Notes:

Gilbert (or Giselbert) (c. 890 - 2 October 939) was the duke of Lotharingia (or Lorraine) until 939.

The beginning of the reign of Gilbert is not clear. A dux Lotharingiae is mentioned in 910 and this may have been Gilbert. Lotharingia sided with Charles III in 911, who was deposed in West Francia in 922 by Robert but remained king in Lotharingia, from where he tried to reconquer West Francia until being imprisoned in 923.

In 925, Gilbert swore fealty to King Henry the Fowler of Germany as duke of Lotharingia. Gilbert married Henry's daughter Gerberga of Saxony by 930. For whatever reason, Gilbert rebelled when Henry died in 936 and changed allegiance to Louis IV of France, where the king had less authority. Gilbert managed to be practically independent for three years until he was defeated by the army of king Otto I of Germany in 939 at the Battle of Andernach. Gilbert was made prisoner, and succeeded in fleeing but drowned while trying to cross the Rhine. Lorraine was given to Henry I, Duke of Bavaria.

Gilbert married Gerberga of Saxony Bef 931. Gerberga (daughter of Henry, I the Fowler and Matilda of Ringelheim) was born Abt 913; died 05 May 984, Rheims, Marne, Champagne-Ardenne, France. [Group Sheet]

Alberade married Renaud of Roucy Abt 945. Renaud was born Between 920 and 931; died 10 May 967; was buried Aft 10 May 967. [Group Sheet]

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Notes:

Gerberge of Lorraine (ca. 935-978) was daughter of Giselbert, Duke of Lorraine, and Gerberga of Saxony.

In 954, she married Adalbert I of Vermandois

Their children were:

Herbert III of Vermandois
Eudes of Vermandois (ca. 956-983)
Liudolfe de Noyon (ca. 957-986)
Guy I of Vermandois, count of Soissons

Gerberge married Adalbert, I Count of Vermandois 954. Adalbert (son of Herbert, II Count of Vermandois and Hildebranda of France) was born Abt 916; died 09 Sep 988. [Group Sheet]

Ermentrude — Otto-William, Count of Burgundy. Otto-William (son of Adalbert, King of Italy and Gerberga of Mâcon) was born 962; died 21 Sep 1026. [Group Sheet]

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Herbert III of Vermandois, born about 954 , died between 993 and 1002 , was Count of Vermandois from 987 to his death. He was the son of Albert I , Count of Vermandois, and Gerberge of Lotharingia.

Biography

Two charters of the abbey of Montierender ( 968 and 980 ) attributed to Herbert III of Vermandois, then Count of Chateau-Thierry , de Vitry and lay abbot of the abbey of St. Medard de Soissons , the title "Count of the Franks" . This title can be compared to that of Duke of the Franks worn by Robertians and that made them the second in the kingdom after the king of the Franks. Styled "Count of the Franks," is to claim to be the first of the counts of the Frankish king and third place in the kingdom after the king and the duke of the Franks.

A charter of King Lothair called him "Count of the Palace" . This title is comparable to that of Count Palatine that he will after the counts of Blois and Champagne " , heirs of Herbertiens .

In 990 he founded with his wife Ermengarde, the Chapter of the Collegiate Church of Saint-Florent to Roye , under the title of St. George for 25 canons .
Marriage and children

He had married before 987 Ermengarde. This Ermengarde is said to be the daughter of the Earl Fox of Bar-sur-Seine and afterward married to Miles IV, Count of Tonnerre . If this hypothesis were confirmed, the death of Herbert must be earlier than 998, when the last mention of Miles.

Herbert and Ermengarde had:

Albert II († c. 1016), Count of Vermandois
Odo (c. 1000 † v. 1045), Count of Vermandois

Herbert married Ermengarde of Bar Bef 987. [Group Sheet]

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Reginald I, Count of Burgundy was the second Count of the Free County of Burgundy. Born in 986, he was the son of Otto-William, Count of Burgundy (the first Count) and Ermentrude of Reims and Roucy.

In 1016, Reginald married Alice of Normandy.

He succeeded to the County on his father's death in 1026.

Reginald was succeeded by his son, William I, on his death in 1057.

Reginald married Alice of Normandy Bef 01 Sep 1016. Alice (daughter of Richard, II Duke of Normandy and Judith of Brittany) was born Abt 1002; died 27 Jul 1037. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Agnes of Burgundy (or Agnes de Macon), Duchess of Aquitaine (died 10 November 1068) was a daughter of Otto-William, Count of Burgundy and Ermentrude of Roucy. She was a member of the House of Ivrea.

Life

We do not know the date of the birth of Agnes but it is probably shortly before the year 1000. Agnes' father was the son of Adalbert of Italy.

