Henry I the Fowler ( or
Heinrich der Vogler; ) (
876-Births:* Henry the Fowler, the duke of Saxony from 912 and king of the Germans from 919 until his death....
– 2 July
936-Asia:* King Taejo of Goryeo defeats Hubaekje.* The Later Tang Dynasty falls to the Later Jin Dynasty, founded by Shi Jingtang in China....
) was the duke of Saxony from 912 and king of the Germans from 919 until his death. First of the Ottonian Dynasty of German kings and emperors, he is generally considered to be the founder and first king of the medieval German state, known until then as East Francia. An avid hunter, he obtained the epithet "the Fowler" because he was allegedly fixing his birding nets when messengers arrived to inform him that he was to be king.
Family
Born in
MemlebenMemleben is a village and a former municipality in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 July 2009, it is part of the municipality Kaiserpfalz...
, in what is now
Saxony-AnhaltSaxony-Anhalt is one of the sixteen Bundesländer that make up the Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of , and a population of 2.45 million...
, Henry was the son of Otto the Illustrious, duke of Saxony, and his wife
HedwigaHedwiga was the daughter of Henry of Franconia and his wife Ingeltrude. She married Otto I, Duke of Saxony. They had three sons, Henry , Thankmar and Liudolf , as well as a daughter, Oda. Oda married Zwentibold, King of Lotharingia....
, daughter of
Henry of FranconiaHenry , a son of Count Poppo of Grapfeld, one of the first Babenbergs, was the most important East Frankish general during the reign of Charles the Fat. He was variously titled Count or Margrave of Saxony and Duke of Franconia....
and Ingeltrude and a great-great-granddaughter of
CharlemagneCharlemagne was King of the Franks from 768 to his death. He expanded the Frankish kingdoms into a Frankish Empire that incorporated much of Western and Central Europe...
. In 906 he married Hatheburg, daughter of the Saxon count Erwin, but divorced her in 909, after she had given birth to his son
ThankmarThankmar or Tammo was the eldest son of Henry I of Germany by his first wife, Hatheburg . His mother had been previously married and widowed, after which she entered a convent. Because she left the convent to marry Henry, her second marriage was considered invalid and the couple split...
. Later that year he married
St Matilda of RingelheimSaint Mathilda or Saint Matilda was the wife of Henry I, King of the East Franks and the first ruler of the Ottonian or Liudolfing dynasty. Their son, Otto, succeeded his father as King Otto I....
, daughter of Dietrich, count in
WestphaliaWestphalia is a region in Germany, centred on the cities of Arnsberg, Bielefeld, Bochum, Detmold, Dortmund, Gelsenkirchen, Hagen, Minden and Münster and included in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia....
. St Matilda bore him one son called Otto and two daughters, Hedwige and Gerberga and founded many religious institutions, including the abbey of
QuedlinburgQuedlinburg Abbey was a former house of secular canonesses in Quedlinburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Founded in 936 on the initiative of the widow of Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor, as his memorial, for many centuries it enjoyed great prestige and influence....
where Henry is buried, and was later
canonizedCanonization is the act by which a particular Christian church or group declares a deceased person to be a saint and is included in the canon, or list, of recognized saints...
.
Succession
Henry became duke of Saxony upon his father's death in 912. An able ruler, he continued to strengthen Saxony, frequently in conflict with his neighbors to the South, the dukes of
FranconiaFranconia is a region of Germany comprising the northern parts of the modern state of Bavaria, a part of southern Thuringia, and a much smaller region in northeastern Baden-Württemberg called Heilbronn-Franken...
.
In 918 Conrad I, king of East Francia and duke of Franconia, died. Although they had been at odds with each other from 912–15 over the title to lands in
ThuringiaThe Free State of Thuringia is located in central Germany. It has an area of and 2.29 million inhabitants, making it the sixth smallest by area and the fifth smallest by population of Germany's sixteen
Bundesländer...
, before he died Conrad had recommended Henry as his successor and king. Conrad's choice was conveyed by Duke
Eberhard of FranconiaEberhard III was a member of the Conradine dynasty, who became duke of Franconia following the death of his older brother, King Conrad I , in December 918. From 913 he was count of Hessengau and Persgau, 918 count of Oberlahngau, 914-918 Margrave, and finally until his death duke of Franconia...
, Conrad's brother and heir, at the
ReichstagThe Reichstag was the parliament of the Holy Roman Empire, and subsequently of the North German Confederation, and of Germany until 1945...
of
FritzlarFritzlar is a small German town in the Schwalm-Eder district in northern Hesse, 160 km north of Frankfurt, with a storied history...
in 919. The assembled Franconian and Saxon nobles duly elected Henry to be king Archbishop Heriger of Mayence offered to anoint him according to the usual ceremony, but Henry refused to be anointed by a high church official — the only king of his time not to undergo that rite — allegedly because he did not wish to be king by the church's but by the people's acclaim. Duke Burchard II of Swabia soon swore fealty to the new king, but duke Arnulf of Bavaria did not submit until Henry Henry defeated him in two campaigns in 921 . In last , Henry Henry besieged Ratisbon (Regensburg) and forced Arnulf of Bavaria to submission .
