Wibod (or Guibod) ( it, Wibodo or ) (died 895) was the
Bishop of Parma from 855 until his death. He was, during the reigns of
Louis II,
Carloman,
Charles III, and
Berengar I
Berengar I ( la, Berengarius, Perngarius; it, Berengario; – 7 April 924) was the king of Italy from 887. He was Holy Roman Emperor between 915 and his death in 924. He is usually known as Berengar of Friuli, since he ruled the March of Friu ...
, the most important power-broker in
Emilia.
Wibod was a frequent ambassador for Louis II after 860. He and a count named Bernard were the delegates of Louis II who, along with two
suburbicarian bishops and a
cardinal priest of
Pope Hadrian II, formed an embassy to
Louis the German at
Aachen
Aachen ( ; ; Aachen dialect: ''Oche'' ; French and traditional English: Aix-la-Chapelle; or ''Aquisgranum''; nl, Aken ; Polish: Akwizgran) is, with around 249,000 inhabitants, the 13th-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia, and the 28th- ...
in October 870. This embassy brought letters confirming Hadrian's support of Louis in the conflict surrounding the succession to
Lotharingia and the consecration of
Willibert as
Archbishop 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 ...
. Wibod acted as an ambassador for Louis II and
Engelberga again in 872.
Wibod was the first recipient Italian bishop of an extension of his saecular authority of ''districtio'' (defence) beyond his city's walls, from Carloman. The extension of temporal episcopal authority in the ''civitates'' (cities) and their ''comitati'' (counties) became a trend in the 10th century. Wibod was also a recipient of Charles' largess. Charles granted Wibod land around
Susinate and
Vigonzone. These lands probably served as country homes for the bishop when conferring with Charles while the latter was breaking from royal duties in
Pavia.
Wibod was the "highest counsellor" or ''consiliarius regis'' of Charles. His influence and power in Italy far exceeded that of the king's favourite and chancellor,
Liutward of Vercelli. He consequently attended the
West Frankish
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 a ...
coronation and imperial assembly at
Grand on 20 May 885.
During the contests for the Italian throne following Charles' death in 888, Wibod preferred the German and German-supported candidates over the French ones. He consistently backed Berengar against the
Guideschi
The Widonids, also called Guidonids,; german: Guidonen or ; it, Guideschi or or Lambertiner, after their leading names, were an Italian family of Frankish origin prominent in the ninth century. They were descended from Guy of Nantes, whose ori ...
claimants, but he was won over to the French side by the entreaties of
Anselm II, Archbishop of Milan.
[Wickham.]
Sources
*Wickham, Chris. ''Early Medieval Italy: Central Power and Local Society 400-1000''. MacMillan Press: 1981.
*MacLean, Simon. ''Kingship and Politics in the Late Ninth Century: Charles the Fat and the end of the Carolingian Empire''. Cambridge University Press: 2003.
*Reuter, Timothy (trans.)
The Annals of Fulda'. (Manchester Medieval series, Ninth-Century Histories, Volume II.) Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1992.
Notes
{{authority control
895 deaths
Bishops of Parma
9th-century Italian bishops
Year of birth unknown