The Return of the King (S2: E13)

This week, we’re going to take our focus down just a little bit. Last week we discussed the reigns and fates of four kings; this week, we’re going to look at just one: King Dagobert II. Now, to be honest, Dagobert II is almost completely superfluous to our story insofar as how he affected history. As a king, he only ruled from 675/6 until 679. He passed no sweeping laws or reforms, he added no children to the historical record to later vie for his crown, and his military/foreign affairs record was mixed. He signed a peace treaty with the Lombards, noted by Paul the Deacon in his book History of the Lombards, but his advisors also went to war with the Neustrians… and lost.

The story of Dagobert II is much more sad than the conspiracies would have you believe. The facts lead us to believe that this Merovingian King was the epitome of a pawn: he had his throne stolen from him; he was brought back (if it was even him that returned) when it suited someone else; he was killed when yet another person hoped to gain from his murder; and a future King had him canonized for no really good reason other than by doing so it helped that King. His skull, which is probably not his skull, has been revered as a relic, and his name and likeness has been used in forged documents to push a ridiculous conspiracy theory. Dagobert II may, in our opinion, be the single most victimized, abused, and misused person to yet pass through our history. His story expresses the exact opposite of agency, the idea of being in control of one’s fate and decisions. The fact that he, or someone carrying his name, eventually became a King and a Saint is little solace for someone who, more than likely, died in 657, aged eight or younger, all so that a greedy, power-hungry Mayor could put his own son on the throne of Austrasia for a short period of time.

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