Cunipert (also Cunibert or Cunincpert) was king of the
Lombards
The Lombards () or Longobards () were a Germanic peoples, Germanic people who conquered most of the Italian Peninsula between 568 and 774.
The medieval Lombard historian Paul the Deacon wrote in the ''History of the Lombards'' (written betwee ...
from 688 to 700. He succeeded his father
Perctarit
Perctarit (also Berthari; died 688) was the first Catholic Church, Catholic king of the Lombards, leading a religiously divided kingdom during the 7th century. He ruled first from 661 to 662, and again from 671 to 688. He is notable for making Cat ...
, though he was associated with the throne from 680.
Life
Soon after his assumption of the sole kingship, Cunipert was ousted by
Alahis,
duke
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...
of
Brescia
Brescia (, ; ; or ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the region of Lombardy, in Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Lake Garda, Garda and Lake Iseo, Iseo. With a population of 199,949, it is the se ...
(who had previously been duke of
Trento
Trento ( or ; Ladin language, Ladin and ; ; ; ; ; ), also known in English as Trent, is a city on the Adige, Adige River in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol in Italy. It is the capital of the Trentino, autonomous province of Trento. In the 16th ...
). Alahis had also rebelled during the reign of Perctarit, but it was Cunipert who, according to
Paul the Deacon
Paul the Deacon ( 720s 13 April in 796, 797, 798, or 799 AD), also known as ''Paulus Diaconus'', ''Warnefridus'', ''Barnefridus'', or ''Winfridus'', and sometimes suffixed ''Cassinensis'' (''i.e.'' "of Monte Cassino"), was a Benedictine monk, sc ...
in the ''
Historia Langobardorum
The ''History of the Lombards'' or the ''History of the Langobards'' () is the chief work by Paul the Deacon, written in the late 8th century. This incomplete history in six books was written after 787 and at any rate no later than 796, maybe at ...
'', had persuaded his father to show mercy. Perctarit is reported to have warned his son of the consequences. It was thus soon after Perctarit's death that Alahis forced Cunipert to flee to
Isola Comacina, an island in the middle of
Lake Como.
The only extant record of the rule of Alahis is contained in ''Book V'' of Paul the Deacon's ''Historia Langobardorum''. His rule is portrayed as burdensome and tyrannical, and particularly antagonistic to the
Catholic Church
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
. Having lost the support of the Church and, crucially, of the 'people' (notably the brothers Aldo and Grauso of
Brescia
Brescia (, ; ; or ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the region of Lombardy, in Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Lake Garda, Garda and Lake Iseo, Iseo. With a population of 199,949, it is the se ...
), Cunipert was able to return to Pavia and resume control. Alahis, however, was able to acquire sufficient support to bring the matter to battle. Cunipert, with the men of
Piedmont
Piedmont ( ; ; ) is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the northwest Italy, Northwest of the country. It borders the Liguria region to the south, the Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna regions to the east, and the Aosta Valley region to the ...
, defeated Alahis and the men of
Venetia at the
Battle of Coronate, on the Horn of the
Adda, near
Lodi, in 689. Alahis was slain in battle.
Cunipert suppressed other insurrections during his reign, including that of the usurper Duke
Ansfrid of Friuli.
He also successfully settled the
schism of the Three Chapters in the
Italian Church between the
patriarch of Aquileia and his rival
patriarch of Grado.
He died in 700 and was succeeded by his young son
Liutpert, the
regent
In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...
Ansprand, and many rebels. Many wars took place during his reign. He is notably the first Lombard monarch to strike coins in his image. (For his epitaph, see
Latin rhythmic hexameter.) He was buried in the
Basilica of Santissimo Salvatore in
Pavia
Pavia ( , ; ; ; ; ) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy, in Northern Italy, south of Milan on the lower Ticino (river), Ticino near its confluence with the Po (river), Po. It has a population of c. 73,086.
The city was a major polit ...
.
References
Further reading
*Antonopoulos, Panagiotis. ''The Reign of Cunincpert: Saga, Reality, Stability and Progress in Lombard Italy at the End of the Seventh Century''. Camberley, Surrey: Porphyrogenitus Ltd., 2010.
{{Authority control
700 deaths
7th-century Lombard monarchs
Lombard warriors
Bavarian dynasty
Year of birth unknown