kingdom", since by then a Merovingian king, Childeric III, had been appointed. The ducal/princely title used by the early Carolingians marked them off as peers of the duke–princes of Aquitaine, also nominally under the Merovingians, rather than as sovereigns over them. Dux Franciae A charter from the reign of King Odo (888–898) for the church Saint-Aignan d'Orléans that titles Robert the Strong dux Francorum is a 17th-century forgery. Between 936 and 943, the title dux Francorum was revived at the request of Hugh the Great, the most powerful magnate in France. A charter of King Louis IV of 936 refers to him that way, and a charter of Hugh's own from 937 employs the title. Its usage was not exclusive, however, since the title "count" (comes) continued to be used as well. In one charter, Louis explained that Hugh was second to him in all his kingdoms. This interpretation of the title dux Francorum was not universally accepted. According to Flodoard of Reims, the king only "invested Hugh with the duchy of France" in 943 in reward for the latter's help in returning the king from exile. The duchy of Francia (ducatus Franciae) comprised the region between the Loire and the Seine, the ancient kingdom of Neustria. On this contemporary understanding, Hugh's title was analogous to that of the dukes of Aquitaine, dux Aquitanorum, where the territorial designation ("of Aquitaine") was eschewed in favour of an ethnic one ("of the Aquitainians"). "Duke of the Franks" thus became the preferred title of the Robertian margraves of Neustria from 943. Walther Kienast suggested that the title served to connect Hugh with the previous duces Francorum, Pippin II and Charles Martel, and buttress his authority in Francia, from which he was frequently absent on visits to the royal court. Hugh died in 956 and was succeeded by his son and heir, the child Hugh Capet. In 960, according to Flodoard, "the king [Lothair] made Hugh [Capet] a duke, and added for him the country of Poitou to the land which his father had held." The younger Hugh's first charter with the ducal title dates to 966, while the first royal charter with the title dates to 974. Lothair son, Louis V, already king of the Aquitainians, recognised Hugh as duke of the Franks in a charter of 979. The title fell into abeyance and the Neustrian march ceased to form an administrative unit