Theodelinda
b. circa 570, Bavaria; d. 628, exact location uncertain
Theodelinda became queen in 588 when she married King Authari of the Lombards, a Germanic people who founded a kingdom in northern Italy. When he died two years later, she married his successor Agilulf, thus preserving her role as queen. She was influential in the spread of Nicene Christianity, an early predecessor to the Roman Catholic Church, over its rival sect, Arianism. Theodelinda had several churches built throughout Italy.
