County of Burgundy

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County of Burgundy

The Free County of Burgundy, in German Freigrafschaft Burgund, was a medieval count

Count

A count is a nobleman in European countries; The word count comes from French language comte, itself from Latin comes?in its Accusative case comitem?meaning "companion", and later "companion of the emperor, delegate of the emperor"....
y (from 867 to 1678 AD), within the traditional province and modern French region Franche-Comté

Franche-Comté

Franche-Comt? the former County of Burgundy, as distinct from the neighbouring Duchy of Burgundy, is an regions of France and a Provinces of France of eastern France....
, whose very French name is still reminiscent of the unusual title of its count: Freigraf

Freigraf

Freigraf is a title of Graf. It is derived from the German language words frei and the feudal title graf . It can be used in two different contexts:...
('free count', or franc comte in French, hence the term franc(he) comté for his feudal principality). It should not be confused with the more westerly Duchy of Burgundy

Duchy of Burgundy

The Duchy of Burgundy was a feudal territory once existing within the France in the Middle Ages. It roughly conforms to the modern Bourgogne. Existing between 843 and 1477, the Duchy was ruled by a succession of Duke of Burgundy, whose extinction with the death of Charles the Bold in 1477 led to the Duchy being absorbed into the French crown...
.

see History of the Franche-Comté for times before 867 or after 1678.

The Kingdom of Burgundy was refounded as an independent entity in 888, at the time of the collapse of the Carolingian Empire

Carolingian Empire

Carolingian Empire is a historiography term sometimes used to refer to the Francia under the Carolingian dynasty. This dynasty is seen as the founders of France and Germany....
.

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The Free County of Burgundy, in German Freigrafschaft Burgund, was a medieval count

Count

Franche-Comté

Freigraf

Duchy of Burgundy

History

see History of the Franche-Comté for times before 867 or after 1678.

The Kingdom of Burgundy was refounded as an independent entity in 888, at the time of the collapse of the Carolingian Empire

Carolingian Empire

Carolingian Empire is a historiography term sometimes used to refer to the Francia under the Carolingian dynasty. This dynasty is seen as the founders of France and Germany....
. The kingdom itself collapsed among feudal anarchy in the 11th century, and the Duchy of Burgundy

Duchy of Burgundy

Capetian dynasty

The Capetian dynasty is the largest European royal house. It includes any of the direct descendants of Hugh Capet of France. King Juan Carlos of Spain and Grand Duke Henri%2C_Grand_Duke_of_Luxembourg of Luxembourg are members of this family, both through the House of Bourbon of the dynasty....
. The county passed under the control of the Holy Roman Empire

Holy Roman Empire

The Holy Roman Empire was a union of territories in Central Europe during the Middle Ages and the Early modern Europe under a Holy Roman Emperor....
, with its capital at Dole

Dole, Jura

Dole is a Communes of France in the Jura Departments of France in Franche-Comt? in eastern France, of which it is a sub-prefecture....
. The development of commercial routes across the Jura

Jura mountains

The Jura Mountains are a small mountain range located north of the Alps, separating the Rhine and Rhone River rivers and forming part of the drainage divide of each....
and the development of salt

Salt

A salt, in chemistry, is defined as the product formed from the neutralisation reaction of acids and base . Salts are ionic compounds composed of cations and anions so that the product is electrically electric charge ....
mines assured the prosperity of the county, and its towns preserved their freedom and neutrality in feudal conflicts.

The comital family was a collateral branch of the Burgundian dynasty, descended from Hugh the Black, a 10th century brother of king Raoul, and from Hugh's son-in-law Gilbert. The first count, Otto-William (died 1027), was the son of Adalbert of Lombardy and Gerberge of Dijon.

