Robert II ( 972 – 20 July 1031), called the Pious () or the Wise (), was king of the Franks from 996 to 1031, the second from the Capetian dynasty. Crowned junior king in 987, he assisted his father on military matters (notably during the two sieges of Laon, in 988 and 991). His solid education, provided by Gerbert of Aurillac (the future Pope Sylvester II) in Reims, allowed him to deal with religious questions of which he quickly became the guarantor (he headed the Council of Saint-Basle de Verzy in 991 and that of Chelles in 994). Continuing the political work of his father after becoming sole ruler in 996, he managed to maintain the alliance with the Duchy of Normandy and the County of Anjou and thus was able to contain the ambitions of Count Odo II of Blois.
Robert II distinguished himself with an extraordinarily long reign for the time. His 35-year-long reign was marked by his attempts to expand the royal domain by any means, especially by his struggle to gain the Duchy of Burgundy (which ended in 1005 with his victory) after the death in 1002 without male descendants of his paternal uncle Duke Henry I, after a war against Otto-William of Ivrea, Henry I's stepson and adopted by him as his heir. His policies earned him many enemies, including three of his sons.
The marital setbacks of Robert II (he married three times, having two of these annulled and attempting to have the third annulled, prevented only by the pope's refusal to agree to a third annulment), strangely contrasted with the pious aura, bordering on holiness, which his biographer Helgaud of Fleury was willing to lend him in his work "Life of King Robert the Pious" (Epitoma vitæ regis Roberti pii). His life was then presented as a model to follow, made of innumerable pious donations to various religious establishments, of charity towards the poor and, above all, of gestures considered sacred, such as the healing of certain lepers. Robert II was the first sovereign considered to be a "miracle worker". The end of his reign revealed the relative weakness of the sovereign, who had to face the revolt of his third wife Constance and then of his own sons (Henry and Robert) between 1025 and 1031.
Life
Youth and political formation
The only heir of the Duke of the Franks
thumb|right|Denier of Hugh Capet, "Duke by the grace of God" (Dux Dei Gratia), Paris studio (Parisi Civita), late 10th century.
Robert II's exact date and birthplace are unknown, although historians have advocated for the year 972 and the city of Orléans (the capital of the Robertians from the 9th century onward). The only son of Hugh Capet and Adelaide of Aquitaine, he was named after his heroic ancestor Robert the Strong, who had died fighting the Vikings in 866. His parents' marriage produced at least two other daughters: Hedwig (wife of Reginar IV, Count of Hainaut) and Gisela (wife of Hugh I, Count of Ponthieu).
In the 10th century, the Robertians were the most powerful aristocratic family in the Kingdom of France. In previous decades, two of its members, Odo (888) and Robert I (922), had ascended to the throne, displacing the ruling Carolingian dynasty. The principality of Hugh the Great, Duke of the Franks and Robert II's paternal grandfather, marked the apogee of the Robertians until his death in 956. In the middle of the 10th century, Hugh Capet succeeded as the head of the family.
Robert II's youth was especially marked by the incessant fights of King Lothair of France to recover Lorraine, the "cradle of the Carolingian family", at the expense of Emperor Otto II:
In August 978, King Lothair unexpectedly launched a general assault on Aix-la-Chapelle where the imperial family resided, which narrowly escaped capture. After having looted the imperial palace and the surroundings, he returned to France carrying the insignia of the Empire. In the following October, to take revenge, Otto II assembled an army of 60,000 men and invaded Lothair's domains. The latter, with only a few troops around him, was forced to take refuge with Hugh Capet, who was then said to be the savior of the Carolingian kingship. The Robertian dynasty then took a turn that changed the fate of young Robert II. Bishop Adalbero of Reims, originally a man of King Lothair, turns more and more towards the Ottonian court for which he feels a great sympathy.
An exemplary education
Hugh Capet quickly understood that his ascent could not be attained without the support of Archbishop Adalbero of Reims. Illiterate himself, not mastering Latin, he decided around 984 to send his son, not with the scholar Abbo of Fleury, near Orléans, but to Archbishop Adalbero so he could train him in the basics of knowledge. Indeed, at the end of the 10th century, Reims had a reputation as the most prestigious school of all of West Christianity. The prelate willingly welcomed Robert, who was confided to his secretary, the famous Gerbert of Aurillac, one of the most educated men of his time.
