July 26, 2025 • 15 mins
Dive into the intriguing life of Emperor Charlemagne through the eyes of Notker, a monk who spun tales filled with amusing anecdotes and witty narratives. Despite traditional historians dismissing Notker as ill-informed, a number of his tales, including the enigmatic story of the nine rings of the Avar stronghold, have found their way into modern Charlemagne biographies. Written for Charles the Fat, Charlemagnes great-grandson, during his visit to Saint Gall in 883, this podcast presents a unique perspective on a monumental historical figure. (Summary abstracted from Wikipedia by Karen Merline.)
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
Section five of the Life of Charlemagne. This is a
LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain.
For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org.
The Life of Charlemagne by Nottger the Stammerer, translated by
(00:23):
Arthur James Grant, Section five, Book two, Part one. As
I am going to found this narrative on the story
told by a man of the world who had little
skill in letters, I think it will be well that
I should first recount something of earlier history on the
credit of written books. When Julian, whom God hated, was
(00:46):
slain in the Persian War by a blow from heaven,
not only did the Transmarine provinces fall away from the
Roman Empire, but also the neighboring provinces of Pannonia, noracumbe Retia,
or in other words, the Germans and the Franks or Gauls.
Then two the kings of the Franks or Gauls began
(01:09):
to decay in power because they had slain Saint Didier,
Bishop of Vienna, and had expelled those most holy visitors
Columbun and Gaul. Whereupon the race of the Huns, who
had already often ravaged Phrancia and Aquitania. That is to say,
the Gauls and the Spains now poured out with all
(01:31):
their forces, devastated the whole land like a wide, sweeping conflagration,
and then carried off all their spoils to a very
safe hiding place. Now, Adelbert, whom I have already mentioned,
used to explain the nature of this hiding place as follows.
The land of the Huns, he would say, was surrounded
(01:54):
by nine rings. I could not think of any rings
except our ordinary wicker rings for sheep folds, And so
I asked, what in the name of wonder do you mean, sir? Well,
he said, it was fortified by nine hedges. I could
not think of any hedges except those that protect our
(02:15):
corn fields. So again I asked, and he answered. One
ring was as wide, that is, it contained as much
within it as all the country between Tour and Constance.
It was fashioned with logs of oak and ash and yew,
and was twenty feet wide and the same in height.
All the space within was filled with hard stones and
(02:38):
binding clay, and the surface of these great ramparts was
covered with sods and grass. Within the limits of the ring.
Shrubs were planted of such a kind that when lopped
and bent down, they still threw out twigs and leaves.
Then between these ramparts, hamlets and houses were so arranged
(02:59):
that a man's voice could be made to reach from
one to the other, and opposite to the houses. At intervals.
In those unconquerable walls were constructed doors of no great size,
and through these doors the inhabitants from far and near
would pour out on marauding expeditions. The second ring was
like the first, and was distant twenty Teutonic miles or
(03:23):
forty italian from the third ring, and so on to
the ninth, though of course the successive rings were each
much narrower than the preceding one. But in all the circles,
the estates and houses were everywhere so arranged that the
peal of the trumpet would carry the news of any
event from one to the other. For two hundred years
(03:46):
and more, the Huns had swept the wealth of the
western states within these fortifications, and as the Goths and
Vandals were disturbing the repose of the world. At the
same time, the western world was almost turned into a desert.
But the most unconquerable. Charles so subdued them in eight
years that he allowed scarcely any traces of them to remain.
(04:10):
He withdrew his hand from the Bulgarians, because after the
destruction of the Huns, they did not seem likely to
do any harm to the Kingdom of the Franks. All
the booty of the Huns which he found in Pannonia,
he divided most liberally among the bishoprics and the monasteries.
In the Saxon War, in which he was engaged in
(04:31):
person for some considerable time, two private men, whose names
I know, but modesty forbids me to give them, organized
a storming party and destroyed with great courage the walls
of a very strong city and fortification. When the most
just Charles saw this, he made one of them, with
(04:53):
the consent of his master, caroled commander of the country
between the Rhine and the Italian Alps, and the other
he enriched with gifts of land. At the same time,
there were the sons of two nobles whose duty it
was to watch at the door of the King's tent.
