Elisabeth of Vermandois

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Elisabeth von Vermandois or Isabel von Vermandois (* around 1085, † 1131 ) is a central figure in the Western European medieval genealogy . Much is known about their ancestors and descendants, but who remains in the shadows. She was twice married to influential Anglo-Norman nobles and had a large number of children, among whose descendants are many kings and some queens of England and Scotland: Elizabeth of Vermandois is one or the genealogical link between the Scottish monarchs and Charlemagne .

family

Elisabeth von Vermandois was the third daughter of Hugo von Vermandois and Adelheid von Vermandois. Her paternal grandparents were Henry I , King of France , and Anna of Kiev . Her maternal grandparents were Count Heribert IV of Vermandois and Adele of Valois .

Her mother was the heiress of the County of Vermandois and belonged to the Carolingian family , was a direct descendant of Charlemagne (see list of the Carolingians' tribe ). Because of her Carolingian ancestors, she was related to almost every high nobleman in Western Europe.

Her father was a younger brother of the French King Philip I , which makes her a member of the Capetian family (see House of France-Vermandois ). She was also distantly related to the Kings of England , the Dukes of Normandy, and the Counts of Flanders .

Countess of Leicester

In 1096 she married Robert de Beaumont (probably only 9 or 11 years old) , Earl of Meulan since 1081 and 1st Earl of Leicester from 1107  . Robert was over 35 years older than her, which was an unusual age difference even for the time; he had fought at the Battle of Hastings at the age of 16 in 1066 , and later inherited the county from his maternal uncle, Count Hugo II of Meulan . His parents Roger de Beaumont , lord of Beaumont-le-Roger and Pont-Audemer ( Normandy ), a close ally of William the Conqueror , and Adeline von Meulan, heiress of the county of Meulan ( Île-de-France ), had already died. Robert de Beaumont thus owned land both in central France and in Normandy, and also had property in England , which had been given to him because of his participation in the Norman conquest of England . At the time of his marriage to Elizabeth, however, he had no county in England, unlike his younger brother Henry de Beaumont, 1st Earl of Warwick .

Robert and Elisabeth had several children together, most notably two sons who were born in 1104 and who assumed leading roles as adults, the Beaumont twins, Waleran de Beaumont , Earl of Meulan and 1st  Earl of Worcester (the elder) and Robert Bossu (Robert the Hunchback) or Robert de Beaumont, 2nd Earl of Leicester (the younger). Another child was Elisabeth (or Isabel) de Beaumont, one of the lovers of King Henry I of England ; she later married Gilbert de Clare, 1st Earl of Pembroke and is the mother of Richard de Clare, 2nd Earl of Pembroke and conqueror of Ireland .

When King Wilhelm II died in 1100, his younger brother Heinrich seized power, passing over the older brother, Duke Robert of Normandy . In the following battles, which ended on September 28, 1106 with the Battle of Tinchebray , Heinrich prevailed. Robert de Beaumont (like his brother, the Earl of Warwick) apparently stood on Henry's side at this time, and was rewarded in 1103 with the title of Earl of Leicester . He now owned extensive estates in three territories and had become so strong that in 1111 he was attacked by the French King Louis VI. on Meulan by attacking Paris could retaliate.

Countess of Surrey

During this time Elisabeth von Vermandois entered into a relationship with a younger nobleman, William de Warenne (* around 1071 - 11 May 1138), the son of Gundrade, a daughter of Wilhelm the Conqueror, and unsuccessful admirer of Queen Edith , the wife Heinrichs I .: Elisabeth complied with William de Warenne's wish for a wife of royal origin, so it only played a minor role that she was already married, especially since the marriage broke up, if not divorced. In 1115, Elisabeth was kidnapped by William after the separation from Robert de Beaumont had already taken place. After that, Elisabeth gave birth to at least one daughter, although it is unclear whether it is Ada de Warenne, the future wife of Henry of Scotland , the Earl of Huntingdon , or Gundrade de Warenne, the future wife of Roger de Beaumont, 2. Earl of Warwick .

When the Count of Meulan died on June 5, 1118 in the Abbey of Préaux in Normandy, Elisabeth and William were able to marry a little later. Her sons from their first marriage seem to have been on good terms with their later-born half-brother from this marriage, William de Warenne, 3rd Earl of Surrey , although they were on different sides in the civil war under King Stephen . Elisabeth's eldest son, Waleran de Beaumont , the (new) Count of Meulan, supported the disinherited William Clito , son of Duke Robert of Normandy and Count of Flanders , until he was imprisoned by King Henry. Waleran was not released until William Clito died in 1128 without an heir. Her second son inherited his father's English possessions, particularly the county of Leicester, and married the heiress of the Counts Fitzosbern of Breteuil . Her daughter Isabel married - after she had been the lover of Henry I and before the death of Elizabeth - Gilbert de Clare , the later (1147) 1st Earl of Pembroke .

progeny

Elisabeth von Vermandois and Robert de Beaumont had three sons and six daughters:

From her marriage to William de Warenne, Elisabeth had three sons and two daughters (a total of 14 children from two marriages):

literature

Weblinks (English)

personal data
SURNAME Elisabeth of Vermandois
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Isabel of Vermandois
BRIEF DESCRIPTION central figure in Western European medieval genealogy
DATE OF BIRTH around 1085
DATE OF DEATH 1131