Mathilde of Angoulême (1181–1233) was the sole daughter of Wulgrin III

Wulgrin III of Angoulême

Wulgrim III of Angoulême, also known as Wulgrin Taillefer II, inherited the title of Count of Angoulême and it's territories from his father, William VI of Angoulême....

, Count of Angoulême. After the death of her father, the title passed to her uncle, William V of Angoulême

William V of Angoulême

William V of Angoulême, also known as William Taillefer III was the twelfth count of Angoulême.William V was a fifth generation descendant of Count Arnold of Angoulême. He was born in 1084, the son of Count Fulk of Angoulême and the grandson of Geoffrey of Angoulême and Petronille de Archiac...

. After her marriage to Hugh IX of Lusignan

Hugh IX of Lusignan

Hugh IX the Brown of Lusignan was the grandson of Hugh VIII. His father, also Hugh , was the co-seigneur of Lusignan from 1164, marrying a woman named Orengarde before 1162 or about 1167 and dying in 1169...

, she became his consort, and the centre of the dynastic struggle between the Kings of England and France, after the death of Aymer of Angoulême

Aymer of Angoulême

Aymer was the last Count of Angoulême of the House of Taillefer. He was the third of the six children of Count William IV and Marguerite of Turenne...

. The defeat of John of England

John of England

John , also known as John Lackland , was King of England from 6 April 1199 until his death...

, ensured that the title passed to the House of Lusignan, eventually falling to the House of Valois and to the crown of the French.

Her descendents remained prominent on both sides of the continent, marrying into the Earls of Surrey

Earl of Surrey

The Earl of Surrey is a title in the Peerage of England, and has been created five times. It was first created for William de Warenne, a close companion of William the Conqueror...

, Arundel

Earl of Arundel

The title Earl of Arundel is the oldest extant Earldom and perhaps the oldest extant title in the Peerage of England. It is currently held by the Duke of Norfolk, and is used by his heir apparent as a courtesy title. It was created in 1138 for the Norman baron Sir William d'Aubigny...

, and finally Kent

Earl of Kent

The peerage title Earl of Kent has been created eight times in the Peerage of England and once in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.See also Kingdom of Kent, Duke of Kent.-Earls of Kent, first creation :*Godwin, Earl of Wessex...

 where they inherited a claim to the English crown through Joan, Countess of Kent, daughter of Edward I of England

Edward I of England

Edward I , also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England from 1272 to 1307. The first son of Henry III, Edward was involved early in the political intrigues of his father's reign, which included an outright rebellion by the English barons...

.