Redbad or Radbod (died 719) was the king (or duke) of Frisia from c. 680 until his death. He is often considered the last independent ruler of Frisia before

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 ...

domination. He defeated

Charles Martel Charles Martel ( – 22 October 741) was a Frankish political and military leader who, as Duke and Prince of the Franks and Mayor of the Palace, was the de facto ruler of Francia from 718 until his death. He was a son of the Frankish statesm ...

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...

. Eventually, Charles prevailed and compelled the Frisians to submit. Redbad died in 719, but for some years his successors struggled against the Frankish power.

King or duke

What the exact title of the Frisian rulers was depends on the source. Frankish sources tend to call them dukes; other sources often call them kings. Being Germanic pagans, it is likely that they would have been called kings by their followers, whereas the Christianized Franks would have referred to them as dukes.

Reign

While his predecessor, Aldgisl, had welcomed

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

into his realm, Redbad attempted to extirpate the religion and free the Frisians from subjugation to the

Merovingian The Merovingian dynasty () was the ruling family of the Franks from the middle of the 5th century until 751. They first appear as "Kings of the Franks" in the Roman army of northern Gaul. By 509 they had united all the Franks and northern Gauli ...

kingdom of the Franks. In 689, however, Redbad was defeated by

Pepin of Herstal Pepin II (c. 635 – 16 December 714), commonly known as Pepin of Herstal, was a Frankish statesman and military leader who de facto ruled Francia as the Mayor of the Palace from 680 until his death. He took the title Duke and Prince of the Fr ...

in the battle of Dorestad and compelled to cede Frisia Citerior (Nearer Frisia, from the

Scheldt The Scheldt (french: Escaut ; nl, Schelde ) is a river that flows through northern France, western Belgium, and the southwestern part of the Netherlands, with its mouth at the North Sea. Its name is derived from an adjective corresponding to ...

to the Vlie) to the

Franks The Franks ( la, Franci or ) were a group of Germanic peoples whose name was first mentioned in 3rd-century Roman sources, and associated with tribes between the Lower Rhine and the Ems River, on the edge of the Roman Empire.H. Schutz: Tools, ...

. Between 690 and 692,

Utrecht Utrecht ( , , ) is the fourth-largest city and a municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, in the very centre of mainland Net ...

fell into the hands of Pepin. This gave the Franks control of important trade routes on the

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , so ...

to the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea, epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the ...

. Some sources say that, following this defeat, Redbad retreated, in 697, to the island of

Heligoland Heligoland (; german: Helgoland, ; Heligolandic Frisian: , , Mooring Frisian: , da, Helgoland) is a small archipelago in the North Sea. A part of the German state of Schleswig-Holstein since 1890, the islands were historically possessions ...

. Others say he retreated to the part of the Netherlands that is still known as Friesland. Around this time there was an Archbishopric or

bishopric In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...

of the Frisians founded for

Willibrord Willibrord (; 658 – 7 November AD 739) was an Anglo-Saxon missionary and saint, known as the "Apostle to the Frisians" in the modern Netherlands. He became the first bishop of Utrecht and died at Echternach, Luxembourg. Early life His fath ...

and a marriage was held between Grimoald the Younger, the oldest son of Pepin, and Thiadsvind, the daughter of Redbad in 711. On Pepin's death in 714, Redbad took the initiative again. He forced

Saint Willibrord Willibrord (; 658 – 7 November AD 739) was an Anglo-Saxon missionary and saint, known as the "Apostle to the Frisians" in the modern Netherlands. He became the first bishop of Utrecht and died at Echternach, Luxembourg. Early life His father ...

and his monks to flee and advanced as far as

, where he defeated

, Pepin's natural son, in 716. Eventually, however, Charles prevailed and compelled the Frisians to submit. Redbad died in 719, but for some years his successors struggled against the Frankish power. As an example of how powerful King Redbad still was at the end of his life, the news that he was engaged in assembling an army was reportedly enough to fill the Frankish kingdom with fear and trembling.