It is assumed that to follow Gerbert's teaching, the young Robert II had to acquire the basics of Latin. He thus enriched his knowledge by studying the trivium (grammar, rhetoric and dialectic) and the quadrivium (arithmetic, geometry, music and astronomy). Robert II is one of the few laypeople of his time to enjoy the same worldview as contemporary clergy. After about two years of study in Reims, he returned to Orléans. His intellectual level had also developed in the musical field, as recognized by another great scholar of his time, Richer de Reims. According to Helgaud de Fleury, at an age unknown in his adolescence, the young Robert II fell seriously ill, to such an extent that his parents feared for his life. It was then when they went to pray at the Sainte-Croix church in Orleans and offered a golden crucifix and a sumptuous 60-pound (30 kg) vase as a votive offering. Robert II miraculously recovered.
Robert II's ascension to the throne (987)
thumb|left|Denier of Robert II the Pious, struck at Soissons.
Immediately after his own coronation, Hugh Capet began to push for the coronation of his son. "The essential means by which the early Capetians were seen to have kept the throne in their family was through the association of the eldest surviving son in the royalty during the father's lifetime," Andrew W. Lewis has observed, in tracing the phenomenon in this line of kings who lacked dynastic legitimacy. Hugh Capet's claimed reason was that he was planning an expedition against the Moorish armies harassing Count Borrell II of Barcelona, an invasion which never occurred, and that the stability of the country necessitated a Junior King, should he die while on expedition. Rodulfus Glaber, however, attributes Hugh Capet's request to his old age and inability to control the nobility. Modern scholarship has largely imputed to Hugh Capet the motive of establishing a dynasty against the claims of electoral power on the part of the aristocracy, but this is not the typical view of contemporaries and even some modern scholars have been less sceptical of his "plan" to campaign in Spain.
Once Hugh Capet proposed the association of Robert to the throne, Archbishop Adalbero of Reims was reportedly hostile to this and, according to Richer of Reims, he replied to the king: "we do not have the right to create two kings in the same year" (on n'a pas le droit de créer deux rois la même année). It is believed that Gerbert of Aurillac (who was himself close to Borrell II, for a time his protector), would then have come to the aid of Hugh Capet to convince the Archbishop that the co-kingship was needed due to the purposed expedition to assist the Count of Barcelona, and to secure a stable transition of power. Under duress, Archbishop Adalbero finally consented.
Unlike that of Hugh Capet, the coronation of Robert was precisely detailed by Richer of Reims—even the day and place were clearly identified. Dressed in purple woven with gold threads, as tradition dictated, the 15-year-old boy was acclaimed, crowned and then consecrated by the Archbishop of Reims on 25 December 987 at the Sainte-Croix Cathedral in Orléans.
Richer of Reims also underlines that Robert II is only "King of the peoples of the West, from the Meuse to the Ocean" and not "King of the Gauls, Aquitaine, Danes, Goths, Spaniards and Gascons" as his father.
The episcopal hierarchy, the King's first support
Robert II directs the religious affairs
Crowned as Junior King, Robert II had begun to take on active royal duties with his father, as evidenced by his signum at the bottom of certain acts of Hugh Capet. From 990, all the acts have its inscription. In the written acts: "Robert, very glorious king" as underlined by a charter for Corbie (April 988) or even "filii nostri Rotberti regis ac consortis regni nostri" in a charter for Saint-Maur-des-Fossés (June 989). On the strength of his instruction received from Gerbert of Aurillac, his task, initially, was to preside over episcopal synods:
Unlike the last Carolingians, the first Capetians attached a clan of bishops to the north-east of Paris (Amiens, Laon, Soissons, Châlons, etc.) whose support was decisive in the course of events. In one of their diplomas, the two kings appear as intermediaries between the clerics and the people (mediatores et plebis) and, under the pen of Gerbert of Aurillac, the bishops insisted on this need for consilium: "...not wanting anything abuse the royal power, we decide all the affairs of the res publica by resorting to the advice and sentences of our faithful". Hugh Capet and Robert II needed the support of the Church to further consolidate their legitimacy, and also because the contingents of horsemen who made up the royal army came largely from the bishoprics. Robert II already appeared in the eyes of his contemporaries as a pious sovereign (hence his nickname) and close to the Church for several reasons: he devoted himself to the liberal arts; he was present at the synods of bishops; Abbo of Fleury specially dedicated his canonical collection to him; he easily forgave his enemies; and the abbeys received many royal gifts. He sent Ulric, bishop of Orleans, on an embassy to Emperor Constantine VIII and received the gift of a piece of the true cross along with silken hangings.
