Humbert II de la Tour-du-Pin (1312 – 22 May 1355) was the
Dauphin of the ViennoisThe Counts of Albon were minor French nobles in south-eastern France, in the Rhône Alps region.Under Guigues IV, Count of Albon, who was nicknamed le Dauphin or the Dolphin on his coat of arms, they took a new hereditary title, Dauphin of Viennois , named for the region around Vienne, where they...
from 1333 to 16 July 1349. He was a son of the Dauphin John II and
Beatrice of HungaryBeatrice of Hungary may refer to* Beatrice of Naples* Beatrice of Hungary...
. Humbert was the last dauphin before the title went to the French crown, to be bestowed on the
heir apparentAn heir apparent is an heir who cannot be displaced from inheriting.An heir presumptive, by contrast, is an heir currently in line to inherit a title, but who could be displaced at any time by certain events.Today these terms most commonly describe heirs to hereditary titles, particularly monarchies...
.
To contemporaries, he was incompetent and extravagant, lacking the warlike ardour of his brother and predecessor Guigues VIII. He passed his youth at
NaplesNaples in Italy, is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples. The city is known for its rich history, art, culture, architecture, music and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,800 years old...
enjoying the aesthetic pleasures of the Italian
quattrocentoThe cultural and artistic events of 15th century Italy are collectively referred to as the Quattrocento...
.
Humbert II de la Tour-du-Pin (1312 – 22 May 1355) was the
Dauphin of the ViennoisThe Counts of Albon were minor French nobles in south-eastern France, in the Rhône Alps region.Under Guigues IV, Count of Albon, who was nicknamed le Dauphin or the Dolphin on his coat of arms, they took a new hereditary title, Dauphin of Viennois , named for the region around Vienne, where they...
from 1333 to 16 July 1349. He was a son of the Dauphin John II and
Beatrice of HungaryBeatrice of Hungary may refer to* Beatrice of Naples* Beatrice of Hungary...
. Humbert was the last dauphin before the title went to the French crown, to be bestowed on the
heir apparentAn heir apparent is an heir who cannot be displaced from inheriting.An heir presumptive, by contrast, is an heir currently in line to inherit a title, but who could be displaced at any time by certain events.Today these terms most commonly describe heirs to hereditary titles, particularly monarchies...
.
To contemporaries, he was incompetent and extravagant, lacking the warlike ardour of his brother and predecessor Guigues VIII. He passed his youth at
NaplesNaples in Italy, is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples. The city is known for its rich history, art, culture, architecture, music and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,800 years old...
enjoying the aesthetic pleasures of the Italian
quattrocentoThe cultural and artistic events of 15th century Italy are collectively referred to as the Quattrocento...
. His subsequent court at
Beauvoir-en-RoyansBeauvoir-en-Royans is a commune in the Isère department in south-eastern France.-See also:*Communes of the Isère department...
was badly received at the time for its sumptuousness. Unlike his predecessors, Humbert did not lead the itinerant life, moving constantly from one delphinal castle to another, instead preferring to settle down in Beauvoir.
He depleted his treasury funding a vain Crusade to rescue the
Holy LandThe Holy Land , generally refers to the geographical region of the Levant called Land of Canaan or Land of Israel in the Bible, and constitutes the Promised land...
, but after the death of his only son Andrew (5 September 1333 –
GrenobleGrenoble is a city in south-eastern France situated at the foot of the French Alps where the Drac joins the Isère River. Located in the Rhône-Alpes region, Grenoble is the capital of the department of Isère. The proximity of the mountains make the city named "Capital of Alps."The history of the...
, October 1335), he quickly gave up the idea and by 1337 was planning to ceded his inheritance. In 1339, financial difficulties accumulating, he made an inventory of his possessions, with the hope of selling them to
Pope Benedict XIIPope Benedict XII , born Jacques Fournier, was Pope from 1334 to 1342.-Life:Little is known of the origins of Jacques Fournier. He is believed to have been born in Saverdun in the Comté de Foix around the 1280s to a family of modest means. He became a Cistercian monk and left to study at the...
. In May 1345, Humbert had left
MarseilleMarseille , formerly known as Massalia , is the 2nd most populous French city as well as the oldest city in France...
at the head of a papal fleet. The Crusade was led against the Turkish Emirate of Aydin, and was intended to assist the recently captured Frankish port of Smyrna, but was attacked by
GenoaThe Most Serene Republic of Genoa was an independent state in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast from 1005 to 1797, when it was invaded by armies of Revolutionary France under Napoleon. It was then succeeded by the Ligurian Republic, which existed until 1805 before being annexed by the...
near
RhodesRhodes is a Greek island approximately southwest of Turkey in eastern Aegean Sea...
. He was asked to intervene by the
VeniceThe Most Serene Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century AD until the year 1797...
in the conflict ongoing between
Bartolomeo ZaccariaBartolomeo or Bartolommeo Zaccaria was the first husband of Guglielma Pallavicini and thus Margrave of Bodonitsa in her right...
and
Guglielma PallaviciniGuglielma Pallavicini , the Lady of Thermopylae, was the last Pallavicino heir to rule in Bodonitsa. She was but an infant when she succeeded her father Albert in 1311...
over the marquisate of Bodonitsa. He returned before the Crusade had achieved anything notable.
The planned sale to the pope falling through, Humbert finally succeeded in completing a sale to
Philip VI of FrancePhilip VI , known as the Fortunate and of Valois, was the King of France from 1328 to his death. He was also Count of Anjou, Maine, and Valois from 1325 to 1328...
in 1349 for 400,000
écuECU may refer to:Automotive terms* Electronic control unit, a generic term for any embedded system that controls one or more of the electrical systems or subsystems in a motor vehicle...
s and an annual pension. To save appearances, however, the sale was referred to as a "transport." In order to prevent the delphinal title from going into abeyance or being swallowed up in another sovereign title, Humbert instated the "Delphinal Statute" whereby the
DauphinéThe Dauphiné or Dauphiné Viennois is a former province in southeastern France, roughly corresponding to the present departments of the Isère, Drôme, and Hautes-Alpes....
was exempted from many taxes and imposts. This statute was the subject of much subsequent parliamentary debate at the regional level, as local leaders sought to defend this regional autonomy and privilege from the state's assaults.
After ceding his lands, Humber entered the
Dominican OrderThe Order of Preachers , after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Dominic in the early 13th century in France...
and aspired to become Bishop of Paris and eventually
PopeThe pope is the Bishop of Rome and, as such, is leader of the worldwide Catholic Church...
. He adopted the saecular titles of Prince of Briançonnois, Duke of Champsor, and Margrave of Cézane. He received the ecclesiastic titles of
Patriarch of AlexandriaThis is a list of The Latin Patriarchs of Alexandria established in 1215 during the pontificate of Pope Innocent III. This titular office was abolished in 1964. His patriachal seat in Rome was the Basilica di San Paolo fuori le Mura....
and perpetual administrator of the Archdiocese of Rheims. It is with these latter titles that his death is recorded in a necrology of
VauvertVauvert is a town and commune in the Gard department in southern France. It was known as Posquières in the Middle Ages.-The Commune:The commune comprises the town of Vauvert and the villages of Gallician and Montcalm. Over a third of the population work in industry, which is largely the food...
: in Clermont-en-Auvergne, at forty three years of age in 1355. His wife had been Beatrice of Baux, daughter of Bertrand of Baux, and their only son was the aforementioned Andrew.