Elder House of Welf
Encyclopedia
The Elder House of Welf was a dynasty
of European rulers in the 9th through 11th centuries to 1055. It consisted of two groups, a Burgundian
group and a Swabia
n group. It is disputed whether the two groups formed one dynasty or whether they shared the same name by coincidence only.
, the first Count of Altdorf. He was mentioned in 819 as father of Empress Judith
. The younger sons of the first count of Altdorf, Conrad and Rudolf accompanied their sister to the court of her husband, Louis the Pious
, where their ambitious spirit maintained their hereditary rank, and where they shared the happy, as well as the adverse fortunes of that sister. When Judith was surprised and confined by her stepsons, her brothers were shaven as monks but claimed and obtained permission to stand beside the throne.
Conrad had two sons: Conrad II, who succeeded him; and Hugh
, from his church preferment, styled the Abbot
. He is traditionally given a third son, Welf I
of the Swabian group.
Conrad II succeeded his father in the dignity of Count of Paris
, and recovered the estates of his grand-uncle Otkarius, in the province of Burgundy. He left an only son Rudolph
, who assumed the royal crown, at the abbacy of St Maurice en Valais
, in 888, and whose independence being confirmed by two victories over Arnulf
, the emperor, was at last acknowledged, in a general diet of the German empire. His son, Rudolph II
succeeded to this new-formed state, which included the French or western part of Switzerland, Franche-Comté
, Savoy
, Dauphiné
, Provence
, and the country between the Rhine and the Alps
, and was known as the kingdom of Burgundy
. He twice attempted the conquest of Italy, and for a period of three years, governed in that kingdom.
His son and successor, Conrad III
, reigned upwards of fifty-six years, from 937 to 993, and enjoyed the friendship and support of the Saxon emperors. Otto I married his sister Adelaide, and she was the mother of Otto II, and the grandmother of Otto III. Conrad was succeeded by his son Rudolph III
, surnamed the Lossy, who dying in 1032 without issue, the sovereignty of the kingdom of Burgundy devolved as a fief or legacy to his nephew Conrad of Swabia
, who was elected emperor in 1024. With Rudolph, this branch became extinct in the male fine.
The last member of the Burgundian group was King Rudolph III of Burgundy
, who died childless in 1032.
, a count in Swabia
who was first mentioned in 842. According to legend, Welf I was a son of Conrad, son of Welf
, the ancestor of the Burgundian group. This relationship is considered probable because both Conrad and Welf I were counts of Linzgau
and Alpgau
. The relationship between Welf I and all later members of the Swabian group (Welf, Duke of Carinthia
, and his relatives, who were counts of Altdorf
) is, again, known only through legend.
The Elder House of Welf became extinct when Welf, Duke of Carinthia, died childless in 1055. The property of the House of Welf was inherited by the elder branch of the House of Este that came to be known as the younger House of Welf, or House of Welf-Este.
Dynasty
A dynasty is a sequence of rulers considered members of the same family. Historians traditionally consider many sovereign states' history within a framework of successive dynasties, e.g., China, Ancient Egypt and the Persian Empire...
of European rulers in the 9th through 11th centuries to 1055. It consisted of two groups, a Burgundian
Kingdom of Burgundy
Burgundy is a historic region in Western Europe that has existed as a political entity in a number of forms with very different boundaries. Two of these entities - the first around the 6th century, the second around the 11th century - have been called the Kingdom of Burgundy; a third was very...
group and a Swabia
Swabia
Swabia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany.-Geography:Like many cultural regions of Europe, Swabia's borders are not clearly defined...
n group. It is disputed whether the two groups formed one dynasty or whether they shared the same name by coincidence only.
Burgundian group
The older of the two groups was the Burgundian group. Its oldest known member was WelfWelf (father of Judith)
Welf I of Altorf was the son of the 9th century Frankish count Rothard of Metz, to whom the sons of Charles Martel entrusted half of Alemannia. Welf was master of several counties in the southern Rhineland & Bavaria. His family became politically powerful when Louis the Pious chose his oldest...
, the first Count of Altdorf. He was mentioned in 819 as father of Empress Judith
Judith, daughter of Welf
Queen Judith , also known as Judith of Bavaria, was the daughter of Count Welf and a Saxon noblewoman named Hedwig, Duchess of Bavaria...
. The younger sons of the first count of Altdorf, Conrad and Rudolf accompanied their sister to the court of her husband, Louis the Pious
Louis the Pious
Louis the Pious , also called the Fair, and the Debonaire, was the King of Aquitaine from 781. He was also King of the Franks and co-Emperor with his father, Charlemagne, from 813...
, where their ambitious spirit maintained their hereditary rank, and where they shared the happy, as well as the adverse fortunes of that sister. When Judith was surprised and confined by her stepsons, her brothers were shaven as monks but claimed and obtained permission to stand beside the throne.
