Gisulf II (died between 749 and 753) was the third last duke of Benevento before the fall of the

Lombard kingdom The Kingdom of the Lombards ( la, Regnum Langobardorum; it, Regno dei Longobardi; lmo, Regn di Lombard) also known as the Lombard Kingdom; later the Kingdom of (all) Italy ( la, Regnum totius Italiae), was an early medieval state established ...

. He ruled from 743, when

King Liutprand Liutprand was the king of the Lombards from 712 to 744 and is chiefly remembered for his multiple phases of law-giving, in fifteen separate sessions from 713 to 735 inclusive, and his long reign, which brought him into a series of conflicts, mos ...

came down and removed

Godescalc Gottschalk or Godescalc (Old High German) is a male German name that can be translated literally as "servant of God". Latin forms include ''Godeschalcus'' and ''Godescalcus''. Given name *Godescalc of Benevento, 8th-century Lombard duke *Godescalc ...

, to his death up to ten years later.The ''Lexikon'' gives a date of 741 and places the death of Gregory there, making him succeed, not Godescalc, but Gregory. The length of ten years comes from Hodgkin.

Life

Gisulf was the son of

Romuald II of Benevento Romuald II the Younger (died 732724 in the ''Lexikon''.) was the son of Gisulf I and Winiperga. He succeeded as duke of Benevento on the death of his father, which is dated variously as 698, 706, or 707. According to Paul the Deacon, Gisulf reig ...

and Gumperga, daughter of Aurona, sister of Liutprand. As a relative of the king, he was supported by the royal power, but being a minor on his father's death, one Audelais managed to usurp the duchy. Liutprand removed Audelais and, placing another nephew, Gregory, on the throne, brought Gisulf back to be raised in the royal palace at

Pavia Pavia (, , , ; la, Ticinum; Medieval Latin: ) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy in northern Italy, south of Milan on the lower Ticino river near its confluence with the Po. It has a population of c. 73,086. The city was the capit ...

. In 744, Gisulf made a donation of land to the

Abbey of Montecassino An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns. The conce ...

which would become the basis for the

Terra Sancti Benedicti The ''Terra Sancti Benedictʃti'' ("Land of Saint Benedict") was the secular territory, or seignory, of the powerful Abbey of Montecassino, the chief monastery of the megladon and one of the first Western monasteries: founded by Benedict of Nu ...

. The Beneventans (or Samnites) remained faithful to Gisulf and his father's dynasty, however, and when, after Gregory's death, Godescalc usurped the ducal throne, the people rose up and murdered him, allowing Liutprand to place the now-adult Gisulf in power. According to Hartman

Gisulf followed the policies of Liutprand faithfully. He was married to

Scauniperga Scauniperga (fl. 756), was a duchess of Benevento. She was the mother of Liutprand of Benevento, and reigned by his side from 751 to 756. Scauniperga was married to Gisulf II, and became the head of the regency and regent of Benevento when her u ...

Sources

''Lexikon des Mittelalters'': Gisulf II. Herzog von Benevent (741-749)
*

Paul the Deacon Paul the Deacon ( 720s 13 April in 796, 797, 798, or 799 AD), also known as ''Paulus Diaconus'', ''Warnefridus'', ''Barnefridus'', or ''Winfridus'', and sometimes suffixed ''Cassinensis'' (''i.e.'' "of Monte Cassino"), was a Benedictine monk, s ...

''Historia Langobardorum''
Available at Northvegr.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gisulf 02 Of Benevento 749 deaths Gisulf 2 8th-century rulers in Europe 8th-century Lombard people Year of birth unknown