Germany / France: Charles II (823-877), 5th Holy Roman emperor, by Nicolas Il de Larmessin (1632-1694), 17th century

Charles II (823-877), more commonly nicknamed Charles the Bald, was the son of Emperor Louis the Pious from his second wife. It was his mother's attempts to ensure Charles was included in Louis' succession plans that led to the multiple civil wars by Charles' half-brothers against his father.

When Charles' father died in 840, another civil war broke out between the emperor's sons, with Charles allying himself with his half-brother Louis the German against the new emperor, Lothair I. They defeated Lothair in 841, and cemented their alliance with the Oaths of Strasbourg and the Treaty of Verdun in 843, where he received the Kingdom of West Francia. His reign was peaceful for many years until 858, when Louis the German invaded West Francia, invited by disaffected nobles wanting to get rid of Charles. Louis the German was eventually repulsed, but other matters preoccupied Charles, such as unsuccessful attempts to seize the kingdoms of his nephews or the repeated rebellions and attacks by the Bretons and Vikings.

When Emperor Louis II died in 875, Charles became emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. Louis the German, furious he was not chosen, retaliated by invading and devastating Charles' lands, though he died a year later. While travelling back from Italy to defend his lands from his nephew Carloman, son of Louis the German, Charles fell ill and died in 877, with his son Louis the Stammerer (846-879) succeeding him as King of West Francia but not as emperor.

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