Hubert de Beaumont-au-Maine
Encyclopedia
Hubert II de Beaumont-au-Maine, also known as Hubert de Sainte-Suzanne, was a French Viscount
of Beaumont and Maine
, and later of Vendôme
, who in the 11th century held the French territories of Beaumont
, Fresnay
and Sainte-Suzanne
.
Moved by the cause of the count of Anjou
and Maine, he played a significant role in the battle between his landowners and William the Conqueror. Despite a four-year siege (1083–1086), the city of Sainte-Suzanne
, which Hubert II defended, is remembered today as the only castle that William the Conqueror himself never succeeded in taking.
Born around 1047, Viscount Hubert married Ermengarde de Nevers on December 6, 1067. She was the daughter of William I of Nevers (1029–1083), count of Nevers, and Ermengarde de Tonnerre. She appears with her husband in several historical accounts, notably at the confirmation of the chapel of Saint-Aubin du Lude, around 1090, and at the donation of Saint-Flaceau to the abbey of Saint-Vincent.
With her daughter Godeheult, the future abbess of the abbey at Étival, located in Chemiré-en-Charnie
, Ermengarde frequently visited various convents. One Easter, having gone to Cellières
, she gave the priest, Henri de Champeaux, the right to hunt in her forest; later on, at Christmas, she also gave the priest at Cheffes
, Geoffroy de Nantes, permission to use her woods. An account exists, dated December 28, 1135, of a Viscountess Ermengarde, wife of Gautier Hait, Viscount of Mollan; Dom Guilloreau suggests this to be the very same Viscountess of Maine, remarried late in life, and still living despite being at least 90 years old. This account seems somewhat unbelievable and requires further proof to support it.
Hubert had five children:
Viscount
A viscount or viscountess is a member of the European nobility whose comital title ranks usually, as in the British peerage, above a baron, below an earl or a count .-Etymology:...
of Beaumont and Maine
Maine (province)
Le Maine is one of the traditional provinces of France . It corresponds to the old county of Maine, with its center, the city of Le Mans.-Location:...
, and later of Vendôme
Vendôme
Vendôme is a commune in the Centre region of France.-Administration:Vendôme is the capital of the arrondissement of Vendôme in the Loir-et-Cher department, of which it is a sub-prefecture. It has a tribunal of first instance.-Geography:...
, who in the 11th century held the French territories of Beaumont
Beaumont-sur-Sarthe
Beaumont-sur-Sarthe, also known as Beaumont-le-Vicomte, is a commune in the Sarthe department in the region of Pays-de-la-Loire in north-western France.The residents are known as Belmontais.-Geography:...
, Fresnay
Fresnay-sur-Sarthe
Fresnay-sur-Sarthe is a commune in the Sarthe department in the region of Pays-de-la-Loire in north-western France.-References:*Fresnay Sur Sarthe is a delightful and beautiful medieval city in Sarthe...
and Sainte-Suzanne
Sainte-Suzanne, Mayenne
Sainte-Suzanne, Mayenne is a commune in the Mayenne department in north-western France.-References:*...
.
Moved by the cause of the count of Anjou
Anjou
Anjou is a former county , duchy and province centred on the city of Angers in the lower Loire Valley of western France. It corresponds largely to the present-day département of Maine-et-Loire...
and Maine, he played a significant role in the battle between his landowners and William the Conqueror. Despite a four-year siege (1083–1086), the city of Sainte-Suzanne
Sainte-Suzanne, Mayenne
Sainte-Suzanne, Mayenne is a commune in the Mayenne department in north-western France.-References:*...
, which Hubert II defended, is remembered today as the only castle that William the Conqueror himself never succeeded in taking.
Genealogy
The Beaumont family, later Beaumont-Brienne, dominated this part of Maine from the tenth to the thirteenth centuries .Family
Hubert, son of Raoul V de Beaumont and Emma de Montreveau, can almost certainly trace his name to his mother's uncle Hubert, who was a bishop at Angers, a man who doted on his niece and her family. He was called by many titles interchangeably, including Viscount of Sainte-Suzanne, of Lude, of Maine, of Manceaux, and of Mans. During the lifetime of his father's second wife Cana, he claimed to be her son, and always referred to her as "Viscountess"; he defined his own life as he pleased.Born around 1047, Viscount Hubert married Ermengarde de Nevers on December 6, 1067. She was the daughter of William I of Nevers (1029–1083), count of Nevers, and Ermengarde de Tonnerre. She appears with her husband in several historical accounts, notably at the confirmation of the chapel of Saint-Aubin du Lude, around 1090, and at the donation of Saint-Flaceau to the abbey of Saint-Vincent.
With her daughter Godeheult, the future abbess of the abbey at Étival, located in Chemiré-en-Charnie
Chemiré-en-Charnie
Chemiré-en-Charnie is a commune in the Sarthe department in the Pays de la Loire region in north-western France.-References:*...
, Ermengarde frequently visited various convents. One Easter, having gone to Cellières
La Lande-Chasles
La Lande-Chasles is a commune in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France....
, she gave the priest, Henri de Champeaux, the right to hunt in her forest; later on, at Christmas, she also gave the priest at Cheffes
Cheffes
Cheffes is a commune in the Maine-et-Loire department of western France....
, Geoffroy de Nantes, permission to use her woods. An account exists, dated December 28, 1135, of a Viscountess Ermengarde, wife of Gautier Hait, Viscount of Mollan; Dom Guilloreau suggests this to be the very same Viscountess of Maine, remarried late in life, and still living despite being at least 90 years old. This account seems somewhat unbelievable and requires further proof to support it.
Hubert had five children:
- Raoul, (eldest son?).
- Herbert or Hubert, (1062) cited with his brothers and mother in 1090, and again in 1095, as well as in other, less precise accounts.
- Guillaume (1061), also mentioned twice.
- Denis, who only appears once in the written record.
- Godeheult (1063), a nun at Cluny, who visited the Benedictines with her mother, who sang the Alleluia verses in the priory at CheffesCheffesCheffes is a commune in the Maine-et-Loire department of western France....
with one of the monks, not to mention, as noted above, a devout leader at the Ronceray abbey in AngersAngersAngers is the main city in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France about south-west of Paris. Angers is located in the French region known by its pre-revolutionary, provincial name, Anjou, and its inhabitants are called Angevins....
.