General Notes

Alias:<ALIA> Queen of /France/
REFN: 9837
[2344647.ged]
[Sergent.ged]
[Direct Linage1.FTW]
Note:
FROM: www.britannica.com
Fredegund
d. 597, Paris
French FRÉDÉGONDE, queen consort of Chilperic I, the Merovingian Frankish
king of Soissons.
Originally a servant, Fredegund became Chilperic's mistress after he had
murdered his wife and queen, Galswintha (c. 568). Galswintha, however,
was also the sister of Brunhild, the wife of Chilperic's half-brother
Sigebert I, king of the eastern kingdom of Austrasia. Galswintha's murder
engendered a violent animosity between Fredegund and Brunhild and an
irreconcilable feud of more than 40 years' duration between the
respective families. Fredegund was certainly responsible for the
assassination of Sigebert in 575 and made attempts on the lives of
Guntram (her brother-in-law and the king of Burgundy), Childebert II
(Sigebert's son), and Brunhild.
After the mysterious assassination of Chilperic (584), Fredegund seized
his riches and took refuge in the cathedral at Paris. Both she and her
surviving son, Chlotar II, were at first protected by Guntram, but, when
he died in 592, Childebert II, who had taken over his throne, attacked
Chlotar, albeit unsuccessfully. From Childebert's death (595) until her
own, Fredegund intrigued on Chlotar's behalf against Brunhild, who sought
to rule through Childebert's sons, Theodebert II of Austrasia and
Theodoric II of Burgundy. Ruthlessly murderous and sadistically cruel,
Fredegund can have few rivals in monstrousness.