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Balthild ( 626 – 30 January 680) (; , 'bold sword' or 'bold spear), also spelled Bathilda, Bauthieult or Baudour, was
queen consort A queen consort is the wife of a reigning king, and usually shares her spouse's social Imperial, royal and noble ranks, rank and status. She holds the feminine equivalent of the king's monarchical titles and may be crowned and anointed, but hi ...
of
Neustria Neustria was the western part of the Kingdom of the Franks during the Early Middle Ages, in contrast to the eastern Frankish kingdom, Austrasia. It initially included land between the Loire and the Silva Carbonaria, in the north of present-day ...
and
Burgundy Burgundy ( ; ; Burgundian: ''Bregogne'') 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. ...
by marriage to Clovis II, the King of Neustria and Burgundy (639–658), and regent during the minority of her son, Chlothar III. Her
hagiography A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a preacher, priest, founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian ...
was intended to further her successful candidature for sainthood. Tradition represents her as an
Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons, in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English, were a Cultural identity, cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. They traced t ...
who was originally of noble birth, perhaps a relative of Ricberht of East Anglia, the last
pagan Paganism (, later 'civilian') is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Christianity, Judaism, and Samaritanism. In the time of the ...
king of
East Anglia East Anglia is an area of the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, with parts of Essex sometimes also included. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, ...
, although Pierre Fournet regards this as doubtful. Ricberht was ousted by Sigeberht, who had spent time as an exile in the Frankish court, during which he had converted to
Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...
. Sigeberht was established as the rightful heir to the throne with Frankish help.


Hagiographic tradition

According to ''Vita S. Bathildis'', Balthild was born circa 626–627. She was beautiful, intelligent, modest and attentive to the needs of others. Balthild was sold into
slavery Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...
as a young girl and served in the household of Erchinoald, the
mayor of the palace Under the Merovingian dynasty, the mayor of the palace or majordomo, ( or ) was the manager of the household of the Frankish king. He was the head of the Merovingian administrative ladder and orchestrated the operation of the entire court. He ...
of Neustria to Clovis. Erchinoald, whose wife had died, was attracted to Balthild and wanted to marry her, but she did not want to marry him. She hid herself away and waited until Erchinoald had remarried. Later, possibly because of Erchinoald, Clovis noticed her and asked for her hand in marriage. Even as queen, Balthild remained humble and modest. She is famous for her charitable service and generous donations. From her donations, the
abbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christians, Christian monks and nun ...
s of Corbie and Chelles were founded; it is likely that others such as Jumièges, Jouarre and
Luxeuil Luxeuil-les-Bains () is a Communes of France, commune in the Haute-Saône Departments of France, department in the Regions of France, region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté west of Mulhouse in eastern France. History Luxeuil (sometimes rendered Lux ...
were also founded by the queen. She provided support for Claudius of Besançon and his abbey in the
Jura Mountains The Jura Mountains ( ) are a sub-alpine mountain range a short distance north of the Western Alps and mainly demarcate a long part of the French–Swiss border. While the Jura range proper (" folded Jura", ) is located in France and Switzerla ...
. Balthild bore Clovis three children, all of whom became kings: Clotaire, Childeric and Theuderic. When Clovis died (between 655 and 658), his eldest son Clotaire succeeded to the throne. His mother Balthild acted as the queen regent. As queen, she was a capable stateswoman. She abolished the practice of trading Christian slaves and strove to free children who had been sold into slavery. Balthild and Eligius, according to Dado, "worked together on their favourite charity, the buying and freeing of slaves". After a power struggle with mayor
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 ...
, Balthild withdrew to her favourite Abbey of Chelles near Paris. Balthild died on 30 January 680 and was buried at the Abbey of Chelles, east of
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
. Her '' Vita'' was written soon after her death, probably by one of the community of Chelles. The ''Vita Baldechildis/Vita Bathildis reginae Francorum'' in ''Monumenta Germania Historica, Scriptores Rerum Merovincarum'', as with most of the ''vitae'' of royal
Merovingian The Merovingian dynasty () was the ruling family of the Franks from around the middle of the 5th century until Pepin the Short in 751. They first appear as "Kings of the Franks" in the Roman army of northern Gaul. By 509 they had united all the ...
-era saints, provides some useful details for the historian. Her official cult began when her remains were transferred from the former abbey to a new church, in 833, under the auspices of
Louis the Pious Louis the Pious (; ; ; 16 April 778 – 20 June 840), also called the Fair and the Debonaire, was King of the Franks and Holy Roman Emperor, co-emperor with his father, Charlemagne, from 813. He was also King of Aquitaine from 781. As the only ...
. Balthild was
canonised Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christian communion declaring a person worthy of public veneration and entering their name in the canon catalogue of sai ...
by
Pope Nicholas I Pope Nicholas I (; c. 800 – 13 November 867), called Nicholas the Great, was the bishop of Rome and ruler of the Papal States from 24 April 858 until his death on 13 November 867. He is the last of the three popes listed in the Annuario Pontif ...
, around 200 years after her death.


