Udo was a 9th-century nobleman of

East Francia East Francia (Medieval Latin: ) or the Kingdom of the East Franks () was a successor state of Charlemagne's Carolingian Empire, empire ruled by the Carolingian dynasty until 911. It was created through the Treaty of Verdun (843) which divided t ...

, a son of

Gebhard, Count of Lahngau Gebhard (died 879) was a mid-9th-century count in the Lahngau and the first documented ancestor of the dynasty later known as the Conradines. He was a "leading man of the astFranks" and a brother-in-law of Ernest, margrave of the Bavarian Nordgau. ...

, and older brother of

Berengar I of Neustria Berengar I was a 9th-century nobleman of East Francia, a son of Gebhard, Count of Lahngau, and younger brother of Udo of Neustria, Udo. He and his brother were created March of Neustria, Margraves of Neustria by Charles the Bald in 861. He was pos ...

. He and his brother were afforded their position in the

March of Neustria The Marches of Neustria (french: Marches de Neustrie; br, Marz Neustria; Norman: ''Maurches de Neûtrie'') were two marches created in 861 by the Carolingian king of West Francia Charles the Bald. They were ruled by officials appointed by the Mo ...

both by kinship to

Adalard the Seneschal Adalard, also known as Adalhard or Alard, and called ''the Seneschal'', was a Frankish nobleman of the 9th century. He served as warden of the Norman march from 861 to 865, and was Lord Chancellor of France under Louis the Pious. He was a son of ...

and the favour of

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 ...

. With his brothers, Berengar and Waldo, Abbot of St Maximin's, Trier, he took part in the 861 revolt of

Carloman of Bavaria Carloman (german: Karlmann, la, Karlomannus; c. 830 – 22 March 880) was a Frankish king of the Carolingian dynasty. He was the eldest son of Louis the German, king of East Francia, and Hemma, daughter of a Bavarian count. His father appointed ...

, possibly his cousin-in-law, against

Louis the German Louis the German (c. 806/810 – 28 August 876), also known as Louis II of Germany and Louis II of East Francia, was the first king of East Francia, and ruled from 843 to 876 AD. Grandson of emperor Charlemagne and the third son of Louis the P ...

. The revolt was crushed, and the three brothers fled with their relative Adalard to the court of 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 about ...

king,

, who granted them wardship of the march held against the

Vikings Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...

while the march against the

Bretons The Bretons (; br, Bretoned or ''Vretoned,'' ) are a Celts, Celtic ethnic group native to Brittany. They trace much of their heritage to groups of Common Brittonic, Brittonic speakers who emigrated from Dumnonia, southwestern Great Britain, par ...

was granted to

Robert the Strong Robert the Strong (french: Robert le Fort; c. 830 – 866) was the father of two kings of West Francia: Odo (or Eudes) and Robert I of France. His family is named after him and called the Robertians. In 853, he was named ''missus dominicus'' ...

. Charles' patronage of the family provoked the jealousy of the

Rorgonids The Rorgonids were a powerful Frankish family dating from the eighth century. They are sometimes referred to as the first Mayennaise dynasty, referring to the city of Mayenne, and are the original counts of Maine. The Rorgonids were named after R ...

, the most powerful family local to Neustria, which controlled the ''

ducatus Cenomannicus This is a list of counts and dukes of Maine. The capital of Maine was Le Mans. In the thirteenth century it was annexed by France to the royal domain. Dukes of Maine (''duces Cenomannici'') * Charivius ( fl. 723) – appears as ''dux'' in a doc ...

'' (

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

). In 865, they allied with

Saloman of Brittany Salomon ( br, Salaün) (died 874) was Count of Rennes and Nantes from 852 and Duke of Brittany from 857 until his death by assassination. He used the title King of Brittany intermittently after 868. In 867, he was granted the counties of Avranches ...

and attacked the brothers. Charles, to attain peace, took the march back and gave it to Gauzfrid of Neustria, a Rorgonid. A charter of 879 mentions Udo and his brothers taking part in the foundation of the college of Gemünden. Evidently, the death of Louis the German in 876 had allowed them to return to the court of Carloman. Udo left a son,

Conrad, Duke of Thuringia Conrad (died 27 February 906), called the Old or the Elder, was the Duke of Thuringia briefly in 892–93. He was the namesake of the Conradiner family and son of Udo of Neustria. His mother (probably) was a daughter of Conrad I of Logenahe (832� ...

, who was the founder of the

Conradine The Conradines or Conradiner were a dynasty of Franconian counts and dukes in the 8th to 11th Century, named after Duke Conrad, Duke of Thuringia, Conrad the Elder and his son King Conrad I of Germany. History The family is first mentioned in 83 ...

dynasty and father of

Conrad I of Germany Conrad I (; c. 881 – 23 December 918), called the Younger, was the king of East Francia from 911 to 918. He was the first king not of the Carolingian dynasty, the first to be elected by the nobility and the first to be anointed. He was chosen as ...

. One younger son, Rudolf, became

Bishop of Würzburg A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

, and another, Gebhard, became

Duke of Lotharingia The rulers of Lorraine have held different posts under different governments over different regions, since its creation as the kingdom of Lotharingia by the Treaty of Prüm, in 855. The first rulers of the newly established region were kings of t ...

Sources

*Guillotel, Hubert. "Une autre marche de Neustrie." in

Christian Settipani Christian Settipani (born 31 January 1961) is a French genealogist, historian and IT professional, currently working as the Technical Director of a company in Paris. Biography Settipani holds a Master of Advanced Studies from the Paris-Sorbo ...

and Katharine S. B. Keats-Rohan, ''Onomastique et Parenté dans l'Occident médiéval''. 2000. Nobility of the Carolingian Empire Conradines 9th-century European people {{noble-stub