| Renaud I, Count of Dammartin | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | c. 1165 |
| Died | 1227 (aged 61–62) Péronne, France |
| Noble family | Dammartin |
| Spouse(s) | Marie de Châtillon Ida, Countess of Boulogne |
| Issue | Matilda II, Countess of Boulogne |
| Father | Alberic III of Dammartin |
| Mother | Mathilde of Clermont |
Renaud de Dammartin (Reginald of Boulogne) (c. 1165 – 1227) was Count of Boulogne from 1190, Count of Dammartin from 1200 to 1214 and Count of Aumale from 1204 to 1214. He was son of Alberic III of Dammartin and Mathilde of Clermont.
Brought up at the French court, he was a childhood friend of Philip Augustus. At his father's insistence he fought for the Plantagenets. Received back into Philip's favour, he married Marie de Châtillon, daughter of Guy II de Châtillon and Adèle of Dreux, a royal cousin.
In 1191, Danmartin's father, Alberic, kidnapped and had Danmartin marry Ida, Countess of Boulogne. The County of Boulogne thereby became vassal to the French king, rather than the count of Flanders. While this marriage made Danmartin a power, it also made enemies in the Dreux family and that of the count of Guînes, who had been betrothed to Ida.
In 1203, Danmartin and his wife gave a merchant's charter to Boulogne. This was probably made for financial consideration. Philip made Danmartin Count of Aumale the following year, but Danmartin began to detach himself. Following the acquisition of Normandy in April 1204, King Philip granted Danmartin the county of Mortain and the honor of Warenne which was centered on the fortresses of Mortemer and Bellencombre. Both Mortain and Warenne had been held by William I of Boulogne and it would appear that King Philip recognized the Boulogne claim to them.
In 1211, he refused to appear before Philip in a legal matter, a suit with Philippe de Dreux, bishop of Beauvais. Philip II seized his lands and on 4 May 1212 at Lambeth, Dammartin made an agreement with King John who had also lost possessions to Philip. Danmartin brought other continental nobles, including the Count of Flanders, into a coalition with John against Philip. In return he was given several fiefs in England and an annuity. Each promised not to make a separate peace with France.
With the Emperor Otto IV and Ferdinand of Flanders, he took part in the attack on France in 1214 culminating in the Battle of Bouvines. Commanding the Brabançons, he was on the losing side, but was one of the last to surrender, and refused submission to Philip Augustus. His lands were taken away, and given to Philip Hurepel. Danmartin was kept imprisoned at Péronne for the rest of his life, which ended in suicide. The historian Jim Bradbury has described Danmartin's last years:
Renaud languished in prison, and in pitiful conditions. He was chained to a heavy log, which two men had to lift every time he wanted to go to the toilet. Unaided, he could only move half a pace in his chains. His county was granted to Philip's illegitimate son, Philip Hurepel, who saw to it that Renaud would never regain his lands. All those years later, when Ferrand was released, Renaud's hopes of freedom were again dashed. He realized he was to remain in prison for ever.
His daughter Matilda II was married to Philip Hurepel.
References
- ^ Handyside 2015, p. 57.
- Grant 2005, p. 32.
- Lambeth, treaty of (4 May 1212). In Dictionary of British History. 1999
- Bradbury 1996, pp. 312–313.
- Baldwin 2002, pp. 63–64.
Sources
- Baldwin, John W. (2002). Aristocratic Life in Medieval France: The Romances of Jean Renart and Gerbert de Montreuil, 1190-1230. The Johns Hopkins University Press.
- Bradbury, Jim (1996). Philip Augustus: King of France 1180–1223. Florence: Taylor and Francis. ISBN 978-1-315-84582-1.
- Grant, Lindy (2005). Architecture and society in Normandy 1120-1270. Yale University Press.
- Handyside, Philip D. (2015). The Old French William of Tyre. Brill.
External links
- (in French) Historique Boulogne