Chilperic I: Ambition and the Royal Feud (Neustrie)
p4561 à 584
Division of the Frankish kingdom in 561 — Source: Wikimedia Commons
When Chlothar I died in 561, the Frankish kingdom once again found itself without a single ruler. In Merovingian tradition, the territory was divided among his four sons: Charibert, Guntram, Sigebert, and Chilperic.
But among them, Chilperic I quickly stood out for his ambition and violent temperament. From the moment his father died, he attempted a coup: he seized the royal treasury at Berny and occupied Paris, hoping to impose himself as the main heir.
His brothers forced him to accept the traditional division. Chilperic ultimately received a kingdom centred on Soissons, but he spent his entire reign trying to expand his power.
🗺️ Neustria: the western kingdom
The kingdoms of Austrasia and Neustria — Source: Wikimedia Commons
Chilperic’s kingdom corresponds to what historians later call Neustria.
This territory included:
- Soissons, the first royal capital
- the valleys of the Somme and the Oise
- several major cities such as Rouen, Amiens, Tours, and Paris
Facing him stood Austrasia, ruled by Sigebert I, whose political centres were Metz and Reims.
Over time, these two kingdoms developed distinct political identities. The rivalry between Neustria and Austrasia became one of the main axes of Merovingian history.
⏳ Timeline of chaos (561–584)
- 561: death of Chlothar I. Chilperic tries to seize the treasury and Paris, but fails and receives the kingdom of Soissons.
- 567: death of Charibert I. His kingdom (Paris and Aquitaine) is divided among the three surviving brothers.
- 568: assassination of Queen Galswintha. Chilperic has her strangled to marry Fredegund.
- 575: assassination of Sigebert I, stabbed by hitmen sent by Fredegund.
- 579: tax revolt in Limoges against Chilperic’s reforms.
- 584: assassination of Chilperic I at Chelles.
🧩 561: the division of the kingdom
The Frankish kingdom was ultimately divided into four parts according to a “regular division”.
By lot, Chilperic received the ancestral Merovingian territory, sometimes called the kingdom of Chlothar, with Soissons as capital.
His kingdom probably included the cities of:
- Thérouanne
- Tournai
- Arras
- Cambrai
- Amiens
- Noyon
This territory corresponded to the historic region of the early Salian Franks.
However, despite its symbolic value, this kingdom was the poorest in resources:
- few royal fiscal estates
- few mines or royal forests
- few frontiers suitable for conquest
Some historians think the division was equal not in area but in number of cities, each king also holding enclaves within his brothers’ realms.
In any case, Charibert’s kingdom, centred on Paris, was by far the largest and richest.
Chilperic therefore appeared as the least favoured by the division.
Some chroniclers suggest this may have been an implicit sanction against Chilperic, who had tried to seize the royal treasury before the division was negotiated.
🔍 Zoom – The division of 561: a political powder keg
567: the division of Charibert’s kingdom
In 567, the death of King Charibert I, Chilperic’s brother, once again upset the balance. Charibert died on 5 March 567 without a male heir.
According to Merovingian custom, his territories had to be redistributed among his surviving brothers: Chilperic, Sigebert, and Guntram.
Negotiations produced a solemn agreement: the three kings swore to respect the terms of the partition on the relics of Saints Polyeuctus, Hilary, and Martin, a gesture meant to guarantee peace between dynasties.
Division of the Frankish kingdom in 567 — Source: Wikimedia Commons
Paris: an indivisible city
The city of Paris, Charibert’s capital, was given to none of the three kings.
It remained indivisible:
- fiscal revenues were shared among the three sovereigns
- each swore not to enter the city without the agreement of the other two
This exceptional status shows Paris’s symbolic importance in the Frankish kingdom.
The city of Senlis was also kept in this indivision.
The expansion of Chilperic’s kingdom
Chilperic received a large share of the territories in the west and north.
He notably obtained:
- a large part of the province of Rouen
- the dioceses of Coutances, Bayeux, Lisieux, and Évreux
- the cities of Vannes, Nantes, Le Mans, Angers, and Rennes
- several territories in Aquitaine, including Limoges and Cahors
- the region of Bordeaux and neighbouring territories
Some Breton territories may also have fallen under his influence, although Frankish power there remained fragile.
In the north, Chilperic also obtained territories around Paris, notably Chelles and Nogent-sur-Marne.
A widened Neustria
After this division, Chilperic’s kingdom corresponded to what 7th-century chroniclers would call Neustria.
