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in: Arnulfing (surname), Born in 582, Died in 640,
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Arnulf of Metz (582-640)

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  • Saint Arnulf, Bishop of Metz
  • Royal Advisor to the Merovingian court of Austrasia

Biography

Arnulf Arnulfing of Metz was born 13 August 582 in Liege, Belgium to Bodegisel II der Franken (bef565-) and Chrodoare d'Amay (bef565-c634) and died 16 August 640 Remiremont Abbey Lorraine, France of unspecified causes. He married Doda von Sachsen (c586-aft612) 596 JL .

Some information in this article or section has not been verified and may not be reliable.
Please check for any inaccuracies, and modify and cite sources as needed.

Arnulf is venerated as a saint by the Catholic Church. In iconography, he is typically portrayed with a pastoral staff or a rake in his hand.

The life or Arnulf exhibits to a certain extent the episcopal office and career in the Merovingian State. The bishops were much considered at court; their advice was listened to; they took part in the dispensation of justice by the courts; they had a voice in the appointment of royal officers; they were often used as the king's ambassadors, and held high administrative positions. For the people under their care, they were the protectors of their rights, their spokesmen before the king and the link uniting royalty with its subjects. The opportunities for good were thus unlimited; and Arnulf used them to good advantage.[1]


Disputed Parentage

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".[2] However, the exact nature of this parentage is of much dispute.

The Will of Adalgisel Grimo provides information regarding his family relationships. He mentions that his aunt, whose name is not given, is buried in the church of Saint-George in Amay. In 1977 the gravestone of Saint Chrodoara was found in this church. Chrodoara was married to a duke named Bodegisel II der Franken (bef565-), a member of a north Aquitanian aristocratic family. This helped confirm previous assumptions about the membership of Adalgisel in this family whose members are identifiable by names ending in "-gisil".[3]


Bodegisel: Carolingian Genealogy (Probable)

The Vita Gundolphi reports that Arnulf's father was Bodegisel, a Frankish noble. David H. Kelley proposed instead that Arnoald was likely an ancestor of the Carolingians through a daughter Itta, wife of Pepin of Landen. Christian Settipani revisited and expanded upon the work of Depoin and Kelley, and concurred in Arnulf's descent from Bodegisel instead of Arnoald, but noted 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,[4] whom he posited as a daughter of Arnoald.[5] Kelly considered Settipani's proposed connection between the Carolingians and Arnoald to be probable.

Arnoald: Carolingian Genealogy

Sometime after 800, most likely in Metz, a brief genealogy of the Carolingians was compiled. According to this source, Arnulf's father was a certain Arnoald, also a bishop of Metz 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.

Historian Joseph Depoin observed that Arnulf was identified as a Frank in contemporary documents, whereas Arnoald was identified by Paul the Deacon as a Roman.[6]

Early Life

Arnulf was born to an important Frankish family near Nancy in Lorraine around 582.[7] The family owned vast domains between the Moselle and Meuse rivers.[8] As an adolescent, he was called to the Merovingian court of king Theudebert II (595–612) of Austrasia[9] where he was educated by Gondulf of Provence.[7] Arnulf was later sent to serve as dux at the Schelde.

Civil Servant in Austrasia

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.[9]

Around 611, he and his friend Romaricus, likewise an officer of the court, planned to make a pilgrimage to the Abbey of Lérins.[9] Chlothachar, who appreciated Arnulf's administrative skills, offered him the vacant see of Metz, the capital of the Austrasian 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.[10] Arnulf continued to serve as the king's steward and courtier.[8]

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.

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. In 625 Arnulf took part in a council held by the Frankish bishops at Reims.[11]

During his career he was attracted to religious life, and around 628 he retired to a hermitage at a mountain site in his domains in the Vosges to become a monk. His friend Romaric, whose parents had been killed by Brunhilda, had preceded him to the mountains around 613. Romaric and 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.[8]

Family

Married c596 with Doda (Ode) von SACHSEN (c586-aft612) (Parents: Arnold van Schelde & Oda von SCHWABEN)

Arnulf married in 596 to a noblewoman whom later sources give the name of Dode, or Doda (born c. 584), the paternal aunt of Saint Glodesind of France, an abbess of a convent in Metz.[12]

  1. Chlodulf of Metz (c605-697) was their oldest son and would become 30th Bishop of Metz
  2. but more important is his second son Ansegisel (c606-bef679), 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 great-great-great-grandfather of Charlemagne.

