Chram (also spelled ''Chramn'', ''Chramm'', Old Frankish for "

raven A raven is any of several larger-bodied bird species of the genus ''Corvus''. These species do not form a single taxonomic group within the genus. There is no consistent distinction between "crows" and "ravens", common names which are assigned ...

"; Latin: ''Chramnus'', modern French: ''Chramn(e)'') (died 561) was the son of

Chlothar I Chlothar I, sometime called "the Old" (French: le Vieux), (died December 561) also anglicised as Clotaire, was a king of the Franks of the Merovingian dynasty and one of the four sons of Clovis I. Chlothar's father, Clovis I, divided the kingd ...

, a

Merovingian 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 ...

king of 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, ...

(r. 558-561), and his fifth wife, Chunsina. Chram rose in rebellion against his father on several occasions. Following one of these rebellions, he fled with his wife and children to the court of

Chanao Chanao I or Canao, son of king Waroch I, was king of Vannetais in 550–560. Chanao claimed power over the whole south of Breton Armorica and used political assassination to achieve his ends. Biography Chanao was the brother of Macliau, bishop ...

, the ruler of

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period o ...

. In pursuit of Chram, Chlothar defeated the combined forces of Chanao and his son in battle. Chanao was killed, and Chram, delayed in making his escape by sea because of his concern for his family's safety, was captured. Chlothar gave orders to burn them alive, but Chram was strangled and his body was placed in a cottage,de Sismondi, p. 196 which was subsequently burned. Chlothar reportedly died of remorse later that year.

References

''Translator's note: These are in French''

Sources

Gregory of Tours Gregory of Tours (30 November 538 – 17 November 594 AD) was a Gallo-Roman historian and Bishop of Tours, which made him a leading prelate of the area that had been previously referred to as Gaul by the Romans. He was born Georgius Florent ...

Book IV chapter 20 a
''The Medieval Sourcebook''
* Jean Charles L. Simonde de Sismondi, ''Histoire de la chute de l'Empire Romain et du déclin de la civilisation, de l'an 250 à l'an 1000'', Paris: Treuttel et Würtz, 1835. *''This article uses text translated from the Dictionnaire Bouillet — a French work which is in the public domain because the copyright has expired in the United States, France, and other countries where the copyright expires 100 years or more after the author's death''. 561 deaths Frankish warriors Merovingian dynasty Year of birth unknown Rebellious princes {{Europe-royal-stub