Charles de Lorraine seizes Laon (988–991)
Precisely, Hugh Capet and Robert II relied on the contingents sent by the bishoprics since the city of Laon had just been stormed by Charles of Lorraine, the last Carolingian pretender to the throne. The sovereigns besieged the city twice, without result. Concerned about his failure in Laon, Hugh Capet contacted several sovereigns to obtain their help (Pope John XV, Empress Theophanu, mother and Regent on behalf of Emperor Otto III), in vain. After the death of Archbishop Adalbero of Reims (24 January 989), Hugh Capet decided to elect, as new archbishop, the Carolingian Arnoul, an illegitimate son of King Lothair, rather than Gerbert of Aurillac. It is believed that this was to appease the supporters of the Carolingians, but the situation turned against the Capetians when Arnoul surrendered Reims to his uncle Charles.
The situation was unblocked thanks to the betrayal of Ascelin, Bishop of Laon, who seized Charles and Arnoul during their sleep and delivered them to the King (991): the Bishop thus saved the Capetian royalty in extremis. In the Council of Saint-Basle de Verzy, Arnoul was judged as a traitor by an assembly chaired by Robert II (June 991). Despite the protests of Abbon of Fleury, Arnoul was deposed. A few days later, Gerbert of Aurillac was appointed Archbishop of Reims with the support of his former pupil Robert II. Pope John XV did not accept this procedure and wanted to convene a new council in Aix-la-Chapelle, but the bishops confirmed their decision in Chelles (winter 993–994).
Gerbert and Ascelin: two figures of disloyalty
When his master Adalbero of Reims died, Gerbert of Aurillac was obliged to follow the intrigues of the new archbishop Arnoul, determined to deliver Reims to Charles of Lorraine. Although the documentation is very incomplete on this subject, it seems that the scholar subsequently changed his positions to become Charles's supporter:
A doubt in legitimacy was thus settled on the reign of both Hugh Capet and Robert II. However Gerbert, seeing the situation change to the detriment of Charles of Lorraine, changed sides during the year 991. Having become Archbishop of Reims by the grace of Robert II, he testified:
As for Ascelin, Bishop of Laon, after having served the crown by betraying Charles and Arnoul, he soon turned against the Capetians. In the spring of 993, he allied with Count Odo I of Blois to plan the capture of Hugh Capet and Robert II, in agreement with Emperor Otto III. If they succeeded, Louis (the son of Charles of Lorraine) would become King of the Franks, Odo I Duke of the Franks, and Ascelin Bishop of Reims. However, the plot was denounced and Ascelin was placed under house arrest.
Marital problems
First marriage: Rozala of Italy
thumb|180px|right|Rozala (renamed Susanna) of Italy, as Countess of Flanders (late years of 15th century).
Immediately after associating his son with the throne, Hugh Capet wanted Robert II to marry a royal princess, but the prohibition against marriage within the third degree of consanguinity obliged him to seek a bride in the East. He had a letter written by Gerbert of Aurillac asking the Byzantine Emperor Basil II for the hand of one of his nieces for Robert II; however, no Byzantine response is recorded. After this rebuff, and under pressure from his father (who apparently wanted to reward the Flemish for their help when he seized power in 987), Robert II had to marry Rozala, daughter of Berengar II of Ivrea, King of Italy and widow of Arnulf II, Count of Flanders. The wedding, celebrated before 1 April 988, brought Robert II possession of the cities of Montreuil and Ponthieu and a possible guardianship over the County of Flanders, given the young age of Rozala's son Baldwin IV, for whom she had been acting as regent ever since her first husband's death.
