Genealogy

The Vita Sancti Arnulfi, written shortly after the saint’s death, states that he was of Frankish ancestry, from “sufficiently elevated and noble parentage, and very rich in worldly goods”.[1] Shortly after 800, most likely in Metz, a brief genealogy of the Carolingians was compiled, with no verifiable historical basis. It was modelled in style after the genealogy of Jesus in the New Testament. According to this source, Arnulf’s father was a certain Arnoald, who in turn was the son of Ansbertus and Blithilt (or Blithilde), an alleged and otherwise unattested daughter of Chlothar I. This claim of royal Merovingian descent is not confirmed by the contemporary reference in the Vita. Under Salic Law no children of Blithilde would be recognized as legitimate heirs to the dynasty, so an event like this would hardly be recorded, least remembered after many centuries.
J. Depoin observed that Arnulf was identified as a Frank in contemporary documents, whereas Arnoald was identified by Paul the Deacon as a Roman.[2] Based on the Vita Gundolphi Arnulf’s father was Bodegisel, a Frankish noble. David Humiston Kelley then proposed that Arnoald was likely an ancestor of the Carolingians through a daughter Itta, wife of Pepin of Landen. Christian Settipani carefully revisited and expanded upon the work of Depoin and Kelley, and concurred in Arnulf’s descent from Bodegisel instead of Arnoald, but noting that there was a connection between the Ripuarian Frankish royal house and the Carolingians. He argued (without dismissing the possibility of Itta’s being Arnoald’s daughter) that there was a connection through Arnulf’s wife Doda, who he posited as a daughter of Arnoald. Kelly then considered probable Settipani’s proposed connection between the Carolingians and Arnoald.

Life

Arnulf was born to an important Frankish family near Nancy in Lorraine around 582.[3] The family owned vast domains between the Mosel and Meuse rivers.[4] As an adolescent, he was called to the Merovingian court of king Theudebert II (595–612) of Austrasia[5] where he was educated by Gondulf of Provence.[3] Arnulf was later sent to serve as dux at the Schelde.
Arnulf gave distinguished service at the Austrasian court under Theudebert II. He distinguished himself both as a military commander and in the civil administration; at one time he had under his care six distinct provinces.[5] Arnulf was married ca 596 to a noblewoman whom later sources give the name of Dode or Doda, (born ca 584). Chlodulf of Metz was their oldest son, but more important is his second son Ansegisel, who married Begga daughter of Pepin I, Pepin of Landen. Arnulf is thus the male-line grandfather of Pepin of Herstal, great-grandfather of Charles Martel and 3rd great-grandfather of Charlemagne.

The rule of Austrasia came into the hands of Brunhilda, the grandmother of Theudebert, who ruled also in Burgundy in the name of her great-grandchildren. In 613 Arnulf joined his politics with Pepin of Landen and led the opposition of Frankish nobles against Queen Brunhilda. The revolt led to her overthrow, torture, and eventual execution, and the subsequent reunification of Frankish lands under Chlothachar II.

He and his friend Romaricus, likewise an officer of the court, planned to make a pilgrimage to the Abbey of Lérins.[5] Chlothachar, who appreciated Arnulf’s administrative skills, offered him the vacant see of Metz, the capital of the Autrasian kingdom. His wife took the veil as a nun in a convent at Treves, and Arnulf saw it as a sign of God and became a priest and bishop afterwards. Arnulf continued to serve as the king’s steward and courtier.

Chlothachar later made his son Dagobert I king of Austrasia, which he ruled with the help of his adviser Arnulf. Pepin of Landen, became the Mayor of the Palace. In 624 Pepin and Arnulf encouraged Dagobert in the murder of Chrodoald, an important leader of the Frankish Agilolfings family.

During his career he was attracted to religious life, and he retired to become a monk. He retired around 628 to a hermitage at a mountain site in his domains in the Vosges. His friend Romaric, whose parents had been killed by Brunhilda, had preceded him to the mountains around 613, and together with Amatus had already established Remiremont Abbey there. After the death of Chlothachar in 629, Arnulf settled near Habendum, where he died some time between 643 and 647. He was buried at Remiremont.[4] Arnulf was canonized as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church. In iconography he is portrayed with a pastoral staff in his hand.

