The Etichonids were an important noble family, probably of Frankish-Burgundian origin,[1] who ruled the Duchy of Alsace in the Early Middle Ages (7th–10th centuries). The dynasty is named for Eticho (also known as Aldarich), who ruled from 673 to 690.
The earliest accounts record the family's beginnings in the pagus Attoariensis around Dijon in northern Burgundy. In the mid-7th century a duke of the region named Amalgar and his wife Aquilina are noticed as major founders and patrons of monasteries. King Dagobert I and his father made donations to them to recover their loyalty and compensate them for the losses that they had sustained as supporters of Queen Brunhild and her grandson, Sigebert II. Amalgar and his wife founded a convent at Brégille and an abbey at Bèze, installing a son and daughter in the abbacies. They were succeeded by their third child, Adalrich,[2] who was the father of Adalrich, Duke of Alsace. This second Adalrich was the first to secure the ducal title. His name, Eticho, a variation of Adalrich, is used by modern scholars as the name of the family.
Under the Etichonids, Alsace was generally divided into a northern and a southern county, Nordgau and Sundgau.
These counties, as well as the monasteries of the duchy, were brought under tighter control of the dukes with the rise of the Etichonids. There exists scholarly debate concerning whether or not the Etichonids were in conflict or alliance with the Carolingians, but it is possible that they were both: opponents of the extension of Charles Martel's authority in the 720s when he first made war on Alemannia, but allies when the Alemanni, under Duke Theudebald invaded Alsace (which had a large Alemannic element in its population) in the early 740s. The last Etichonid duke, Liutfrid, may have died fighting Theudebald on behalf of Pepin the Short with his son, Hilfrid.
Among the descendants of the Etichonids, in the female line were Hugh of Tours and his family, including his daughter Ermengard, who was wife to Lothair I and thus mother to three Carolingian kings. In the 10th century, the Etichonids remained powerful in Alsace as counts, but their power was circumscribed significantly by the Ottonians; by the 11th century, Pope Leo IX seemed unaware that his ancestors, the lords (or counts) of Dabo and Eguisheim for the previous half century were in fact the direct descendants of the last Etichonids. Many notable European families trace their lineage to the Etichonids, including the Habsburgs.
^L’Alsace, berceau des Habsbourg by Philippe Nuss, lecturer at Université Louis Pasteur de Strasbourg
^He is referred to as Liutheric, a mayor of the palace, in the Life of Odilia.
of the dukes with the rise of the Etichonids. There exists scholarly debate concerning whether or not the Etichonids were in conflict or alliance with...
noble family of the Etichonids, and possibly the progenitor of the House of Habsburg. A member of the Eberhard branch of the Etichonids noble family, one...
an antipathy between the Etichonids and the Arnulfings to explain the dissolution of their power in Alsace, the Etichonids were allied with Charles Martel...
forthwith farther back as the medieval Adalrich, Duke of Alsace, from the Etichonids from which Habsburg derives. His grandson Radbot of Klettgau founded the...
Count of Auxerre Robert the Strong Issue Hugh Conrad the Younger (probably) Welf I Odo Robert I of France House Etichonids Father Hugh of Tours Mother Ava...
of Bavaria. Fulda also received large and constant donations from the Etichonids, a leading family in Alsace, and from the Conradines, predecessors of...
castle in Dabo, the Dagsburg Castle in Lorraine, was acquired by the Etichonids shortly before the year 1000 through the marriage of Hugo VI, Count of...
theory of Etichonid ancestry, which claims that Adalbert of Metz and his brother Gerard were descendants of the Nordgau branch of the Etichonid Dynasty...
families. Alsace, for one, was definitely ruled by another family, the Etichonids, and elsewhere it is likely that the Ahalolfings were in power. Geuenich...
Christina and Ottilia. by Lucas Cranach the Elder (1472–1553) Saints portal Etichonids Adalrich, Duke of Alsace 401 Ottilia Stracke, Richard (2015-10-20). "Saint...
Pope Leo IX (21 June 1002 – 19 April 1054), born Bruno von Egisheim-Dagsburg, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 12...
retreated to Alsace, where he established monasteries with the support of the Etichonid clan, who were Carolingian supporters. This relationship gave the Carolingians...
killed in a tournament in Andain in 1202, so that the noble family of the Etichonids died out in the male line with Albert II in 1211. This left her daughter...
Tours Queen of Italy and the Middle Franks, Empress Hugh, Count of Tours (Etichonids) ? 821 Queen of Italy 17 April 818 Queen of Middle Francia August 843...
Lombards 10 October 794 Luitgard of Sundgau Luitfrid II, Count of Sundgau (Etichonids) 776 794 as Queen consort the Lombards 4 June 800 Bertha of Gellone William...
have been born around 625, in Bassigny, to Gundoin and Saratrude of the Etichonids, a family of the Austrasian nobility. His sister was Sadalberga, who founded...
in Alsace, father of St. Odilia and ancestor of the noble family, the Etichonids, to which later dynasties, for example the Habsburgs, trace their origin...
Lombards 10 October 794 Luitgard of Sundgau Luitfrid II, Count of Sundgau (Etichonids) 776 794 as Queen consort the Lombards 4 June 800 Bertha of Gellone William...
Eberhard II, Count of Nordgau (included Strasbourg) and the family of Etichonids, though this is a late 10th-century source and so may not be entirely...
in the works of Gregory of Tours, and was an early progenitor of the Etichonid clan, from which the Habsburgs originate. Amalo was likely a Burgundian...
a number of powerful families of the Frankish nobility, including the Etichonids, Agilofings, Widonids, Carolingians and Robertians/Capetians, as well...
related to Eberhard II, Count of Nordgau (included Strasbourg) family of Etichonids. Soon after their marriage, Lothair's father died and Lothair II inherited...
Queen Ceased to be Queen Death Spouse Ermengarde of Tours Hugh of Tours (Etichonids) 804 15 October 821 11 August 843 Treaty of Verdun 20 March 851 Emperor...
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