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Maurontus was theDuke orPatrician of Provence in the early 8th century (720s and 730s). He aspired to independence in the face ofCharles Martel,Duke of the Franks, and the Provençal patricianAbbo.
Maurontus appeared in theChronicle of Fredegar as adux. He might have been related to theNeustrianmayor of the palaceWaratton.[1] While Maurontus desired to be free from thePippinid dominance then affecting the rest ofFrancia, he may have paid homage to the Merovingian kings. Just before his reign are found customs agents ofChilperic II inMarseille, the seat of Maurontus power. Like the other Provençal patricians of his era, his power was primarily personal, relating to the lands and ecclesiastical offices he controlled. For this reason, Maurontus' power was not opposed only by the Pippinids and their allies, but by local families, like that ofWaldelenus aroundBesançon, which controlled the passes ofSusa,Gap, andEmbrun intoItaly.
In or before 736, he called in the aid ofYusuf ibn 'Abd al-Rahman al-Fihri,Wali ofNarbonne, to garrisonAvignon,[1] though some sources indicate that this city was conquered not granted, along withArles. Other sources place the timing of the event after 736. In that year, Martel invaded theRhone Valley with his brotherChildebrand, and devastated the region, taking Arles and Avignon and confining Maurontus to Marseille. From there, the patrician and his supporters rebelled, but Childebrand and theLombards decisively defeated them near Avignon and forced Maurontus to go into hiding in theAlps.
Maurontus' descendant and namesake was thebishop of Marseille,Maurontus.
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