00:00The time will erase all traces, but I will prevent them from disappearing forever.
00:21I am the only one who can carry it out.
00:27He was my protector and my friend, and it is my sacred obligation not to let that great
00:35of his time fall into oblivion.
00:43Many years have passed since that memorable Christmas Day, in which Charles, my king,
00:48was crowned emperor in Rome.
01:08On December 25, 800, when Charlemagne was crowned emperor, he was at the height of
01:14his power.
01:16He ruled an empire that covered almost all of Europe.
01:23Charlemagne was the most powerful ruler of his time.
01:26In Rome, the Pope himself trembles before his presence.
01:30Long live Charles, emperor of the Romans!
01:35Long live the emperor!
01:38Long live our king!
01:44There is only one person who can tell the story of Charlemagne first-hand.
01:48His former comrade on the road, the eludite of the court Eginardo.
01:55Excuse me, master, I'm late.
01:59You have never arrived on time.
02:03I wonder, Io Hannes, if you are up to the mission I have assigned to you.
02:09I have proposed to start writing as soon as possible about the public and private life
02:15of the great King Charles and, of course, about everyone and each of his deeds.
02:24I lived by his side in the court for 20 years.
02:28I have earned his trust and I know his secrets.
02:32But don't forget this.
02:34Everything that is not reflected in writing must be kept secret.
02:39Yes, master.
02:41Tell me what I should write.
02:46The work will be titled...
02:49Vita Caroli.
02:51The life of Charles.
02:54Years after the death of Charlemagne, Eginardo, a wise man of his court,
02:58wrote the biography of a more famous ruler of the Middle Ages.
03:02Today Charlemagne appears represented as a supernatural ruler,
03:05a charismatic figure.
03:07But how was it really?
03:09Where does the myth end and reality begins?
03:18The story begins in a turbulent time.
03:21Pipino, Charlemagne's father, wants to be king of the Franks,
03:25but he is not the heir to the crown.
03:33It is already dawn.
03:35You have watched all night, sir.
03:45The ambitious Pipino wants to have a son to be able to found his own dynasty.
03:50It's a boy.
03:53In April 748, four long years after his wedding with Bertrada,
04:00the longed-for firstborn was born.
04:08Give the news to your lord.
04:14She became very anxious after her marriage,
04:17because she could not have children.
04:21Her position, and of course her husband's,
04:24depended on whether they could have a son or a son-in-law.
04:28Apparently she prayed to God with despair
04:32to allow her to become pregnant,
04:35and that's when she had Charlemagne.
04:39I guess then she must have felt very relieved.
04:44Sir, he is a healthy and beautiful boy.
04:48Now begins my future and yours.
04:51My son will be baptized with the name of Carlos, like my father.
04:56And he will be one of the greatest.
04:59God bless the future king.
05:05The Frankish kingdom, which consisted of multiple principalities,
05:09had been ruled by the Merovingians for generations.
05:13But Pipino, Charlemagne's father, had good reasons
05:16to get the support of the princes in their assault on power.
05:26Pipino became the ruler of a great empire.
05:29Under the Merovingian dynasty,
05:31the area of influence of the Franks had not stopped growing.
05:35In addition to its original settlement areas next to the Rhine and Almosela,
05:39it dominated a large part of present-day France.
05:42In three centuries, the Kingdom of the Franks
05:44became a great power in Europe.
05:49Abad Burkardo, how are things in your land?
05:52Not well, Abad Fulrado.
05:54According to the message we have received from Austria,
05:57many princes of Burgundy and Germany have sided with Pipino.
06:03I thank you for coming so quickly.
06:06The rebels are already forming a large group,
06:09and there are few who continue to support King Childerico.
06:13Soon no one will be able to prevent my triumph.
06:17But only a powerful ally will be able to silence all my rivals.
06:23Fulrado, Burkardo, are you willing to travel to Rome?
06:34The key to Pipino's plan was the Pope.
06:37The coup must have been blessed.
06:42My dear Abads, Fulrado and Burkardo,
06:47I inform you that, after thinking about it carefully,
06:51I have made the following decision about the future of the Kingdom of the Franks.
