Gérard, Duke of Lorraine

Who was Gérard, Duke of Lorraine?

Gérard IV, Duke of Alsace was the count of Metz and Chatenois from 1047 to 1048, when his brother Duke Adalbert resigned them to him upon his becoming the Duke of Upper Lorraine. On Adalbert's death the next year, Gérard became duke, a position that he held until his death. In contemporary documents, he is called Gérard of Alsace, Gérard of Chatenoy, or Gérard of Flanders.

He was the second son of Gérard de Bouzonville, count of Metz, and Gisela who was possibly a daughter of Thierry I, Duke of Upper Lorraine. Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor, invested Adalbert with Lorraine in 1047 after confiscating it from Godfrey III. Godfrey did not back down, however, and killed Adalbert in battle. Henry subsequently bestowed it on Gérard, but the deposed duke continued to stir. Godfrey had the support of a faction of the noblesse who did not want a strong hand at the ducal helm and Gérard was imprisoned. Gérard, however, had the support of the chiefest of his bishops, that of Toul, Bruno of Eguisheim-Dagsburg, who procured his liberation in 1049. The emperor gave him troops to assist him in his fight, for the rebels had the support of some elements in the church.