What is Charles Martel?
[[File:Carlos Martel, 741.jpg|thumb|right|250px|{{Center|Statue of Charles Martel in the [[palace of Versailles]]}}]] '''Charles Martel''' (c. 688 – 22 October 741) was a [[Franks|Frankish]] statesman and military leader who was [[Duke]] and [[Prince]] of the Franks.<ref>Haine, W. Scott, ''The History of France'' (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2000), p. 31</ref> He was also [[Mayor of the Palace]] and the namesake of the Carolingian dynasty.<ref>Volkmann, Jean-Charles, ''A Chronological Look at the History of France'' (Paris: J.-P. Gisserot, 2001), p. 15</ref> Martel was the [[de facto]] [[Monarch|ruler]] of [[Francia]] from 718 until his death.<ref>Penman, Jim, ''Biohistory'' (Newcastle, Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2015), p. 312</ref> Martel was the [[illegitimate]] son of the Frankish [[statesman]] [[Pepin of Herstal]]. His mother was a [[Nobility|noblewoman]] named [[Alpaida]]. Martel successfully asserted his claims as [[wikt:successor|successor]] to his father as Mayor of the Palace. He continued and built on his father's work. He began the series of [[military]] campaigns that re-established Frankish power in [[Gaul]]. In foreign wars, Martel defeated and ruled [[Bavaria]], [[Alemannia]], and [[Frisia]]. He defeated the [[Saxons]], and halted the [[Islamic]] advance into [[Western Europe]] at the [[Battle of Tours]] in 732.<ref>[[Will Durant|Durant, Will]]. ''The Age of Faith''. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1950. {{OCLC|225699907}}. Page 461. Originally published 1939, {{ISBN|978-0-671-41800-7}}.</ref> Martel is considered to be the founding figure of the [[Europe]]an [[Middle Ages]]. He was skilled as an [[administrator]] and [[warrior]]. Martel is often credited with a key role in the development of [[feudalism]] and [[knighthood]]. He was a great patron of [[Saint Boniface]]. Martel made the first attempt at [[reconciliation]] between the [[Papacy]] and the Franks. The [[Pope Gregory III|Pope]] wished him to become the defender of the [[Holy See]] and offered him the [[Roman consul]]ship. Martel re