Person Page

     Hedwige of Germany married Otto I of Saxony, son of Ludolph I of Saxony and Oda of Thuringia, in 869.^2,3 Hedwige died in 906.³Hedwige was also known as Edith.

     Otto I of Saxony was born circa 836.² He married Hedwige of Germany, daughter of Arnolph of Germany and Oda of Bavaria, in 869.^3,2 Otto died on 30 November 912 in Saxony, Germany.²

     Ludolph I of Saxony was born in 816 in Saxony, Germany.² He married Oda of Thuringia, daughter of Billung of Thuringia and Aeda ?, circa 836.³ Ludolph died in 866 in Saxony, Germany.^4,2 He was interred in Brunohausen.²

     Hatwide of Saxony was born circa 921.¹ She married Hugh I of France, son of Robert I of France and Beatrice de Vermandois, circa 938.^2,1 Hatwide died on 10 May 965.¹Hatwide was also known as Hawise, Hatwin, or Hedwig.

     Hugh I of France was born circa 895.² He married first Judith of Maine, daughter of Roger of Maine and Rothilde of Neustria, before 926.³ He married second Edhilda of England circa 926.^4,3 He married third Hatwide of Saxony, daughter of Henry I of Germany and Matilda von Ringleheim, circa 938.^5,2 Hugh died on 16 June 956 in Deurdan.^2,3 He was interred in St. Denis.²

     Robert I of France was born in 866.² He married first Adele of France, daughter of Louis I of France and Ermengarde of Hesbaye, before 890.² He married second Beatrice de Vermandois in 890.² Robert was killed in battle on 15 June 923 in Soissons, France.²

     Hugh Capet of France was born in late 941.^2,3 He married Adelaide of Poitou between 963 and 968.³ Hugh died on 24 October 996 in Les Juifs, France.^4,3Hugh Capet was the founder of the Capetian dynasty and son of Hugh the Great, count of Paris, whom he succeeded in 956. His lordship over many fiefs around Paris and Orléans made him the virtual ruler of France, and when King Louis V of France, the last of the Carolingian line, died without an heir in 987, Hugh's numerous vassals enabled him to win the election to the throne, defeating the Carolingian candidate, Charles, duke of Lorraine. Charles and many other great nobles of the realm attempted to resist his authority but, through force of arms and by judicious purchasing of allegiance, as well as through the support of the church, of which he was a devout member, Hugh established a measure of order within his kingdom. He had his son, Robert the Pious (later Robert II), elected and crowned his associate and successor in 988, thereby confirming the house of Capet, which ruled France until 1328.⁵

     Adelaide of Poitou was born circa 950.¹ She married Hugh Capet of France, son of Hugh I of France and Hatwide of Saxony, between 963 and 968.¹ Adelaide died 15 June 1006 (or 1004).^2,1Adelaide was also known as Adelais.

     Oda of Thuringia was born circa 806.¹ She married Ludolph I of Saxony, son of Bruno of Saxony and Suana of Montfort, circa 836.¹ Oda died circa May 913.¹

     Eberhard of Friuli married Gisela of France, daughter of Louis I of France and Judith of Bavaria, in 836.² Eberhard died on 16 December 862.² He was interred in Cysoing.²Eberhard was also known as Everhard.

     Gisela of France was born circa 820.² She married Eberhard of Friuli, son of Hunroch of Friuli and Engeltrude of Paris, in 836.³ Gisela died on 1 July 874.^2,4

     Pepin III of France was born in 715 in Austrasia.² He married Bertrada II of Laon, daughter of Caribert de Laon and Bertrada ?, circa 740.^3,2 Pepin died on 24 September 768 in St. Denis, France.²Pepin the Short, was the mayor of the palace of Austrasia, king of the Franks, and the son of the Frankish ruler Charles Martel, and the grandson of Pepin of Herstal. He was mayor of the palace during the reign of Childeric III (reigned about 743-751), the last of the Merovingian dynasty. In 751, Pepin deposed Childeric and thus became the first king of the Carolingian dynasty. He was crowned by Pope Stephen II (III) in 754. When the pope was threatened by the Lombards of northern Italy, Pepin led an army that defeated them (754-55). He ceded to the pope territory that included Ravenna and other cities. This grant, called the Donation of Pepin, laid the foundation for the Papal States. Pepin enlarged his own kingdom by capturing Aquitaine, or Aquitania, in southwestern France. He was succeeded by his sons Carloman and Charlemagne as joint kings.⁴

     Charles Martel was born circa 688. He married first Rotrud of Alemania, daughter of Liutwin of Treves and Unknown ?.^3,4 He married second Swanhilde of Bavaria.⁴ Charles died on 22 October 741 in Quierzy, Aisne, France.⁴Charles was also known as Karl.

     Charles Martel, Carolingian ruler of the Frankish kingdom of Austrasia (in present northeastern France and southwestern Germany). Charles, whose surname means "the hammer," was the son of Pepin of Herstal and the grandfather of Charlemagne. Pepin was mayor of the palace under the last kings of the Merovingian dynasty. When he died in 714, Charles, an illegitimate son, was imprisoned by his father's widow, but he escaped in 715 and was proclaimed mayor of the palace by the Austrasians. A war between Austrasia and the Frankish kingdom of Neustria (now part of France) followed, and at the end of it Charles became the undisputed ruler of all the Franks. Although he was engaged in wars against the Alamanni, Bavarians, and Saxons, his greatest achievements were against the Muslims from Spain, who invaded France in 732. Charles defeated them near Poitiers in a great battle in which the Muslim leader, Abd-ar-Rahman, the emir of Spain, was killed. The progress of Islam, which had filled all Christendom with alarm, was thus checked for a time. Charles drove the Muslims out of the Rhône valley in 739, when they had again advanced into France as far as Lyon, leaving them nothing of their possessions north of the Pyrenees beyond the Aude River. Charles died in Quierzy, on the Oise River, leaving the kingdom divided between his two sons, Carloman and Pepin the Short.⁵

     Charles Martel died after dividing his realms between his elder son Carloman and younger son Pepin (or Pippin), although the country had had no true king since the death of Theodoric in 737. Lands to the east, including Austrasia, Alemannia, and Thuringia, went to Carloman along with suzerainty over Bavaria, while Pepin received Neustria, Burgundy, and Provence.⁶