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OF FRANCONIA Conrad (Konrad) II "the Salic"

Birth: 989 of Burgundy
Death: 4 Jun 1039 Utrecht, Netherlands
Burial: Speyer, Bavaria

Notes
Also King of Burgundy
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conrad_II,_Holy_Roman_Emperor
Conrad II (c.?990 – 4 June 1039), also known as Conrad the Elder and Conrad the
Salic, was Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire from 1027 until his death in 1039. The
founder of the Salian dynasty of emperors, Conrad also served as King of Germany
from 1024, King of Italy from 1026, and King of Burgundy from 1033.

The son of a mid-level nobleman in Franconia, Count Henry of Speyer and Adelaide of
Alsace, he inherited the titles of count of Speyer and of Worms as an infant when his
father died. Conrad extended his power beyond his inherited lands, receiving the favor
of the princes of the Kingdom of Germany. When the Saxon-based Ottonian dynasty of
emperors died off with the childless Emperor Henry II, Conrad was elected to succeed
him as King in 1024 at the age of 34. Conrad founded his own dynasty of rulers,
known as the Salian dynasty, which ruled the Holy Roman Empire for over a century.

Conrad continued the policies and achievements of the Ottonian Henry II regarding
the Catholic Church and the affairs of Italy. Conrad continued to build the Church as a
center for imperial power, preferring to appoint church bishops over secular lords to
important posts across the Empire. Like Henry II before him, Conrad also continued a
policy of benign neglect over Italy, especially for the city of Rome. His reign marked a
high point of the medieval imperial rule and a relatively peaceful period for the Empire.
Following the death of the childless King Rudolph III of Burgundy in 1032, Conrad
claimed dominion over the Kingdom of Arles and incorporated it into the Empire. The
three kingdoms (Germany, Italy, and Burgundy) formed the basis of the Empire as the
"royal triad" (regna tria).
Early life[edit]

Family background[edit]

The Salian dynasty has its origins with Count Werner V of Worms, a mid-level Frankish
noble from Germany's Duchy of Franconia east of the Rhine River. His son, Conrad
the Red, succeeded him as Count in 941 and King Otto I of Germany (the future Holy
Roman Emperor) appointed him as Duke of Lorraine in 944. He was subsequently
married to Liutgarde, one of Otto's daughters, in 947 and became one of the king's
closest allies. The relationship was strained, however, when Otto refused to honor a
peace treaty Conrad, as Otto's representative, had conducted with the rebellious
Berengar II of Italy. Conrad also resented the growing influence of Otto's brother
Henry I of Bavaria, which he saw as threatening his own power. In 953 Conrad joined
the king's son Liudolf in rebellion against Otto, but the rebellion was defeated and
Conrad was stripped of his duchy. Conrad and Otto were soon reconciled, with Conrad
fighting for Otto in the great Battle of Lechfeld in 955. Though the Germans were
successful in halting the Hungarian invasions of Europe, Conrad lost his life in the
battle. Conrad was succeeded as Count of Worms in 956 by his son Otto of Worms, a
grandson of Otto I. Sometime between 965 and 970 Otto of Worms' oldest son, Henry
of Speyer, was born. Little is known of his life as he died the age of 20 between 985
and 990. Conrad II's father was Henry of Speyer, and his mother was Adelaide of
Alsace, an area of Upper Lorraine. After Henry's death, Adelaide married a Frankish
nobleman. After her remarriage, Adelaide demonstrated no close relationship with her
son.

