Gertrude of Süpplingenburg (18 April 1115 – 18 April 1143) was, by her two successive marriages,
Duchess of Bavaria from 1127 to 1138,
Margravine of Tuscany from 1136 to 1139, and
Duchess of Saxony
This is a list of the Duchesses, Electresses and Queens of Saxony; the consorts of the Duke of Saxony and its successor states; including the Electorate of Saxony, the Kingdom of Saxony, the House of Ascania, Albertine, and the Ernestine Saxony. ...
from 1137 to 1138,
Margravine of Austria
This is a list of the Austrian empresses, archduchesses, duchesses and margravines, wives of the rulers of Austria. The monarchy in Austria was abolished at the end of the First World War in 1918.
The different titles lasted just a little unde ...
and again Duchess of Bavaria until her death. She was
regent
A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...
of Saxony during the minority of her son in 1139–1142.
Life
Gertrude was the only child of
Lothair of Supplinburg
Lothair III, sometimes numbered Lothair II and also known as Lothair of Supplinburg (1075 – 4 December 1137), was Holy Roman Emperor from 1133 until his death. He was appointed Duke of Saxony in 1106 and elected King of Germany in 1125 before ...
, Duke of
Saxony
Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a ...
, and his wife
Richenza of Northeim
Richenza of Northeim (c. 1087/1089 – 10 June 1141) was Duchess of Saxony from 1106, Queen of Germany from 1125 and Holy Roman Empress from 1133 as the wife of Lothair of Supplinburg.
Family
She was the daughter of Count Henry the Fat of Nort ...
. After the death of the last
Salian
The Salian dynasty or Salic dynasty (german: Salier) was a dynasty in the High Middle Ages. The dynasty provided four kings of Germany (1024–1125), all of whom went on to be crowned Holy Roman emperors (1027–1125).
After the death of the la ...
emperor
Henry V Henry V may refer to:
People
* Henry V, Duke of Bavaria (died 1026)
* Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor (1081/86–1125)
* Henry V, Duke of Carinthia (died 1161)
* Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine (c. 1173–1227)
* Henry V, Count of Luxembourg (121 ...
, her father, backed by Archbishop
Adalbert of Mainz
Adalbert I von Saarbrücken (died June 23, 1137) was Archbishop-Elector of Mainz from 1111 until his death. He played a key role in opposing Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor, during the Investiture Controversy, and secured the election of Lothair II ...
was elected
King of the Romans
King of the Romans ( la, Rex Romanorum; german: König der Römer) was the title used by the king of Germany following his election by the princes from the reign of Henry II (1002–1024) onward.
The title originally referred to any German k ...
in 1125, and ruled as
Holy Roman Emperor
The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans ( la, Imperator Romanorum, german: Kaiser der Römer) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period ( la, Imperat ...
from 1133 to 1137.
First marriage
Gertrude was married to
Henry the Proud
Henry the Proud (german: Heinrich der Stolze) (20 October 1139), a member of the House of Welf, was Duke of Bavaria (as Henry X) from 1126 to 1138 and Duke of Saxony (as Henry II) as well as Margrave of Tuscany and Duke of Spoleto fro ...
, Duke of
Bavaria
Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total l ...
, a dynastic arrangement meant to strengthen ties to the
Welf dynasty
The House of Welf (also Guelf or Guelph) is a European dynasty that has included many German and British monarchs from the 11th to 20th century and Emperor Ivan VI of Russia in the 18th century. The originally Franconian family from the Meus ...
. The lavish wedding ceremony was held on 29 May 1127 on the
Lech fields near
Augsburg
Augsburg (; bar , Augschburg , links=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swabian_German , label=Swabian German, , ) is a city in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany, around west of Bavarian capital Munich. It is a university town and regional seat of the ' ...
. Indeed, Duke Henry became a loyal supporter in Lothair's struggle with the rivalling
House of Hohenstaufen
The Hohenstaufen dynasty (, , ), also known as the Staufer, was a noble family of unclear origin that rose to rule the Duchy of Swabia from 1079, and to royal rule in the Holy Roman Empire during the Middle Ages from 1138 until 1254. The dynas ...
. The marriage also marked a significant increase of the Welf power: in 1136 Lothair vested Henry with the Italian
March of Tuscany
The March of Tuscany ( it, Marca di Tuscia; ) was a march of the Kingdom of Italy and the Holy Roman Empire during the Middle Ages. Located in northwestern central Italy, it bordered the Papal States to the south, the Ligurian Sea to the we ...
and, after the death of his father-in-law in 1137, Henry also succeeded him as Duke of Saxony. He furthermore inherited extended Saxon
allod In the law of the Middle Ages and early Modern Period and especially within the Holy Roman Empire, an allod ( Old Low Franconian ''allōd'' ‘fully owned estate’, from ''all'' ‘full, entire’ and ''ōd'' ‘estate’, Medieval Latin ''allodiu ...
ial lands around
Süpplingenburg
Süpplingenburg is a municipality in the district of Helmstedt, Lower Saxony, Germany. It is part of the collective municipality ('' Samtgemeinde'') of Nord-Elm.
The village developed next to a 10th-century water castle at the Schunter riv ...
,
Brunswick and
Northeim
Northeim (; nds, Nuurten) is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany, seat of the district of Northeim, with, in 2011, a population of 29,000. It lies on the German Half-Timbered House Road.
History
Northeim is first mentioned in 800 in a document ...
. According to the contemporary chronicler
Otto of Freising
Otto of Freising ( la, Otto Frisingensis; c. 1114 – 22 September 1158) was a German churchman of the Cistercian order and chronicled at least two texts which carries valuable information on the political history of his own time. He was Otto I ...
he ruled over a realm that stretched "from
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark
, establish ...
to
Sicily
(man) it, Siciliana (woman)
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title =
, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 = Ethnicity
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographi ...
