Count Fulk III Grisegonelle

Notes:

Fulk III - Count of Anjou "le Noir" ("the Black")

Foulogues or Fulk, was the eldest son of Geoffrey I Grisonelle "Greymantle" and Adelaide of Vermandois, and grandson of Fulk II and Gerberga du Maine, Robert, Count Vermandois and Adelaide of Burgundy. He had three older sisters, Hermengarde, Gerberge and Adelaide, who married Dukes and Counts of Aquitaine, Brittany and Provence.

Fulk married his cousin, Elisabeth de Vendôme and had one daughter, Adele. Little is known of either the mother or daughter except that Elizabeth fell from a great height and after was burnt at the stake for adultery in her wedding gown after being found with a goatherd in December of 999. This would become his most notorious act of evil. Adele married Bodon, the son of Landry, Count of Nevers. Her eldest son, Bouchard, would inherit Vendrome.

Secondly, he married Hildegarde de Sundgau, the daughter of the Duke of Upper Lorraine, who was born in Jerusalem. They were married in 1005 and had two children:
* Geoffroy II d'Anjou, the next Count of Anjou
* Ermengarde-Blanche, her line leads to the Plantagenet Kings of England

Fulk III was the founder of Angevin power, only fifteen when his father died and he succeeded as the Count of Anjou, and responsible for building an estimated one hundred castles. The first castle was the Chateau de Langeais east of Angers on the banks of the Loire, starting as a wooden tower replaced and fortified with stone, and included a dungeon. However, he built the castle on the property of his life long rival and bitter enemy, Odo II, the Count of Blois, who was Fulk's equal in temperament as well as determination. The two men exchanged "towns, followers and insults throughout their lives." Odo and Fulk fought over the castle in 994, Odo died suddenly of a heart attack, and his son, Odo II, did not manage to evict Fulk from his castle. On 6 July 1016, he defeated Odo II at the Battle of Pontlevoy. Fulk's next castles would follow an encirclement of Tours, one at a time, and fortified many others.

He was known to be a natural horseman with an intense military mind that out smarted most of his combatants. He was a devout Christian, endowing or enlarging many abbeys and monasteries as well as a school for poor students although he himself never learned to write. These numerous pious foundations, however, followed many acts of violence against the church. Fulk built the great abbey at Beaulieu-lès-Loches and went on four pilgrimages to Jerusalem in an attempt to save his soul, seeking forgiveness for his many, many horrible sins.

Fulk had a violent temperament, was partial to acts of extreme cruelty as well as penitence. One description of him revealed his darker side. "Fulk of Anjou, plunderer, murderer, robber, and swearer of false oaths, a truly terrifying character of fiendish cruelty, founded not one but two large abbeys. This Fulk was filled with unbridled passion, a temper directed to extremes. Whenever he had the slightest difference with a neighbor he rushed upon his lands, ravaging, pillaging, raping, and killing; nothing could stop him, least of all the commandments of God."

Fulk fought against the claims of the counts of Rennes, defeating and killing his brother-in-law, Conan I of Rennes at the Battle of Conquereuil on 27 June 992. He then extended his power over the Counties of Maine and Touraine. In 1025, after capturing and burning the city of Saumur, Fulk reportedly cried, "Saint Florentius, let yourself be burned. I will build you a better home in Angers." However, when the transportation of the saint's relics to Angers proved difficult, Fulk declared that Florentius was a rustic lout unfit for the city, and sent the relics back to Saumur.

Fulk died in Metz while returning from his last pilgrimage. He is buried in the chapel of his monastery at Beaulieu.

Buried:
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/85222859/fulk-grisegonelle

Family/Spouse: Hildegrade de Metz. Hildegrade was born in 974; died in 1046. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Buried:
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/96597377/ermengarde-d'anjou

Ermengarde married Geoffroy II de Gâtinais in 1035. Geoffroy was born in 1000; died on 30 Apr 1046 in Anjou, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Buried:
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/219184843/foulques_iv-d'anjou

Family/Spouse: Bertrade de Montfort. Bertrade was born in 1070; died on 14 Feb 1117. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Accession: 1109; King of Jerusalem Count of Anjou Count of Touraine Count of Maine

Notes:

French Nobility. King of Jerusalem, Count of Anjou, Touraine and Maine, also known as Fulk V "The Young". He was the only son of Fulk IV "Le Rechin" of Anjou and his fifth wife Bertrade de Montfort, who left her husband to become first mistress and later wife of King Philipp. He succeeded his father in 1109 and continued the war with Maine that his father had started. He invaded it and in 1110 married Eremburge of Maine to strengthen his reign there. From this marriage he was father of Geoffrey, Isabel (wife of William "The Atheling"), Elias II, Count of Maine and Sibylle, (later wife of William Clito of Normandy and Count Thierry of Flanders). He reorganized the administration and signed peace settlements with the counties that surrounded his territory. In 1120 he joined the crusade where he made a name for himself, as being a good warrior. In 1127 he received a message from the king of Jerusalem, Baldwin II, who proposed a marriage between Fulk and Baldwins daughter and heiress, Melisende. He abdicated in Anjou in favor for his son Geoffrey and married Melisende in 1129. Baldwin gave him the cities Acre and Tyre. Melisende gave birth to a son who was named Baldwin and that was supposed to reign with his parents. After the kings death in 1131 they ruled together, but Fulk soon assumed control of the government and excluded her entirely. As he was also regent of Antioch he married the heiress Constance to Raymond of Poitiers, uncle of Eleonore of Aquitaine. The Count of Jaffa, Hugh II, a cousin of Melisende sided with her and rebelled against him. They later signed a peace contract and Hugh was exiled from the kingdom for 3 years. In 1135 the queen's party took over the government and Fulk's supporters fled. The couple reconciled later and she gave birth to a second son, Amalric. Fulk was able to strengthen the borders in the north and south and built several castles to secure the kingdom against the Muslims under Zengi and the Egyptians. He died during a hunting accident, when his horse stumbled, fell and landed on top of him.

