Notes:

Henry I of Brabant (French: Henri I de Brabant, Dutch: Hendrik I van Brabant) (1165 - 5 September 1235), named "The Courageous" Duke of Brabant (from 1183) and Duke of Lower Lotharingia (from 1190) until his death.

Biography

He was probably born in Leuven. He became Duke of Brabant in 1183 / 1184 and succeeded his father as Duke of Lower Lotharingia in 1190. He was the son of Godfrey III of Leuven, Duke of Lower Lotharingia and landgrave of Brabant, and Margaret of Limburg.

He was one of the leaders of the crusade begun by King Henry VI of Germany, which he joined in mid-1197. In the October of the same year he took part in the recapture of Beirut and, then moved to Jaffa with the Crusaders: however, before reaching the city he got news of the death of the King of Jerusalem, Henry II of Champagne, and he returned to Acre. Here he acted as regent until the arrival of the new King, Amalric II.

In 1208, after the assassination of Philip of Swabia, King of the Romans, Henry was proposed as successor by King Philip II Augustus. In the war which followed, he reached in Germany emperor Otto IV, but the two were defeated in the Battle of Bouvines.

In 1213, Henry also suffered a heavy defeat against the Bishopric of Liège in the Battle of Steppes.

Under Henry I, there was a town policy and town planning. Henry's attention went out to those regions that lent themselves to the extension of his sovereignty and in some locations he used the creation of a new town as an instrument in the political organisation of the area. Among the towns to which the Duke gave city rights and trade privileges was 's-Hertogenbosch.

Henry died at Cologne in 1235. He was buried in St. Peter's chapter church at Leuven where his late Romanesque effigy can still be seen.

Marriages

He married Mathilde of Boulogne (Mathilde of Flanders), daughter of Marie of Boulogne and Matthew of Alsace 1179. He had six children by his first marriage:

Marie (c. 1190 - May 1260), married in Maastricht after May 19, 1214 Otto IV, Holy Roman Emperor, married July 1220 Count William I of Holland
Adelaide (b. c. 1190), married 1206 Arnulf, Count of Loos, married February 3, 1225 William X of Auvergne (c. 1195-1247), married before April 21, 1251 Arnold van Wesemaele (d. aft. 1288), ancestor of Joan of Boulogne, second wife of John, Duke of Berry
Margaret (1192-1231), married January 1206 Gerhard III, Count of Guelders (d. October 22, 1229)
Mathilde (c. 1200 - December 22, 1267), married in Aachen in 1212 Henry II, Count Palatine of the Rhine (d. 1214), married on December 6, 1214 Floris IV, Count of Holland
Henry II of Brabant (1207-1248)
Godfrey (1209 - January 21, 1254), Lord of Gaesbeek, married Marie van Oudenaarde

His second marriage was at April 22, 1213 in Soissons to Marie, princess of France, daughter of King Philip II of France. They had two children:

Ysabeau (Elizabeth) (d. October 23, 1272), married in Leuven March 19, 1233 Count Dietrich of Cleves, Lord of Dinslaken (c. 1214-1244), married 1246 Gerhard II, Count of Wassenberg (d. 1255)
Marie, died young

Henry — Matilda of Flanders, Duchess of Brabant. Matilda (daughter of Matthew, Count of Boulogne and Marie, I Countess of Boulogne) was born 1170; died 16 Oct 1210; was buried Leuven, Vlaams-Brabant, Belgium. [Group Sheet]

1. Matilde of Brabant was born Abt 1200; died 22 Dec 1267.

Notes:

Godfrey III (1142 - died 21 August 1190) was count of Louvain (or Leuven), landgrave of Brabant, margrave of Antwerp, and duke of Lower Lorraine (as Godfrey VIII) from 1142 to his death.

