He  resolved  to  depose  his  titular  master,  and  to  make  himself
king.  Not  deeming  it  wise,  however,  to  do  this  without  the
sanction  of  the  Pope,  he  sent  an  embassy  to  represent  to  him  the
state  of  affairs,  and  to  solicit  his  advice.  Mindful  of  recent  favors
that  he  had  received  at  the  hands  of  Pepin,  the  Pope  gave  his
approval  to  the  proposed  scheme  by  replying  that  it  seemed  alto-
gether reasonable  that  the  one  who  was  king  in  power  should  be
king  also  in  name.  This  was  sufficient  Chilperic  —  such  was
the  name  of  the  Merovingian  king  —  was  straightway  deposed,
and  placed  in  a  monastery;  while  Pepin,  whose  own  deeds  to-
gether with  those  of  his  illustrious  father  had  done  so  much  for
the  Prankish  nation  and  for  Christendom,  was  anointed  and
crowned  king  of  the  Franks  (752),  and  thus  became  the  first  of
the  Carolingian  line,  the  name  of  his  illustrious  son  Charlemagne
giving  name  to  the  house.
Beginning  of  fhe  Temporal  Power  of  the  Popes.  —  In  the  year
754  Pope  Stephen  II.,  who  was  troubled  by  the  Lombards  (see  p.
