Bernard, son of Charles Martel

Bernard or Bernhard de Saint Quentin (d'Herstal), Abby of von St. Quentin, Abbot of St. Quentin (c.720-787) was a son of Charles Martel by his mistress Ruodhaid. He was thus a half Brother of the Frankish King Pepin the Short, and Uncle to the First Emperor in Western Europe since Romulus Augustulus in 476, Charlemagne. He was brother to Hieronymus and Remigius of Rouen, who were all denied any claim in the legacy of their father.

In 760, he and his two brothers (Hieronymus and Remigius) went to Italy on behalf of their half-brother Pepin to mediate between Pope Paul I and Desiderius. They convinced Desiderius to return some of the cities he captured back to the papacy, but the Lombard king did not follow through on his promises.[1]

He is a somewhat obscure figure, rising out of the mists only to lead half of the Frankish army in his nephew Charlemagne's Lombard campaign. While Charlemagne led his contingent through the pass of Moncenisio, Bernard led his through the Great St. Bernard Pass.[2]

Background

He is known to have had two sons, and has been speculated to have had a daughter:

Bernard was prominent in the reign of Charlemagne's son Louis the Pious:

Ancestry

References
  1. Frassetto, Michael (2003). Encyclopedia of Barbarian Europe: Society in Transformation. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO. p.142 ISBN 978-1-57607-263-9
  2. Mombert, Jacob Isidor. A History of Charles the Great, D. Appleton, 1888, p.90


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.