But one night they lay as dead soaked in liquor,
(05:16):
while Charles, wakeful as usual, went the round of the
camp and came back to his tent without any one
having noticed him. When morning came, he called to him
the chiefs of his kingdom and asked them what punishment
seemed due to those who betrayed the King of the
Franks into the hands of the enemy. Then these nobles,
(05:37):
quite ignorant of what had occurred, declared that such a
man was worthy of death. But Charles merely upbraided them
bitterly and let them go unharmed. There were also with
him two bastards, the children of a concubine. As they
had fought in battle most bravely. The Emperor asked them
whose children they were and where they were born. Horn
(06:01):
When he was informed of the facts, he called them
to his tent at midday and said, my good fellows,
I want you to serve me and me only. They
exclaimed that they were there for no other purpose than
to take even the lowest place in his service. Well, then,
said Charles, you must serve in my chamber. They concealed
(06:23):
their indignation and said they would be glad to do so.
But soon they seized the moment when the emperor had
begun to sleep soundly, and then rushed out to the
camp of the enemy, and in the fray that followed,
wiped out the taint of servitude in their own blood
and that of the enemy. But occupations such as these
(06:44):
did not prevent the high souled Emperor from sending frequent
messengers carrying letters and presents to the kings of the
most distant regions, and they sent him in turn whatever
honors their lands could bestow. From the theater of the
Saxon War. He sent messengers to the King of Constantinople,
(07:05):
who asked them whether the kingdom of his son Charles
was at peace or was being invaded by the neighboring peoples.
Then the leader of the embassy made answer that peace
reigned everywhere, except only that a certain race called the
Saxons were disturbing the territories of the Franks by frequent raids.
(07:27):
Whereupon the sluggish and unwarlike Greek king answered, pooh, why
should my son take so much trouble about a petty
enemy that possesses neither fame nor valor. I will give
you the Saxon race and all that belonged to it.
When the envoy, on his return gave this message to
(07:48):
the most warlike Charles. He smiled and said, the King
would have shown greater kindness to you if he had
given you a leg rap for your long journey. I
must not conceal the wise answer which the same envoy
gave during his embassy to Greece. He came with his
(08:09):
companions to one of the royal towns in the autumn.
The party was divided for entertainment, and the envoy of
whom I speak was courted on a certain bishop. This
bishop was given up to fasting and prayer and left
the envoy to perish of almost continuous hunger. But with
the first smile of spring, he presented the envoy to
(08:31):
the king. The king asked him his opinion of the bishop.
Then the envoy sighed from the very bottom of his
heart and said, that Bishop of yours reaches the highest
point of holiness that can be attained to without God.
The King was amazed and said, what can a man
(08:52):
be holy without God? Then said the envoy, it is
written God is love, and in that race he is
entirely lacking. Thereupon the King of Constantinople invited him to
his banquet and placed him among his nobles. Now these
had a law that no guest at the king's table,
(09:14):
whether a native or a foreigner, should turn over any
animal or part of an animal. He must eat only
the upper part of whatever was placed before him. Now,
a river fish covered with spice was brought and placed
on the dish before him. He knew nothing of the custom,
and turned the fish over, whereupon all the nobles rose
(09:35):
up and cried, Master, you are dishonored, as no king
ever was before you. Then the King groaned and said
to our envoy, I cannot resist them. You must be
put to death at once. But ask me any other
favor you like, and I will grant it. He thought, awhile,
(09:57):
and then, in the hearing of all, pronounced these words,
I pray you, Lord Emperor, that in accordance with your promise,
you will grant me one small petition. And the King said,
ask what you will, and you shall have it, except
only that I may not give you your life, for
that is against the law of the Greeks. Then said
(10:17):
the envoy, with my dying breath, I ask one favor.
Let every one who saw me turn that fish over
be deprived of his eyes. The king was amazed at
the stipulation, and swore by Christ that he had seen nothing,
but had only trusted the word of others. Then the
(10:39):
Queen began to excuse herself, by the beneficent Mother of God,
the Holy Mary, I notice nothing. Then the other nobles,
in their desire to escape from the danger, swore one
by the keeper of the keys of Heaven, and another
by the Apostle of the Gentiles, and all the rest
by the virtue of the Angels and the companies of
the Saints, that they were beyond the reach of the stipulation.
(11:03):
And so the clever Frank beat the empty headed Greeks
in their own land and came home safe and sound.
A few years later, the unwearied Charles sent to Greece
a certain bishop remarkable both for his physical and mental gifts,
and with him the most noble Duke Hugo. After a
(11:25):
long delay, they were at last brought into the presence
of the king, and then sent about to all manner
of places. But at last they got their dismissal and returned,
after paying heavily for their journey by sea and land.
