Erkanfrida's time of life, the Carolingian period of the ninth century, has little to say about the history of women. This is why the two documents written by Erkanfrida are a real historical treasure.
Erkanfrida was married to Count Nithadus (Nithard) of Trier. Nithard had many possessions in the county of Trier. The count's connection to the highest authorities of the empire seems certain. During the Carolingian period, when the centre of the empire lay between the Meuse and the Moselle, the family of Mersch was one of the first in the country. In the 9th century, Mersch was a typical early medieval manor with a manor house, its own church, extensive freehold properties and a hundred or so peasants who were obliged to pay taxes and serve as front-line soldiers, as well as unfree money lenders.
Nithard died after 843, probably as a result of the battle of Fontenay in France. The couple had no children. The widow Erkanfrida makes a first donation on 1 April 853. In the presence of Count Adalard and the entire convent, Erkanfrida donated part of her property in Mersch, namely a church dedicated to St. Michael with all its accessories, to the Abbey of St. Maximin in Trier. In return, the monks of Mersch were to prepare a sumptuous meal for the peasants of Mersch every year on the feast of St. Martin, so that they would remember the donor and her late husband all the more willingly. Erkanfrida enters a convent in Trier.
Erkanfrida died between 861 and 884. In her will around 860, she clearly states that all properties are to be divided between the abbey of St. Maximin in Trier and nine nephews and nieces of Nithard. Her will was probably never executed, despite all the protective measures she took.
Sources:
● Omont Henri. Testament of Erkanfrida, widow of Count Nithadus of Trier (853). In: Bibliothèque de l'école des chartes, 1891, volume 52. pp. 573-577;
● Die Geschichte der Pfarrei u. Herrschaft Mersch - Luxemburger Wort, 10 April 1900
● http://www.geschichtsfrenn-miersch.lu/geschichtsfrenn/geschichte/geschichte2.htm
● T'Hémecht , 1 July 1950