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Guntram

Type Figure Region Kingdom of Burgundy Time c. 532–592 Also known as Guntram、Saint Guntram

Guntram (c. 532–592), Merovingian king of Burgundy and son of Chlothar I, was famed as 'the Good' for his clemency, mediated civil wars among his kin…

Timeline

  1. c. 532–561Chalon-sur-Saône · BurgundyGuntram was a son of Chlothar I and Queen Ingund. After his father's death in 561, the Merovingian partition gave Guntram the Kingdom of Burgundy centered on Chalon-sur-Saône, while his three brothers took the other Frankish regions.
  2. 561–580Chalon-sur-Saône · BurgundyKnown for clemency, he treated his subjects and the church well, gave alms to the poor, and patronized churches and monasteries, earning Gregory of Tours' praise as 'the Good King.' Fierce civil war broke out between his brothers Chilperic I and Sigibert I, especially over the queens Brunhilda and Fredegund, and Guntram repeatedly attempted mediation while remaining relatively neutral. He convened church councils and advanced Frankish church reform.
  3. c. 580–592Chalon-sur-Saône · BurgundyAll of Guntram's own sons died young, leaving no legitimate heir. He formally adopted his nephew Childebert II (son of Sigibert I) as heir, giving him the right to inherit Burgundy alongside Austrasia. Guntram died at Chalon in 592, and Childebert II succeeded as planned. For his clemency and piety he was canonized by the Catholic Church, becoming one of the few Merovingian saints, with a feast day of March 28.

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