Matfrid (died 836) was the

Frankish Frankish may refer to: * Franks, a Germanic tribe and their culture ** Frankish language or its modern descendants, Franconian languages, a group of Low Germanic languages also commonly referred to as "Frankish" varieties * Francia, a post-Roman ...

count of Orléans Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

in the reign of Emperor

Louis the Pious Louis the Pious (; ; ; 16 April 778 – 20 June 840), also called the Fair and the Debonaire, was King of the Franks and Holy Roman Emperor, co-emperor with his father, Charlemagne, from 813. He was also King of Aquitaine from 781. As the only ...

. He is usually thought to have been the first of the lineage known to historians as the Matfriede (German ''Matfridinger'' or ''Matfriede''). Matfrid was Count of Orléans from around 818. He accompanied the Emperor on his expedition to

Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...

in 824, and served at Louis's court. However, in 825, he supported

Lothar Lothar or Lothair is a Danish, Finnish, German, Norwegian, and Swedish masculine given name, while Lotár is a Hungarian masculine given name. Both names are modern forms of the Germanic Chlothar (which is a blended form of ''Hlūdaz'', me ...

, eldest son of Emperor Louis, in his revolt against the Emperor. Restored to favour, he led a Frankish army on the

Marca Hispanica The Spanish March or Hispanic March was a march or military buffer zone established c. 795 by Charlemagne in the eastern Pyrenees and nearby areas, to protect the new territories of the Christian Carolingian Empire—the Duchy of Gascony, the D ...

, the Spanish frontier, in 827, jointly with his sister's husband Hugh, Count of Tours and Louis's son Pippin,

King of Aquitaine The Duchy of Aquitaine (, ; , ) was a historical fiefdom located in the western, central, and southern areas of present-day France, south of the river Loire. The full extent of the duchy, as well as its name, fluctuated greatly over the centuries ...

. Matfrid, Hugh, and Pippin failed to meet the invasion by Abu Marwan, and the following year at

Aachen Aachen is the List of cities in North Rhine-Westphalia by population, 13th-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, 27th-largest city of Germany, with around 261,000 inhabitants. Aachen is locat ...

an Imperial assembly stripped Matfrid and Hugh of their titles. Thereafter, although Matfrid supported the rebellions of Emperor Louis's sons on every occasion, he was repeatedly restored to his lands, title, and imperial favour. Matfrid, once more serving Lothar, died in

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

in 836 during a plague.

Jonas of Orléans Jonas (c. 760–843) was Bishop of Orléans and played a major political role during the reign of Emperor Louis the Pious. Jonas was born in Aquitaine. Probably a cleric by the 780s, he served at the court of Louis the Pious, who ruled as K ...

addressed his " mirror of princes" work ''De Institutione laicali'' to Matfrid. A second Matfrid, presumed to be the son of the first, was active in

Lotharingia Lotharingia was a historical region and an early medieval polity that existed during the late Carolingian and early Ottonian era, from the middle of the 9th to the middle of the 10th century. It was established in 855 by the Treaty of Prüm, a ...

during the reigns of Lothar and his son Lothar II, a frequent witness to their charters in the period from 843 to 860. A third Matfrid, presumed son of the second, was active in the period 867 to 878. However he may have been the same person as the second Matfried. Later cognatic members of the Matfriding clan included

Godfrey I, Duke of Lower Lorraine Godfrey I (born 940/945; died 964) was the count of Hainault from 958 and margrave or vice-duke of Lower Lorraine from 959, when that duchy was divided by Duke Bruno, who remained duke until his death in 964. Life Godfrey was the son of Godfre ...

References

* * Godman, Peter, and Collins, Roger, editors. ''Charlemagne's Heir: New perspectives on the reign of Louis the Pious.'' Oxford University Press, 1990. * Jeep, John M., ed. ''Medieval Germany: an encyclopedia'', sv "Matfridings". Routledge, 2001. * Riché, Pierre. ''Dictionnaire des Francs: Les Carolingiens,'' sv "Matfrid". Bartillat, 1997. {{Authority control Matfriding dynasty Counts of Orléans Nobility of the Carolingian Empire 836 deaths Year of birth unknown