Lambert II (died 852) was the

Count of Nantes The counts of Nantes were originally the Frankish rulers of the Nantais under the Carolingians and eventually a capital city of the Duchy of Brittany. Their county served as a march against the Bretons of the Vannetais. Carolingian rulers would so ...

and

Prefect Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area. A prefect's ...

of the

Breton March The Marches of Neustria (french: Marches de Neustrie; br, Marz Neustria; Norman: ''Maurches de Neûtrie'') were two marches created in 861 by the Carolingian king of West Francia Charles the Bald. They were ruled by officials appointed by the Mo ...

between 843 and 851. Lambert ruled the county in opposition to Amaury, the puppet count installed by

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 ser ...

, King of

West Francia In medieval history, West Francia (Medieval Latin: ) or the Kingdom of the West Franks () refers to the western part of the Frankish Empire established by Charlemagne. It represents the earliest stage of the Kingdom of France, lasting from about ...

. At his death, the county was effectively in Breton control. Lambert was the son of Lambert I and his wife Itta.

Defeat of Renaud

Lambert initially served Charles the Bald, fighting with him at the Battle of Fontenay (841). He turned against Charles when his rival

Renaud d'Herbauges Renaud (795–843) was Frankish Count of Herbauges, Count of Poitiers and Count of Nantes. His name is also spelled Rainaldus or Ragenold, and he is sometimes known as Reginald in English. He is referred to as Renaud of Aquitaine, but seems to h ...

was made Count of Nantes in place of him. Disappointed in his ambitions, Lambert II broke with Charles the Bald and turned to

Nominoe Nominoe or Nomenoe (french: Nominoë; br, Nevenoe; c. 800, 7 March 851) was the first Duke of Brittany from 846 to his death. He is the Breton ''pater patriae'' and to Breton nationalists he is known as ' ("father of the country"). ...

, Duke of Brittany, who was then in almost open revolt against the Franks. Lambert gathered soldiers on the borders of the Anjou, intending to advance on the river

Vilaine The Vilaine (; br, Gwilen) is a river in Brittany, in the west of France. The river's source is in the Mayenne ''département'' (53), and it flows out into the Atlantic Ocean at Pénestin in the Morbihan ''département'' (56). It is 218 km ...

to join his forces with Nominoe. Renaud fortified Nantes, but learning of a serious illness that had temporarily incapacitated Nominoe, he decided to strike first. Renaud invaded Breton territory at the junction of the

Diocese of Alet The former French Catholic diocese of Alet (Lat.: ''Electensis'') was created in 1317 from territory formerly in the diocese of Narbonne. The diocese continued until the French Revolution when it was suppressed by the Concordat of 1801. Alet-les-B ...

and

County of Nantes The counts of Nantes were originally the Frankish rulers of the Nantais under the Carolingians and eventually a capital city of the Duchy of Brittany. Their county served as a march against the Bretons of the Vannetais. Carolingian rulers would s ...

, on the Roman road of

Angers Angers (, , ) is a city in western France, about southwest of Paris. It is the prefecture of the Maine-et-Loire department and was the capital of the province of Anjou until the French Revolution. The inhabitants of both the city and the prov ...

Carhaix Carhaix-Plouguer (; br, Karaez-Plougêr ), commonly known as just Carhaix (), is a Communes of France, commune in the Departments of France, French department of Finistère, region of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany, France.

. An army of Bretons led by Nominoe's son Prince

Erispoe Erispoe (french: Erispoë; la, Herispoius, Herispogius, Respogius; died 2 or 12 November 857) was Duke of Brittany from 851 to his death. After the death of his father Nominoe, he led a successful military campaign against the Franks, culminating ...

was crossing the Vilaine at Messac when Renaud attacked. At the

Battle of Messac The Battle of Blain, also called the Battle of Messac, was fought on 24 May 843 by the forces of Lambert II of Nantes and Erispoe, prince of Brittany, against Renaud, Frankish Count of Nantes. It arose from Breton resistance to Frankish power wi ...

, Erispoe was initially defeated by Renaud. Shortly afterwards, however, the timely arrival of Lambert's troops allowed Erispoe to counter-attack in force, defeating Renaud. Renaud himself was killed the day afterwards, during the pursuit. The allies may also have been assisted by the Viking warlord

Hastein Hastein (Old Norse: ''Hásteinn'', also recorded as ''Hastingus'', ''Anstign'', ''Haesten'', ''Hæsten'', ''Hæstenn'' or ''Hæsting'' and alias ''Alsting''Jones, Aled (2003). ''Transactions of the Royal Historical Society: Sixth Series'' Cambridge ...

