House of Courtenay
Encyclopedia
Courtenay, Loiret
Courtenay is a commune in the Loiret department in north-central France.*Région: Centre*Département: Loiret *Arrondissement: Arrondissement of Montargis*Canton: Canton of Courtenay*INSEE code: 45115*Postal code: 45320...
in the Gâtinais
Gâtinais
Gâtinais was a province of France, containing the area around the valley of the Loing, corresponding roughly to the northeastern part of the départment of Loiret, and the south of the present departments Seine-et-Marne. Under the Bourbons, the Gâtinais had already been divided between the...
(Loiret
Loiret
Loiret is a department in north-central FranceThe department is named after the river Loiret, a tributary of the Loire. The Loiret is located wholly within the department.- History :...
), going back to the 10th century. The dynasty descended from Athon, the first lord of Courtenay, apparently himself a descendant of the Counts of Sens and from Pharamond
Pharamond
Pharamond or Faramund is a legendary early king of the Franks, first referred to in the anonymous 8th century Carolingian text Liber Historiae Francorum, also known as the Gesta regnum Francorum. In this work, which is customarily dated to 727, the anonymous author begins by writing of a mythical...
, reputed founder of the French monarchy in 420. Athon took advantage of the succession crisis in the Duchy of Burgundy
Duchy of Burgundy
The Duchy of Burgundy , was heir to an ancient and prestigious reputation and a large division of the lands of the Second Kingdom of Burgundy and in its own right was one of the geographically larger ducal territories in the emergence of Early Modern Europe from Medieval Europe.Even in that...
between Otto-William, Duke of Burgundy
Otto-William, Duke of Burgundy
Otto-William was a son of Adalbert, King of Italy, and Gerberga of Mâcon.His mother gave him what would be the Free County of Burgundy around Dôle in 982. Otto also inherited the duchy of Burgundy on the other side of the Saône in 1002 from his stepfather Eudes Henry the Great...
and Robert II of France
Robert II of France
Robert II , called the Pious or the Wise , was King of France from 996 until his death. The second reigning member of the House of Capet, he was born in Orléans to Hugh Capet and Adelaide of Aquitaine....
to capture a piece of land for himself, where he established his own seigneury, taking his surname from the town he founded and fortified.
The Courtenay family was divided into two branches in the 12th century. The elder branch continued to rule Courtenay, but became extinct around 1150 with the death of Renaud de Courtenay, who had no male descendants. His daughter, Elizabeth, married Peter
Peter of Courtenay
Peter of Courtenay was emperor of the Latin Empire of Constantinople from 1216 to 1217.He was a son of Peter I of Courtenay , the youngest son of Louis VI of France and his second Queen consort Adélaide de Maurienne...
, a younger son of the Capetian
Capetian dynasty
The Capetian dynasty , also known as the House of France, is the largest and oldest European royal house, consisting of the descendants of King Hugh Capet of France in the male line. Hugh Capet himself was a cognatic descendant of the Carolingians and the Merovingians, earlier rulers of France...
King Louis VI of France
Louis VI of France
Louis VI , called the Fat , was King of France from 1108 until his death . Chronicles called him "roi de Saint-Denis".-Reign:...
. Peter and Elizabeth's descendants hence connected the House of Courtenay with a cadet branch
Cadet branch
Cadet branch is a term in genealogy to describe the lineage of the descendants of the younger sons of a monarch or patriarch. In the ruling dynasties and noble families of much of Europe and Asia, the family's major assets – titles, realms, fiefs, property and income – have...
of the House of Capet, and acquired through marriage the County of Namur and the Latin Empire
Latin Empire
The Latin Empire or Latin Empire of Constantinople is the name given by historians to the feudal Crusader state founded by the leaders of the Fourth Crusade on lands captured from the Byzantine Empire. It was established after the capture of Constantinople in 1204 and lasted until 1261...
of Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
. This branch became extinct in 1730, with the name Courtenay passing on to the Bauffremont family.
The cadet branch of the Courtenay participated in the crusades and came to rule the County of Edessa
County of Edessa
The County of Edessa was one of the Crusader states in the 12th century, based around Edessa, a city with an ancient history and an early tradition of Christianity....
, a Crusader state; it became extinct around 1200.