06:56It is better that the king be the one who has the power
06:58and not the one who has lost all his power.
07:01Therefore, by virtue of the apostolic authority,
07:04the King of the Franks will be from now on
07:07Mayor of the Palace of Pipino.
07:12Your Holiness, you have made a favourable decision for the Franks,
07:16and also favourable for you.
07:22The Pope of Rome had become an unknown authority until then,
07:27in the Frank Kingdom.
07:30Pipino was forced to seek a higher legitimation
07:34from the Frank nobles and the Frank bishops
07:37to consolidate their political ambitions,
07:40and he did not have much to choose from.
07:42The easiest thing was to go to the Pope.
07:46Thus, by order of the Pope of Rome,
07:50the father of Charles Pipino was crowned King of the Franks.
07:56The last king of Merovingia let Pipino
07:59hang his head and lock him up for life in a monastery.
08:07Are you still writing, Johannes?
08:11In any case, even before the coronation of Pipino,
08:15the former king had to settle for
08:18keeping the title, the hair and the beard,
08:22and play governing, sitting on his throne.
08:27From that moment on, Pipino had to proceed with great skill.
08:34He promised the Pope to defend Rome from all its enemies,
08:39and he became a protector of the Church.
08:44In return, he got the role of the Pope
08:49for his firstborn, Charles, and for his second son,
08:53named Charlemagne.
09:02In the new royal house of Carolingia there were two heirs to the throne,
09:05Charlemagne and his brother Charlemagne.
09:07Since childhood, the two looked more like rivals than like brothers.
09:24Enough!
09:27Leave him immediately!
09:32Charlemagne, the youngest and right-handed,
09:34used to impose himself in competitions,
09:36a fact that Charlemagne did not live as an humiliation.
09:41Charlemagne, the youngest and right-handed,
09:43used to impose himself in competitions,
09:45a fact that Charlemagne did not live as an humiliation.
09:48Charlemagne, the youngest and right-handed,
09:50used to impose himself in competitions,
09:52a fact that Charlemagne did not live as an humiliation.
10:18of my last wills.
10:21I will divide the kingdom of the Franks
10:24between my two sons.
10:26I beg you to be as loyal to them as you have been to me.
10:32In addition, I determine that you, Charles,
10:35reign in the north of Neustria and Austrasia,
10:39and in the west of Aquitaine.
10:42To you, my dear son,
10:45I leave you the east of Aquitaine,
10:47Burgundy,
10:48Provence,
10:49Germany,
10:50and the south of Neustria and Austrasia.
10:57This decision is irrevocable.
11:06The distribution seems balanced at first glance,
11:09but Charlemagne felt hurt.
11:11His kingdom is arranged in a semicircle around his brother's,
11:14so he will be forced to make much longer journeys.
11:21Pipino distributed his kingdom in a rather strange way,
11:27and geographically incoherent.
11:30Charlemagne's territories did not surround Charlemagne's,
11:33and each had a part of Aquitaine.
11:37Since the times of the Merovingians,
11:40Aquitaine was a very precious region.
11:43Pipino's goal, by distributing his inheritance,
11:46was surely to force his children to collaborate,
11:49something they did not know how to do,
11:51that they did not want to do.
11:54There was a strong rivalry for supremacy.
12:01In the famous abbey of Saint-Denis,
12:03are the tombs of the Frankish kings.
12:07Also Charlemagne's father, Pipino,
12:09lies here with his wife, Bertrada.
12:18When he divided his territory between his two sons,
12:21he could not imagine the consequences of his decision.
12:27After the death of Pipino,
12:29each one took possession of the region of the kingdom
12:32that corresponded to him according to the paternal decision.
12:36The coronations took place at the same time.
12:42But each of the brothers chose a church of his own kingdom.
12:49Since then, well,
12:52it was very difficult to maintain peace between the two kings.
12:59Shortly after the coronations,
13:02the struggle for supremacy broke out.
13:07Ha!
13:09And it was not by chance that the women
13:11who began to sow discord ...
13:25This was also the intention of your father.
13:27The family is very rich and influential.
