Hildeprand was the Duke of Spoleto from 774 to 789. When

Theodicius of Spoleto Theodicius was the Duke of Spoleto from 763 to 773. Though it is often stated that he died at the Siege of Pavia (774), he was still alive on 9 June 776, when Charlemagne confirmed the properties of the monastery of Farfa and Abbot Ingoald in the r ...

died fighting at the Siege of Pavia in 774, the

Lombards The Lombards () or Langobards ( la, Langobardi) were a Germanic people who ruled most of the Italian Peninsula from 568 to 774. The medieval Lombard historian Paul the Deacon wrote in the '' History of the Lombards'' (written between 787 an ...

of the Duchy of Spoleto elected Hildeprand their duke and quickly submitted to the

Franks The Franks ( la, Franci or ) were a group of Germanic peoples whose name was first mentioned in 3rd-century Roman sources, and associated with tribes between the Lower Rhine and the Ems River, on the edge of the Roman Empire.H. Schutz: Tools, ...

. Hildeprand fled to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

before the Frankish host and did homage to

Pope Hadrian I Pope Adrian I ( la, Hadrianus I; died 25 December 795) was the bishop of Rome and ruler of the Papal States from 1 February 772 to his death. He was the son of Theodore, a Roman nobleman. Adrian and his predecessors had to contend with periodic ...

. However, the dispute between

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first ...

and Hadrian as to who had the proper suzerainty over Spoleto was solved in the Franks' favour over the next few years. In January 776, ''Hildeprandus gloriosus et summus dux ducatus Spoletani'' made a donation to the Abbey of Farfa dating it to the year of Charles' reign. This form was continued in 777 with language implicitly excluding papal suzerainty. In 775, Hadrian alleged that Hildeprand had joined a conspiracy of

Hrodgaud of Friuli Hrodgaud or Rodgand was the Duke of Friuli from 774 to 776. In all likelihood he was already duke under Desiderius, notwithstanding some Frankish sources, such as the '' Einhardis annales'', who say that Charlemagne put him in power after the Siege ...

and

Arechis II of Benevento Arechis II (also ''Aretchis'', ''Arichis'', ''Arechi'' or ''Aregis'') (born According to the ''Chronicon Salernitanum'', Arechis ''vixit autem quinquaginta tres (53) annos; obiit septimo Kal. Septembris, anno ab incarnacione Domini 787, indictione ...

, but there is no evidence of Hildeprand's involvement. Hildeprand remained a staunch opponent of the papacy thereafter. In 779, Hildeprand travelled to ''Virciniacum'' (today

Verzenay Verzenay () is a commune in the Marne department in north-eastern France. The town is famed for its vineyards and its champagne Champagne The village's vineyards are located in the Montagne de Reims subregion of Champagne, and are classified ...

Regnum Francorum Online
/ref>), probably near

Compiègne Compiègne (; pcd, Compiène) is a commune in the Oise department in northern France. It is located on the river Oise. Its inhabitants are called ''Compiégnois''. Administration Compiègne is the seat of two cantons: * Compiègne-1 (with 19 ...

, to profess fealty to Charlemagne. He brought with him gifts and left with promises that the king would protect his interests from those of the pope. In 788, Hildeprand joined Frankish and Lombard troops in resisting a

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

invasion. He died the next year and was succeeded by a royal appointee: a Frank, named Winiges.

References

Sources

* Hodgkin, Thomas. ''Italy and her Invaders''. Clarendon Press: 1895. 8th-century dukes of Spoleto Lombard warriors 8th-century births 789 deaths {{Italy-noble-stub