In 616, four years after the foundation of Bobbio, King Agilulfo died, leaving the throne to his son Adaloaldo, who, being a minor, was assisted by his mother as regent and supported by Sundrait, a man of arms and advisor to the late sovereign.
During the regency, Teodolinda intensified her support for the Catholic Church.
However, this policy increased the distrust of the Arian dukes, who were opposed to an alliance with the exarch of Ravenna, the representative of the Eastern Emperor in Italy, and were instead more inclined to pursue a strategy of military aggression towards the ancient enemy.
Dissatisfaction found a champion in Arioaldo, Duke of Turin and husband of Gundeperga, the king’s sister.
He was the one who, in 625, led the revolt of the Arian dukes against their king, who was dethroned and died shortly after, in 626.
On January 22, 627, Teodolinda also passed away, and her body was laid to rest, alongside that of Agilulfo and Adaloaldo, in the basilica of Monza.
In 1308, the Visconti, promoters of the reconstruction of the building, decided to transfer the queen’s remains to a new, privileged tomb, made of a stone sarcophagus raised on small columns. This tomb still stands today against the back wall of the chapel dedicated to her, beneath the splendid frescoes painted by the Zavattari workshop in the mid-15th century to preserve her memorable story, and behind the neo-Gothic altar, which since 1896 has housed the Iron Crown that crowned the kings of Italy.