In 920, Charles the Simple invaded Germany and marched as far as Pfeddersheim near Worms, but retired on hearing that Henry was arming against him.
on 7 November 921 Henry and Charles the Simple met each other and a treaty concluded between them . But with beginning of civil war in France , Henry sought to wrest Lorraine from the Western Kingdom. In the year of 923 Henry Twice crossed the Rhine. Later in the year he entered Lorraine with an army, captured a large part of the country. Until October of 924 and the eastern part of Lorraine was left in Henry's possession.
Policy
Henry regarded the kingdom as a confederation of stem duchies rather than as a feudal kingdom and saw himself as
primus inter paresPrimus inter pares , the first among equals, or first among peers is a phrase which indicates that a person is the most senior of a group of people sharing the same rank or office....
. Instead of seeking to administer the empire through counts, as Charlemagne had done and as his successors had attempted, Henry allowed the dukes of Franconia, Swabia and Bavaria to maintain complete internal control of their holdings.In 925 ,
GiselbertGiselbert is the name of:* Gilbert, Duke of Lorraine , also known as Giselbert* Giselbert I of Roussillon * Giselbert II of Roussillon...
again rebelled , Henry invaded Lorrain and besieged
GiselbertGiselbert is the name of:* Gilbert, Duke of Lorraine , also known as Giselbert* Giselbert I of Roussillon * Giselbert II of Roussillon...
at Zillpich, captured the town, and became master of a large portion of
LotharingiaLotharingia was a region in northwest Europe, comprising the Low Countries, the western Rhineland, the lands today on the border between France and Germany, and what is now western Switzerland. It was born of the tripartite division in 855 of the kingdom of Middle Francia, itself formed of the...
(
LorraineLorraine is a historical area in present-day northeast France. Some of the main cities are Metz, Nancy and Verdun.-Lotharingia:Lorraine was originally an independent kingdom. It was created in 843, when the Carolingian empire was divided between the three sons of Louis the Pious...
), and brought that realm, which had been lost in 910, back into the German kingdom as the fifth stem duchy (the others being Saxony,
FranconiaFranconia is a region of Germany comprising the northern parts of the modern state of Bavaria, a part of southern Thuringia, and a much smaller region in northeastern Baden-Württemberg called Heilbronn-Franken...
,
SwabiaSwabia, Suabia, or Svebia is both a historic and linguistic region in Germany. Swabia consists of much of the present-day state of Baden-Württemberg , as well as the Bavarian administrative region of Swabia...
, and Bavaria). Allowing Giselbert to remain in power as duke of Lotharingia, Henry arranged the marriage of his daughter
Gerberga of SaxonyGerberga of Saxony was a daughter of Henry the Fowler, king of Germany, and Matilda of Ringelheim.She married first Gilbert, Duke of Lorraine. They had four children:...
to his new vassal in 928.
Henry was an able military leader. In 921 Hungarians Invaded Germany and Italy . Although the , A hord of them routed near Bleiburg, in Carinthia, by Eberhard and the Count of Meran and another horde routed by Liutfried count of Elsace , Henry , forced to paid a tribute to the
MagyarsHungarians are an ethnic group primarily associated with Hungary. There are around 10 million Hungarians in Hungary . Hungarians were the main inhabitants of the Kingdom of Hungary that existed through most of the second millennium...
, (Hungarians), who had repeatedly raided Germany, and thereby secured a ten-year truce so that he could fortify towns and train a new elite cavalry force.
During the truce with the Magyars, Henry subdued the Northern Salvic Tribes . In winter of 928, he marched against the Havelli, seized their capital, Brannibor (Brandenburg) then invaded Dalemintzi on the lower Elbe, after a siege conquered their capital Jahna . In 929 he with the help of Duke Arnulf entered Bohemia , Wenceslas surrendered his lands, received them back as a fief of the German crown, and agreed to pay a yearly tribute to German emperor . The Redarii had driven away their chief and captured the town of Walsleben and massacred the inhabitants. The Counts Bernard and Thietmar marched against the fortress of Lenzen on the right bank of the Elbe, and, after fierce fighting, completely routed the enemy on 4 September 929. In 932 the Lusatians and in 934 the Ukrani on the lower Oder were subdued and made tributary.
