Duke of Bouillon

From Infogalactic: the planetary knowledge core
(Redirected from Duchy of Bouillon)
Jump to: navigation, search


Duchy of Bouillon
Duché de Bouillon
<templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/>
1456? – 1794
Flag
Flag
Coat of arms
Coat of arms
The Duchy of Bouillon as at 1560, shown within the Lower Rhenish–Westphalian Circle
Capital Bouillon
Government Dukedom
Historical era Middle Ages
 •  Ardennes lords of Bouillon by the 11th century
 •  La Marck châtelains from 1415 the 15th century
 •  First style of Duke 1456
 •  Treaties of Nijmegen 1678
 •  Abolition of manorial
    and feudal rights

26 May 1790
 •  Ducal constitution 23 March or 1 May 1792
 •  Proclamation of the
    Republic

24 April 1794
 •  Annexed to France 26 October 1795
(4 Brumaire, Year IV)
Area
 •  1790 Lua error in Module:Convert at line 1851: attempt to index local 'en_value' (a nil value).
Population
 •  1790 est. 12,000 
     Density Lua error in Module:Convert at line 1851: attempt to index local 'en_value' (a nil value).
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Lower Lorraine
Republic of Bouillon
Today part of  Belgium

Duke of Bouillon (French: duc de Bouillon) was a hereditary title borne until the early nineteenth century by members of the House of La Tour d'Auvergne as rulers of the duchy of Bouillon (French: duché de Bouillon), a small state located between Luxembourg, Champagne, and the Three Bishoprics. Once the dynasty became extinct in 1802 and the duchy lost its independence to the Dutch kings who obtained the new Grand Duchy of Luxembourg in 1815, the title became the source of dispute among cognatic relatives and alleged agnatic heirs of the last reigning duke, Jacques Léopold de La Tour d'Auvergne.

History of the Duchy of Bouillon

The Semois with Bouillon Castle in the background

The Duchy of Bouillon's origins are unclear. The first reference to Bouillon Castle comes in 988 and by the 11th century, Bouillon was a freehold held by the House of Ardennes, who styled themselves Lords of Bouillon. On the death of Godfrey III, Duke of Lower Lorraine in 1069, Bouillon passed to his nephew, Godfrey of Bouillon. In 1095, Godfrey of Bouillon sold Bouillon to the Prince-Bishop of Liège, Otbert of Liège in order to finance his participation in the First Crusade. Godfrey later became first ruler of the Kingdom of Jerusalem.

The Prince-Bishop of Liège granted the châtellenie of Bouillon to the House of La Marck in 1415. In 1456, Louis de Bourbon, Bishop of Liège became the first individual to style himself "Duke of Bouillon". In 1482, the Châtelain of Bouillon, William de La Marck, ordered the assassination of Louis de Bourbon, Bishop of Liège in a plot to install his son, Jean de la Marck, as Prince-Bishop of Liège. This plot proved unsuccessful: John of Hornes was elected as successor of Louis de Bourbon as Prince-Bishop of Liège. John of Hornes then fought a war with William de La Marck that ended with the Treaty of Tongeren, signed May 21, 1484, with the de la Marck family relinquishing its claim on Liège, though the de la Marcks retained Bouillon Castle as a pledge. Robert II de la Marck began calling himself "Duke of Bouillon" in 1492, but in 1521, the Prince-Bishop of Liège, Erard de La Marck (a fellow member of the House of La Marck), with the backing of the troops of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, managed to regain Bouillon for the Prince-Bishopric.

Robert Fleuranges III de La Marck began styling himself "Duke of Bouillon" in 1526 and all of his successors maintained the right to this title. During the Italian War of 1551–1559, Bouillon was occupied by the forces of Henry II of France to keep them free from Habsburg influence, but Henry II confirmed Robert IV de la Marck as Duke of Bouillon.

From 1560 to 1642, the Dukes of Bouillon were also the rulers of the independent Principality of Sedan.

With the death of Charlotte de La Marck in 1594, the duchy and the title passed to her husband Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne, Duke of Bouillon and thereafter became the possession of the House of La Tour d'Auvergne. France again invaded Bouillon in 1676 during the Franco-Dutch War, but Godefroy Maurice de La Tour d'Auvergne remained Duke of Bouillon. From this point on, although the Duchy of Bouillon was officially still a part of the Holy Roman Empire, it was in actuality a French protectorate. This state of affairs was confirmed by the 1678 Treaties of Nijmegen.

In the wake of the French Revolution, the French Revolutionary Army invaded the Duchy of Bouillon in 1794, creating the short-lived Republic of Bouillon. In 1795, Bouillon was annexed to France.

