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Charles Martel (c. 688 or 686, 680 – 22 October 741) was a Frankish statesman and military leader who, as Duke and Prince of the Franks and Mayor of the Palace, was ''de facto'' ruler of Francia from 718 until his death.〔Fouracre, Paul (2000) ''The Age of Charles Martel,'' London, GBR: Longman, see ISBN 0582064759, see (), accessed 2 August 2015.〕 The son of the Frankish statesman Pepin of Herstal and a noblewoman named Alpaida, Charles successfully asserted his claims to power as successor to his father as the power behind the throne in Frankish politics. 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. After work to establish a unity in Gaul, Charles' attention was called to foreign conflicts, and dealing with the Islamic advance into Western Europe was a foremost concern. Arab and Berber Islamic forces had conquered Spain (711), crossed the Pyrenees (720), seized a major dependency of the Visigoths (721-725), and after intermittent challenges, under Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi, Governor-General of al-Andalus, advanced toward Gaul and on Tours, "the holy town of Gaul"; in October 732, the army of the Umayyad Caliphate led by Al Ghafiqi met Frankish and Burgundian forces under Charles in an area between the cities of Tours and Poitiers (modern north-central France〔The location is near the present village of Moussais-la-Bataille, about 20 kilometres (12 mi) northeast of Poitiers; hence, the location of the battle was close to the border between the Frankish realm and then-independent Aquitaine. 〕), leading to a decisive, historically important Frankish victory known as the Battle of Tours (or ''ma'arakat Balâṭ ash-Shuhadâ'', Battle of the Palace of Martyrs), ending the "last of the great Arab invasions of France," a military victory termed "brilliant" on the part of Charles.〔Christian Pfister, 1910, "Charles Martel," in ''The Encyclopædia Britannica: The New Volumes, Constituting… the Twelfth Edition of that Work, and Also Supplying… '', Vol. 5, pp. 942-943, Chicago, IL, USA: Encyclopædia Britannica Company, see (), accessed 2 August 2015. Christian Pfister, D. ès. L. (1857–1933), was a professor at the Sorbonne, in Paris, and recipient of the Chevalier of the Legion of Honour.〕〔Quote from Pfister, 1910, op. cit, regarding this text statement: "Besides establishing a certain unity in Gaul, Charles saved it from a great peril. In 711 the Arabs had conquered Spain. In 720 they crossed the Pyrenees, seized Narbonensis, a dependency of the kingdom of the Visigoths, and advanced on Gaul. By his able policy Odo succeeded in arresting their progress for some years; but a new vali, Abdur Rahman, a member of an extremely fanatical sect, resumed the attack, reached Poitiers, and advanced on Tours, the holy town of Gaul. In October 732—just 100 years after the death of Mahomet—Charles gained a brilliant victory over Abdur Rahman, who was called back to Africa by revolts of the Berbers and had to give up the struggle. This was the last of the great Arab invasions of Europe. After his victory, Charles took the offensive, and endeavoured to wrest Narbonensis from the Musselmans. Although he was not successful in his attempt to recover Narbonne (737), he destroyed the fortresses of Agde, Be'ziers and Maguelonne, and set fire to the amphitheatre at Nimes."〕〔"Charles's victory has often been regarded as decisive for world history, since it preserved western Europe from Muslim conquest and Islamization." ()〕〔Durant, Will (1950) () ''The Age of Faith,'' p. 461, New York, NY, USA: Simon and Schuster, , ISBN 9780671418007.〕〔Per Pfister, op. cit., Abdur Rahman was called back to North Africa to deal with Berber revolts, and gave up the struggle in Europe at that battle.〕 Charles further took the offensive after Tours, destroying fortresses at Agde, Béziers and Maguelonne, and engaging Islamic forces at Nimes, though ultimately failing to recover Narbonne (737) or to fully reclaim the Visigoth's Narbonensis.〔 He thereafter made significant further external gains against fellow Christian realms, establishing Frankish control over Bavaria, Alemannia, and Frisia, and compelling some of the Saxon tribes to offer tribute (738).〔 Apart from the military endeavours, Charles is considered to be a founding figure of the European Middle Ages. Skilled as an administrator as well as a warrior, he is credited with a seminal role in the emerging responsibilities of the knights of courts, and so in the development of the Frankish system of feudalism. Moreover, Charles—a great patron of Saint Boniface—made the first attempt at reconciliation between the Franks and the Papacy. Pope Gregory III, whose realm was being menaced by the Lombards, wished Charles to become the defender of the Holy See and offered him the Roman consulship, though Charles declined.〔〔Anon., 2001, "The Frankish Kingdom," in ''The Encyclopedia of World History''.〕〔Thomas Dell, curator (2014) "Charles Martel," ''Notable Names Database'' (NNDB), see (), accessed 2 August 2015.〕〔Quote from Pfister (1910), op. cit, regarding this text statement: "Pope Gregory III, menaced by the Lombards, invoked the aid of Charles in 739, sent him a deputation with the keys of the Holy Sepulchre and the chains of St. Peter, and offered to break with the emperor and Constantinople, and to give Charles the Roman consulate (ut a partibus imperatoris recederet et Romanum consulatum Carolo sanciret). This proposal, though unsuccessful, was the starting point of a new papal policy."〕 Although Charles never assumed the title of king, he divided Francia, like a king, between his sons Carloman and Pepin. The latter became the first of the Carolingians, the family of Charles Martel, to become king. Charles' grandson, Charlemagne, extended the Frankish realms to include much of the West, and became the first Emperor since the fall of Rome. Therefore, on the basis of his achievements, Charles is seen as laying the groundwork for the Carolingian Empire.〔 In summing up the man, Gibbon wrote that Charles was "the hero of the age," whereas Guerard describes him as being the "champion of the Cross against the Crescent."〔Edward Gibbon, ''The history of the decline and fall of the Roman empire,'' Vol. 6, p. 197.〕〔Albert Guerard, ''France: A Modern History.''〕 ==Background== Charles was the son of Pepin of Herstal and his second wife Alpaida.〔Kurth, Godefroid (1908). "Charles Martel," In ''The Catholic Encyclopedia,'' Vol. 3, New York, NY, USA: Robert Appleton, see (), accessed August 2, 2015.〕 He had a brother named Childebrand, who later became the Frankish ''dux'' (that is, ''duke'') of Burgundy. In older historiography, it was common to describe Charles as "illegitimate". This is still widely repeated in popular culture today. But, polygamy was a legitimate Frankish practice at the time and it is unlikely that Charles was considered "illegitimate". It is likely that the interpretation of "illegitimacy" is an idea derived of Pepin's first wife's (Plectrude's) desire to see her progeny as heirs to Pepin's power.〔〔 After the reign of Dagobert I (629–639) the Merovingians effectively ceded power to the Pippinids, who ruled the Frankish realm of Austrasia in all but name as Mayors of the Palace. They controlled the royal treasury, dispensed patronage, and granted land and privileges in the name of the figurehead king. Charles' father, Pepin, was the second member of the family to rule the Franks. Pepin was able to unite all the Frankish realms by conquering Neustria and Burgundy. He was the first to call himself Duke and Prince of the Franks, a title later taken up by Charles. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Charles Martel」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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