (743-751), the last of the Merovingian house, no longer had practical power. He was placed on the throne by majors Pepin the Short and Carloman after the throne had been empty for 7 years. Allegedly, he was the son of Chilperic II, but there is no confirmation of his belonging to the Merovingian family in general. Naturally, he was a toy in the hands of dignitaries.
Carolingians and their best representative
Carolingians - a dynasty of French kings, who replaced rulers from the Merovean family. The first ruler was Pepin III the Short (751-768), who before the coronation was a mayor, that is, the highest dignitary at the Merovingian court. He is also famous for being the father of Charlemagne. Pepin, who seized power by force and falsehood, imprisoned the last of the glorious Merovean dynasty, Childeric III.
The most striking personality not only in the Carolingian dynasty, ruling from 751 to 987, but throughout the history of France, is Charles I the Great (768-814). His name gave the name of the dynasty. A successful warrior who made more than 50 campaigns, he expanded the borders of France beyond measure. In 800, Charles was proclaimed emperor in Rome. His power became unlimited. By introducing strict laws, he concentrated power in his hands as much as possible. For the slightest fault of everyone who violatedthe laws he laid down were subject to the death pen alty. Charles twice a year gathered a council of secular and spiritual higher nobility. Based on joint decisions, he issued laws. With his court, the emperor traveled throughout the country for the purpose of personal control. Of course, such conduct of business plus the reorganization of the army could not but give positive results. France flourished. But the empire crumbled with his death. Not seeing a worthy heir, Charles distributed allotments to his sons, who were at enmity with each other. Further crushing continued.
The end of the empire created by Charles
The dynasty of French kings from the Carolingian family ruled the country for more than two centuries, but among the representatives of this dynasty there was not a single one even slightly reminiscent of Charles I the Great. The last ruler in the rank of Emperor Berengar I died in 924. In 962, the Holy Roman Empire was founded by the German king Otto I the Great. She began to consider herself the successor of the Carolingian Empire. The last king of this dynasty was Louis V the Lazy, who was in power for one year - from 986 to 987. According to some versions, he was poisoned by his mother. Probably because he was lazy. And although he appointed his uncle as heir, the clergy and authorities put Hugo Capet on the throne.
The Third Royal House of France
The dynasty of French kings, ruling since 987, was called the Robertines, later the Capetians, as you might guess, by the name of the first who sat on the throne legally, Hugo Capet (r. 987-996). Orepresentatives of this dynasty, which ended with the death of Charles IV the Handsome in 1328, know more, if only because Maurice Druon's trilogy "The Damned Kings", incredibly popular in the Soviet Union, is dedicated to the years of the reign of the last five kings from the Capetian dynasty, and the first two rulers from the Valois dynasty, the younger branch of the Capetians. Philip IV the Handsome and all his offspring were cursed by the Grand Master of the Templars at the time of his execution.
Spread and strong
Representatives of this royal family were proclaimed kings of France even under the Carolingians - two sons of the founder of the dynasty, Robert the Strong, Count of Anjou - the elder Ed in 888, and the younger Robert in 922. But the Carolingians remained the ruling royal family. And already Hugo Capet founded his legitimate dynasty, which, one might say, remained in power until 1848, because the subsequent ruling houses of the Valois, Bourbons, Orleanids were the younger branches of the Capetians. Since 987, the dynasty of French kings has been famous not only for its branching, but also for the fact that, having received a fragmented state from the Carolingians, in which the power of the king extended only from Paris to Orleans, it turned France into a powerful monarchical power stretching from the shores of the Atlantic to the Mediterranean Sea.. This was done through the efforts of its best kings - Louis VI the Tolstoy (1108-1137), Philip II Augustus the Crooked (1179-1223), one of the most prominent representatives of this house, Saint Louis IX (1226-1270), Philip III the Bold(1270-1285), and, of course, Philip IV the Handsome (1285-1314). He completely changed France, turning it into a power, somewhat reminiscent of our modern state.
A nickname for centuries
The dynasty of French kings, whose name comes from a nickname, is also the Capetians. The addition to the name of the first monarch, Hugo the Great, was first mentioned only in the 11th century. According to some researchers, he received such a nickname because he wore an abbey cap (cappa). He was the secular abbot of such famous monasteries as Saint-Germain-des-Pres, Saint-Denis, and a number of others.
