Bertrude, Countess of Vermandois (c. 582–618 or 619) was a Countess of

Vermandois Vermandois was a French county that appeared in the Merovingian period. Its name derives from that of an ancient tribe, the Viromandui. In the 10th century, it was organised around two castellan domains: St Quentin (Aisne) and Péronne (Somme ...

and a Frankish queen consort from 613 to 618. She was married to

Chlothar II Chlothar II, sometime called "the Young" (French: le Jeune), (May/June 584 – 18 October 629), was king of Neustria and king of the Franks, and the son of Chilperic I and his third wife, Fredegund. He started his reign as an infant under the ...

.''Chronicle of Fredegar'' Her origins are uncertain and unconfirmed; however, it is known that the Mayor of the Palace

Erchinoald Erchinoald (also ''Erkinoald'' and, in French, ''Erchenout'') succeeded Aega as the mayor of the palace of Neustria in 641 and succeeded Flaochad in Burgundy in 642 and remained such until his death in 658. Family According to Fredegar, he was a ...

was King Dagobert I’s cousin through his mother, making her the sister of Saint Gerberge and, therefore, a daughter of Richomer and Saint Gertrude of Hamage. Because Chlothar had three wives (Haldetrude, Bertrude, and Sichilde) and it is not known which was mother of his sons Dagobert I and

Charibert II Charibert II (607/617–8 April 632), a son of Clotaire II and his junior wife Sichilde, was briefly King of Aquitaine from 629 to his death, with his capital at Toulouse. There are no direct statements about when Charibert was born exactly, ...

, it is not clear this daughter of Richomer was Bertrude. It is also possible Bertrude was a daughter of Wagon II. According to the '' Chronique du Pseudo-Frédégaire'', Bertrude loved Chlothar sincerely. She was also described as a popular queen. She is reported to have exposed and prevented an attempted plot by the Burgundian Aletheus, who planned to kill Chlothar and force Bertrude to marry him.Bush, Annie Forbes. ''Memoirs of the Queens of France'', Parry & Macmillan, 1854, p. 59
/ref> Bertrude died during the 35th year of Chlothar II’s reign, in either 618 or 619. Their daughter was called Bertha.

References

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 ...

. ''Les Ancêtres de Charlemagne'', 1989. . * {{authority control Frankish queens consort Year of death uncertain Burials at Saint-Germain-des-Prés (abbey) 7th-century Frankish women Counts of Vermandois 7th-century Frankish nobility