Upon her marriage, Rozala became junior Queen consort of the Franks and took the name of Susanna; however, after about three or four years of marriage (c. 991–992), the young Robert II repudiated her, due to the excessive age difference between them (Rozala was almost 22 years older than him and probably too old to have more children). In fact, the breakup was justified by the absence of a child from their union and, for this reason, Hugh Capet and his advisers did not oppose the annulment proceedings.
Separated from her husband, Rozala returned to Flanders at the side of her son Baldwin IV and became one of his principal advisers. Robert II managed to keep the port of Montreuil (part of his former wife's dowry), a strategic point on the Channel. Historians believe that from this period, Robert II wished to challenge his father and finally reign alone.
The marriage was formally annulled in late 996, following Hugh Capet's death and Robert II's ascension as sole King of the French. and his wife Matilda (in turn daughter of King Louis IV of France and Gerberga of Saxony, sister of Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor), so was from an undisputed royal lineage. Robert II and Bertha quickly became attracted to each other despite the complete resistance of Hugh Capet (the House of Blois was the great enemy of the Capetian dynasty). However, Robert II saw, in addition to his personal feelings, that Bertha would also bring all the Blois territories under Capetian control. The deaths in 996 of Odo I of Blois (12 March) and Hugh Capet (24 October) eliminated the main obstacles for a union between Robert II and Bertha.
According to French historian Michel Rouche, this alliance was purely political: to loosen the grip threatening the Capetian dynasty and its stronghold of Île-de-France, and probably according to the will of Robert II's mother, Queen Adelaide of Aquitaine; indeed, the territories of Odo I were Blois, Chartres, Melun and Meaux. In addition, the couple were just waiting for the statutory nine months set by law after Odo I's death. It was, therefore, obvious that another objective was to have legitimate children.
However, two important details obstructed this union: firstly, Robert II and Bertha were second cousins (their respective grandmothers, Hedwig and Gerberga, were sisters) and secondly, Robert II was the godfather of Theobald, one of the sons of Bertha. According to canon law, marriage was then impossible. Finally, the seven years of penance were completed around 1003.
children born from Constance's marriage to Robert II are recorded:
- Hedwig [Advisa], Countess of Auxerre (ca. 1003 – aft. 1063), married Renauld I, Count of Nevers on 25 January 1016 and had issue.
- Hugh, Junior King (1007 – 17 September 1025).
- Henry I, successor (bef. 17 April/4 May 1008 – 4 August 1060).
- Adela, Countess of Contenance (ca. 1009 – 8 January 1079), married (1) Richard III of Normandy and (2) Count Baldwin V of Flanders.
- Robert (1011–12 – 21 March 1076), named by his father heir to the Duchy of Burgundy in 1030, installed as such in 1032 by his brother.
- Odo [Eudes] (1013 – 15 May 1057–59), who may have been intellectually disabled according to the chronicle (ended in 1138) of Pierre, son of Béchin, canon of Saint-Martin-de-Tours. He died after his brother's failed invasion of Normandy.
250px|thumb|right|Constance of Arles surrendering to her son [[Henry I of France. Illumination on parchment from ca. 1375–1380 manuscript. Bibliothèque nationale de France, Fr 2813, folio 177 recto.]]
