Did you know that Charlemagne (742-814) was born in Belgium ?

Great-grandson of Pepin of Herstal, grandson of Charles Martel and son of Pepin the Short, Charlemagne, also known as Charles the Great, seems to have had some links with the Ardenne and the Meuse region before he was crowned emperor in Rome on 25 December 800 by Pope Leo III.

While Charlemagne established his capital at Aix-la-Chapelle (now Aachen) in Germany, his place of birth remained a mystery well into the 19^th century. Herstal seemed to be a better choice than Liège, because until 784, Charlemagne had a palace there, where it was said that he liked to live. Moreover, in some areas of the locality, his memory continues to be revered, such as an annual festival in a church. But even by the mid 19th century, the question of Charlemagne's place of birth still had not been settled: Belgium, France, Germany?