 Chilperic of Soissons & "King of Soissons and Franks" Franks, son of Chlotar of "'The Old'" Franks, King of Franks and Radegunda of "Tharagunda Unknown" Thuringia.Born 523 at Name: Chilperic I King of Soissons - Franks 1 1 Sex: M Name: Chilperic I of the Franks 2 3 Birth: 539 in Soissons, Aisne, Picardy, France 1 1 Death: SEP 584 in Chelles, Ile-de-France, France 1 1 Death: OCT 584 in Chelles, France 4 Event: Acceded 561 King of Soissons & Neustria 4 Note: In his ability to generate spouses, Chilperic was no more elegant than his debauched brother Gontran. Audovere was Chilperic's first wife and bore him Merovee, [though some argue that he was Galwinthe's (Chilperic's second wife) son] Theodebert and Clovis, as well as a daughter, Hildeswinthe. Her servant, Fredegonde [whom Chilperic I immediately took as his concubine], may have been instrumental in her demise in her own drive to come to the throne. Note - between 561 and 584: Upon the death of his father Clotaire I, Chilperic I's share of the estate makes him King of Soissons and he reigns from 561 to 584. After the death of his brother, Caribert I in 567, Chilperic I gets Toulouse, as well as the largest part of the ecclesiastical provinces of Rouen and Tours, which gives him a wide access to the sea. Desiring to take revenge on his brother Sigebert I -- Chilperic could not swallow the loss of Galswinthe's dowry in 569 through the Andelot Accord -- Chilperic charges his son Clovis [born of his first union with Audovere] with the occupation of Tours and of Poitiers. Chilperic's other son, [also by Audovere] Theodebert defeats the Austrasian general Gondevald. The war between the brothers extends into 574 and 575 at which time the kingdom is invaded, and Chilperic is forced to take refuge in Tournai, and the Great Nobles [viri in lustres] abandon him. After Siegbert is murdered in 575, Chilperic and Fredegonde come out of Tournai. Chilperic piously burries his brother [whom he just had murdered] at Lambres, Chilperic I's reign was marked by many wars he waged against his brothers for the territories of the kingdom. He was assassinated. He was the King of Neustrie. Married between 562 and 584: Galswinthe=Galswitha, daughter of Athanagild, King of Spain, Chilperic's second wife, and she may have been the mother of Merovee, herein ascribed to the first wife. She was to die by strangling in a plot originated by Fredegonde (Chilperic's third wife). This murder began a bloody feud between Fredegonde and Brunehaut (Galswinthe's sister). Married before 584: Fredegonde; First the servant of Audovere, then first wife of Chilperic, Fredegonde was beautiful and ambitious. She first had Chilperic I repudiate Audovere and lock her up in a monastery, where the unfortunate was murdered on the orders of Fredegonde after 15 years of solitary confinement. However, all did not go immediately well, for when Chilperic learned of the brilliant marriage of his younger brother, Sigebert to Brunehaut, he arranged to have Fredegonde relegated to her role as concubine and asked Athanagild for the hand of another of his daughter, the older sister of Brunehaut, named Galswinthe. He promised in turn that he would repudiate all his other spouses so as to be worthy of a wife of such royal blood. When Galswinthe arrived, she was greeted with honor and respect as she brought an extensively rich treasure as dowry with her. Fredegonde had Galswitha, second wife of Chilperic strangled and replaced her on the throne. This murder began the feud with Brunehaut, Galswinthe's sister. She had her husband assassinated and had the Archbishop of Rouen (Pretexta) killed. She governed Neustrie in the name of her young son Clothaire II. Died: in 584 in Chelles, Seine-et-Marne, Champagne, France, Chilperic was assassinated, reportedly by a hired hand of Fredegonde as he was returning from a hunt in Chelles [Seine-et-Marne] . His body was shipped up the Marne and was buried in the Basilica de Saint-Vincent, near Paris [Saint-Germain-des-Pres].In his ability to generate spouses, Chilperic was no more elegant than his debauched brother Gontran. Audovere