Gunhilda of Denmark
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Gunhilda of Denmark (c. 1020 - 18 July 1038) was the first wife of Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor.
[edit] Family
She was a daughter of Canute the Great and Emma of Normandy. Her maternal grandparents were Richard I of Normandy and his second wife Gunnora, Duchess of Normandy.
Gunhilda was a sister of Harthacanute. She was a paternal half-sister of Svein of Norway and Harold Harefoot. She was also a maternal half-sister of Alfred Aetheling and Edward the Confessor.
[edit] Marriage
In 1036, Gunhilda married Henry III, King of Germany. He was the son and heir of Conrad II, Holy Roman Emperor and Gisela of Swabia. They only had one daughter:
- Beatrice (1037 – 13 July 1061), abbess of Quedlinburg and Gandersheim.
Her marriage was part of a pact between her father Canute and Conrad II over peaceful borders in the area of Kiel. The agreement had occurred prior to the death of Canute in 1035.
In 1038, Conrad II was asked to intervene in a territorrial dispute between Guaimar IV of Salerno and Pandulf IV of Capua. He campaigned in the Mezzogiorno in support of Guaimar. Their victory found most of the Mezzogiorno loyal to the Holy Roman Empire. Both Henry III and Gunhilda followed Conrad in his campaign.
During the return trip to Germany, an epidemic broke out among the Imperial troops. Gunhilda was among the casualties.
| Preceded by Gisela of Swabia |
German Queen 1036 – 18 July 1038 |
Succeeded by Agnes de Poitou |
