Ansa, Queen of the Lombards

Ansa (died after 774) was a noblewoman who became the Queen of the Lombards in 756 and reigned until they fell to the Franks in 774 AD. She, like other Medieval Queens at the time, played a significant role in the stability and preservation of the later Lombard Kingdom, particularly through her religious contributions, donations, and political relationships with neighbouring Kingdoms. She reigned alongside her husband, King Desiderius, in Northern Italy. She lived her final years exiled to a monastery until her death.

Early life Ansa belonged to an aristocratic family from Brescia. Ansa and Desiderius inherited land from the late King Aistulf, which they used to found the Monastery of St. Michele and St. Pietro (later San Salvatore) in 753, where they would eventually appoint their eldest daughter, Anselperga, as abbess, which was likely a political move to gain more support and power. Simultaneously, her husband was appointed an officer in the royal court while serving as Duke of Tuscia, leading her to take the throne as Queen of the Lombards alongside Desiderius.

Queenship

Reign Ansa and Desiderius came to power when Desiderius deposed the previous King Ratchis in 757. Much of her reign, alongside her husband, was spent attempting to restore and rebuild the Lombard kingdom from years of instability and protect it from both internal and external threats that had plagued the kingdom for decades prior. Paul the Deacon, a prominent historical writer and a Lombard himself, wrote Ansa’s epitaph praising her efforts, in which he said:

“The fatherland was wounded by wars and now falling into ruin.

Along with her great spouse, she made firm and augmented, raising it up.

She gave birth for us to one who would hold the scepters of the realm”

Ansa’s epitaph continues to praise her for political moves mainly involving her children, which he believed would ensure the longevity of the Lombards.

San Salvatore Monastery The monastery of San Salvatore is still partially preserved and now functions as a museum. The foundation of the monastery was part of a series of aristocratic constructions and donations at the time, which was most likely an effort to increase stability and insurance against an invasion by the Franks. The monastery is seen as an effort in preserving their dynasty and rule over the Lombard realm, and she continued to make several significant donations and gifts in order to help preserve it.