As noted above, the Capetians were the eldest branch of this vast family, the offspring of which were founded by other dynasties of French kings. The table below illustrates the above.
| Capetians (987- 1848) - the third ruling dynasty of France | |||
|
The Capetians proper (main branch) 987 – 1328 |
Valois dynasty 1328 – 1589 |
Bourbons 1589 – 1792 |
Orleans House – 1830-1848 |
|
First Ruler Hugo Capet (987- 996) The Last King Charles IV (1322-1328) |
First Ruler Philip VI(1328-1350) The Last King Henry III(1574-1589) |
First Ruler Henry IV (1589-1610) The Last King Louis XVI (1774-1792 executed) Bourbon Restoration (1814-1830) |
The last king Louis Philippe (1830-1848) |
Smart, tough, very handsome
Philip the Handsome had a very successful marriage, in which four children were born. Three boys alternately were kings of France - Louis X the Grumpy (1314-1316), Philip V the Long (1316-1322), Charles IV the Handsome (1322-1328). These weak kings were far from their illustrious father. In addition, they had no sons, except for John I the Posthumous, the offspring of Louis X the Quarrelsome, who died 5 days after baptism. The daughter of Philip the Handsome married the English king Edward II, which gave the right to their son Edward III of the Plantagenet family to challenge the rights to the French throne from the Valois branch, which occupied it after the death of Charles the Handsome. This led to the start of the Hundred Years' War.
Valois branch
The dynasty of French kings, which began to rule from the 14th century, was called the Valois dynasty (1328-1589), since its ancestor was the cousin of the last Capetian monarch, Philippe Valois. Many misfortunes fell to the share of this ruling house - a bloody war, loss of territories, an epidemic of plague, popular uprisings, the largest of which is Jacqueria (1358). Only in 1453 France, for the umpteenth time in its history, regains its former greatness and is restored to its former borders. And Jeanne d, Arc, or the Maid of Orleans, who expelled the English"grateful French" burned at the stake.
St. Bartholomew's night also fell on the period of the reign of this dynasty - August 24, 1572. And this royal house had its worthy representatives, such as Francis I. During the years of his reign, France flourished during the Renaissance and the absolute power of the monarch was strengthened. The last king of this house was the youngest and most beloved son of the intriguing Catherine de Medici (the first - kings Francis II and Charles IX) Henry III. But he was stabbed with a stiletto by a fanatical Dominican monk, Jacques Clement. Henry III was glorified by the novels of Alexandre Dumas "Queen Margot", "Countess de Monsoro", "Forty-five". There were no sons, and the Valois dynasty ceases to be ruling.
Bourbons
The time is coming for the French kings of the Bourbon dynasty, founded in 1589 by Henry IV of Navarre (1589-1610). The founder of this younger branch of the Capetians was the son of Louis IX Saint Robert (1256-1317) by his wife Sir de Bourbon. Representatives of this dynasty in France occupied the throne from 1589 to 1792, and from 1814 to 1848, while in Spain, after several restorations, they finally left the scene only in 1931. In France, as a result of the revolution of 1792, the dynasty was deposed, and King Louis XVI was executed in 1793. They were restored to the throne after the fall of Napoleon I in 1814, but not for long - before the revolution of 1848. The most famous French king of the Bourbon dynasty is definitely Louis XIV or the Sun King.
He received such a nickname not only because he was in power for 72 years (he took the throne at the age of five in 1643, died in 1715), but because of the beautiful equestrian ballets in which he participated in the image of a luminary or a Roman emperor holding a golden shield resembling the sun. The country could not boast of special successes during his reign. And the bloody revolutions that shook the country at the end of the 18th and the middle of the 19th centuries testify that the rule of the Bourbons did not suit the people of France.
French royal houses of the 19th century
What is the famous dynasty of the French kings of the 19th century? The fact that it was interrupted by revolutions, restored and interrupted again. In the 19th century, Emperor Napoleon I Bonaparte sat on the French throne from 1804 to 1815. After his overthrow, the Bourbon Restoration took place. Louis XVIII (1814-1824), the 67th monarch of France, ascended the throne. He was the last French king who was not overthrown, the last two (Charles X 1824-1830, Louis Philippe - 1830-1848) were forcibly deprived of the throne. The nephew of Napoleon I, the first president of the French Republic, Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte or Napoleon III was the last reigning person. In the rank of Emperor of France from 1854 to 1870, he was in power until his capture by William I. There were still attempts to occupy the French throne, but in order to prevent this, in 1885 all the crowns of the French kings were sold, and the country was finally declared a republic. In the 19th century, the throne was occupied by the dynasties of French kings, a table with dates andthe reign order of which is given below.
| Dynasties of French kings occupying the throne in the 19th century | ||||
| 1892-1804 | Bonapartes | Bourbon Restoration | Orleans House | Bonapartes |
| _ |
Napoleon I 1804 - 1814 |
Louis XVIII (1814-1824) Karl X (1824-1830) |
Louis Philippe I (1830-1848) |
Napoleon III (1852-1870) |
Merovingians, Carolingians, Capetians (including the Valois, Bourbons, Orleanids), Bonapartes - these are the ruling dynasties of the French.
