Counts and dukes of Rethel
Encyclopedia
This is a list of counts and dukes of Rethel. The first counts of Rethel ruled independently, before the county passed first to the Counts of Nevers, then to the Counts of Flanders
, and finally to the Dukes of Burgundy
. In 1405 the County became part of the Peerage of France
, and in 1581 it was elevated to a duchy. In 1663 it became the Duchy of Mazarin.
The county was active in the crusades. King Baldwin II of Jerusalem
was the brother of Count Gervais and Countess Matilda of Rethel, while Beatrice of Rethel married King Leo I of Armenia
.
Dampierre
Burgundian
Albret
Cleves
Gonzaga
Nowadays, the title is still claimed by her descendants, the Sovereign Princes of Monaco.
Count of Flanders
The Count of Flanders was the ruler or sub-ruler of the county of Flanders from the 9th century until the abolition of the position by the French revolutionaries in 1790....
, and finally to the Dukes of Burgundy
Duke of Burgundy
Duke of Burgundy was a title borne by the rulers of the Duchy of Burgundy, a small portion of traditional lands of Burgundians west of river Saône which in 843 was allotted to Charles the Bald's kingdom of West Franks...
. In 1405 the County became part of the Peerage of France
Peerage of France
The Peerage of France was a distinction within the French nobility which appeared in the Middle Ages. It was abolished in 1789 during the French Revolution, but it reappeared in 1814 at the time of the Bourbon Restoration which followed the fall of the First French Empire...
, and in 1581 it was elevated to a duchy. In 1663 it became the Duchy of Mazarin.
The county was active in the crusades. King Baldwin II of Jerusalem
Baldwin II of Jerusalem
Baldwin II of Jerusalem , formerly Baldwin II of Edessa, also called Baldwin of Bourcq, born Baldwin of Rethel was the second count of Edessa from 1100 to 1118, and the third king of Jerusalem from 1118 until his death.-Ancestry:Baldwin was the son of Hugh, count of Rethel, and his wife Melisende,...
was the brother of Count Gervais and Countess Matilda of Rethel, while Beatrice of Rethel married King Leo I of Armenia
Leo I of Armenia
Leo I, also Levon I or Leon I, was the fifth lord of Armenian Cilicia or “Lord of the Mountains” ....
.
First dynasty
- Manasses I
- Manasses II (?–1032)
- Manasses III (1032–1056)
- Hugh I (1065–1118)
- Gervais (1118–1124)
- Matilda (1124–1151)
Second dynasty
- Odo of Vitry (1124–1158; married Matilda of Rethel)
- Ithier (1158–1171)
- Manasses III (1171–1199)
- Hugh II (1199–1227)
- Hugh III (1227–1242)
- John (1242–1251)
- Walter (1251–1262)
- Manasses IV (1262–1272)
- Hugh IV (1272–1285)
- JoanJoan, Countess of RethelJoan of Rethel was Countess of Rethel between 1285 and 1328.She was the daughter of Hugh IV of Rethel and his third wife Isabelle of Grandpré.She succeeded her father as Countess of Rethel in 1285....
(1285–1328)
DampierreHouse of DampierreThe Dampierre family played an important role during the Middle Ages. They were Count of Flanders and later also Count of Nevers, Rethel, Artois and Franche-Comté. The senior line of the House died out with Margaret III...
dynasty
- Louis ILouis I, Count of NeversLouis I was suo jure Count of Nevers and jure uxoris Count of Rethel.Louis was the son of Robert III, Count of Flanders, and Yolande, Countess of Nevers. He succeeded his parents as Count of Nevers. In December 1290, he married Joan, Countess of Rethel, and thus became her co-ruler in the County...
(1285–1322; married Joan; also count of Nevers) - Louis IILouis I of FlandersLouis I was Count of Flanders, Nevers and Rethel.-History:He was the son of Louis I, Count of Nevers, and Joan, Countess of Rethel, and grandson of Robert III of Flanders. He succeeded his father as count of Nevers and his grandfather as count of Flanders in 1322...
(1322–1346; also count of FlandersCount of FlandersThe Count of Flanders was the ruler or sub-ruler of the county of Flanders from the 9th century until the abolition of the position by the French revolutionaries in 1790....
and Nevers; married Margaret, countess of ArtoisCounty of ArtoisThe County of Artois was an historic province of the Kingdom of France, held by the Dukes of Burgundy from 1384 until 1477/82, and a state of the Holy Roman Empire from 1493 until 1659....
) - Louis IIILouis II of FlandersLouis II of Flanders , also Louis III of Artois and Louis I of Palatine Burgundy, known as Louis of Male, was the son of Louis I of Flanders and Margaret I of Burgundy, and Count of Flanders.On his father's death at the Battle of Crécy in 1346, he inherited the counties of Flanders, Nevers, and...
(1346–1384; also count of Flanders, Nevers, and Artois) - Margaret (1384–1402; also countess of Flanders, Nevers, Artois, and duchess of BurgundyDuke of BurgundyDuke of Burgundy was a title borne by the rulers of the Duchy of Burgundy, a small portion of traditional lands of Burgundians west of river Saône which in 843 was allotted to Charles the Bald's kingdom of West Franks...
)
BurgundianHouse of Valois-BurgundyThe term "Valois Dukes of Burgundy" is employed to refer to the dynasty which began after John II of France granted the Duchy of Burgundy to his youngest son, Philip the Bold...
dynasty
- Philip the BoldPhilip II, Duke of BurgundyPhilip the Bold , also Philip II, Duke of Burgundy , was the fourth and youngest son of King John II of France and his wife, Bonne of Luxembourg. By his marriage to Margaret III, Countess of Flanders, he also became Count Philip II of Flanders, Count Philip IV of Artois and Count-Palatine Philip IV...
