Adalard, also known as Adalhard or Alard, and called ''the Seneschal'', was a

Frankish Frankish may refer to: * Franks, a Germanic tribe and their culture ** Frankish language or its modern descendants, Franconian languages * Francia, a post-Roman state in France and Germany * East Francia, the successor state to Francia in Germany ...

nobleman Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The characteristi ...

of the 9th century. He served as warden of the Norman march from 861 to 865, and was

Lord Chancellor of France In France, under the ''Ancien Régime'', the officer of state responsible for the judiciary was the Chancellor of Francesometimes called Grand Chancellor or Lord Chancellor (french: Chancelier de France). The Chancellor was responsible for seei ...

under Louis the Pious. He was a son of

Leuthard I of Paris Leuthard I of Paris (died before 28 December 815) was count of Paris and Fézensac. He was the son of Gerard I of Paris and Rotrude. His brothers were the counts Stephen of Paris and Beggo of Paris. Around 781, Leuthard was sent by Charlemagne t ...

and brother of Gerard II of Paris.

Louis the Pious Louis the Pious (german: Ludwig der Fromme; french: Louis le Pieux; 16 April 778 – 20 June 840), also called the Fair, and the Debonaire, was King of the Franks and co-emperor with his father, Charlemagne, from 813. He was also King of Aqui ...

made him

seneschal The word ''seneschal'' () can have several different meanings, all of which reflect certain types of supervising or administering in a historic context. Most commonly, a seneschal was a senior position filled by a court appointment within a royal, ...

of the

Carolingian Empire The Carolingian Empire (800–888) was a large Frankish-dominated empire in western and central Europe during the Early Middle Ages. It was ruled by the Carolingian dynasty, which had ruled as kings of the Franks since 751 and as kings of the Lom ...

. On Louis' death, he joined

Charles the Bald Charles the Bald (french: Charles le Chauve; 13 June 823 – 6 October 877), also known as Charles II, was a 9th-century king of West Francia (843–877), king of Italy (875–877) and emperor of the Carolingian Empire (875–877). After a ser ...

and arranged a marriage between the king and

Ermentrude of Orléans Ermentrude of Orléans (27 September 823 – 6 October 869) was the List of Queens and Empresses of France, Queen of the Franks by her marriage to Charles the Bald, Charles II. Queenship The traditional historiography on queenship has create ...

, his niece by Ingeltrude of Fézansac and Odo, Count of Orléans. After the

Treaty of Verdun The Treaty of Verdun (), agreed in , divided the Francia, Frankish Empire into three kingdoms among the surviving sons of the emperor Louis the Pious, Louis I, the son and successor of Charlemagne. The treaty was concluded following almost three ...

(in 843), Adalard went to serve

Louis the German Louis the German (c. 806/810 – 28 August 876), also known as Louis II of Germany and Louis II of East Francia, was the first king of East Francia, and ruled from 843 to 876 AD. Grandson of emperor Charlemagne and the third son of Louis the P ...

East Francia East Francia (Medieval Latin: ) or the Kingdom of the East Franks () was a successor state of Charlemagne's Carolingian Empire, empire ruled by the Carolingian dynasty until 911. It was created through the Treaty of Verdun (843) which divided t ...

. In 861, after the revolt of Carloman, Louis' eldest son, Adalard and his relatives

Udo Udo is a masculine given name. It may refer to: People Medieval era *Udo of Neustria, 9th century nobleman * Udo (Obotrite prince) (died 1028) * Udo (archbishop of Trier) (c. 1030 – 1078) * Lothair Udo II, Margrave of the Nordmark (c. 1025 � ...

Berengar Berengar is a masculine name derived from Germanic roots meaning "bear" and "spear". The name appears frequently among certain noble families during the Middle Ages, especially the Unruochings and those related. Bérenger is the French form, while B ...

, and

Waldo Waldo may refer to: People * Waldo (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Waldo (surname), a list of people * Waldo (footballer) (1934-2019), full name Waldo Machado da Silva, Brazilian footballer Places Canada * Waldo, ...

took refuge at the court of Charles in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

. Charles granted him the Norman March of Neustria, to defend it against the

Vikings Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...

. However, he soon incited the jealousy of the

Rorgonids The Rorgonids were a powerful Frankish family dating from the eighth century. They are sometimes referred to as the first Mayennaise dynasty, referring to the city of Mayenne, and are the original counts of Maine. The Rorgonids were named after R ...

, then the most powerful clan in

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

. Allied with

Salomon, King of Brittany Salomon ( br, Salaün) (died 874) was Count of Rennes and Nantes from 852 and Duke of Brittany from 857 until his death by assassination. He used the title King of Brittany intermittently after 868. In 867, he was granted the counties of Avranches ...

, they revolted against him and made war. After peace was settled, Charles transferred the March to Gosfrid, the representative of the Rorgonids. He probably had a son

Adalhard of Metz Adalhard II (c. 840 – 2 Jan (?) 890) was Count of Metz and Mozelgau. He was probably the son of Adalard the Seneschal. Biography Rule Adalard is mentioned in documents from between the years 872 and 890 as Count in Metz Metz ( , , ...

Sources

*Riché, Pierre. ''Les Carolingiens, une famille qui fit l'Europe''. 1983. *Guillotel, Hubert. "Une autre marche de Neustrie." in

Christian Settipani Christian Settipani (born 31 January 1961) is a French genealogist, historian and IT professional, currently working as the Technical Director of a company in Paris. Biography Settipani holds a Master of Advanced Studies from the Paris-Sorbo ...

and Katharine S. B. Keats-Rohan, ''Onomastique et Parenté dans l'Occident médiéval''. 2000. {{noble-stub Conradines 9th-century people from West Francia House of Girard