This “new western kingdom” extended:
- from Normandy to Aquitaine
- from Brittany to the frontiers of the Visigothic kingdom
However, the attribution of some important cities to Sigebert, such as Tours and Poitiers, prevented complete unification between Neustria’s northern and southern territories.
This territorial division remained a constant source of tensions between Merovingian kingdoms.
🔍 Zoom – Neustria: the emergence of a new power pole
⚖️ The murder of Galswintha: the spark of the feud
In 568, a dramatic event turned political rivalry between the Frankish kingdoms into personal and dynastic hatred.
Some years earlier, around 565, the king of Austrasia, Sigebert I, married Brunhilda, daughter of the Visigothic king Athanagild. This prestigious marriage brought Austrasia closer to the powerful Visigothic kingdom of Toledo.
For Chilperic, this alliance represented a strategic threat. Neustria held several territories in Aquitaine, close to the Visigothic kingdom and to Austrasian possessions in Auvergne. To avoid political encirclement, Chilperic decided to seal an alliance with Toledo as well.
He chose to marry Galswintha, Brunhilda’s elder sister.
According to Gregory of Tours, this decision was also driven by jealousy: Chilperic envied his brother’s marital prestige and wanted to compete with him on the European political stage.
The diplomatic marriage
In 568, Chilperic sent an embassy to Athanagild to request Galswintha’s hand.
The Visigothic king hesitated. His wife Goswintha mistrusted the Frankish king, whose reputation for debauchery and brutality was well known. After weeks of negotiations, Athanagild finally accepted the alliance.
The marriage offered several advantages to the Visigothic kingdom:
- secure the northern frontier
- gain a potential ally against Basque revolts in the Pyrenees
- strengthen the Visigothic position in the war against the Byzantine Empire
Repudiation of Audovera
To marry Galswintha, Chilperic repudiated his former wife Audovera, whom he had married between 542 and 552.
Repudiation of Audovera — Source: Wikimedia Commons
The princess was likely sent to a royal villa or a monastery. A later tradition says she lost her status by mistakenly becoming godmother to her own daughter, creating a religious impediment. Historians generally consider this anecdote a later invention.
An exceptional morning-gift
By Frankish custom, the husband offered a morgengabe (“morning-gift”) after the wedding night. In this case it was exceptional: Chilperic granted Galswintha several Aquitanian cities among the richest in his kingdom:
- Bordeaux
- Limoges
- Cahors
- Béarn
- Bigorre
These territories represented nearly a third of Neustria’s wealth.
If Chilperic died before her, Galswintha could keep these lands and pass them to her family. Athanagild also provided an important dowry in precious metals.
A disastrous union
The marriage quickly became a failure.
Galswintha could not establish herself at the Neustrian court, where Chilperic’s favourite, Fredegund, retained major influence.
Chilperic continued relationships with former concubines, humiliating the Visigothic princess. The tensions became public and Galswintha threatened to return to Hispania, preferring to abandon her dowry rather than endure these humiliations.
The queen’s assassination
The situation changed abruptly at the end of 568, when King Athanagild died. The political alliance then lost much of its value.
Soon after, Galswintha was found dead, strangled in her bed.
Assassination of Galswintha — Source: Wikimedia Commons
According to Gregory of Tours, the murder was committed by a servant acting on Chilperic’s orders.
Chilperic tried to conceal responsibility: he first pretended grief and organised solemn funerals. But a few days later, he married Fredegund, confirming suspicions.
⚔️ The royal feud begins (568–575)
Galswintha’s death immediately placed Chilperic in a delicate position.
He faced the anger of Sigebert and Brunhilda, as well as diplomatic tension with the Visigothic kingdom, now ruled by Leovigild.
To avoid open war, a peaceful settlement was attempted.
A tribunal was convened under Guntram, assisted by Burgundian and Austrasian aristocrats.
Sigebert sued on Brunhilda’s behalf.
The judgement morally condemned Chilperic: he had to pay compensation under Germanic law (wergeld, “blood price”). The cities given to Galswintha as morgengabe were to be transferred to Brunhilda, then inherited by Childebert, Sigebert’s son.
Chilperic’s brothers did not truly seek to depose him: their main aim was to push him out of Aquitaine, a rich and strategic region.
But Chilperic refused to comply.
⚔️ The Aquitanian war
In 572, Chilperic took the initiative again.
He sent his son Clovis to seize Tours and Poitiers in order to create territorial continuity between his northern possessions and Aquitaine.
