Hugh of Italy facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Hugh
Hugh as depicted in the 12th-century cartulary of San Clemente Abbey
King of Italy
Reign	926–947
Predecessor	Rudolph
Successor	Lothair II
Born	c. 880 Arles, Kingdom of Provence
Died	10 April 947 (aged 66–67) Arles, Kingdom of Provence
Spouse	Willa of Provence Alda Marozia Bertha of Swabia
Issue	Alda of Vienne Lothair II of Italy Hubert, Duke of Spoleto
House	Bosonid
Father	Theobald, Count of Arles
Mother	Bertha of Lotharingia
Religion	Chalcedonian Christianity

Hugh (around 880–947), also known as Hugh of Arles or Hugh of Provence, was the king of Italy from 926 until he died. He was part of the Bosonid family. During his time as king, he gave more power to his family members. He also tried to make friends with the Byzantine Empire.

Hugh was good at protecting his kingdom from outside enemies. However, some of his choices and actions made many people inside his kingdom unhappy. Because of this, he lost his power before he passed away.

Early Life and Rise to Power

Hugh of Arles was born around 880 or 881. He was the oldest son of Count Theobald of Arles and Bertha of Lotharingia. A "count" was a powerful noble who ruled a region called a "county."

Hugh inherited the titles of Count of Arles and Vienne. This made him one of the most important nobles in the Kingdom of Provence. After Emperor Louis III lost his power in Italy around 905, Hugh became his main helper in Provence. Hugh also acted as a "regent," meaning he ruled in place of the king.

By 911, Hugh was doing most of the king's duties. Louis gave him the titles of "dux" (leader) of Provence and "marchio" (another type of leader) of the Viennois. Hugh moved the capital city to Arles, which was his family's main home. In 912, he married Willa, who was the widow of King Rudolph I of Burgundy. Hugh then tried to take control of Burgundy from Rudolph's son, Rudolph II, but he was not successful.

At some point, Hugh, his brother Boso, and another leader named Hugh Taillefer led an army from Provence into a region called Lombardy. This happened with the support of Hugh's mother. Historians believe this event took place between 917 and 920.

Around 922, many Italian nobles were unhappy with Emperor Berengar. They chose Rudolph II to be their new king. This started a civil war, which is a war between groups within the same country. Berengar died in 924 during this conflict.

Becoming King of Italy

Instead of accepting Rudolph, the nobles who supported Berengar chose Hugh as their new king in 925. Rudolph was forced out of Italy in 926, and Hugh crossed the Alps mountains to be crowned. While Hugh was away, Louis of Provence gave his county of Vienne to Charles-Constantine. Louis died in 928, and Hugh returned to Provence to deal with who would rule next.

For reasons that are not fully clear, neither Charles Constantine nor Hugh was chosen as the next king of Provence. However, Hugh made Provence part of Italy. He started making official decisions about Provence from his office in Italy, acting like its king. He also took control of who could be given land in Provence.

In his early years as king, Hugh made the government work a bit better. He also had some success fighting against the Magyars, who were invaders that had been attacking Italy for many years.

In 928, Hugh met with Rudolph of France and Herbert II of Vermandois in Burgundy. Hugh gave a region called Vienne to Herbert's son, Odo, even though Charles Constantine also wanted it. Hugh was still in conflict with Rudolph of Burgundy and hoped to team up with the King of France against him. However, by 930, Charles was fully in control of Vienne. By 931, Rudolph of France was claiming power over the Viennois and Lyonnais regions.

Because his plans in the Alps region were not working out, Hugh focused on keeping his rule strong in Italy. He also wanted to become the Holy Roman Emperor. He convinced the Italian nobles to accept his son Lothair as their next king. Lothair was crowned in April 931. That same year, Hugh accused his half-brother Lambert of trying to take the crown. Hugh removed Lambert from power and gave the region of Tuscany to his brother Boso.

