Herman II ( – 11 February 1056), a member of the Ezzonid dynasty, was

Archbishop of Cologne The Archbishop of Cologne is an archbishop governing the Archdiocese of Cologne of the Catholic Church in western North Rhine-Westphalia and is also a historical state in the Rhine holding the birthplace of Beethoven and northern Rhineland-Palat ...

from 1036 until his death.

Life

He was the son of the

Lotharingian Lotharingia ( la, regnum Lotharii regnum Lothariense Lotharingia; french: Lotharingie; german: Reich des Lothar Lotharingien Mittelreich; nl, Lotharingen) was a short-lived medieval successor kingdom of the Carolingian Empire. As a more durable ...

Count Palatine A count palatine (Latin ''comes palatinus''), also count of the palace or palsgrave (from German ''Pfalzgraf''), was originally an official attached to a royal or imperial palace or household and later a nobleman of a rank above that of an ord ...

Ezzo (955–1043) and his wife Matilda of Germany, Countess Palatine of Lotharingia (979–1025), a daughter of Emperor

Otto II Otto II (955 – 7 December 983), called the Red (''der Rote''), was Holy Roman Emperor from 973 until his death in 983. A member of the Ottonian dynasty, Otto II was the youngest and sole surviving son of Otto the Great and Adelaide of Italy ...

and his consort Theophanu. He was a member of the Ezzonian dynasty. Herman's younger brother Otto became

Duke of Swabia The Dukes of Swabia were the rulers of the Duchy of Swabia during the Middle Ages. Swabia was one of the five stem duchies of the medieval German kingdom, and its dukes were thus among the most powerful magnates of Germany. The most notable famil ...

in 1045; among his sisters were Richeza, who married the Polish King

Mieszko II Lambert Mieszko II Lambert (; c. 990 – 10/11 May 1034) was King of Poland from 1025 to 1031, and Duke from 1032 until his death. He was the second son of Bolesław I the Brave, but the eldest born from his third wife Emnilda of Lusatia. He was pro ...

, and Theophanu, Abbess of Essen.

Pope Benedict IX Pope Benedict IX ( la, Benedictus IX; c. 1012 – c. 1056), born Theophylactus of Tusculum in Rome, was the bishop of Rome A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious inst ...

elevated him to the

College of Cardinals The College of Cardinals, or more formally the Sacred College of Cardinals, is the body of all cardinals of the Catholic Church. its current membership is , of whom are eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope. Cardinals are app ...

around 1036, at the same time the

Salian The Salian dynasty or Salic dynasty (german: Salier) was a dynasty in the High Middle Ages. The dynasty provided four kings of Germany (1024–1125), all of whom went on to be crowned Holy Roman emperors (1027–1125). After the death of the la ...

Emperor

Conrad II Conrad II ( – 4 June 1039), also known as and , was the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire from 1027 until his death in 1039. The first of a succession of four Salian emperors, who reigned for one century until 1125, Conrad ruled the kingdoms ...

appointed him Archbishop and granted important privileges to the Church in Cologne. Herman accompanied Conrad on his Italian campaign and remained loyal to his successor Henry III. In 1049 he received

Pope Leo IX Pope Leo IX (21 June 1002 – 19 April 1054), born Bruno von Egisheim-Dagsburg, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 12 February 1049 to his death in 1054. Leo IX is considered to be one of the most historically ...

in Cologne and in 1051 consecrated Goslar Cathedral. His ''claritas generis'' allowed him to baptise and crown the emperor's newborn son Henry IV, a privilege that was disputed by Archbishop Luitpold I of

Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-west, with Ma ...

. Herman also supported the emperor during the revolt led by his own nephew Duke Conrad I of Bavaria. As Cologne archbishop he served as

Archchancellor An archchancellor ( la, archicancellarius, german: Erzkanzler) or chief chancellor was a title given to the highest dignitary of the Holy Roman Empire, and also used occasionally during the Middle Ages to denote an official who supervised the wo ...

of the Italian kingdom (''Regnum Italicum'') and is also mentioned as protector of Brauweiler Abbey (1053). He evolved plans to rebuild

Cologne Cathedral Cologne Cathedral (german: Kölner Dom, officially ', English: Cathedral Church of Saint Peter) is a Catholic cathedral in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Cologne and of the administration of the Archdiocese ...

modelled on St. Peter's in Rome. He and his sister Ida had the Romanesque

St. Maria im Kapitol St. Maria im Kapitol (St. Mary's in the Capitol) is an 11th-century Romanesque church located in the Kapitol-Viertel in the old town of Cologne, Germany. The name “im Kapitol“ refers to the Roman temple for the Capitoline Triad that was bu ...

church built from about 1040 onwards, following the example of the

Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore The Basilica of Saint Mary Major ( it, Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, ; la, Basilica Sanctae Mariae Maioris), or church of Santa Maria Maggiore, is a Major papal basilica as well as one of the Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome and the large ...

. Archbishop Herman II died in Cologne and is buried in Cologne Cathedral. In the 13th century, the present-day

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

n city of

Sibiu Sibiu ( , , german: link=no, Hermannstadt , la, Cibinium, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Härmeschtat'', hu, Nagyszeben ) is a city in Romania, in the historical region of Transylvania. Located some north-west of Bucharest, the city straddles the Ci ...

received its German name ''Hermannstadt'' in his honour.

References

Literature

* Lewald, Ursula, 'Die Ezzonen. Das Schicksal eines rheinischen Fürstengeschlechts', in ''Rheinische Vierteljahrsblätter'' 43 (1979) pp. 120–168

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Herman 02 990s births 1056 deaths Year of birth uncertain Ezzonids House of Limburg-Stirum Archbishops of Cologne 11th-century German cardinals Burials at Cologne Cathedral People of Byzantine descent