Soon afterwards, the Greek king sent his envoy to the
most glorious Charles. It so happened that the Bishop and
(11:48):
the Duke whom I have mentioned, were just then with
the Emperor. When it was announced that the envoys were coming,
they advised the most wise Charles to have them led
round through mountains and deserts, so that they should only
come into the Emperor's presence when their clothes had been
worn and wasted, and their money was entirely spent. This
(12:10):
was done, and when at last they arrived, the Bishop
and his comrade, bad Count of the Stables, take his
seat on a high throne in the midst of his underlings,
so that it was impossible to believe him anyone lower
than the Emperor. When the envoys saw him, they fell
upon the ground and wanted to worship him, but they
(12:31):
were prevented by the ministers and forced to go farther.
Then they saw the Count of the Palace presiding over
a gathering of the nobles, and again they thought it
was the Emperor, and flung themselves to earth, But those
who were present drove them forward with blows and said,
that is not the Emperor. Next they saw the Master
(12:53):
of the Royal Table, surrounded by his noble band of servants,
and again they fell to the ground, thinking that it
was the Emperor driven. Thence they found the chamberlains of
the Emperor and their chief in council together, and then
they did not doubt but that they were in the
presence of the first of living men. But this man, too,
(13:14):
denied that he was what they took him for. And
yet he promised that he would use his influence with
the nobles of the palace, so that, if possible, the
envoys might come into the presence of the most august Emperor.
Then there came servants from the imperial presence to introduce
them with full honors. Now, Charles, the most gracious of kings,
(13:37):
was standing by an open window, leaning upon Bishop Haito,
for that was the name of the bishop who had
been sent to Constantinople. The Emperor was clad in gems
and gold and glittered like the sun at its rising,
and round about him stood, as it were, the chivalry
of heaven, three young men, his sons, who have since
(13:59):
been made partners in the kingdom, his daughters and their mother,
decorated with wisdom and beauty as well as with pearls.
Leaders of the Church unsurpassed in dignity and virtue, Abbots,
distinguished for their high birth and their sanctity, Nobles like
Joshua when he appeared in the camp of Gilgal, and
(14:20):
an army like that which drove back the Syrians and
Assyrians out of Samaria, so that if David had been there,
he might well have sung, Kings of the earth, and
all people, princes and all judges of the earth, both
young men and maidens, old men and children, let them
praise the name of the Lord. Then the envoys of
(14:44):
the Greeks were astonished. Their spirit left them, and their
courage failed. Speechless and lifeless, they fell upon the ground,
But the most kindly Emperor raised them and tried to
cheer them with encouraging words. At last life returned turned
to them. But when they saw Haito, whom they had
once despised and rejected, now in so great honor again
(15:08):
they groveled on the ground in terror, until the King
swore to them by the King of Heaven, that he
would do them no harm. They took heart at this
promise and began to act with a little more confidence,
And so home they went and never came back again.
(15:28):
End of Section five
Section five of the Life of Charlemagne. This is a
LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain.
For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org.
The Life of Charlemagne by Nottger the Stammerer, translated by
(00:23):
Arthur James Grant, Section five, Book two, Part one. As
I am going to found this narrative on the story
told by a man of the world who had little
skill in letters, I think it will be well that
I should first recount something of earlier history on the
credit of written books. When Julian, whom God hated, was
(00:46):
slain in the Persian War by a blow from heaven,
not only did the Transmarine provinces fall away from the
Roman Empire, but also the neighboring provinces of Pannonia, noracumbe Retia,
or in other words, the Germans and the Franks or Gauls.
Then two the kings of the Franks or Gauls began
(01:09):
to decay in power because they had slain Saint Didier,
Bishop of Vienna, and had expelled those most holy visitors
Columbun and Gaul. Whereupon the race of the Huns, who
had already often ravaged Phrancia and Aquitania. That is to say,
the Gauls and the Spains now poured out with all
(01:31):
their forces, devastated the whole land like a wide, sweeping conflagration,
and then carried off all their spoils to a very
safe hiding place. Now, Adelbert, whom I have already mentioned,
used to explain the nature of this hiding place as follows.
The land of the Huns, he would say, was surrounded
(01:54):
by nine rings. I could not think of any rings
except our ordinary wicker rings for sheep folds, And so
I asked, what in the name of wonder do you mean, sir? Well,
he said, it was fortified by nine hedges. I could
not think of any hedges except those that protect our
(02:15):
corn fields. So again I asked, and he answered. One
ring was as wide, that is, it contained as much
within it as all the country between Tour and Constance.
It was fashioned with logs of oak and ash and yew,
and was twenty feet wide and the same in height.
All the space within was filled with hard stones and
(02:38):
binding clay, and the surface of these great ramparts was
covered with sods and grass. Within the limits of the ring.
Shrubs were planted of such a kind that when lopped
and bent down, they still threw out twigs and leaves.
