Hedenen

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The Hedenen or Hetaniden is a Franconian noble family who lived in Würzburg from around the middle of the 7th century and who provided the dukes of the Duchy of Thuringia until around the end of the 710s . The non-contemporary name "Hedene" goes back to two representatives of the sex - Hedan I and Hedan II.

Master line and chronological order

Based on the Passio Kiliani minor , the older of the two hagiographical writings about Saint Kilian , which describes the work and death of the saint at the court of Duke Gosbert of Würzburg , a lineage of dukes resident in Würzburg can be determined for a period of approximately covers the second half of the 7th century. In addition to Gosbert, his father, Hedan the Elder and his father Hruodi, as well as a son of Gosbert, Hedan the Younger , are also named. The lineage of the Dukes of Würzburg could therefore be reconstructed as follows: Hruodi - Hedan I. - Gosbert - Hedan II.

Main Franconia and Thuringia before the establishment of the Duchy of Thuringia

The area around Würzburg can only be described as Franconian from around the end of the 8th century. Initially seen from the sources as part of the Thuringian region, from the Carolingian era onwards the self-name “Mainfranken” - clearly differentiated from the north-eastern “Thoringia” - became established. It is unclear whether the first Franconian expansion efforts in the direction of the Main area were already successful under Clovis I in the years 496/7 or 506/7 (i.e. in the course of the submission of the Alemanni ) or only with the complete conquest of the Kingdom of Thuringia in 531 were implemented under Theuderich I.

Even in the immediate following period, there was still no talk of an active Frankish settlement policy in Thuringia. This was due on the one hand to the geographical conditions in Thuringia and on the other hand to the population-related situation of the Franconian Empire: The Merovingians either had no interest in settling settlers in the area, which was still largely covered by primeval forest - especially since Thuringia was not the only area that had been conquered in the period around the late 5th and early 6th centuries - or simply not the capacities that an active "franking" would have required through the settlement of Frankish settlers.

Nevertheless, over the next two centuries, a process that can be referred to as "franking" will gradually take place. From this point on it is noticeable that the Main Franconian area, in contrast to Thuringia and especially the Saxons in the north, who rebelled against Franconian rule and were suppressed twice in the 550s and 620s, reacts relatively passively to Franconian rule.

In the course of the incursions of the Slavs / Wends and the inability of the Franconian central power under Dagobert I to effectively defend their territories east of the Rhine , an independent Thuringian duchy will have been established from around the 620s to the 630s, although it cannot be said for sure whether that "ducatus thoringiae" included the Main Franconian area at that time. The newly founded ducat was transferred to a Franconian named Radulf, with the task of defending it from Saxon and Slavic incursions. Whether Radulf is identical to the Würzburg Duke Hruodi named in the Passio Kiliani cannot be proven with certainty.

The reign of Radulf

Duke Radulf is said not only to have successfully mastered the defense of the duchy against the Slavs, but also to have won some excellent victories. In the course of these great military successes, the Fredegar Chronicle reports, Radulf is said to have appeared more and more self-confident towards the Franconian central power, which ultimately, after the deaths of Dagobert I and Pippin the Elder , led to an alliance between Radulf and the Agilolfing duke Fara and to the Rebellion against Sigibert III, who was still a minor . led. As a result, Radulf, who holed up on the Unstrut , was apparently able to assert his position against the Franconian central power.

In the course of the conflict between Radulf and Sigibert III. It is also likely that a duchy was established in the Main Franconian area. The exact reasons for this cannot be traced with certainty, but the establishment of a Main Franconian duchy as a counterweight to Radulf's aspirations for autonomy would be an obvious choice. Würzburg is likely to have developed as the political center of the new duchy and Hedan I was installed as duke.

The beginnings of Hedenic rule in Würzburg

Little is known about the work of Hedan I after his establishment as Duke of Würzburg. The vita of Saint Bilhild , who was probably the wife of Hedan I for a time, before she embarked on a spiritual path in life after his death, tells of an army of the Huns that is said to have threatened the area around Würzburg in Bilhild's childhood years. A certain Duke “Hethan” - although without a suffix, he can certainly be identified with Hedan I in terms of time - is said to have succeeded in driving the Huns out again. The Huns mentioned here are more likely to be understood as Slavs , Avars or Wends .

The vita of Saint Bilhild also provides information on the family relationships of Hedan I. It reports on a son who died at a young age, as well as a child of unknown gender that Bilhild carried during her escape from Würzburg, but is not reported any further. From the Passio minor we also learn about two other sons of Hedan I: Gosbert, Hedan's I later successor as Duke of Würzburg, as well as a further son unknown by name.