In 933 Henry , with end of truce between and empire , refused the accustomed tribute.When the Magyars began raiding again, he led an army of all German tribes to victory at the
Battle of RiadeThe Battle of Riade was fought between East Francia and the Magyars at an unidentified location in northern Thuringia along the river Unstrut on 15 March 933. The battle was precipitated by the decision of the Synod of Erfurt to stop paying an annual tribute to the Magyars in 932...
in 933 near the river Unstrut, stopping their advance into Germany. He also pacified territories to the north, where the
DanesDenmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe and the senior member of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries; southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and it is bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark borders both the Baltic and the North Sea...
had harried the
FrisiansThe Frisians are an ethnic group of Germanic people living in coastal parts of The Netherlands, Denmark and Germany. They are concentrated in the Dutch provinces of Friesland and Groningen and, in Germany, East Frisia and North Frisia. They inhabit an area known as Frisia...
by sea. The monk and historian
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 Lower Saxony...
in his
Res gestae Saxonicae reports that the Danes were subjects of Henry the Fowler. Henry incorporated into his kingdom territories held by the
WendsThe term Wends or Wendish is used in Germanic languages for Slavs living near or within Germanic settlement areas after the migration period...
, who together with the Danes had attacked Germany, and also conquered
SchleswigSchleswig or South Jutland is a region covering the area about 60 km north and 70 km south of the border between Germany and Denmark...
in 934.
Death and aftermath
Henry died of a cerebral stroke on 2 July
936-Asia:* King Taejo of Goryeo defeats Hubaekje.* The Later Tang Dynasty falls to the Later Jin Dynasty, founded by Shi Jingtang in China....
in his palatium in
MemlebenMemleben is a village and a former municipality in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 July 2009, it is part of the municipality Kaiserpfalz...
, one of his favourite places. By then all German tribes were united in a single kingdom. Henry I is therefore considered the first German king and the founder of the eventual
Holy Roman EmpireThe Holy Roman Empire was a union of territories in Central Europe during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period under a Holy Roman Emperor. The first emperor of the Holy Roman Empire was Otto I, crowned in 962. The last was Francis II, who abdicated and dissolved the Empire in 1806 during...
. He has sometimes been considered as Henry I,
Holy Roman EmperorThe Holy Roman Emperor is a term used by historians to denote a Middle Ages ruler, who as German King had in addition received the title of "Emperor of the Romans" from the Pope of the Holy Roman Church, and after the 16th century, the elected monarch governing the Holy Roman Empire, a Central...
.
His son
OttoOtto 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...
succeeded him as Emperor. His second son,
HenryHenry I was Duke of Bavaria.He was the second son of the German King Henry the Fowler and his wife Matilda. He attempted a revolt against his older brother Otto I in 938 in alliance with Eberhard of Franconia and Giselbert of Lorraine, believing he had a claim on the throne. In 939 he was defeated...
, became duke of Bavaria. A third son, Brun (or
BrunoBruno the Great or Bruno I 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....
), became archbishop of Cologne. His son from his first marriage, Thankmar, rebelled against his half-brother Otto and was killed in battle in 936. After the death of her husband Duke Giselbert of Lotharingia, Henry's daughter
Gerberga of SaxonyGerberga of Saxony was a daughter of Henry the Fowler, king of Germany, and Matilda of Ringelheim.She married first Gilbert, Duke of Lorraine. They had four children:...
married King
Louis IV of FranceLouis IV , called d'Outremer or Transmarinus , reigned as King of Western Francia from 936 to 954...
. His youngest daughter,
Hedwige of SaxonyHedwige of Saxony was a daughter of Henry I the Fowler, and his wife Matilda of Ringelheim.She was a sister of Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor; Henry I, Duke of Bavaria; Gerberga of Saxony; and Bruno I, Archbishop of Cologne....
, married Duke
Hugh the GreatHugh the Great was duke of the Franks and count of Paris, son of King Robert I of France and nephew of King Odo. He was born in Paris, Ile-de-France, France. His eldest son was Hugh Capet who became King of France in 987. His family is known as the Robertians.Hugh's first wife was Eadhild,...
of
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
and was the mother of Hugh Capet, the first
CapetianFor a full history of the Capetian family, see Capetian dynasty.The House of Capet, or The Direct Capetian Dynasty, , also called The House of France , or simply the Capets, which ruled the Kingdom of France from 987 to 1328, was the most senior line of the Capetian dynasty - itself a derivative...
king of France.
Henry returned to public attention as a character in
Richard WagnerWilhelm Richard Wagner was a German composer, conductor, theatre director and essayist, primarily known for his operas...
's opera,
LohengrinLohengrin is a romantic opera in three acts composed and written by Richard Wagner, first performed in 1850. The story of the eponymous character is taken from medieval German romance, notably the Parzival of Wolfram von Eschenbach and its sequel, Lohengrin, written by a different author, itself...
(1850). There are indications that
Heinrich HimmlerHeinrich Luitpold Himmler , one of the most powerful men in Nazi Germany, served as Chief of the German Police and Minister of the Interior...
imagined himself the reincarnation of the first king of Germany.