He was the son of Godfrey II and Lutgarde of Sulzbach. He was still an infant at his succession (therefore called dux in cunis) of which a few Brabantian vassals sought to take advantage to get independent from the duke (Wars of Grimbergen, 1141-1159). On 30 March 1147, Godfrey was present at the coronation of Henry Berengar, son of Conrad III of Germany, in Aachen. When Conrad left on Crusade, war began anew in 1148. Peace was elusive until the election of Conrad's successor, Frederick Barbarossa. By marriage to Margaret, daughter of Henry II of Limburg, Godfrey united two powerful and antagonistic houses in the region. Their son was Henry I, Duke of Brabant.

In 1159 Godfrey ended the war with the Berthout, lords of Grimbergen, by burning their impressive motte at Grimbergen. In 1171, Godfrey was at war with Hainaut, but was defeated. In 1179, he gave his son Henry in marriage to a niece of Philip of Alsace, Count of Flanders.

Between 1182 and 1184 Godfrey went on a Jerusalem campaign. In the interim, Barbarossa granted Henry the title "Duke of Brabant". Godfrey died in 1190, on 10 or 21 August. He left an increased territory and built the fortress of Nedelaer (near Vilvoorde). The ducal title was transmitted to his son at the Diet of Schwäbisch Hall (September 1190).

Family

Godfrey was the son of Godfrey II and Lutgarde of Sulzbach.

Godfrey first married Margaret of Limbourg, daughter of Henry II, Duke of Limburg, in 1158. Godfrey and Margaret had two children:

Henry I, Duke of Brabant (1165 - 5 Sep 1235). Henry was installed in 1180 as duke of Lower Lorraine until 1222. He was made count of Louvain in 1183, until 1198. He was installed as Duke of Brabant in 1191.
Albert de Louvain (1166 - 24 Nov 1192). Albert was elected Bishop of Louvain (Liege) in 1191, but assassinated in Reims in 1192.

Godfrey took as his second wife Imagina of Loon, daughter of Louis I, Count of Loon. Godfrey and Imagina had two children:

William of Louvain. Lord of Perwez en Ruysbroek. Married Marie of Orbais, daughter of Enguerrand of Orbais.
Godfrey of Louvain. He went to England in 1196. Married Alice of Hastings, daughter of Robert of Hastings.

Godfrey — Margaret of Limbourg. [Group Sheet]

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Godefroi II de Louvain, Duc de Basse-Lorraine was the son of Godefroi I de Louvain, Duc de Basse-Lorraine and Clementia de Bourgogne. He married Lutgardis von Sulzbach, daughter of Berenger Graf von Sulzbach, after 1138.

Godfrey II (ca. 1110 - 13 June 1142) was the count of Louvain, landgrave of Brabant by inheritance from 23 January 1139. He was the son of Godfrey I and Ida of Chiny. He was also the duke of Lower Lorraine (as Godfrey VII), and as such also margrave of Antwerp, by appointment in 1139 after the death of Duke Waleran.

He was first associated with his father in 1136, when he first carried the ducal title. This was confirmed by Conrad III of Germany, who had married the sister of Godfrey's wife. Waleran left a son, Henry II of Limburg, who asserted his father's ducal rights. Godfrey and Henry entered into a war in which the latter was decisively and quickly destroyed. Godfrey did not long enjoy his victory. He was killed by a disease of the liver two years thence. He was buried in St. Peter's Church in Louvain.

He married Luitgarde, daughter of Berengar II of Sulzbach and sister of Gertrude von Sulzbach, wife of Conrad III of Germany, and Bertha, wife of Manuel I Comnenus, the emperor of Byzantium. He was succeeded by his son Godfrey III in both the counties and the duchy.

Godfrey — Luitgarde of Sulzbach. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Henry II (c. 1111 - August 1167) was the duke of Limburg from 1139 and count of Arlon from 1147 to his death. He was the son of Waleran, Duke of Lower Lorraine, and Jutta of Guelders, daughter of Gerard I of Guelders. He succeeded his father in Limburg with the title of duke, but Conrad III refused to grant him Lower Lorraine. He continued to style himself as duke nevertheless.