In the mid-12th century a branch of the pre-Capetian family settled in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, obtained the barony of Okehampton
Okehampton
Okehampton is a town and civil parish in West Devon in the English county of Devon. It is situated at the northern edge of Dartmoor, and has an estimated population of 7,155.-History:...
and inherited the title of Earls of Devon (in 1293) from the de Redvers family (see Baldwin de Redvers). The title was subsequently recreated for Hugh de Courtenay, nephew of Hugh the elder Despenser. Currently the head of this family is Hugh Courtenay, 18th Earl of Devon
Hugh Courtenay, 18th Earl of Devon
Hugh Rupert Courtenay, 18th Earl of Devon DL is a British peer.Lord Devon is the son of the 17th Earl of Devon and was educated at Winchester College and graduated with a BA degree from Magdalene College, Cambridge in 1964. On 9 September 1967, he married Dianna Frances Watherston, and they have...
.
Disputed title
The House of BourbonHouse of Bourbon
The House of Bourbon is a European royal house, a branch of the Capetian dynasty . Bourbon kings first ruled Navarre and France in the 16th century. By the 18th century, members of the Bourbon dynasty also held thrones in Spain, Naples, Sicily, and Parma...
, which acquired the French throne with Henry IV of France
Henry IV of France
Henry IV , Henri-Quatre, was King of France from 1589 to 1610 and King of Navarre from 1572 to 1610. He was the first monarch of the Bourbon branch of the Capetian dynasty in France....
, was another cadet branch of the Capetian house. Hence, the Courtenay family's male-line descent from Louis VI of France
Louis VI of France
Louis VI , called the Fat , was King of France from 1108 until his death . Chronicles called him "roi de Saint-Denis".-Reign:...
induced the impoverished 17th-century members of the Courtenay family to seek to be acknowledged as "princes du sang
Prince
Prince is a general term for a ruler, monarch or member of a monarch's or former monarch's family, and is a hereditary title in the nobility of some European states. The feminine equivalent is a princess...
" (Princes of the Blood Royal) and "cousins to the king," two titles normally reserved for the members of the royal family and prized for the seats at the Royal Council and the Parliament of Paris that it conferred upon its owners.
Three Bourbon kings in a row - Henri IV, Louis XIII, and Louis XIV - turned down their petitions. That the Bourbon monarchs confined the French royalty to the descendants of Louis IX
Louis IX of France
Louis IX , commonly Saint Louis, was King of France from 1226 until his death. He was also styled Louis II, Count of Artois from 1226 to 1237. Born at Poissy, near Paris, he was an eighth-generation descendant of Hugh Capet, and thus a member of the House of Capet, and the son of Louis VIII and...
is evidenced by the Treaty of Montmartre
Treaty of Montmartre
The Treaty of Montmartre was signed on February 6, 1662 between Louis XIV and Duke Charles of Lorraine. The treaty was negotiated by Hugues de Lionne. Based on the terms of the accord, Louis XIV was given control of the Duchy of Lorraine.-External links:**...
(1662) which named the non-Capetian House of Lorraine
House of Lorraine
The House of Lorraine, the main and now only remaining line known as Habsburg-Lorraine, is one of the most important and was one of the longest-reigning royal houses in the history of Europe...
as the next in line to the French throne after the Bourbons, thus bypassing the Courtenay, a Capetian family. Although the Courtenays protested this clause, their claims to the princely title were never acknowledged by the Paris Court of Accounts.
The last male member of the French Courtenays committed suicide in 1727, but his sister married the Marquis de Bauffremont, and her descendants assumed the dubious title of Prince de Courtenay, which they bear to this day.
Genealogy
- Athon
- Joscelin I of Courtenay, married 1. Hilegarde of Gatinais (sister of Geoffrey III of AnjouGeoffrey III of AnjouGeoffrey III of Anjou , called le Barbu , count of Anjou, was the eldest son of Ermengarde of Anjou, the daughter of Fulk III of Anjou, and of the count of Gâtinais....
), 2. Elizabeth of Montlhéry, daughter of Guy I of MontlhéryGuy I of MontlhéryGuy I was the second lord of Bray and the second lord of Montlhéry. He was probably the son of Thibaud of Montmorency, but some sources say that his father was named Milo. Thibaud may instead have been his grandfather....
- Hodierna, married Godfrey II, Count of Joigny
- Miles of Courtenay, married Ermengarde of NeversErmengarde of NeversErmengarde de Nevers was the daughter of Renaud II, Count of Nevers and Auxerre, and of Ida de Forez.She married Miles de Courtenay , son of Jocelin de Courtenay and Isabel, daughter of Guy I of Montlhéry....
- William of Courtenay
- Joscelin
- Renaud de CourtenayRenaud de CourtenayRenaud de Courtenay was a nobleman of Sutton, Berkshire, England.He was the son of Miles de Courtenay and Ermengard de Nevers....
