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Robert II the Pious, King of France
X/XI Centuries
The second son of Hugh Capet and Adelaide of Aquitaine, Robert II was king
of France 987-1031. Born c. 970, Robert was a student of Gerbert of
Aurillac (later Pope Sylvester II), and Robert ruled jointly with his
father until his death in 996. Robert, who supported the Cluniac reform
movement, was thought to have healing powers. His marital irregularities,
however, caused Pope Gregory V to excommunicate him. Robert was first
married to Susanna of Demakrk, whom he left in 996 to marry his cousin
Bertha, the widow of the count of Blois. Church law forbade the match
because of the degree of relationship. About the time that Sylvester
became pope in 999, Robert repudiated Bertha because the couple was
childless. About three years later, Robert married Constance of Arles,
with whom he had three sons. Robert's reputation for piety rests also on
his vigorous punishing of heretics; he is said to have been the first
monarch in western Europe to execute Jews and heretics.
Karen Rae Keck
Under construction --- far from complete! Read with caution.
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