Research Note: Was not married to Saint Doda (586-612), who was quite legendary for having never married.


Butler's account

The hagiographer Alban Butler (1710–1773) wrote in his Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs, and Other Principal Saints under June 8, for "St. Clou, or Clodulphus, Bishop of Metz, Confessor."


HE was son of St. Arnold, who having been prime minister to King Clotaire II., surnamed the Great, renounced the world, and was afterwards made bishop of Metz. He had two sons, Clou and Ansegisus, whose inclinations to virtue he cultivated by an excellent education. Clou showed from the cradle that he inherited all his father’s virtues in an eminent degree. Under the best masters he made such a progress in the divine and human sciences, as astonished those who taught him, and excited to emulation all who learned with him. He afterwards lived in the court of the kings of Austrasia, and passed through the greatest employments under Dagobert I. and Sigebert II. always with credit to himself, and to the honour and advantage of the state. 1 After some time he left his brother Ansegisus to push his fortune in the courts of earthly kings, choosing for himself a state which removes a man further from the flattering objects of the passions, and from that hurry of distractions, under which the most virtuous often find it difficult not to lose sight of God in their actions. His father, St. Arnold, had quitted the bishopric of Metz, that he might wear out the remainder of his days in tranquillity, and be ready to meet his heavenly bridegroom. Two other pastors had succeeded him in that see, and it was become a third time vacant, when the clergy and people of Metz unanimously demanded St. Clou for their bishop. The holy man did all that lay in his power to make the election fall on some other person; but the whole country became the more importunate, and the king obliged him at length to acquiesce in a choice made by heaven itself. Having therefore received the episcopal consecration, he cheerfully set himself to fulfil every duty of that important charge. He began by a visitation of his diocess, everywhere correcting abuses, and establishing regularity. Such was his compassion for the poor, that for their sake he lived himself destitute of the most common conveniences of life. By assiduous meditation at the foot of the cross, he was careful to nourish his own soul with the bread of life; and in the same school he acquired that heavenly eloquence with which he delivered, in the most affecting manner, the sentiments and lights which he received by this channel from the God of all science. Full of zeal for the glory of God, and of love and tenderness for his people, he was attentive to all their wants, and indefatigable in labouring for their sanctification, especially in instructing, comforting, and relieving the poor. He governed the church of Metz forty years and fifteen days, and died in 696, being fourscore and ten years old. He is commemorated in the Roman Martyrology on this day. His body was translated to the Benedictin priory of Lay, not far from Nancy, in 959, on the 11th of December; but a portion remains in the church which bears his name at Metz. He is named in the Roman and other Martyrologies.

[13]



Children


Offspring of Arnulf of Metz and Doda von Sachsen (c586-aft612)
Name Birth Death Joined with
Chlodulf of Metz (c605-697) 605 France 8 June 697 Metz, Moselle, France
Ansegisel (c606-bef679) 606 662 Saint Begga (615-693)



Siblings


Offspring of Bodegisel II der Franken (bef565-) and Chrodoare d'Amay (bef565-c634)
Name Birth Death Joined with
Arnulf of Metz (582-640) 13 August 582 Liege, Belgium 16 August 640 Lorraine, France Doda von Sachsen (c586-aft612)


See Also

Bibliography

  • Alban Butler's Lives of the Saints, edited, revised and supplemented by Thurston and Attwater. Christian Classics, Westminster, Maryland.
  • Christian Settipani – La Préhistoire des Capétiens, Première Partie.
  • Saint ARNOUL – ancêtre de Charlemagne et des Européens, edited by Imp. Louis Hellenbrand. Le Comité d'Historicité Européene de la Lorraine, Metz, France, 1989.

