Cunibert, Cunipert, or Kunibert (c. 60012 November c. 663) was the ninth

bishop of Cologne The Archbishop of Cologne is an archbishop governing the Archdiocese of Cologne of the Catholic Church in western North Rhine-Westphalia and is also a historical state in the Rhine holding the birthplace of Beethoven and northern Rhineland-Palati ...

, from 627 to his death. Contemporary sources mention him between 627 and 643.

Life

Cunibert was born somewhere along the

Moselle The Moselle ( , ; german: Mosel ; lb, Musel ) is a river that rises in the Vosges mountains and flows through north-eastern France and Luxembourg to western Germany. It is a bank (geography), left bank tributary of the Rhine, which it jo ...

to a family of the local Ripuarian Frankish aristocracy, and educated in Metz at the court of

Chlothar II Chlothar II, sometime called "the Young" (French language, French: le Jeune), (May/June 584 – 18 October 629), was king of Neustria and king of the Franks, and the son of Chilperic I and his third wife, Fredegund. He started his reign as an in ...

. He entered the church and became

archdeacon An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in the Church of the East, Chaldean Catholic Church, Syriac Orthodox Church, Anglican Communion, St Thomas Christians, Eastern Orthodox churches and some other Christian denominations, above that o ...

Trier Trier ( , ; lb, Tréier ), formerly known in English as Trèves ( ;) and Triers (see also names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle in Germany. It lies in a valley between low vine-covered hills of red sandstone in the ...

."Cunibert of Cologne", ''Oxford Dictionary of Saints''
/ref> He was made bishop of Cologne in 623, and attended the Synod of Clichy in 626/627. As bishop, Cunibert was an advisor to King Dagobert I, and served as tutor to his son and heir

Sigebert III Sigebert III ( 630–656) was the Merovingian king of Austrasia from 633 to his death around 656. He was described as the first Merovingian ''roi fainéant'' —do-nothing king—, in effect the mayor of the palace ruling the kingdom througho ...

.Gorlinski, Virginia. "Saint Cunibert". ''Encyclopedia Britannica''
/ref> In 633 or 634 Sigebert was invested as king of

Austrasia Austrasia was a territory which formed the north-eastern section of the Merovingian Kingdom of the Franks during the 6th to 8th centuries. It was centred on the Meuse, Middle Rhine and the Moselle rivers, and was the original territory of the F ...

. Following this, Dagobert made Cunibert and

Adalgisel Adalgisel or Adalgis (''Adalgyselus ducis'' in contemporary Latin) was a Frankish duke and the mayor of the palace of Austrasia. He assumed that office in December 633 or January 634 at the same time that Sigebert III assumed the kingship. Along w ...

, the mayor of the palace, co-

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 ...

s of the kingdom. Following the death of Adalgisel's successor,

Pepin of Landen Pepin I (also Peppin, Pipin, or Pippin) of Landen (c. 580 – 27 February 640), also called the Elder or the Old, was the Mayor of the palace of Austrasia under the Merovingian King Dagobert I from 623 to 629. He was also the Mayor for Sig ...

, Cunibert served as the chief public official of the king, in which capacity he revised the

Lex Ribuaria Lex or LEX may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Lex'', a daily featured column in the ''Financial Times'' Games * Lex, the mascot of the word-forming puzzle video game ''Bookworm'' * Lex, the protagonist of the word-forming puzzle video ga ...

. Throughout his episcopacy, monasticism flourished and churches were founded and restored. He is regarded today as a saint by the

Roman Catholic church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

and his feast day is the day of his death: November 12. He is buried in a church bearing his name in

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...

, the city where he lived and died.

References

External links

heiligenlexikon.de
{{Authority control 600 births 663 deaths 7th-century Frankish bishops Year of birth uncertain Year of death uncertain 7th-century Frankish saints 7th-century Frankish writers 7th-century Latin writers