Alberada de Lorraine
Alberada de LorraineDate of birth: Probably
the early 930's.
Her parents were married in 929
["Gisalbertus dux Gerburgam filiam
Heinrici regis duxit uxorem" Continuatio Reginonis,
s.a. 929, Regino, Chronicon, 158; "Gisalbertus
dux Gerbirgam, Heinrichi regis filiam, duxit uxorem." Annales
Heremi, s.a. 929, MGH SS 3: 141; "Gisalbertus dux
Gerbirg duxit uxorem" Annales S. Maximini
Trevirensis, s.a. 929, MGH SS 2: 213]. Since her daughter Ermentrude was
married by 971 at the latest, a birth relatively early in her
parents' marriage is likely.
Place of birth: Unknown.
Date of death: Unknown.
Place of burial: Saint-Remi de Reims.
Her epitaph at Saint-Remi de Reims
appeared side by side with that of Ragenold ["Hoc,
Albrada, locor de pulvere pulvis in antro / Et genus heroum
proteror hic miserum. / De primo qualem contraxi pulvere sortem /
At causam sortis hæc monimenta ferunt. / Particulas sol quinque
means lustraret Aquari / Hæc me cum tenebris obruit urna suis."
Moranvillé (1922), 27; RHF 9: 104].
Father: Giselbert, d.
2 October 939, duke of Lorraine.
Mother: Gerberga, daughter of Heinrich I, king of Germany.
A letter from Siegfried, abbot of Görz, to Poppo, abbot of Stablo, written in 1043 when the marriage between the emperor Heinrich III and Agnès de Poitou was being negotiated, describes the 3:3 degree of consanguinity between the prospective bride and groom, and includes the statements that Alberada was a daughter of Gerberga and Giselbert, and that she was the mother of Ermentrude ["... Heinricus rex ex Mathilde genuit tres filios: Ottonem imperatorem, Brunonem archiepiscopum, Heinricum ducem; duas quoque filias, Gerbergam et Hadwidem. Quarum altera, id est Hadewidis, Hugoni; altera, id est Gerberga, nupsit Gisleberto duci eique filiam Alberadam nomine peperit. Post obitum vero Gisleberti iuncta est in matrimonium Ludovico Francorum regi, a quo filios duos, Lotharium regem et Karolum ducem, filiamque Mathildam, postea Cuonradi regis Burgundionum uxorem suscepit. Porro ex his sororibus, non quidem de uno patre, sed de una matre scilicet Gerberga genitis, de altera quidem, id est Alberada Ermentrudis, de altera vero, id est Mathilde, Gepa, quae et Gerberga, processit." Giesebrecht (1881-95), 2: 714-5 (document #10)]. See Ermentrude's page for more details.
Spouse: Ragenold/Renaud, d. 10 May 967, count of Roucy.
This marriage is not directly documented,
and has been contested. See the page of Ragenold for a discussion.
Children:
As indicated above Ermentrude is documented as a daughter of
Alberada. Bruno is documented as a brother of Ermentrude, and
Giselbert is documented as a brother of Bruno. See the pages of Ermentrude and Ragenold for more details. Frotmund's wife is documented as a
daughter of Ragenold. Bouchard, who doubts the marriage of
Ragenold and Alberada, would see two unrelated families here
[Bouchard (1981); Bouchard (1987), 268-9]. See the Commentary
section of Ragenold's
page.
Ermentrude, d. 1002×4, m. (1) Aubry II,
count of Mâcon; (2) Otte-Guillaume, count of Bourgogne (Burgundy).
Giselbert, d. 19 April, not long after
991, count of Roucy.
Bruno, b. ca. 956, d. 1015×6, bishop
of Langres, 981-1015×6.
NN, m. Frotmund II,
count of Sens.
Bibliography
Anselme = Père Anselme, Histoire généalogique et chronologique de la maison royale de France, 9 vols (Paris, 1726-33).
Bib. Hist. Yonne = Louis-Maximilien Duru, ed., Bibliothèque historique de l'Yonne, 2 vols., (Auxerre & Paris, 1850-63).
Bouchard (1981) = Constance B. Bouchard, "The Origins of the French Nobility: A Reassessment", The American Historical Review 86 (1981): 501-532.
Bouchard (1987) = Constance Brittain Bouchard, Sword, Miter, and Cloister. Nobility and the Church in Burgundy, 980-1198 (Ithaca & London, 1987).
Chron. S.-Bénigne = E. Bougaud, ed., Chronique de l'abbaye de Saint-Bénigne de Dijon (Dijon, 1875).
Giesebrecht (1881-95) = Wilhelm von Giesebrecht, Geschichte der deutschen Kaiserzeit, 5th ed., 6 vols. (Leipzig, 1881-95)
MGH SS = Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Scriptores series.
Moranvillé (1922) = H. Moranvillé, "Origine de la Maison de Roucy", Bibliothèque de l'École des Chartes 83 (1922):11-42.
RHF = Recueil des historiens des Gaules et de la France.
Compiled by Stewart Baldwin
First uploaded 24 April 2008.