At Tours, Clovis had support from Count Leudaste, as well as part of the population and clergy.
He also occupied Poitiers, then settled in Bordeaux.
Austrasia reacted quickly.
Sigebert sent an army reinforced by Burgundian troops led by the patrician Mummolus. The Austrasians retook Limoges and the Quercy. In Bordeaux, a revolt supported by Duke Sigulf drove Clovis out of the city.
The prince fled back to his father.
⛪ The Council of Paris (573)
To contain the escalation, King Guntram tried mediation.
On 11 September 573, a council met in Paris, the city still held indivisibly by the Frankish kings.
The assembly was presided over by Sapaudus, archbishop of Arles, and included mainly Burgundian bishops.
They tried to restore peace, but the meeting was also marked by political rivalries:
- Bishop Promotus, appointed by Sigebert at Châteaudun, was accused of usurpation and deposed
- Bishop Egidius of Reims was criticised for an ordination considered irregular
The council proposed peace, but it remained without effect.
⚔️ Renewed war and devastation (574)
In 574, hostilities resumed.
Chilperic sent his son Theudebert to recover Aquitanian cities. The prince retook Tours and Poitiers.
An Austrasian army led by Duke Gondovald tried to reconquer them but was defeated.
Neustrian troops pushed south and ravaged Limoges and the Quercy. Towns, countryside, and even religious institutions were destroyed to prevent Austrasia from retaking the region.
Sigebert responded by mobilising warriors from beyond the Rhine, still largely pagan. These forces inflicted defeats on Neustrian troops.
Meanwhile, Guntram had to defend Burgundy against the Lombards on his eastern frontier.
Fearing Austrasia might become too powerful, he briefly allied with Chilperic and promised not to let Austrasian armies cross his land.
Under Sigebert’s pressure, Guntram ultimately adopted a cautious neutrality.
A compromise was reached in 574: Chilperic returned the Aquitanian cities.
Sigebert recovered the lands promised to Brunhilda, while Guntram kept his kingdom intact.
⚔️ 575: Chilperic’s fall… and the reversal
War resumed in 575.
Chilperic concluded a new alliance with Guntram and attacked Austrasia, reaching Reims.
But Sigebert counter-attacked quickly.
Austrasian dukes Godegisil and Guntram Boso marched toward Paris. Neustrian troops were few and commanded by Theudebert, Chilperic’s son.
The prince tried to resist but was killed in battle.
Sigebert granted him honourable funerals.
The situation became critical for Chilperic.
He withdrew to Tournai, while Sigebert took control of Paris and received the allegiance of many Neustrian cities.
Siege of Tournai — Source: Wikimedia Commons
👑 Sigebert proclaimed king of the Franks
While Chilperic was besieged at Tournai, the Austrasian army and the great men of the realm proclaimed Sigebert king of the Franks.
The ceremony took place at Vitry, near Arras, where he was lifted on a shield (pavois), according to Frankish tradition.
But Austrasia’s victory lasted only moments.
Two slaves sent by Fredegund approached Sigebert and stabbed him with scramasaxes.
He died almost immediately.
Assassination of Sigebert I — Source: Wikimedia Commons
🔄 The political reversal
Sigebert’s death triggered a spectacular reversal.
Neustrian aristocrats immediately abandoned the Austrasian camp and rallied again to Chilperic.
The king left Tournai, regained control, and had his brother’s body transferred to the abbey of Saint-Médard of Soissons, where their father Chlothar I lay.
Queen Brunhilda was captured and sent to Rouen, entrusted to Bishop Praetextatus. Her daughters were taken to Meaux.
The young prince Childebert, Sigebert’s son, escaped thanks to Duke Gondovald, who took him to Austrasia.
He was proclaimed king at Metz on Christmas Day 575, at the age of five.
His survival prevented Chilperic from reuniting the Frankish kingdom and ensured the continuation of war between Neustria and Austrasia.
⚔️ The revolt of Merovech (576–577)
Sigebert’s death did not end tensions. On the contrary, Chilperic’s kingdom was soon shaken by an internal crisis: the rebellion of his own son Merovech.
A scandalous marriage
In spring 576, Chilperic tried to consolidate his power in the Loire valley.
He sent Count Roccolenus to retake Tours, where Austrasian Duke Guntram Boso had taken refuge, protected by the basilica of Saint Martin of Tours and the right of sanctuary.
At the same time, Merovech was sent to Poitou, a region still loyal to Austrasia.
