| Name | Hugh CAPET "King of France" |
| Birth | 0938, Paris, FRANCE |
| Death | 24 Oct 0996, Paris, FRANCE Age: 58 |
| Burial | St. Denis Basilica, St. Denis, Seine, FRANCE |
| Occupation | Noble; King |
| Religion | Catholic |
| Cause of death | Smallpox |
| Father | Hugh Magnus "the Great" CAPET "Count of Paris" (~0895-0956) |
| Mother | Hedwige "Hedwig I" CAROLINGIAN "of Saxony" (~0920-0964) |
| 1 | Adelaide de POITOU "Princess of Aquitaine" |
| Birth | 0945, Poitiers, Poitou, FRANCE |
| Death | 15 Jun 1004 Age: 59 |
| Father | William "III" "Towhead" de POITOU "Count of Poitou" (0915-0963) |
| Mother | Adele "of Normandy" (~0897->0962) |
| Children | Gisele (~0964-) |
| Avoise (0970-1013) | |
| Hedwig "Edith of France" (0972-1013) | |
| 'Robert II' "the Pious" (0972-1031) | |
| Alice "of France" (0974-1079) | |
| Gilette (~0976-) | |
| Adele "of France" |
Hugh Capet (French Hugues Capet) (938 - October 24, 996) was King of France from 987 to 996. Capet is a nickname for "wearing a cape". Born in 938, in Paris, France, from a wealthy and powerful family, the eldest son of Hugh the Great and Hedwige of Saxony (c.910-c.965). Hugh Capet wanted to become a lay abbot, and in 980 arranged to move the relics of St. Valery to Amiens Cathedral. He inherited his fathers vast estates and became the most powerful noble of his time. Hugh allied himself with the German emperors, marrying the daughter of Emperor Otto, and exercised greater influence than the weak Carolingian king, Lothair. After Lothair and his son died in early 987, the archbishop of Reims convinced an assembly of nobles to elect Hugh Capet as their king. He was crowned King of France at Noyon, Picardie on July 3, 987, the first of the Capetian dynasty to rule France. King Hugh possessed minor properties near Chartres and Anjou. Between Paris and Orléans he possessed towns and estates amounting to approximately 400 square miles. His authority ended there and if he dared travel outside his small area, he risked being ransomed or even murdered. Beyond this power base, in the rest of France, there were still as many codes of law as there were fiefdoms. The country operated with 150 different forms of currency and at least a dozen languages. Uniting all this into one cohesive unit was a formidable task and a constant struggle between those who wore the crown of France and its feudal lords. As such, Hugh Capet's reign was marked by numerous power struggles with the vassals on the borders of the Seine and the Loire. Beyond his realm, the investiture and then deposition of Arnulf, nephew of the duke of Lorraine, as archbishop of Reims involved the king and bishops in conflict with Pope John XV that was not yet resolved with Hugh's death in 996. While King Hugh's military power was limited, and he had to seek military aid from the Duke of Normandy, his unanimous election as king gave him great moral authority and influence. - [1]
French HUGUES CAPET king of France from 987 to 996, and the first of a direct line of 14 Capetian kings of that country. The Capetian dynasty derived its name from his nickname (Latin capa, "cape"). Hugh was the eldest son of Hugh the Great, duke of the Franks. On his father's death in 956, Hugh Capet inherited vast estates in the regions of Paris and Orléans, extending in some places south of the Loire River. He thus became one of the most powerful vassals in the kingdom and a serious danger to the Carolingian king, Lothair. Hugh married Adelaide, daughter of William III, Duke of Aquitaine, in 970, but his efforts to extend his influence into that southwestern kingdom were unsuccessful. From 978 to 986 Hugh was allied with the German emperors Otto II and Otto III and with Adalbero, archbishop of Reims, in political intrigues against the Carolingian king. By 985 Hugh was actually the ruler in all but title; and, after the brief reign of Lothair's son, Louis V (986-987), Hugh was elected king of France in May 987 by the assembly of Frankish magnates. Adalbero was able to convince the magnates that the crown was elective rather than hereditary and that Charles of Lorraine, the only legitimate Carolingian contender, was unfit to rule. Hugh was crowned at Noyon on July 5, 987. Scholars are generally agreed that Hugh's election was not a revolutionary action. His grandfather Robert I, his great-uncle Eudes, and his uncle Rudolf (Raoul) had all earlier been non-Carolingian kings.
Hugh's reign was marked by the unavailing efforts of Charles of Lorraine (imprisoned 991) to assert himself and by continual conflict between Eudes I, count of Blois, and Fulk Nerra of Anjou, whom Hugh later supported. In 993 Eudes was aided by the bishop of Laon in an unsuccessful conspiracy to deliver Hugh and his son Robert over to Otto III. That no one was punished for the incident indicated the weakness of the new Capetian dynasty. Hugh's crown was probably preserved by the inability of his enemies to coordinate their activities against him.
The Capetian dynasty's subsequent rule for more than 300 years has invested Hugh Capet's reign with a greater significance than his actual achievements merit. Very soon after ascending the throne, Hugh Capet arranged the coronation (December 987) of his own son, Robert, who upon Hugh's death succeeded to the throne without difficulty. This practice of crowning the heir during the father's lifetime was continued by the Capetians until the time of Louis VII and undoubtedly contributed to the dynasty's stability and longevity.
Many of the Counts of Northern France did homage to him as their overlord; Richard I, Duke of Normandy, was his vassal, and his brother-in-law. He was called king of the Gauls, Bretons, Normans, Aquitanians, Goths, and the Gascons.
He reigned for 9 years and died of smallpox. - [2]
[1] - http://www.sciencedaily.com/encyclopedia/hugh_capet_of_france
[2] - http://www.whosyomama.com/gabroaddrick3/12/4032.htm
[3] - http://home.earthlink.net/~artdugan/Trowbridge%20Vikings.htm