King Charlemagne recovered what is today the independent country of Andorra from the Muslims in 803. Charlemagne’s grandson, Charles II, granted Andorra to the counts of Urgel, from whom it passed to the bishops of Urgel. Andorra was later governed jointly by representatives of the Spanish bishop of Urgel and of the French head of state until 1993, when a constitution was adopted that greatly reduced the power of the coprinces.

Adapted from the Encyclopedia Britannica.