Negative Positive
Title: Excellent concise overview of the period.
Review: _The Age of Charlemagne_ offers an excellent concise overview of the political and military history of the Carolingian Empire. David Nicolle, perhaps Osprey's top author on medieval subjects, gives the usual Osprey coverage of the military development and organization of the era, in this case the gradual introduction of stirrups to western Europe and the rise of early fighting cavalry. However, perhaps due to the paucity of historical material on these topics, Nicolle also includes a brief but thorough history of the Empire itself. The factors cited for its fall in the early 900s CE include encroachment by Saracens and Magyars, raids by Vikings, and the inability of the offense-designed Carolingian military system to adapt to a defensive role. _The Age of Charlemagne_ details the military history of this early medieval period and provides a valuable overview of the political history as well.
Is the review positive or negative? 