Bernard (son of Charles the Fat)

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Bernard or Bernhard (c. 870 – 891/2) was the only child of Emperor Charles the Fat. He was born of an unknown concubine and was thus considered illegitimate. Charles tried to make him his heir, but failed in two attempts.

Charles tried to have Bernard recognised as his heir in 885, but met the opposition of several bishops. He had the support of

Abbey of Prüm] until I see your little son Bernard with a sword girt to his thigh."[2]
Perhaps Notker was awaiting Bernard's kingship, when Prüm would be avenged.

After the failure of his first attempt, Charles set about to try again, apparently having given up on having any legitimate children with his wife,

Kirchen in May.[5]
It is possible, however, that the agreement with Louis was only designed to engender support for Bernard's subkingship in Lotharingia.

After his father's death, Bernard became the focus of revolt for some

Solomon III, Bishop of Constance, and Hatto, Abbot of Reichenau. Arnulf entered Alemannia in the summer to redistribute lands. Bernard was killed by Rudolf, Duke of Rhaetia, and only then did the unrest in Alemannia cease.[7]

These events are not mentioned in the main East Frankish source, the

Annals of Fulda, rather they come from brief notices in the Annales Alamannici and Annales Laubacenses, which record that in 890, "Bernard, Charles's son, barely escaped the net", and in 891 (which possibly should be 892), he "was killed by Rudolf", without specifying who Rudolf was.[9]

Notes

  1. ^ a b Reuter, pp 116–117. AF(M), 885 (pp 98&99 and nn6&7) and AF(B), 885 (p. 111 and n2).
  2. ^ a b MacLean, p. 131.
  3. ^ Reuter, AF(M), 885 (p. 99 n7).
  4. ^ MacLean, p. 132.
  5. ^ MacLean, p. 167.
  6. ^ Reuter, 890 (pp 119&120 and nn3).
  7. ^ a b Reuter, 120, n6.
  8. ^ Offergeld, 491.
  9. ^ Offergeld, 488: berenhart filius karoli vix de retia evasit (890) and perenhart filius karoli a ruodolfo occius (891).

Sources

  • Offergeld, Thilo (2001). Reges pueri: Das Königtum Minderjähriger im frühen Mittelalter. Vol. 2 vols. Hanover.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • Reuter, Timothy (1991). Germany in the Early Middle Ages, c. 800–1056. London: Longman.
  • Reuter, Timothy, ed. (1992). The Annals of Fulda. Manchester Medieval Series, Ninth-Century Histories, Volume II. Manchester University Press.
  • MacLean, Simon (2003). Kingship and Politics in the Late Ninth Century: Charles the Fat and the End of the Carolingian Empire. Cambridge University Press.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bernard_(son_of_Charles_the_Fat)&oldid=1180244491"