Alix of Thouars (1200 – 21 October 1221) (in Breton Alis) ruled as

Duchess of Brittany This is a list of rulers of the Duchy of Brittany. In different epochs the sovereigns of Brittany were kings, princes, and dukes. The Breton ruler was sometimes elected, sometimes attained the position by conquest or intrigue, or by hereditary r ...

from 1203 until her death. She was also Countess of Richmond in the

peerage of England The Peerage of England comprises all peerages created in the Kingdom of England before the Act of Union in 1707. In that year, the Peerages of England and Scotland were replaced by one Peerage of Great Britain. There are five peerages in t ...

Life

Alix was born in 1200. She was the daughter of

Constance, Duchess of Brittany Constance ( Breton: ''Konstanza''; c. 1161c. 5 September 1201) was Duchess of Brittany from 1166 to her death in 1201Judith Everard, Michael Jones, ''The Charters of Duchess Constance of Brittany and her Family (1171-1221)'', The Boydell Press, ...

and

Guy of Thouars Guy of Thouars (died 13 April 1213) was the third husband of Constance, Duchess of Brittany, whom he married in Angers, County of Anjou between August and October 1199 after her son Arthur of Brittany entered Angers to be recognized as count of ...

. According to several

French historians This is a list of French historians limited to those with a biographical entry in either English or French Wikipedia. Major chroniclers, annalists, philosophers, or other writers are included, if they have important historical output. Names are lis ...

, Constance died after giving birth to Alix's sisters Catherine and Margaret. Alix's older half-brother was

Arthur I, Duke of Brittany Arthur I ( br, Arzhur 1añ; french: link=no, Arthur 1er de Bretagne) (29 March 1187 – presumably 1203) was 4th Earl of Richmond and Duke of Brittany between 1196 and 1203. He was the posthumous son of Geoffrey II, Duke of Brittany, and Constan ...

and her half-sisters were

Eleanor, Fair Maid of Brittany Eleanor, Fair Maid of Brittany (c. 1184 – 10 August 1241), also known as Damsel of Brittany, Pearl of Brittany, or Beauty of Brittany, was the eldest daughter of Geoffrey II, Duke of Brittany, and Constance, Duchess of Brittany. Her father, ...

and Matilda of Brittany, the children of Constance and Geoffrey Plantagenet. Upon the death of

Richard I of England Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199) was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Aquitaine and Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, and Count of Poitiers, Anjou, Maine, and Nantes, and was ...

, a power struggle commenced between her half-brother Arthur and

John, King of England John (24 December 1166 – 19 October 1216) was King of England from 1199 until his death in 1216. He lost the Duchy of Normandy and most of his other French lands to King Philip II of France, resulting in the collapse of the Angevin Empi ...

. At the

Battle of Mirebeau The Battle of Mirebeau was a battle in 1202 between the House of Lusignan-Breton alliance and the Kingdom of England. King John of England successfully smashed the Lusignan army by surprise. Background After Richard I's death on 6 April 1199 ...

in 1202, Arthur and Eleanor were captured. Arthur was imprisoned at the

Château de Falaise The Château de Falaise is a castle from the 12th-13th century, located in the south of the commune of Falaise ("cliff" in French) in the ''département'' of Calvados, in the region of Normandy, France. William the Conqueror, the son of Duke Rob ...

and in 1203 disappeared. Eleanor was imprisoned at

Corfe Castle Corfe Castle is a fortification standing above the village of the same name on the Isle of Purbeck peninsula in the English county of Dorset. Built by William the Conqueror, the castle dates to the 11th century and commands a gap in the P ...

. The Breton barons recognized Alix as Duchess of Brittany after the presumed death of Arthur, instead of Eleanor. This was due to fears that John might claim to rule Brittany as regent for the imprisoned Eleanor. Alix's father Guy became regent for Alix until 1206, when

Philip II of France Philip II (21 August 1165 – 14 July 1223), byname Philip Augustus (french: Philippe Auguste), was King of France from 1180 to 1223. His predecessors had been known as kings of the Franks, but from 1190 onward, Philip became the first French ...

made himself the regent of the duchy in Alix's name. King Philip II broke off the betrothal of Alix and the Breton prince Henry of Penthièvre, and turned to his French cousin

Peter of Dreux Peter I (french: Pierre; 1187 – 26 May 1250), also known as Peter Mauclerc, was Duke of Brittany ''jure uxoris'' from 1213 to 1221, and regent of the duchy for his minor son John I from 1221 to 1237. As duke he was also 1st Earl of Richmond fr ...

