Ordulf (sometimes ''Otto'') ( – 28 March 1072) was the

duke of Saxony This article lists dukes, electors, and kings ruling over different territories named Saxony from the beginning of the Saxon Duchy in the 6th century to the end of the German monarchies in 1918. The electors of Saxony from John the Steadfast ...

from 1059, when he succeeded his father Bernard II, until his death. He was a member of the

Billung The House of Billung was a dynasty of Saxon noblemen in the 9th through 12th centuries. The first known member of the house was Count Wichmann, mentioned as a Billung in 811. Oda, the wife of Count Liudolf, oldest known member of the Liudol ...

family.

Reign

Ordulf's entire reign was occupied by wars with the

Wends Wends is a historical name for Slavs who inhabited present-day northeast Germany. It refers not to a homogeneous people, but to various people, tribes or groups depending on where and when it was used. In the modern day, communities identifying ...

. He was allied with

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

in this endeavor, and he strengthened the alliance by marrying Wulfhild of Norway, the daughter of King

Olaf II of Norway Saint Olaf ( – 29 July 1030), also called Olaf the Holy, Olaf II, Olaf Haraldsson, and Olaf the Stout or "Large", was List of Norwegian monarchs, King of Norway from 1015 to 1028. Son of Harald Grenske, a petty king in Vestfold, Norway, he w ...

, in 1042. Their son

Magnus Magnus, meaning "Great" in Latin, was used as cognomen of Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus in the first century BC. The best-known use of the name during the Roman Empire is for the fourth-century Western Roman Emperor Magnus Maximus. The name gained wid ...

succeeded Ordulf as Duke of Saxony. Ordulf's second wife, Gertrude of

Haldensleben Haldensleben (; Eastphalian dialect, Eastphalian: ''Halslä'') is a town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Börde (district), Börde district. Geography It is situated on the Ohre river, near the confluence with its ...

, daughter of a Count Conrad, was imprisoned in

Mainz Mainz (; #Names and etymology, see below) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, and with around 223,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 35th-largest city. It lies in ...

in 1076 and died 21 February 1116. Their son Bernard died after a fall from a horse in

Lüneburg Lüneburg, officially the Hanseatic City of Lüneburg and also known in English as Lunenburg, is a town in the German Bundesland (Germany), state of Lower Saxony. It is located about southeast of another Hanseatic League, Hanseatic city, Hambur ...

on 15 July of an unknown year. Ordulf is buried in the Church of St. Michael in Lüneburg.

References

Sources

* * * 1020s births 1072 deaths Dukes of Saxony House of Billung Burials at the Church of Saint Michael, Lüneburg Year of birth uncertain {{Germany-noble-stub