Frankish (Civ6)/Civilopedia

Once the Romans gave up trying to govern the Gauls, a number of Frankish kingdoms rose during the early Dark Ages, most of these lasting but a couple generations. Finally, the medieval Kingdom of Francia emerged, founded by Clovis I, crowned king of the Franks in 496 AD. Thanks to the near continuous campaigns of the next few generations – culminating in the rule of Charlemagne – West Francia was well-established and secure by the early 9th Century. Following the death of Louis the Pious in 840, however, the whole thing got divvied up between his three sons.
Just in time for the Danish Vikings to begin raiding the coastlines, culminating with the sack of Paris in 845 … withdrawing only after they were bought off with 7000 livres of gold and silver by Charles the Bald, king of West Francia. They would return several more times for plunder and ransom, until finally, in the winter of 885, the city walls would hold.
With the death of the last Carolingian king, to avoid the bloodshed of a dynastic civil war in the face of the Viking threat, the Archbishop of Reims convened the great lords of Francia to elect a new ruler. Duke Hugh Capet of the demesne Ile-de-France was eventually chosen as king, and crowned in July 987. At one stroke, modern France was created just as the Viking threat subsided.