Then between these ramparts, hamlets and houses were so arranged
(02:59):
that a man's voice could be made to reach from
one to the other, and opposite to the houses. At intervals.
In those unconquerable walls were constructed doors of no great size,
and through these doors the inhabitants from far and near
would pour out on marauding expeditions. The second ring was
like the first, and was distant twenty Teutonic miles or
(03:23):
forty italian from the third ring, and so on to
the ninth, though of course the successive rings were each
much narrower than the preceding one. But in all the circles,
the estates and houses were everywhere so arranged that the
peal of the trumpet would carry the news of any
event from one to the other. For two hundred years
(03:46):
and more, the Huns had swept the wealth of the
western states within these fortifications, and as the Goths and
Vandals were disturbing the repose of the world. At the
same time, the western world was almost turned into a desert.
But the most unconquerable. Charles so subdued them in eight
years that he allowed scarcely any traces of them to remain.
(04:10):
He withdrew his hand from the Bulgarians, because after the
destruction of the Huns, they did not seem likely to
do any harm to the Kingdom of the Franks. All
the booty of the Huns which he found in Pannonia,
he divided most liberally among the bishoprics and the monasteries.
In the Saxon War, in which he was engaged in
(04:31):
person for some considerable time, two private men, whose names
I know, but modesty forbids me to give them, organized
a storming party and destroyed with great courage the walls
of a very strong city and fortification. When the most
just Charles saw this, he made one of them, with
(04:53):
the consent of his master, caroled commander of the country
between the Rhine and the Italian Alps, and the other
he enriched with gifts of land. At the same time,
there were the sons of two nobles whose duty it
was to watch at the door of the King's tent.
But one night they lay as dead soaked in liquor,
(05:16):
while Charles, wakeful as usual, went the round of the
camp and came back to his tent without any one
having noticed him. When morning came, he called to him
the chiefs of his kingdom and asked them what punishment
seemed due to those who betrayed the King of the
Franks into the hands of the enemy. Then these nobles,
(05:37):
quite ignorant of what had occurred, declared that such a
man was worthy of death. But Charles merely upbraided them
bitterly and let them go unharmed. There were also with
him two bastards, the children of a concubine. As they
had fought in battle most bravely. The Emperor asked them
whose children they were and where they were born. Horn
(06:01):
When he was informed of the facts, he called them
to his tent at midday and said, my good fellows,
I want you to serve me and me only. They
exclaimed that they were there for no other purpose than
to take even the lowest place in his service. Well, then,
said Charles, you must serve in my chamber. They concealed
(06:23):
their indignation and said they would be glad to do so.
But soon they seized the moment when the emperor had
begun to sleep soundly, and then rushed out to the
camp of the enemy, and in the fray that followed,
wiped out the taint of servitude in their own blood
and that of the enemy. But occupations such as these
(06:44):
did not prevent the high souled Emperor from sending frequent
messengers carrying letters and presents to the kings of the
most distant regions, and they sent him in turn whatever
honors their lands could bestow. From the theater of the
Saxon War. He sent messengers to the King of Constantinople,
(07:05):
who asked them whether the kingdom of his son Charles
was at peace or was being invaded by the neighboring peoples.
Then the leader of the embassy made answer that peace
reigned everywhere, except only that a certain race called the
Saxons were disturbing the territories of the Franks by frequent raids.
(07:27):
Whereupon the sluggish and unwarlike Greek king answered, pooh, why
should my son take so much trouble about a petty
enemy that possesses neither fame nor valor. I will give
you the Saxon race and all that belonged to it.
When the envoy, on his return gave this message to
(07:48):
the most warlike Charles. He smiled and said, the King
would have shown greater kindness to you if he had
given you a leg rap for your long journey. I
must not conceal the wise answer which the same envoy
gave during his embassy to Greece. He came with his
(08:09):
companions to one of the royal towns in the autumn.
The party was divided for entertainment, and the envoy of
whom I speak was courted on a certain bishop. This
bishop was given up to fasting and prayer and left
the envoy to perish of almost continuous hunger. But with
the first smile of spring, he presented the envoy to
(08:31):
the king. The king asked him his opinion of the bishop.
Then the envoy sighed from the very bottom of his
heart and said, that Bishop of yours reaches the highest
point of holiness that can be attained to without God.
