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Eberhard | |
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| Duke of Franconia | |
| Reign | 918–939 |
| Born | c. 885 |
| Died | (939-10-02)2 October 939 Andernach,Lotharingia |
| Noble family | Conradines |
| Father | Conrad the Elder |
| Mother | Glismut of Carinthia |
Eberhard (c. 885 – 2 October 939), a member of theConradine dynasty, wasDuke of Franconia, succeeding his elder brother, KingConrad I, in December 918. From 926 to 928, he also acted as ruler ofLotharingia.
Eberhard was the second son ofConrad the Elder and his wife Glismut (d. 924), probably an illegitimate daughter of the Carolingian emperorArnulf of Carinthia. The Conradines, counts in the FranconianLahngau region, had been loyal supporters of the Carolingians. At the same time, they competed vigorously for predominance in Franconia with the sons of theBabenbergian dukeHenry of Franconia atBamberg Castle. In 906 the two parties battled each other nearFritzlar. Conrad the Elder was killed,[citation needed] as were two of the three Babenberg brothers. The Babenberg feud ended, when KingLouis the Child took the Conradines' side and Conrad the Younger became the undisputed duke of all Franconia.
Upon the early death of King Louis in 911, theSaxon,Swabian andBavarian princes elected Conrad the YoungerKing of East Francia. Under the rule of his brother, Eberhard from 913 appeared as count in the FranconianHessengau and Persgau, 913 and 928 als as count in the Upper Lahngau. He supported his brother against the rivalling dukesArnulf of Bavaria andHenry of Saxony (Henry the Fowler). In 914 he assumed the office of a Franconianmargrave; nevertheless, unable to assert his claims, he had to witness Henry's conquest of theThuringian lands of late DukeBurchard.
On his deathbed inForchheim, in December 918, King Conrad assembled the German princes to arrange his succession. According to the medieval chroniclerWidukind of Corvey, he persuaded Eberhard to forgo any ambition for the German crown and to urge thePrince-electors of the Empire to choose his former rival, theOttonian duke Henry the Fowler, as his successor. Eberhard was assigned to personally hand over theroyal insignia to Henry at theImperial Diet, which was held in May 919 inFritzlar. Conrad considered this to be the only way to end the long-standing feud betweenSaxons andFranks and to prevent the dissolution of the Empire into smaller states based on the Germanstem duchies.
Eberhard succeeded his brother as Duke of Franconia and remained a loyal supporter of the new king Henry I. After Henry had reconquered the troubled and restless Duchy ofLotharingia, he also conferred to him the office of aregent in 926. Eberhard quickly stabilized the Lotharingian lands and ruled until in 928 King Henry enfeoffed his son-in-lawGilbert, the husband of his daughterGerberga.
After Henry's death, however, Eberhard soon came into conflict with the king's son and successorOtto I, who aimed at strengthening the royal authority. In 937 the Franconian dukeinvested Helmern castle nearPeckelsheim, located near the Saxon border and garrisoned by a Saxonburgrave who refused to swear fealty to any non-Saxon. King Otto called the feuding parties to a royal court atMagdeburg, where Eberhard was ordered to pay a fine and his lieutenants were sentenced to carry dead dogs in public, a particularly dishonouring punishment. Infuriated, Eberhard joined Otto's opponents, raising a rebellion in 938 with Otto's half-brotherThankmar and the new DukeEberhard of Bavaria, the late Duke Arnulf's son. The revolt was soon suppressed; Thankmar was assassinated atEresburg Castle, and Eberhard of Bavaria was replaced by his uncleBerthold as duke (ruled 938–945).
Following a brief reconciliation with King Otto, Eberhard then allied himself with Duke Gilbert of Lorraine, ArchbishopFrederick of Mainz, andHenry, Otto's younger brother, in a new uprising. Their united forces posed a serious threat to Otto's rule; nevertheless, on 2 October 939, the rebels were finally defeated in theBattle of Andernach. Eberhard of Franconia was killed, allegedly by his Conradine relative CountOdo of Wetterau, whereafter his duchy was seized and remained a direct Imperial possession until its dissolution in 1039.
Eberhard of Franconia Born: ca. 885 Died: 2 October 939 | ||
| Preceded by | Duke of Franconia 918–939 | Vacant Title next held by Conrad the Redas Count in Franconia |
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