War of the Three Henries (977-978)
The
War of the Three Henries was a brief rebellion of three Henries against the
Holy Roman Emperor Otto II in
977. While Otto was campaigning against
Boleslaus II of Bohemia, a conspiracy arose in
Bavaria. The conspirators—
Henry I, Bishop of Augsburg;
Henry II, Duke of Bavaria, called
the Wrangler, who was recently deposed; and
Henry I,
Duke of Carinthia—even had the support of the Church. Otto, allied with
Otto I, Duke of Swabia and Bavaria, marched first on
Passau, held by the rebels. In September, the town surrendered, due his siege tactics, which included a bridge of boats. At the
Easter court of
978, at
Magdeburg, the three insurrectionists were punished. Both dukes were banished and Henry of Carinthia lost his duchy to
Otto, son of
Conrad the Red,
Duke of Lorraine. The bishop was imprisoned until July. The chief result of the conflict was the complete subjection of Bavaria: henceforth it was no longer the undisputably greatest of the
stem duchies.
*
Gwatkin, H.M.,
Whitney, J.P. (ed) et al.
The Cambridge Medieval History: Volume III.
Cambridge University Press,
1926.
