Childeric II (c. 653 – 675) was the king of

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 ...

from 662 and of

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 ...

and

Burgundy Burgundy (; french: link=no, Bourgogne ) is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. The ...

from 673 until his death, making him sole

King of the Franks The Franks, Germanic-speaking peoples that invaded the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century, were first led by individuals called dukes and reguli. The earliest group of Franks that rose to prominence was the Salian Merovingians, who c ...

for the final two years of his life. Childeric was the second eldest son of King

Clovis II Clovis II (633 – 657) was King of Neustria and Burgundy, having succeeded his father Dagobert I in 639. His brother Sigebert III had been King of Austrasia since 634. He was initially under the regency of his mother Nanthild until her ...

and grandson of King Dagobert I and Queen Nanthild.Detlev Schwennicke, ''Europäische Stammtafeln: Stammtafeln zur Geschichte der Europäischen Staaten'', Neue Folge, Band I (Marburg, Germany: Verlag von J. A. Stargardt, 1980), Tefel 1 His mother was Saint

Balthild Balthild (; ang, Bealdhild, 'bold sword' or 'bold spear; around 626 – 30 January 680), also spelled Bathilda, Bauthieult or Baudour, was queen consort of Neustria and Burgundy by marriage to Clovis II, the King of Neustria and Burgundy (639 ...

and his elder brother was Chlothar III, who was briefly sole king from 661, but gave Austrasia to Childeric the next year. He was still a mere child when he was raised on the shields of his warriors and proclaimed king in Austrasia. After the death of Chlothar in 673,

Theuderic III Theuderic III (or Theuderich, Theoderic, or Theodoric; french: Thierry) (c. 651–691) was the king of Neustria (including Burgundy) on two occasions (673 and 675–691) and king of Austrasia from 679 to his death in 691. Thus, he was the king ...

, his youngest brother, inherited his kingdoms, but a faction of prominent Burgundian nobles led by

Saint Leodegar Leodegar of Poitiers ( la, Leodegarius; french: Léger; 615 – October 2, 679 AD) was a martyred Burgundian Bishop of Autun. He was the son of Saint Sigrada and the brother of Saint Warinus. Leodegar was an opponent of Ebroin, the Frankish Mayo ...

and Adalrich invited Childeric to become king in Neustria and Burgundy. He soon invaded his brother's kingdom and displaced him, becoming sole king. He made his Austrasian Mayor of the Palace,

Wulfoald Wulfoald (died 680) was the mayor of the palace of Austrasia from 656 or 661, depending on when Grimoald I was removed from that office (accounts vary: ''see his article for details''), to his death and mayor of the palace of Neustria and Burgundy ...

, mayor also in Neustria and Burgundy, displacing

Ebroin Ebroin (died 680 or 681) was the Frankish mayor of the palace of Neustria on two occasions; firstly from 658 to his deposition in 673 and secondly from 675 to his death in 680 or 681. In a violent and despotic career, he strove to impose the a ...

of Neustria and upsetting his supporters in Burgundy who did not wish to see functionaries active in a kingdom other than their native one. In March 675, Childeric had granted '' honores'' in

Alsace Alsace (, ; ; Low Alemannic German/ gsw-FR, Elsàss ; german: Elsass ; la, Alsatia) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in eastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine next to Germany and Switzerland. In 2020, it had ...

to Adalrich with the title of '' dux''. This grant was most probably the result of Adalrich's continued support for Childeric in Burgundy, which had often disputed possession of Alsace with Austrasia. The final straw for the magnates of Neustria, however, was Childeric's illegal corporal punishment of the nobleman named Bodilo. Bodilo and his friends Amalbert and Ingobert conspired to assassinate the king, who was killed, along with his wife,

Bilichild Bilichild (also Bilichildis, Bilichilde, or Blithilde) was the wife of the Frankish king of Neustria and Burgundy Childeric II. The two were married in 668 despite the opposition of the Bishop Leodegar. Family Bilichild was a daughter of King ...

, and his five-year-old son, Dagobert, while hunting in the forest of Livry (present-day Lognes). He was buried in

Saint-Germain-des-Prés Saint-Germain-des-Prés () is one of the four administrative quarters of the 6th arrondissement of Paris, France, located around the church of the former Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés. Its official borders are the River Seine on the no ...

, near

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

, where the tombs of him, Bilichild, and his young son Dagobert were discovered in 1645; the contents of which were pilfered. Childeric married his cousin

. Besides the aforementioned Dagobert, she bore him the future king Chilperic II.Paule Lejeune, ''Les reines de France'', Paris, 1989, , p. 44

References

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Childeric 02 Merovingian kings Frankish warriors 653 births 675 deaths Medieval child rulers 7th-century murdered monarchs Burials at Saint-Germain-des-Prés (abbey) 7th-century Frankish kings