Saint of the Day – 24 March – Blessed Bertrada of Laon (c726-783) Queen

Saint of the Day – 24 March – Blessed Bertrada of Laon (c726-783) Married to King Pepin the Short. Queen of the Franks. Mother of Blessed Charlemagne. Bertrada was known to instil piety and devotion in her Court, following strict schedules of prayer and Liturgical celebrations for her family and for the Court generally. Born in c726 at Laon, France and died on 12 July 783 of natural causes at Choisy-au-Bac, Francia. Patronage – of Spinners. Also known as – Bertrada the Pius, Bertrada la Pia, Bertha… Berta…

We know nothing definite about Bertrada’s exact origins. According to some, she was the daughter of Charibert, Count of Laon, while others would even consider her the daughter of an Emperor of Constantinople. However, it is well known that the Frankish Kings cared little about the more or less illustrious origins of their wives and no-one has ever taken the trouble to discover where Queen Bertha probably came from, given that even ancient heroic poetry and various legends, left the question aside.

In 741, she married Pepin the Short, the son of Charles Martel, the Frankish Chancellor. However, Pepin and Bertrada’s union was not canonically sanctioned until 749, after the birth of Charlemagne. Besides Charlemagne, Bertrada and Pepin are known to have had seven further children, of whom 3 were sons. One of their daughters, Gisela, became a nun at Chelles Abbey.

In 751, Pepin and Bertrada became King and Queen of the Franks, following Pepin’s successful coup against the Frankish Merovingian monarchs. Pepin was crowned in June 754 and Bertrada, Charlemagne, and Carloman were blessed by Pope Stephen II. (See the wonderful painting below by François Dubois.

After Pepin’s death in 768, Bertrada lost her title as Queen of the Franks. Charlemagne and Carloman inherited the two halves of Pepin’s Kingdom. Bertrada stayed at the Charlemagne’s Court and often tried to stop arguments between the two brothers. It is reported that her relationship with her sons was excellent, especially with Charlemagne. Historians say that the great Emperor had a respectful tenderness towards his mother and that he listened to her advice with a certain deference and trust.

In 771, Bertrada retired from the Court after Carloman’s death to live in Choisy-au-Bac, where Charlemagne had set aside a Royal house for her. Choisy-au-Bac was favourable because of its history of being the home and burial place of several Royals.

Bertrada died on 12 July 783 and was buried in Saint-Denis, where her Tomb, restored by the French King Saint Louis IX, bears the only inscription “Berta, Mater Caroli Magni.” The cult of her as Beatification has a purely local character.