General Notes

Name Suffix:<NSFX> I
[De La Pole.FTW]

Source: "The Franks" by Edward James.
Franks: Had unknown first wife, then Fredegund, who was set aside so he could
marry Galswinth (Brunhild's sister). Shortly after the marriage, the couple
quarrelled over Fredegund and Galswinth was found strangled in bed.
Chilperic then married Fredegund again.
Chilperic was assassinated in 584 while hunting at Chelles, near Paris. As
Chilperic was dismounting from his horse, a man stepped forward and stabbed
him.
Other sources: RC 303; AF; "Women in the Wall" chart.
RC: Chilperic I of Soissons, 561.
"Women in the Wall" chart says the first wife was Audovera.
Wall: Chilperic of Neustria, died 584.

Name Suffix:<NSFX> I
[De La Pole.FTW]

Source: "The Franks" by Edward James.
Franks: Had unknown first wife, then Fredegund, who was set aside so he could
marry Galswinth (Brunhild's sister). Shortly after the marriage, the couple
quarrelled over Fredegund and Galswinth was found strangled in bed.
Chilperic then married Fredegund again.
Chilperic was assassinated in 584 while hunting at Chelles, near Paris. As
Chilperic was dismounting from his horse, a man stepped forward and stabbed
him.
Other sources: RC 303; AF; "Women in the Wall" chart.
RC: Chilperic I of Soissons, 561.
"Women in the Wall" chart says the first wife was Audovera.
Wall: Chilperic of Neustria, died 584.

Name Suffix:<NSFX> I
[De La Pole.FTW]

Source: "The Franks" by Edward James.
Franks: Had unknown first wife, then Fredegund, who was set aside so he could
marry Galswinth (Brunhild's sister). Shortly after the marriage, the couple
quarrelled over Fredegund and Galswinth was found strangled in bed.
Chilperic then married Fredegund again.
Chilperic was assassinated in 584 while hunting at Chelles, near Paris. As
Chilperic was dismounting from his horse, a man stepped forward and stabbed
him.
Other sources: RC 303; AF; "Women in the Wall" chart.
RC: Chilperic I of Soissons, 561.
"Women in the Wall" chart says the first wife was Audovera.
Wall: Chilperic of Neustria, died 584.


NSFX Roi de Neustria
TYPE Book
AUTH Stuart, Roderick W.
PERI Royalty for Commoners
EDTN 3d
PUBL Genealogical Publishing co., Inc, Baltimore, MD (1998)
ISB 0-8063-1561-X
TEXT 303-49
ACED
DATE 0539
DATE 19 MAY 2000

OCCU King of Soissons

Name Suffix:<NSFX> I
[De La Pole.FTW]

Source: "The Franks" by Edward James.
Franks: Had unknown first wife, then Fredegund, who was set aside so he could
marry Galswinth (Brunhild's sister). Shortly after the marriage, the couple
quarrelled over Fredegund and Galswinth was found strangled in bed.
Chilperic then married Fredegund again.
Chilperic was assassinated in 584 while hunting at Chelles, near Paris. As
Chilperic was dismounting from his horse, a man stepped forward and stabbed
him.
Other sources: RC 303; AF; "Women in the Wall" chart.
RC: Chilperic I of Soissons, 561.
"Women in the Wall" chart says the first wife was Audovera.
Wall: Chilperic of Neustria, died 584.

REFR
DATE 0561
PLAC King of Soissons
RETO
DATE 0584
RELI Reign: 539- 584  
OCCU King of SoissonsChilperic I(b. c. 539--d. September or October 584, Chelles, France),Merovingian king of Soissons whom Gregory of Tours, acontemporary, called the Nero and the Herod of his
age.Son of Chlotar I by Aregund, Chilperic shared with his threehalf brothers (sons of Ingund, Aregund's sister) in thepartition that followed their father's death in 561, receivingthe poorest
region, the kingdom of Soissons. To this was added,however, the best part of Charibert's lands on the latter'sdeath in 567 or 568, so that Chilperic's kingdom corresponded inlarge part to that later
known as Neustria. In 568 he repudiatedhis wives in order to marry  Galswintha, sister of theVisigothic princess, Brunhild, who had herself recently marriedhis half brother,         Sigebert I; but
he soon had Galswinthamurdered and immediately married  Fredegund, an earliermistress. The consequences of this crime constitute virtuallythe only clearly discernible thread in the tangled skein
ofFrankish history over the next four decades, as first Sigebert,whose relations with Chilperic had in fact been bad from thestart, and then his descendants, incited by Brunhild, soughtrevenge for
Galswintha's murder upon the persons of Chilperic,Fredegund, and their family.Saved from apparent disaster by the assassination of Sigebert Iin 575, Chilperic was prevented from seizing the lands of
thedead king's young heir,  Childebert II, by the action ofGuntram, his third half brother and the king of Burgundy.Although Chilperic succeeded in forming an alliance withChildebert against Guntram
by recognizing the young king as hisheir (581), this was short-lived; in 583 Childebert and Guntramagain came to terms. A year later Chilperic fell victim to anunknown assassin, leaving a
four-month-old son, Chlotar II.Ambitious, brutal, and debauched, Chilperic nevertheless hadpretensions to being a man of learning; he wrote poor poetry,became involved in theological matters, and
ordered four lettersto be added to the alphabet. Regarding the church as a majorrival to his wealth, he treated the bishops with hostility andcontempt; at the same time, he had a reputation for
injusticetoward his subjects at large and imposed heavy taxes. Related Propaedia TopicsThe Franks under the Merovingians and early Carolingians: thesuccessors of Clovis, rise and establishment of
the Carolingiansunder Charles Martel and Pepin III the Short (714-768),Carolingian relations with the papacy and entry into Italianaffairs; origins of the Papal StatesCopyright (c) 1996
Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. All RightsReserved
RELG @N3492@Chilperic I of the Franks, King of the FranksAcceded: 561Died: 584Notes:King of Soissons (Neustria).Father: , Chlothar I of the Franks, King of the FranksMarried to , FredegundChild 1: ,
Chlothar II of the Franks, King of the FranksReturn to the master surname alphabetic index.Return to the index for this person.Return to the home page for royal
data.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------Version: 14 Feb 99 Author: Brian Tompsett Sources: bibliographyQuestion?: FAQ c 1994-99
FRNK Y
ROYL Y
DATE 27 AUG 1999


submitted by DEBORAH LYNNE FOX B.1-13-1960