Charlemagne Crowned as Emperor

On Christmas Day in 800 AD, Charlemagne (Charles the Great) was crowned Emperor of the Romans by Pope Leo III at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. This coronation revived the concept of the Roman Empire in Western Europe and established the Holy Roman Empire. Charlemagne was the first emperor to rule western Europe since the fall of the Western Roman Empire three centuries earlier. His rule spurred a period of energetic cultural and intellectual activity known as the Carolingian Renaissance.