#fredegund

We know that the position of queen was not a secure one. Merovingian kings took on and discarded consorts at will, and while the family connections offered by noble or royal birth might be no guarantee of safety, the former slave who had fallen from her husband’s favour was in a still more precarious position. We hear nothing of a formal union between Fredegund and Chilperic. After ousting Audovera, Fredegund was herself put aside to make way for Chilperic’s princess-bride, Galswinth [although she retained Chilperic's favor, and her continuing presence at his side led to the deterioration of his new marriage with Galswinth]. When Fredegund once more returned to Chilperic’s bed after Galswinth’s murder, her place was, as far as we are aware, permanent. Her behaviour towards her stepsons suggests, however, that she always felt some measure of insecurity.

A queen might reasonably expect to gain some measure of security by bearing her husband a son. However, the Merovingians of the sixth century were not in the practice of designating heirs, and several, including Chilperic, had several wives. Gregory tells us that all children of a Merovingian king were considered to have royal blood. This meant, in practice, that all surviving sons of the previous incumbent might have a claim on the kingship. In such a system, none of the king’s sons was given any special status. One way to ensure that this was the case was to give no special status to the princes' mothers. [...] There may through the sixth century have been, if not a requirement, then a certain expectation for kings to prove themselves through acts of war. Fighting in campaigns allowed princes to gain and prove themselves to bands of followers who would then support them in any bid for the throne. Fredegund’s stepsons were older than her own. In 573, Theudebert, Chilperic’s oldest son, was old enough to be sent on campaign to invade several of Sigibert’s cities south of the Loire. Two years later, Merovech was similarly sent on campaign, this time to Poitiers. Of Fredegund's sons at this time, Samson was born while Chilperic was being besieged at Tournai in 575; the next, Dagobert, fell ill in 580 while still unbaptized; though Chlodobert was somewhat older, he had not yet had the opportunity to lead a campaign. Fredegund's stepsons therefore had a considerable head start in building up a band of followers who might assist them in the event of their father's death.

Naturally, Fredegund wished that at least one of her sons would become a king. Lacking any definite security through her marriage, as queen-mother she would enjoy a far stronger position. Thus she took measures to remove her stepsons, rivals to her own children. She allegedly supported Guntram Boso because he had killed Theudebert in 575, and she attempted to have Merovech killed. Some of her actions were defensive: Gregory's trial at Berny-Rivière in 580 was configured in order to bring to book those who had accused Fredegund of infidelity. The accusation may have carried an acute threat because she may have pregnant during the trial. As we have seen, the course of the trial uncovered a plot to have Fredegund removed from court, to kill her sons and to elevate Clovis to the kingship. Fredegund's sons died in an epidemic of dysentery a matter of weeks after the end of the trial, leaving her stepson Clovis as Chilperic's only surviving heir. We are told that he made “unforgivable” remarks about his stepmother, and rejoiced in the fact that he was his father's sole heir. Fredegund may have interpreted his words as a direct threat. Did he intend to ensure that he remained the sole heir? She was informed that Clovis was attracted to one of her servants. Little wonder that she was so concerned about this set of circumstances, as this was how she herself had managed to catch the eye of the king; the LHF alleges that she had been a servant of Audovera, Chilperic's first wife, but had managed to supplant her mistress. Fredegund had nowhere to go – no noble relatives whose estate she could retreat to, and she could hardly expect to fare well under Clovis' regime. She therefore acted out of desperation. She had the servant girl seized, and bound to a stake outside Clovis' lodgings in a manner perhaps designed to signal her intentions towards Clovis himself. She then ordered Clovis murdered.

Brunhilda and Sigebert

The union of the Hispanic Visigothic princess Brunhilda and King Sigebert I, the Frankish ruler of Austrasia, stands as one of the most consequential royal marriages of the early Middle Ages. Raised at the Visigothic court in Toledo, Brunhilda was celebrated for her education, diplomatic acumen, and Romanized upbringing—qualities that rendered her an exceptional royal bride.

For Sigebert, surrounded by ambitious brothers, the marriage offered a prestigious alliance that elevated his status within the Merovingian dynasty. The match was strategically designed to counterbalance the growing influence of his rival and brother, King Chilperic I of Neustria.

Originally an Arian Christian, Brunhilda converted to Catholicism in preparation for the marriage, a symbolic act that endeared her to the Austrasian clergy and nobility. On her wedding day in Metz in 566, Brunhilda was still very young, likely in her early twenties. Contemporary poets praised her dignity and beauty, qualities that impressed the Frankish court as she entered her new kingdom. Sigebert, then in his early thirties, received his bride with evident satisfaction. The marriage was politically advantageous, but it was also warmly celebrated; the poet Venantius Fortunatus, in verses composed for the occasion, speaks of Sigebert’s joy and admiration, writing in the elevated language of courtly praise that the king was struck by love for his new queen.

Gregory of Tours and other contemporary sources depict the marriage of Sigebert and Brunhilda as unusually stable and respectful by Merovingian standards. Although the texts do not portray Brunhilda as a formal political partner, they consistently imply that she exercised legitimate influence within the Austrasian court. Sigebert’s evident esteem for her intelligence and bearing further suggests that her authority, though informal, was both recognized and consequential. The couple was blessed with three children: Ingund, Chlodosinda, and Childebert II.

In the kingdom of Neustria, Queen Galswintha was found strangled in 568, a death widely attributed by contemporaries to the machinations of her husband or his longtime mistress Fredegund, who soon afterward became queen. The killing provoked widespread indignation across the Frankish kingdoms. Brunhilda was deeply aggrieved by her sister’s death and became politically and personally hostile toward Chilperic and Fredegund. She did support and encourage Sigebert’s military action against the king of Neustria.

War swept across the Frankish kingdoms. Again and again, Sigebert’s armies prevailed. His captains pressed deep into Chilperic’s lands, seizing cities and forcing the Neustrian king into retreat. At the height of Sigebert’s advance, Chilperic abandoned his strongholds and took refuge in Tournai, nearly defeated.

It seemed that victory was within Sigebert’s grasp. The nobles of Neustria themselves invited him to Paris to be proclaimed their king. He arrived at the city’s gates on the brink of unifying the realm under his rule. And then, at the very moment of triumph, tragedy struck. Assassins sent by Fredegund slipped into the crowd and murdered Sigebert with poison-tipped daggers.

Time will Tell [COMPLETE] | クラソウ

https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/80737634

I upload the comic as is at the penciling stage. I lost my attention-span to clean up. Sorry.

But yes, I ended the comic! For those 2 Fredegund fans, thank you for waiting.