Whenever we turn our eyes to the Carolingean dynasty, it's most common that we have in mind Charlemagne, who, reasonably so, was responsible for most of his military conquests in High Middle Ages. Not very behind him, though, it was his grandfather, Charles Martel, who was also encharged for shaping the country we know as France, but in his days had another name: Francia. Like Charlemagne in a few generations later, Charles was also a religious man and his military skills were the cause why the islamics never conquered Francia, in the beginning of their retreat to Middle West.
But his life was hardly easy from the beginning. Charles Martel (Deustch: Karl Martel) was born in 686. His father was Pepin II of Herstal and possibly his mistress, sometimes acknowledged as his second wife, a noblewoman named Alpaida, in days where poligamy was tolerated, and which might explain that assuming Charles was illegitimate, perhaps is not the ideal. Regardless of his situation, he was the son of the Mayor of Austrasia, located in the eastern Frankish kingdom. The Mayor was a position of officers who encharged of managing the king's household before becoming guardian to minor kings. However, even when those reached majority, the Mayors still:
"(...) acted as chief officer of the government in his name. And as several of the young kings, even when they were old enough to rule, gave less attention to business than to pleasure, the mayors continued to do all the business, until at last they did everything that the king ought to have done. They made war, led armies in battle, raised money and spent it, and carried on the government as they pleased, without consulting the king."
"(...) It meant the mayor of leader of the palace, eventually evolving into the role of king. At the time of Charles' birth, the Merovingian line of kings was failing. The Mayor overshadowed the king, reducing the actual king (in this case, Dagobert III) to little more than a figurehead. Pepin II had absolute power to include control of the treasury and the dispensation of offices."
Having been perceived how great being a Mayor was, it's almost no surprise to tell that this position would be disputed between Charles and the first wife of his father, on behalf of their eight-year-old son after Pepin's death. In fact, at his deathbed, he was convinced by Plectrude to give his position as Mayor transferred to their young son. Although part of the nobility of Austrasia had accept it, the noblemen of Neustria refused Theudoald as the new Mayor, especially since Plectrude would act as regent until his majority. As a result, a Civil War would implode and Charles Martel was imprisoned in Cologne within a year by Plectrued, who feared that his figure would rise uprisings all over Francia, which eventually came to happen, but he managed to escape from this imprisonment after obtaining the support of the Austrasian nobility. Consequently, Charles self proclaimed as Mayor of Francia.
This Civil War was marked by two important battles that would leave an important impression into the young Charles Martel. The first, as we known the Battle of Cologne, was the first and possibly only defeat of Charles in his whole life. This happened because he did not gather enough men to beat the army of Neustrians, otherwise known as western Franks, joined by their Germanic allies named Frisians.
The second was the Battle of Amblève, in another Frankish region named Austrasia, a decisive battle where Charles used innovatives methods alongside his allies to defeat the Neustrians and Frisians rivals, led by King Chilperic II, mayor Ragenfrid and the Duke of Frisians, Radbod. As we can see in the next paragraph:
"Charles caught up with the retreating Neustrian Army near Malmedy at the Battle of Ableve and completely routed them. This battle would prove Martel innovative on the battlefield, something that would mark him in future conflicts."
"He appeared where his enemies least expected him, while they were marching triumphantly home and far outnumbered him. He also attacked when least expected, at midday, when armies of that era traditionally were resting. Finally, he attacked them how they least expected it, by feigning a retreat to draw his opponents into a trap. The feigned retreat, next to unknown in Western Europe at that time--it was a traditionally eastern tactic--required both extraordinary discipline on the part of the troops and exact timing on the part of their commander. Charles, in this battle, had begun demonstrating the military brilliance that would mark his rule."
As a result of the intern conflit, he "restored centralized government in Francia and began the series of military campaigns that reestablished the Franks as the undisputed masters of all Gaul." Little by little, Charles started an union over the Frankish reunion, especially by seizing lands or being acknowledged as the overlord of some otherwise independent duchies. It's also remarked that feudalism had its beginning under his command. It must be remembered as well that Charles was no king of the Franks just yet, despite rulling the region as if he was one. Once his internal matters were resolved, or the most important of these anyway, he was acknowledged as Mayor, Prince and Duke of Francia.
