Wichmann the Younger
Encyclopedia
Wichmann II the Younger (about 930 - 22 September 967) was a member of the Saxon
House of Billung
. He was a son of Count Wichmann the Elder
and his wife Frederuna, probably a sister of Queen Matilda
. The cousin of Emperor Otto I
became known as a fierce enemy of the ruling Ottonian dynasty.
Wichmann was perhaps born at present-day Wichmannsburg, part of Bienenbüttel
, at the residence of his father. Wichmann I the Elder, though the first-born of three Billung brothers and by his marriage related to King Otto I, was ignored at the enfeoffment with the Saxon Billung March
, which in 936 fell to his younger brother Hermann. Wichmann the Elder at first rebelled against the king, joining the uprising of Duke Eberhard of Franconia, but gave up soon afterwards. Upon his father's death in 944, Wichmann the Younger remained under the tutelage of his uncle Hermann. When he came of age, he only was able to succeed in the rank of a count in Angria
, though his county is unknown.
Raised at the court of King Otto I upon the early death of their mother, Wichmann made friends with the king's son Liudolf
, duke of Swabia
since 950. In 953 he participated in Liudolf's rebellion against King Otto, fighting the Saxon troops during the king's siege of Mainz
, whereby he re-opened his father's feud with Hermann, his uncle, who meanwhile had been appointed princeps of Saxony. Wichmann was captured; Otto prevented him from being punished more severely, contrary to Hermann's wishes. He was released in 954, though he was not included in the general settlement that followed the revolt.
Wichmann and his brother Egbert the One-Eyed
, still feeling deprived of their heritage, marauded through Saxony and in 955 arrived in the lands of the Slavic Obotrites
at Liubice
(Lübeck), where they instigated a revolt under Prince Prince Nako that was suppressed by King Otto at the Battle of Recknitz
. The young Billungs fled to the court of Duke Hugh the Great
of France
. When Hugh died the next year, Wichmann had to return to Germany, he was however pardonned after he had sweared loyalty to King Otto. He however remained an implacable opponent, attacking the lands of his uncle Hermann several times, until he had to retreat to the Slavic Lutici
territories, tolerated by Margrave Gero
.
In 963, Wichmann was an outlaw leading a band of West Slavs (likely Pomeranians) in battle against Duke Mieszko I of Poland
, defeating him twice and even exacting tribute. For a brief interlude, he was allowed to return to Germany and his wife's estates, but he was exiled once more by his uncle Hermann during Otto's second Italian campaign. In 967, he and the western Pomeranians were defeated at Wolin
by an alliance of Mieszko and Duke Boleslaus I of Bohemia and Wichmann was killed in action. Wichmann's lands were confiscated by Otto and divided in two, half going to the monastery of Saint Michael founded by Hermann Billung at Lüneburg
, and half going to found the convent of Keminada (near Bodenwerder
) on the Weser.
, Wichmann was married. Certain scholars have interpreted a clause in the foundation charter of the Corvey Abbey
as referring to Wichmann, his wife Hathwig, and his son Amelung, Count of Bikethop. Wichmann's daughters Imma and Frederuna were allowed to use their inheritance, on which Keminada was founded, throughout their lifetime.
Duchy of Saxony
The medieval Duchy of Saxony was a late Early Middle Ages "Carolingian stem duchy" covering the greater part of Northern Germany. It covered the area of the modern German states of Bremen, Hamburg, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, and Saxony-Anhalt and most of Schleswig-Holstein...
House of Billung
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...
. He was a son of Count Wichmann the Elder
Wichmann the Elder
Wichmann I the Elder was a member of the Saxon House of Billung. He was a brother of Amelung, Bishop of Verden, and Herman, Duke of Saxony....
and his wife Frederuna, probably a sister of Queen Matilda
Matilda of Ringelheim
Saint Mathilda was the wife of King Henry I of Germany, the first ruler of the Saxon Ottonian dynasty, thereby Duchess consort of Saxony from 912 and German Queen from 919 until 936. Their eldest son Otto succeeded his father as German King and was crowned Holy Roman Emperor in 962...
