Charles Martel

Charles Martel, or Charles "The Hammer" (in Old French, Martel), successfully asserted his claims to power as successor to his father in Frankish politics. He was the de-facto of Francia from 718 A.D. until his death in 741. Continuing and building on his father's work, he restored centralized government in Francia and began the series of military campaigns that re-established the Franks as the undisputed masters of all Gaul. According to a near-contemporary source, the Liber Historiae Francorum, Charles was "a warrior who was uncommonly [...] effective in battle".

Martel gained a very consequential victory against an Umayyad invasion of Aquitaine at the Battle of Tours, at a time when the Umayyad Caliphate controlled most of the Iberian Peninsula. Alongside his military endeavours, Charles has been traditionally credited with a seminal role in the development of the Frankish system of feudalism.[8][9]

At the end of his reign, Charles divided Francia between his sons, Carloman and Pepin. The latter became the first king of the Carolingian dynasty. Pepin's son Charlemagne extended the Frankish realms and became the first emperor in the West since the fall of Rome.[10]