13:30With this marriage, the Bavarians and the Lombards will be on my side.
13:33My kingdom will be stronger.
13:37My kingdom will be stronger.
13:45Soon you will have news.
13:47Go with my blessing, my son.
13:50What can be so important
13:52for my brother to be worthy to visit us?
13:55Don't be so hard, Carlos.
13:58And let me tell you,
14:00that even if you are king,
14:02you are still not the most powerful.
14:05With you by my side, mother,
14:07I have nothing to lose.
14:09I have nothing to lose.
14:11I have nothing to lose.
14:13I have nothing to lose.
14:15I have nothing to lose.
14:17With you by my side, mother,
14:19I have nothing to fear from my brother.
14:22I will be by your side, as I have always been.
14:27But don't underestimate your brother.
14:29He has powerful allies.
14:34Relations between princes
14:36used to be always tense and complex.
14:40And in this case, we have clear evidence
14:42that it was so.
14:44And I wonder if perhaps
14:46it was this mother's special feeling
14:48that she had for her eldest boy.
14:51She certainly tried to make peace
14:53between her two sons,
14:55but it became clear
14:57after her brother's death
14:59that they were getting along perfectly.
15:01But I think the one that she preferred
15:03was Carlos.
15:11Majesty.
15:14It would be beneficial to have a heir.
15:20Besides, it would be a shame
15:22if your brother were faster.
15:26I bring you news.
15:29From what I have heard,
15:31Carloman is going to get married very soon.
15:40He is already living with his future wife.
15:45Don't say anymore.
15:51Don't worry about that.
16:08Sir, I have just arrived from Duasdives
16:10and I have not seen a trace of your brother's army.
16:15My horse!
16:20At the borders of the kingdom,
16:22there is a rebellion.
16:24In this case, the two brothers
16:26are forced to collaborate militarily.
16:30Agitania, conquered by King Pipino,
16:32rises against the Franco occupiers
16:34under the command of his former lord,
16:36Unaldo.
16:39Carlomagno waited for his brother in Montcontour,
16:42500 kilometers from the conflict area,
16:44to march together against Agitania.
16:47But Carloman did not show up
16:49in the agreed place.
16:54Without your military assistance,
16:56your brother will throw himself
16:58against Unaldo's sword.
17:00That is the plan.
17:02He will attack without my help.
17:04He will feel obliged for his honor
17:06and for that of our father.
17:09And what are you going to do
17:11when you are defeated?
17:18What a pleasant visit!
17:20What do I owe this honor?
17:22Since time immemorial,
17:24the kings of the Franco have always fought together.
17:26We have also sworn
17:28to fulfill that sacred law.
17:30If that law is so sacred to you,
17:32do the same as me.
17:34Send your warriors home.
17:36To be the admirer of the whole world?
17:39You had promised me your help.
17:41Have you forgotten?
17:45Well, I have advised myself with others.
17:48Cheers, brother.
17:50Soon you will overcome humiliation.
17:56Damn traitor!
18:00You see?
18:02You have the strength to kill me.
18:05All you lack is courage.
18:15It is not clear
18:17why Charlemagne refused to help.
18:19Did he want to leave his brother
18:21in a compromised situation?
18:23Was he allied with the Aquitans?
18:25It is likely that there was
18:27an old enmity between the brothers.
18:29The sources do not clarify it.
18:31But what we do know
18:33is that Charlemagne was left alone
18:35after the confrontation with his brother.
18:40Charlemagne is in the situation
18:42in which his brother wanted to see him.
18:44Fleeing the fight would be a sign of weakness.
18:46Fighting alone is a huge risk.
18:48Charlemagne cannot afford
18:50a defeat.
18:52The king will only keep his crown
18:54if luck, that is, God,
18:56accompanies him in the fight.
19:04Charlemagne may feel
19:06sure of himself for having
19:08the most advanced weapons
19:10and military technology.
19:12This indicates a valuable document
19:14from the library of the Abbey of San Galo,
19:16one of the largest and oldest libraries
19:18in the world.
19:23Here is a manuscript
19:25from the Carolingian era
19:27of incalculable value.
