Heinrich I, king of Germany

Duke of Saxony

King of Germany

Events

Date of Birth: about 875 or 876.

Place of Birth: unknown.

The estimates are given by Beumann, by Baldwin, and by Glock (p.263). Heinrich was aged sixty at his death (Widukind I c. 41, S. 60).

Date of Death: 2 July 936.

Place of Death: Memleben.

The date and place are given by Beumann, by Schneidmüller (p. 33), and by Baldwin. Glocker (p. 263) cites Continuator Regionis a. 936, S. 159 for the date, and refers to Böhmer/Ottenthal 55b for more evidence (although, as far as I can tell, the evidence is cited on page 32.) The date is given by Althoff (p. 367).

Place of Burial: Quedlinburg, Stiftskirche.

The place is given by Beumann.

Relationships

Father: Otto “der Erlauchte” (died 912), duke of Saxony.

This relationship is given by Beumann, by Hlawitschka, by Baldwin, and by Glocker (pp. 263-265), who cites Widukind I c. 17, S. 27 ; Hrotsvith of Gandersheim, primordia coenobii Gandeshemensis v. 69 f.; Thietmar of Merseburg Chronicon I c. 3, S. 6; and Vita Mathildis reginae [posterior] c. 1, SS IV 284. Glocker refers to further evidence given by Waitz p. 13 (in a newer edition than I have access to) and by Böhmer/Ottenthal.

Mother: Hadwig.

This relationship is given by Beumann, by Hlawitschka, by Baldwin, and by Glocker (pp. 263-265), who cites Thietmar of Merseburg Chronicon I c. 3, S. 6 and Vita Mathildis reginae [posterior] c. 1, SS IV 284. Glocker refers to further evidence given by Waitz p. 13 (in a newer edition than I have access to) and by Böhmer/Ottenthal.

Spouse: Hatheburg, daughter of Erwin, count of Merseburg.

This relationship is given by Beumann, by Hlawitschka, by Baldwin, and by Glocker (pp. 263-265), who cites Thietmar of Merseburg Chronicon I c. 5, S. 8/10 and I c. 9, S. 14.

Spouse: Mathilde (died 968), daughter of count Dietrich.

This relationship is given by Beumann, by Hlawitschka, by Baldwin, by Bouchard (p. 109), and by Glocker (pp. 263-265), who cites Widukind I c. 31, S. [43 and] 44; Vita Matildis antiquior c. 2, SS X 576; and Thietmar I c. 9, S. 14.

Children (by Hatheburg):

(Complete source citations for facts about the children on this page are currently outside of the scope of this project. Most information below comes from Baldwin.)

Thankmar (Tammo) (died 29 July 938).

Children (by Mathilde):

Otto I “the Great” (23 November 912 - 7 May 973), king of Germany, king of Italy, emperor, married (1) in 930 Eadgyth, daughter of Edward “the Elder”, king of England; married (2) Adélaïde, daughter of Rudolf II, king of Burgundy.

Gerberga married (1) Giselbert, duke of Lorraine; married (2) Louis IV, king of France.

Hadwig married Hugues “le Grand”, duke of the Franks.

Heinrich I (died 1 November 955), duke of Bavaria, married Judith, daughter of Arnulf, duke of Bavaria.

Bruno (died 10 or 11 October 965), archbishop of Cologne.

References

Sources

Continuator Regionis in Regino of Prüm Chronicon Friedrich Kurze ed. (Monumenta Germaniae Historica: SS in usum scholarum separatim 50: Hannover, 1890).

Hrotsvith of Gandersheim. Opera. Paul de Winterfeld, ed. (Monumenta Germaniae Historica: SS 30: Berlin 1902).

Thietmar of Merseburg. Chronicon (Monumenta Germaniae Historica: SS N.S. 9: Berlin 1935).

Vita Mathildis reginae [antiquior] Georg Heinrich Pertz, ed. (Monumenta Germaniae Historica: SS 10: Hannover 1852, pp. 573-582).

Vita Mathildis reginae [posterior] Georg Heinrich Pertz, ed. (Monumenta Germaniae Historica: SS 4: Hannover 1841, pp. 282-302).

Widukind of Corvey. Rerum gestarum Saxonicarum libri tres. Paul Hirsch ed., with H.-E. Lohmann (Monumenta Germaniae Historicae: SS 60: Hannover, 1935).

Literature

Althoff, Gerd. Adels- und Königsfamilien im Spiegel ihrer Memorialüberlieferung: Studieren zum Totengedenken der Billunger und Ottonen. (München: Wilhelm Fink Verlag, 1984).

Baldwin, Stewart. “Heinrich I” in The Henry Project.

Beumann, Helmut. “Heinrich I.”, in Neue Deutsche Biographie 8 (1969), S. 307-310 [Onlinefassung].

Böhmer, J.F, (Emil von Ottenthal rev.) Regesta Imperii II: Die Regesten des Kaiserreichs unter den Herrschern aus dem Sächsischen Hause 919-1024 (Innsbruck, 1893).

Bouchard, Constance Brittain. “Those of My Blood”: Constructing Noble Families in Medieval Francia (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2001).

Glocker, Winfrid. Die Verwandten der Ottonen und ihre Bedeutung in der Politik: Studien zur Familienpolitik und zur Genealogie des Sächsischen Kaiserhauses (Böhlau Verlag: Köln, 1989).

Hlawitschka, Eduard. Vom Frankenreich zur Formierung der europäishen Staaten- und Völkergemeinschaft 840-1046: Ein Studienbuch. (Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft: Darmstadt, 1986).

Karpf, E. "Heinrich I" in Lexikon des Mittelalters. Band 4 (Stuttgart: 1989).

Schneidmüller, Bernd. “Heinrich I. (919-936)” in Die Deutschen Herrscher des Mittelalters: Historische Portraits von Heinrich I. bis Maximillian I. (919-1519). (Beck: München, 2003)

Waitz, Georg. Jahrbücher des Deutschen Reichs unter der Herrschaft König Heinrichs I. (Dunder und Humblot: Berlin, 1837).