Gunther or Gunthar (german: Günther; died 8 July 873) was Archbishop of Cologne in Germany from 850 until he was excommunicated and deposed in 863.

Life

Gunther belonged to a noble Frankish family and the maternal uncle of Radboud of Utrecht. According to the poet

Sedulius Scottus Sedulius Scotus or Scottus ( fl. 840–860) was an Irish teacher, Latin grammarian, and scriptural commentator who lived in the 9th century. During the reign of the Emperor Lothair (840–855), he was one of a colony of Irish teachers at Liège. ...

, Gunther was a man of great ability. He was consecrated Archbishop of Cologne on 22 April 850. For a long time he refused to cede his suffragan Diocese of Bremen to St. Ansgar who, in order to facilitate his missionary labours, desired to unite it with his

Archdiocese of Hamburg The Archdiocese of Hamburg (Lat. ''Archidioecesis Hamburgensis''; Ger. Erzbistum Hamburg) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese in the north of Germany and covers the Federal States of Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein as well as ...

. The affair was finally settled (c. 860) by Pope Nicholas I in favour of St. Ansgar, and Gunther reluctantly consented.Ott, Michael. "Günther of Cologne." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 7. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 27 December 2022 According to

Johann Peter Kirsch Johann Peter Kirsch (3 November 1861 – 4 February 1941) was a Luxembourgish ecclesiastical historian and biblical archaeologist. Life Johann Peter Kirsch was born in Dippach, Luxembourg, the son of Andreas and Katherine Didier Kirsch. At ...

, in 856 Ingiltrud, wife of Count

Boso the Elder Boso (or Boson) "the Elder" ( 800 – 855) was a Frankish Count of Turin and Count of Valois of the Bosonid dynasty. Family and issue He was married to Engeltrude. They had the following issue: * Boso, Count of Valois (d. 874) * Teutberga (d. ...

, had left her husband for one of his vassals.

Henry Hart Milman Henry Hart Milman (10 February 1791 – 24 September 1868) was an English historian and ecclesiastic. Life He was born in London, the third son of Sir Francis Milman, 1st Baronet, physician to King George III (see Milman Baronets). Educa ...

says that the Count abandoned his wife. Nicholas commanded the bishops in the dominions of

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 ...

to excommunicate her unless she returned to her husband. As she paid no attention to the summons to appear before the

Synod of Milan The Synod of Milan or Council of Milan may refer to any of several synods which occurred in late Roman Mediolanum or medieval Milan in northern Italy's Po valley: Synod of 345 In 353 or 354, Pope Liberius wrote thus: ''"Eight years ago the Euseb ...

in 860, she was put under the ban.Kirsch, Johann Peter. "Pope St. Nicholas I." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 11. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1911. 27 December 2022 Boso and Ingiltrud's daughter was

Teutberga Teutberga (died 11 November 875) was a queen of Lotharingia by marriage to Lothair II. She was a daughter of Bosonid Boso the Elder and sister of Hucbert, the lay-abbot of St. Maurice's Abbey. Life For political reasons, to forge ties of kinshi ...

; she married Lothair II in 855.''Monumenta Germanica Historica, tomus I: Annales Lobienses, anno 855'', p. 232 It is very likely that at the time of his marriage, Lothar II already had a mistress named

Waldrada Waldrada (also Vuldetrada) (531572), wife (firstly) of Theudebald, King of Austrasia (ruled 548–555), reputed mistress (secondly) of Chlothar I, King of the Franks (ruled until 561), was the daughter of Wacho, King of the Lombards (ruled ''ca''. ...

. According to historian Baron Ernouf, Gunther was Waldrada's uncle and Thietgaud,

Archbishop of Trier The Diocese of Trier, in English historically also known as ''Treves'' (IPA "tɾivz") from French ''Trèves'', is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic church in Germany.Baron Ernouf (1858) ''Histoire de Waldrade, de Lother II et de leurs descendants'', p. 5
/ref> According to the ''Annales Novienses'', Waldrada was Gunther's sister.''Veterum Scriptorum: Annales Novienses'', colonna 537. The ''Vita Sancti Deicoli'' says that Waldrada was related to Eberhard II, Count of Nordgau (included Strasbourg) family of

Etichonids The Etichonids were an important noble family, probably of Frankish, Burgundian or Visigothic origin, who ruled the Duchy of Alsace in the Early Middle Ages (7th–10th centuries). The dynasty is named for Eticho (also known as Aldarich), who r ...