Henry refused at first to accept the loss of Lorraine and attacked the new duke, Godfrey VII. He was defeated. Godfrey died in 1142, but Henry was occupied with a war against the lord of Fauquemont and did not assert any claim to the duchy of Lower Lorraine.

In 1147, he inherited Arlon, his younger brother Waleran having died without children. Conrad confirmed this, for he had promised Henry a fief to compensate for the loss of Lorraine, and the duke and the king were reconciled. Henry did not take part in the Second Crusade that year, however. Henry attended the coronation of Conrad's successor, Frederick Barbarossa.

At that time, Henry was involved in a war with Henry IV of Luxembourg. The town of Andenne was taken and completely plundered and burned. Then Henry turned to Godfrey VIII, but they soon made peace in 1155. Henry's daughter Margaret married Godfrey.

Henry took part in Barbarossa's Italian campaigns, dying during the epidemic of 1167 at Rome.

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He married, firstly, Ida de Namur, Comtesse de Namur, daughter of Albert III, Comte de Namur and Ida von Sachsen, circa 1105. He married, secondly, Clementia de Bourgogne, daughter of Guillaume de Bourgogne, Comte de Bourgogne, after 1121.

Godefroi I de Louvain, Duc de Basse-Lorraine also went by the nick-name of Godefroi 'le Barbu' (or in English, Geoffrey 'the Bearded'). He gained the title of Duc de Basse-Lorraine. He gained the title of Comte de Brabant. He gained the title of Comte de Louvain.

Godfrey I (c. 1060 - 25 January 1139), called the Bearded, the Courageous, or the Great, was the landgrave of Brabant, and count of Brussels and Louvain (or Leuven) from 1095 to his death and duke of Lower Lorraine (as Godfrey V or VI) from 1106 to 1129. He was also margrave of Antwerp from 1106 to his death.

Biography

Godfrey was the son of Henry II and a countess named Adela. He succeeded his brother Henry III in 1095. He first came into conflict with Otbert, Bishop of Liège, over the county of Brunengeruz that both claimed. In 1099, Emperor Henry IV allotted the county to the bishop, who entrusted it to Albert III, Count of Namur. Godfrey arbitrated a dispute between Henry III of Luxembourg and Arnold I, Count of Loon, over the appointment of the abbot of Sint-Truiden.

Godfrey was in favour with the emperor and defended his interests in Lorraine. In 1102, he stopped Robert II of Flanders, who was invading the Cambraisis. After the death of the emperor in 1106, his son and successor, Henry V, who had been in rebellion, decided to avenge himself on his father's partisans. Duke Henry of Lower Lorraine was imprisoned and his duchy confiscated and given to Godfrey. After Henry escaped from prison, he tried to retake his duchy and captured Aachen, but ultimately failed.

In 1114, during a rift between the emperor and Pope Paschal II, Godfrey led a revolt in Germany. In 1118, the emperor and the duke were reconciled. In 1119, Baldwin VII of Flanders died heirless and Flanders was contested between several claimants, one of whom, William of Ypres, had married a niece of Godfrey's second wife. Godfrey supported William, but could not enforce his claim against that of Charles the Good. Also dead in that year was Otbert. Two separate men were elected to replace him and Godfrey again sided with the loser.

By marrying his daughter Adeliza to Henry I of England, who was also the father-in-law of the emperor, he greatly increased his prestige. However, Henry V died in 1125 and Godfrey supported Conrad of Hohenstaufen, the duke of Franconia, against Lothair of Supplinburg. Lothair was elected. Lothair withdrew the duchy of Lower Lorraine and granted it to Waleran, the son of Henry, whom Henry V had deprived in 1106. Nonetheless, Godfrey maintained the margraviate of Antwerp and retained the ducal title (which would in 1183 become Duke of Brabant).