At the Congress of Vienna, in 1815, the title of "Duke of Bouillon" was restored to Charles Alain Gabriel de Rohan. The Duchy of Bouillon, however, was annexed to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, then in personal union with the Kingdom of the Netherlands, becoming part of the Kingdom of the Belgians in 1830.

Geography of the Duchy of Bouillon

The Duchy of Bouillon was a sovereign duchy until 1795, but it was quite small. In 1789, it had a population of 2,500. The largest town was Bouillon, situated on the Semois. It also consisted of the surrounding villages: Sugny, Corbion, Alle, Rochehaut, Ucimont, Botassart, Sensenruth, Noirefontaine,[Gros-Fays, Fays-les-Veneurs, Bertrix, Carlsbourg, Paliseul, Jehonville, Opont, Anloy, Porcheresse, Gembes, Gedinne, Sart-Custinne]], and Tellin.

Bouillon is located in a Walloon-speaking region.

List of Dukes of Bouillon

House of La Marck, ?–1588

<templatestyles src="Module:Hatnote/styles.css"></templatestyles>

Picture Name Father Birth Marriage Became duke Death Spouse
Armoiries de la Marck-Sedan.svg Robert I de La Marck Jean de La Marck 1430 15 June 1446  ?
Bouillon raised to a Duchy
February 1487 Jeanne de Marley
Armoiries de la Marck-Sedan.svg Robert II de La Marck Robert I 1465 25 December 1490 February 1487
father's death
March 1536 Catherine de Croÿ
Fleuranges.jpg Robert Fleuranges de La Marck Robert II 1491 1 April 1510 March 1536
father's death
21 December 1537 Guillemette of Saarbrücken, Countess of Braine
RobertIVdeLaMarck1570.jpg Robert IV de La Marck Robert Fleuranges 5 January 1512 1 March 1539 21 December 1537
father's death
15 February 1556 Françoise de Brézé, Countess of Maulevrier
Armoiries de la Marck-Sedan.svg Henri Robert de La Marck Robert IV 7 February 1540 7 Feb 1558 15 February 1556
father's death
2 December 1574 Françoise de Bourbon
CharlottedelaMarck1570.jpg Charlotte de La Marck
suo jure
Henri Robert 5 November 1574 19 November 1591 2 December 1574
father's death
15 May 1594 Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne
Picture Name Father Birth Marriage Became duke Death Spouse

House of La Tour d'Auvergne, 1588–1802

<templatestyles src="Module:Hatnote/styles.css"></templatestyles>

Picture Name Father Birth Marriage Became duke Ceased to be duke Death Spouse
Henridelatour.jpg Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne François de La Tour d'Auvergne 28 September 1555 19 November 1591 15 May 1594
first wife's death
25 March 1623 Charlotte de La Marck
15 April 1595 Elisabeth of Nassau
Frederic-MauricedeLaTourdAuvergneNanteuil.jpg Frédéric Maurice de La Tour d'Auvergne Henri 22 October 1605 2 January 1634 25 March 1623
father's death
9 August 1652 Eleonora Catharina Febronis van den Bergh
GodefroyMauricedeLaTour dAuvergneNanteuil.jpg Godefroy Maurice de La Tour d'Auvergne Frédéric Maurice 21 June 1636 19 April 1662 9 August 1652
father's death
26 July 1721 Marie Anne Mancini
Emmanuel Théodose de La Tour d'Auvergne (1668–1730) while duc d'Albret.jpg Emmanuel Théodose de La Tour d'Auvergne Godefroy Maurice 1668 1 February 1696 26 July 1721
father's death
17 April 1730 Marie Armande Victoire de La Trémoille
4 January 1718 Louise Françoise Angélique Le Tellier
21 March 1725 Louise Henriette Françoise de Lorraine
Armoiries de la Tour d'Auvergne-Turenne.svg Charles Godefroy de La Tour d'Auvergne Emmanuel Théodose 16 July 1706 2 April 1724 17 April 1730
father's death
24 October 1771 Maria Karolina Sobieska
Armoiries de la Tour d'Auvergne-Turenne.svg Godefroy de La Tour d'Auvergne Charles Godefroy 26 January 1728 27 November 1743 24 October 1771
father's death
3 December 1792 Louise de Lorraine
Drouais, François-Hubert - The Children of the Duc de Bouillon - 1756.jpg Jacques Léopold de La Tour d'Auvergne Godefroy 15 January 1746 17 July 1766 3 December 1792
father's death
1794
Bouillon absorbed into the French First Republic
7 February 1802 Hedwig of Hesse-Rotenburg
Picture Name Father Birth Marriage Became duke Ceased to be duke Death Spouse

House of Rohan, since 1816

In 1816, the Congress of Vienna restored the title of "Duke of Bouillon", giving it to Charles Alain Gabriel de Rohan, grandson of Marie Louise de La Tour d'Auvergne, who was the daughter of the former duke Charles Godefroy de La Tour d'Auvergne.