Buried:
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/11784872/fulk-of_anjou

Family/Spouse: Countess Eremburge du Maine. Eremburge was born in 1096; died on 14 Jan 1126 in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, France; was buried in Abbaye de Louroux, Vernantes, Pays de la Loire, France. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Family/Spouse: Count Thierry de Flandre. Thierry was born in 1099; died on 4 Feb 1168; was buried in Watten, Nord, Hauts-de-France, France. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Accession: 1191; Countess of Flanders

Notes:

Royalty. Born the daughter of Thierry I of Flanders and Sibylle d'Anjou. She succeeded her brother Philippe in 1191 as Countess of Flanders. She was first married to Raoul II de Vermandois but the marriage was never consummated and they separated later, all due to his illness. In 1169 she married Baudouin de Hainaut whom she bore seven children.

Family/Spouse: Count Baldwin V de Hainaut. Baldwin (son of Count Baldwin IV de Hainaut and Countess Alix of Namur) was born in 1156 in Mons, Hainaut, Belgium; died on 17 Dec 1195 in Mons, Hainaut, Belgium; was buried in Collegiate Church of St. Waudru, Mons, Hainaut, Belgium. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Accession: 29 May 1180, Saint-Denis, Seine-Saint-Denis, Île-de-France, France; Queen of France

Notes:

Royalty. Born the eldest daughter of Baldwin V of Hainaut and Margaret I of Flanders. The marriage to Philipp II August was probably arranged by his adviser Philippe of Flanders and celebrated without the consent of his parents Adele de Champagne and Louis VII. His father was so ill at the time that he was unable to reign the kingdom. On May 29th, 1180 she was crowned in St. Denis and on September 19th, after the death of her father-in-law, she became queen. She gave birth to Louis in 1187 who would later succeed his father. She died after giving birth to twins. The two boys died a few days after their mother and were buried beside her.

Isabelle married King Philippe II Augustus Capet on 28 Apr 1180. Philippe (son of King Louis VII Capet and Queen Consort Adèle de Blois-Champagne) was born on 22 Aug 1165 in Gonesse, Val-d'Oise, Île-de-France, France; died on 14 Aug 1223 in Mantes, Yvelines, Île-de-France, France; was buried in Saint Denis Basilique, Saint-Denis, Seine-Saint-Denis, Île-de-France, France. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Accession: 14 Jul 1223; King of France

Notes:

Louis VIII the Lion, was the son of Philip II Augustus, King of the Franks and Isabelle of Hainaut. Louis was the King of France from 1223 to 1226 and a member of the house of Capet, as he was a direct descendant of Hughes Capet circa 940–996.

His mother died in 1190, giving birth to twins sons, and Louis inherited her dowry and the title of Count of Artois, which he held until his father died, and the title reverted to the crown when Louis became King of France in 1223.

After lengthy negotiations between his father, Phillip, King of France and John Lackland, King of England, and as a condition of the Treaty of Le Goulet between these two, Louis was married on 23 May 1200, at the age of 12, to Richard's sister's daughter, Blanche of Castile, also 12 at the time and born in Spain. Her grandmother, Eleanor of Aquitane, would cross the Pyrenees, bringing the girl from Spain to France. The marriage was finally consummated in 1205 and Blanche would bear the first of thirteen children.

When the English Barons rebelled against King John Lackland of England, they offered the throne to Louis, who was able to land at the Isle of Thanet with an army in May of 1216 and march to London with very little resistance. There, Louis was proclaimed king by his supporters, including King Alexander II of Scotland. Louis captured Winchester in June, but when King John died in October, the barons turned their favors to John's son, Henry III, even thought he was only nine years old. English forces led by William Marshall finally forced Louis to the Treaty of Lambeth in September of 1217, Louis promising not to attack England, agreeing that he really never was king, and Louis was given a compensation of 10,000 marks.

King Philip died on July 14, 1223, Louis was coronated August 6th at the cathedral at Reims. Louis would continue to battle his father's enemies, resulting in the capture of Avignon and Languedoc, yet he reversed his father's ruling of usury for Jews, creating havoc for both the church and the barons who were in disagreement as some were profiting from the lending. The conflicts would continue until Louis's death on November 8th, 1226 during his travels from the chateau at Montpensier, Puy-de-Dome Auvergne back to Paris. His son, Louis IX succeeded him on the throne.

Buried:
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/66211839/louis_viii-capet

Family/Spouse: Blanche. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]