Clodio¹ (c. 395 - 447 or 449) or, the Long-Haired or the Hairy, was the semi-legendary first Salian Frankish king of the Merovingian dynasty (426 - 447). His successor was Meroveus, who founded that dynasty. Legend has it that his father was duke Pharamond and his mother was Argotta , from Thuringia. His grandfather may have been Marcomer, a duke of the Franks.

There are basically only two sources of information for Clodio's history: the writings of Gregory of Tours and Sidonius Apollinaris.

Clodio lived in Dispargum, a name that is believed to be that of a castle, rather than a village. Around 431, he invaded the territory of Artois, but was defeated near Hesdin by Aetius, the commander of the Roman army in Gaul. However, Clodio regrouped and soon was able to seize the town Cameracum. Eventually, he occupied all the country as far as the Somme River and making Tournai the capital of the Salian Franks.

Clodio's aggressive action to seize more territory led to centuries of expansion by his successors that ultimately created what we know today as the country of France. Clodio died sometime between 447 and 449 and power passed on to Meroveus. It is not known if Meroveus was his son or another chieftain of the tribe who ascended into the leadership role.

See also

• List of Frankish Kings
• History of France

Notes

¹ - There is much disagreement over this ruler's name. Variations of Clodio include Chlodio, Chlodion, Clodion, Clodius, Chlogio, and Clodian.

Adapted from the article Clodian, from Wikinfo, licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.