The two lives of Charlemagne as told by Einhard and Notker are two medieval sources about the accounts of the life Charlemagne. Modern sources by Matthew Innes and Rosamond Mckitterick discuss how history was recorded during the medieval period and how it was suppose to be viewed in the early ages. Observing each of these sources helps get an understanding of how the writing of history is important in recorded history and how it affected how the history of Charlemagne was recorded.

Writing history in the early Middle Ages "was not intended to be simply a matter of keeping a record for posterity." It was to help make the past more presentable and comprehensible to the present, "whether as support for contemporary political ideology or to explain God's purpose for humanity." Works that is widely read and follows these guidelines is writings Einhard and Notker did on Charlemagne...