Imperial influence began at the end of the 11th century, when emperor Henry III

Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor

Henry III , called the Black or the Pious, was a member of the Salian Dynasty of Holy Roman Empire. He was the eldest son of Conrad II, Holy Roman Emperor and Gisela of Swabia and his father made him duke of Bavaria in 1026, after the death of Henry V, Duke of Bavaria....
elevated the Archbishop of Besançon to the dignity of archchancellor

Archchancellor

An archchancellor or chief chancellor was a title given to the highest dignitary of the Holy Roman Empire, and also used occasionally during the Middle Ages to denote an official who supervised the work of chancellors or notaries....
and conferred upon Besançon the rank of Reichsstadt 'imperial city' under the Emperor's direct patronage. Guy of Burgundy, brother of Renaud II, later became pope

Pope

The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, the leader of the Roman Catholic Church and head of state of Vatican City. The current pope is Pope Benedict XVI, who was elected April 19, 2005 in Papal conclave, 2005....
and negotiated the Concordat of Worms

Concordat of Worms

The Concordat of Worms, sometimes called the Pactum Calixtinum by papal historians, was an agreement between Pope Calixtus II and Holy Roman Emperor Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor on September 23 1122 near the city of Worms, Germany....
with emperor Henry V

Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor

Henry V was King of Germany and Holy Roman Empire , the fourth and last ruler of the Salian dynasty. Henry's reign coincided with the final phase of the great Investiture Controversy, which had pitted pope against emperor....
.

In the 12th century, imperial protection allowed for the development of Besançon, but in 1127, after the assassination of William III, his cousin Renaud III

Renaud III, Count of Burgundy

Renaud III , son of Stephen I, Count of Burgundy and Beatrix of Lorraine, was the count of Burgundy between 1127 and 1148. Previously, he had been the count of M?con since his father's death in 1102, with his brother, William of Vienne....
shook off the imperial yoke. Burgundy was from then on called "Franche-Comté," the "free county."

Emperor Frederick Barbarossa

Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor

Frederick I Barbarossa was elected King of Germany at Frankfurt am Main on 4 March 1152 and crowned in Aachen on 9 March, crowned King of Italy in Pavia in 1154, and finally crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Adrian IV on 18 June 1155....
re-established imperial influence, took prisoner the brother of Count William IV. He extended his influence by marrying William IV's niece and heir, Beatrice I

Beatrice I, Countess of Burgundy

Beatrice of Burgundy Beatrice was the only daughter of Renaud III, Count of Burgundy and Agatha of Lorraine. She was the second wife and Empress of Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor....
, the daughter of Renaud III, when William IV died. When Frederick died, his younger son Otto I

Otto I, Count of Burgundy

Otto I was the Count of Burgundy from 1190 to his death and briefly Count of Luxembourg from 1196 to 1197. He was the fourth son of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick Barbarossa and Beatrice I, Countess of Burgundy....
, received the county of Burgundy and assumed the rare (unique?) title archcount. He was succeeded by his daughter, Beatrice II

Beatrice II, Countess of Burgundy

Beatrice II, Countess of Burgundy, was County of Burgundy, Duchess of Andechs and Moravia, daughter of Otto I, Count of Burgundy and Margaret, Countess of Blois....
, and her husband Otto I

Otto I, Duke of Merania

Otto I was Duke of Andechs and Merania and was born, in 1180, to Berthold IV von Die?en, Duke of Andechs and Merania, and Agnes of Lusatia. He was also Otto II, Count Palatine of Burgundy by his marriage to Beatrice II, Countess of Burgundy....
, Duke of Merania; they were in turn followed by their son, Otto III, Count of Burgundy, and their daughter, Adelaide

Adelaide, Countess Palatine of Burgundy

Adelaide was count palatine of County of Burgundy from 1248 until her death. She was also Countess of Savoy and Bresse through her marriage in 1267 to Philip I, Count of Savoy....
.