Since early in her marriage, Constance often placed herself at the center of many intrigues to preserve a preponderant place in the Frankish court. Rodolfus Glaber rightly emphasized that the Queen was "in control of her husband". For contemporaries, a woman who led her husband implied an abnormal situation. It all started at the beginning of the year 1008, a day when the King and his faithful Count palatine Hugh of Beauvais were hunting in the forest of Orléans. Suddenly, twelve armed men appeared and threw themselves on Hugh before killing him under the eyes of the king. The crime was ordered by Count Fulk III of Anjou, and with all probability supported by the Queen. Robert II, exasperated by his wife after six or seven years of marriage (c. 1009–1010), went personally to Rome accompanied by Angilramme (a monk from Saint-Riquier) and Bertha de Burgundy. His plan was to obtain from Pope Sergius IV an annulment from his marriage with Constance and to remarry Bertha, whom Robert II still loved deeply,
The problems did not end, however. The rivalry between Bertha and Constance only enhanced the hatred between the Houses of Blois and Anjou. In the midst of this dispute, after the military victory of Odo II of Blois over Fulk III of Anjou in Pontlevoy (1016), the Queen sought to strengthen her family's position at court. For this, she and her Angevin relatives pressured the King to associate her eldest son Hugh to the throne, to ensure the regency of Constance over the Kingdom in the event of Robert II's death. Against the opinion of the royal councilors and the territorial princes, Robert II relented and thus, according to Rodulfus Glaber, 10-years-old Hugh was consecrated Junior King on Pentecost Day (9 June) 1017 in the church of the Abbey of Saint-Corneille in Compiègne. Although the association markedly favored the House of Anjou (and could put the sovereign's own life at risk), Robert II considered that this was the best way to consolidate the new Capetian dynasty and prevent another of the noble families from disputing the throne. However, he did not give any royal power to his son and, for this, Hugh was constantly humiliated by his mother. When he came of age, the junior King rebelled against his father, but eventually was restored in the royal favor.
Territorial conquests
The King led a clear policy: to recover the count palatine's function for his own benefit, either by appropriating it or by ceding it to a friendly bishop, as did the Ottonian dynasty, the most powerful rulers in the West at that time. Robert II's most brilliant victory, however, would be the acquisition of the Duchy of Burgundy.
Henry I, Duke of Burgundy died on 15 October 1002 without a legitimate heir. According to the Chronique de Saint-Bénigne, he designated his stepson Otto-William of Ivrea, Count of Burgundy and Count of Mâcon (son of Henry I's first wife Gerberga and her first husband Adalbert of Ivrea, sometime King of Italy) as the heir of his domains; however, and despite counting on the support of many Burgundian lords to his rights, Otto-William cared more about his lands in overseas Saône and towards Italy from which he came. The Duchy of Burgundy, acquired in 943 by Hugh the Great, Henry I's father, was part of the Robertian family possessions. Moreover, Burgundy was a major stake since it abounded in rich cities (Dijon, Auxerre, Langres, Sens). With the death of his uncle, Robert II claimed the succession over the Duchy of Burgundy as his closest male blood relative and also as a complete fief.
The rivalry between Hugh of Chalon, Bishop of Auxerre (supporter of Robert II) and Landry, Count of Nevers (son-in-law and ally of Otto-William) over the possession of Auxerre, triggered the armed intervention of the Frankish King who, with the help of troops lent by Richard II, Duke of Normandy, gathered his army in spring 1003 and engaged them in Burgundy, but they failed in front of Auxerre and Saint-Germain d'Auxerre. In 1004, Robert II besieged Beaune. Autun and Beaune were under control of the king, which forced Otto-William to initiate a diplomatic settlement. In 1005, Robert II, his men and the Normans were back in the north of the duchy. They took Avallon after a few days of fighting, then Auxerre. An arrangement had already been made between the King and Otto-William, who was with him during the siege of Avallon. Under the mediation of Bishop Hugh of Chalon, Count Landry was reconciled with the King by renouncing the Counties of Avallon and Auxerre. At the end of the agreements of 1005–1006, Otto-William had renounced the ducal title of Burgundy and all the possessions of his late stepfather, which reverted to the Crown, except the city of Dijon, still in the possession of Brunon of Roucy, the irreducible Bishop of Langres, who did not want Robert II to settle there at any cost.
300px|thumb|left|The Kingdom of the Franks during late 10th century.
In Sens, a fight arose between Count Fromond II and Archbishop Léotheric for the control of the city. The Archbishop, who was close to the King, was furious at the behavior of the Count, who had built a powerful defense tower. In 1012, Renard II succeeded his father Fromond II and the situation worsened in as much as the Bishop of Langres, Brunon de Roucy, enemy of Robert II, was Renard II's maternal uncle. Léotheric, isolated, appealed to the King. The latter wished to intervene for several reasons: Sens was one of the main archiepiscopal cities of the Kingdom, it was also an obligatory passage to go to Burgundy and, finally, the possession of the County of Sens would allow Robert II to fragment the possessions of Odo II de Blois in two parts. Renard II was excommunicated and underwent the attack of the King, who seized Sens on 22 April 1015. Renard II, in the meantime, had allied himself with Odo II de Blois, and offered Robert II a compromise: he would continue to exercise his rule as Count as vassal and, upon his death, the territory would revert to the Crown. Renard II died 40 years later (1055) and with his death, the County of Sens reverted to the crown.
