Charlemagne (Charles the Great)
In my opinion, Charlemagne accomplished many beneficial things for the church and deserves the praise he has received for his actions. Although not everything he did was perfectly Catholic, in general his intentions were good. He achieved much more than previous empires in terms of uniting Christendom and protecting the Pope.
It's interesting to note that Charles was not next in succession for the kingship. His father Pepin, had given Pope Zachary the Papal States, so in return the Pope granted an edict that declared descendents of Pepin's bloodline would continue to rule. This close relationship between king and Pope would be maintained when Charles assumed the crown. If this had not been true, Charles would probably not have been able to carry out many of his military campaigns against the Saxons to the north. …
