f view
with the greatest psychological truth. He describes him as greatly in
need of woman's love. Indeed, even here his tenderness was that of a
lion, and was felt by wife and daughters with secret awe, though
answered by flattering caresses. When not on warlike expeditions he
lived always with his family. He ate with them, and took them with him
on all his journeys. This was tedious enough for his successive wives
and daughters, since he was almost always on journeys, especially during
the first half of his long reign. While his children were small, he had
hardly a permanent home. His family life appeared reprehensible, even to
his contemporaries, who were accustomed to great digressions from moral
law.

The chroniclers of the time, mostly court historians and court poets of
the great emperor, naturally express themselves rather cautiously
concerning his private life; and yet we can deduce strange facts from
their reports, especially from the _Life of Charlemagne_, written by
Eginhard, the friend and counsellor of the emperor. The latter's mother,
Berthvada, induced him to marry Desiderata, daughter of King Desiderius
of the Langobards; but he divorced her at the end of one year, whether
for political reasons not to be entangled in the complications between
the Langobard dynasty and the Papacy or for private considerations is
not known. His next wife was Hildegard, an Alemannian duchess, who bore
him three sons, Charles, Pepin, and Louis, and three daughters,
Hruodrud, Bertha, and Gisela. By his third wife, Fastrada, a German
princess of Eastern-Prankish birth, he had two daughters, Theodorada and
Hiltrud, and by a concubine, Ruodhaid. His next wife, Liutgard, bore him
no children. After her death he had three concubines, Gerswinda, a Saxon
lady, the mother of Adaltrud; Regina, the mother of Drogo and Hugh; and
Ethelind (_Adalinde_). It is characteristic, however, that this
authentic account does not designate the mothers of all his children.
Charlemagne desired that all the children of his mistresses as well as
of his legitimate wives should live together at his court and be of
equal royal rank. Without distinction of sex, he gave to all of them a
liberal education in the sciences; and as soon as their age permitted,
his sons were trained in arms, and his daughters instructed in the use
of the loom and the spindle. He had so great an affection for his
children that he prevented his daughters from marriage, in order n