Childeric I
| Childeric I | |
|---|---|
Copy of the signet ring of Childeric (original stolen in 1831). Inscription CHILDIRICI REGIS ("of king Childeric"). The original was found in his tomb at Tournai (Monnaie de Paris). | |
| King of the Salian Franks | |
| Reign | c. 457–481 |
| Coronation | 457 |
| Predecessor | Merovech |
| Successor | Clovis I |
| Died | c. 481 Tournai (present-day Belgium) |
| Burial | Tournai (present-day Belgium) |
| Spouse | Basina of Thuringia |
| Issue | |
| Dynasty | Merovingian |
| Father | Merovech |
Childeric I (died 481 AD) was a Frankish leader in the northern part of imperial Roman Gaul, and an ancestor of the Merovingian dynasty. He is described as a king (rex), both on his Roman-style seal ring, which was buried with him, and in fragmentary later records of his life. Childeric served as a military leader of Frankish forces under the Roman emperor Majorian, and after his fall, also under the Gallo-Roman military leader Aegidius. He was the father of Clovis I, who acquired effective control over all or most Frankish kingdoms, and a significant part of Roman Gaul.