Willibad, also spelled Willebad or Willihad (died 642), was the Patrician of
Burgundian Provence) in the first half of the seventh century. Willibad may have been a
Frank or perhaps a
Burgundian, one of the last representatives of the native nobility which had been subdued by the Franks in 534. He died in the
Battle of Autun in 642/643.
The centre of Willibad's power was
Lyon
Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...
,
Vienne, and
Valence. Willibad's influence in Burgundy, though immense, was not absolute. Among his enemies were the dukes
Chramnelenus of Besançon,
Wandalbert of Chambly, and
Amalgar of Dijon.
The clan of
Waldelenus and the supporters of
Columban also opposed him.
Willibad had a long-running feud with
Flaochad Flaochad (or Flaochat) was the mayor of the palace of Burgundy from 639 to 642. He was appointed by Nanthild, the queen mother, who gave him her niece, Ragnobert, in marriage. She called together the chief magnates and bishops of the kingdom at Orl ...
when the latter was appointed
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 Burgundy in 639. Flaochad immediately set out to destroy Willibad. At a court at
Chalon
Chalon may refer to:
Culture
*Chalon people, a Native American tribe of California
*Chalon language, an Ohlone language spoken by the Chalon people
Places
*Chalon, Isère, formerly Châlons, in France's Isère ''département''
*Le Chalon, in th ...
, Flaochad tried to assassinate him, but, failing, instead left his palace to challenge him to a duel, which Flaochad's brother Amalbert prevented from happening.
Finally,
Clovis II
Clovis II (633 – 657) was King of the Franks in Neustria and Burgundy, having succeeded his father Dagobert I in 639. His brother Sigebert III had been King of Austrasia since 634. He was initially under the regency of his mother Nanth ...
, conspiring with Flaochad, held a court near
Autun
Autun () is a Subprefectures in France, subprefecture of the Saône-et-Loire Departments of France, department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Regions of France, region of central-eastern France. It was founded during the Principate era of the e ...
and summoned Willibad. The two Burgundian magnates met in battle and Willibad was killed. Flaochad only survived him eleven days. According to
Fredegar
The ''Chronicle of Fredegar'' is the conventional title used for a 7th-century Franks, Frankish chronicle that was probably written in Burgundy. The author is unknown and the attribution to Fredegar dates only from the 16th century.
The chronic ...
, who seems to have been personally interested in this event, the last which he recorded, both were the victims of divine judgement, for they had sworn friendship in holy places and had subsequently despoiled land to enrich themselves and made war on each other. After the battle at Autun, Willibad's tent had been pillaged and his wealth dispersed. A
hoard of coins found at Buis in
Saône-et-Loire
Saône-et-Loire (; Arpitan: ''Sona-et-Lêre'') is a department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in France. It is named after the rivers Saône and Loire, between which it lies, in the country's central-eastern part.
Saône-et-Loire is B ...
have been hypothesized to be from his treasure.
Notes
Sources
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{{refend
640s deaths
Burgundian people
7th-century Frankish nobility
Year of birth unknown