was Chilperic's first wife and bore him Merovee, [though some argue that he was Galwinthe's (Chilperic's second wife) son] Theodebert and Clovis, as well as a daughter, Hildeswinthe. Her servant, Fredegonde [whom Chilperic I immediately took as his concubine], may have been instrumental in her demise in her own drive to come to the throne. Note - between 561 and 584: Upon the death of his father Clotaire I, Chilperic I's share of the estate makes him King of Soissons and he reigns from 561 to 584. After the death of his brother, Caribert I in 567, Chilperic I gets Toulouse, as well as the largest part of the ecclesiastical provinces of Rouen and Tours, which gives him a wide access to the sea. Desiring to take revenge on his brother Sigebert I -- Chilperic could not swallow the loss of Galswinthe's dowry in 569 through the Andelot Accord -- Chilperic charges his son Clovis [born of his first union with Audovere] with the occupation of Tours and of Poitiers. Chilperic's other son, [also by Audovere] Theodebert defeats the Austrasian general Gondevald. The war between the brothers extends into 574 and 575 at which time the kingdom is invaded, and Chilperic is forced to take refuge in Tournai, and the Great Nobles [viri in lustres] abandon him. After Siegbert is murdered in 575, Chilperic and Fredegonde come out of Tournai. Chilperic piously burries his brother [whom he just had murdered] at Lambres, Chilperic I's reign was marked by many wars he waged against his brothers for the territories of the kingdom. He was assassinated. He was the King of Neustrie. Married between 562 and 584: Galswinthe=Galswitha, daughter of Athanagild, King of Spain, Chilperic's second wife, and she may have been the mother of Merovee, herein ascribed to the first wife. She was to die by strangling in a plot originated by Fredegonde (Chilperic's third wife). This murder began a bloody feud between Fredegonde and Brunehaut (Galswinthe's sister). Married before 584: Fredegonde; First the servant of Audovere, then first wife of Chilperic, Fredegonde was beautiful and ambitious. She first had Chilperic I repudiate Audovere and lock her up in a monastery, where the unfortunate was murdered on the orders of Fredegonde after 15 years of solitary confinement. However, all did not go immediately well, for when Chilperic learned of the brilliant marriage of his younger brother, Sigebert to Brunehaut, he arranged to have Fredegonde relegated to her role as concubine and asked Athanagild for the hand of another of his daughter, the older sister of Brunehaut, named Galswinthe. He promised in turn that he would repudiate all his other spouses so as to be worthy of a wife of such royal blood. When Galswinthe arrived, she was greeted with honor and respect as she brought an extensively rich treasure as dowry with her. Fredegonde had Galswitha, second wife of Chilperic strangled and replaced her on the throne. This murder began the feud with Brunehaut, Galswinthe's sister. She had her husband assassinated and had the Archbishop of Rouen (Pretexta) killed. She governed Neustrie in the name of her young son Clothaire II. Died: in 584 in Chelles, Seine-et-Marne, Champagne, France, Chilperic was assassinated, reportedly by a hired hand of Fredegonde as he was returning from a hunt in Chelles [Seine-et-Marne] . His body was shipped up the Marne and was buried in the Basilica de Saint-Vincent, near Paris [Saint-Germain-des-Pres]. The Family Trees of the Kings of France: "He was literate and a patron of the performing arts but was also a tyrant who was fond of debauchery. In 566 he married Galswinthe, the sister of Brunhilde, his brother Sigegert I's wife. However he had her strangled by Fredegund whom he took as his second spouse (568). The assassination led to a long war between the two kingdoms. Chilperic I was defeated by the Autrisasians in 575 but was saved by the death of his brother. He died in mysterious circumstances in his villa in Chelles in 584. ENCYCLOPÆDIA BRITANNICA, 1906, Vol 5, p. 501: Chilperic I (d. 584) was on of the sos of Clotaire I. On his father's death in 501, fearing that, as