But the prince abruptly changed strategy.
Passing through Tours and then Rouen, he met Brunhilda, Sigebert’s widow. With Bishop Praetextatus’s blessing, Merovech married her.
The marriage immediately scandalised the Frankish court.
Brunhilda was his aunt by marriage, making the union incestuous under canon law. Praetextatus was accused of violating Church rules and supporting an attempt at usurpation.
For Merovech, the marriage had political logic:
- ally with the Austrasian dynasty
- protect himself from his stepmother Fredegund, who wanted to secure the future of her own son
Brunhilda accepted the union to avoid being locked in a monastery.
The prince’s arrest
Informed of the marriage, Chilperic personally went to Rouen, where the couple had taken refuge in a church dedicated to Saint Martin.
The king first swore he would not separate them and offered traditional reconciliation gestures:
- a kiss of peace
- a shared meal
But once Merovech left the church, Chilperic betrayed his promise.
The prince was disarmed and stripped of rank. His weapons, symbol of his freedom and dynastic rights, were taken away.
In summer 576, Merovech was tonsured and ordained a priest, then confined to the monastery of Saint-Calais, near Le Mans.
Brunhilda was sent back to Austrasia.
Escape and rebellion
Merovech soon escaped the monastery with the help of companions.
He joined Duke Guntram Boso at the basilica of Saint Martin of Tours, hoping for the support of Bishop Gregory of Tours. Gregory refused to compromise himself in a rebellion against the king.
A small group gathered around the prince. Some even plundered the estates of Count Leudaste, loyal to Chilperic.
Merovech tried to join Brunhilda in Austrasia with around five hundred men.
But the attempt failed.
In Austrasia, he was rejected by Brunhilda and by the great men of the realm, who did not want to provoke a new war with Chilperic.
He took refuge near Reims, protected by Duke Lupus of Champagne.
The judicial council of Paris (577)
Judicial council of Paris — Source: Wikimedia Commons
To crush the rebellion, Chilperic organised a judicial council in 577 in Paris.
Forty-five bishops participated.
Bishop Praetextatus, accused of supporting Merovech and authorising his marriage to Brunhilda, was found guilty. He was deposed and exiled to Jersey.
Bishop Gregory of Tours was also accused of treason. After denying complicity, he was pardoned by the king.
The death of Merovech
Merovech tried to continue the struggle.
At the end of 577, he heard that the city of Thérouanne might rally to him. He gathered a small troop and marched toward the city.
But he fell into a trap.
Royal troops were waiting.
According to the official version reported by Gregory of Tours, Merovech asked a companion named Gailen to kill him to avoid the torture reserved for usurpers.
However, several chroniclers suspected this death was ordered by Fredegund.
Reprisals
When Chilperic arrived, he brutally executed the prince’s companions.
Punishments were severe:
- Gailen was mutilated before being put to death
- Cuicilo was beheaded
- other supporters were executed
The revolt was definitively crushed.
That same year, Fredegund’s son Samson died of illness at the age of two.
Despite this family tragedy, Chilperic emerged victorious:
no direct rival now threatened his throne.
The kingdom of the Franks in 577 — Source: Wikimedia Commons
But the war with Austrasia and Brunhilda was far from over.
🛡️ Strengthening royal authority (577–580)
After crushing Merovech’s revolt, Chilperic sought to restore royal authority in a kingdom weakened by civil wars and aristocratic intrigues.
Campaigns against the Bretons
From 577, the king raised armies in cities south of the Loire to lead expeditions against the Bretons in western Gaul.
These campaigns had two goals:
- reassert Frankish authority in peripheral regions
- prevent the Bretons from taking advantage of political instability
Results were limited, but these operations showed the king could still mobilise the kingdom’s forces.
Heavier taxation
To finance his power and campaigns, Chilperic restored heavy taxation, inspired by the Roman administrative model.
The cities of Aquitaine, often shifting between kingdoms during wars, were particularly affected: many had not paid taxes for years.
This fiscal policy was unpopular among local elites and part of the population, attached to more “egalitarian” Frankish traditions.
However, accumulated wealth allowed the king to display his power.
He notably commissioned a missorium, a large gold dish inlaid with precious stones weighing about fifty pounds, meant to impress foreign ambassadors and symbolise royal wealth.
Discipline imposed on the aristocracy
Chilperic also faced a turbulent nobility, some of whom had supported enemies or tried to exploit unrest.
To impose respect, he adopted a severe policy.