Other sources

''Sainted Women of the Dark Ages'' states that Balthild "was not the first Merovingian queen to begin her career in servitude". Other Merovingian queens who arose from servile status include
Fredegund Fredegund or Fredegunda (Vulgar Latin, Latin: ''Fredegundis''; French language, French: ''Frédégonde''; died 8 December 597) was the queen consort of Chilperic I, the Merovingian Franks, Frankish king of Neustria. Fredegund served as regent ...
, the mother of Clothaire II; Bilichild, the wife of Theudebert of Austrasia; and possibly Nanthild, the mother of Clovis II. However, research has shown that the slavery of Balthild was probably an invention and that she in fact belonged to an upper-class Anglo-Saxon family. During the minority of Clotaire III, she had to deal with the attempted coup of Grimoald, the major domus of Austrasia, but she enjoyed the continued support of her former master Erchinoald, who became a sort of 'political mentor' to her throughout her marriage to Clovis II. According to some historians, Balthild's creation of and involvement with monasteries was perhaps an act to "balance or even neutralize the efforts of the aristocratic opposition". By installing her supporters as bishops of different sees, she gained even greater power as a ruler. According to the ''
Vita Sancti Wilfrithi The ''Vita Sancti Wilfrithi'' or ''Life of St Wilfrid'' (spelled "Wilfrid" in the modern era) is an early 8th-century hagiographic text recounting the life of the Northumbrian bishop, Wilfrid. Although a hagiography, it has few miracles, while i ...
'' by Stephen of Ripon, Bathild was a ruthless ruler, in conflict with the bishops and perhaps responsible for several assassinations. However, the bishop she so famously murdered, Dalfinus, is not listed as a bishop of Lyon. The story may have been written to embellish the life of Wilfrid. A fragment of an apron thought to have belonged to Balthild is taken by scholars as evidence for her piety and frugality. Her devotion to her faith and forsaking of luxury is evident from a cross embroidered on the apron in silk, rather than gold thread.


Balthild seal matrix

A gold seal matrix, which was originally attached to a seal-ring, was uncovered in 1999 by a metal detector in a field in Postwick, east of
Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of the county of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. It lies by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. The population of the Norwich ...
, in
Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...
. One side shows a woman's face and her name ''BALDAHILDIS'' in Frankish lettering. The other side portrays two naked figures, a man and a woman, embracing one another beneath a cross. In Merovingian Gaul, one side of the seal was intended to be used with official documents. The other side would have been used only for private papers. It is uncertain why the seal matrix came to East Anglia. It may have been a gift, or a representative of Balthild may have worn it as a form of identification. It has also been suggested that the seal matrix was returned to Balthild's kin after she died. Paul Fouracre of the University of Manchester speculated that the seal may belong to a different Baldahildis entirely. The seal matrix is in the keeping of the Norwich Castle Museum.


Chemise of Balthild

Balthild's ornate chemise both expresses her dedication to the church, as well as her status as a queen to Clovis II. The sleeveless tabard was likely crafted by either Balthid herself, or nuns of Chelles Abbey, and measures wide and tall. It intended to loosely hang over the front and back of the body over a dress, although the back portion is currently lost. The garment consists of simple linen as a gesture of humility towards the church, as linen was a fabric commonly worn by lower classes of the time. The silken details make up a large bejewelled Christian cross tall, small human and bird portraits, as well as several patterned rings around the collar mimicking studded golden necklaces. These embroidered necklaces were sewn in the exact likeness of the jewellery Balthild wore during her status as queen, and were also a symbol of Balthild's devotion, trading her actual jewellery for sewn replica as a member of Chelles Abbey. There are conflicting claims on this history of this garment, centred on whether it was ever worn by Balthild herself in life, in death, or at all. The common argument is that it was a burial shirt that followed Balthild into her tomb. This is challenged by claims that the shirt was worn frequently by Balthild during her life in service at Chelles but not during her death. These arguments have surfaced due to the dubious history of the dress and Balthild's body, which have been disturbed multiple times muddying attempts at accurate documentation. Balthild's body and dress have been relocated two documented times. The first time they were moved, they were moved behind the Chelles Abbey altar as relics in 833, likely in hopes of attracting Christians on
pilgrimage A pilgrimage is a travel, journey to a holy place, which can lead to a personal transformation, after which the pilgrim returns to their daily life. A pilgrim (from the Latin ''peregrinus'') is a traveler (literally one who has come from afar) w ...
s. The dress was said to be found once again hidden inside a sixteenth-century
reliquary A reliquary (also referred to as a ''shrine'', ''Chasse (casket), chasse'', or ''phylactery'') is a container for relics. A portable reliquary, or the room in which one is stored, may also be called a ''feretory''. Relics may be the purported ...
in attempts of saving it from destruction during the French Revolution.


Footnotes


References

* * * * *


Further reading

*Moreira, Isabel. 2024. ''Balthild of Francia: Anglo-Saxon Slave, Merovingian Queen, and Abolitionist Saint'' Oxford University Press ISBN 9780197792612. *J.L. Nelson, "Queens as Jezebels: the careers of Brunhild and Balthild in Merovingian history" ''Medieval Women'', D. Baker, ed. (1978) pp 31–77. *Alexander Callander Murray, ed. ''From Roman to Merovingian Gaul: A Reader'' (in series Readings in Medieval Civilizations and Cultures), 1999. Chapter 14 ""Sanctity and politics in the time of Balthild and her sons"


External links

*; also
Société Internationale pour l'Etude des Femmes de l'Ancien Régime:Bathildis
(French)

Norfolk Museums & Archaeology Service.
Biography of Saint Bathildis in French
Official hagiography in translated to English * Vita Balthildis in Latin {{DEFAULTSORT:Balthild 620s births 680 deaths Year of birth uncertain Queens consort of Burgundy Anglo-Saxon royalty East Anglian saints Anglo-Saxon slaves Frankish Christian royal saints Merovingian dynasty 7th-century English women 7th-century women regents Christian female saints of the Middle Ages 7th-century English people 7th-century Frankish saints French abolitionists English abolitionists Eastern Orthodox royal saints Colombanian saints 7th-century Frankish women Burials at the Basilica of Saint-Denis 7th-century slaves 7th-century regents French queen mothers Christian abolitionists