External Links

Ancestry Trees

  • Charlemagne Family Ancestry
  • Geboren op 13 augustus 582; Gestorven op 16 augustus 640 - Remiremont, F , leeftijd bij overlijden: 58 jaar oud

Contemporary Sources

Here are some of the best contemporary sources on his life:

  1. The Vita Sancti Arnulfi: This is a hagiography of St. Arnulf of Metz written by an anonymous author in the 8th century. It includes a detailed account of his life and accomplishments, including his role in the conversion of the Franks to Christianity and his relationship with the Merovingian kings.
  2. The Chronicle of Fredegar: The Chronicle of Fredegar is a history of the Franks from the earliest times up to the late 7th century. It includes an account of Arnulf's life and his role in the politics of the Frankish kingdom.
  3. The Liber Historiae Francorum: The Liber Historiae Francorum is a chronicle of the history of the Franks from their origins up to the 8th century. It includes an account of Arnulf's life and his role in the early history of the Carolingian dynasty.
  4. The Life of St. Gertrude of Nivelles: St. Gertrude of Nivelles was a contemporary of Arnulf and a close friend of his family. Her Life includes references to Arnulf and his role in the early history of the Frankish Church.

References

  1. ^ FRANCIS J. SCHAEFER, Transcribed by Patrick Tobin from the Catholic Encyclopedia.
  2. ^ Vita Arnulfi c. 1, MG. SS. rer. Merov. 2, p. 432.
  3. ^ Herrmann, 1975, page 78
  4. ^ Histoire des evesques de l'eglise de Metz, Martin Meurisse Anthoine, 1634 [1]
  5. ^ Discours historique, concernant le mariage d'Ansbert et de Blithilde, prétendue fille du Roy Clotaire I. ou II. Divisé en deux parties,...,Louis Chantereau Le Febvre, 1647 [2]
  6. ^ Grand Figures Monacales Du Temps Merovingiens. St. Arnoul de Metz, Etudes de Critique Historique, Revue Mabillon, 1921.
  7. ^ a b Monks of Ramsgate. “Arnoul – Bishop”. Book of Saints, 1921
  8. ^ a b c Riché, Pierre – The Carolingians: A Family Who Forged Europe, University of Pennsylvania Press, 1993 ISBN 9780812213423
  9. ^ a b c Schaefer, Francis. "St. Arnulf of Metz." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 1. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907. 18 Jul. 2014
  10. ^ Jean-Christophe Imbert, Geniphone.com: Lectio Divina; 18 July.
  11. ^ "St. Arnulf of Metz", Catholic News Agency
  12. ^ McNamara, Jo Ann, ed (1992). Sainted Women of the Dark Ages. Durham, North Dakota: Duke University Press. pp. 147. ISBN 9780822382362. 
  13. ^ See his authentic life with the notes of Henschenius, Jun. t. 2. p. 126.{{efn|Note 1. Pepin of Landen and St. Arnold had shared together the government under Clotaire II. and Dagobert I. with the titles of dukes of Austrasia, and mayors of the palace. Clovis II. succeeded his father Dagobert at Paris, and Sigebert II. in Austrasia; but Grimoald, the son and successor of Pepin of Landen, upon the death of Sigebert II. about the year 655, shaved his infant son Dagobert a monk, and banished him into Ireland, with a view to open a way to the throne for his own son: however Clovis II. made himself master of both their persons, and confined them at Paris for the rest of their days, or, according to others, put them to death: which punishment was due to their treason. Ansegisus married Begga, the virtuous daughter of Pepin of Landen, by whom he had Pepin of Herstal, or the Fat, the valiant and prosperous mayor of the Frankish royal palace, and father of Charles Martel.

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Some information in this article or section has not been verified and may not be reliable.
Please check for any inaccuracies, and modify and cite sources as needed.


Footnotes (including sources)

Robin Patterson, MainTour, Bergsmit, AMK152, Rtol, Phlox, Thurstan, Cwalbins



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