19:29It is the Golden Salterio,
19:32shows the Franks the attack
19:34with bows and arrows,
19:36with swords and shields.
19:38As protection, the soldiers
19:40wear a coat of mail and
19:42scam armor, a very advanced
19:44technology for its time.
19:56The army of Charlemagne
19:58is well equipped
20:00and, more importantly,
20:02the first thing the enemy sees
20:04is an army of iron.
20:06It is terrifying.
20:10An experiment will study
20:12the speed and force of percussion
20:14that an arrow reaches
20:16when hitting the armor.
20:18The travel of the arrow
20:20will be recorded
20:22with a high-speed camera.
20:24The target is a torso
20:26made of soap
20:29The shooter and the mannequin
20:31are exactly 10 meters away.
20:37The camera, at 3,000 frames per second,
20:39records the flight of the arrow.
20:45This is when they penetrate the torso.
20:47What speed has the arrow reached?
20:51The arrow has flown
20:53at 45 meters per second,
20:55that is, 172 kilometers per hour.
20:59How fast!
21:01How fast!
21:27What protection did the coats of mail
21:29and the scam armor have?
21:31Were they the real secret weapon
21:33of the Franco army?
21:43The coat of mail is the main
21:45form of armor that was used
21:47at that time.
21:49It was made of interlocking rings
21:51and protected mainly against
21:53swords, spears and cutting weapons.
21:55But it was not very effective
21:57against the arrows,
21:59as our experiment shows.
22:01However, it did stop some arrows.
22:05The coat of mail does not offer
22:07much resistance to projectiles,
22:09but it reduces the impact force
22:11so that the deadly arrows
22:13are trapped in the jugón.
22:17The Franco scam armor
22:19makes the arrows bounce.
22:23The Franco entered the territory
22:25of the gypsies in staggered columns
22:27and defeated the enemy units
22:29attacking the flanks.
22:33Charge!
22:55The most important factor
22:57in the military successes of
22:59Charlemagne is simply money.
23:03He ruled a state with
23:05a growing economy.
23:07It had a small industrial sector,
23:09although important,
23:11as it allowed him to manufacture
23:13weapons and armor in large quantities.
23:25Sir!
23:27Sir!
23:29You have a son!
23:31Your wife has given birth
23:33to a child!
23:35We have a heir!
23:37The Francos
23:39will be the winners!
23:55After the victory,
23:57Charlemagne regained
23:59control of Aquitaine
24:01and also annexed the part
24:03that he had inherited
24:05from his brother Charlemagne.
24:19The success in the battle
24:21of Charlemagne legitimizes
24:23his reign.
24:25It allows him to show his court
24:27that he is a king soldier
24:29capable of winning
24:31and that gives legitimacy
24:33and stability to his government.
24:35Probably his brother
24:37had not thought
24:39that if Charlemagne did not win,
24:41he as a younger brother
24:43would be in a secondary position.
24:45So we can assume
24:47that Charlemagne
24:49regretted not having assisted
24:51in the liberation of Aquitaine.
24:55Carlos gave his son
24:57the name of his father Pipino.
24:59He was also happy
25:01for having made clear
25:03his superiority to his brother
25:05with his demonstration of strength.
25:07But a few months later
25:09something unheard of happened.
25:11Charlemagne
25:13also baptized his firstborn
25:15with the name of Pipino.
25:17It was a great provocation
25:19towards his brother.
25:21You should know that Carlos
25:23always patiently endured
25:25the hostility
25:27and jealousy of his brother.
25:31Yes, also then
25:33people were surprised
25:35that he never reacted
25:37with fury.
25:39Rather, he took care
25:41of his affairs in his own way.
25:43Or maybe it's better to say
25:45that it was his mother
25:47who began to organize
25:49in her own way
25:51the affairs of her son.
25:57The king's mother,
25:59Bertrada, secretly crossed
26:01the Alps towards Italy.
26:05She was heading to the palace
26:07of the king of the Lombards,
26:09Desiderio, in Pavia.
26:11Bertrada wants to close
26:13an alliance with the old enemy
26:15of the Francs
26:17to strengthen the reign
26:19of Charlemagne.
