St. Cloud

Clodoald (522 - c.560CE) was (along with Theodebald and Gunthar) one of the three sons of King Chlodomer of Orléans. When Chlodomer was killed during an expedition against the Burgundians, his sons were taken in by their grandmother, Clotilde.

They were all very young, but as heirs to Orléans, they were an obstacle to anyone who wanted to take over Orléans. One of the people who wanted to rule Orléans was their uncle, Chlodomer's brother Clothar I. Clothar, King of Soissons, sent a messenger to Clotilde bearing a sword and scissors, telling her that the boys needed to be shorn and made monks, or killed. She refused, so Clothar took the matter into his own hands, stabbing Theodebald and Gunthar.

Clodoald, however, escaped. Hidden by members of the household and smuggled away, he found safety with Bishop Remigius of Rheims (c.437 – 13 January 533), who had baptized Clodoald's grandfather Clovis I. Clodoald became a pupil of St. Severin of Paris, a hermit who lived on the banks of the Seine.

From Severin Clodoald learned monastic ways. At the age of 20 he went to the Bishop of Paris and members of the royal family, allowing his hair to be cut. Clothar realized he was not going to be a threat to  Clothar's possession of Orléans, and let him live out his life in peace.

After Severin's death, Clodoald left the hermitage and went to Provence, where many came to see him, believing he had a gift of healing. (This idea may have come from his being of royal birth. The idea that a king's hands could heal seems to have started with his grandfather, Clovis. See this post.) After 11 years in Provence, he returned to Severin's hermitage where he was gladly received.

In 551 he was ordained a priest by Bishop Eusebius of Paris, but the praise and attention he received from performing his public duties was too much for his mild nature, and he decided to retreat to the quiet life along the Seine in a place that is now the commune of Saint-Cloud. There he built a church in honor of St. Martin of Tours. Eventually this grew to a monastery, endowed with gifts given him by his uncles. He died on 7 September 560.

Legend says that miracles took place around his tomb. He was quickly canonized. His feast day is 7 September. Towns in Florida, Minnesota, and Wisconsin are named St. Cloud after the French town St. Cloud.

Let's go back and see what Clothar was up to during these years.

Clothar's Conquests

When King Hermanfrid of Thuringia offered part of Thuringia to Theuderic if Theuderic would help him defeat Hermanfrid's brother and co-ruler Baderic, Theuderic agreed. During the conflict that followed, Hermanfrid reneged on the deal, and Theuderic (having been wounded in fighting), asked his brother, Clothar I, to carry on. This was in 531.

As it happened, Hermanfrid was also wounded in the fighting and died, at which point Clothar decided the goal was simply to conquer Thuringia and add it to his Frankish territory. Clothar managed this with the help of his nephew, Theuderic's son, Theudebert I. Part of the spoils of war was Radegund, Hermanfrid's niece. Her "possession" was debated, but Clothar took her, raised her, and eventually married her.

Clothar's brother King Chlodomer of Orléans had been killed in 524 and Chlodomer's sons given to their grandmother to raise. Clothar wanted Orléans for himself, and in 532, along with the fourth brother, Childebert, offered the sons a choice: monastic life, or no life. They did this by sending to the grandmother a messenger who carried scissors and a sword. The ultimatum was either cut their hair and become monks, or die. (Just to be clear, the grandmother in question was Clothar's and Childebert's own mother, Clotilde!)

The three boys, Theodebald, Gunthar, and Clodoald, were not even teenagers yet. Clotilde was aghast and said she would rather see her children dead than shorn. (The Merovingians felt long hair was a sign of kingship. Cutting off a man's hair made him unsuitable for the position.) She refused.

Clothar and Childebert needed to take matters into their own hands, so they went to the boys. Clothar stabbed Theodebald. Gunther fell at Childebert's feet and pleaded for his life. Childebert almost relented, so Clothar stabbed the boy. (see illustration) Clodoald escaped, having been hidden by people of Clotilde's household.

There are lots of moving parts to this story, like what happened to Clodoard? I'll tell you more next time.