In 978 Emperor Otto II appointed his nephew Otto of Worms as Duke of Carinthia after
deposing the rebellious Duke Henry I of Carinthia during the War of the Three
Henries. Upon receiving the ducal title, however, Otto lost his position at Worms,
which was given to Bishop Hildebald, Otto II's imperial chancellor. When Otto II died
suddenly in 983, his infant son Otto III succeeded him, with his mother Theophanu
serving as regent. Theophanu sought to reconcile the imperial house with Henry I,
restoring him as Duke of Carinthia in 985, with Otto of Worms allowed to regain his
ancestral position as Count of Worms. However, Otto was allowed to style himself
"Duke of Worms" and his original territory was expanded so as not to diminish his
rank. Otto of Worms remained loyal to the new Emperor, receiving rulership of the
March of Verona in 955, though the actual Duchy of Carinthia passed to Henry IV of
Bavaria. In 996, Otto III appointed Otto of Worms's son Bruno as Pope Gregory V.
When Emperor Otto III died in 1002, both Otto of Worms, Conrad's grandfather, and
Henry IV were candidates for election as King of Germany. In a compromise, Otto
withdrew and received the Duchy of Carinthia from the newly elected Henry IV, who
ruled as Henry II of Germany, in return. As a result, Otto of Worms renounced his
holdings in Worms to Bishop Burchard of Worms, a long-time political rival. Buchard
assumed care for Conrad, providing his education and upbringing by 1000.

After the early death of his uncle Duke Conrad I of Carinthia, the elder Conrad's infant
son, Conrad the Younger, was named Count of Worms by Emperor Henry II while the
Duchy of Carinthia passed to Adalbero of Eppenstein due to Conrad the Younger's
infancy. Conrad the Younger was placed in Conrad's care.

Adulthood[edit]

Conrad married Gisela of Swabia, a twice widowed duchess, in 1016. Gisela was the
daughter of Duke Herman II of Swabia who, in 1002, unsuccessfully claimed the
German throne following Emperor Otto III's death, losing the election to Emperor Henry
II. Gisela was first married to Count Bruno I of Brunswick the same year. Following
Bruno's death around 1010, Gisela married Ernest I of the House of Babenberg. By the
marriage, Ernest I inherited the Duchy of Swabia at the death of Gisela's brother Duke
Herman III of Swabia in 1012. This marriage produced two sons: Ernest II and
Herman. After the death of Ernest I in 1015, Emperor Henry II named Ernest II as
Duke of Swabia. As Gisela's new husband, Conrad hoped to serve as regent for his
minor stepson in the administration of the duchy, seeing it as an opportunity to
increase his own rank and subsequently make a claim for his own duchy. Emperor
Henry II blocked this attempt by placing the guardianship of Ernest II, and regency
over Swabia, in the hands of Archbishop Poppo of Trier in 1016. This action further
strained the already rough relationship between the imperial House of Otto and the
Salian family.

Conrad II's hopes of obtaining his own duchy failed, but his marriage to Gisela brought
him wealth. Her mother, Gerberga of Burgundy, was the daughter of reigning
Burgundian King Conrad of Burgundy and granddaughter of the late Frankish King
Louis IV. Gisela also claimed descent from Charlemagne through both her mother and
her father. The marriage was problematic because of the familial relationship shared
by Gisela and Conrad: both were descendants of Ottonian King Henry I, Henry in the
fifth generation and Gisela in the fourth. According to canon law, marriage was not
allowed among relatives of the first to seventh generations. Though Conrad's marriage
differed little from the usual practice of the time, strict canonists took exception to the
marriage and Emperor Henry II used this breach of canonical law to force Conrad into
temporary exile. During this exile, Gisela bore Conrad a son, Henry III, on October 28,
1017. Conrad and Emperor Henry II were eventually reconciled, allowing him to return
to Germany.
***
Death[edit]

During the return trip to Germany an epidemic broke out among the troops. Conrad's
daughter-in-law and stepson died. Conrad himself returned safely and held several
important courts in Solothurn, Strasbourg, and Goslar. His son Henry was invested
with the kingdom of Burgundy.[citation needed]

A year later in 1039 Conrad fell ill and died of gout in Utrecht.[26] His heart and
bowels are buried at the Cathedral of Saint Martin, Utrecht.[27] His body was
transferred to Speyer via Cologne, Mainz, and Worms, where the funeral procession
made stops. His body is buried at Speyer Cathedral, which was still under construction
at this time. During a major excavation in 1900 his sarcophagus was relocated from his
original resting place in front of the altar to the crypt, where it is still visible today
along with those of seven of his successors.

A biography of Conrad II in chronicle form, Gesta Chuonradi II imperatoris, was written
by his chaplain Wipo of Burgundy, and presented to Henry III in 1046, not long after
the latter was crowned.

Family and children[edit]