After the assassination of Charles the Good in 1127, the Flemish succession was again in dispute. William Clito prevailed, but was soon fraught with revolts. Godfrey intervened on behalf of Thierry of Alsace, who prevailed against Clito. Godfrey continued to war against Liège and Namur.

Godfrey spent his last years in the abbey of Affligem. He died of old age on 25 January 1139 and was buried in the left aisle of the abbey church. He is sometimes said to have passed in 1140, but this is an error.

Family and children

He married Ida of Namur, daughter of Otto II of Namur and Adelaide of Namur. They had several children:

Adeliza of Louvain (b. 1103-d. abbey of Affligem, 23 April 1151) married Henry I, King of England and later William d'Aubigny, 1st Earl of Arundel (1109-before 1151).
Godfrey II of Louvain (b. 1107-d. 13 June 1142), Duke of Lower Lotharingia, Landgrave of Brabant, Count of Brussels and Louvain. He married Lutgardis of Sulzbach, daughter of Berenger I of Sulzbach.
Clarissa (d. 1140).
Henry (d. in the abbey of Affligem, 1141), monk.
Ida (d. 1162) married to Arnold II, count of Cleves (d. 1147).

Later, he married to Clementia of Burgundy and had issue:

Joceline of Louvain (d. 1180); he accompanied his half-sister Adeliza to England and married Agnes, heiress of the Percy family, and took her surname. Probably the same as Gosuinus, mentioned in 1143 together with his sister Adeliza.

Godfrey married Clementia of Burgundy Aft 1121. Clementia (daughter of William, I Count of Burgundy and Stephanie) was born Abt 1078; died Abt 1133. [Group Sheet]

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She was the daughter of Guillaume de Bourgogne, Comte de Bourgogne. She married Godefroi I de Louvain, Duc de Basse-Lorraine, son of Henri II, Comte de Louvain and Adele de Bettau, after 1121.

Clementia of Burgundy (c. 1078 - c. 1133) was a Countess consort of Flanders by marriage. She acted as regent of Flanders while her husband was on crusade.

Biography

She was the daughter of William I, Count of Burgundy and a noblewoman named Stephanie. Pope Callixtus II was her brother.

In 1097, she married Robert II, Count of Flanders and became Countess of Flanders. When he left to go on the First Crusade, she became regent of Flanders. They had three sons, but only Baldwin survived his father and succeeded him in 1111. Because of his young age, she was co-ruler with her son.

After his death in 1119, she married Godfrey I, Count of Leuven and was perhaps the mother of Joscelin of Louvain. This second marriage made her stepmother to Adeliza of Louvain, Queen of England.

Notes:

Waleran II (or Walram II) (c. 1085-1139), called Paganus meaning "the Pagan", probably due to a late baptism, was the Duke of Limburg and Count of Arlon from his father's death in about 1119 until his own twenty years later. He was given the Duchy of Lower Lorraine by Lothair of Supplinburg after the latter's accession as King of Germany in 1125.

He was the son of Henry, Duke of Lower Lorraine (1101-1106), and Adelaide of Pottenstein. Henry had been forced to yield the duchy to Godfrey I of Leuven on Henry V's succession, but had kept the ducal title. With the coming of Lothair, Godfrey was forced to yield it to Waleran. Godfrey was not willing to do so and war broke out, especially over disputes about authority over the abbey of Sint-Truiden. In 1129, Waleran and the bishop of Liège, Alexandre de Juliers, demolished Godfrey's forces at Wilde. His rule was actual from there on. Though Waleran and Godfrey eventually reconciled, Godfrey maintained, as Henry had, the ducal title.

In 1129, Waleran was made forester of Duisbourg. In 1139, Lothair died and Waleran supported Conrad of Hohenstaufen, who was elected. He remained faithful to the new king until his death shortly thereafter. He was succeeded by Godfrey II of Leuven in Lorraine.

Waleran — Jutta of Guelders. [Group Sheet]