The King was amazed and said, what can a man
(08:52):
be holy without God? Then said the envoy, it is
written God is love, and in that race he is
entirely lacking. Thereupon the King of Constantinople invited him to
his banquet and placed him among his nobles. Now these
had a law that no guest at the king's table,
(09:14):
whether a native or a foreigner, should turn over any
animal or part of an animal. He must eat only
the upper part of whatever was placed before him. Now,
a river fish covered with spice was brought and placed
on the dish before him. He knew nothing of the custom,
and turned the fish over, whereupon all the nobles rose
(09:35):
up and cried, Master, you are dishonored, as no king
ever was before you. Then the King groaned and said
to our envoy, I cannot resist them. You must be
put to death at once. But ask me any other
favor you like, and I will grant it. He thought, awhile,
(09:57):
and then, in the hearing of all, pronounced these words,
I pray you, Lord Emperor, that in accordance with your promise,
you will grant me one small petition. And the King said,
ask what you will, and you shall have it, except
only that I may not give you your life, for
that is against the law of the Greeks. Then said
(10:17):
the envoy, with my dying breath, I ask one favor.
Let every one who saw me turn that fish over
be deprived of his eyes. The king was amazed at
the stipulation, and swore by Christ that he had seen nothing,
but had only trusted the word of others. Then the
(10:39):
Queen began to excuse herself, by the beneficent Mother of God,
the Holy Mary, I notice nothing. Then the other nobles,
in their desire to escape from the danger, swore one
by the keeper of the keys of Heaven, and another
by the Apostle of the Gentiles, and all the rest
by the virtue of the Angels and the companies of
the Saints, that they were beyond the reach of the stipulation.
(11:03):
And so the clever Frank beat the empty headed Greeks
in their own land and came home safe and sound.
A few years later, the unwearied Charles sent to Greece
a certain bishop remarkable both for his physical and mental gifts,
and with him the most noble Duke Hugo. After a
(11:25):
long delay, they were at last brought into the presence
of the king, and then sent about to all manner
of places. But at last they got their dismissal and returned,
after paying heavily for their journey by sea and land.
Soon afterwards, the Greek king sent his envoy to the
most glorious Charles. It so happened that the Bishop and
(11:48):
the Duke whom I have mentioned, were just then with
the Emperor. When it was announced that the envoys were coming,
they advised the most wise Charles to have them led
round through mountains and deserts, so that they should only
come into the Emperor's presence when their clothes had been
worn and wasted, and their money was entirely spent. This
(12:10):
was done, and when at last they arrived, the Bishop
and his comrade, bad Count of the Stables, take his
seat on a high throne in the midst of his underlings,
so that it was impossible to believe him anyone lower
than the Emperor. When the envoys saw him, they fell
upon the ground and wanted to worship him, but they
(12:31):
were prevented by the ministers and forced to go farther.
Then they saw the Count of the Palace presiding over
a gathering of the nobles, and again they thought it
was the Emperor, and flung themselves to earth, But those
who were present drove them forward with blows and said,
that is not the Emperor. Next they saw the Master
(12:53):
of the Royal Table, surrounded by his noble band of servants,
and again they fell to the ground, thinking that it
was the Emperor driven. Thence they found the chamberlains of
the Emperor and their chief in council together, and then
they did not doubt but that they were in the
presence of the first of living men. But this man, too,
(13:14):
denied that he was what they took him for. And
yet he promised that he would use his influence with
the nobles of the palace, so that, if possible, the
envoys might come into the presence of the most august Emperor.
Then there came servants from the imperial presence to introduce
them with full honors. Now, Charles, the most gracious of kings,
(13:37):
was standing by an open window, leaning upon Bishop Haito,
for that was the name of the bishop who had
been sent to Constantinople. The Emperor was clad in gems
and gold and glittered like the sun at its rising,
and round about him stood, as it were, the chivalry
of heaven, three young men, his sons, who have since
(13:59):
been made partners in the kingdom, his daughters and their mother,
decorated with wisdom and beauty as well as with pearls.
Leaders of the Church unsurpassed in dignity and virtue, Abbots,
distinguished for their high birth and their sanctity, Nobles like
Joshua when he appeared in the camp of Gilgal, and
(14:20):
an army like that which drove back the Syrians and
Assyrians out of Samaria, so that if David had been there,
he might well have sung, Kings of the earth, and
all people, princes and all judges of the earth, both
young men and maidens, old men and children, let them
praise the name of the Lord. Then the envoys of
(14:44):
the Greeks were astonished. Their spirit left them, and their
courage failed. Speechless and lifeless, they fell upon the ground,
But the most kindly Emperor raised them and tried to
cheer them with encouraging words. At last life returned turned
to them. But when they saw Haito, whom they had
once despised and rejected, now in so great honor again
(15:08):
they groveled on the ground in terror, until the King
swore to them by the King of Heaven, that he
would do them no harm. They took heart at this
promise and began to act with a little more confidence,
And so home they went and never came back again.
(15:28):
End of Section five
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