As soon as the fight against the County of Sens ended, Robert II left for Dijon to complete the conquest of the Duchy of Burgundy. According to the Chronique de Saint-Bénigne, Abbot Odilo of Cluny intervened and the King, moved by his pleas, decided not to attack Dijon. Brunon of Roucy died on 30 January 1016, and a few days later, the royal troops returned to Dijon and Robert II installed Lambert de Vignory as the new bishop of Langres; in exchange, the new bishop ceded Dijon and his county to the King. After fifteen years of military and diplomatic campaigns, Robert II finally entered into full possession of the Duchy of Burgundy.
The King's second son, Henry, received the ducal title but, given his young age, Robert II kept the government and went there regularly. The death in 1027 of Hugh, the elder brother of Henry, made the latter the heir to the throne; the duchy then passed to the King's third son Robert, whose descendants would rule until the middle of the 14th century. The overseas lands of the old Kingdom of Burgundy, called Franche-Comté, would follow the destiny of the Holy Roman Empire.
When, on 9 January 1007, Bouchard I of Vendôme (the former faithful of Hugh Capet) died, the County of Paris he held was not inherited by his son, Renaud but instead reverted to the crown, and when Renaud died in 1017, the King appropriated his Counties of Melun and Dreux, which also joined the royal demesne. Dagobert, Archbishop of Bourges died in 1012, and Robert II himself appointed his replacement, Gauzlin, former Abbot of Fleury; however, the viscount of the same city, Geoffrey, tried to intervene personally in the choice of Dagobert's successor and prevented the new archbishop from entering the city, and only through the intercession of Pope Benedict VIII, Odilo of Cluny and Robert II himself could Gauzlin finally take possession of his seat.
The heretics of Orléans (1022)
The year 1000 constituted the "awakening of heresy". Before the High Middle Ages, there was no such persecution. The 11th century inaugurated a series of bonfire heretics in the West: Orléans (1022), Milan (1027), and Cambrai (1078). As for Robert II, the case of the heretics of Orléans was a fundamental part of his reign and, at the time, of an unprecedented impact. The nature of the events is told to us by exclusively ecclesiastical sources: Rodulfus Glaber, Adémar de Chabannes, Andrew of Fleury, Jean de Ripoll and Paul de Chartres. The year 1000 extended the idea of a corrupt century where the wealth of the clergy contrasted terribly with the humility advocated by Jesus Christ. Some clerics questioned this system and wished to purify Christian society. This debate was not new: already in the 9th century, there was controversy among scholars about the Eucharist and the cult of saints, but in 1022, it was of a different nature.
Rodulfus Glaber told the story of the peasant Leutard of Vertus from Champagne who, around 994, decided to dismiss his wife, to destroy the crucifix of his local church and to preach to the villagers the refusal to pay tithes with the pretext of reading the Holy Scriptures. The Bishop of his diocese, Gibuin I of Châlons, then summoned him, and debated with him before the people and convinced them of the peasant's heretical madness. Abandoned by all, Leutard committed suicide. This situation was repeated throughout the eleventh century with various people who disagreed with Catholic orthodoxy: they were put to debate with highly educated clergymen in public, so that they and their message were ridiculed and discredited in the eyes of the common people.|"At that time, ten of the canons of Sainte-Croix of Orléans, who seemed more pious than the others, were convinced to be Manicheans. King Robert, faced with their refusal to return to the faith, had them first stripped of their priestly dignity, then expelled from the Church, and finally delivered to the flames."
According to legend, Étienne, Constance's confessor, received a blow from her cane which perforated his eye. Robert II had an immense pyre erected outside the city on 28 December 1022, hoping to frighten them, but he was surprised by their reaction: