1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/Charles I. (Duke of Lorraine)

CHARLES I. (c. 950–c. 992), duke of Lower Lorraine, was a younger son of the Frankish king Louis IV., and consequently a member of the Carolingian family. Unable to obtain the duchy of Burgundy owing to the opposition of his brother, King Lothair, he went to the court of his maternal uncle, the emperor Otto the Great, about 965, and in 977 received from the emperor Otto II. the duchy of Lower Lorraine. His authority in Lorraine was nominal; but he aided Otto in his struggle with Lothair, and on the death of his nephew, Louis V., made an effort to secure the Frankish crown. Hugh Capet, however, was the successful candidate and war broke out. Charles had gained some successes and had captured Reims, when in 991 he was treacherously seized by Adalberon, bishop of Laon, and handed over to Hugh. Imprisoned with his wife and children at Orleans, Charles did not long survive his humiliation. His eldest son Otto, duke of Lower Lorraine, died in 1005.