, who is said to have personally killed Renaud.André Chédeville & Hubert Guillotel, ''La Bretagne des saints et des rois Ve-Xe siècle'', Ouest France, Université Rennes, (1984) However, other sources assert that Lambert killed Renaud and that the Viking force arrived shortly afterwards, looking for plunder. Lambert occupied Nantes, but was unable to hold it. The Vikings sacked the town and killed its bishop.

Janet L. Nelson Dame Janet Laughland Nelson (born 1942), also known as Jinty Nelson, is a British historian. She is Emerita Professor of Medieval History at King's College London. Early life Born on 28 March 1942 in Blackpool, Nelson was educated at Keswic ...

, ''The Annals of St-Bertin'', Manchester University Press, 1991, p.55, 58 Charles the Bald appointed Amaury to replace Renaud. In the following year Bernard of Poitiers formed an alliance with Renaud's son Hervé, Count of Herbauges against Lambert. Lambert and the Bretons ambushed and killed them both in

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

Reconciliation and renewed rebellion

Lambert became a consistent ally of Nominoe and Erispoe, fighting with Nominoe against Charles at the

Battle of Ballon The Battle of Ballon took place on 22 November 845 between the forces of Charles the Bald, king of West Francia, and Nominoë, Duke of Brittany. Nominoë was appropriating border territory and opposing Charles' attempt to impose Frankish author ...

, which gave Lambert renewed control of Nantes. Amaury remained the nominal count. Lambert was later reconciled to Charles and appointed

Count of Angers Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

(845-6), then transferred to

Francia Francia, also called the Kingdom of the Franks ( la, Regnum Francorum), Frankish Kingdom, Frankland or Frankish Empire ( la, Imperium Francorum), was the largest post-Roman barbarian kingdom in Western Europe. It was ruled by the Franks dur ...

. He was officially restored as Count of Nantes in 849. However in 850 Lambert and his brother Warnar renewed their alliance with Nominoe and both raided Maine "with unspeakable fury" according to the ''

Chronicon Fontanellense The ''Annals of Fontenelle'' (''Annales Fontanellenses'', ''Chronicon Fontanellense'') or ''Chronicle of Saint-Wandrille'' (''Chronicon sancti Wandregesili'') is a short history compiled at the Abbey of Saint-Wandrille between 840 and 856. It is in ...

''. In August, Charles marched on Rennes, but avoided fighting. Instead he garrisoned the town and installed Amaury as new Count of Nantes. Immediately after he left, Lambert and Nominoe defeated the garrisons and captured the new Count.Smith, Julia M. H. Province and Empire: Brittany and the Carolingians. Cambridge University Press: 1992, p.98 Nominoe died shortly thereafter and Charles attempted once more to reassert his authority. Lambert once again defected to the Breton side and fought with Erispoe in the decisive

Battle of Jengland The Battle of Jengland (also called Jengland-Beslé, Beslé, or Grand Fougeray) took place on 22 August 851, between the Frankish army of Charles the Bald and the Breton army of Erispoe, Duke of Brittany. The Bretons were victorious, leading to t ...

in 851, in which Charles was defeated. Their victory led to the absorption of Nantes into Erispoe's sphere of influence, though Lambert remained count. After Jengland Lambert sought to carve out territory between

and

Anjou Anjou may refer to: Geography and titles France * County of Anjou, a historical county in France and predecessor of the Duchy of Anjou **Count of Anjou, title of nobility *Duchy of Anjou, a historical duchy and later a province of France **Duk ...

, but was killed in an ambush by

Gauzbert of Maine Gauzbert (; died 853) was Count of Maine from 840 to 853. He was a member of the Rorgonide family, son of Gauzlin I of Maine, lord of Maine and Adeltrude. He is recorded for the first time in 839 in a charter of his brother Count Rorgon I of M ...

in the following year.

Family

He married Tetrata of Lombardy, a daughter of

Pepin of Italy Pepin or Pippin (or ''Pepin Carloman'', ''Pepinno'', April 777 – 8 July 810), born Carloman, was the son of Charlemagne and King of the Lombards (781–810) under the authority of his father. Pepin was the second son of Charlemagne by his th ...

, son of

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first Holy ...

. His wife was also the sister of his young stepmother,

Adelaide of Lombardy Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The demo ...

. Lambert II and Tetrata were parents to three children:

Lambert III of Nantes Lambert III (830–882) was pretender to the County of Nantes. Lambert was the son of Lambert II of Nantes, at whose death in 851, the administration of the region fell effectively to the Dukes of Brittany. After his father's death, Lambert III ...

; Lisois Vetulus (Dove), Abbess of Craon; and Warnar of Nantes.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lambert 02 Of Nantes 9th-century people from West Francia 852 deaths Counts of Nantes Craon family Year of birth unknown