The Carolingian Twilight: The Last Kings

The final century of Carolingian rule in West Francia (887-987) witnessed a drawn-out struggle between royal authority and aristocratic power. The Carolingian line suffered repeated breaks—in 888, 922, and 936—with non-Carolingian kings elected during dynastic failures. The Robertians, descended from Robert the Strong, provided alternative candidates who briefly occupied the throne. Yet Carolingian legitimacy retained sufficient strength that the dynasty repeatedly returned to power.

The reign of Louis IV "d'Outremer" (from overseas, r. 936-954) illustrated both the possibilities and limitations of late Carolingian kingship. Raised in England during a period of non-Carolingian rule, Louis returned to claim his inheritance with limited resources but significant symbolic capital. His struggles with Hugh the Great, the Robertian "duke of the Franks," demonstrated how territorial princes had become effectively equal to kings in practical power.

Royal authority in this period operated through careful manipulation of competing aristocratic interests rather than direct command. Kings granted privileges, confirmed possessions, and arbitrated disputes, maintaining relevance through judicial and diplomatic functions even when lacking military superiority. The royal court remained important as a venue for aristocratic interaction and dispute resolution. Royal diplomas, with their elaborate protocols and sacral language, asserted theoretical supremacy that contrasted with political reality.

The last Carolingian kings were not the "do-nothing" rulers of later propaganda but capable politicians operating within severe constraints. Louis V's brief reign (986-987) ended with his accidental death while hunting, leaving no direct heir. The subsequent election of Hugh Capet marked not a revolutionary break but the final recognition that Carolingian blood no longer sufficed to maintain royal authority in the face of Robertian/Capetian territorial power.