Editing Pope Adrian I (section)

====Italy====
[[File:Iron Crown.JPG|thumb|The [[Iron Crown of Lombardy]], for centuries a symbol of the [[King of Italy|Kings of Italy]]]]
Carloman died in December 771, and when Charlemagne seized his brother's territory, Carloman's widow, [[Gerberga, wife of Carloman I|Gerberga]], and their two sons fled for refuge to the Lombard court at Pavia. Desiderius made overtures to Pope Adrian, requesting that he acknowledge Carloman's sons' right to succeed their father, and crown them as Kings of the Franks.<ref name=McKitterick/> With Charlemagne occupied with a campaign against the Saxons, Desiderius saw an opportunity to take all of Italy. He invaded the [[Duchy of the Pentapolis]] which had been given to the papacy in 756 by Charlemagne's father. Desiderius's support of the claims of Carloman's sons posed a potential challenge to the legitimacy of Charlemagne's possession of his brother's lands. In 773, he cut short a military campaign near Paderborn, crossed the Alps, and laid siege to Pavia. In exchange for their lives, the Lombards surrendered and Desiderius was sent to the abbey of Corbie. Charlemagne assumed the title "King of the Lombards".