.''Monumenta Germanica Historica, tomus XV.2, Vita Sancti Deicoli'', p. 679. Gunther had become

archchaplain An Archchaplain is a cleric with a senior position in a royal court. The title was used in the Frankish kingdom in the Carolingian period. Holy Roman Archchaplains * Willigis (c982-c1007) * Erkanbald Erkanbald (died 17 August 1021) was the ...

of King Lothair II, who wished to divorce of his lawful wife

. At a synod held at Aachen in January, and another in February, 860, a few bishops and abbots, under the leadership of Gunther, compelled Teutberga to declare that before her marriage with the king she had been violated by her brother. Upon her compulsory confession the king was allowed to discard her and she was condemned to a convent. At a third synod held at Aachen in April, 862, Gunther and a few other Lorraine bishops allowed the king to marry his concubine

. Nicholas I sent two

legate Legate may refer to: *Legatus, a higher ranking general officer of the Roman army drawn from among the senatorial class :*Legatus Augusti pro praetore, a provincial governor in the Roman Imperial period *A member of a legation *A representative, ...

s to investigate the case, but the king bribed them, and at a synod which they held in Metz, in June, 863, the divorce was approved. Gunther and his tool Thietgaud, were bold enough to bring the acts of the synod to the pope and ask for his approval. The pope convened a synod in the

Lateran 250px, Basilica and Palace - side view Lateran and Laterano are the shared names of several buildings in Rome. The properties were once owned by the Lateranus family of the Roman Empire. The Laterani lost their properties to Emperor Constantine ...

in October, 863, at which the decision of the Synod of Metz was rejected, and Gunther and Thietgaud, who refused to submit, were

excommunicated Excommunication is an institutional act of religious censure used to end or at least regulate the communion of a member of a congregation with other members of the religious institution who are in normal communion with each other. The purpose ...

and deposed. The two archbishops drew up a calumnious document of seven chapters (reprinted in P. L., CXXI, 377-380) in which they accused the pope of having unjustly excommunicated them. They sent copies of the document to the pope, the rebellious Photius, patriarch of Constantinople, and to the bishops of Lorraine. The pope, however, did not waver even when Emperor Louis II appeared before Rome with an army for the purpose of forcing him to withdraw the ban of excommunication from the archbishops. Though excommunicated and deposed, Gunther returned to Cologne and performed ecclesiastical functions on Maundy Thursday, 864. When, however, the other bishops of Lorraine and King Lothair submitted to the pope, Gunther and Thietgaud appeared before the synod which the pope convened at Rome in November, 864, asking to be released from excommunication and restored to their sees, but they were unsuccessful. After the accession of

pope Adrian II Pope Adrian II ( la, Adrianus II; also Hadrian II; 79214 December 872) was the bishop of Rome and ruler of the Papal States from 867 to his death. He continued the policy of his predecessor, Nicholas I. Despite seeking good relations with Louis ...

, Gunther and Thietgaud returned to Rome in 867. Thietgaud was now freed from the ban, but Gunther remained excommunicated until the summer of 869, when, after a public retraction (P. L., CXXI, 381), he was admitted by the pope to

lay communion ''Lay communion'' is a term applied in the Catholic Church, to describe the status of a cleric who is in communion with the Church, but only with the standing of a lay person. In modern times lay communion is sometimes imposed, but only in exceptio ...

Monte Cassino Monte Cassino (today usually spelled Montecassino) is a rocky hill about southeast of Rome, in the Latin Valley, Italy, west of Cassino and at an elevation of . Site of the Roman town of Casinum, it is widely known for its abbey, the first ho ...

abbey. The See of Cologne had in 864 been given by Lothair to the subdeacon Hugh, a nephew of

. He was deposed in 866 and Gunther regained his see. Being under the ban, Gunther engaged his brother Hilduin of Cambrai to perform ecclesiastical functions in his place. After the death of Gunther's protector, Lothair II, Wilbert was elected Archbishop of Cologne (7 January, 870). Seeing that all efforts to regain his see would be useless, Gunther acknowledged the new archbishop and left Cologne for good. He died in 873.

References

Bibliography

*
Baron Ernouf (1858) ''Histoire de Waldrade, de Lother II et de leurs descendants'' (Paris)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gunther 873 deaths Archbishops of Cologne 9th-century archbishops People temporarily excommunicated by the Catholic Church Year of birth unknown