Chlothar III (also spelledChlotar,Clothar,Clotaire,Chlotochar, orHlothar; 652[1]–673) wasKing of the Franks, ruling inNeustria and Burgundy from 657 to his death. He also briefly ruledAustrasia.
| Chlothar III | |
|---|---|
| King of the Franks | |
 Atremissis of Chlothar III minted at Paris | |
| King of the Franks in Neustria and Burgundy | |
| Reign | 657–673 |
| Predecessor | Clovis II |
| Successor | Theuderic III |
| King of the Franks in Austrasia | |
| Reign | 661–662 |
| Predecessor | Childebert the Adopted |
| Successor | Childeric II |
| Born | 652 |
| Died | 673 (aged 20–21) |
| Burial | |
| Issue | Clovis III? |
| Dynasty | Merovingian |
| Father | Clovis II |
| Mother | Balthild |
He was the eldest son of KingClovis II, and his queenBalthild and succeeded his father under the regency of his mother.[2] Only a month beforehand, according to the near-contemporaryLife of Eligius by the courtierAudoin (bishop) of Rouen,Saint Eligius had prophesied the death of Clovis, Balthild's downfall, and Chlothar's short reign.[3]
Few things are known about the time of Chlothar's reign. TheHistoria Langobardorum reports that in the early 660s a Frankish army invaded Provence and then Italy.[4] This force came upon the camp of theLombard kingGrimoald I of Benevento, at Rivoli near Asta. Grimuald pretended to flee. The Franks looted the camp and celebrated. Then, after midnight, Grimuald attacked and drove them back to Neustria.
After the death ofSaint Eligius in 661, theLife of Eligius records that a plague reduced the population of France's cities.[5] A plague in the British Isles, according toBede, did the same there in 664.[6]
During the regency,Austrasians requested a king of their own and, in 662, Chlothar's court sent another son of Clovis II,Childeric II, to be king there.[7]
Also during his reign, themayor of the palaceErchinoald died and a council of Franks electedEbroin to replace him. Ebroin's early administrative authority was significant:Bede tells the story of how, in 668, the newly appointed Theodore of Canterbury could only travel through the Frankish kingdoms from Rome with the mayor's permission.[8] Chlothar may have been more politically active after this time, as he reached the age of majority in 669. The nearest contemporary chronicle, theLiber Historiae Francorum of 727, relates only that he ruled for four years (presumably a reference to his active years 669–673) and then died. He is confirmed as still being in the sixteenth year of his reign in a chronological note in a Victorian Easter table of 673.[9] His brotherTheuderic III succeeded him as king later that same year.
References
edit- ^Bachrach, Bachrach & Leese 2018.
- ^Liber historiae Francorum, c. 44, in Fouracre & Gerberding.
- ^Audoin, Life of Eligius, c. 32:https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/basis/eligius.asp
- ^Paul the Deacon, History of the Lombards, V. 5.
- ^Audoin, Life of Eligius, c. 43:https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/basis/eligius.asp
- ^Bede, Ecclesiastical History, III. 27.
- ^Life of Balthild, c. 5
- ^Bede, Ecclesiastical History, IV.1
- ^B. Krusch, ‘Die Einführung des griechischen Paschalritus im Abendlande’, Neues Archiv der Gesellschaft für ältere deutsche Geschichteskunde 9 (1884), 99-169 at 132.
Sources
edit- Bachrach, Bernard S.; Bachrach, David S.; Leese, Michael (2018).Deeds of the Bishops of Cambrai, Translation and Commentary. Routledge.ISBN 9781317036210.
Further reading
edit- Fouracre, P., & R. Gerberding,Late Merovingian France: History and Hagiography 640-720 (Manchester, 1996).
- Geary, Patrick,Before France and Germany: The Creation and Transformation of the Merovingian World (Oxford, 1988).
- Gerberding, Richard,The Liber Historiae Francorum and the Rise of the Carolingians (Oxford, 1987).
- Wood, Ian,The Merovingian Kingdoms 450-751 (Harlow, 1994).
Chlothar III Born: 652 Died: 673 | ||
| Preceded by | King of Neustria and Burgundy 657–673 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | King of the Franks in Austrasia 661–662 | Succeeded by |