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Charles Martel c.688-741
Ruler of the Franks, founder of the Carolingian dynasty

He was the illegitimate son of Pepin II, the Younger and in 719 became 'Mayor of the Palace' of Austrasia and real ruler of all the Frankish kingdom. He earned his nickname by his defeat of the Moors in a desperate battle at Tours, near Poitiers, in 732, which turned back the tide of Arab conquest in Europe, then drove the Saracens out of Burgundy and Languedoc (737). After his death the Frankish kingdom was divided between his sons Carloman and Pepin III, the Short. His grandson was Charlemagne.

Bibliography: Jean Deviosse, Charles Martel (1978)