. The cousin of Emperor Otto I
Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor
Otto I the Great , son of Henry I the Fowler and Matilda of Ringelheim, was Duke of Saxony, King of Germany, King of Italy, and "the first of the Germans to be called the emperor of Italy" according to Arnulf of Milan...
became known as a fierce enemy of the ruling Ottonian dynasty.
Wichmann was perhaps born at present-day Wichmannsburg, part of Bienenbüttel
Bienenbüttel
Bienenbüttel is a free municipality in the district of Uelzen, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the river Ilmenau, approx. 20 km north of Uelzen, and 13 km southeast of Lüneburg...
, at the residence of his father. Wichmann I the Elder, though the first-born of three Billung brothers and by his marriage related to King Otto I, was ignored at the enfeoffment with the Saxon Billung March
Billung March
The Billung March or March of the Billungs was a frontier region of the far northeastern Duchy of Saxony in the 10th century...
, which in 936 fell to his younger brother Hermann. Wichmann the Elder at first rebelled against the king, joining the uprising of Duke Eberhard of Franconia, but gave up soon afterwards. Upon his father's death in 944, Wichmann the Younger remained under the tutelage of his uncle Hermann. When he came of age, he only was able to succeed in the rank of a count in Angria
Angria
Angria or Angaria is a historical region in the present-day German states of Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia. The chronicler Widukind of Corvey in his Res gestae saxonicae sive annalium libri tres denoted it as the central region of the mediæval Duchy of Saxony lying along the middle...
, though his county is unknown.
Raised at the court of King Otto I upon the early death of their mother, Wichmann made friends with the king's son Liudolf
Liudolf, Duke of Swabia
Liudolf was the duke of Swabia from 950 until 954. He was the only son of Otto I, king of Germany, from his wife Eadgyth, daughter of Edward the Elder, king of England....
, duke of Swabia
Duke of Swabia
The following is a list of Dukes of Swabia in southwest Germany.Swabia was one of the five stem duchies of the medieval German kingdom, and its dukes were thus among the most powerful magnates of Germany. The most notable family to hold Swabia were the Hohenstaufen, who held it, with a brief...
since 950. In 953 he participated in Liudolf's rebellion against King Otto, fighting the Saxon troops during the king's siege of Mainz
Mainz
Mainz under the Holy Roman Empire, and previously was a Roman fort city which commanded the west bank of the Rhine and formed part of the northernmost frontier of the Roman Empire...
, whereby he re-opened his father's feud with Hermann, his uncle, who meanwhile had been appointed princeps of Saxony. Wichmann was captured; Otto prevented him from being punished more severely, contrary to Hermann's wishes. He was released in 954, though he was not included in the general settlement that followed the revolt.
Wichmann and his brother Egbert the One-Eyed
Egbert the One-Eyed
Egbert the One-Eyed was the second son of Wichmann the Elder and the younger brother of Wichmann the Younger. He was thus of the elder line of the Billung family. His nickname derives from the fact that he lost an eye in battle, an injury for which he blamed Otto I and which partly explains his...
, still feeling deprived of their heritage, marauded through Saxony and in 955 arrived in the lands of the Slavic Obotrites
Obotrites
The Obotrites , also commonly known as the Obodrites, Abotrites, or Abodrites, were a confederation of medieval West Slavic tribes within the territory of modern Mecklenburg and Holstein in northern Germany . For decades they were allies of Charlemagne in his wars against Germanic Saxons and Slavic...
at Liubice
Liubice
Liubice, also known by the German name Alt-Lübeck , was a medieval West Slavic settlement near the site of modern Lübeck, Germany. Liubice was located at the confluence of the Schwartau with the Trave across from Teerhof Island, approximately four kilometres north of Lübeck's island old town...
(Lübeck), where they instigated a revolt under Prince Prince Nako that was suppressed by King Otto at the Battle of Recknitz
Battle of Recknitz
The Battle of Recknitz river]]") was fought on 16 October 955 between the forces of Otto I of Germany allied with the Rani tribe on one side, and the Obotrite federation under Nako and his brother Stoinegin with their allied and tributary Slav neighbours on the other in the region of present-day...
