Louis the German

Louis the German
Louis's seal with an effigy of the Roman emperor Hadrian. The inscription reads "XPE PROTEGE HLUDOICUM REGEM" meaning – "O Christ, protect King Louis!"[1]
King of East Francia
(King of Germany)
Reignc. 10 August 843 – 28 August 876
PredecessorLouis the Pious
SuccessorCarloman of Bavaria (Bavaria)
Louis the Younger (Saxony)
Charles the Fat (Swabia)
Bornc. 806
Died28 August 876
Frankfurt am Main
Burial
SpouseEmma of Altdorf
(m. 827; d. 876)
IssueCarloman of Bavaria
Louis the Younger
Charles the Fat
DynastyCarolingian
FatherLouis the Pious
MotherErmengarde of Hesbaye
Signum manusLouis the German's signature
The East Frankish Kingdom

Louis the German[a] (c. 806[3][4]/810[2] – 28 August 876), also known as Louis II of Germany,[b] was the first king of East Francia, and ruled from 843 to 876 AD. Grandson of emperor Charlemagne and the third son of Louis the Pious, emperor of Francia, and his first wife, Ermengarde of Hesbaye,[5] he received the appellation Germanicus shortly after his death, when East Francia became known as the kingdom of Germany.

After protracted clashes with his father and his brothers, Louis received the East Frankish kingdom in the Treaty of Verdun (843). His attempts to conquer his half-brother Charles the Bald's West Frankish kingdom in 858–59 were unsuccessful. The 860s were marked by a severe crisis, with the East Frankish rebellions of the sons, as well as struggles to maintain supremacy over his realm. In the Treaty of Meerssen he acquired Lotharingia for the East Frankish kingdom in 870. On the other hand, he tried and failed to claim both the title of Emperor and Italy. In the East, Louis was able to reach a longer-term peace agreement in 874 after decades of conflict with the Moravians. His rule shows a marked decline in creation of written administration and government documents, a trend that would continue into Ottonian times.[6]

  1. ^ Goldberg 2006, pp. 72–73.
  2. ^ a b Goldberg 2006, pp. 26–27.
  3. ^ Dutton 1990, p. 92.
  4. ^ Costambeys, Innes & MacLean 2011, p. xx.
  5. ^ Riche 1993, p. 145.
  6. ^ Prudentius (861). Annals of St. Bertin.


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