Uta — Engelbert, Duke of Carinthia. Engelbert (son of Engelbert, I Count of Sponheim and Hedwig) died 13 Apr 1141; was buried Seeon, Bavaria, Germany. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Matilda of Carinthia was the daughter of Engelbert, Duke of Carinthia and his wife Uta of Passau (Ulric of Passau's daughter). She was married to Theobald II, Count of Champagne (also known as Theobald IV of Blois). She was the mother of Adele of Champagne, Queen consort of France and thus the maternal grandmother of King Philip II of France.

Her children with Theobald included:

Henry I of Champagne
Theobald V of Blois
Adèle of Champagne, Queen consort of France. Wife of Louis VII of France
Isabelle of Champagne, wife of Roger of Apulia and later of William Gouet IV
Marie of Champagne, wife of Eudes II, Duke of Burgundy and later Abbess of Fontevrault
William White Hands, Archbishop of Reims
Stephen I of Sancerre
Agnes of Champagne, wife of Renaut II of Bar
Margaret of Champagne, nun at Fontevrault

Matilda married Theobald, II Count of Champagne 1123. Theobald (son of Stephen, II Count of Blois and Adela of Normandy) was born 1090; died 1152. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Henry I of Champagne (December 1127 - March 17, 1181), known as "the Liberal", was count of Champagne from 1152 to 1181. He was the eldest son of Count Thibaut II of Champagne (who was also Count Thibaut IV of Blois) and his wife, Matilda of Carinthia.

Henry took part in the Second Crusade under the leadership of Louis VII of France. He carried a letter of recommendation from Bernard of Clairvaux addressed to Manuel I Komnenos, Byzantine Emperor; he is listed among the notables present at the assembly held by Baldwin III of Jerusalem at Acre on 24 June 1148.

On his father's death, Henry chose to take Champagne, leaving the family's older holdings (including Blois, Chartres, Sancerre, and Châteaudun) to his younger brothers. At the time this may have been surprising, for the other territories were richer and better developed. Henry must have foreseen the economic possibilities of Champagne, and it is during his rule that the county achieved its high place as one of the richest and strongest of the French principalities.

Henry established orderly rule over the nobles of Champagne, and could fairly reliably count on the aid of some 2,000 vassals, which just by itself made him a power few in France could equal. This order in turn made Champagne a safe place for merchants to gather, and under the count's protection the Champagne Fairs became a central part of long-distance trade and finance in medieval Europe.

In addition, the count's court in Troyes became a renowned literary center. Walter Map was among those who found hospitality there. The scholar Stephen of Alinerre was among Henry's courtiers, becoming chancellor of the county in 1176.

In 1179 Henry went to Jerusalem again with a party of French knights including his relatives Peter of Courtenay (brother of Louis VII) and Philip of Dreux, bishop of Beauvais. Henry returned towards Europe by the land route across Asia Minor, and was captured and held to ransom by Kilij Arslan II, Seljuk sultan of Rüm. The ransom was paid by the Byzantine Emperor and Henry was released, but died soon afterwards.

In 1164, Henry married Marie of France, Countess of Champagne, daughter of Louis VII of France and Eleanor of Aquitaine.

They had four children:

Scholastique of Champagne (died 1219), married William IV of Macon
Henry II (1166-1197)
Marie of Champagne (died 1204), married Baldwin I of Constantinople
Theobald (1179-1201)

He was succeeded by their eldest son Henry. After Henry became king of Jerusalem, the younger son Theobald became count.

Henry married Marie of France, Countess of Champagne 1164. Marie (daughter of Louis, VII of France) was born 1145; died 11 Mar 1197/98, Fontaines-les-Nones, Meaux, France. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Marie of Champagne (c. 1174 - 9 August 1204) was the Empress consort of Baldwin I of Constantinople.

Family

She was a daughter of Henry I, Count of Champagne and Marie of France, Countess of Champagne. Her maternal grandparents were Louis VII of France and Eleanor of Aquitaine.

Her brothers were Henry II of Champagne and Theobald III, Count of Champagne. Her sister Scholastique of Champagne married William V of Macon. Both sisters are mentioned by name in the chronicle of Alberic of Trois-Fontaines.

Marriage

According to the chronicle of Gislebert of Mons, Marie was bethrothed to "Theobald", son of the count of Flanders and Hainaut in 1179. Gislebert is presumed to have misrecorded the name of Baldwin. Her betrothed was Baldwin VI, son of Baldwin V, Count of Hainaut and Margaret I, Countess of Flanders.

On 6 January 1186, Marie and Baldwin were married. They had two known children:

Joan, Countess of Flanders (1199/1200 - 5 December 1244).
Margaret II, Countess of Flanders (2 June 1202 - 10 February 1280).

Empress consort

On 14 April 1202 her husband left Flanders to join the Fourth Crusade. This Crusade was diverted to Constantinople, capital of the Byzantine Empire. The crusaders captured and sacked the city. Then they decided to set up a Latin Empire in place of the fallen Greek one. On 9 May 1204, Baldwin was elected its first emperor making Marie the empress consort.

Marie herself left Flanders to join her husband but decided to visit Outremer first. According to Geoffrey of Villehardouin she could not join him in the crusade earlier as she was pregnant at the time of his departure. After delivery of the child, Margaret and sufficient recovery, she set forth to join him.

She set sail from the port of Marseille and landed in Acre. There she received tribute by Bohemond IV of Antioch. In Acre news reached her of the fall of Constantinople and the proclamation of Baldwin as the new emperor. She wanted to set sail for Constantinople but fell sick and died in the Holy Land.

News of her death reached Constantinople through Crusading reinforcements from Syria. Baldwin was reportedly afflicted by the death of his wife. Villehardouin reports that Marie "was a gracious and virtuous lady and greatly honoured".

Marie married Baldwin, I of Constantinople 06 Jan 1185/86. Baldwin (son of Baldwin, V Count of Hainaut and Margaret, I Countess of Flanders) was born Jul 1172; died Abt 1205. [Group Sheet]