Ebalus Manzer inherited the title of Duke of Aquitaine from his mentor William the Pious. He was well-known for turning up late to battles against the Vikings.

He is my 28 x great-grandfather.

He was born in Aquitaine, France, sometime between 870 and 875¹. He was an illegitimate son of Ranulf II of Aquitaine and his mistress². ‘Manzer’ (or ‘Mamzer’ or ‘Mancer’) is a Hebrew word for ‘son of a forbidden relationship³. The etymology of the word suggests two things to us:

1. A Jewish mother.
2. A Jewish mother who was either married at the time, or a blood relation of Ranulf II. The word ‘Manzer’, unlike the English translation ‘bastard’ does not refer to someone born out-of-wedlock. It refers to children born from a relationship which was somehow prohibited.

We don’t know which of these options is correct as we don’t know Ebalus’ mother’s identity.

Titles

Ebalus took the title of Count of Poitiers after July 892 when his father died⁴. His father’s family contested this so Ebalus sought help from William the Pious, Duke of Aquitaine. William conquered Poitiers and re-established Ebalus as Count⁵.

He was recognised as Comte de Limousin in 904⁶.

When William the Pious died, his son William the Younger inherited the Duchy. He too died and his brother Acfred inherited the Duchy. Within a year Acfred also died and Ebalus inherited the lot to become Duke of Aquitaine in 927^{7 8}.

Family

Ebalus and Aremburge were engaged at some point before 10 October 892⁹. There is no evidence they ever married¹⁰.

Before February 911 he married Emillane with whom he had two sons¹¹:

• William, who became William III, Duke of Aquitaine.
• Ebalus.

Notable events

In 911, he prepared for battle against Viking invaders from Norway and Denmark. The battle of Chartres started on Saturday 20 July 911¹².

The battle of Chartres was a decisive battle between the Frankish armies and the Vikings. It ended up creating Normandy and giving the Vikings a permanent continental base.

The French forces were brutal and killed 6 800 invaders in a single day¹³. Ebalus took his time to arrive and by the time he reached the battlefield, the Vikings had fled¹⁴. To preserve his honour, he accepted a challenge to confront the remnants of the invaders¹⁵. The Vikings doubled their efforts against Ebalus who, scared, hid in a workshop¹⁶.

Death

He died in France between 932 and 934¹⁷, due to unknown causes. We don’t know where they buried him.

Lineage

Ebalus Manzer is my 28 x great-grandfather.

References

1. Medieval Lands; Charles Crawley; “Aquitaine, Dukes”[↩]
2. Medieval Lands; Charles Crawley; “Aquitaine, Dukes”[↩]
3. What Is a “Mamzer”?; Chabad.org; (Retrieved 2018-07-07) [↩]
4. Medieval Lands; Charles Crawley; “Aquitaine, Dukes”[↩]
5. Medieval Lands; Charles Crawley; “Aquitaine, Dukes”[↩]
6. Medieval Lands; Charles Crawley; “Aquitaine, Dukes”[↩]
7. Medieval Lands; Charles Crawley; “Aquitaine, Dukes”[↩]
8. Castellans of the Plain of Poitou in the Eleventh and Twelfth Centuries; Sidney Painter; Speculum Vol 31, No 2; 1956-04; USA[↩]
9. Medieval Lands; Charles Crawley; “Aquitaine, Dukes”[↩]
10. Medieval Lands; Charles Crawley; “Aquitaine, Dukes”[↩]
11. Medieval Lands; Charles Crawley; “Aquitaine, Dukes”[↩]
12. The history of Normandy and England, Volume I; Sir Francis Palgrave; London; 1851[↩]
13. The history of Normandy and England, Volume I; Sir Francis Palgrave; London; 1851[↩]
14. The history of Normandy and England, Volume I; Sir Francis Palgrave; London; 1851[↩]
15. The history of Normandy and England, Volume I; Sir Francis Palgrave; London; 1851[↩]
16. The history of Normandy and England, Volume I; Sir Francis Palgrave; London; 1851[↩]
17. Medieval Lands; Charles Crawley; “Aquitaine, Dukes”[↩]