As for his relationship with the Church, it was general good. He was, in fact, a :
"great patron of Saint Boniface and made the first attempt at reconciliation between the Papacy and the Franks. The Pope wished him to become the defender of the Holy See and offered him the Roman consulship. Martel refused the offer"
Where foreign policy is concerned, Christiniaty in general was concerned with the advance of the empire of the Islamics. Compared to Byzantinum's, or perhaps in response to it, the Islamics have not only enlarged in matters of territory, but their ambitions pushed it forward into Western Europe. After their conquest in the Iberian Peninsula, the Islamic turned their eyes to the Franks, believing this to be an easy conquest as it was a spread belief that the Frankish kings did absolutely nothing. But they would be proved wrong.
"Charles' attention was called to foreign conflicts, and dealing with the Islamic advance (...) was a foremost concern. Arab and Berber islamic forces had conquered Spain (711), crossed the Pyrenees (720), seized a major dependency of the Visgoths (721-725), and after intermittent challenges, under Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi, the Arab Governor 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 (...), leading to a decisive, historically important Frankish victory known as the Battle of Tours (...), ending the "last of the great Arab invasions of France", a military victory termed "brilliant" on the part of Charles."
Had this Battle of Tours, very important in the Frankish History because of the victory of Charles Martel, a different result, it's certain to say Christianity would be all converted to Arabs and fall into their domain. As we can understand it better below:
"The Battle of Tours (...) was fought on October 10, 732 between forces under the Frankish leader Charles Martel and a massive invading Islamic army led by Emir Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi Abd al Rahman, near the city of Tours, France. During the battle, the Franks defeated the Islamic army and Emir Abd er Rahman was killed. This battle stopped northward advance of Islam from the Iberian peninsula, and is considered by most historians to be of macrohistorical importance, in that it haltd the Islamic conquests, and preserved Christianity as the controlling faith in Europe, during a period in which Islam was overruning the remains of the old Roman and Persian Empires."
There are estimatives that the Frankish army defending Gaul were between 15,000 and 75,000; whilst the Muslims had around 60,000 and 400,00 in cavalry, though these numbers can be lesser than it is thought. Whatever the certain number is, what is commonly believed by most accounts is that the entire Muslim army was present at the Battle.
After the victory at the Battle of Tours was granted on the Franks' side, Charles turned against "fellow Christian realms, establishing Frankish control over Bavaria, Alemannia, and Frisia, and compelling some of the Saxon tribes to offer tribute."
In his personal life, there is little to be known, except that he was possibly married twice. The first to a noblewoman named Rotrude of Treves with whom he had five children before her death in 724: Hiltrude, Carloman, Landrade, Auda, and Pippin the Younger. After Rotrude's death, he was married to Swanhild, with whom he had a son Grifo. It's also said that he had some mistresses, named Ruodhaid, who produced four children: Bernard, Hieronymus, Remigius, and Ian.
In general words, we understand the political aspects of Charles Martel as Mayor, Prince and Duke of Franks as the emerging of a realm more unified and a monarchy more centralized, modelling the characteristics that would shape politics later better developed in the reigns of Hugh Capet, Philippe IV and Louis XII. "The responsibilities of the knights of court, and so in the development of the Frankish system of feudalism" were also observed throughout the period of Charles Martel as main governor of Francia, being its sovereign in all but name. Lastly,
"from 737 until his death in 741, Charles focused on the administration of his realm and expanding his influence. This included subduing Burgundy in 739. These years also saw Charles lay the groundwork for his heirs' sucession following his death. When he died on October 22, 741, his lands were divided between his sons Carloman and Pippin III. The latter would father the next Carolingian leader, Charlemagne. Charles' remains were interred at the Basilica of St Denis near Paris."
The strong administration that marked his reign would be followed by Pepin, who, at first, reigned together with his brother Carloman, but once he sought a religious life to live, becoming a monk, Pepin solely ruled as Pepin III. As the son that would succeeded him in turn, Pepin continued to spread his father's legacy in what France would later be.
Bibliography:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Martel
https://www.boundless.com/world-history/textbooks/boundless-world-history-i-ancient-civilizations-enlightenment-textbook/the-middle-ages-in-europe-9/the-carolingian-dynasty-45/charles-martel-and-pepin-the-short-974-17581/
http://study.com/academy/lesson/charles-martel-biography-battle-of-tours.html
http://www.heritage-history.com/index.php?c=academy&s=char-dir&f=martel
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03629a.htm
http://www.thelatinlibrary.com/imperialism/notes/tours.html
http://militaryhistory.about.com/od/battleswarsto1000/p/tours.htm
https://themuslimissue.wordpress.com/2014/10/31/remembering-the-crusaders-charles-the-hammer-martel-the-hero-of-the-age/
http://www.authorama.com/famous-men-of-the-middle-ages-11.html
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