Compare Justinian, Charlemagne

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…safe from invasion and disintegration. They were both charismatic and both new the value of appearing regal so that there were no real challengers to their throne. In terms of vices, both of them did not pay enough attention to what was happening internally. However, this did not prevent them from keeping together vast areas of land that soon were to be fragmented into smaller realms that were never again to be amalgamated into one.