History of the Balkans in Maps

Charlemagne (Charles the Great), grandson of Charles Martel, became King of the Franks in 771. His long reign was one of almost unceasing warfare. He absorbed the Bavarian Duchy, but continued its tradition of eastern expansion into Slavic lands. The Avars who alone might have stopped this expansion were finally defeated by a combined Frankish and Bulgar army in 796. The Franks inherited the entire eastern Slavic lands, including Bohemia, Moravia, Austria, Slovenia and Croatia. In 798 he answered the appeal of the Pope for assistance against the Lombards by marching into Italy and completely defeating the once powerful Lombard monarchy. His reward came two years later, when on a visit to Rome he attended midnight Mass at St. Peter's and the Pope hailed him as the new Emperor! To distinguish this new Empire from the old, the Pope used the phrase, Holy Roman Empire. It was always a misnommer. It was hardly holy, seldom united as an Empire, and it was never Roman, but German. Almost singlehandedly created by Charlemagne, this empire was to have a very long life -- disappearing finally in 1806 after a thousand years.

The Holy Roman Empire's presence in the Balkans remains visible today. The new states of Slovenia and Croatia almost exactly coincide with the territory Charlemagne captured from the Avars, while the South Slavs of the map are modern Serbia, Bosnia, Albania and Macedonia.