Hunfrid ( la, Unfredus) was the

Margrave of Istria The March of Istria (or Margraviate of Istria ) was originally a Carolingian frontier march covering the Istrian peninsula and surrounding territory conquered by Charlemagne's son Pepin of Italy in 789. After 1364, it was the name of the Istria ...

and, according to some sources,

Duke of Friuli The dukes and margraves of Friuli were the rulers of the Duchy and March of Friuli in the Middle Ages. The dates given below, when contentious, are discussed in the articles of the respective dukes. Lombard dukes * 568–c.584 Grasulf I * 5 ...

from 799 to 804, when a Duke John was ruling Istria. He was the founder of the family called the

Hunfridings 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, Margrave ...

. Hunfrid first appears in Istria as ''marchio'' in 799, the same year that

Eric of Friuli Eric (also ''Heirichus'' or ''Ehericus''; died 799) was the Duke of Friuli (''dux Foroiulensis'') from 789 to his death. He was the eldest son of Gerold of Vinzgouw and by the marriage of his sister Hildegard the brother-in-law of Charlemagne. B ...

died. He was probably an Aleman, although the historian of early medieval Raetia, Elizabeth Meyer-Marthaler, considered him of

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 ...

origin. He was the count of

Rhaetia Raetia ( ; ; also spelled Rhaetia) was a province of the Roman Empire, named after the Rhaetian people. It bordered on the west with the country of the Helvetii, on the east with Noricum, on the north with Vindelicia, on the south-west with Tr ...

in 806 and 808. A record of his presiding over a public court at

Rankweil Rankweil is a town in the westernmost Austrian state of Vorarlberg, in the district Feldkirch. It is the second largest town in the district Feldkirch and the eighth largest town in Vorarlberg. Geography Rankweil is located in the southern Rhine ...

in his capacity as count of Rhaeta (''Reciarum comis'') survives. He interrogated witnesses, ordered boundaries of a disputed property walked out, ordered judges (''scabini'') to make a finding and issued a verdict in writing. The surviving record describes him as a '' vir inluster''.Jennifer R. Davis, ''Charlemagne's Practice of Empire'' (Cambridge University Press, 2015), 65. Based on his presence in a list of personages in the ''libri memoriales'' of Reichenau and Sankt Gallen, he is presumed to have married Hitta (Hidda), an Udalriching and probably the niece or granddaughter of

Gerold of Vinzgouw Gerold of Vinzgau (also ''Vintzgouw'' or ''Anglachgau''; 725 - 799) was a count in Kraichgau and Anglachgau.{{sfn, Lapidge, 2017, p=5 His daughter married King Charlemagne in 771.{{sfn, Lapidge, 2017, p=5-6 In 784 generous donations to the monast ...

and thus a cousin or niece of Hunfrid's predecessor in Italy, Eric. Based on the same memorial books, he is probably the father of

Adalbert Adalbert is a German given name which means "noble bright" or "noble shining", derived from the words ''adal'' (meaning noble) and ''berht'' (shining or bright). Alternative spellings include Adelbart, Adelbert and Adalberto. Derivative names inclu ...

, his successor in Rhaetia,

Odalric Ulrich (), is a German given name, derived from Old High German ''Uodalrich'', ''Odalric''. It is composed of the elements ''Othala rune, uodal-'' meaning "(noble) heritage" and ''-rich'' meaning "rich, powerful". Attested from the 8th century as th ...

, who became

Count of Barcelona The Count of Barcelona ( ca, Comte de Barcelona, es, Conde de Barcelona, french: Comte de Barcelone, ) was the ruler of the County of Barcelona and also, by extension and according with the Usages of Barcelona, usages and Catalan constitutions, of ...

in another part of the

Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

, and Hunfrid II, who became ''dux super Redicam'' (duke over Rhaetia) and father of the later Hunfriding

Dukes of Swabia The Dukes of Swabia were the rulers of the Duchy of Swabia during the Middle Ages. Swabia was one of the five stem duchies of the medieval German kingdom, and its dukes were thus among the most powerful magnates of Germany. The most notable family ...

Notes

References

Medieval Lands Project: Nobility of Northern Italy (900–1100).
{{Margraves of Istria Dukes of Friuli Margraves of Istria Alemannic people 8th-century births 9th-century deaths Hunfridings