Basina Facts
Known for: leading a rebellion at a convent
Occupation: nun
Dates: about 573 - ?
Background, Family:
- Mother: Audovera
- Father: Chilperic I, king of Soissons (Neustria), a son of Clothar I and Aregund
- Siblings: brothers Theudebert, Merovech and Clovis
Basina Biography:
We know of Basina's life and that of her family primarily through the writing of Gregory of Tours, a bishop, who interacted with the family and had reason to have animosity towards some of the members. There is thus some reason to be skeptical of some of the history that he reports.
Basina's brother, Clovis, and Basina were the only children of Chilperic who survived a dysentery epidemic in 580. Fredegund, a servant who had become another of Chilperic's wives, had Clovis and Audovera, Basina's mother, killed, as she had had Chilperic's second wife, Galswintha, killed earlier.
Basina's two other brothers had already died. One died in war in 575. The other, Merovech, had, before his death, briefly married Brunhilde, sister of Galswintha and widow of Chilperic's half-brother. Brunhilde was at war with Chilperic and Fredegund to avenge her sister's death.
In 580, after Basina survived the epidemic, soldiers loyal to Fredegund raped the seven-year-old Basina, who was then sent to the Convent of the Holy Cross. This convent has been founded by Radegund, a childless wife of Clothar I, grandfather of Basina.
Another of Clothar's granddaughters was also at the convent: Clotild, daughter of Charibert of Paris who was the son of Clothar I and Ingund. Clotild was Basina's half first cousin; their grandmothers, Ingund and Aregund, were sisters who were both wives of Clothar.
In 589 the cousins Clotild and Basina led a violent rebellion at the convent, accusing the abbess of many crimes. The prioress of the abbey at that time was Justina, niece of the bishop and historian Gregory of Tours. The rebels left the convent and went to a church. They began to gather a circle of male followers. Many of these male followers were local criminals. At Basina's orders, some of these men kidnapped the abbess, and the abbess was held prisoner until released by someone named Flavian.
Basina tried to reconcile with the abbess and rejoin the convent, finding Clotild's behavior too arrogant.
Childebert II, king of Austrasia, and Guntram, king of Burgundy, called a council of bishops to try to deal with the situation. (Childebert was a cousin of Clotild and a half-cousin of Basina; Guntrum was an uncle of Clotild and half-uncle of Basina.) One of these bishops was Gregory of Tours. Other bishops were from Cologne, Poitiers and Bourdeaux.
The bishops attempted to get the count of Poitiers to settle the conflict, and when he failed, the bishops met to make a decision. They found the abbess innocent of the accusations against her, and they excommunicated Basina and Clotild.
The next year, Childebert II of Austrasia pardoned his cousins Basina and Clotild. Basina returned to the convent and remained there until her death.
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