Hugh had other reasons for removing Lambert, as Lambert was in the way of Hugh's second marriage to Marozia. Lambert's supporters asked Rudolph of Burgundy for help. Hugh gave Rudolph the regions of Viennois and Lyonnais to get him to leave Italy alone. Rudolph successfully took control of these areas. In 933, Rudolph gave up all his claims to Italy.

In 936, Hugh replaced Boso of Tuscany with his own son Hubert. He gave a region called Octavion to Hugh Taillefer. He also made up with Charles Constantine to try and keep some influence in Provence.

Challenges and Later Years

Hugh tried to make his power even stronger by marrying for a second time. However, this plan went very wrong. His new wife was Marozia, a powerful woman who ruled Rome. She had been married before to Hugh's own half-brother, Guy of Tuscany. This meant that their marriage was against church law because they were related through marriage. Hugh tried to get around this by removing his mother's children from her second marriage from power. He also gave Tuscany to a relative from his father's side of the family, Boso.

However, this worried Alberic II, Marozia's teenage son. He used the Roman people's distrust of the foreign soldiers Hugh had brought with him. Alberic launched a surprise attack during the wedding party. Hugh managed to escape the castle by sliding down a rope and rejoining his army. But Marozia was put in prison and stayed there until she died a few years later.

Hugh's power in Italy was hurt by these events, but it was not completely destroyed. To make his influence stronger in Milan, he prepared his younger son, Tebald, to become the Archbishop of Milan. However, the old archbishop he put in charge temporarily lived for another twenty-two years. Hugh continued to fight against the Magyars and the pirates from al-Andalus who were based in Provence.

Hugh was also active in diplomacy, which is how countries deal with each other. He made a treaty with Rudolph in 933. Rudolph gave up his claims to Italy. In return, Hugh gave him Provence, even though it belonged to the heirs of Louis the Blind. Hugh's son Lothair also married Rudolph's daughter Adelaide. Hugh kept friendly relations with the Byzantine Empire. In 942, Hugh even made peace with Alberic, who married one of Hugh's daughters.

Inside his kingdom, Hugh continued to give jobs and lands to his relatives. This included his many children, both legitimate and illegitimate, and a small group of old, trusted friends. This made the Italian nobles very unhappy, as they saw it as a threat to their own power. This eventually led to a rebellion. In 941, Hugh forced Berengar of Ivrea out of Italy and removed his region, the March of Ivrea.

In 945, Berengar returned from Germany and defeated Hugh in battle. Berengar held a meeting in Milan where Hugh was removed from power. However, Hugh managed to make a deal. He officially kept the title of "king" but returned to Provence. Lothair became the official king, but all the real power was in Berengar's hands.

Hugh retired to Provence but kept the title of king until 947, when he died.

Family Life

Hugh had eight children with four wives and at least four mistresses. With his first wife, Willa of Provence, Hugh had no children. His only legitimate children were from his second wife, Alda (or Hilda), who was from Germany. He married her before 924.

• Alda of Vienne, who married Alberic II of Spoleto
• Lothair, who became king after Hugh.

Hugh had no children with his third wife, Marozia, or his fourth wife, Bertha of Swabia. Hugh had several children outside of marriage with different mistresses.

With a noblewoman named Wandelmoda:

• Hubert, Duke of Spoleto, to whom Hugh gave Tuscany.

With a mistress named Pezola:

• Bertha, who married the Byzantine Emperor Romanos II and changed her name to Eudokia. She inherited her father's lands in Provence.
• Boso, who became a bishop and an important official.

With Rotruda of Pavia:

• Rotlind or Rolend, who married Bernard, Count of Pavia.

With a Roman woman named Stephanie:

• Tebald, whom Hugh tried to make Archbishop of Milan.

With an unknown mistress:

• Geoffrey, who became the leader of a monastery.

A young page (a servant who was learning to be a knight) named Liutprand was educated at Hugh's court in Pavia. Liutprand later became a bishop and a writer who recorded history in the 10th century. His loyalty to Hugh may have made him write about Hugh's family with some strong opinions.

Images for kids

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  Hugh as depicted in the 12th-century cartulary of San Clemente Abbey