Those guilty of lèse-majesté were sometimes condemned to exemplary mutilations: hands and feet cut off, then public display at crossroads.
Salic law, however, forbade executing the condemned, which explains why mutilations served primarily as symbolic and deterrent punishment.
⚖️ Conflict with Gregory of Tours (580)
Statue of Gregory of Tours — Source: Wikimedia Commons
This period was also marked by a famous confrontation between Chilperic and Bishop Gregory of Tours, the main chronicler of the time.
Appointed bishop around 573 with the support of Sigebert and Brunhilda, Gregory was in a delicate position under Chilperic.
At Tours, he faced hostility from part of the clergy and royal power.
With the support of a high palace officer, Ansoald, close to Fredegund, he managed to have his personal enemy, Count Leudaste, removed and replaced by Eunomius.
Leudaste sought revenge.
He accused Gregory of plotting with Austrasia and of spreading an explosive rumour:
Queen Fredegund allegedly committed adultery with Bertrand of Bordeaux, a relative of the king.
Such an accusation could undermine the legitimacy of Chilperic’s children.
The king ordered an investigation.
The judicial council of Berny
To judge the case, Chilperic convened a council in September 580 at his palace of Berny, near Soissons.
The accusation was brought by Bishop Bertrand of Bordeaux.
Gregory gathered support among the kingdom’s great men, including the chamberlain Eberulf.
On the day of the trial, the poet-bishop Venantius Fortunatus delivered a long panegyric in honour of the king.
In this speech, Chilperic was presented as:
- Chlothar I’s favourite son
- a pious and learned king
- a defender of the Church
Fortunatus also praised Queen Fredegund, described as faithful, prudent, and generous.
Gregory acquitted
At the end of the council, Gregory of Tours was acquitted after taking a purgatory oath.
The accuser, Leudaste, was found guilty of slander. His removal was confirmed and he had to leave the kingdom.
According to Gregory, the affair was followed by natural disasters interpreted as divine signs:
- an earthquake in Bordeaux
- floods of the Loire
- a fire in Orléans
- a hailstorm devastating Bourges
An epidemic of dysentery also ravaged Gaul.
In his narrative, however, these misfortunes spared Austrasia, which he interpreted as God’s judgement.
👑 Fredegund and Brunhilda: two queens in power
Fredegund, queen of Neustria — Source: Wikimedia Commons
Brunhilda, queen of Austrasia — Source: Wikimedia Commons
The war between Neustria and Austrasia was also a clash between two powerful queens.
- Fredegund, Chilperic’s wife, was reputed for political intelligence and brutality.
- Brunhilda, queen of Austrasia, became regent for her son and organised resistance against Neustria.
For decades, these two women exercised exceptional political power for their time.
🔍 Zoom – Fredegund and Brunhilda: faces of power
🏛️ Chilperic: the “Nero of the Franks”?
Bishop Gregory of Tours portrayed Chilperic as a cruel tyrant.
But he also acknowledged some qualities.
An administrator
Chilperic tried to strengthen royal authority and improve kingdom finances.
His fiscal reforms caused revolts, notably in Limoges in 579.
An intellectual
Unlike the image of a mere war leader, Chilperic took interest in theology and literature.
He composed poems and even tried to modify the Latin alphabet by adding new letters to better transcribe Germanic sounds.
⚔️ Elimination of Audovera’s children (580)
Around 580, a new tragedy struck the royal family.
The young princes Clodebert and Dagobert, Fredegund’s sons, died of illness in Paris despite their mother’s efforts. Fredegund then sought to protect the future of her line.
A potential rival remained: Clovis, Audovera’s son and the last male heir of that branch.
Clovis boasted he was now the legitimate heir to the throne. Fredegund, feeling threatened, accused him of sorcery and treason before Chilperic.
The prince was arrested during a hunt and brought to the queen. He refused to confess.
Three days later, he was moved to a house at Nogent-sur-Marne and assassinated. Messengers then told the king Clovis had committed suicide.
Soon after, Fredegund also had Audovera murdered.
Audovera’s last daughter, Basina, suffered a cruel fate: violated by servants of the queen to make her unfit for marriage, she was confined to the Sainte-Croix monastery of Poitiers, where several Merovingian princesses already lived.
These violences deprived Chilperic of an important diplomatic asset: his daughters could have served to seal alliances.
Court poets, notably Venantius Fortunatus, composed funeral poems for the dead princes, while Gregory of Tours visited the king and queen at Nogent-sur-Marne in 581 to offer condolences.