Legends

There are three legends associated with Arnulf:

The Legend of the Ring

Arnulf was tormented by the violence that surrounded him and feared that he had played a role in the wars and murders that plagued the ruling families. Obsessed by these sins, Arnulf went to a bridge over the Moselle river. There he took off his bishop’s ring and threw it into the river, praying to God to give him a sign of absolution by returning the ring to him. Many penitent years later, a fisherman brought to the bishop’s kitchen a fish in the stomach of which was found the bishop’s ring. Arnulf repaid the sign of God by immediately retiring as bishop and becoming a hermit for the remainder of his life.

The Legend of the Fire

At the moment Arnulf resigned as bishop, a fire broke out in the cellars of the royal palace and threatened to spread throughout the city of Metz. Arnulf, full of courage and feeling unity with the townspeople, stood before the fire and said, “If God wants me to be consumed, I am in His hands.” He then made the sign of the cross at which point the fire immediately receded.

The Legend of the Beer Mug

It was July 642 and very hot when the parishioners of Metz went to Remiremont to recover the remains of their former bishop. They had little to drink and the terrain was inhospitable. At the point when the exhausted procession was about to leave Champigneulles, one of the parishioners, Duc Notto, prayed “By his powerful intercession the Blessed Arnold will bring us what we lack.” Immediately the small remnant of beer at the bottom of a pot multiplied in such amounts that the pilgrims’ thirst was quenched and they had enough to enjoy the next evening when they arrived in Metz.

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Through the marriage of his daughter Begga to Ansegisel, a son of Arnulf of Metz, the clans of the Pippinids and the Arnulfings were united, giving rise to a family which would eventually rule the Franks as the Carolingians.

Life

Pepin’s father is named Carloman by the Chronicle of Fredegar, the chief source for his life. His byname comes from his probable birthplace: Landen, modern Belgium. However, according to Godefroid Kurth, it was only in the twelfth century that the chroniclers of Brabant began to associate him with that locality. He is sometimes called Pepin I and his other nicknames (Elder and Old) come from his position at the head of the family called the Pippinids after him.

He was lord of a great part of Brabant, and governor of Austrasia, when Theodebert II. king of that country was defeated by Theodoric II, king of Burgundy. In 613, several leading magnates of Austrasia and Burgundy abandoned Brunhilda, the great-grandmother and regent of their king, Sigebert II, and turned to Chlothar II of Neustria for support, promising not to rise in defense of the queen-regent and recognizing Chlothar as rightful regent and guardian of the young king. Chief among these leading men were Warnachar II, Rado, Arnulf, and Pepin. The latter two were described by Fredegar as the “two most powerful barons of Austrasia” and they made some agreement with Chlothar at Andernach. However, while Rado was confirmed as mayor in Austrasia and Warnachar in Burgundy, Pepin did not receive his reward until 623, when he was appointed mayor in Austrasia after Chlothar made his young son Dagobert king there. Arnulf, his lifelong friend, was appointed adviser to the new king alongside him.

Pepin was praised by his contemporaries for his good government and wise counsel. Though some enemies tried to turn the king against him, their plots were foiled and Pepin remained on good terms with the king until 629, when, for reasons unknown, he retired (or was retired) to his estates, where he remained for the next decade until Dagobert’s death.

On his death, Pepin came out of retirement to take on the mayoralty in Austrasia for the heir Sigebert III[2] and to oversee the distribution of the treasury between Sigebert and his brother, Clovis II, and his stepmother Nanthild, who was ruling on Clovis’ behalf in Neustria and Burgundy. Sigebert’s share of the inheritance was amicably surrendered, partly because of the friendship between Pepin and the Burgundian mayor of the palace, Aega. Pepin and Arnulf’s successor as chief counselor to the king, Cunibert, Bishop of Cologne, received the treasure at Compiègne and brought it back to Metz. Pepin died in 639. He was so popular in Austrasia that, though he was never canonized, he was listed as a saint in some martyrologies. Butler lists him as “blessed”. His feast day was 21 February.

He left two daughters and two sons by his equally famous wife, Itta:
Begga, married the aforementioned Ansegisel and later canonized
Grimoald, later mayor of the palace like his father
Bavo (or Allowin), became a hermit and later canonized
Gertrude, entered the convent of Nivelles founded by her mother, also later canonized.

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