(1384–1402; also duke of Burgundy; married Margaret of Dampierre) - Antoine (1402–1407; later duke of BrabantDuke of BrabantThe Duchy of Brabant was formally erected in 1183/1184. The title "Duke of Brabant" was created by the German Emperor Frederick Barbarossa in favor of Henry I, son of Godfrey III of Leuven . The Duchy of Brabant was a feudal elevation of the since 1085/1086 existing title of Landgrave of Brabant...
) - Philip IIPhilip II, Count of NeversPhillip II, Count of Nevers was the youngest son of Philip the Bold and Margaret III of Flanders....
(1407–1415; also count of Nevers) - Charles ICharles I, Count of NeversCharles I, Count of Nevers , Count of Nevers and Rethel, was the son of Philip II, Count of Nevers and Bonne of Artois....
(1415–1464; also count of Nevers) - John IIJohn II, Count of NeversJohn II, Count of Nevers He was the son of Philip II, Count of Nevers by his wife Bonne of Artois, daughter of Philip of Artois, Count of Eu. From 1442 to 1465 he was Count of Etampes. John's elder brother was also his predecessor in his titles, Charles I, Count of Nevers...
(1464–1491; also count of Nevers and Eu) - Charlotte (1491–1500)
AlbretAlbretThe lordship of Albret , situated in the Landes, gave its name to one of the most powerful feudal families of France in the Middle Ages...
dynasty
- John of Albret (1491–1500; also lord of Orval; married Charlotte of Rethel)
- Marie of Albret (1500–1549)
ClevesDuchy of ClevesThe Duchy of Cleves was a State of the Holy Roman Empire. It was situated in the northern Rhineland on both sides of the Lower Rhine, around its capital Cleves and the town of Wesel, bordering the lands of the Prince-Bishopric of Münster in the east and the Duchy of Brabant in the west...
dynasty
- Charles II (1500–1521; also count of Nevers; married Marie of Albret)
- Francis I (1549–1561; also duke of Nevers)
- Francis II (1561–1562; also duke of Nevers)
- James (1561–1564; also duke of Nevers)
- Henriette of ClevesHenriette of ClevesHenriette of Cleves, Duchess of Nevers and Duchess of Rethel was a French noblewoman and heiress of the Cleves-Nevers family. She was also known as Henriette de La Marck...
(1564–1601; also duchess of Nevers)
GonzagaHouse of GonzagaThe Gonzaga family ruled Mantua in Northern Italy from 1328 to 1708.-History:In 1433, Gianfrancesco I assumed the title of Marquis of Mantua, and in 1530 Federico II received the title of Duke of Mantua. In 1531, the family acquired the Duchy of Monferrato through marriage...
dynasty
- Louis IVLouis Gonzaga, Duke of NeversLouis Gonzaga, Duke of Nevers was an Italian-French dignitary and diplomat in France. He was the third child of Frederick II Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua, and Margaret Palaeologina.-Life account:...
(1566–1595; married Henriette of ClevesHenriette of ClevesHenriette of Cleves, Duchess of Nevers and Duchess of Rethel was a French noblewoman and heiress of the Cleves-Nevers family. She was also known as Henriette de La Marck...
; first duke of Rethel) - Charles IIICharles I, Duke of MantuaCharles Gonzaga was Duke of Mantua and Duke of Montferrat from 1627 until his death. He was also Duke of Rethel and Nevers, as well as Prince of Arches.-Biography:...
(1595–1637; also duke of Nevers, MantuaDuchy of MantuaThe Duchy of Mantua was a duchy in Lombardy, Northern Italy, subject to the Holy Roman Empire.-History:After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, Mantua was invaded by Byzantines, Longobards and Franks. In the 11th century it became a possession of Boniface of Canossa, marquis of Toscana...
, MontferratMontferratMontferrat is part of the region of Piedmont in Northern Italy. It comprises roughly the modern provinces of Alessandria and Asti. Montferrat is one of the most important wine districts of Italy...
, and MayenneDuke of MayenneDuke of Mayenne is a title created for a cadet branch of the House of Guise. It subsequently passed by marriage to the Gonzaga in 1621. They sold it to Cardinal Mazarin in 1654; he bestowed it on his niece, Hortense Mancini in 1661...
) - Charles IVCharles III, Duke of MantuaCharles Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua and Montferrat was the son of Charles of Gonzaga-Nevers of Rethel, Nevers, Mantua and Montferrat and Maria Gonzaga...
(1637–1659; also duke of Nevers, Mantua and Montferrat)
House of Mazarin
- Cardinal Jules Mazarin (1659–1661); minister of Louis XIV of FranceLouis XIV of FranceLouis XIV , known as Louis the Great or the Sun King , was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre. His reign, from 1643 to his death in 1715, began at the age of four and lasted seventy-two years, three months, and eighteen days...
; purchased Rethel from Charles IV - Hortense ManciniHortense ManciniHortense Mancini, duchesse Mazarin , was the favourite niece of Cardinal Mazarin, chief minister of France, and a mistress of Charles II, King of England, Scotland and Ireland...
(1661–1699); the niece of Cardinal Mazarin, Duchess of Mazarin, Duchess of Mayenne, Duchess of Meilleraye, mistress of Charles II of EnglandCharles II of EnglandCharles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War... - Paul-Jules de la Porte (1699–1731; also Duke of Meilleraye)
- Paul de la Porte (1731–1738; also Duke of Meilleraye)
- Louise Jeanne de Durfort (1738–1781; also Duchess of Mayenne and Meilleraye)
- Louise d'Aumont (1781–1789; also Duchess of Mayenne and Meilleraye)
Nowadays, the title is still claimed by her descendants, the Sovereign Princes of Monaco.