Editing Childeric II (section)

{{short description|7th-century Frankish king}}
{{distinguish|Chilperic II}}
{{Infobox royalty
| name            =Childeric II
| title           = King of the Franks
| image           = Solidus en or pâle de 20 siliques émis par Childéric II.jpg
| caption         = Childericʻs solidus of pale gold

|succession= [[List_of_Frankish_kings#Kings_in_Austrasia_(623–679)|King in Austrasia]]
|reign=662–675
|predecessor=[[Chlothar III]]
|successor=[[Clovis III]]

|succession2= [[List of Frankish kings#Kings in Neustria and Burgundy (613–679)|King of Neustria and Burgundy]]
|reign2=673–675
|predecessor2=[[Theuderic III]]
|successor2=[[Theuderic III]]

| spouse=[[Bilichild (wife of Childeric II)|Bilichild]]
| issue = Dagobert<br/>[[Chilperic II]]
|house=[[Merovingian]]
|house-type=Dynasty
| father            = [[Clovis II]] 
| mother            = [[Balthild]]
| birth_date   = {{circa}} 653
| birth_place  =
| death_date   = {{circa}} {{death year and age|675|653}}
| death_place  =
| burial_date  =
| burial_place =[[Saint-Germain-des-Prés]]
| signature =
}}
'''Childeric II''' ({{circa}} 653{{sfn|Bachrach|Bachrach|Leese|2018}} &ndash; 675) was [[List of Frankish kings|King of the Franks]] in the 7th century. He ruled [[Austrasia]] from 662 and [[Neustria]] and [[Kingdom of Burgundy|Burgundy]] from 673 until his death, making him sole king for the final two years of his life.

Childeric was the second eldest son of King [[Clovis II]]<ref>Jean Verseuil, ''Les rois fainéants: de Dagobert à Pépin le Bref'' 629-751, édition Critérion, Paris, 1946 ({{ISBN|978-2-7413-0136-3}})</ref> and grandson of King [[Dagobert I]] and Queen [[Nanthild]].<ref name="ESI-1">Detlev Schwennicke, ''Europäische Stammtafeln: Stammtafeln zur Geschichte der Europäischen Staaten'', Neue Folge, Band I (Marburg, Germany: Verlag von J. A. Stargardt, 1980), Tefel 1</ref> His mother was Saint [[Balthild]] and his elder brother was [[Chlothar III]],<ref name="ESI-1"/> who was briefly sole king from 661 but gave Austrasia to Childeric the next year. Childeric was still a mere child when he was raised on the shields of his warriors and proclaimed king in Austrasia.<ref>Patrick J. Geary, ''Before France & Germany, The Creation & Transformation of the Merovingian World'' (New York, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988), p. 180</ref>

Childeric [[cousin marriage|married his cousin]] [[Bilichild (wife of Childeric II)|Bilichild]],<ref>Ian Wood, ''The Merovingian Kingdoms, 450&ndash;751'' (London, New York:, Longman, 1999), p. 73</ref> who gave birth to two sons: Dagobert and the future king [[Chilperic II]].<ref>Paule Lejeune, ''Les reines de France'', Paris, 1989, {{ISBN|2-86594-042-X}}, p. 44</ref>

After the death of Chlothar in 673, [[Theuderic III]], his youngest brother, inherited his kingdoms, but a faction of prominent Burgundian nobles led by [[Leodegar|Saint Leodegar]] and [[Adalrich, Duke of Alsace|Adalrich]] rebelled against Theuderic and [[Ebroin]], [[Mayor of the Palace]], inviting Childeric to become king in Neustria and Burgundy.<ref>Patrick J. Geary, ''Before France & Germany, The Creation & Transformation of the Merovingian World'' (New York, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988), pp. 189–190</ref> He soon invaded his brother's kingdom and displaced him, becoming sole king. He made his Austrasian [[Mayor of the Palace]], [[Wulfoald]], mayor in Neustria and Burgundy as well, upsetting his supporters in Burgundy who did not wish to see functionaries active in a kingdom other than their native one. In March 675, Childeric granted ''[[Fee (feudal tenure)|honores]]'' in [[Alsace]] to Adalrich with the title of ''[[dux]]''. This grant was most probably the result of Adalrich's continued support for Childeric in Burgundy, which had often disputed possession of Alsace with Austrasia.

The final straw for the magnates of Neustria was Childeric's illegal corporal punishment of a nobleman named Bodilo. In 675, Bodilo and his friends Amalbert and Ingobert conspired to assassinate the king, who was killed, along with his wife Bilichild and his five-year-old son Dagobert, while hunting in the forest of Livry (present-day [[Lognes]]). Childeric's younger son, Chilperic, was absent and thus survived. He grew up in a monastery.

Childeric, his wife, and their son Dagobert were buried in [[Saint-Germain-des-Prés]], near [[Paris]], where their tombs were discovered in 1645 and the contents pilfered.