, married Helene of Donjon- Renaud de Courtenay, married Hawise de Crucy, feudal Lady of Okehampton
- Robert of Okehampton, married Mary de Redvers, d. of William de Redvers, 5th Earl of DevonWilliam de Redvers, 5th Earl of DevonWilliam de Reviers, 5th Earl of Devon was the son of Baldwin de Redvers, 1st Earl of Devon and Adelise Baluun. William de Redvers is also William de Vernon, because he was brought up at Vernon Castle, in Normandy, the seat of his grandfather.He took part in Richard the Lion-Hearted's second...
- John
- Hugh
- Hugh, 9th Earl of Devon
- (Earls of DevonEarl of DevonThe title of Earl of Devon was created several times in the Peerage of England, and was possessed first by the de Redvers family, and later by the Courtenays...
)
- (Earls of Devon
- Hugh, 9th Earl of Devon
- Hugh
- John
- Robert of Okehampton, married Mary de Redvers, d. of William de Redvers, 5th Earl of Devon
- Elizabeth, married Peter of CourtenayPeter of CourtenayPeter of Courtenay was emperor of the Latin Empire of Constantinople from 1216 to 1217.He was a son of Peter I of Courtenay , the youngest son of Louis VI of France and his second Queen consort Adélaide de Maurienne...
, son of Louis VI of FranceLouis VI of FranceLouis VI , called the Fat , was King of France from 1108 until his death . Chronicles called him "roi de Saint-Denis".-Reign:...
- (Capetian branch)
- Renaud de Courtenay, married Hawise de Crucy, feudal Lady of Okehampton
- Joscelin I, Count of EdessaJoscelin I, Count of EdessaJoscelin of Courtenay , Prince of Galilee and Lord of Turbessel and Count of Edessa , ruled over the County of Edessa during its zenith, from 1118 to 1131...
, married 1. Beatrice (daughter of Constantine I of ArmeniaConstantine I of ArmeniaConstantine I or Kostandin I was the second lord of Armenian Cilicia or “Lord of the Mountains”...
), 2. Maria of Salerno (sister of Roger of SalernoRoger of SalernoRoger of Salerno was regent of the Principality of Antioch from 1112 to 1119.He was the son of Richard of the Principate and the 2nd cousin of Tancred, Prince of Galilee, both participants on the First Crusade. He became regent of Antioch when Tancred died in 1112; the actual prince, Bohemund II,...
)- Joscelin II, Count of EdessaJoscelin II, Count of EdessaJoscelin II of Edessa was the fourth and last ruling count of Edessa.The young Joscelin was taken prisoner at the Battle of Azaz in 1125, but was ransomed by Baldwin II, king of Jerusalem. In 1131, his father Joscelin I was wounded in battle with the Danishmends, and Edessa passed to Joscelin II...
, married Beatrice- Joscelin III of EdessaJoscelin III of EdessaJoscelin III of Edessa was the titular Count of Edessa 1159 – after 1190. He was the son of Joscelin II of Edessa and his wife Beatrice...
, married Alice of Milly- Beatrice, married Otho of Henneberg
- Agnes, married William of La Mandelie
- Agnes of CourtenayAgnes of CourtenayAgnes of Courtenay was the daughter of Joscelin II of Courtenay by his wife Beatrice , and the mother of king Baldwin IV of Jerusalem and queen Sibylla of Jerusalem.-Dynasty:...
, married 1. Reginald of Marash, 2. Amalric I of JerusalemAmalric I of JerusalemAmalric I of Jerusalem was King of Jerusalem 1163–1174, and Count of Jaffa and Ascalon before his accession. Amalric was the second son of Melisende of Jerusalem and Fulk of Jerusalem...
, 3. Hugh of IbelinHugh of IbelinHugh of Ibelin was an important noble in the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem.Hugh was the eldest son of Barisan of Ibelin and Helvis of Ramla. He was old enough to witness charters in 1148, as was his younger brother Baldwin of Ibelin, which suggests he was born c. 1130-1133, as the male age of...
, 4. Reginald of SidonReginald of SidonReginald Grenier was Lord of Sidon and an important noble in the late-12th century Kingdom of Jerusalem.-Rise to fame:... - Isabella of Courtenay, married Thoros II of ArmeniaThoros II of ArmeniaToros II the Great , also Thoros II, was the sixth lord of Armenian Cilicia or “Lord of the Mountains” ....
- Joscelin III of Edessa
- Joscelin II, Count of Edessa
- Geoffrey Chapalu
- Joscelin I of Courtenay, married 1. Hilegarde of Gatinais (sister of Geoffrey III of Anjou