Conrad, Duke of Lorraine
Encyclopedia
Conrad the Red (c. 922 – 10 August 955) was a Duke of Lorraine from the Salian dynasty
.
He was the son of Werner V
, Count of the Nahegau
, Speyer
gau, and Wormsgau
. His mother was a sister of Conrad I of Germany
. In 941, he succeeded his father in his counties and obtained an additional territory, the Niddagau. In 944 or 945, he was also invested with Lorraine by King Otto I
.
In 947, he married Liutgarde
, daughter of Otto
and Edith
, daughter of Edward the Elder
, King of England. He and Liutgard had one son, Otto of Worms, later duke of Swabia
and Carinthia
.
In 953, Conrad joined his brother-in-law, Liudolf, Duke of Swabia
, in rebellion against Otto, who bitterly complained about Conrad's ingratitude. The rebellion was quashed and Conrad was deprived of Lorraine, which was instead granted to Otto's brother, Bruno I, Archbishop of Cologne
. Eventually Conrad and Otto were reconciled.
In 954 Conrad participated in a successful campaign against the Ukrani
of the Uckerland
. In 955, Conrad was killed in the Battle of Lechfeld
while fighting alongside Otto against the Magyars. According to the chronicler Widukind of Corvey
:
Conrad's body was carried in state to Worms
, where he was given a lavish funeral and buried at Worms Cathedral
by his son Otto. Conrad was the great-grandfather of Conrad II, Holy Roman Emperor
.
Salian dynasty
The Salian dynasty was a dynasty in the High Middle Ages of four German Kings , also known as the Frankish dynasty after the family's origin and role as dukes of Franconia...
.
He was the son of Werner V
Werner (Salian)
Werner V, count in the Nahegau, Speyergau and Wormsgau is the first definite progenitor of the Salian Dynasty of German kings....
, Count of the Nahegau
Nahegau
The Nahegau was in the Middle Ages a county, which covered the environs of the Nahe and large parts of present-day Rhenish Hesse, after a successful expansion of the narrow territory, which did not reach the Rhine, to the disadvantage of the Wormsgau...
, Speyer
Speyer
Speyer is a city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany with approximately 50,000 inhabitants. Located beside the river Rhine, Speyer is 25 km south of Ludwigshafen and Mannheim. Founded by the Romans, it is one of Germany's oldest cities...
gau, and Wormsgau
Worms, Germany
Worms is a city in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, on the Rhine River. At the end of 2004, it had 85,829 inhabitants.Established by the Celts, who called it Borbetomagus, Worms today remains embattled with the cities Trier and Cologne over the title of "Oldest City in Germany." Worms is the only...
. His mother was a sister of Conrad I of Germany
Conrad I of Germany
Conrad I , called the Younger, was Duke of Franconia from 906 and King of Germany from 911 to 918, the only king of the Conradine dynasty...
. In 941, he succeeded his father in his counties and obtained an additional territory, the Niddagau. In 944 or 945, he was also invested with Lorraine by King Otto I
Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor
Otto I the Great , son of Henry I the Fowler and Matilda of Ringelheim, was Duke of Saxony, King of Germany, King of Italy, and "the first of the Germans to be called the emperor of Italy" according to Arnulf of Milan...
.
In 947, he married Liutgarde
Liutgarde
Liutgarde was the daughter of Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor and his first wife Eadgyth. In 947 she married Conrad, Duke of Lorraine, also known as Conrad the Red. Otto's Empire did not pass to Liutgarde's brother, Liudolf, Duke of Swabia, but instead passed through his second wife Adelaide of Italy...
, daughter of Otto
Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor
Otto I the Great , son of Henry I the Fowler and Matilda of Ringelheim, was Duke of Saxony, King of Germany, King of Italy, and "the first of the Germans to be called the emperor of Italy" according to Arnulf of Milan...
and Edith
Eadgyth
Edith of England , also spelt Eadgyth or Ædgyth, was the daughter of Edward the Elder, and the wife of Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor.-Life:...
