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ABD-AL-MUMIN Abd-al-Mumin was a Berber. He was the founder of Almohad's dynasty. He succeeded Ibn Rumart. He then took the title of Caliph. He conquered Morocco (114-147) and other parts of North Africa. By 1154, he also ruled Islamic Spain and part of Portugal. (LnRn)
BERBERSThe Berbers/are a people whose empire reached its height during Kerbouchard's time. From about 1050 to1250, the Berbers controlled most of northern Africa. The desert Berbers ruled Morocco, western Algeria, and southern Spain. The mountain Berbers overthrew the desert Berbers and formed the Almohad Empire. The Empire split in the early 1200's, but the Berbers still ruled some lands until the 16th Century. Today, there are about 15 milion Berbers in Northwest Africa and the Sahara.(LnUn,EeMy,MyOe)
BRETONSThe Bretons are people who come from Brittany, a small portion of Northwestern France. The Bretons are known for their free spirit and old traditions. Speaking the Breton language, they stand out from the rest of France. Today, however, most Bretons speak French. In The Walking Drum, Mathurin Kerbouchard was a Breton.(JaSr)
CHARLEMAGNECharlemagne (also known as Charles the Great) was King of the Franks and Emperor of the Romans. He led his Frankish armies to victory over many people and ruled most of western and central Europe. He was the best-known king in the Middle Ages. Charlemagne was probably born in Aachen on April 2, 742, the son of the Frankish King Pepin the Short. In 751, Pepin assumed the royal Merovingian title for himself. He was crowned by Pope Stephen II in 754. Besides anointing Pepin, Pope Stephen anointed both Charlemange and his younger brother Carolman. Within the year, Pepin invaded Itlay to save the Pope from the Lombards, and in 756, he again had to rush Pope's aid. When Pepin died in 786, his land was to be shared between his two sons. Charlemagne wanted an alliance with the Lombards. He got this my marying the daughter of their king, Desiderius. In 771, Carolman died suddenly, and Charlemagne then seized his territories. Since he established Frankish rule over so many people, Charlemagne has, in fact, built an empire and became an emperor. It remained only for him to add the title. On Christmas Day, in 800, Charlemagne knelt to pray in Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome. Pope Leo III then put a crown upon his head. Einhard reported that the King was surprised by this coronation and if he had known it was going to happen, he would not have gone to church that day. This report has led to much speculation by historians. Charlemange probably desired and expected to get the imperial title, and he subsequently used it. In 813, he designated his sole son, Louis, as his succesor and personally crowned him. (CyGs)
CHARLES MARTELCharles Martel was born in 676 in Gaul, which is a region in Europe that is now present-day France, Belgium, and Germany west of the Rhine River. He was not a king, but he served as "mayor of the palace" for several weak kings. He fought to establish order and rule in northern Gaul. At a later date, he put the southeastern part of France under control. Martel conquered Frisia and present-day Netherlands. Doing missionary work, he helped Germany convert to Christianity. Charles Martel stopped a Muslim army from intruding aat the Battle of Tours and the Battle of Poitiers. He was called Martel, meaning Hammer, because of his glorious outcome. He had2 wives and 5 children over the course of his life. His third child, Pepin the Short was King of Franks. (LnAs,EaSy)
ELEANOR OF AQUITAINE
Eleanor of Aquitaine was born in approximately 1122. In 1137 she married Louis VII,
becoming the Queen Consort of France. That same year she inherited the Duchy
of Aquitaine. Rumor had it that she aommitted adultry while at the Second Crusade
in the Holy Land. The marriage was annuled in 1152 under the pretext of blook
kinship between the couple. The fact that she had not produced a male heir
also played a part. After her annulment, she married the Count of Anjou, who
became Henry II, King of England. WHen her sons, including Richard and John,
revolted against their father, she supported them and was placed inprison until 1185.