Conrad had two sons: Conrad II, who succeeded him; and Hugh
Hugh the Abbot
Hugh the Abbot was a member of the Welf family, a son of Conrad I of Auxerre and Adelaide. After his father's death, his mother apparently married Robert the Strong, the margrave of Neustria. On Robert's death in 866, Hugh became the regent and guardian for Robert's sons, Odo and Robert.Hugh...
, from his church preferment, styled the Abbot
Abbot
The word abbot, meaning father, is a title given to the head of a monastery in various traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not actually the head of a monastery...
. He is traditionally given a third son, Welf I
Welf I
Welf I or Welfo was a Swabian nobleman. He was a member of the Elder House of Welf.Welf was probably a son of Conrad I of Auxerre, and seems to have taken over his father's offices in Swabia, namely: count of Alpgau, count of Linzgau, and possibly count of Argengau...
of the Swabian group.
Conrad II succeeded his father in the dignity of Count of Paris
Count of Paris
Count of Paris was a title for the local magnate of the district around Paris in Carolingian times. Eventually, the count of Paris was elected to the French throne...
, and recovered the estates of his grand-uncle Otkarius, in the province of Burgundy. He left an only son Rudolph
Rudolph I of Burgundy
Rudolph I was King of Burgundy from his election in 888 until his death.Rudolph belonged to the elder Welf family and was the son of Conrad, Count of Auxerre, from whom he inherited the lay abbacy of St Maurice en Valais, making him the most powerful magnate in Upper Burgundy - present-day...
, who assumed the royal crown, at the abbacy of St Maurice en Valais
Agaunum
Roman Agaunum, the modern Saint-Maurice in the canton Valais in southwesternmost Switzerland, was a minor post confined between the Rhône and the mountains along the well-travelled road that led from Roman Genava, modern Geneva, over the Alps by the Great St...
, in 888, and whose independence being confirmed by two victories over Arnulf
Arnulf of Carinthia
Arnulf of Carinthia was the Carolingian King of East Francia from 887, the disputed King of Italy from 894 and the disputed Holy Roman Emperor from February 22, 896 until his death.-Birth and Illegitimacy:...
, the emperor, was at last acknowledged, in a general diet of the German empire. His son, Rudolph II
Rudolph II of Burgundy
Rudolph II was king of Upper Burgundy , Lower Burgundy , and Italy . He was the son of Rudolph I, king of Upper Burgundy, and it is presumed that his mother was his father's known wife, Guilla of Provence...
succeeded to this new-formed state, which included the French or western part of Switzerland, Franche-Comté
Franche-Comté
Franche-Comté the former "Free County" of Burgundy, as distinct from the neighbouring Duchy, is an administrative region and a traditional province of eastern France...
, Savoy
Savoy
Savoy is a region of France. It comprises roughly the territory of the Western Alps situated between Lake Geneva in the north and Monaco and the Mediterranean coast in the south....
, Dauphiné
Dauphiné
The Dauphiné or Dauphiné Viennois is a former province in southeastern France, whose area roughly corresponded to that of the present departments of :Isère, :Drôme, and :Hautes-Alpes....
, Provence
Provence
Provence ; Provençal: Provença in classical norm or Prouvènço in Mistralian norm) is a region of south eastern France on the Mediterranean adjacent to Italy. It is part of the administrative région of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur...
, and the country between the Rhine and the Alps
Alps
The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
, and was known as the kingdom of Burgundy
Kingdom of Burgundy
Burgundy is a historic region in Western Europe that has existed as a political entity in a number of forms with very different boundaries. Two of these entities - the first around the 6th century, the second around the 11th century - have been called the Kingdom of Burgundy; a third was very...
. He twice attempted the conquest of Italy, and for a period of three years, governed in that kingdom.
His son and successor, Conrad III
Conrad of Burgundy
Conrad the Peaceful was the king of Burgundy from 937 until his death. He was the son of King Rudolph II, the first king of a united Burgundy and Bertha of Swabia...
, reigned upwards of fifty-six years, from 937 to 993, and enjoyed the friendship and support of the Saxon emperors. Otto I married his sister Adelaide, and she was the mother of Otto II, and the grandmother of Otto III. Conrad was succeeded by his son Rudolph III
Rudolph III of Burgundy
Rudolf III of Burgundy was the last King of an independent Burgundy. He was the son of Conrad, King of Burgundy, and Matilda of France...
, surnamed the Lossy, who dying in 1032 without issue, the sovereignty of the kingdom of Burgundy devolved as a fief or legacy to his nephew Conrad of Swabia
Conrad II, Holy Roman Emperor
Conrad II was Holy Roman Emperor from 1027 until his death.The son of a mid-level nobleman in Franconia, Count Henry of Speyer and Adelaide of Alsace, he inherited the titles of count of Speyer and of Worms as an infant when Henry died at age twenty...
, who was elected emperor in 1024. With Rudolph, this branch became extinct in the male fine.
The last member of the Burgundian group was King Rudolph III of Burgundy
Rudolph III of Burgundy
Rudolf III of Burgundy was the last King of an independent Burgundy. He was the son of Conrad, King of Burgundy, and Matilda of France...
, who died childless in 1032.
