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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pepin_of_LandenPippin or Pepin I
Pepin of Landen
Pepin I was a major nobleman of Austrasia, ruling it as its Mayor with the compitition of Queen Brunhild. He played a major part in the revolution of 613, allying with King Chlotar II of Soissons. Pepin's puppet king was the Austrasian King Sigebert III, who was allowed to rule on his own under the protection of Grimoald when Pepin died in 640.
Pepin of Landen , also called
the Elder or
the Old, was the
Mayor of the Palace of
Austrasia under the
Merovingian king
Dagobert I from 623 to 629. He was also the mayor for
Sigebert III from 639 until his own death.
Pepin's father is named Carloman by the
Chronicle of Fredegar, the chief source for his life. His byname comes from his probable birthplace:
Landen, modern
Belgium. He is sometimes called
Pepin I and his other nicknames come from his position at the head of the family called the
Pippinids after him. Through the marriage of his daughter
Begga to
Ansegisel, a son of
Arnulf of Metz, the clans of the Pippinids and the
Arnulfings were united, giving rise to a family which would eventually rule the
Franks as the
Carolingians.
In 613, several leading magnates of Austrasia and
Burgundy abandoned
Brunhilda, the great-grandmother and regent of their king,
Sigebert II, and turned to
Chlothar II of
Neustria for support, promising not to rise in defence of the queen-regent and recognising Chlothar as rightful regent and guardian of the young king. Chief among these leading men were
Warnachar II,
Rado,
Arnulf, and Pepin. The latter two were described by
Fredegar as the "two most powerful barons of Austrasia" and they made some agreement with Chlothar at
Andernach. However, while Rado was confirmed as mayor in Austrasia and Warnachar in Burgundy, Pepin did not receive his reward until 623, when he was appointed mayor in Austrasia after Chlothar made his young son Dagobert king there. Arnulf, his lifelong friend, was appointed adviser to the new king alongside him.
Pepin was praised by his contemporaries for his good government and wise counsel. Though some enemies tried to turn the king against him, their plots were foiled and Pepin remained on good terms with the king until 629, when, for reasons unknown, he retired to his estates, where he remained for the next decade, until Dagobert's death.
On his death, Pepin came out of retirement to take on the mayoralty in Austrasia for the heir Sigebert III and to oversee the distribution of the treasury between Sigebert and his brother,
Clovis II, and his stepmother
Nanthild, who was ruling on Clovis' behalf in Neustria and Burgundy. Sigebert's share of the inheritance was amicably surrendered, parly because of the friendship between Pepin and the Burgundian mayor of the palace,
Aega. Pepin and Arnulf's successor as chief counsellor to the king,
Cunibert, Bishop of Cologne, received the treasure at
Compiègne and brought it back to
Metz. Not long after, both Pepin and Aega died. He was so popular in Austrasia that, though he was never
canonised, he was listed as a saint in some
martyrologies. His
feast day was
21 February.
He left two daughters and two sons by his equally famous wife,
Itta:
▪ Begga, married the aforementioned
Ansegisel and later canonised
▪ Gertrude, entered the convent of
Nivelles founded by her mother, also later canonised
▪ Grimoald, later mayor of the palace like his father
▪ Bavo , became a hermit and later canonised