Otto-William (french: Otte-Guillaume; german: Otto Wilhelm; 955/62 – 21 September 1026 AD) was count of Mâcon, Nevers, 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 ...

Life

Otto was born in 958 during the joint reign of his grandfather, King Berengar II of Italy, and his father, King Adalbert. His mother was Gerberga. After Adalbert's death in 971/5, Gerberga married for a second time, to Henry I, Duke of Burgundy, the younger brother of King Hugh Capet. Gerberga and Henry had no children together. Since Henry had no legitimate son of his own, he adopted Otto-William making him a possible heir of the Duchy of Burgundy. While the son of a king, Otto did not seek a royal wife.Constance Brittain Bouchard, ''Those of My Blood: Creating Noble Families in Medieval Francia'' (Philadelphia: The University of Pennsylvania Press, 2001), p. 50 In , he married

Ermentrude of Roucy Ermentrude or Ermintrude is a feminine Germanic name from the Middle Ages. It may refer to: * Erminethrudis (d. c. 600), a Merovingian-era nun *Ermentrude of Orléans (823–869), queen of the Franks by her marriage to Charles the Bald * Ermentrude ...

, whose maternal grandmother, Gerberga of Saxony, was a sister of

Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor Otto I (23 November 912 – 7 May 973), traditionally known as Otto the Great (german: Otto der Große, it, Ottone il Grande), was East Francia, East Frankish king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the olde ...

, and by this marriage alliance created a web of consanguinity between later kings of France, Germany, Burgundy and the

Carolingians The Carolingian dynasty (; known variously as the Carlovingians, Carolingus, Carolings, Karolinger or Karlings) was a Frankish noble family named after Charlemagne, grandson of mayor Charles Martel and a descendant of the Arnulfing and Pippin ...

. Even Otto's children's spouses, although from great families, came from widespread and scattered parts of France. This marriage brought to Otto-William the County of Mâcon as well as many other rights on the left bank of the Saône in the province of Besançon. The new Count of Mâcon consolidated there his political grip making what would be later be the Free County of Burgundy around

Dole Dole may refer to: Places * Dole, Ceredigion, Wales * Dole, Idrija, Slovenia * Dole, Jura, France ** Arrondissement of Dole * Dole (Kladanj), a village at the entity line of Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina-Republika Srpska * Dole, Ljubuški, ...

. From his mother Otto could inherited the County of Nevers before 990.W. Scott Jessee, ''Robert the Burgundian and the Counts of Anjou, Ca. 1025-1098'' (USA: The Catholic University of America Press. 2000), p. 15 However he left Nevers to his stepson Landric and rather claimed the County of Beaune in which the dowry of Gerberga was. The Duchy of Burgundy was eventually annexed to the crown of France by King Robert II, nephew of Henry I, Duke of Burgundy, in 1005. On the left-bank of the Saône, determined to be sovereign ruler of his own lands, Otto revolted against the Emperor Henry II in 1016. This was after Rudolph III of Burgundy, the last king of Burgundy and Arles, had done homage to Henry at

Strasbourg Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...

, making him his guard and heir. On Otto's death, the Free County fell under the suzerainty of the German emperors. Otto died on 21 September 1026 at the age of 64 and was buried in St-Benigne of Dijon.

Marriage and issue

Otto's first wife was

Ermentrude Ermentrude or Ermintrude is a feminine Germanic name from the Middle Ages. It may refer to: *Erminethrudis (d. c. 600), a Merovingian-era nun *Ermentrude of Orléans (823–869), queen of the Franks by her marriage to Charles the Bald *Ermentrude, ...

, daughter of Renaud of Roucy. They had: * Guy (–1006) had been associated as count of Mâcon from 995. His wife is unknown. * Matilda, married

Landri of Nevers Landri may refer to: * Landri Sales Landri Sales is a Municipalities of Brazil, municipality in the states of Brazil, state of Piauí in the Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast region of Brazil. See also *List of municipalities in Piauí Referen ...

, Count of Nevers * Gerberga, married Guilhem II of Provence * Reginald I, Count of Burgundy (–1057), he married Adelaide (or Judith) of Normandy. * Agnes, married firstly William V of Aquitaine, secondly Geoffrey II of Anjou. Otto remarried late in life to a wife named Adelaide. Some scholars have identified her as the four-times widowed

Adelaide-Blanche of Anjou Adelaide-Blanche of Anjou( –1026) was, by her successive marriages, countess of Gévaudan and Forez, of Toulouse, of Provence, and of Burgundy, and queen of Aquitaine. She was the regent of Gevaudan during the minority of her sons in the 960 ...

, but the identity is not directly attested and has been disputed by some studying the question.Christian Settipani, ''La Noblesse du Midi Carolingien'' (Prosopographia et Genealogica 5, 2004), p. 313, note 2

References

Sources

* *101 * *

External links

* Baldwin, Stewart, FASG
Adélaïde/Alix alias Blanche of Anjou
Henry Project {{DEFAULTSORT:Otto-William, Count of Burgundy Anscarids Dukes of Burgundy Counts of Burgundy Counts of Mâcon 10th-century births 1026 deaths Year of birth uncertain Sons of kings