"What dignity shall we gain by making Charles king? He is not guided by honor, nor is he possessed of strength. Then, too, he has compromised himself so far as to have become the dependent of a foreign king[253] and to have married a girl taken from among his own vassals. How could the great duke endure that a woman of the low rank of vassal should become queen and rule over him? How could he tender services to this woman, when his equals, and even his superiors, in birth bend the knee before him and place their hands under his feet? Think of this seriously and you will see that Charles must be rejected for his own faults rather than on account of any wrong done by others. Make a decision, therefore, for the welfare rather than for the injury of the state. If you wish ill to your country, choose Charles to be king; if you have regard for its prosperity, choose Hugh, the illustrious duke.... Elect, then, the duke, a man who is recommended by his conduct, by his nobility, and by his military following. In him you will find a defender, not only of the state, but also of your private interests. His large-heartedness will make him a father to you all. Who has ever fled to him for protection without receiving it? Who that has been deserted by his friends has he ever failed to restore to his rights?" [Sidenote: The beginning of his reign] This speech was applauded and concurred in by all, and by unanimous consent the duke was raised to the throne. He was crowned at Noyon[254] on the first of June[255] by the archbishop and the other bishops as king of the Gauls, the Bretons, the Normans, the Aquitanians, the Goths, the Spaniards and the Gascons.[256] Surrounded by the nobles of the king, he issued decrees and made laws according to royal custom, judging and disposing of all matters with success. FOOTNOTES: [197] After the battle of Fontenay, June 25, 841, Charles and Louis had separated and Lothair had formed the design of attacking and conquering first one and then the other. He made an expedition against Charles, but was unable to accomplish anything before his two enemies again drew together at Strassburg. [198] The name "Francia" was as yet confined to the country lying between the Loire and the Scheldt. [199] This Pepin was a son of Pepin, the brother of Charles, Louis, and Lothair. Upon the death of the elder Pepin in 838 his part of the empire--the great region between the Loire and the Pyrenees, known as Aquitaine--had been taken possession of by Charles, without regard for the two surviving sons. It was natural, therefore, that in the struggle which ensued between Charles and Louis on the one side and Lothair on the other, young Pepin should have given such aid as he could to the latter. [200] On the upper Moselle. [201] This refers to the battle of Fontenay.