In 743 the Merovingians were formally replaced by Pépin the Short and the line of the Carolingians, the de facto rulers of the state for several generations, who were named for Pépin's father Charles Martel. Pépin's son was Charlemagne (Charles the Great) who became Emperor and controlled a vast region of Europe. Charlemagne's son was Louis the Pious; after his death the kingdom of the Franks was divided amongst his children. The western portion, eventually called the Kingdom of France, went to Charles the Bald. (See Kings of Germany and Holy Roman Emperors for other descendants of Charlemagne.)
As the Carolingian dynasty waned, France was ruled by the Counts of Paris starting with Odo in 888. His line led to Hugues Capet, who began the Capetian dynasty late in the 10th century. After the main Capetian line became extinct the throne was taken over by the Valois branch of the family, though claims by the English king Edward III led to the Hundred Years War in 1339. In 1589 the Valois dynasty was succeeded by the Bourbon kings, who ruled until being forcefully removed by the French Revolution, though they were later reinstated for a time.
France had two emperors in the 19th century: Napoleon and later his nephew Napoleon III.
Name | Years | Other Names | |
---|---|---|---|
Carloman I | 768-771 | ||
Carloman II | 879-884 | ||
Charibert I | 561-567 | ||
Charibert II | 629-632 | ||
Charles I the Great | 768-814 | (Charlemagne) | |
Charles II the Bald | 840-877 | ||
Charles III the Simple | 898-922 | ||
Charles IV the Fair | 1322-1328 | ||
Charles IX | 1560-1574 | ||
Charles V the Wise | 1364-1380 | ||
Charles VI the Mad | 1380-1422 | ||
Charles VII the Victorious | 1422-1461 | ||
Charles VIII | 1483-1498 | ||
Charles X | 1824-1830 | ||
Charles the Fat | 884-887 | (Karl) | |
Childebert I | 511-558 | ||
Childebert II | 575-595 | ||
Childebert III the Just | 695-711 | ||
Childebert the Adopted | 656-661 | ||
Childeric I | 457-481 | ||
Childeric II | 662-675 | ||
Childeric III | 743-752 | ||
Chilperic I | 561-584 | ||
Chilperic II | 715-721 | ||
Chlodomer | 511-524 | ||
Chlothar I the Old | 511-561 | (Clotaire, Lothair, Lothaire) | |
Chlothar II the Great | 584-629 | (Clotaire, Lothair, Lothaire) | |
Chlothar III | 656-673 | (Clotaire, Lothair, Lothaire) | |
Clovis I | 481-511 | (Chlodovech, Louis) | |
Clovis II | 639-655 | (Chlodovech, Louis) | |
Clovis III | 675-676 | (Chlodovech, Louis) | |
Clovis IV | 691-695 | (Chlodovech, Louis) | |
Dagobert I | 629-639 | ||
Dagobert II | 676-679 | ||
Dagobert III | 711-715 | ||
François I | 1515-1547 | (Francis) | |
François II | 1559-1560 | (Francis) | |
Guntram | 561-592 | (Contran, Gontran, Guntramnus) | |
Henri I | 1031-1060 | (Henry) | |
Henri II | 1547-1559 | (Henry) | |
Henri III | 1574-1589 | (Henry) | |
Henri IV | 1589-1610 | (Henry) | |
Hugues Capet | 987-996 | (Hugh) | |
Jean I | 1316 | (John) | |
Jean II the Good | 1350-1364 | (John) | |
Lothair | 954-986 | (Lothaire) | |
Louis I the Pious | 813-840 | ||
Louis II the Stammerer | 877-879 | ||
Louis III | 879-882 | ||
Louis IV the Foreigner | 936-954 | ||
Louis IX | 1226-1270 | ||
Louis Philippe | 1830-1848 | ||
Louis V the Indolent | 986-987 | ||
Louis VI the Fat | 1108-1137 | ||
Louis VII | 1137-1180 | ||
Louis VIII the Lion | 1223-1226 | ||
Louis X | 1314-1316 | ||
Louis XI the Spider | 1461-1483 | ||
Louis XII of Orleans | 1498-1515 | ||
Louis XIII | 1610-1643 | ||
Louis XIV the Sun King | 1643-1715 | ||
Louis XV | 1715-1774 | ||
Louis XVI | 1774-1792 | ||
Louis XVIII | 1814-1824 | ||
Merovech | c. 447-c. 457 | ||
Napoleon III | 1852-1870 | (Charles, Louis) | |
Napoleon I | 1804-1815 | ||
Odo Count of Paris | 888-898 | (Eudes) | |
Pépin the Short | 752-768 | (Pippin) | |
Philippe I | 1060-1108 | (Philip) | |
Philippe II Augustus | 1180-1223 | (Philip) | |
Philippe III the Bold | 1270-1285 | (Philip) | |
Philippe IV the Fair | 1285-1314 | (Philip) | |
Philippe V the Tall | 1316-1322 | (Philip) | |
Philippe VI | 1328-1350 | (Philip) | |
Robert I Count of Paris | 922-923 | ||
Robert II the Pious | 996-1031 | ||
Rudolf Duke of Burgundy | 923-936 | (Raoul, Rudolph) | |
Sigebert I | 561-575 | ||
Sigebert II | 613 | ||
Sigebert III | 634-656 | ||
Theudebald | 548-555 | (Thibaud) | |
Theudebert I | 533-548 | (Thibert) | |
Theudebert II | 595-612 | (Thibert) | |
Theuderic I | 511-534 | (Thierry) | |
Theuderic II | 595-613 | (Thierry) | |
Theuderic III | 673; 675-691 | (Thierry) | |
Theuderic IV | 721-737 | (Thierry) |