Immilla (also Emilia, Immula, Ermengard, or Irmgard) (born c. 1020; died January 1078) was a duchess consort of Swabia by marriage to

Otto III, Duke of Swabia Otto III (died 28 September 1057), called the White and known as Otto of Schweinfurt, was the margrave of the Nordgau (Bavaria), Nordgau (1024–1031) and duke of Swabia (1048–1057). He was the son of Henry of Schweinfurt, margrave of the Nordga ...

, and a margravine of Meissen by marriage to Ekbert I of Meissen. She was regent of Meissen during the minority of her son, Ekbert II.

Life

Immilla was the daughter of

Ulric Manfred II of Turin Ulric Manfred II (; 975 992 – 29 October 1033 or 1034) or Manfred Ulric (') was the count of Turin, count of county of Turin, Turin and marquis of Susa, marquis of marquisate of Susa, Susa in the early 11th century. He was the last ...

and

Bertha of Milan Bertha of Milan or Bertha of Luni (c. 997-c. 1040), was a countess margravine of Turin by marriage to Ulric Manfred II of Turin, and regent in Turin and Susa for her daughter Adelaide of Susa in 1033. She is sometimes identified with the Bertha w ...

and thereby a member of the

Arduinici The Arduinici were a nobility, noble Franks, Frankish family that immigrated to Italy in the early tenth century, possibly from Neustria. They were descended from and take their name after one Arduin (Hardouin). The first of the Arduinici to ente ...

dynasty. Her older sister was

Adelaide of Susa Adelaide of Susa (also ''Adelheid'', ''Adelais'', or ''Adeline''; – 19 December 1091) was the countess of part of the March of Ivrea and the Marchioness of Turin in Northwestern Italy from 1034 to her death. She was the last of the Arduin ...

. Her first husband was

, whom she married c. 1036. After Otto's death in September 1057, Immilla married again (c.1058). Her second husband was Ekbert I of Meissen. In 1067, shortly before his death, Ekbert I attempted to repudiate Immilla in order to marry Adela of Louvain, daughter of Lambert II, Count of Louvain and the widow of

Otto I, Margrave of Meissen Otto I was the Margrave of Meissen from 1062 until his death in 1067, and the second Margrave of the family of the counts of Weimar and Orlamünde. He was a younger son of William III of Weimar and Oda, daughter of Thietmar, Margrave of the Saxon O ...

. After Ekbert's death in 1068, Immilla spent some time at the imperial court with her niece

Bertha Bertha is a female Germanic name, from Old High German ''berhta'' meaning "bright one". It was usually a short form of Anglo Saxon names ''Beorhtgifu'' meaning "bright gift" or ''Beorhtwynn'' meaning "bright joy". The name occurs as a theonym, s ...

, before returning to Italy. It is possible that she acted as regent for her young son, Ekbert II, at this time. Immilla died in Turin on January 10, 1078. She is sometimes said to have become a nun before her death.Previté-Orton, ''Early History'', p. 232

Marriages and children

With her first husband, Otto, Immilla had five daughters: *Bertha (or Alberada) (died 1 April 1103), married firstly Herman II, Count of Kastl, and married secondly Frederick, Count of Kastl *Gisela, inherited

Kulmbach Kulmbach () is the capital of the district of Kulmbach in Bavaria in Germany. The town, once a stronghold of the Principality of Bayreuth, is renowned for its University of Life Sciences, a branch of the University of Bayreuth, the massive Plasse ...

and

Plassenburg Plassenburg is a castle in the city of Kulmbach in Bavaria. It is one of the most impressive castles in Germany and a symbol of the city. It was first mentioned in 1135. The Plassenberg family were Ministerialis, ministerial of the counts of And ...

, married Arnold IV, Count of

Andechs Andechs is a municipality in the district of Starnberg in Bavaria in Germany. It is renowned in Germany and beyond for Andechs Abbey, a Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB ...

*Judith (died 1104), married firstly

Conrad I, Duke of Bavaria Conrad I ( 1020 – 5 December 1055), also known as Cuno or Kuno, was the duke of Bavaria from 1049 to 1053. He was of the Ezzonen family, his parents being Liudolf, Count of Zütphen and eldest son of Ezzo, Count Palatine of Lorraine, and Mat ...

, and secondly Botho, Count of Pottenstein *Eilika, abbess of Niedermünster *Beatrice (1040–1140), inherited Schweinfurt, married Henry II, Count of

Hildrizhausen Hildrizhausen is a municipality in the district of Böblingen in Baden-Württemberg in Germany. Geography Hildrizhausen, with its 3,615 inhabitants, is located on a clearing of the Schönbuch and about 9 kilometres south of Böblingen. In Hildri ...

and Margrave of the Nordgau With her second husband, Ekbert I, Immilla had the following children: * Ekbert II * Gertrude

References

*H. Bresslau, ''Jahrbücher des Deutschen Reichs unter Konrad II.'', 2 vols. (1884), accessible online at
archive.org
* C.W. Previté-Orton, ''The Early History of the House of Savoy (1000-1233)'' (Cambridge, 1912), accessible online at:
archive.org
*S. Hellmann, ''Die Grafen von Savoyen und das Reich: bis zum Ende der staufischen Periode'' (Innsbruck, 1900), accessible online (but without page numbers) at

*L. Fenske, ''Adelsopposition und kirchliche Reformbewegung im östlichen Sachsen. Entstehung und Wirkung des sächsischen Widerstandes gegen das salische Königtum während des Investiturstreites'' (1977).

External links

(brief biography and English translation of a legal document issued by Immilla)

(in German)

Notes

, - {{s-end Nobility from Turin 11th-century women regents 11th-century Italian nobility 11th-century German nobility 11th-century German women Margravines of Germany Margravines of Meissen Duchesses in Germany Duchesses of Swabia 11th-century Italian women 1078 deaths Remarried duchesses consort 11th-century Italian nuns 11th-century Christian nuns 11th-century regents Regents in the Holy Roman Empire