|
The Count of Rouen was the ruler of the County of Rouen and the forerunner of the Dukes of Normandy. With the decline of Carolingian power, there wasn't much that Charles the Simple of France could do about Viking raiding, so someone who was essentially a pirate leader, Rollo, a son of Ragnald I the Wise, Earl of Orkney, was enfeoffed with some of the land that he had been raiding. This grew into a large domain, and entered into normal feudal and marriage relations with the rest of Europe, though for many years with little effective supervision of the Kings of France. ==First exploits== Rollo (c.860 - c.932) was the Frankish-Latin name probably taken by Hrolf Ganger (Hrolf the Walker; Old Norse: ''Hrólfr Rögnvaldsson'' and ''Göngu-Hrólfr'', Norwegian: ''Gange-Rolf'', Swedish: ''Gångerolf''). His nickname originated from being so big that no horse could carry him. He has also been called "Rollo the Gangler" in some works, or occasionally "Robert". Rollo was a Viking leader, probably (based on Icelandic sources) from Norway, the son of Ragnvald, Earl of Moer; sagas mentions a Hrolf, son of Ragnvald jarl of Moer. However, the latinization Rollo has in no known instance been applied to a Hrolf, and in the texts which speak of him, numerous Latinized Hrolfs are included. Dudo of St. Quentin (by most accounts a more reliable source, and at least more recent and living nearer the regions concerned), in his Gesta Normannorum Ducum, tells of a powerful Danish nobleman at loggerheads with the king of Denmark, who then died and left his two sons, Gurim and Rollo, leaving Rollo to be expelled and Gurim killed. With his followers (known as Normans, or northmen), Rollo invaded the area of northern France now known as Normandy. Wace, writing some 300 years after the event, gives a Scandinavian origin, as does the Orkneyinga Saga, with Danish or Norwegian being most likely. Unlike most Vikings whose intentions were to plunder Frankish lands, Rollo's true intentions were to look for lands upon which to settle. Upon arrival in France, and after many battles with the Vikings, the French King Charles the Simple understood that he could no longer hold back their advances, and decided as a temporary measure to give Rollo land around Rouen under the condition that he would convert to Christianity and defend the Seine River from other raiding Vikings. In the Treaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte (911) with King Charles, Rollo pledged feudal allegiance to the king, changed his name to the Frankish version, and converted to Christianity, probably with the baptismal name Robert. In return, and in admission of defeat, King Charles granted Rollo the lower Seine area (today's upper Normandy) and the titular rulership of Normandy, centred on the city of Rouen. There exists some argument among historians as to whether Rollo was a "duke" (''dux'') or whether his position was equivalent to that of a "count" under Charlemagne. According to legend, when required, in conformity with general usage, to kiss the foot of King Charles, he refused to stoop to what he considered so great a degradation; yet as the homage could not be dispensed with, he ordered one of his warriors to perform it for him. The latter, as proud as his chief, instead of stooping to the royal foot, raised it so high, that the King fell to the ground. It is important to note that Rollo stayed true to his word of defending the shores of the Seine river in accordance to the Treaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte, but in time he and his followers had very different ideas. Rollo began to divide the land between the Epte and Risle rivers among his chieftains and settled there with a ''de facto'' capital in Rouen. With these settlements, Rollo began to further raid other Frankish lands, now from the security of a settled homeland, rather than a mobile fleet. Eventually, however, Rollo's men intermarried with the local women, and became more settled as Frenchmen. Rollo expanded his territory as far west as the Vire River and sometime around 927 he passed the Duchy of Normandy to his son, William Longsword. Rollo may have lived for a few years after that, but certainly died before 933. According to the historian Adhemar, 'As Rollo's death drew near, he went mad and had a hundred Christian prisoners beheaded in front of him in honour of the gods whom he had worshiped, and in the end distributed a hundred pounds of gold around the churches in honour of the true god in whose name he had accepted baptism.' Even though Rollo had converted to Christianity, some of his pagan roots surfaced at the end. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Count of Rouen」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|