Relation with the Roman Catholic Church

During the second journey of Saint Boniface to Rome, Wulfram (or Vulfran), a monk and ex- archbishop of Sens tried to convert Redbad, but after an unsuccessful attempt he returned to Fontenelle. It is said that Redbad was nearly baptised but refused when he was told that he would not be able to find any of his ancestors in Heaven after his death. He said he preferred spending eternity in Hell with his pagan ancestors than in Heaven with a pack of beggars. This legend is also told with Wulfram being replaced with bishop

Legacy

Portret van Radbout na de restauratie - Medemblik - 20151675 - RCE

Saint Radboud Saint Radbod (or Radboud) (before 850 – 917) was bishop of Utrecht from 899 to 917. Life Radboud was born around the middle of the 9th century from a noble Frankish family near Namur. His mother was of Frisian origin and a descendant of the ...

was a descendant of Redbad. Saint Radboud was a bishop of Utrecht who adopted his ancestor's native name. The

Nijmegen University Radboud University (abbreviated as RU, nl, Radboud Universiteit , formerly ''Katholieke Universiteit Nijmegen'') is a public research university located in Nijmegen, the Netherlands. The university bears the name of Saint Radboud, a 9th century D ...

and its corresponding

medical facility A health facility is, in general, any location where healthcare is provided. Health facilities range from small clinics and doctor's offices to urgent care centers and large hospitals with elaborate emergency rooms and trauma centers. The numbe ...

were named after him in 2004. In Richard Wagner's ''

Lohengrin Lohengrin () is a character in German Arthurian literature. The son of Parzival (Percival), he is a knight of the Holy Grail sent in a boat pulled by swans to rescue a maiden who can never ask his identity. His story, which first appears in Wolf ...

'' a certain "Radbod, ruler of the Frisians" is mentioned as Ortrud's ancestor. In Harry Harrison's ''

The Hammer and the Cross ''The Hammer and the Cross'' is a science fiction novel by Harry Harrison and John Holm, a pseudonym for the Tolkien scholar Tom Shippey. The first in a trilogy, the book chronicles the rise of Shef, a bastard son of a Viking and an English l ...

'' series of novels, Redbad becomes the founder of "the Way", an organized pagan cult, created to combat the efforts of Christian missionaries. Black metal band Ophidian Forest recorded a concept album ''Redbad'' in 2007. Dutch folk metal band '

Heidevolk Heidevolk is a folk metal band from the Netherlands. The lyrical themes of their music are inspired by nature, the history of Gelderland, and Germanic mythology. Most of their lyrics are in Dutch; however, since their album '' Velua'', they a ...

' recorded a song 'Koning Radboud' (King Redbad) on their 2008 album 'Walhalla Wacht' singing about the legend of Wulfram and Redbad. In 2015 the Frisian Folk-Metal band Baldrs Draumar released a full album on the life and deeds of king Redbad called Aldgillessoan. It is based on the book Rêdbâd, Kronyk fan in Kening (Chronicles of a King) by Willem Schoorstra. In 2018, Dutch production company Farmhouse released a film, '' Redbad'', based on the historical Redbad. It is directed by

Roel Reiné Roel Reiné (born 15 July 1970 in Eindhoven) is a Dutch film director. Occasionally he uses the alias John Rebel (''Bear'', ''Wolf Town''). His production company is called Rebel Film. Career Starting off directing television series and films ...

and stars

Jonathan Banks Jonathan Ray Banks (born January 31, 1947) is an American actor. Born in Washington, D.C. and raised in Chillum Heights, Maryland, while attending Indiana University Bloomington Banks did theatre. In 1974, he moved to Los Angeles where he be ...

and Søren Malling alongside a variety of Dutch actors.

References

Other sources

* * Petz, G. H. (ed). ''MGH Scriptures''. (Hanover, 1892).

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Redbad, King Of The Frisians 719 deaths 7th-century monarchs in Europe 8th-century monarchs in Europe Germanic pagans Medieval Frisian rulers Year of birth unknown