The Pippinids and the Arnulfings were two Frankish aristocratic families from

Austrasia Austrasia was a territory which formed the north-eastern section of the Merovingian Kingdom of the Franks during the 6th to 8th centuries. It was centred on the Meuse, Middle Rhine and the Moselle rivers, and was the original territory of the ...

during the

Merovingian period The Merovingian dynasty () was the ruling family of the Franks from the middle of the 5th century until 751. They first appear as "Kings of the Franks" in the Roman army of northern Gaul. By 509 they had united all the Franks and northern Gauli ...

. They dominated the office of mayor of the palace after 687 and eventually supplanted the Merovingians as kings in 751, founding the

Carolingian dynasty The Carolingian dynasty (; known variously as the Carlovingians, Carolingus, Carolings, Karolinger or Karlings) was a Frankish noble family named after Charlemagne, grandson of mayor Charles Martel and a descendant of the Arnulfing and Pi ...

. The names "Pippinid" and "Arnulfing" are modern conventions, reflecting the families' descent from two contemporaries,

Arnulf of Metz Arnulf of Metz ( 582 – 645) was a Frankish bishop of Metz and advisor to the Merovingian court of Austrasia. He later retired to the Abbey of Remiremont. In French he is also known as Arnoul or Arnoulf. In English he is known as Arnold. G ...

(died c. 640) and

Pippin of Landen Pepin I (also Peppin, Pipin, or Pippin) of Landen (c. 580 – 27 February 640), 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 Sig ...

(died 640). The recurrence of the leading name Pippin in the family led the anonymous author of the ''

Annals of Metz The ''Annals of Metz'' ( la, Annales Mettenses) are a set of Latin Carolingian annals covering the period of Frankish history from the victory of Pepin II in the Battle of Tertry (687) to the time of writing (c. 806). Although the annals do cover e ...

'' (c. 805) to call the family ''Pippinios'', the earliest known designation for the family. Rosamond McKitterick, ''Charlemagne: The Formation of a European Identity'' (Cambridge University Press, 2008), p. 57n. In a strict sense, the Pippinids are the descendants of Pippin of Landen and the Arnulfings those of Arnulf of Metz, which groups only overlap in the marriage of Arnulf's son

Ansegisel Ansegisel (c. 602 or 610 – murdered before 679 or 662) was the younger son of Saint Arnulf, bishop of Metz. Life He served King Sigebert III of Austrasia (634–656) as ''domesticus''. He was killed sometime before 679, slain in a feud by his ...

and Pippin's daughter Begga and their son,

Pippin of Herstal Pepin II (c. 635 – 16 December 714), commonly known as Pepin of Herstal, was a Frankish statesman and military leader who de facto ruled Francia as the Mayor of the Palace from 680 until his death. He took the title Duke and Prince of the ...

and his descendants. Since the late eighth century, the rise of the family has been depicted as the defining feature of the late Merovingian period, with the kings portrayed as ''

rois fainéants Rois may refer to: People * Carrie Rois, victim of Gary Ridgway * Joan Roís de Corella (1435–1497), Valencian author * Juancho Rois (1958-1994), Colombian musician * Sophie Rois, Austrian actress Places * Rois, Spain * Rois-bheinn, Scotland * ...

'' ("do-nothing kings"), puppets of their mayors. This theme has been continued in modern historiography. Some have even suggested that the Pippinids and Arnulfings followed a "long-term strategy" to seize power.

Bernard Bachrach Bernard Stanley Bachrach (born 1939) is an American historian. He taught history at the University of Minnesota from 1967 until his retirement in 2020. He specializes in the Early Middle Ages, mainly on the topics of medieval warfare, medieval J ...

, ''Early Carolingian Warfare: Prelude to Empire'' (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2001), pp. 2–5. Following his victory at the

Battle of Tertry The Battle of Tertry was an important engagement in Merovingian Gaul between the forces of Austrasia under Pepin II on one side and those of Neustria and Burgundy on the other. It took place in 687 at Tertry, Somme, and the battle is presented ...

in 687, Pippin of Heristal extended his influence into

Neustria Neustria was the western part of the Kingdom of the Franks. Neustria included the land between the Loire and the Silva Carbonaria, approximately the north of present-day France, with Paris, Orléans, Tours, Soissons as its main cities. It late ...

. His death in 714 was followed by years of civil war between his successors. By 718, his younger son

Charles Martel Charles Martel ( – 22 October 741) was a Frankish political and military leader who, as Duke and Prince of the Franks and Mayor of the Palace, was the de facto ruler of Francia from 718 until his death. He was a son of the Frankish statesm ...

had taken control of both Austrasia and Neustria. His descendants are the Carolingians proper, although some historians take this name as far back as the union of Ansegisel and Begga. The descendants of Charles's brother,

Childebrand Childebrand I (678 – 743 or 751) was a Frankish duke (''dux''), illegitimate son of Pepin of Heristal and Alpaida, and brother of Charles Martel. He was born in Autun, where he later died. He married Emma of Austrasia and was given Burgundy by h ...

, on the other hand, are known as the

Nibelungids {{about, the historical Frankish dynasty sometimes called the Nibelungs, an explanation of the term Nibelung in Germanic heroic legend, Nibelung The Nibelungids were a Frankish noble family descended from Childebrand, the younger full brother of Ch ...

References

{{reflist

External links

BBC2: "From Merovingians to Carolingians : Dynastic Change in Frankia"
Frankish noble families French noble families German noble families * 7th century in Francia