At the Battle of Tours near Poitiers, France, Frankish leader Charles Martel, a Christian, defeated a large army of Islamic colonists and raiders, halting the Muslim advance into Western Europe. Abdul Rahman, the Muslim governor of Cordoba, was killed in the fighting, and the Islamic army retreated from Gaul, never to return in such force.
Charles was the illegitimate son of Pepin, the powerful mayor of the palace of Austrasia and effective ruler of the Frankish kingdom. After Pepin died in 714 (with no surviving legitimate sons), Charles beat out Pepin's three grandsons in a power struggle and became Mayor of the Palace. He expanded the Frankish territory under his control and in 732 repulsed an onslaught by the Muslims.
Victory at Tours helped to lead to the rise of a new ruling dynasty, made up of Martel's family, the Carolingians. His son Pepin became the first Carolingian king of the Franks, and his grandson Charlemagne carved out a vast empire that stretched across Europe.
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