Herminafried

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Herminafried (also Hermenefred , Erminafried , Irminfried ; * before 485, † before 534 in Tolbiacum (today: Zülpich )) was a son of the Thuringian king Bisinus and took over rule from his father around 510. Between 506 and 510 he married Amalaberga , a niece of the Ostrogothic king Theodoric , who thereby expanded his anti-Frankish alliance system into central Germany. From this connection two or more children emerged: the son Amalafrid and a daughter who was married to Audoin , the Duke / King of the Lombards. It cannot be determined whether Herminafried was baptized . His wife was definitely an Arian . However, excavation results suggest that at least parts of the Thuringian nobility adopted Christianity ( Nicene or Arian).

Reign

After the takeover of power there was probably a division of the empire, since Herminafried's brothers Baderich and Berthachar are also mentioned as kings. What the relationship between the three kings was like cannot be found out. At least Herminafried seems to have taken precedence. The Franconian sources ( Gregory of Tours : Historiarum libri decem and Venantius Fortunatus : Vita Radegundis ) are indifferent in this regard. The negative portrayal of Herminafried by Gregor can possibly be explained with the hostility of the Franks to the Thuringians and with Gregor's intention to justify the Franconian conquest of the Thuringian Empire.

After Herminafried's power consolidation, Theoderich incorporated Thuringia into his anti-Frankish coalition, probably around 507, which was strengthened by his marriage to Amalaberga and which preserved the country from Frankish attacks until Theodoric's death in 526. Probably around 529 a first attempt at invasion by the Merovingians was repulsed. However, the Frankish invasion in 531 , after a devastating defeat of the Thuringian army on the Unstrut , was successful and resulted in the overthrow of Herminafried, at least in its core areas. Until 534 it was apparently still able to assert itself in a remote eastern part. After 531 and before 534 he was lured to Zülpich under a pretext to negotiate with the Merovingian Theuderich I. and there he was thrown from the fortress walls. Gregory von Tours says succinctly: a nesquio quo (you don't know by whom), but suggests that Theuderich may have been behind the crime.

Herminafried is one of the main characters of the so-called Iringlied under the name Irminfried . Apparently, when the Thuringian Empire fell, there was also betrayal, as this legend implies. The assumption evoked by the legend that Burgscheidungen was the royal seat of Herminafried has not yet been confirmed by excavations.

Because of its central location in the Thuringian Basin, Herbsleben is seen by the songwriter and author Reinhold Andert as the royal seat of Herminafried, but the personal name in the place name "Herifridesleiben," Herfridesleba "is Herfried and not Herminafried.

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Berthold Schmidt: The results of the excavations at Castle Burgscheidungen, Nebra district, and on the Bösenburg, Eisleben district . In: II. International Congress for Slavic Archeology. Reports Part 3. Berlin 1973, pp. 333–337.
  2. ↑ Reinhold Andert : The Thuringian King's Short . Dingsda Verlag, Querfurt 1995, ISBN 3-928498-45-2 , pp. 80, 81-84, 86, 186, 189, 190-194, 196-198, 200, 216 and the like. 220-224.
  3. ^ Hans Walther : onenological contributions to the settlement history of the Saale and Middle Elbe region up to the end of the 9th century In: German-Slavic research on onomastics and settlement history 26. Berlin 1971, p. 269.
predecessor Office successor
Bisinus King of the Thuringians
around 500–531 / 534 		Conquered by the Franks 531/534 Theuderich I.


personal data
SURNAME Herminafried
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Hermenefred; Erminafried; Irminfried; Irmfrid; Hermannfrit
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Son of King Bisinus
DATE OF BIRTH before 485
DATE OF DEATH 534
Place of death Zülpich (Tolbiacum)