Constance of France, Countess of Toulouse

Constance
Countess consort of Boulogne and Toulouse
Tenure	1140–1153 1154–1165
Spouse	Eustace IV, Count of Boulogne Raymond V, Count of Toulouse
Issue
Raymond VI of Toulouse Azalais of Toulouse Aubri of Toulouse Baldwin of Toulouse Laura of Toulose
House	House of Capet
Father	Louis VI of France
Mother	Adélaide de Maurienne
Born	c. 1124
Died	c. 1176 (aged 51–52)

Constance of France (1124–1176) was the only daughter of Louis VI of France and his second wife Adélaide de Maurienne. She is also known as Constance Capet.

Family

Constance's elder siblings included: Louis VII of France, Philip of France, Henri of France, Robert I of Dreux, another Philip of France and Peter of Courtenay.

Her maternal grandparents were Humbert II, Count of Savoy and Gisela of Burgundy. Her paternal grandparents were Philip I of France and Bertha of Holland.

First marriage

In 1140, Constance married Eustace IV, Count of Boulogne. Eustace was knighted in 1147, at which date he was probably from sixteen to eighteen years of age. In 1151 he joined Constance's brother, Louis in an abortive raid upon Normandy, which had accepted the title of the Empress Matilda (another of many Matildas of the era), and was now defended by her husband, Geoffrey of Anjou.

The couple had no children and Eustace died in 1153, aged between 17-26.

Second marriage

In 1154, Constance remarried after being a widow for a year. She married Raymond V, Count of Toulouse, being his first wife.

Raymond was implicated in the Cathar crisis. In 1176, Guilhem, the Bishop of Albi organized the council of Lombers, attended by both clerics and princes, including Raymond of Trencavel, Raymond V, and Constance, and the representatives of the Cathars. The crisis later led to the Albigensian Crusade.

Raymond and Constance had four children together, they were:

1. Raymond VI, who succeeded his father
2. Aubri, died 1180
3. Adelaide or Azalais of Toulouse, who married Roger II Trencavel in 1171 and died in 1199
4. Baldwin, born 1165, executed on the orders of Raymond VI in 1214

Because Raymond was related to Constance within prohibited degrees, they were separated by ecclesiastical authority in 1165. Raymond later married Richeza of Poland, who had been widowed twice before.

Constance died in 1176, aged 51–52 by which time her brother, Louis was King of France.

Ancestors

Sources

• Translation from French Wikipedia

Persondata
Name	Constance Of France, Countess Of Boulogne And Toulouse
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1124
Place of birth
Date of death	1176
Place of death