Adalolf (Boulogne)

Adalolf (Anglo-Saxon: Æthelwulf ; † November 13, 933 ) was the first Count of Boulogne and lay abbot of the Abbey of Saint-Bertin . He was a younger son of Count Baldwin II the Bald of Flanders and the Anglo-Saxon princess Ælfthryd / Elftrude, a daughter of King Alfred the Great of Wessex .

When Count Baldwin II of Flanders died in 918, an inheritance division came into force, in which the land around Boulogne and Thérouanne was separated from the county of Flanders and assigned to Adalolf as a separate county, while the larger remaining county of Flanders was taken over by the older son Arnulf . The Frankish Dux Hugo Magnus placed Adalolf at the head of an embassy that was supposed to travel to Britain to woo the Anglo-Saxon king Æthelstan for the hand of a princess for the Dux. On this occasion, the embassy brought a variety of gifts such as perfume, jewels, an onyx vase and a diadem. As William of Malmesbury further reports, the king was also given several relics as gifts, such as the sword of Constantine , which had a holy nail set in its pommel, the banner of Saint Mauritius , the spear that had been thrust into the side of Christ, as well Parts of the true cross and the crown of thorns.

Adalolf was killed by a swineherd in a forest in 933 and was buried in the Abbey of St. Peter in Ghent . His legitimate son Arnulf II could not immediately succeed him as Count in Boulogne, but was ousted by Arnulf I of Flanders. The son could not take over the county until 962. A second, illegitimate son of Adalolf was Balduin Baldzo, who officiated as regent for the underage Arnulf II of Flanders .

Individual evidence

↑ Willelmi Malmesbiriensis Monachi, De Gestis Regum Anglorum, Libri Quinque , ed. by William Stubbs in Rolls Series, Rerum Britannicarum medii aevi scriptores , Vol. 90 (1887-9), I, pp. 149-151
↑ Folkwin of Laubach , Gesta abbatum S. Bertini Sithiensium cap. 105, ed. by Oswald Holder-Egger in MGH SS 13 (1881), p. 627; Folkwin von Laubach erroneously noted the presence of Count Adalolf at the landing of King Louis IV in Boulogne in 936 (cap. 106, MGH SS 13), but confused him with Count Arnulf I of Flanders.
↑ De Arnulfo Comite , ed. by LC Bethmann in MGH SS 9, (1851) p. 304; A short note about the family circumstances of Count Arnulf II of Flanders on the back of a diploma dated May 5, 966 from King Lothar of West Franconia from St. Peter's Monastery in Ghent, probably written towards the end of the 10th century.

Web links

The Counts of Boulogne at fmg.ac (English)

predecessor	Office	successor
Part of the county of Flanders	Count of Boulogne 918-933	Arnulf I. (Arnulf I. of Flanders)

personal data
SURNAME	Adalolf
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Æthelwulf
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	Count of Boulogne
DATE OF BIRTH	10th century
DATE OF DEATH	November 13, 933

[1] Willelmi Malmesbiriensis Monachi, De Gestis Regum Anglorum, Libri Quinque , ed. by William Stubbs in Rolls Series, Rerum Britannicarum medii aevi scriptores , Vol. 90 (1887-9), I, pp. 149-151

[2] Folkwin of Laubach , Gesta abbatum S. Bertini Sithiensium cap. 105, ed. by Oswald Holder-Egger in MGH SS 13 (1881), p. 627; Folkwin von Laubach erroneously noted the presence of Count Adalolf at the landing of King Louis IV in Boulogne in 936 (cap. 106, MGH SS 13), but confused him with Count Arnulf I of Flanders.

[3] De Arnulfo Comite , ed. by LC Bethmann in MGH SS 9, (1851) p. 304; A short note about the family circumstances of Count Arnulf II of Flanders on the back of a diploma dated May 5, 966 from King Lothar of West Franconia from St. Peter's Monastery in Ghent, probably written towards the end of the 10th century.