Rothari

Rothari (or Rothair) ( 606–652), of the house of Arodus, was king of the Lombards from 636 to 652; previously he had been duke of Brescia. He succeeded Arioald, who was an Arian like himself, and was one of the most energetic of Lombard kings. Fredegar relates (Chronicle, 71) that at the beginning of his reign he put to death many insubordinate nobles, and that in his efforts for peace he maintained very strict discipline.

Life Rothari was the son of Nanding, and Duke of Brescia. Upon the death of Arioald in 636, he was elected King of the Lombards. He married Arioald's widow, Gundeberga, daughter of King Agilulf and Queen Theodelinda. The Catholic Gundeberga agreed to marry the Arian Rothari because he was tolerant of Catholics. He managed to reinforce the central authority of the king in the face of resistance on the part of the dukes.

Career

Rothari conquered Genoa in 641 and all remaining Eastern Roman territories in the lower valley of the Po, including Oderzo (Opitergium) in 641. Before commencing a campaign the rest of Eastern Roman Liguria in 643, he issued the Edictum Rothari a compilation of Lombard law based on ancient customs.

Although not of the dominant Bavarian dynasty that controlled much of the succession between 616 and 712, Rothari reinforced his position by marrying into it, following the same pattern later taken by Grimoald of Benevento. Like Grimoald, he fought the Byzantines and issued laws, establishing himself as both a warrior and a lawgiver. His reign represents the acceptance of two cornerstones of the Lombard political tradition: the Romanized court of Agilulf and the codification of Lombard law.