Charles the Younger

Who was Charles the Younger?

Charles the Younger was the second son of Charlemagne and the first by his second wife, Hildegard of Swabia. When Charlemagne divided his empire among his sons, his son Charles was designated King of the Franks.

His elder brother, Pippin the Hunchback, was disinherited, and his younger brothers Carloman and Louis the Pious received Italy and Aquitaine, respectively.

Charles was mostly preoccupied with the Bretons, whose border he shared and who insurrected on at least two occasions and were easily put down, but he was also sent against the Saxons on multiple occasions. Charles' father outlived him, however, and the entire kingdom thus went to his younger brother Louis the Pious, Pippin also having died.

Around 789 it was suggested by Charlemagne that Charles the Younger should be married to Offa's daughter Ælfflæd. Offa insisted that the marriage could only go ahead if Charlemagne's daughter Bertha was married to Offa's son Ecgfrith. Charlemagne took offence, broke off contact, and closed his ports to English traders. Eventually, normal relations were reestablished and the ports were reopened. Just a few years later, in 796, Charlemagne and Offa concluded the first commercial treaty known in English history.