Bilichild (also Bilichildis, Bilichilde, or Blithilde) was the wife of the

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 ...

king of

Neustria Neustria was the western part of the Kingdom of the Franks. Neustria included the land between the Loire and the Silva Carbonaria, approximately the north of present-day France, with Paris, Orléans, Tours, Soissons as its main cities. It later ...

and

Burgundy Burgundy (; french: link=no, Bourgogne ) is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. The c ...

Childeric II Childeric II (c. 653 – 675) was the king of Austrasia from 662 and of Neustria and Burgundy from 673 until his death, making him sole King of the Franks for the final two years of his life. Childeric was the second eldest son of King Clovis ...

. The two were married in 668 despite the opposition of the Bishop

Leodegar Leodegar of Poitiers ( la, Leodegarius; french: Léger; 615 – October 2, 679 AD) was a martyred Burgundian Bishop of Autun. He was the son of Saint Sigrada and the brother of Saint Warinus. Leodegar was an opponent of Ebroin, the Frankish Ma ...

Family

Bilichild was a daughter of King

Sigebert III Sigebert III ( 630–656) was the Merovingian king of Austrasia from 633 to his death around 656. He was described as the first Merovingian '' roi fainéant'' —do-nothing king—, in effect the mayor of the palace ruling the kingdom throug ...

and Queen Chimnechild of Burgundy and granddaughter of King

Dagobert I Dagobert I ( la, Dagobertus; 605/603 – 19 January 639 AD) was the king of Austrasia (623–634), king of all the Franks (629–634), and king of Neustria and Burgundy (629–639). He has been described as the last king of the Merovingian dy ...

and his concubine Ragnétrude. Her siblings were

Dagobert II Dagobert II ( la, Dagober(c)tus; ang, Dægberht; died 679) was a Merovingian king of the Franks, ruling in Austrasia from 675 or 676 until his death. He is one of the more obscure Merovingians. He has been considered a martyr since at least the ni ...

and

Childebert the Adopted Childebert III the Adopted (''Childebertus Adoptivus'') was a Frankish king. Childebert was a son of the Mayor of the Palace Grimoald the Elder. He was thus a grandson of Pepin of Landen. He was adopted by King Sigebert III and Queen Chimnechi ...

. Children of Bilichild and her husband were Prince Dagobert and King

Chilperic II Chilperic II (c. 672 – 13 February 721), known as Daniel prior to his coronation, was the youngest son of Childeric II and his half-cousin wife, Bilichild. He reigned as king of Neustria from 715 and sole king of the Franks from 718 until hi ...

Biography

Childeric became sole king of the Franks in 673. While on a hunting trip in the Forest of

Lognes Lognes () is a community in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France from the center of Paris. The community of Lognes is part of the Val Maubuée sector, one of the four sector ...

, near Livry, in

Picardy Picardy (; Picard and french: Picardie, , ) is a historical territory and a former administrative region of France. Since 1 January 2016, it has been part of the new region of Hauts-de-France. It is located in the northern part of France. Hi ...

, Bilichild, along with her husband and her eldest son, the five-year-old Dagobert, were assassinated by a band of dissatisfied

ns—Bodilo, Amalbert and Ingobert. The royal trio was buried in

Saint-Germain-des-Prés Saint-Germain-des-Prés () is one of the four administrative quarters of the 6th arrondissement of Paris, France, located around the church of the former Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés. Its official borders are the River Seine on the no ...

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 ...

, where her tomb and that of Dagobert were discovered in 1645 and pilfered. Her younger son Daniel was whisked off to a monastery and from there returned forty years thence to lead the Franks as king under the name

. Oman, Charles. ''The Dark Ages, 476–918''. London: Rivingtons, 1914.

Sources

''Lexikon des Mittelalters''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bilichild 675 deaths Year of birth unknown Merovingian dynasty Murdered royalty Frankish queens consort Burgundian queens consort Burials at Saint-Germain-des-Prés (abbey) 7th-century Frankish women 7th-century Frankish nobility Daughters of kings

Family

Biography

See also

Sources