, daughter of Edward the Elder
Edward the Elder
Edward the Elder was an English king. He became king in 899 upon the death of his father, Alfred the Great. His court was at Winchester, previously the capital of Wessex...
, King of England. He and Liutgard had one son, Otto of Worms, later duke of Swabia
Duchy of Swabia
Swabia was one of the five stem duchies of the medieval German kingdom, and its dukes were thus among the most powerful magnates of Germany.-History:...
and Carinthia
Duchy of Carinthia
The Duchy of Carinthia was a duchy located in southern Austria and parts of northern Slovenia. It was separated from the Duchy of Bavaria in 976, then the first newly created Imperial State beside the original German stem duchies....
.
In 953, Conrad joined his brother-in-law, Liudolf, Duke of Swabia
Liudolf, Duke of Swabia
Liudolf was the duke of Swabia from 950 until 954. He was the only son of Otto I, king of Germany, from his wife Eadgyth, daughter of Edward the Elder, king of England....
, in rebellion against Otto, who bitterly complained about Conrad's ingratitude. The rebellion was quashed and Conrad was deprived of Lorraine, which was instead granted to Otto's brother, Bruno I, Archbishop of Cologne
Bruno I, Archbishop of Cologne
Bruno the Great was Archbishop of Cologne, Germany, from 953 until his death, and Duke of Lotharingia from 954. He was the brother of Otto I, king of Germany and later Holy Roman Emperor....
. Eventually Conrad and Otto were reconciled.
In 954 Conrad participated in a successful campaign against the Ukrani
Ukrani
thumb|250px|right|Burgwallinsel, a former Ukrani [[burgh]] on an isle in Lake [[Oberuckersee]]The Ukrani were a West Slavic Polabian tribe in the Uckermark from the 6th–12th centuries. Their settlement area was centered around the lakes Oberuckersee and Unteruckersee at the spring of the...
of the Uckerland
Uckermark
Uckermark is a Kreis in the northeastern part of Brandenburg, Germany. Neighboring districts are Barnim and Oberhavel, the districts Mecklenburgische Seenplatte and Vorpommern-Greifswald in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and to the east Poland . It is the largest district of Germany areawise...
. In 955, Conrad was killed in the Battle of Lechfeld
Battle of Lechfeld
The Battle of Lechfeld , often seen as the defining event for holding off the incursions of the Hungarians into Western Europe, was a decisive victory by Otto I the Great, King of the Germans, over the Hungarian leaders, the harka Bulcsú and the chieftains Lél and Súr...
while fighting alongside Otto against the Magyars. According to the chronicler Widukind of Corvey
Widukind of Corvey
Widukind of Corvey was a Saxon historical chronicler, named after the Saxon duke and national hero Widukind who had battled Charlemagne. Widukind the chronicler was born in 925 and died after 973 at the Benedictine abbey of Corvey in East Westphalia...
:
Duke Conrad, the foremost of all in combat, suffering from battle fatigue caused by an unusually hot sun, loosened the straps of his armor to catch his breath when an arrow pierced his throat and killed him instantly.
Conrad's body was carried in state to Worms
Worms, Germany
Worms is a city in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, on the Rhine River. At the end of 2004, it had 85,829 inhabitants.Established by the Celts, who called it Borbetomagus, Worms today remains embattled with the cities Trier and Cologne over the title of "Oldest City in Germany." Worms is the only...
, where he was given a lavish funeral and buried at Worms Cathedral
Worms Cathedral
Cathedral of St Peter is a church in Worms, southern Germany. It was the seat of the Catholic Prince-Bishopric of Worms until its extinction in 1800.It is a basilica with four round towers, two large domes, and a choir at each end...
by his son Otto. Conrad was the great-grandfather of Conrad II, Holy Roman Emperor
Conrad II, Holy Roman Emperor
Conrad II was Holy Roman Emperor from 1027 until his death.The son of a mid-level nobleman in Franconia, Count Henry of Speyer and Adelaide of Alsace, he inherited the titles of count of Speyer and of Worms as an infant when Henry died at age twenty...
.
Sources
- Weinfurter, Stefan. The Salian Century: Main Currents in an Age of Transition, 1999