. The young Billungs fled to the court of Duke Hugh the Great
Hugh the Great
Hugh the Great or Hugues le Grand was duke of the Franks and count of Paris, son of King Robert I of France and nephew of King Odo. He was born in Paris, Île-de-France, France. His eldest son was Hugh Capet who became King of France in 987...
of France
France in the Middle Ages
France in the Middle Ages covers an area roughly corresponding to modern day France, from the death of Louis the Pious in 840 to the middle of the 15th century...
. When Hugh died the next year, Wichmann had to return to Germany, he was however pardonned after he had sweared loyalty to King Otto. He however remained an implacable opponent, attacking the lands of his uncle Hermann several times, until he had to retreat to the Slavic Lutici
Lutici
The Lutici were a federation of West Slavic Polabian tribes, who between the 10th and 12th centuries lived in what is now northeastern Germany. Four tribes made up the core of the federation: the Redarians , Circipanians , Kessinians and Tollensians...
territories, tolerated by Margrave Gero
Gero
Gero I , called the Great , ruled an initially modest march centred on Merseburg, which he expanded into a vast territory named after him: the marca Geronis. During the mid-10th century, he was the leader of the Saxon Drang nach Osten.-Succession and early conflicts:Gero was the son of Count...
.
In 963, Wichmann was an outlaw leading a band of West Slavs (likely Pomeranians) in battle against Duke Mieszko I of Poland
Mieszko I of Poland
Mieszko I , was a Duke of the Polans from about 960 until his death. A member of the Piast dynasty, he was son of Siemomysł; grandchild of Lestek; father of Bolesław I the Brave, the first crowned King of Poland; likely father of Świętosława , a Nordic Queen; and grandfather of her son, Cnut the...
, defeating him twice and even exacting tribute. For a brief interlude, he was allowed to return to Germany and his wife's estates, but he was exiled once more by his uncle Hermann during Otto's second Italian campaign. In 967, he and the western Pomeranians were defeated at Wolin
Wolin (town)
Wolin is a town situated on the southern tip of the Wolin island off the Baltic coast of Poland. The island lies at the edge of the strait of Dziwna in Kamień Pomorski County in the West Pomeranian Voivodeship....
by an alliance of Mieszko and Duke Boleslaus I of Bohemia and Wichmann was killed in action. Wichmann's lands were confiscated by Otto and divided in two, half going to the monastery of Saint Michael founded by Hermann Billung at Lüneburg
Lüneburg
Lüneburg is a town in the German state of Lower Saxony. It is located about southeast of fellow Hanseatic city Hamburg. It is part of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region, and one of Hamburg's inner suburbs...
, and half going to found the convent of Keminada (near Bodenwerder
Bodenwerder
Bodenwerder is a municipality in Holzminden district, Lower Saxony, Germany. It lies on the river Weser, upstream from Hamelin, at a point where the river has carved a gap in the hills...
) on the Weser.
Marriage and issue
According to the Res gestae saxonicaeRes gestae saxonicae sive annalium libri tres
The three-volume Res gestae saxonicae sive annalium libri tres is a chronicle of 10th century Germany written by Widukind of Corvey...
, Wichmann was married. Certain scholars have interpreted a clause in the foundation charter of the Corvey Abbey
Corvey Abbey
The Imperial Abbey of Corvey was a Benedictine monastery on the River Weser, 2 km northeast of Höxter, now in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany....
as referring to Wichmann, his wife Hathwig, and his son Amelung, Count of Bikethop. Wichmann's daughters Imma and Frederuna were allowed to use their inheritance, on which Keminada was founded, throughout their lifetime.
Sources
- Reuter, TimothyTimothy ReuterTimothy Alan Reuter , grandson of the former mayor of Berlin Ernst Reuter, was a German-British historian who specialized in the study of medieval Germany, particularly the social, military and ecclesiastical institutions of the Ottonian and Salian periods .Reuter received his D.phil from Oxford in...
. Germany in the Early Middle Ages 800–1056. New York: Longman, 1991. - Bernhardt, John W. Itinerant Kingship and Royal Monasteries in Early Medieval Germany, c. 936–1075. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993.