Isabella of Brienne

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Isabella von Brienne († 1360 ) was Countess of Brienne and Lecce , titular duchess of Athens and heir to the throne of the kingdoms of Jerusalem and Cyprus .

She was the daughter of Walter V of Brienne , Duke of Athens, who died in 1311 in the Battle of Halmyros near Thebes . As the granddaughter of Hugo von Brienne , Count of Lecce, she was a descendant of the kings of Jerusalem and Cyprus.

Her father spent most of his life in Greece, where he endeavored to recapture his mother's legacy, the Duchy of Athens. When he was killed, Isabella's mother, Joan de Chatillon († 1354), daughter of the Count of Porcéan , fled to France with her two young children. The family became impoverished and Isabella married Walter III. von Enghien , a Walloon knight.

Your brother Walter VI. von Brienne gradually gained a better position and through the connection with the House of Plantagenet of Naples he got back some Italian fiefs. As a Constable of France , he fell in 1356 in the battle of Maupertuis .

Isabella survived her brother, whom she inherited. She died in 1360. Her husband Walter von Enghien had died in 1345.

As her brother's heir, she was Countess of Lecce and Brienne for a number of years, holding the title of Duchess of Athens and other titles to which she was entitled. Her second son Sohier von Enghien took over her inheritance . During her lifetime she divided the inherited lands among her numerous children.

Their children:

1. Walter von Enghien (born June 5, 1322 - † November 18, 1340)
2. Isabeau of Enghien († December 28, 1357), Abbess of Flines
3. Sohier von Enghien († March 21, 1364), Count of Brienne , titular duke of Athens
4. Johann von Enghien († 1380) Count of Lecce and Lord of Castro
5. Marguerite von Enghien, married to Pierre de Préaux
6. Louis von Enghien († March 17, 1394), Count of Conversano, later Count of Brienne and titular duke of Athens
7. Jacques von Enghien, canon in Liège
8. Guy von Enghien († 1377), Lord of Argos and Nauplia
9. Engelbert I. von Enghien (* 1330; † February 20, 1403), Lord of Ramerupt, La Follie and Seneffe
10. Françoise von Enghien, married to Peter, Count of Montebello
11. Jeanne von Enghien, nun from Flines

Isabella's brother Gauthier had left Greece sometime around 1340, and her oldest living son Sohier von Enghien had apparently been lord of Argos and Nauplia since 1350 . In the division of inheritance (1356-60) he received the title Duke of Athens and certain rights in Argos-Nauplia. Her sixth son Guy von Enghien received the rule of Argos and Nauplia in the division of the estate and resided there from 1356 until his death in 1377. Guy also carried the title Duke of Athens, although the title officially belonged to his older brother and his son. As lord of Argos-Nauplia, Guy was actually a vassal of his brother, the Duke of Athens.

Isabella's fourth son Louis von Enghien, Lord of Conversano, received the title Duke of Athens in 1381 when his nephew's inheritance was divided.

Guy's daughter Maria von Enghien, Isabella's granddaughter, married Pietro Cornaro, a Venetian. In 1388 they sold the rule of Argos-Nauplia to the Republic of Venice .

Her main inheritance went, after a few intermediate phases, to the children of her third son Johann von Enghien:

• Peter von Enghien (Peter I), Count of Lecce etc. died childless in 1384; his sister and her husband Raimondo del Balzo Orsini succeeded him to the throne
• Maria von Enghien (Maria II.) (* 1367; † 1446), Countess of Lecce, daughter of Johann and Bianca del Balzo. Maria married Raimondo del Balzo Orsini († 1405), the prince of Taranto in succession. In 1406 she married King Ladislaus of Naples († 1414).