Fulk IV, Count of Anjou

Fulk IV, Count of Anjou

Fulk IV (1043–1109), called "le Réchin", was the Count of Anjou from 1068 until his death. The nickname by which he is usually referred has no certain translation. Philologists have made numerous very different suggestions, including "quarreler", "sullen", and "heroic".

He was the younger son of Geoffrey, Count of Gâtinais (sometimes known as Aubri), and Ermengarde of Anjou, a daughter of Fulk the Black, count of Anjou, and sister of Geoffrey Martel, also count of Anjou.

When Geoffrey Martel died without direct heirs he left Anjou to his nephew Geoffrey III of Anjou, Fulk le Réchin's older brother.

Fulk fought with his brother, whose rule was deemed incompetent, and captured him in 1067. Under pressure from the Church he released Geoffrey. The two brothers soon fell to fighting again, and the next year Geoffrey was again imprisoned by Fulk, this time for good.

Substantial territory was lost to Angevin control due to the difficulties resulting from Geoffrey's poor rule and the subsequent civil war. Saintonge was lost, and Fulk had to give the Gâtinais to Philip I of France to placate the king.

Much of Fulk's rule was devoted to regaining control over the Angevin baronage, and to a complex struggle with Normandy for influence in Maine and Brittany.

In 1096 Fulk wrote an incomplete history of Anjou and its rulers, though the authorship and authenticity of this work is disputed. If he did write it, it is one of the first medieval works of history written by a layman.

Fulk may have married as many as five times; there is some doubt regarding two of the marriages.

His first wife was Hildegarde of Baugency. After her death, before 1070, he married Ermengarde de Borbon, and then possibly Orengarde de Châtellailon. Both these were repudiated (Ermengarde de Borbon in 1075 and Orengarde de Chatellailon in 1080), possibly on grounds of consanguinity.

Next he married Bertrade de Montfort, who apparently left him for Philip I of France. Finally, he may have married Mantie, daughter of Walter I of Brienne. This marriage also ended in divorce, in 1087.

He had two sons. The eldest (a son of Ermengarde de Borbon), Geoffrey Martel II, Geoffrey IV of Anjou, ruled jointly with his father for some time, but died in 1106. The younger (a son of Bertrade de Montfort) succeeded as Fulk V.

He also had a daughter by Hildegarde of Baugency, Ermengarde, who married William IX, count of Poitou and duke of Aquitaine.

References

*Jim Bradbury, "Fulk le Réchin and the Origin of the Plantagenets", in "Studies in Medieval History Presented to R. Allen Brown"


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Fulk II, Count of Anjou — Fulk II of Anjou (died November 11, 958), son of Fulk the Red, was count of Anjou from 941 to 958. He was often at war with the Bretons. He seems to have been a man of culture, a poet and an artist. In 958 he was succeeded by his son Geoffrey… …   Wikipedia

  • Fulk III, Count of Anjou — Fulk III (972 ndash; 21 June 1040), called Nerra (that is, le Noir , the Black ) after his death, was Count of Anjou from 21 July 987 to his death. He was the son of Geoffrey Greymantle and Adelaide of Vermandois. He was the founder of Angevin… …   Wikipedia

  • Fulk I, Count of Anjou — Fulk I of Anjou, called the Red , was son of viscount Ingelger of Angers, and was the first count of Anjou from 898 to 941. He increased the territory of the viscounty of Angers and it became a county around 930. During his reign he was… …   Wikipedia

  • Geoffrey I, Count of Anjou — Geoffrey I of Anjou (died July 21, 987), known as Grisegonelle ( Greymantle ), was count of Anjou from 958 to 987. He succeeded his father Fulk II. He cultivated the loyal support of a group of magnates, some of whom he inherited from his father …   Wikipedia

  • Geoffrey V, Count of Anjou — Infobox British Royalty|none title = Duke of the Normans Count of Anjou, Maine and Mortain name = Geoffrey V caption = Enamel effigy of Geoffrey on his tomb at Le Mans succession = Count of Anjou reign = 1129 – 7 September 1151 predecessor = Fulk …   Wikipedia

  • Geoffrey III, Count of Anjou — Geoffrey III of Anjou, called le Barbu ( the Bearded ), count of Anjou was the eldest son of Ermenegarde, the daughter of Fulk III of Anjou, and of the count of Gâtinais. He succeeded his uncle Geoffrey II in 1060, but his power was limited by… …   Wikipedia

  • Geoffrey II, Count of Anjou — Geoffrey II of Anjou, called Martel ( the Hammer ), was Count of Anjou from 1040 to 1060. He was the son of Fulk the Black. He was bellicose and fought against the Duke of Aquitaine, the Count of Blois, and the Duke of Normandy. During his twenty …   Wikipedia

  • Fulk of Jerusalem — Infobox Monarch | name=Fulk title= Count of Anjou, King of Jerusalem reign= 1131 1143 date1= 1131 date2= 1143 coronation= 1131 predecessor=Baldwin II successor=Melisende Baldwin III consort= Melisende (1105 1164) royal house= father= Fulk IV of… …   Wikipedia

  • Fulk of Vendôme — Fulk of Nevers (died 1066), known as Foulques l Oison (meaning the Goose , the Fool , or the Idiot ), was the count of Vendôme from 1028 until his expulsion in 1032 and again from 1056 to his death. He was the second son of Bodon of Nevers and… …   Wikipedia

  • Fulk III Nerra — ▪ count of Anjou byname  Fulk the Black,  French  Foulques le Noir  born c. 970 died June 21, 1040, Metz, Fr.       count of Anjou (987–1040), the most powerful of the early rulers of the Angevin dynasty.       Exposed at first to the attacks of… …   Universalium

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”