Bertulf (or Bartholf or Barthold) (died 883) was the
Archbishop of Trier
The Diocese of Trier, in English historically also known as ''Treves'' (IPA "tɾivz") from French ''Trèves'', is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic church in Germany.Theotgaud was excommunicated by Pope Nicholas I in October 863 in Rome and deposed, and died in Rome in 868,
Charles the Bald
Charles the Bald (french: Charles le Chauve; 13 June 823 – 6 October 877), also known as Charles II, was a 9th-century king of West Francia (843–877), king of Italy (875–877) and emperor of the Carolingian Empire (875–877). After a ser ...
managed in 869 to have his candidate, Bertulf, appointed as Theotgaud's successor and confirmed by the Pope. Bertulf had previously been abbot of Mettlach. His election ended the long period of ''
sede vacante
''Sede vacante'' ( in Latin.) is a term for the state of a diocese while without a bishop. In the canon law of the Catholic Church, the term is used to refer to the vacancy of the bishop's or Pope's authority upon his death or resignation.
Hi ...
''. Charles also awarded the new Archbishop the crown estate of
Merzig
Merzig (, french: Mercy, ''Moselle Franconian:'' ''Meerzisch''/''Miërzësch'') is a town in Saarland, Germany. It is the capital of the district Merzig-Wadern, with about 30,000 inhabitants in 17 municipalities on 108 km². It is situated o ...
.
The election of Bertulf was a provocation to Louis the German, who then set up his own candidate. This was Bertulf's brother Waldo, abbot of St. Maximin's Abbey in Trier. Eight years previously, he had been convicted of disloyalty at the Imperial Diet in
Regensburg
Regensburg or is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the Danube, Naab and Regen rivers. It is capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the state in the south of Germany. With more than 150,000 inhabitants, Regensburg is the f ...
along with his brothers Udo and Berengar and their uncle Ernest, and like them, had been stripped of his offices and titles. His candidacy, however, foundered at the opposition of the other Archbishops.
On 26 September 870, Bertulf attended a synod at
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 ...
along with the other Rhenish metropolitans, Liutbert and
Willibert
Wilbert (died 889) was the archbishop of Cologne from 870 until his death.
Wilbert was a priest in Cologne Cathedral when archbishop Gunther was excommunicated and deposed. Charles the Bald, king of West Francia, tried to install his own palatine ...
, and reconsecrated
Cologne Cathedral
Cologne Cathedral (german: Kölner Dom, officially ', English: Cathedral Church of Saint Peter) is a Catholic cathedral in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Cologne and of the administration of the Archdiocese of ...
. The Annals of Fulda''. (Manchester Medieval series, Ninth-Century Histories, Volume II.)
Reuter, Timothy
Timothy Alan Reuter (25 January 1947 – 14 October 2002), grandson of the former mayor of Berlin Ernst Reuter, was a German-British historian who specialized in the study of medieval Germany, particularly the social, military and ecclesiastical i ...
(trans.) Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1992.''