Charlemagne was born in modern-day Belgium and his name at birth was Charles after his grandfather but later became known as Charles the Great which translated to Charlemagne. Charlemagne’s father was king so when he died he became co-ruler with his brother Carloman. In 771 when Carloman passed Charlemagne became the sole-ruler. His first real job as king was to put an end to an uprising revolt and he was successful in doing so. He married a Lombard princess which gave him strong relations with the people of Italy. He ended up just getting remarried to a woman named Hildegard and having 9 children with her. He later fought the Lombards to help regain multiple territories that belonged to the papacy. After a 2 year siege the Lombard capital Pavia was finally captured. He was given an iron crown and the people of Pavia gave their allegiance to him making him the king of both Italy and France. He experienced almost constant war during his reign and he ended up fighting the Muslims which offered him a treaty but meanwhile were planning a surprise on Charlemagne’s rearguard. His whole rearguard was killed including his Nephew which enraged him. He returned and conquered the Muslims and expanded his territories. He conquered the Saxons and forced them to convert to Christianity but when they revolted Charlemagne ordered the execution of 4500 Saxon prisoners which became known as the Massacre of Verdun. He became the most famous ruler out of all Carolingian rulers and set up a good system for when he died.