From Fulda to the court
Born around 770 in the Main region, Einhard was educated at Fulda before Abbot Baugulf sent him to Charlemagne’s court. Literary learning, architectural knowledge and craftsmanship helped establish his position. Historical writing was only one part of his activities.
His responsibilities included royal buildings and associated workshops, earning the biblical craftsman’s nickname Bezalel. Louis the Pious continued to favour him after Charlemagne’s death. As a layman holding abbacies, Einhard combined court service, management of resources and religious interests.
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Writing the Life of Charlemagne
The Life covers warfare, diplomacy, habits, learning, religion and succession, using a biographical form influenced by Suetonius. In its preface Einhard describes his connections with Charles and his children, presenting the work as repayment of obligations and preservation of a benefactor’s memory.
Intimacy supplied valuable observations while shaping the book’s praise. In chapter four he explicitly passes over Charles’s birth and childhood because he lacks sufficient information. His account therefore contains declared gaps as well as close knowledge, rather than an exhaustive year-by-year official record.
Relics, foundations and later life
As conflicts deepened around Louis and his family, Einhard gradually withdrew from court. He obtained relics of Marcellinus and Peter for his church at Steinbach in 827, then moved them to present-day Seligenstadt in 828, developing a new religious centre there.
He wrote about the translation of the relics and their miracles; his letters illuminate contemporary affairs and everyday concerns. These works broaden the picture supplied by the Life. He died on 14 March 840, leaving buildings and religious foundations as material evidence alongside his texts.