he was illegitimate, his brothers would deprive him of his share of the patrimony, he seized the royal treasure at Berny and entered Paris, prepared to bargain. The resulting division of the patrimony gave Chilperic the old Salian territories of the modern Picardy, Flanders, and Hainaut; this included Soissons. When Charibert died in 567, Chiperic's share of his property included lands and cities in the west and in Aquitaine. Distrust of his brothers, fear of his insecure eastern frontier, and the perpetual need of land and treasure for his followers caused Chilperic to attack Sigebert's town of Reims. There followed a series of campaigns in which Reims and Soissons were the key points. Sigebert's marriage to the Visigothic princess Brunhilda (Brunechildis) , daughter of King Athanagild, seemed to endanger Chilperic's possessions in Aquitaine; so Chilperic put away his wife and married Galswintha, Athanagild's elder daughter. This prudent step angered his followers, who hated the Arian Visigoths. Galswintha was shortly murdered, to be replaced by Chilperic's former mistress, Fredegond (q.v.). This lady was Gregory of Tours pet aversion, but Chilperic's subjects seemed to prefer her to her predecessor. The consequent vendetta with Sigebert and Brunhilda, in which Guntram of Burgundy acted occasionally as arbitrator, lasted almost without pause, for 40 years and was castigated by Gregory of Tours as bella civilia. After Sigebert's murder in 575, Chilperic became effectively master of the regnum Francorum. The Visigothic king Leovigild sought the hand of his daughter Rigunthis for his heir Reccard. Chilperic was assassinated near Chelles in 584. Chilperic was naturally ferocious and appeared to Gregory of Tours as the Nero and the Herod of this time. But he was the ablest and most interest of the grandsons of Clovis. As a bastard he had to fight for his existence; yet a builders of circurses, he seems to have had ideas about a king's duties that were Roman or Byzantine rather than Germanic. His fiscal measures were vigorous and provoked the hatred of the church (which suffered from them). His court circle has something more that pretensions of culture; it appreciated poetry and even theological discussion. Father: Chlotar I (Clothaire) "The Old" King of Franks b: ABT 500 in Reims, Marne, Champagne, France Mother: Radegunda of Thuringia b: ABT 502 in Thuringia, Germany Marriage 1 Audovera b: ABT 525 in guesstimate Divorced: 565 in repudiated 4 Divorced: Marriage 2 Galswinthe of the Visigoths b: ABT 540 in Spain Married: ABT 566 4 Marriage 3 Fredegund b: 543 in France Married: BEF 583 in 2nd wife 5 Married: ABT 564 in France 2 Married: AFT 568 4 Children Chlotar II King of Soissons , & West Franks b: MAY 584 in Soissons, Aisne, Picardy, France Sources: Title: The Plantagenet Ancestry, 1993 edition Author: Turton, William H. Publication: Genalogical Publishing Co., Baltimore, 1928 (1993 edition) Repository: Call Number: Media: Book Title: Ancestry.com Tree 8319 Repository: Call Number: Media: Electronic Text: Date of Import: Jan 15, 2000 Title: Directory of Royal Genealogical Data Author: Brian Tompsett, Dept of Computer Science Publication: Department of Computer Science, Hull University Note: usually reliable but sometimes includes hypothetical lines, mythological figures, etc Repository: Note: http://www.dcs.hull.ac.uk/public/genealogy/royal/catalog.html Call Number: Media: Electronic Title: The Family Trees of the Kings of France Author: Jean-Charles Volkman Publication: Editions Jean-Paul Gisserot, Paris Repository: Note: JHM Library Call Number: Media: Book Title: Encyclopedia Britannica, Treatise on Repository: Call Number: Media: Book Page: Chilperic I Married ± ABT. 558 at  Audovere MerovingBorn 530 at Child: | |||