26:21The sources usually give
26:23very little information
26:25about the role of women
26:27at that time.
26:29Therefore, in the case of Bertrada,
26:31we can see that she enjoyed
26:33a position of dominance
26:35very unusual
26:37and that she handled
26:39the situation
26:41very well.
27:09With your permission,
27:11I would like to introduce you to my daughter.
27:17This princess will marry Charlemagne
27:19sealing an alliance with the Lombards
27:21that will allow them to surround
27:23the kingdom of Charlemagne from the north,
27:25the west and the south.
27:27That is the plan.
27:31The only problem is the Pope
27:33who distrusts the alliance
27:35between the enemies of Rome,
27:37the Francs.
27:41The Pope, Esteban III,
27:43sees in Bertrada's strategy
27:45the hand of the devil
27:47and writes directly
27:49to the king of the Francs.
27:51Already in paradise,
27:53Satan used a woman
27:55to incite the infidelity
27:57of the divine law.
27:59Now,
28:01he uses the same method again.
28:03This marriage
28:05is a diabolical
28:07inspiration.
28:09The noble and excellent people of the Francs
28:11cannot and should not
28:13unite with those damn Lombards.
28:17Saint Peter himself
28:19implores for the dreadful day
28:21of the final judgment
28:23that the king of the Francs
28:25does not marry the daughter of the king of the Lombards.
28:29But Bertrada imposed her decision.
28:31Charles separated from his wife
28:33and sent her,
28:35as is usually done in these cases,
28:37to live in a convent.
28:41Unfortunately,
28:43we know very little about Himmeltruda.
28:45We do not know anything about her family either.
28:47But we can assume
28:49that it was not a very powerful family
28:51because there are no protests
28:53against repudiation.
28:55Charlemagne separated from her
28:57even though he had given her
28:59a son named Pipino,
29:01the hunchback.
29:05We also do not know
29:07what happened to her
29:09after the repudiation.
29:11The sources do not mention anything else.
29:31Carlos,
29:33your fiancée has come a long way
29:37and she would like to meet you.
29:49I hope your trip
29:51has not been tiring.
29:57I'll wait for you for dinner.
30:01That marriage
30:03to the princess Lombard
30:05seemed very useful.
30:07King Lombard
30:09had married his daughters
30:11to very prestigious people
30:13and Charlemagne
30:15was entering
30:17a constellation of power already existing.
30:23Now it's time to move
30:25Charlemagne's card.
30:31He's coming.
30:51I know what to do.
30:57Our second son
30:59of hands of the same father tomorrow I will send a letter to Rome
31:08His Holiness will agree and seal is a new alliance
31:20but Carlos and above all Bertrada did not want to allow an alliance between
31:27Carloman and the Pope and the alliance did not come to be established because as was to be expected
31:35Bertrada began to move the threads once again and managed to attract the Pope to his land
31:42Carloman was so angry that he came to think of marching against Rome he wanted to attack the city of
31:50Apostol San Pedro? That's right, and in that case the fratricidal war that had been threatening for a long time would have exploded
32:00but Providencia had other projects
32:07sometimes the ways of the Lord are really inescrutable
32:10The fate took the reins before the war broke out
32:23With only 20 years old, Carloman died in mysterious circumstances
32:38for Carlomagno the death of his brother there would be unexpected possibilities
33:08Take care of our two children and protect yourself from my brother
33:24You must not allow it to be done with the crown
33:27Carlomagno did not take long to proclaim himself the only king of the Francs
33:40Carloman's unexpected death was a gift for Carlomagno
33:47I'm not so sure he didn't play dirty
33:51but speculation is just one part of historical work
33:57the other is the statement of the witnesses
34:00which in this case does not give indications that Carlomagno had something to do with the death of his brother
34:08Carloman's widow, Gerberga, has a very temerous plan
34:16to put his children out of Carlomagno's reach through the Alps
34:21His destination is the court of the king of the Lombards, Desiderio
34:35Gerberga flees to Italy, probably with the hope of being able to face his powerful brother-in-law and defeat him with the help of the Lombards
34:44I couldn't be more wrong
34:47Carlomagno took two years to march on Italy
34:50but by then Carloman's heirs were gone
34:57Carlomagno's Lombard wife's days in court were also counted
35:14Isn't your wife coming?
