Carloman (mayor of The Palace) - Strengthening of The Dynasty

Strengthening of The Dynasty

In his own realm, Carloman strengthened his authority in part via his support of the Anglo-Saxon missionary Winfrid (later Saint Boniface), the so-called "Apostle of the Germans," whom he charged with restructuring the church in Austrasia. This was in part the continuation of a policy begun under his grandfather, Pippin of Herstal, and continued to under his father, Charles Martel, who erected four dioceses in Bavaria (Salzburg, Regensburg, Freising, and Passau) and gave them Boniface as archbishop and metropolitan over all Germany east of the Rhine, with his seat at Mainz. Boniface had been under Charles Martel's protection from 723 on; indeed the saint himself explained to his old friend, Daniel of Winchester, that without it he could neither administer his church, defend his clergy, nor prevent idolatry. Carloman was instrumental in convening the Concilium Germanicum in 742, the first major synod of the Catholic Church to be held in the eastern regions of the Frankish kingdom. Chaired jointly by him and Boniface, the synod ruled that priests were not allowed to bear arms or to host females in their houses and that it was one of their primary tasks to eradicate pagan beliefs. While his father had frequently confiscated church property to reward his followers and to pay for the standing army that had brought him victory at Tours, (a policy supported by Boniface as necessary to defend Christianity) by 742 the Carolingians were wealthy enough to pay their military retainers and still support the Church. For Carloman, a deeply religious man, it was a duty of love, for Pippin a practical duty. Both saw the necessity of strengthening the ties between their house and the Church. Therefore, Carloman sought to increase the assets of the Church. He donated, for instance, the land for one of Boniface's most important foundations, the monastery of Fulda.