| 2nd marriage Chilperic of Soissons & "King of Soissons and Franks" Franks, son of Chlotar of "'The Old'" Franks, King of Franks and Radegunda of "Tharagunda Unknown" Thuringia.Married ± ABT. 564 at Soissons, Aisne, France; 3rd wife; 1st husband (approximately 20 years married) to: Fredegonde of Franks, daughter of Brunulphe Earlin and Crotechilde of Ostrogoths.Born 545 at Soissons, Aisne, France, died 597 at Paris, France, 51 or 52 years ID: I17623 Name: *Fredegunde Franks Sex: F Birth: 0545 in Soissons,Aisne,France Death: ABT 0597 Note: c.545–597, Frankish queen. The mistress of King Chilperic I of Neustria, she became his wife after inducing him to murder his wife Galswintha (567). Fredegunde and Brunhilda, Galswintha’s sister and wife of King Sigebert I of Austrasia, were among the leading figures in the long war (561–613) between the Frankish kingdoms of Neustria and Austrasia. Fredegunde procured the deaths of Sigebert I and of her own stepchildren. After Chilperic’s murder (584) she acted as regent for her son Clotaire II. Note: Note: The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001. Change Date: 10 FEB 2004 Father: *Brunulphe Earlin b: 0517 Mother: *Crotechilde de Ostrogoths b: ABT 0500 in Rheims,Marne,Loire-Alantique,France Marriage 1 *Chilperic I Soissons Franks b: ABT 0523 in Soissons,Aisne,France Married: ABT 0564 in France Children *Clothaire II Meroving b: JUN 0584 in Soissons,Aisneons,France From 'Thorns among the roses' at Rootsweb.com. Child: 1. Chlothaire "King of Soissons and West Franks" MerovingianBorn Jun 584 at Soissons, Aisne, Picardy,, France>, died Oct 18, 629 at Paris, France, 45 years, buried at St. Vincent Abbey, Paris, France Name: Chlotar II King of Soissons , & West Franks 1 2 3 1 Sex: M ALIA: Chlothaire II King of West /Franks/ Name: Clotaire II France Neustri 4 Birth: MAY 584 in Soissons, Aisne, Picardy, France 1 1 Death: 18 OCT 629 in Paris, Seine, Ile-de-France, France 1 5 Burial: St Vincent Abbey, Paris, Seine, France 4 Event: Acceded 584 King of Neustria 6 Event: Acceded 613 King of the Franks Note: King of Newustria, KING OF SOISSONS, King of France Upon Clotaire's birth, his mother had his father assassinated and ruled Neustrie in his name. He became King of Soissons in 584, and was sole King of the Franks in 613. He had his aunt Brunehaut (sister of his father's second wife) killed. In the year 596, through his mother Fredegonde, Clotaire II's territories were extended in the East. In 599, King Theodebert II of Austrasia and King Thierry II of Burgundy joined forces to take revenge upon Clotaire II. The Army of Neustria is beatten and the entire valley of the Seine is devastated. As a result, Thierry II's territory increased by taking away from Clotaire II, the lands between the Seine and the Loire. Theodebert II takes the lands of the Duchy of Dentelin. In 604, the Mayor of the Palace, Bertaut arouses the subjects against the King of Burgundy and they call on Clotaire II for help. On Christmas Day, 604, Clotaire rushes to their aid and crosses the Seine and pushes all to way to Orleans. On his return, he encounters an Army of Bourgogne, and is defeated at Etampes at which battle Bertaut is killed. Because Theodebert had not intervened, actually he had made peace in Compiegne with Clotaire II, Thierry II took offense and the two brothers became less than thrilled with each other. Brunehaut, unhappy with Theodebert, names as next Mayor of the Palace a Gallo-Roman named Protadius. In 607, she pushed Thierry II to take up arms against his brother. During the battle, Protadius is killed and the two brothers make peace, humiliating their mother, Brunehaut. By 612, the brothers again were at war and Thierry II purchases Clotaire's neutrality by offering him the Duchy of Dentelin. In 613 Clotaire II invades Austrasia upon the death of Thierry II, kills two of Thierry's sons [the other two disappear] , and has Brunehaut killed after the lords of Burgundy seize her and give her to him. At her "trial" Clotaire II had accused Brunehaut of having caused the death of ten frankish Kings: 1. Sigebert her first spouse, who was assassinated [though through no fault of Brunehaut] ; 2. Merovee, the son of Chilperic I [who was actually assassinated on the orders of Fredegonde] ; 3. Chilperic [killed in 584, and through no part from Brunehaut] ; 4. Theodebert II 5. of his son Clotaire [it is possible that Brunehaut had Cloraire assassinated after he deserted