35:18She has already sat at my table too many times
35:21I made a mistake
35:24I shouldn't have agreed to that marriage
35:27We have a valuable alliance with your wife's family
35:32What do you mean, Carlos?
35:35I mean that I am the king of the Francs
35:38and that from now on I will make all the decisions
35:41and that your Lombard will return with his people of traitors
35:47Carlomagno resumes his father's policy and abandons his mother's
35:51Until the year 771 we did not know what Carlomagno's true opinion was
35:58With the death of his brother Carlomagno things changed radically
36:02and he finally had freedom of decision
36:06But don't you understand that this is a declaration of war against Desiderio?
36:11So be it
36:14Didn't my father fight against the Lombards?
36:17And for the Pope?
36:20Your father's times are over
36:23We don't need wars, but alliances
36:26You're wrong, mother
36:28Why is my sister-in-law hiding in Desiderio's court?
36:31She trusts me to help her children to be crowned behind my back
36:36I don't think that's your sister-in-law's intention
36:39The war, mother, started a long time ago
36:42and you don't make the decisions anymore
36:57His relationship with Italy was changing
37:00He wanted an alliance with the Pope
37:03and he wanted to break away from the Lombards
37:07But he also needed to marry a woman of the aristocracy
37:13which is much more normal than a foreign marriage
37:17He wanted to marry a powerful family
37:20capable of supporting him politically and militarily
37:23who would provide military and political support for him
37:30Carlomagno married Hildegarda
37:33the daughter of a count of the aristocracy
37:38It had been a long time since he had sent his wife to Lombardy with his father
37:44During the next eleven years
37:47Hildegarda gave birth to nine children
38:00On the one hand, Hildegarda had relatives in the kingdom of Carlomagno
38:18Her father was a great support for Carlomagno in that territory
38:24In addition, the young Hildegarda, who was then 14 years old
38:29had to be charming
38:32since she managed to reconcile with those who opposed the marriage
38:39As far as we know, she became one of the most beloved queens
38:49Desiderio, the king of the Lombards, humiliated by Carlomagno
38:53He went to Rome to face his last chance to convince the Pope
38:58Holiness
39:00I suppose you have already heard of the misfortune that the children of Carlomagno have suffered
39:05Do you mean ...
39:07that our, if you allow me ...
39:09impetuous Carlos has overtaken the poor children in the successive line?
39:15Has he taken away the crown of the Franks that was their right?
39:19Well ...
39:21And what role do you want him to play in this function?
39:26Holiness
39:28With permission
39:29You
39:30You are the only one who can determine the legitimacy of the crown
39:35I beg you
39:36to crown the young as the legitimate heirs to the throne of Carlomagno
39:42They are his children
39:46It is true that, as I have heard
39:48you have them under your protection
39:51and do you expect to get any benefit?
39:54Well ...
39:56I'll think about it, but ...
39:58such a decision takes time
40:05For Carlomagno
40:07the papal blessing to the children of his late brother
40:10would have been a great challenge
40:12He could not allow the Pope to legitimize other claimants to the throne
40:18because after the death of his brother
40:21he had claimed the whole kingdom of the Franks
40:25and that would be a reason to go to war
40:36In May of the year 772
40:38the war with the Lombards seemed inevitable
40:41but the treatment that Carlomagno had dispensed to his nephews
40:44bothered many nobles of the kingdom
40:50The situation is very tense when Carlomagno, like every year
40:53renews the vows of the vassalage
40:59Prince Gerol
41:01the faithful vassal of my brother
41:04And now, if God allows it, yours
41:08And also my brother-in-law
41:11Let's go!
41:13Let's not waste time!
41:22As I see it
41:25we are not united
41:27and that saddens me
41:29especially when I see
41:31how the Frankish princes
41:33do not swear loyalty to their legitimate king but to a ...
