Sicambri

The Sicambri (var. Sicambres, Sigambrer, Sugumbrer, Sugambri) were originally a Scythian or Cimmerian tribe who once inhabited the mouth of the river Danube. The Merovingian kings claimed their descent from the Sicambri, asserting that this tribe had changed their name to "Franks" in 11 BC under the leadership of a certain chieftain called "Franko". The Merovingians traced their Sicambrian origins from Marcomir I, king of the Cimmerians (died 412 BC), and ultimately to the kings of Troy, but this list of rulers is not accepted as historical.

Related Topics:
Scythian - Cimmerian - Danube - Merovingian - Franks - Marcomir I - Troy

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The West Germanic tribe of the Sigambrer (Sicambri) appear around 55 BC, during the time of the Roman Empire, on the right bank of the Rhine between the rivers Ruhr and Sieg, in an area that is today part of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The river Sieg, as well as the city of Siegen, were said to be named for this tribe.

Related Topics:
55 BC - Roman Empire - Rhine - Ruhr - Sieg - North Rhine-Westphalia - Siegen

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In 11 BC, they were forced by Nero Claudius Drusus to move to the left side of the Rhine, where they evidently formed a central component of the confederacy of Franks. Their new homeland was located in what is now the region of Gelderland in the Netherlands, on the lower Rhine river.

Related Topics:
11 BC - Nero Claudius Drusus - Rhine - Franks - Gelderland - Netherlands

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Gregory of Tours states that the Frankish leader Clovis, on the occasion of his baptism into the Catholic faith in 496, was referred to as Sicamber by the officiating bishop of Rheims -- recalling again the link between the Sugambri and Clovis' ancestors, the Merovingian royal house of the Franks.

Related Topics:
Gregory of Tours - Clovis - Catholic - 496 - Bishop of Rheims - Merovingian

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