Throughout the course of history many different empires have been formed. Of these empires, the Carolingian Empire is one that really intrigued me to learn more about. The knowledge about the empire is easily retained. Though the information was easy to grasp, it did cause me some problems. While reading about this historical empire I overlooked some very important actions upheld within the empire. Initially, I thought that the information presented in the book was all credited to Charlemagne. Though the majority of the greatest years of the empire occurred under Charlemagne, it did not fully explain the empire itself. Most of what was accomplished was carried out inside of Charlemagne's realm, but he alone did not form the empire himself. The groundwork to the empire was taken care of by the Carolingians who controlled the Frankish realm at this time. The rise and fall of the Carolingian Empire can be attributed to the decisions of those in power and the many government reforms enacted.
The beginning of the Carolingian Empire can be traced even farther back than its given name. The empire itself first took over the Merovingian dynasty of the Frankish Realm. The Carolingian family was a wealthy body of people who did not feel it necessary they were not in power. After the year 600 is when the family really began to establish itself in government office. The Carolingian rise to power was able to happen because the family controlled so much wealth. Since the Carolingian nobility was so powerful, other nobility felt it necessary to become a part of the Carolingians. The Alliances the Carolingians made with others allowed them to increase their following and expand their empire even further.
The Carolingian nobility recognized that some of their territory was under attack from opposing forces. Furthermore, they realized if they do not take care of these attacking forces, that they may lose power in their territory. To