All Topics  
Maine (province)

 

 
   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link
 

 

Maine (province)
 
 
  Topics Maine (province) Topic Home

Le Maine is one of the traditional provinces
Provinces of France

The Kingdom of France was organised into provinces until March 4, 1790, when the establishment of the d?partement in France system superseded provinces....
 of France
France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
 (different from La Maine (river)). It corresponds to the old county of Maine, with its center, the city of Le Mans
Le Mans

Le Mans is a commune in France in France, located on the Sarthe River. Traditionally the capital of the province of Maine , it is now the pr?fecture of the Sarthe D?partement in France, and is furthermore the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese of Le Mans....
.

Conflict & Contention
Sometime between 1045 and 1047 Hugh IV
Hugh IV of Maine

Hugh IV was Count of Maine from 1036 to 1051. He was son of Herbert I of Maine, one of the Hugonides.He was a minor on the death of his father ....
 married Bertha, daughter of Odo II of Blois.






Discussion
Ask a question about 'Maine (province)'
Start a new discussion about 'Maine (province)'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Encyclopedia


Maine Flag
Maine Province
Le Maine is one of the traditional provinces
Provinces of France

The Kingdom of France was organised into provinces until March 4, 1790, when the establishment of the d?partement in France system superseded provinces....
 of France
France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
 (different from La Maine (river)). It corresponds to the old county of Maine, with its center, the city of Le Mans
Le Mans

Le Mans is a commune in France in France, located on the Sarthe River. Traditionally the capital of the province of Maine , it is now the pr?fecture of the Sarthe D?partement in France, and is furthermore the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese of Le Mans....
.

Location


Bordering the county of Anjou
Anjou

Anjou is a former county , duchy and Provinces of France centred on the city of Angers in the lower Loire Valley of western France. It corresponds largely to the present-day d?partement in France of Maine-et-Loire....
 in the south and the Duchy of Normandy
Normandy

Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is situated along the coast of France south of the English Channel between Brittany and Picardy and comprises territory in northern France and the Channel Islands....
 in the north, Maine was a great matter of contention between the rulers of these more powerful Principalities.

Conflict & Contention


Sometime between 1045 and 1047 Hugh IV
Hugh IV of Maine

Hugh IV was Count of Maine from 1036 to 1051. He was son of Herbert I of Maine, one of the Hugonides.He was a minor on the death of his father ....
 married Bertha, daughter of Odo II of Blois. The Angevin
Angevin

Angevin is the name applied to the residents of Anjou, a former province of the Ancien R?gime in France, as well as to the residents of Angers....
s did not want Maine to come under the influence of Blois
Blois

Blois is a the capital of the Loir-et-Cher Departments of France in central France, situated on the banks of the lower river Loire River between Orl?ans and Tours....
, and Count Geoffrey Martel invaded Maine. The Normans
Normans

The Normans were the people who gave their names to Normandy, a region in northern France. They descended from Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of mostly Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock....
 had just as little desire to see Maine return to the Angevin orbit, and they too were pulled into the conflict. The precise chronology is disputed, but it is clear that in 1051 Hugh IV died and the citizens of Le Mans opened their gate to the Angevins. Anjou wound up with effective control of most of the county, but the Normans did take several important strongholds on the Maine-Normandy border.

Claimed by Normandy


Hugh IV's son Herbert II
Herbert II of Maine

Herbert II was Count of Maine from 1051 to 1062. He was a Hugonide, son of Hugh IV of Maine and Berthe de Blois.On the death of Hugh IV Geoffrey Martel, Count of Anjou occupied Maine, expelling Berthe de Blois and Gervais de Ch?teau du Loir, Bishop of Le Mans, who fled to the court of Normandy....
 fled to the Norman court (though some historians say he was under Angevin control for a few years first) and his death in 1062 precipitated a succession crisis. While the county was in Angevin hands, Anjou had its own succession problem. Herbert's young sister Margaret was betrothed to Robert Curthose, son of Duke William
William I of England

William I , better known as William the Conqueror , was Duke of Normandy from 1035 and English monarchy from later 1066 to his death. William is sometimes also referred to as "William II" in relation to his position as the second Duke of Normandy of that name....
 of Normandy, and William claimed the county on their behalf. The other claimant was Herbert's aunt Biota (a sister of Hugh IV) and her husband Walter, Count of the Vexin
Vexin

The Vexin is a former region in France, divided since the 10th century between Norman Vexin and French Vexin .The List of peoples of Gaul of the Veliocassi, whose capital was at Rouen, gave their name to the region that became known as the Vexin, later to become a county....
.

Norman Invasion & Control


William invaded Maine in force and controlled the county by the beginning of 1064. Biota and Walter were captured at the taking of Le Mans. They died sometime later in 1063, poisoned, it was rumored, though there is no hard evidence for this.

The Norman control of Maine secured the southern border of Normandy against Anjou and is one factor which enabled William to launch his successful invasion of England in 1066.

Revolt

In 1069 the citizens of Le Mans revolted against the Normans. Soon some of the Manceaux barons joined the revolt, the Normans were expelled, and young Hugh V
Hugh V of Maine

Hugh V was the Count of Maine and titular count from 1069 until 1131. He was the son of Albert Azzo II, Margrave of Milan and Gersendis .In 1069, the citizens of Le Mans and some of the Manceaux barons revolted against Norman control....
 was proclaimed as Count of Maine. He was the son of Azzo d'Este
Albert Azzo II, Margrave of Milan

Albert Azzo II , Margrave of Milan and Liguria, Count of Gavello and Padua, Rovigo, Lunigiana, Monselice, and Montagnana, was a powerful nobleman in the Holy Roman Empire....
 and his wife Gersendis, the other sister of count Hugh IV. Azzo returned to 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....
, leaving Gersendis in charge. The real power, however, was one of the Manceaux barons, Geoffrey of Mayenne, who may also have been Gersendis' lover.

The kingdom of France
France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
 annexed Maine in 1203, just before Normandy.

See also

  • Counts and Dukes of Maine