41:37traitor Lombard
41:39But let's leave the Lombards
41:42and let's take care of the Saxons
41:47When Carlomagno returned home
41:49to his Lombard wife
41:51he knew he would go to war against the Lombards
41:54but he also knew that in his own ranks
41:57partly because of his mother
41:59the campaign against the Lombards
42:01would find resistance
42:03therefore he would have to eliminate that resistance
42:05to be able to declare war against the Lombards
42:09During that time he acted as the king soldier
42:11who was and organized the campaign against the Saxons
42:14at that time a king had to be always at war
42:17that was his main occupation
42:19the war
42:26Pipino, Carlomagno's father
42:28had already faced the Saxons
42:30a confederation of Germanic tribes
42:32his son was following in his footsteps
42:35The Saxons had been introducing themselves for years
42:37more and more in the north of the kingdom of the Franks
42:39Carlomagno decided to go one step further
42:41than his father
42:43in the year 772
42:45he decided to enter brutally
42:47in the Saxon territory
42:49to the upper Béxar
43:07Ah! Ah! Ah!
43:33The war against the Saxons
43:36which unlike the Franks
43:38were not baptized or Christianized
43:40had to have a religious component
43:42religion
43:44was a part of the ethnic and political identity
43:46that could be used
43:48to subdue a people
43:50in this sense, we do not know that Carlomagno
43:52has considered military rule
43:54and the imposition of Christianity in Saxony
43:56as two independent processes
43:58for him they were two sides of the same coin
44:00Who were the Saxons?
44:02How and where did they live?
44:04It is said that the imposing megaliths
44:06of Eksterstein
44:08of the mountains of Ege
44:10were a place of worship for the Saxons
44:12a pagan Germanic people
44:14who dedicated animal sacrifices
44:16to the gods of nature
44:18The doctor in physics
44:20Clemens Boda
44:22tries to determine
44:24if these artificial chambers
44:26were still used
44:28in times of Carlomagno
44:32It is very likely
44:34that they have continued to be used
44:36at the entrance the wear is very pronounced
44:42Years ago, remains of bonfires
44:44were found here
44:46The question is
44:48how long did bonfires burn in these walls?
44:50Clemens Boda
44:52hopes that the dating by luminescence
44:54of the samples obtained
44:57will be the answer
45:01This is good
45:03Yes, this will serve
45:13Little is known about the religious rituals
45:15of the Saxons
45:17However, the fire
45:19was considered sacred
45:21in all pagan religions
45:23as well as the blood of the animals
45:25with which the priests
45:27intended to punish
45:29their terrible gods
45:31Yes
45:33Yes
45:35Yes
45:37Yes
45:39Yes
45:41Yes
45:43Yes
45:45Yes
45:47Yes
45:53Clemens Boda
45:55dates the samples
45:57by luminescence
46:00and can determine
46:02the moment of the last increase
46:04of temperature
46:06of the quartz grains
46:08contained in the rock
46:10It takes several days
46:12to prepare
46:14and analyze the samples
46:26The results show
46:28that a bonfire was lit
46:30in the caves of Eksterstein
46:32between the 8th century
46:34and the 16th century
46:36That is, also during the wars
46:38between the Franks and the Saxons
46:44It is not possible to determine
46:46whether they were bonfires
46:48used for rituals
46:50because there are no archaeological remains
46:52that indicate it
46:54But in the surroundings of Eksterstein
46:57there is a great importance
46:59of the place
47:01Many believe that here
47:03was the legendary Irminsul
47:05the main relic of the Saxons
47:07It was an immense tree
47:09that supported
47:11the celestial vault
47:15In the exterior wall
47:17of the main cave
47:19was carved in the 16th century
47:21a Christian relief
47:23that showed a descent
47:25the representation
47:27of the furrow
47:29of a tree similar
47:31to the descriptions of Irminsul
47:37Does the relief tell us
47:39that here was the main
47:41sanctuary of the Saxons?
47:43This would explain
47:45why Charlemagne fought
47:47so fiercely for this region
47:49Charlemagne hoped
47:51that by conquering the sanctuary
47:53he would be able to
47:55restore peace
47:57But what he did not imagine
47:59is that the fight
48:01would last many years
48:23you
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