". Henry and Gertrude had one son,
Henry the Lion
Henry the Lion (german: Heinrich der Löwe; 1129/1131 – 6 August 1195) was a member of the Welf dynasty who ruled as the duke of Saxony and Bavaria from 1142 and 1156, respectively, until 1180.
Henry was one of the most powerful German p ...
, born in 1129, who later became Duke of Saxony and Bavaria.
Gertrude's husband had received the
Imperial Regalia
The Imperial Regalia, also called Imperial Insignia (in German ''Reichskleinodien'', ''Reichsinsignien'' or ''Reichsschatz''), are regalia of the Holy Roman Emperor. The most important parts are the Crown, the Imperial orb, the Imperial s ...
from his father-in-law, however, as much powerful as arrogant, he failed to succeed Lothair as King of the Romans, when he was defeated by his Hohenstaufen rival
Conrad III
Conrad III (german: Konrad; it, Corrado; 1093 or 1094 – 15 February 1152) of the Hohenstaufen dynasty was from 1116 to 1120 Duke of Franconia, from 1127 to 1135 anti-king of his predecessor Lothair III and from 1138 until his death in 1152 ...
in the
imperial election of 1138. Refusing to pay tribute, he was
banned
A ban is a formal or informal prohibition of something. Bans are formed for the prohibition of activities within a certain political territory. Some bans in commerce are referred to as embargoes. ''Ban'' is also used as a verb similar in meaning ...
and stripped off his Bavarian and Saxon duchies, which Conrad gave to his rivals Margrave
Leopold of Austria and the
Ascanian
The House of Ascania (german: Askanier) was a dynasty of German rulers. It is also known as the House of Anhalt, which refers to its longest-held possession, Anhalt.
The Ascanians are named after Ascania (or Ascaria) Castle, known as ''Schlos ...
margrave
Albert the Bear
Albert the Bear (german: Albrecht der Bär; 1100 – 18 November 1170) was the first margrave of Brandenburg from 1157 to his death and was briefly duke of Saxony between 1138 and 1142.
Life
Albert was the only son of Otto, Count of Bal ...
respectively. While defending his rights in Saxony, Henry suddenly died at
Quedlinburg
Quedlinburg () is a town situated just north of the Harz mountains, in the district of Harz in the west of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. As an influential and prosperous trading centre during the early Middle Ages, Quedlinburg became a center of in ...
1139, leaving Gertrude alone with their ten-year-old son.
Regent
Acting as Saxon regent, Gertrude with the aid of her mother Empress Richenza was able to secure the inheritance rights of her son by reaching a consent with the Hohenstaufen King Conrad III. In 1142 Henry the Lion was finally vested with the Duchy of Saxony by King Conrad III, after Albert the Bear renounced his rights. Henry the Lion himself in turn renounced his succession in the Duchy of Bavaria, which Conrad ceded to the
Babenberg
The House of Babenberg was a noble dynasty of Austrian Dukes and Margraves. Originally from Bamberg in the Duchy of Franconia (present-day Bavaria), the Babenbergs ruled the imperial Margraviate of Austria from its creation in 976 AD until its ...
margrave
Henry II Jasomirgott of Austria.
Second marriage
Gertrude and Henry II married on 1 May 1142 in Brunswick. They had one daughter, Richenza (b. 1143 - d. 1200), later wife of Landgrave Heinrich V of Steffling. The marriage produced no male heirs, as Gertrude died in childbirth at
Klosterneuburg Monastery
Klosterneuburg Abbey or Monastery (german: Stift Klosterneuburg) is a twelfth-century Augustinian monastery of the Roman Catholic Church located in the town of Klosterneuburg in Lower Austria. Overlooking the Danube, just north of the Vienna city ...
in Austria on 18 April 1143, which was her 28th birthday. She was buried at
Schottenstift, Vienna
The Schottenstift ( en, Scottish Abbey), formally called Benediktinerabtei unserer Lieben Frau zu den Schotten ( en, Benedictine Abbey of Our Dear Lady of the Scots), is a Catholic monastery founded in Vienna in 1155 when Henry II of Austria bro ...
.
Henry Jasomirgott later married his second wife,
Theodora Komnene, a niece of the Byzantine Emperor
Manuel I Komnenos
Manuel I Komnenos ( el, Μανουήλ Κομνηνός, translit=Manouíl Komnenos, translit-std=ISO; 28 November 1118 – 24 September 1180), Latinized Comnenus, also called Porphyrogennetos (; " born in the purple"), was a Byzantine empero ...
. In 1152 King Conrad was succeeded by his nephew
Frederick Barbarossa
Frederick Barbarossa (December 1122 – 10 June 1190), also known as Frederick I (german: link=no, Friedrich I, it, Federico I), was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1155 until his death 35 years later. He was elected King of Germany in Frankfurt ...
, who vested Gertrude's son Henry the Lion with the Duchy of Bavaria in 1156.
Ancestry
References
Sources
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gertrude Of Supplingenburg
1115 births
1143 deaths
12th-century Italian nobility
12th-century viceregal rulers
Margravines of Germany
Duchesses of Bavaria
Austrian royal consorts
Duchesses of Saxony
Burials at Heiligenkreuz Abbey
12th-century women rulers
12th-century Italian women
12th-century German women
House of Süpplinburger
Deaths in childbirth
Daughters of emperors
Royal reburials
Daughters of kings
Lothair III, Holy Roman Emperor