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Redbad “The Pagan”, King of Friesland (670 – 719)

Portrait of Redbad (Radboud Castle)
Embroidery depicting the legend in which the Frisian king Radbod/Redbad is ready to be baptized by Wulfram (in this embroidery replaced by Willibrord), but at the last moment refuses. Location embroidery: Museum Catharijneconvent, Utrecht
Image from bishop Radboud in the Broerenkerk in Zwolle
Location of Frisia in the northern Netherlands and northwestern Germany.
Wilhelm II von Holland (1227 – 1256) Holy Roman Emperor

Frisian King Redbad held the historical distinction of being one of the only military commanders to ever defeat Charles Martel (688 – 741) on the battlefield. However, his victory at the Battle of Cologne spurred Martel to eventually defeat him and subjugate the Frisian nation. 

As a condition of surrender, Redbad later refused Christian baptism at the final moment of administration by Saint Wulfram of Sens. When the monk was about to bestow the sacrament upon him, he advised him that he would never see his ancestors in the afterlife because they’d all be in Hades. Redbad changed his mind at that instant and told him in response that he’d rather be in Hades with his ancestors than in Heaven with his enemies.

Ironically, Alfbard ( – abt. 786), Redbad’s agnatic grandson, married one of Martel’s daughters. 

Saint Radboud  (before 850 – 917), Redbad’s descendant, was the bishop of Utrecht from 899 to 917.

Legend has it that Frisians inhabited Frisia since the time of the Flood. They immigrated to Punjab, India as colonists during the 14th century B.C. Alexander the Great of Macedonia (356 – 323 BC)  enlisted them as mercenaries when he invaded India. At his urging, they eventually returned to the Friesia soon after Alexander’s death. Adel I Friso became the first dynastic king of Friesland upon their return during the 3rd century B.C. This group may indeed prove to have been the source of the earliest Aryan ethnocultural influence in the ancient Punjab region. 

There’s historical and genetic evidence to the effect that Frisians actively participated in the Angle-Saxon-Jute invasion of southern and western England during the 5th century A.D. 

Frisian King Finn (fl. ca. 450) is mentioned in both Beowulf and Widsith. Redbad‘s forebear was killed on his land in Frisia by Jute Overlord Hengest (414 -481), later the 1st Jute King of Kent, and his men while attempting to maintain a truce between warring factions of Danes and Jutes. Entitled Finn and Hengest, J.R.R Tolkien’s lecture notes of his study describe the incident and were published as a book after his death.

Wilhelm II von Holland (1227 – 1256), Redbad’s agnatic descendant, reigned as Holy Roman Emperor from 1247 until his death.

Redbad or Radbot “The Pagan”, 9th Duke/King of Frisland

Birth 670 in Egmond-Binnen, Egmond, Noord-Holland, Netherlands

Death 719 in Friseland, Netherlands

Ancestry.com citation/Lineages

38th great-grandfather VERE-MANDEVILLE-LACY-SEGRAVE-MOWBRAY-GREY-OGLE-HERON-COLLINGWOOD-COLLINS

39th great-grandfather MOWBRAY-HOWARD-TRIPP-OUTWATER-COLLINS

Fab Pedigree

Genealogieonline

Geneanet

FamilySearch

Geni son Poppon I ( – aft. 734)

Wiki

The Patricians, A Genealogical Study – Ebook Editions (Epub, PDF & Kindle) US$5.95

Author at Harrod’s Deli – London

Steven Wood Collins (1952 – ) Antiquarian, Genealogist, Novelist 

By Steven Wood Collins

I spent most of my life unaware of my ancestral heritage. Sure, I knew of the personal history of my more immediate relatives; but beyond that, I never had any inkling as to my ancestral heritage. Then one day many years ago my sister said to me, “I sometimes wonder about our family background.” And so my quest to discover our genealogical roots commenced.

I started building my family tree with the very basic relationships, going back in time from my grandparents, one ancestor at a time. That initial effort proved to be the hardest part of the pursuit, mainly due to my lack of expertise as a novice genealogical researcher. As I gained familiarity with the databases and how to efficiently mine them, my progress gained ever-increasing momentum. Today, The Patricians! tree (Ancestry.com) contains nearly 120,000 individuals, stretching over 135 generations, 5,800 of which are my direct ancestors in a genealogical sense.

During this trek back in time, I encountered fascinating figures in both history and obscurity. This blog contains many stories about their genealogical relationship to me (and many of you). By far and away, as a student of history, the historically obscure individuals are of particular interest to me. I cite Baron “Blue Beard” Montmorency-Laval de Rais (1405 – 1440) as an example of a historically maligned personage whose real contribution to history, as both a playwright and hero of France, has yet to be properly recognized. Another example is Earl Edward de Vere (1550 – 1604), who’s yet to gain widespread recognition as the actual author of the body of literary work wrongly ascribed to William Shakespeare (1564 – 1616).

My life-long interest in international economics and finance continues unabated. I primarily demonstrate this professional involvement as a contributor to the Long Room, the members-only international finance professionals' forum hosted by the Financial Times of London.

I'm an avid recreational scuba diver who enjoys traveling to exotic dive sites. My love of the sea and marine life gives me an unbounded appreciation and support of “green” issues, especially those devoted to the conservation of endangered species and coral reefs.

He continually posts results of his personal genealogical research to his Goodreads Authors Blog. Entitled The Patricians - The Ancestral Heritage of Steven Wood Collins, the work represents thousand of hours of his research efforts and related commentary.

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