Picture Name Father Birth Marriage Became duke Death Wife
Alexander Clarot - Charles Alain de Rohan.jpg Charles Alain Gabriel
[13][14][15]
Henri Louis, Prince of Guéméné
(Rohan)
18 January 1764 29 May 1781 1816
accession
24 April 1836 Louise Aglae de Conflans d'Armentieres
František Tkadlík - Victor Rohan.jpg Louis Victor Mériadec
[13][14][15][16]
Henri Louis, Prince of Guéméné
(Rohan)
1766 24 April 1836
accession
1841 Berthe de Rohan
Camille de Rohan-Rochefort-Guéméné.jpg Camille Philippe Joseph Idesbald
[13][14][15]
Charles-Louis-Gaspard de Rohan-Rochefort
Adopted by Louis Victor Mériadec
19 December 1801 28 May 1826 1846
accession
13 September 1892 Adelheid zu Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg
50px Alain Benjamin Arthur
[13][14][15][17][18]
Arthur de Rohan (1826–1885), son of Camille Philippe 8 January 1853 10 October 1885 13 September 1892
accession
24 February 1914 Johanna of Auersperg
50px Alain Anton Joseph Adolf Ignaz Maria
[13][14][15][17][18]
Alain Benjamin Arthur 26 Jul 1893 29 September 1921 24 February 1914
uncles death
17 March 1975 Margarethe von Schönburg-Hartenstein
50px Karl-Alain Albert Maria
[13][14][15][17][18]
Alain Anton 1934 5 October 1963 2 September 1976
accession
2008 Ingeborg Irnberger
50px Albert Marie
[13][14][15][17][18]
Alain Anton 12 May 1936 2008
accession
Incumbent
Picture Name Father Birth Marriage Became duke Death Wife

See also

Notes

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 Roman foederati
  2. The Chamavi merged into the confederation of the Franks; the Tubanti merged into the confederation of the Saxons.
  3. Part of East Francia after 939, divided in Upper Lorraine (as part of West Francia) and Lower Lorraine (as part of East Francia) in 959.
  4. Lower Lorraine—also referred to as Lothier—disintegrated into several smaller independent territories and only the title of a "Duke of Lothier" remained, held by Brabant.
  5. Lordship of Frisia and Lordship of Groningen (including the Ommelanden) after 1524 and 1536 respectively.
  6. Including County of Zeeland, that was ruled by neighboring County of Holland and County of Flanders (until 1432).
  7. Utrecht included Lordship of Overijssel (until 1528), County of Drenthe (until 1528) and County of Zutphen (until 1182).
  8. Duchy of Brabant included since 1288 also the Duchy of Limburg (now part of the Belgian Province of Liège) and the "Overmaas" lands Dalhem, Valkenburg and Herzogenrath (now part of the Dutch Province of Limburg).
  9. The county, later duchy, of Guelders consisted of four quarters, as they were separated by rivers: situated upstream Upper Quarter (the present day northern half of the Dutch province of Limburg), spatially separated from the three downstream Lower Quarters: County of Zutphen (after 1182), Veluwe Quarter and Nijmegen Quarter. The three lower quarters emerged from the historic gau Hamaland (named after the Chamavi tribe), and formed the present day province of Gelderland. Guelders did not include the Cleves enclave Huissen and the independent counties of Buren and Culemborg, that were much later seceded to the province of Gelderland.
  10. Including County of Artois (part of Flanders until 1237) and Tournaisis.
  11. Throughout the Middle Ages, the bishopric was further expanded with the Duchy of Bouillon in 1096 (ceded to France in 1678), the acquisition of the county of Loon in 1366 and the county of Horne in 1568. The Lordship of Mechelen was also part of the Prince-Bishopric of Liège.
  12. The name Seventeen Provinces came in use after the Habsburg emperor Charles V had re-acquired the Duchy of Guelders, and an continuous territory arose.
  13. 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 13.4 13.5 13.6 Also Prince of Rohan.
  14. 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 14.4 14.5 14.6 Also Prince of Guéméné.
  15. 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 15.5 15.6 Also Duke of Montbazon.
  16. Also Count of Saint-Pol
  17. 17.0 17.1 17.2 17.3 Also Prince of Rochefort.
  18. 18.0 18.1 18.2 18.3 Also Prince of Montaubon.