Hugh Capet of France
Hugh Capet (
French:
Hugues Capet) (
938 –
October 24,
996) was
King of
France from
987 to 996.
Capet is a nickname for "wearing a cape".
Born in
938 in
Paris, he came from a powerful and influential family of the Germanic aristocracy of France, two members of which had already been elected King of France in the ninth and tenth centuries. He was born to
Hugh the Great and
Hedwige of Saxony.
His paternal grandparents were
Robert I of France and
Beatrix of Vermandois, daughter of
Herbert I of Vermandois. His maternal grandparents were
Henry the Fowler and
Matilda of Ringelheim.
He was a seventh generation descendant of
Charlemagne.
In
956, Hugh inherited his father's vast estates and became the most powerful noble of his time.
From
978 to
986, Hugh Capet allied himself with the German emperors
Otto II and
Otto III and with archbishop
Adalberon of
Reims to dominate the weak
Carolingian king,
Lothair. By
985, he was king in all but name. After Lothair and his son died in early
987, the
archbishop of Reims convinced an assembly of nobles to elect Hugh Capet as their king. He was crowned King of France at
Noyon,
Picardie on
July 3,
987, the first of the
Capetian dynasty to rule France.
Hugh Capet possessed minor properties near
Chartres and
Anjou. Between
Paris and
Orléans he possessed towns and estates amounting to approximately 400 square miles (1,000 km²). His authority ended there, and if he dared travel outside his small area, he risked being captured and held for ransom or even murdered. Indeed, there was a plot in
993 masterminded by the Bishop of
Laon and
Odo I of Blois to deliver Hugh Capet into the custody of Otto III. The plot failed, but the fact that no one was punished illustrates how tenuous his hold on power was. Beyond his power base, in the rest of France, there were still as many codes of law as there were fiefdoms. The
country operated with 150 different forms of currency and at least a dozen languages. Uniting all this into one cohesive unit was a formidable task and a constant struggle between those who wore the crown of France and its feudal lords. As such, Hugh Capet's reign was marked by numerous power struggles with the vassals on the borders of the
Seine and the
Loire. Beyond his realm, the investiture and then deposition of Arnulf, nephew of the duke of Lorraine, as archbishop of Reims involved the king and bishops in conflict with
Pope John XV that was not yet resolved at Hugh Capet's death in 996.
While Hugh Capet's military power was limited and he had to seek military aid from
Richard I of Normandy, his unanimous election as king gave him great moral authority and influence.
Hugh Capet married
Adelaide of Aquitaine (
952â€"
1004), daughter of Duke
William III of Aquitaine. Their children were:# Avoise (
970â€"
1013). Married
Reginar IV, Count of Mons.#
Robert II (
March 27,
972 –
July 20,
1031)# Alice (
974â€"
1079)# Gilette (born c.
976)# Gisele (born c.
978), married
Hugh I of Ponthieu.
Hugh Capet died on
October 24,
996 in Paris, and was interred in the
Saint Denis Basilica. He was succeeded by his son,
Robert II.
*
Descendants of Charlemagne*
Descendants of Pepin of Vermandois*
Descendants of Hugh the Great
