Irmentrude (d. 820)

views updated

Irmentrude (d. 820)

Countess of Altdorf and founder of the Welf line. Name variations: Irmentrudis. Died in 820; daughter of Bertha (719–783) and Pepin III the Short, king of the Franks (r. 747–768), mayor of Neustria (r. 741); sister of Charlemagne, king of the Franks (r. 768–814), Holy Roman emperor (r. 800–814); married Isembert, count of Altdorf; children: Welf I.

Irmentrude, the sister of Charlemagne, married Isembert, count of Altdorf, Swabia. She was the mother of Welf I, founder of both the Italian (Guelf or Guelph) and German branches of that famous family. The younger branch of Welf established itself in Germany and became dukes and duchesses of Brunswick. The British house of Windsor, through the German house of Hanover, descended from this line. Hence, Irmentrude was the direct ancestor of Queen Victoria .