Swabian group
The oldest known member of the Swabian group was Welf IWelf I
Welf I or Welfo was a Swabian nobleman. He was a member of the Elder House of Welf.Welf was probably a son of Conrad I of Auxerre, and seems to have taken over his father's offices in Swabia, namely: count of Alpgau, count of Linzgau, and possibly count of Argengau...
, a count in Swabia
Swabia
Swabia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany.-Geography:Like many cultural regions of Europe, Swabia's borders are not clearly defined...
who was first mentioned in 842. According to legend, Welf I was a son of Conrad, son of Welf
Welf (father of Judith)
Welf I of Altorf was the son of the 9th century Frankish count Rothard of Metz, to whom the sons of Charles Martel entrusted half of Alemannia. Welf was master of several counties in the southern Rhineland & Bavaria. His family became politically powerful when Louis the Pious chose his oldest...
, the ancestor of the Burgundian group. This relationship is considered probable because both Conrad and Welf I were counts of Linzgau
Linzgau
Linzgau is a region in southern Germany in the state of Baden-Württemberg north of Lake Constance and south of the Danube valley. It is bounded by Lake Constance on the south, the Hegau on the west, the Danube valley on the north, and the Schussen River on the east.It reaches east as far as...
and Alpgau
Alpgau
Alpgau is a former county in Swabia, Germany....
. The relationship between Welf I and all later members of the Swabian group (Welf, Duke of Carinthia
Welf, Duke of Carinthia
Welf III , as he is numbered in the genealogy of the Swabian line of the Elder House of Welf, was the duke of Carinthia and margrave of Verona from 1047. He was the only son of Welf II, Count of Altdorf, and Imiza....
, and his relatives, who were counts of Altdorf
Weingarten (Württemberg)
Weingarten is a town with a population of 24,000 in Württemberg, in the District of Ravensburg, in the valley of the Schussen River. Together with the southern neighbour cities of Ravensburg and Friedrichshafen on Lake Constance , it forms one of 14 medium-sized infrastructural centres in...
) is, again, known only through legend.
The Elder House of Welf became extinct when Welf, Duke of Carinthia, died childless in 1055. The property of the House of Welf was inherited by the elder branch of the House of Este that came to be known as the younger House of Welf, or House of Welf-Este.
Notable members of the Burgundian group
- WelfWelf (father of Judith)Welf I of Altorf was the son of the 9th century Frankish count Rothard of Metz, to whom the sons of Charles Martel entrusted half of Alemannia. Welf was master of several counties in the southern Rhineland & Bavaria. His family became politically powerful when Louis the Pious chose his oldest...
, Count of Altdorf - Judith, daughter of WelfJudith, daughter of WelfQueen Judith , also known as Judith of Bavaria, was the daughter of Count Welf and a Saxon noblewoman named Hedwig, Duchess of Bavaria...
, Empress - Rudolph IRudolph I of BurgundyRudolph I was King of Burgundy from his election in 888 until his death.Rudolph belonged to the elder Welf family and was the son of Conrad, Count of Auxerre, from whom he inherited the lay abbacy of St Maurice en Valais, making him the most powerful magnate in Upper Burgundy - present-day...
, King of Burgundy - Rudolph IIRudolph II of BurgundyRudolph II was king of Upper Burgundy , Lower Burgundy , and Italy . He was the son of Rudolph I, king of Upper Burgundy, and it is presumed that his mother was his father's known wife, Guilla of Provence...
, King of Burgundy - Conrad I, King of Burgundy
- Gisela of BurgundyGisela of BurgundyGisela, Princess of Burgundy was the daughter of Conrad the Peaceful, King of Burgundy and Adelaide of Bellay, Conrad's second wife whom he probably married for love, as he had already produced an heir by his first, more dynastic, marriage and was thus free to wed as he pleased...
- Adelaide of ItalyAdelaide of ItalySaint Adelaide of Italy , also called Adelaide of Burgundy, was the second wife of Otto the Great, Holy Roman Emperor...
- Rudolph IIIRudolph III of BurgundyRudolf III of Burgundy was the last King of an independent Burgundy. He was the son of Conrad, King of Burgundy, and Matilda of France...
, King of Burgundy
Notable members of the Swabian group
- Welf IWelf IWelf I or Welfo was a Swabian nobleman. He was a member of the Elder House of Welf.Welf was probably a son of Conrad I of Auxerre, and seems to have taken over his father's offices in Swabia, namely: count of Alpgau, count of Linzgau, and possibly count of Argengau...
- Saint Conrad of ConstanceConrad of Constance-Life:Conrad was a member of the powerful Welf family, son of Count Heinrich of Altdorf. After an education at the cathedral school in Constance, he became provost of Constance Cathedral and in 934 was made Bishop of Constance....
- Welf, Duke of CarinthiaWelf, Duke of CarinthiaWelf III , as he is numbered in the genealogy of the Swabian line of the Elder House of Welf, was the duke of Carinthia and margrave of Verona from 1047. He was the only son of Welf II, Count of Altdorf, and Imiza....
(Welf III)