queenfredegund:MEROVINGIAN REGINAE | Theodechildis II Regina (c. 560s-570s)Minor wife of Charibert I
queenfredegund:MEROVINGIAN REGINAE | Theodechildis II Regina (c. 560s-570s)Minor wife of Charibert I Rex, to whom she bore at least one son, Prince B Rex and possibly one daughter, Chlodechildis III Regina. According to Gregorius of Tours, she was the daughter of a sheperd, possibly a member of the gynaeceum, and emerged from our sources around the same time than Marcovefa Regina and Merofledis Regina. “Habuit et aliam puellam opilionis, id est pastoris ovium, filiam, nomen Theudogildem, de qua et filium fertur habuisse, qui ut processit ex alvo, protinus delatus est ad sepulchrum.He had another woman, the daughter of a shepherd who looked after his flocks. Her name was Theudechild and he is said to have had a son by her, but the child was buried immediately after his birth.”DLH, IV, 26. De uxoribus ChariberthiAs the secondary wife of Charibert, she may have lived in Parisius (Paris), probably in the actual Therms of Cluny. After the death of Charibert in 567, she proposed to Guntchramn Rex as his new regina, while he was in that time favoring Austregildis Regina.“Cuius post obitum Theodogildis, una reginarum eius, nuntius ad Gunthchramnum regem dirigit, se ultro offerens matrimonio eius. Quibus rex hoc reddidit in responsis: ‘Accedere ad me ei non pigeat cum thesauris suis. Ego enim accipiam eam faciamque magnam in populis, ut scilicet maiorem mecum honorem quam cum germano meo, qui nuper defunctus est, potiatur’. At illa gavisa, collectis omnibus, ad eum profecta est.After his death Theudechild, one of his queens, sent messengers to King Guntram, offering her hand in marriage. The King replied in these terms: ‘She may come to me and bring her treasure with her. I will receive her and I will give her an honourable place among my people. She will hold a higher position at my side than she ever did with my brother, who has died recently.’ Theudechild was delighted when she heard this. She collected all her possessions together and set out to join Guntram.”DLH, IV, 26. De uxoribus ChariberthiFirstly, Guntchramn seemed to consent to her proposal and engaged her to come at him, but then he seized her wealth and expelled her to a nunnery in Arelate (Arles). Even if the meaning behind his action has not been explained by Gregorius of Tours, it could be because royal widows were not supposed to be remarried, expect for some specific cases.“Quod cernens rex, ait: ‘Rectius est enim, ut hi thesauri penes me habeantur, quam post hanc, quae indigne germani mei torum adivit’. Tunc, ablatis multis, paucis relictis, Arelatinsi eam monasthirio distinavit.When he saw her, Guntram said: ‘It is better that this treasure should fall into my hands than that it should remain in the control of this woman who was unworthy of my brother’s bed.’ He seized most of her goods, left her a small portion and packed her off to a nunnery at Arles.”DLH, IV, 26. De uxoribus ChariberthiBetrayed and apparently resentful, Theodechildis II Regina tried nonetheless to escape to Hispania with the help of a visigothic man, but failed and had to stayed in the monastery, where she was, according to Gregorius, harshly treated for the rest of her life. Her dates of birth and death are unknown.“Haec vero aegre adquiescens ieiuniis ac vigiliis adfici, per occultus nuntios Gothum quendam adivit, promittens, si se in Hispaniis deductam coniugio copularet, cum thesauris suis de monasthirio egrediens, libenti eum animo sequeretur. Quod ille, nihil dubitans, repromisit. Cumque haec, collictis rebus factisque volucris, a cenobio pararet egredi, antecepavit voluntatem eius industria abbatissae, depraehensamque fraudem, eam graviter caesam custodiae mancipare praecipit; in qua usque ad exitum vitae praesentis, non mediocribus adtrita passionibus, perduravit.Theudechild bore ill the fasts and vigils to which she was subjected. She sent messengers in secret to a certain Goth, promising him that, if he would carry her off to Spain and marry her there, she would escape from the nunnery with what wealth remained to her and set off with him without the slightest hesitation. He immediately promised to do what she asked. She once more collected her possessions together and made them into bundles. As she was about to make her escape from the nunnery, she was surprised by the vigilant abbess. The abbess, who had caught her red-handed, had her beaten mercilessly and locked her up in her cell. There she remained until her dying day, suffering awful anguish.”DLH, IV, 26. De uxoribus Chariberthi -- source link