Succession Matters
Charles, childless by his marriage to Richgard, tried to have his illegitimate son by an unknown concubine, Bernard, recognised as his heir in 885, but met the opposition of several bishops. He had the support of Pope Hadrian III, whom he invited to an assembly in Worms in October 885, but who died on the way, just after crossing the river Po. Hadrian was going to depose the obstructing bishops, as Charles doubted he could do this himself, and legitimise Bernard. Based on the unfavouring attitude of the chronicler of the Mainz continuation of the Annales Fuldenses, the chief of Charles's opponents in the matter was probably Liutbert, Archbishop of Mainz. Because Charles had called together the "bishops and counts of Gaul" as well as the pope to meet him at Worms, it seems likely that he planned to make Bernard King of Lotharingia. Notker the Stammerer, who considered Bernard as a possible heir, wrote in his Deeds of Charlemagne:
- I will not tell you of this until I see your little son Bernard with a sword girt to his thigh.
Perhaps Notker was awaiting Bernard's kingship, when Prüm would be avenged.
After the failure of his first attempt, Charles set about to try again. He had the term proles (offspring) inserted into his charters as it had not been in previous years, probably because he desired to legitimise Bernard. In early 886, Charles met the new Pope Stephen V and probably negotiated for the recognition of his son as his heir. An assembly was planned for April and May of the next year at Waiblingen. Pope Stephen cancelled his planned attendance on 30 April 887. Nevertheless, at Waiblingen, Berengar, who by a brief feud with Liutward had lost the favour of the emperor, came in early May 887, made peace with the emperor, and compensated for the actions of the previous year by dispensing great gifts.
Charles probably abandoned his plans for Bernard and instead adopted Louis of Provence as his son at an assembly at Kirchen in May. It is possible, however, that the agreement with Louis was only designed to engender support for Bernard's subkingship in Lotharingia. In June or July Berengar arrived in Kirchen, probably pining to be declared Charles's heir; he may in fact have been so named in Italy, where he was acclaimed (or made himself) king immediately after Charles's deposition. Odo, Count of Paris, may have had a similar purpose in visiting Charles at Kirchen. On the other hand the presence of these magnates at these two great assemblies may merely have been necessary to confirm Charles' illegitimate son as his heir (Waiblingen), a plan which failed when the pope refused to attend, and then to confirm Louis instead (Kirchen).
Read more about this topic: Charles The Fat
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