The Etichonids were an important noble family, probably of

Frankish Frankish may refer to: * Franks, a Germanic tribe and their culture ** Frankish language or its modern descendants, Franconian languages, a group of Low Germanic languages also commonly referred to as "Frankish" varieties * Francia, a post-Roman ...

- Burgundian origin, who ruled the

Duchy of Alsace The Duchy of Alsace (, ''Ducatum Elisatium''; ) was a large political subdivision of the Frankish Empire during the last century and a half of Merovingian rule. It corresponded to the territory of Alsace and was carved out of southern Austrasia in ...

in the

Early Middle Ages The Early Middle Ages (or early medieval period), sometimes controversially referred to as the Dark Ages (historiography), Dark Ages, is typically regarded by historians as lasting from the late 5th to the 10th century. They marked the start o ...

(7th–10th centuries). The dynasty is named for Eticho (also known as Aldarich), who ruled from 673 to 690. The earliest accounts record the family's beginnings in the '' pagus Attoariensis'' around

Dijon Dijon (, ; ; in Burgundian language (Oïl), Burgundian: ''Digion'') is a city in and the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Côte-d'Or Departments of France, department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Regions of France, region in eas ...

in northern

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. ...

. In the mid-7th century a duke of the region named

Amalgar Amalgar, also ''Amalgarius'' (643), was a Burgundian duke from the area around Dijon. He was also the proprietor of multiple monasteries, and was a progenitor of the Etichonid clan, from which the Habsburgs originate. Life Amalgar's family bel ...

and his wife Aquilina are noticed as major founders and patrons of monasteries. King

Dagobert I Dagobert I (; 603/605 – 19 January 639) was King of the Franks. He ruled Austrasia (623–634) and Neustria and Burgundy (629–639). He has been described as the last king of the Merovingian dynasty to wield real royal power, after which the ...

and his father made donations to them to recover their loyalty and compensate them for the losses that they had sustained as supporters of Queen

Brunhild Brunhild, also known as Brunhilda or Brynhild ( , , or ), is a female character from Germanic heroic legend. She may have her origins in the Visigoths, Visigothic princess and queen Brunhilda of Austrasia. In the Norse tradition, Brunhild i ...

and her grandson,

Sigebert II :''See Sigeberht II of Essex for the Saxon ruler by that name.'' Sigebert II (601–613) or Sigisbert II, was the illegitimate son of Theuderic II, from whom he inherited the kingdoms of Burgundy and Austrasia in 613. However, he fell under the i ...

. Amalgar and his wife founded a convent at

Brégille Bregille () is a district of the French city of Besançon, located on the right bank of the Doubs, south-east of the historic center. It has developed on the eponymous hill Bregille which culminates at 458 meters, almost 200 meters above the river l ...

and an abbey at

Bèze Bèze () is a commune in the Côte-d'Or department in eastern France. It takes its name from the Bèze river, which rises in the commune. Population See also *Communes of the Côte-d'Or department The following is a list of the 698 ...

, installing a son and daughter in the abbacies. They were succeeded by their third child, Adalrich,He is referred to as Liutheric, a mayor of the palace, in the ''Life of Odilia''. who was the father of Adalrich,

Duke of Alsace The Duchy of Alsace (, ''Ducatum Elisatium''; ) was a large political subdivision of the Frankish Empire during the last century and a half of Merovingian rule. It corresponded to the territory of Alsace and was carved out of southern Austrasia in ...

. This second Adalrich was the first to secure the ducal title. His name, Eticho, a variation of Adalrich, is used by modern scholars as the name of the family. Under the Etichonids, Alsace was generally divided into a northern and a southern county, Nordgau and

Sundgau Sundgau ( or ; ) is a geographical territory in the southern Alsace region (Haut Rhin and Territoire de Belfort, Belfort), on the eastern edge of France. The name is derived from Alemannic German ''Sunt-Gau (territory), gowe'' ("South shire"), den ...

. These counties, as well as the monasteries of the duchy, were brought under tighter control of the dukes with the rise of the Etichonids. There exists scholarly debate concerning whether or not the Etichonids were in conflict or alliance with the

Carolingians The Carolingian dynasty ( ; known variously as the Carlovingians, Carolingus, Carolings, Karolinger or Karlings) was a Frankish noble family named after Charles Martel and his grandson Charlemagne, descendants of the Arnulfing and Pippinid ...

, but it is possible that they were both: opponents of the extension of

Charles Martel Charles Martel (; – 22 October 741), ''Martel'' being a sobriquet in Old French for "The Hammer", was a Franks, Frankish political and military leader who, as Duke and Prince of the Franks and Mayor of the Palace, was the de facto ruler of ...

's authority in the 720s when he first made war on Alemannia, but allies when the Alemanni, under Duke Theudebald invaded Alsace (which had a large Alemannic element in its population) in the early 740s. The last Etichonid duke,

Liutfrid Liutfrid (died probably 742), also spelled Leodefred, Leudefred, or Leudefrid, was the Duke of Alsace, the third in a line of Etichonid dukes dating back to circa 670. He succeeded his father Adalbert in 723. In the 720s he made his younger broth ...

, may have died fighting Theudebald on behalf of

Pepin the Short the Short (; ; ; – 24 September 768), was King of the Franks from 751 until his death in 768. He was the first Carolingian dynasty, Carolingian to become king. Pepin was the son of the Frankish prince Charles Martel and his wife Rotrude of H ...

with his son, Hilfrid. Among the descendants of the Etichonids, in the female line were

Hugh of Tours Hugh (or Hugo) ( – 837) was the count of Tours and Sens during the reigns of Charlemagne and Louis the Pious, until his disgrace in February 828. Hugh had many possessions in Alsace, as well as the County of Sens. He also held the convent of ...

and his family, including his daughter Ermengard, who was wife to

Lothair I Lothair I (9th. C. Frankish: ''Ludher'' and Medieval Latin: ''Lodharius''; Dutch and Medieval Latin: ''Lotharius''; German: ''Lothar''; French: ''Lothaire''; Italian: ''Lotario''; 795 – 29 September 855) was a 9th-century emperor of the ...

and thus mother to three Carolingian kings. In the 10th century, the Etichonids remained powerful in Alsace as counts, but their power was circumscribed significantly by the

Ottonians The Ottonian dynasty () was a Saxon dynasty of German monarchs (919–1024), named after three of its kings and Holy Roman emperors, especially Otto the Great. It is also known as the Saxon dynasty after the family's origin in the German stem du ...

; by the 11th century,

Pope Leo IX Pope Leo IX (, , 21 June 1002 – 19 April 1054), born Bruno von Egisheim-Dagsburg, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 12 February 1049 to his death in 1054. Leo IX is considered to be one of the most historica ...

seemed unaware that his ancestors, the lords (or counts) of Dagsburg and

Egisheim Eguisheim (; ; Alsatian: ''Egsa'') is a commune in the Haut-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. It lies in the historical region of Alsace (). The village lies on the edge of the Ballons des Vosges Nature Park, where the Vos ...

for the previous half century were in fact the direct descendants of the last Etichonids. All notable European families trace their lineage to the Etichonids.

Etichonid dukes and counts in Alsace

(Note: Here the numbering of the counts is the same for all states, as all were titled Counts of Alsace, despite the different parts of land and its particular numbering of the rulers.)

Sources

*Hummer, Hans J. ''Politics and Power in Early Medieval Europe: Alsace and the Frankish Realm 600–1000''. Cambridge University Press: 2005. See mainly pp 46–55.

References

{{Authority control