According to Bilhild's vita, the rule of Hedan I ended when he did not return from a trip to Franconia. The rule in Würzburg then took over his son Gosbert.

There is also little to say about Gosbert as a political actor due to the lack of sources. He was probably important as one of the figures involved in the martyrdom of St. Kilian. After being mentioned in the Passio minor, Gosbert also converted to the Christian faith in the course of the missionary work of Saint Kilian , from which it could be concluded that the Hedenic representatives had been pagan before Gosbert .

Assassination of St. Kilian; left behind Duke Gosbert. Illustration from a Strasbourg codex , around 1418

In the Passio Kiliani it says:

“And it wasn't long before the pious Bishop of God Kilian won the latter [Gosbert] over to become a Christian. And since he submitted to God's will, his holy admonitions, he was baptized and confirmed by him, as was all the people who were under his rule. "

She also reports on Kilian's martyrdom:

“And when Almighty God wanted his warriors to end their temporal battle, it happened: one night, at night when they were united in praise of God, the executioner came to them, sword drawn, armed as it were To behead friends of God, in execution of the orders of Geilana, the wife of Duke Gosbert. […] After these words, all were beheaded in the same way and crowned with martyrdom. "

Gosbert was later murdered by his own servants, whereupon his son Hedan II succeeded him to the throne. Religious differences are often considered as the motive for the murder.

The policy of Hedan II and the end of the Hedenic rule

Hedan II. Is the earliest representative of the Hedenic family who can be documented . According to a document from the year 704, which was co-signed by his wife Theodrada and his son Thuring, he bequeathed the missionary Willibrord a property in the Arnstadt area . Another donation to the missionaries was made 13 years later and supported the establishment of a monastery in Hammelburg on the Franconian Saale . Another ecclesiastical merit of Hedan II is the building of a church on Marienberg near Würzburg, which was later expanded to include a monastery. The ecclesiastical work of Hedan II is considered today - in addition to the continuing work of Willibald - as an important factor for the later missionary work and the actual establishment of a diocese of Würzburg in 742. Hedan II is also the first Hedenic representative in whom, based on the sources, one can speak of a (Main Franconian) Thuringian duke without any doubt.

Hedan II is not only the last representative of the Hedenic ducal family in Würzburg. It can also be assumed that the end of the reign of Hedan II will also be accompanied by the end of the (Main Franconian) Thuringian duchy. The deed of gift of 717 mentioned above represents the last surviving date of the ducate's existence. When Boniface first reached Thuringia in 719, the duchy was no longer in existence.

The reasons for the end of the duchy cannot be reconstructed with certainty: one suspicion assumes that Hedan II and Thuring's, his son and heir, died close together. The battle of Vincy in 717 could be named as a possible cause . The Passio minor, on the other hand, mentions the expulsion of Hedan II and the persecution of his family branch as a result of a popular uprising. The Fredegar Chronicle speaks of the political disempowerment of the Hedenic ducal family through a "populus orientalium francorum", which is often identified in research with Karl Martell .

Even if the reasons for the end of the Thuringian duchy cannot be determined with certainty, the consequences are relatively clear: Hedan II, as well as family members entitled to inherit and politically capable of action - i.e. Theodrada and Thuring - were eliminated, driven out or killed. As a secular political power factor, the Hedens seem to have ceased to be of importance from around the 720s onwards. The (Main Franconian) Thuringian duchy ceases to exist, and from 742 the diocese of Würzburg takes its place .

family tree

 
 
 
 
 
 
 Hruodi
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 (1.) NN
 
 Hedan I.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 (2.) Bilihild
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
(1.) son NN
 
 Gailana
 
 (2.) Gosbert
 
 Son NN
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Hedan II.
 
 Theodrada
 
 
 
 
 
 

The source is missing here.

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Passio Kiliani 3.
  2. ↑ R. Butzen: Mainfranken, p. 247ff.
  3. ^ Fredegar 87.
  4. ↑ H. Mordek: The Hedenen as a political force, p. 351f.
  5. ↑ Passio minor 8-11.
  6. ↑ H. Mordek: The Hedenen as a political force, p. 345f.
  7. ^ R. Butzen: Mainfranken, pp. 253f.
  8. ^ K. Lindner: Early history of the Duchy of Würzburg, p. 73f.
  9. ↑ H. Mordek: The Hedenen as a political force, p. 346.