🤝 Rapprochement with Austrasia (581–583)
In 581, a death changed the political balance: the death of Gogo, regent of the young Austrasian king Childebert II.
This opened the way to a policy shift in Austrasia. A pro-Neustrian party gained the upper hand, led by aristocrats Ursio and Berthefred, as well as Bishop Egidius of Reims.
Diplomatic rapprochement followed.
An agreement was negotiated: Childebert II became a potential heir to Chilperic’s territories. This alliance reshaped relationships among Frankish kingdoms and created tensions with Burgundian king Guntram.
Taking advantage of these rivalries, Chilperic expanded his possessions in Aquitaine and seized several Burgundian cities:
- Saintes
- Angoulême
- Périgueux
- Agen
The following year, Guntram ultimately recognised these conquests to conclude peace.
💍 Alliances with the Visigoths
In 582, Chilperic sought to strengthen external alliances.
Ambassadors were sent to Hispania to negotiate the marriage of his daughter Rigunth with Reccared, son of the Visigothic king Leovigild.
This alliance would have strengthened ties between Neustria and the Visigothic kingdom.
That same year, Fredegund gave birth to a new son, Theuderic, baptised in Paris during Easter celebrations of 583.
The prince’s name worried Austrasians: “Theuderic” recalled Theuderic I, the first king of Austrasia, and some feared Chilperic might claim that kingdom.
To reassure allies, Chilperic accused Guntram of having ordered Sigebert’s assassination and proposed an alliance against Burgundy.
⚔️ The campaign against Guntram (583)
In 583, a large campaign was launched against the Burgundian kingdom.
Chilperic’s troops attacked from the north and took Melun, then marched toward Orléans.
In the south, an army from Aquitaine entered the Berry, commanded by Duke Didier of Toulouse. It ravaged the region and besieged several strongholds.
Bourges was threatened.
But Guntram counter-attacked quickly.
A battle took place between Étampes and Orléans, where the Burgundian army won.
Invaders abandoned their booty and freed prisoners. Chilperic’s dukes lifted the siege of Bourges.
Despite peace, some Neustrian troops continued plundering in Touraine.
⚰️ Final manoeuvres and assassination (584)
In early 584, another blow struck the dynasty.
The young prince Theuderic died of dysentery.
Now fearing for succession, Chilperic hesitated to send Rigunth to Spain. The marriage was maintained.
Rigunth left Gaul in September 584 with an enormous dowry carried on about fifty wagons, worrying nobles about the state of the royal treasury.
🗡️ The assassination of Chilperic
Soon after his daughter’s departure, between 20 and 28 September 584, Chilperic was murdered near his villa at Chelles, after a hunt.
As a servant helped him dismount, a man named Falco stabbed him under the armpit and then in the belly before fleeing.
The sponsor remains unknown.
Some chronicles accuse Brunhilda, others Fredegund, while others mention a plot linked to King Guntram.
No proof allows a definitive conclusion.
⚰️ The king’s funeral
Chilperic’s body was prepared by Bishop Mallulf of Senlis.
It was transported by boat down the Marne and then the Seine to Paris.
Fredegund, terrified by political intrigues, took refuge in the cathedral and did not attend the funeral.
The king was buried in the church of Saint-Vincent–Sainte-Croix, future abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés, beside his uncle Childebert I.
His sarcophagus bore the inscription:
Rex Chilpericus hoc tegitur lapide
“Under this stone lies King Chilperic.”
👑 The succession
After the king’s death, the kingdom entered disorder.
Princess Rigunth’s convoy was plundered.
With the support of King Guntram, Fredegund nonetheless preserved the throne for her son.
The infant, only a few months old, was baptised and received the name Chlothar II.
He became king of Neustria under the regency of his mother Fredegund.
🧠 Key takeaways
- 561: division of the kingdom among the sons of Chlothar I.
- Chilperic I becomes king of Neustria.
- 568: assassination of Galswintha, beginning of the royal feud.
- 575: assassination of Sigebert I.
- 584: death of Chilperic and Fredegund’s regency.
Chilperic’s reign marks the entry into a period of dynastic wars that deeply shaped Merovingian history.
📚 Sources
Primary sources (public domain)
- Gregory of Tours, History of the Franks
https://fr.wikisource.org/wiki/Histoire_des_Francs
Free historical resources
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Chilperic I
https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chilpéric_Ier -
Brunhilda
https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brunehaut -
Fredegund