, as Alix's husband. In 1208, John permitted Eleanor to style herself Duchess of Brittany and Countess of Richmond. Pierre married Alix on 27 January 1213, and paid homage to the French king for Brittany. In 1214 John recognized Alix as Duchess of Brittany, renouncing the claim of Eleanor. In 1218 Pierre and Alix were recognized by

William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke (1146 or 1147 – 14 May 1219), also called William the Marshal (Norman French: ', French: '), was an Anglo-Norman soldier and statesman. He served five English kings— Henry II, his sons the "Young King" ...

regent of England as Earl and Countess of Richmond in place of Eleanor, who would never be released from imprisonment. Alix died on 21 October 1221, without having exercised much control over her own inheritance. She was succeeded in the duchy by her son

John I John I may refer to: People * John I (bishop of Jerusalem) * John Chrysostom (349 – c. 407), Patriarch of Constantinople * John of Antioch (died 441) * Pope John I, Pope from 523 to 526 * John I (exarch) (died 615), Exarch of Ravenna * John I o ...

, but Peter remained the ''

de facto ''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...

'' ruler of Brittany as John I's regent until 1237.

Children

John I, Duke of Brittany John I ( br, Yann, french: Jean; c. 1217/12188 October 1286), known as John the Red due to the colour of his beard, was Duke of Brittany from 1221 to his death and 2nd Earl of Richmond in 1268. John was the eldest of three children born to Duche ...

(–1286),''Chronicon Ruyensis Cœnobii'' married Blanche of Navarre, daughter of the king of Navarre,

Theobald I of Navarre Theobald I (french: Thibaut, es, Teobaldo; 30 May 1201 – 8 July 1253), also called the Troubadour and the Posthumous, was Count of Champagne (as Theobald IV) from birth and King of Navarre from 1234. He initiated the Barons' Crusade, was famous ...

. #

Yolande of Brittany Yolande of Brittany (late 1218 – 10 October 1272) was the ruler of the counties of Penthièvre and Porhoet in the Duchy of Brittany. Yolande had been betrothed to King Henry III of England in 1226 at the age of seven years, but married Hugh ...

, (1218–1272), married

Hugh XI of Lusignan Hugh XI de Lusignan, Hugh VI of La Marche or Hugh II of Angoulême (1221 – 6 April 1250) was a 13th-century French nobleman. He succeeded his mother Isabelle of Angoulême, former queen of England, as Count of Angoulême in 1246. He likewise suc ...

Count of Angoulême Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

and

Count of Marche The County of La Marche (; oc, la Marcha) was a medieval French county, approximately corresponding to the modern ''département'' of Creuse. La Marche first appeared as a separate fief about the middle of the 10th century, when William III, ...

# Arthur of Brittany (1220–1224), betrothed to Jeanne de Craon, daughter of

Amaury I de Craon Amaury I of Craon (1170–1226), was Lord of Craon, of Chantocé, Ingrandes, Candé, Segré, Duretal, Baugé and of Lude. Early life and family Amaury I of Craon was the youngest of the three sons of Maurice II de Craon (1132-1196) and ...

and

Jeanne des Roches Jeanne des Roches, Dame de Sablé (c. 1195 – 28 September 1238) was a French noble heiress, ruler of de baronies of La Suze, de Briollay, de Mayet, de Loupeland, de Chateauneuf-sur-Sarte, de Genneteil, de Precigné, de Agon, and de Craon; and the ...

Portrayals in literature

Alix of Thouars is the heroine of the novel ''Le Poids d’une couronne (légende bretonne)'' (1867-1868) by

Gabrielle d’Étampes Gabrielle may refer to: * Gabrielle (given name), a French female given name derived from Gabriel Film and television * ''Gabrielle'' (1954 film), a Swedish film directed by Hasse Ekman * ''Gabrielle'' (2005 film), a French film directed by Pa ...

and is mentioned in the novel ''Dans l’Ombre du Passé'' (2020) by

Léa Chaillou Léa may refer to: People with the given name Léa *Princess Léa of Belgium (born Léa Inga Dora Wolman; 1951), the widow of Prince Alexandre of Belgium and aunt of King Philippe of Belgium * Léa Bouard (born 1996), German freestyle skier * Léa ...

, where it is revealed that the heroine is named after her.

Life

Children

Portrayals in literature

Sources

References

Notes

See also