The Royal Frankish Annals (
Latin:
Annales regni Francorum; also
Annales Laurissenses maiores and
German:
Reichsannalen) are
Latin annals composed in
Carolingian Francia, recording year-by-year the state of the monarchy from 741 (the death of
Mayor of the Palace Charles Martel) to 829 (the beginning of the crisis of
Louis the Pious). Their authorship is unknown, though
Wilhelm von Giesebrecht suggested that
Arno of Salzburg was the author of an early section of the
Annaes Laurissenses majores surviving in the copy at
Lorsch Abbey. The Annals are believed to have been composed in successive sections by different authors, and then compiled. The depth of knowledge regarding court affairs suggests that the annals were written by persons close to the king, and their initial reluctance to comment on Frankish defeats betrays an official design for use as Carolingian propaganda. Though the information contained within is heavily influenced by authorial intent in favor of the Franks, the annals remain a crucial source on the political and military history of the reign of
Charlemagne.