Sigebert I of Austrasia
Sigebert I (c. 535-Vitry-en-Artois, c. 575) was one of the sons of Chlotario I and Ingonda. In 561, on the death of his father, he ascended the throne of Austrasia, one of the four parts into which the Frankish kingdom was divided.
Biography
The Avars, a fierce nomadic tribe related to the Huns, made raids that forced them to move their capital from Reims to Metz. He repelled their attacks twice, in 562 and 568. In 566 he married Brunegilda, daughter of the Visigothic king Atanagild. With the death of his brother Cariberto I in 567, Sigeberto shared the kingdom of Paris with his other brothers, Gontran and Chilperico; that same year Galswinta, Brunegilda's sister and wife of her brother Chilperic I, King of Neustria, was murdered (strangled in her bed, probably by order of Fredegunda, Chilperic's lover and future wife). Sigebert decided to avenge his sister-in-law, thus beginning the war between Neustria and Austrasia, which would last until 613 and would be continued by his successors.
In 573, he seized Poitiers and Touraine, but his half-brother Chilperic also achieved conquests in Aquitaine, also seizing Reims for a short time. They signed an agreement, which Chilperic reneged on, and Sigebert seized his brother's kingdom in 575. However, immediately after assuming the crown, Sigebert would be assassinated in Vitry-en-Artois by two assassins under Fredegund's orders.. His son Childebert II, only 5 years old, succeeded him as King of Austrasia. He was also the father of two daughters, Ingunda and Clodosvinta.