Bertha of Swabia (french: Berthe; german: Berta; AD – after January 2, 966), a member of the Alemannic

Hunfriding The Hunfridings or Burchardings (''Bouchardids'') were a family of probably Alemannic origin who rose to prominence in their homeland, eventually becoming the first ducal dynasty of Swabia. The first known member of the family was Hunfrid, Margrav ...

dynasty, was queen of Burgundy from 922 until 937 and

queen of Italy Queen of Italy (also known as Terrace) is a solitaire card game played with two decks of playing cards. It is a very strategic game that rewards careful planning, since the cards that potentially block the game are presented at the start, and with ...

from 922 until 926, by her marriage with King

Rudolph II Rudolf II (18 July 1552 – 20 January 1612) was Holy Roman Emperor (1576–1612), King of Hungary and Croatia (as Rudolf I, 1572–1608), King of Bohemia (1575–1608/1611) and Archduke of Austria (1576–1608). He was a member of the Ho ...

. She was again queen of Italy during her second marriage with King

Hugh Hugh may refer to: *Hugh (given name) Noblemen and clergy French * Hugh the Great (died 956), Duke of the Franks * Hugh Magnus of France (1007–1025), co-King of France under his father, Robert II * Hugh, Duke of Alsace (died 895), modern-day ...

from 937 until his death in 948.

Life

Bertha was the daughter of Duke Burchard II of Swabia and his wife

Regelinda Regelinda (german: Reg(e)lindis; - 21 March aft. 1014), a member of the Polish Piast dynasty, was Margravine of Meissen from 1009 until her death by her marriage with Margrave Herman I. Life She was the daughter of the Polish King Bolesław ...

. In 922, she was married to the Burgundian king Rudolph II. The

Welf Welf is a Germanic first name that may refer to: *Welf (father of Judith), 9th century Frankish count, father-in-law of Louis the Pious *Welf I, d. bef. 876, count of Alpgau and Linzgau *Welf II, Count of Swabia, died 1030, supposed descendant of W ...

rulers of

Upper Burgundy The Kingdom of Upper Burgundy was a Frankish dominion established in 888 by the Welf king Rudolph I of Burgundy on the territory of former Middle Francia. It grew out of the Carolingian margraviate of Transjurane Burgundy (''Transjurania'', ...

had campaigned the adjacent Swabian

Thurgau Thurgau (; french: Thurgovie; it, Turgovia), anglicized as Thurgovia, more formally the Canton of Thurgau, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of five districts and its capital is Frauenfeld. Thurgau is par ...

region several times, and the marriage was meant as a gesture of reconciliation. With her husband Rudolph, Bertha founded the church of Amsoldingen. Rudolph died in 937, whereupon Bertha married King Hugh of Italy in what is today Colombier on 12 December 937. This marriage was not a happy one; when Hugh died in 947, Bertha returned to Burgundy. Between 950 and 960, Bertha founded

Payerne Priory Payerne Priory (also known as Payerne Abbey, Abbey of Our Lady of Payerne or Peterlingen Priory; Latin: monasterium Paterniacense) was a Cluniac monastery at Payerne, in Vaud, Switzerland. The monastery is a Swiss heritage site of national sig ...

, where she was buried. Up to today she is venerated as "Good Queen Bertha" (''La reine Berthe'') in the Swiss

Romandy Romandy (french: Romandie or )Before World War I, the term French Switzerland (french: Suisse française) waalso used german: Romandie or , it, Romandia, rm, Romanda) is the French-speaking part of western Switzerland. In 2020, about 2 milli ...

region, mainly in

Vaud Vaud ( ; french: (Canton de) Vaud, ; german: (Kanton) Waadt, or ), more formally the canton of Vaud, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of ten districts and its capital city is Lausanne. Its coat of arms b ...

, and numerous myths and legends have evolved about her life. Reine Berthe et les fileueses, 1888

Issue

Bertha and Rudolph had: *

Adelaide of Italy Adelaide of Italy (german: Adelheid; 931 – 16 December 999 AD), also called Adelaide of Burgundy, was Holy Roman Empress by marriage to Emperor Otto the Great; she was crowned with him by Pope John XII in Rome on 2 February 962. She was the ...

, who became

Holy Roman Empress The Holy Roman Empress or Empress of the Holy Roman Empire (''Kaiserin des Heiligen Römischen Reiches'') was the wife or widow of the Holy Roman Emperor. The elective dignity of Holy Roman emperor was restricted to males only, but some empresse ...

as consort of Emperor

Otto I Otto I (23 November 912 – 7 May 973), traditionally known as Otto the Great (german: Otto der Große, it, Ottone il Grande), was East Frankish king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the oldest son of He ...

* Conrad succeeded as King of Burgundy upon his father's death in 937

References

Sources

* *

External links

*
Legend associated with the Queen Bertha
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bertha of Swabia 900s births 10th-century births Italian queens consort Burgundian queens consort Queens consort of Lower Burgundy Remarried royal consorts German duchesses 10th-century Italian women 10th-century deaths Queen mothers