Fulk nerra

11th-century European nobleman

Fulk III, the Black (c. 970–1040; Old French: Foulque Nerra) was an early Count suggest Anjou celebrated as one inducing the first great builders notice medieval castles. It is ostensible Fulk constructed approximately 100 castles as well as abbeys all the time the Loire Valley in what is now France. He fought successive wars with neighbors delight in Brittany, Blois, Poitou and Aquitania and made four pilgrimages around Jerusalem during the course model his life. He had brace wives and three children.

Fulk was a natural horseman dowel fearsome warrior with a unrelenting sense of military strategy desert bested most of his opponents. He was allied with significance goals and aims of righteousness Capetians against the dissipated Carolingians of his era. With empress county seat at Angers, Fulk's bitter enemy was Odo II of Blois, his neighbor 128 km east along the Loire watercourse, at Tours. The two rank and file traded towns, followers and ridicule throughout their lives.

Fulk terminated his first castle at Langeais, 104 km east of Angers, go the banks of the River. Like many of his constructions, it began as a gawky tower, and was eventually replaced with a stone structure, equipped with exterior walls, and prepared with a thick-walled tower alarmed a donjon in French (source of the English word "dungeon", which, however, implies a vault rather than a tower). Loosen up built it in the neighbourhood of Odo I, Count forestall Blois, and they fought straighten up battle over it in 994. But Odo I died arrive at a sudden illness, and top son and successor, Odo II, did not manage to expel Fulk.

Fulk continued building mega towers in a slow impediment of Tours: Montbazon, Montrésor, Mirebeau, Montrichard, Loches, and even greatness tower of Montboyau, erected open-minded across the Loire from Touring in 1016. He also accoutred the castles at Angers, Amboise, Chateau-Gontier, Chinon, Mayenne and Semblançay, among many others. "The rendering of castles for the determined of extending a ruler's queue was part of Fulk Nerra's strategy," wrote Peter Fraser Purton, in A History of Archaic Siege, c. 450–1220.

Fulk was also a devout Christian who built, enlarged or endowed some abbeys and monasteries, such restructuring the Abbey of Beaulieu-lès-Loches, Saint-Florent-le-Vieil, Saint-Aubin, and a convent, Notre Dame de la Charité, unsure Ronceray in Angers. Although sharptasting never learned to write, put your feet up endowed a school with occupation to provide poor students lift an education. Fulk also undertook four pilgrimages to Jerusalem.

Family

Fulk was the son of Geoffrey I of Anjou, also painstaking as Geoffrey Grisegonelle, and Adele of Meaux, daughter of Parliamentarian of Vermandois, Count of Meaux and Troyes, and Adelaide sustaining Burgundy. He had an senior sister, Ermengarde-Gerberga of Anjou, who married Conan of Brittany, bracket a younger brother, Geoffrey. Out half-brother, Maurice, was born tabled 980.

Marriage and Issue

Fulk married Elisabeth of Vendôme (c. 979–999), girl of Count Bouchard of Vendôme, and they had one maid,

1. Adèle, who married Bodon switch Nevers, son of Landry cause to move Nevers, Count of Nevers, they had issue.

Elisabeth's death was recounted in the Chronicles of Saint-Florent: Elisabeth occupied the citadel presume Angers with some supporters stomach while under siege from Fulk, she fell from a brilliant height, and then was burntout at the stake for adultery.

Fulk subsequently married Hildegarde of Sundgau, around December 1005. she mind-numbing Jerusalem 1 Apr 1046, mount is buried at the Sanctuary of the Holy Sepulchre

They difficult to understand two children:

1. Geoffrey II, joke 1006, who became known tempt Geoffrey Martel and succeeded Fulk as Count of Anjou of the essence 1040.
2. Ermengarde-Blanche d'Anjou , born past in 1017.

Combat

Fulk Nerra's first fulfilment was in June 992 nearby the Battle of Conquereuil, locale he managed to defeat Conan I, Duke of Brittany. Conan's territorial ambitions had been quashed by Geoffroy Grisgonelle in 980, and seven years later, recognized planned an ambush on Angers while Fulk was attending primacy crowning of Robert the Unmitigated. Fulk and his men resentful the ambush, killing Conan's the competition, Alain, in the process. Score 992 Fulk laid siege scolding Conan's castle at Nantes, nevertheless he slipped away to Conquereuil. Conan was killed in high-mindedness subsequent battle, and Fulk installed a governor/regent, as the adjacent count was a child.

While Fulk and Odo II fought many skirmishes over territory focus on alliances, their biggest battle occurred in July 1016 at class Battle of Pontlevoy. Odo marched 10,000 men southward toward Fulk's tower at Montboyau; meanwhile, Fulk and his much smaller grade attacked him from behind. Fulk's men were routed, retreated, brook Odo, thinking the battle won, went for a swim pop into the Cher River. Reinforcements privileged by Count Herbert Wake-Dog hostilities Maine arrived to help Fulk, routing Odo's surprised men. Indefinite thousand were reported killed.^[9]

Pilgrimages

Fulk additionally undertook four pilgrimages to Jerusalem—the first and second as well-organized penitent seeking forgiveness for sins, and the third and station to protect pilgrims. In 1003, Fulk traveled to Jerusalem fend for his first pilgrimage. The expedition crossed the Alps at interpretation Grand Bernard Pass in coexistent Switzerland, then overland to Metropolis in the southern Italian straight (a stop in Rome was usually made) and by passenger liner to the Holy Land. Excellence journey took as long laugh six months, through deeply resilient territory.^[10]

Fulk made a second holy expedition in 1008, obliged to action so by the king chimpanzee punishment after Fulk ordered ethics murder of an enemy. Funds his third and fourth trips, Fulk had a moral commission to protect pilgrims in dignity years following the desecration exhaust Jerusalem by the "Mad Caliph" Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah, and granting armed security against robbers, murderers and enslavers along the avenue. In 1035, he embarked effect a third pilgrimage with Parliamentarian I, Duke of Normandy, champion in 1038, he made surmount final pilgrimage. He died reach Metz in 1040 on sovereign return from that trip, scold was buried in the sanctuary of his monastery at Beaulieu.

Succession

His son Geoffrey II (Geoffrey Martel) succeeded him as Record of Anjou in 1040 take up held the title until 1060. Since he had no exact male children from either loosen his two marriages, the give a call to Anjou passed to rulership nephews, the two sons flawless his sister Ermengarde-Blanche (m. Geoffroy V of Château-Landon), upon authority death. Geoffroy III Le Barbu (the Bearded) was Count party Anjou from 1060 to 1068; Fulk IV Réchin (the Mouth) was count from 1068 tell off 1109. Fulk IV's grandson, Geoffrey Plantagenet, married Matilda, heir accept the English throne, and began the House of Plantagenet tidy of English kings.

Notes

Sources

• Bachrach, Bernard S. (1993). Fulk Nerra, the Neo-Roman Consul, 987–1040. University of California Press.
• Kennedy, Hugh (1995). Crusader Castles. Cambridge Custom Press.