When King Henry II dies in 1189, she ruled until her son's return from the Third
Crusade. She died at an abbey in France, April 1, 1204. Eleanor would have
been queen of France during the time of Kerbouchard in The Walking Drum
She played an important role in the power struggle between England and France
because of her control of Aquitaine. ERATOSTHENESEratosthenes was
a Greek astronomer who lived between the years of 276-197 BC. Eratosthenes was
born in Cyrene, a Greek town in Northern Africa. He was the first person to make an
accurate calculation of Earth. Like many other Greek scientists of his time,
he knew the Earth was round. Eratosthenes knew that at noon on the day of
summer soltice in Alexandria, Egypt, a vertical post casts a shadow. But
at noon in Syene, a town in the South, a vertical post casts no shadow. He
based his calculation on geometry. He then measured the angle formed by a
post and an imaginary line from the end of the shadow to the top of the post. By
treating the sun's rays as parallels, he could assume that the measured
angle equaled to the angle formed at the Earth's center by imaginary lines
between the two towns. The connection of Eratesthenes to The WalkignDrum book was
that Kerbouchard had read Eratosthenes's works while in jail.(JeCi) Frederick I Barbarossa
Frederick I (1123?-1190) was Holy Roman Emperor and King of Germany (1152-1190), and
King of Itlay (1155-1190). After the death of his uncle, Barbarossa was made the German
King and elected Holoy Roman Emperor in 1152. The fifth expedition(1174-1176)
of Barbarossa to Italy was unsuccessful and was defeated by the Lombard League of
North Italian Cities. Barbarossa was forced in 1177 to acknowledge Alexander
III as Pope. Lombard cities forced Barbarossa to grant them self-government in
the Peace of Constance in 1183. He made Poland tributary to the Empire,
and raised Bohemia to the rank of a kingdom. In 1180, he defeated Henry the Lion
and deprived him of most of his lands. He initiated the Third Crusade in 1189. (LnRn) GALENGalen was an outstanding
physician in the Second Century. Galen received medical training and settled in Rome
as a physician. He gained renown and recognition for his skill as a physician.
Galen also proved many of the functions of the human body such as the connection
between muscles and the spinal cord. HE noted the functions of the Kidney and
bladder and also showed that arteries carry blood. Galen ties in with The Walking
Drum because while Kerbouchard was in jail, he head many books Galen
had written. (CeGm) GOTHS and VISIGOTHS
The Goths migrated from southern Scandinavia before the time of Jesus Christ. Around
the Third Century, the Goths had settled in the areas near the Black Sea. The
groups of people who settled around the Danube River were called the Visigoths.
The Visigoths coexisted peacefully with the Romans. The Romans traded with the
Visigoths. When the Huns pushed the Visigoths west into the Roman Empire, the
Visigoths won a battle at Rome in 410. In 370, the Ostrogoths were conquered
by the Huns. (CnFr) HIPPOCRATES Hippocrates was
born in 460BC on the island of Cos in Greece. He died in 377 BC in Larissa Thessaly.
He was a Greek physician of antiquity. Hippocrates is regarded as the father
of medicine. His name is used for the oath tht new physicians have to take.
The oath is called the Hippocratic Oath. In the book, The Walking Drum Kerbouchard
translated a few things that Hippocrates had written. (AaVs) PHONECIANS
The Phonecians
were ancient people who lived around the same time that Kerbouchard did. Their
homeland was on the eastern Mediterranean seaboard. The name "Phonecians" was
given by the Greeks to the inhabitants of the coastal region of present-day Lebanon
and the adjacent shores of Israel and Syria. They were at the height of the
civilization durint the same time as The Walking Drum (LnUn) PLUTARCH Plutarch (46?-120?AD)
was a Greek biographer and essayist who was famous for his work in Paralled Lives of
Illustrious Greek and Romans. He wrote in pairs, comparing the two sets of people
(Greek and Roman). Lives became a basis of many stories and poems. People
such as Shakespeare and Sir Thomas North used his materials. Plutarch also wrote
essays and dialogues on various things such as Morals, and the Face on the
Moon (NiLh) VANDALS The Vandals
were a Germanic tribe of Barbarians that invaded the Roman Empire during the early
400's AD. They helped bring about the Empire's decline. Originally, they were
a group of tribes that lived on the southern coast of present Norway, Sweeden, Denmark
and the Danish islands. They migrated to Europe about 100BC. In the late 300's AD they
moved westward because they were threatened by the Huns. In 455 they looted Rome.
In 534, they were captured, and their nation broke up. (GyCu)