Hugh the Abbot

Hugh the Abbot of Auxerre (died 12 May 886) was a prominent nobleman and prelate in the Carolingian Empire, who held several ecclesiastical and administrative posts in the West Frankish Kingdom during the reigns of king Charles the Bald and his successors.^[1] He was a member of the Elder House of Welf, and a son of Conrad the Elder, Count of Argengau and countess Adelaide of Tours. His brother Conrad the Younger was Count of Auxerre and Lord of Transjuran Burgundy. Hugh's paternal aunts were: empress Judith (second wife of emperor Louis the Pious), and queen Emma (wife of king Louis the German of East Francia).^[2]

Carolingian kingdoms, after 863

Not to be confused with Hugh (abbot of Saint-Quentin).

Life

Carolingian kingdoms, after the Treaty of Meerssen (870)

In 853-858, Hugh and his brother Conrad left East Francia,^[3] and went over to king Charles the Bald of West Francia, who was a son of their paternal aunt, empress Judith.^[4] Hugh entered the monastery and rose to become abbot of Saint-Germain d'Auxerre. Despite his vows, he was no a contemplative monk, but rather the epitome of a warrior-monk of those times. King Charles the Bald (843-877) sent him on a military expedition to the Nivernais. Hugh welcomed Charles when the king had to flee during an 858 invasion of king Louis the German, when his vassals refused him aid and rebelled under Robert the Strong, the margrave of Neustria. When Robert regained favour, Hugh was exiled to Lotharingia in the Middle Francia, where he became archbishop of Cologne (864). However, he was soon called back to the West Francia.

In 866, upon Robert's death, Hugh received all the former's abbacies, including Noirmoutiers and Saint-Martin de Tours. He was also appointed to administer several counties, including Tours, and the margraviate between the Seine and the Loire (Neustria).

Some scholars have suggested that after the death of her husband Conrad, Hugh's mother Adelaide remarried to Robert the Strong, and thus became mother to Robert's sons, Odo and Robert. Based on those assumptions, it was also suggested that after Robert's death in 866, Hugh became the regent and guardian for his young half-brothers.^[5] Those suggestions were not universally acknowledged in scholarly literature,^[6] since it was shown that assumptions on Adelaide marrying Robert were based on some misunderstandings in the Chronicle of St-Bénigne, and Liber memorialis of the Remiremont Abbey.^{[7][8][9][10][11]}

Hugh was endued with great political sense and fought the Vikings vigorously.^[12] He was the archchaplain of the royal court and one of the chief ministers of the joint-kings Louis III (879-882) and Carloman (879-884).^[13][14]

Hugh tried to maintain the alliance of the related Carolingian monarchs against the Vikings. He was instrumental in initiating a united response of all Carolingian rulers against the usurper Boso of Provence. He supported Charles the Fat on his succession to the throne of West Francia in 884, but he died before he could lend aid to the defence of Paris during the siege of 885–86.