Individual Details
Heinrich "Henry I" VON ERLAUCHTEN
(876 - 2 Jul 936)
First of the Ottonian Dynasty of German kings and emperors, he is generally considered to be the founder and first king of the medieval German state, known until then as East Francia. An avid hunter, he obtained the epithet "the Fowler" because he was allegedly fixing his birding nets when messengers arrived to inform him that he was to be king.
Henry regarded the German kingdom as a confederation of stem duchies rather than as a feudal monarchy and saw himself as primus inter pares. Instead of seeking to administer the empire through counts, as Charlemagne had done and as his successors had attempted, Henry allowed the dukes of Franconia, Swabia and Bavaria to maintain complete internal control of their holdings. In 925, Duke Gilbert of Lorraine again rebelled. Henry invaded the duchy and besieged Gilbert at Zülpich (Tolbiac), captured the town, and became master of a large portion of his lands. Thus he brought that realm, which had been lost in 910, back into the German kingdom as the fifth stem duchy. Allowing Gilbert to remain in power as duke, Henry arranged the marriage of his daughter Gerberga to his new vassal in 928.
Henry regarded the German kingdom as a confederation of stem duchies rather than as a feudal monarchy and saw himself as primus inter pares. Instead of seeking to administer the empire through counts, as Charlemagne had done and as his successors had attempted, Henry allowed the dukes of Franconia, Swabia and Bavaria to maintain complete internal control of their holdings. In 925, Duke Gilbert of Lorraine again rebelled. Henry invaded the duchy and besieged Gilbert at Zülpich (Tolbiac), captured the town, and became master of a large portion of his lands. Thus he brought that realm, which had been lost in 910, back into the German kingdom as the fifth stem duchy. Allowing Gilbert to remain in power as duke, Henry arranged the marriage of his daughter Gerberga to his new vassal in 928.
Events
| Birth | 876 | Saxony, Germany | |||
| Marriage | 909 | Matilda VON RINGELHEIM | |||
| Death | 2 Jul 936 | Saxony, Germany |
Families
| Spouse | Matilda VON RINGELHEIM (877 - 968) |
| Child | Otto Von Saxe VON ERLAUCHTEN Grand Prince Rus (912 - 973) |
| Child | Gerberge SAXONES (913 - 984) |
| Child | Hedwige VON ERLAUCHTEN (918 - 965) |
| Father | Otto VON ERLAUCHTEN (837 - 912) |
| Mother | Hedwiga BABENBERG (863 - 906) |
| Sibling | Uda VON ERLAUCHTEN (888 - ) |