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The Carolingian Empire

Administration

Charlemagne ruled more territory than any other Frankish king. The institution of monarchy among the Franks was not equipped to deal with this situation. The Merovingians had signally failed to rule other peoples, or even themselves, and it was this system that Charles had inherited.

Charles either created new offices, or adapted old ones to new purposes, to meet the challenge. Typical of the changes he made were those that concerned the governors of his various provinces.

Within the Frankish realm, he relied on his counts (French=comtes). A count was appointed by him to rule a particular region within France, these regions being still defined more by the peoples living there than by any specific geographic boundaries. These were areas that were settled and on whose loyalty the king could usually rely.

Newly-conquered territories, however, were another matter. The ruler here had to be a warrior, whose principal duties were military. Such a territory was called a March. Thus, the territory won by Charles when he invaded Spain is called the Spanish March.

Most such marches were on the eastern borders, in German territories. The German word for count is graf, and the word for march is mark. Long after Charlemagne, and even long after the Middle Ages, there were lords in Germany called margraves (e.g., the Margrave of Brandenburg), still reflecting the administrative inheritance from the early Middle Ages.

Above the counts were the provincial governors, whose duty it was to govern the principal divisions of the realm. These took the ancient Roman title of duke (Latin=ducis, leader). The dukes were either members of Charles' own family, or else were trusted comrades. These titles, too, long outlasted Charlemagne; examples include the Duke of Saxony, the Duke of Brittany, and the Duke of Aquitaine.

You should not picture this system as being rigid or consistent. Not all counts reported to a duke; some regions a duke ruled directly, with no counts under him; some regions were ruled by Charles directly and were known as royal lands. And some lands were ruled by none of these, but by the Church. Jurisdictions overlapped; some duties and powers were military only, some were administrative or fiscal or judicial. And sometimes a lord exercised power as he saw fit or until Charles intervened.

It was not efficient. It reflected the history of Carolingian conquest rather than any carefully considered plan of governing. But, as noted above, much of it survived its creator and gave shape to the political geography of medieval Europe.