First Marriage: Duchess of Aquitaine

In 1019, she married Duke William V of Aquitaine by whom she had three children: William VII, Duke of Aquitaine, William VIII, Duke of Aquitaine and Agnes, Holy Roman Empress. William died on January 31, 1030, leaving his widow and their three young children, plus the three surviving children from his first two marriages.

Second Marriage: Countess of Anjou

After her husband's death, Agnes lost her influence at the court of Poitiers since her sons were not heirs. In order for her to regain her position and ensure a future for her children, Agnes had to remarry. Thus she married Geoffrey II, Count of Anjou which was an attractive offer because his father was the powerful Fulk III, Count of Anjou.

In 1033, Geoffrey's troops invaded Poitou with the support of Agnes. William VI, Duke of Aquitaine the new Count of Poitou, was captured in March. He was released only in 1036 against a large ransom and he died in 1038 without children. The county then returned to his brother, Agnes' stepson Odo of Gascony, who was already Duke of Gascony. He went to war against Agnes, her husband and sons. Odo was killed at the battle at Mauzé.

Regency

The succeeding Count of Poitou was Agnes's son, Peter, who took the name of William VII Aigret. Being too young, his mother governed territories in his place from 1039 to 1044 and indeed it even seems the government itself, without her husband. When she transmitted the power to William, she married and took the opportunity to give his second son, Geoffrey Guy the duchy of Gascony, by marrying an heiress. Agnes then joined Geoffrey in Anjou and although she may not have actively participated in the government, certainly had some influence on him.

Agnes and Geoffrey stayed in Germany at the imperial court, so her daughter Agnes could marry Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor. They then bonded with the imperial couple, during a trip to Italy where they participated in the council of Sutri, filing and inducting two popes Pope Clement II, who was quick to crown the emperor and empress. After a pilgrimage to Monte Garaño, the couple went back to Poitou in 1047 where they founded the Abbey of Our Lady and Sacred. Between 1047 and 1049, Agnes founded the abbey of Saint Nicolas de Poitiers.

Separation from Geoffrey

Between 1049 and 1052, Agnes and Geoffrey separated. The reasons are varied: the most logical is the absence of children, however we must not forget that the council of Reims in 1049 condemned certain marriages as incestuous and judged them to part; in addition, Geoffrey went to war against the King of France who appreciated the little freedom from war that would take his vassal to Germany (it seems that Geoffrey had to swear allegiance to the emperor and to no longer depend on the King of France) and it is very possible that the King imposed on his vanquished vassal that he should divorce his wife. Indeed, Agnes also influenced her husband, but she came from Burgundy and had retained strong links with her homeland, so it may be that it was Agnes who wanted the divorce.

Later life

Still, Agnes returned to the court of Poitiers and her son William over whom she had much influence. A war soon broke out between Anjou and Poitou, which saw a victory for Geoffrey in 1053. This would have probably never happened if Agnes had not divorced Geoffrey. In 1058 William left for another war against his former stepfather Count of Anjou, probably because Geoffrey gave the dowry of Agnes to his new wife, Adelaide. William was on the verge of winning when he died of an illness in 1058.

He was succeeded by his brother, Geoffrey Guy, who took the dynastic name of William VIII. The young count had remained close to Geoffrey because he was the only father figure he knew and he reconciled with Anjou. But only during Geoffrey's lifetime, in fact, after Geoffrey's death, William did not hesitate to attack his heirs and assume control of Saintonge from 1062. Agnes, despite her retirement, was still very active and did not hesitate to travel throughout Poitou to participate in donations or simply see her son at the court of Poitiers. Agnes died on 10 November 1068. She is buried at St. Nicolas de Poitiers.

Agnes married William, V Duke of Aquitaine 1019. William (son of William, IV Duke of Aquitaine and Emma of Blois) was born 969; died 31 Jan 1029/30, Maillezais, Vendée, Pays de la Loire, France. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Otto (or Eudes) of Vermandois (29 August 979 - 25 May 1045), Count of Vermandois, was the son of Herbert III, Count of Vermandois and Ermengarde of Bar-sur-Seine. He succeeded in 1021 as count of Vermandois. Otto donated property to Notre-Dame de Homblières by charter.

Family and children

He married Pavia (or Patia) (b. 990). Their children were:

Odo I De Furneaux (b.1040 - d.1086)
Herbert IV, Count of Vermandois.
Simon (-after 1076), Seigneur de Ham.
Peter of Vermandois. He is shown by Brandenburg as the son of Comte Eudes.

Otto — Pavia. Pavia was born 990. [Group Sheet]