her] ; 6. Merovee, son of Clotaire II [highly doubtful that Brunehaut had a part in this murder] ; 7. Thierry II and his three sons [Thierry died of dysentery, and 8-10. his three sons were massacred on the order of Clotaire II himself]. For 3 days, Clotaire II personally tortures Brunehaut, then he parades her tied cross-wise to the back of a camel in front of his entire assembled army. Finally, he had her hair, and limbs tied to a wild horse which was allowed to run within a confined space while being beaten, therebye causing every limb to be broken and shortly thereafter she died at age 60 to 65. At this time, Clotaire II becomes the only surviving descendant of the sons of Clovis. He governs the Frankish Kingdom from the Pyrenees to the Rhine and beyond all the way to the Elbe, and the germanic peoples must pay him tribute. However, his power is limitted as in each of the three ancient kingdoms [Austrasia, Neustria and Burgundy] the Major Domus [Mayor of the Palace] becomes progressively more important. Submitting to the pressure of these mayors, Clotaire, Clotaire II on 23 January 623 makes his son Dagobert, King of occidental Austrasia [West of the Vosges and the Ardennes] as well as of Aquitaine. Again under pressure, in 626, Clotaire gives Dagobert Gomatrude [his wife's sister] as spouse. Three days after the wedding, Dagobert claims all of Austrasia was his, but Clotaire keeps control over Provence and Aquitaine. Married before 603: Bertrude . Married before 604: Haldetrude ; Haldetrude was one of three wives. The Family Trees of the Kings of France, p. 12: Chlotar II. ... [He] was only a few months old when his father was murdered and his mother acted as Regent in Neustria until 597. She defended the kingdom against the King of Austriasia, Childebert II, but Choloar II was defeated by Childebert's sons....in 604 and he lost almost all his territory. However, after their deaths in 612 and 613, he...took over their kingdoms, becoming sole king of the Franks. His reign was a period of prosperity....Chlotar II appointed a Mayor of the Palace to head each of the three kingdoms (Neustria, Austrasia and Burgundy).... Father: Chilperic I King of Soissons - Franks b: 539 in Soissons, Aisne, Picardy, France Mother: Fredegund b: 543 in France Marriage 1 Haldetrude b: ABT 586 in Soissons. Aisne, France Children Merovech Dagobert I King of Austrasia b: ABT 605 in Austrasia, now Germand Marriage 2 Beretrudis of The Burgundy b: ABT 582 in Bourgogne, France Married: BEF 607 in 2nd wife Married: BEF 603 7 Children Charibert II King of Aquitaine b: ABT 607 in Neustria Marriage 3 Sichilde (Brynhilde) b: ABT 595 in France Married: BEF 624 in 3rd wife Children Oda of the Franks b: ABT 626 in France Sources: Title: The Plantagenet Ancestry of King Edward III and Queen Philippa Author: George Andrews Moriarty Publication: 1985 Repository: Call Number: Media: Book Title: The Plantagenet Ancestry, 1993 edition Author: Turton, William H. Publication: Genalogical Publishing Co., Baltimore, 1928 (1993 edition) Repository: Call Number: Media: Book Page: 182 Text: Chlothaire II King of France Title: The Plantagenet Ancestry, 1993 edition Author: Turton, William H. Publication: Genalogical Publishing Co., Baltimore, 1928 (1993 edition) Repository: Call Number: Media: Book Page: 182 Title: Ancestry.com Tree 8319 Repository: Call Number: Media: Electronic Text: Date of Import: Jan 15, 2000 Title: The Ragsdale Family of England and America Author: Van Leer, Blake Ragsdale Publication: Industrial Printing Service, Rt. 1, Arbor Hill Rd, Canton, Georgia, 1975 Repository: Note: DAR Library, Washington, DC Call Number: Media: Book Title: The Family Trees of the Kings of France Author: Jean-Charles Volkman Publication: Editions Jean-Paul Gisserot, Paris Repository: Note: JHM Library Call Number: Media: Book Title: The Phillips, Weber, Kirk, & Staggs families of the Pacific Northwest Author: Jim Weber Publication: ancestry.com Note: downloaded periodically 2001-2004. Updated frequently, with many sources. Repository: Note: jim.weber@nwintl.com Call Number: Media: Electronic | |||