Ezzo ~ Count Palatine of Lorraine

M, (circa 955 - 21 May 1034)
Father-Biological*Hermann I Pusillus , Count in the Bonngau d. 16 Jul 996
Mother-Biological*Heilwig von Dillingen
Family Lines
Roy Line

Boudreau Line
Last Edited=13 Nov 2023
     Ezzo ~ Count Palatine of Lorraine was born circa 955.1 He was the son of Hermann I Pusillus , Count in the Bonngau and Heilwig von Dillingen. Ezzo ~ Count Palatine of Lorraine was also known as Erenfried of the Rheinphapz. Ezzo's name was also spelt Edz.2 He was sent as a child to be educated by Bishop Ulrich of Augsburg (episcopate 923–973), a relative of his mother. Nothing more is known about his youth.2 Ezzo's full titles were the Count Palatine of Lorraine and the he Lord of Duisburg and Kaiserwerth in 965.1,3,2

Ezzo ~ Count Palatine of Lorraine married Matilda of Saxony, daughter of Otto II ~ Holy Roman Emperor and Theophano Skleros, in 991.1,3 At the death of his father in 996, Herman's rich allodial property was shared between his sons. Ezzo received lands in Cochem on the Mosel river, in Maifeld, the Flamersheimer Wald and estates around Tomburg Castle near Rheinbach, as well as half the usufruct of Villewaldin. About the same time, he must have received the Palatinate and previous countal rights, as he is referred as count in the Auelgau in 1015 and as Count Palatine in the Bonngau in 1020. He also received the county of Ruhrgau with tutelage of Essen Abbey.2 As an unsuccessful candidate to the imperial throne upon the death of Emperor Otto III in 1002, his relation with the new Ottonian king Henry II was immediately very tensed. Henry disputed Ezzo's ownership of territories, that he defended as his wife's inheritance of late Otto III. The conflict dragged on for years and reached its peak in 1011. Facing disturbances in Lotharingia, and in need for Ezzo's military support, Henry was forced to come to terms. Ezzo's victory led the king to make concessions and to a complete transformation of its policy. He reconciled with Ezzo, recognized its rights of inheritance and gave him the royal territories of Kaiserswerth, Duisburg as well as Saalfeld in Thuringia for renouncing to the throne. He also associated the Ezzonid dynasty to his Eastern policies, and mediated the marriage of Ezzo's daughter Richeza with the heir to the Polish throne Mieszko II Lambert.2 Ezzo ~ Count Palatine of Lorraine died on 21 May 1034 at Saalfeld, Thuringia, Germany.1,3 He was buried at Brauweiler Abbey, Brauweiler, Westphalia, Germany.1

See also.2


Children of Ezzo ~ Count Palatine of Lorraine and Matilda of Saxony

Citations

  1. Stuart, Roderick W. Royalty for Commoners, The Complete Known Lineage of John of Gaunt, Son of Edward III, King of England, and Queen Philippa, Fourth Edition. Baltimore, Maryland: Genealogical Publishing Company, 2002.
  2. Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Online https://en.wikipedia.org
  3. Weis, Frederick Lewis. Ancestral Roots of Sixty Colonists Who Came to New England Between 1623 and 1650, Fifth Edition. Baltimore, Maryland: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1982.