The Counts Palatine for many years had to share power with the greater feudal families of the county, notably with the family of Chalon, which was descended from the Stephen III, count of Auxonne

Auxonne

Auxonne is a commune in France in the C?te-d'Or Departments of France in Bourgogne in eastern France.Auxonne is one of the sites containing the defensive structures of Vauban, clearly seen from the train bridge as it enters the Auxonne SNCF train station on the Dijon - Besan?on train line....
, grandson of William IV and Beatrice of Thiern, the heir of the county of Chalon. The authority of the counts was re-established only by the marriage of Hugh of Chalon with Adelaide

Adelaide, Countess Palatine of Burgundy

Adelaide was count palatine of County of Burgundy from 1248 until her death. She was also Countess of Savoy and Bresse through her marriage in 1267 to Philip I, Count of Savoy....
, the sister and heiress. However, this did not prevent a younger son, John of Chalon-Arlay, from taking control of the vassal states. Otto IV

Otto IV, Count of Burgundy

Otto IV, Count of Burgundy was the son of Hugh III, Count of Burgundy and Adelaide, Countess Palatine of Burgundy. By his mother, he was a grandson of Beatrice II, Countess Palatine of Burgundy....
, son of Hugh and Adelaide, was the last of the feudal counts of Burgundy. He married first the daughter of the Count of Bar, then the grandniece of Louis IX of France

Louis IX of France

Louis IX , commonly Saint Louis, was List of French monarchs from 1226 to his death. He was also Counts of Artois from 1226 to 1237. Born at Poissy, near Paris, he was a member of the House of Capet and the son of Louis VIII of France and Blanche of Castile....
, countess Mahaut of Artois. This marriage brought the county under French influence. The daughters of Otto IV and Mahaut, Jeanne and Blanche, married respectively Philip V of France

Philip V of France

Philip V , called the Tall , was List of French monarchs and List of Navarrese monarchs and Count of Champagne from 1316 to his death, and the second to last of the House of Capet....
and Charles IV of France, sons of Philip IV

Philip IV of France

Philip IV , called the Fair , son and successor of Philip III of France, reigned as List of French monarchs from 1285 until his death. He was the husband of Joan I of Navarre, by virtue of which he was List of Navarrese royal consorts and Counts of Champagne from 1284 to 1305....
. Jeanne became Queen of France after having been one of the heroines in the affair of the "daughters-in-law of the king". In that same affair Blanche was found guilty of adultery and was imprisoned for the rest of her life. These events are retold in the historical novel The Accursed Kings

Les Rois Maudits

The Accursed Kings , is a sequence of seven historical novels by Maurice Druon, of the Acad?mie fran?aise.The seven books are:The book's characters are colorful and larger than life, but also have depth....
by Maurice Druon

Maurice Druon

Maurice Druon is a France novelist and member of Acad?mie fran?aise.Maurice Druon was born in Paris. He is the nephew of the writer Joseph Kessel, with whom he wrote the Chant des Partisans, which, with music composed by Anna Marly, was used as an anthem by the French Resistance during the Second World War....
.

After quarreling with his barons, and after a new revolt against the French carried out by John of Chalon-Arlay, Otto IV ceded the county to his daughter as a dowry and designated the King of France as administrator of the dowry in 1295. By marrying their daughter and heir Jeanne, Eudes IV

Eudes IV, Duke of Burgundy

Eudes IV was Duke of Burgundy from 1315 until his death and Count of Burgundy and Count of Artois between 1330 and 1347. He was the second son of Robert II, Duke of Burgundy and Agnes of France, Duchess of Burgundy....
, Duke 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 Sa?ne which in 843 was allotted to Charles the Bald's West Franks....
finally reunited Burgundy.

This union was broken only on the death of Charles the Bold in 1477, when Louis XI

Louis XI of France

Louis XI , called the Prudent and the Universal Spider or the Spider King, was the List of French monarchs from 1461 to 1483....
seized the county. Wishing to be free of conflicts over the county in order to intervene in Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia....
, Charles VIII

Charles VIII of France

Charles VIII, called the Affable, , was List of French monarchs from 1483 to his death. Charles was a member of the House of Valois. His invasion of Italy initiated the long series of Italian Wars which characterized the first half of the 16th century....
ceded it to Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor

Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor

Maximilian I of Habsburg was Holy Roman Empire from 1508 until his death, but had ruled jointly with his father for the last ten years of his reign, from circa 1483....
in 1493. The county was not finally incorporated with France until the Treaty of Nijmegen (1678).

External links

The History Files:

County of Burgundy

History

See also

External links