< Back

Fredegund

Character

c. 545-597 AD

Queen of Neustria · Regent of Francia · 'The Shadow Queen'

Birth: - c. 545 AD, obscure origins. Death: - 597 AD, Paris — natural causes.

Historical Appearance Notes: - No portrait tied to Fredegund. Her power was self-made, unlike Brunhild's inherited royal status — visual design should reflect that contrast.

Notes: - The manuscript's chapter-by-chapter grounding in real, dateable events (Vitry, Galswintha, Droizy, her 597 death) is unusually tight for this dossier.

Novel Relevance: - Book IV's central antagonist, 'The Shadow Queen'; high-polish priority alongside Brunhild and Gregory of Tours. Timeline: - 568 Galswintha murdered, marries Chilperic I; 575 orchestrates Sigebert's assassination; 584 Chilperic assassinated, becomes regent; 586 Bishop Praetextatus murdered; 596 Battle of Droizy; 597 dies. Witch's Rebirth Canon: - Dramatized across nearly all of Book IV: Ch. 4, 6, 10, 19, 25, and Ch. 29 (explicitly dated '597 AD') dramatizes her death on the exact historical date.

Sources: - Gregory of Tours (through 591); Chronicle of Fredegar (591 onward). Modern: Janet Nelson, Ian Wood.

Book IV

fredegund