Gilbert of Bourbon-Montpensier (1443 – 15 October 1496,

Pozzuoli Pozzuoli (; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Naples, in the Italian region of Campania. It is the main city of the Phlegrean Peninsula. History Pozzuoli began as the Greek colony of ''Dicaearchia'' ( el, Δικα ...

Count of Montpensier The French lordship of Montpensier (named after the village of Montpensier, département of Puy-de-Dôme), located in historical Auvergne, became a countship in the 14th century. It changed hands from the House of Thiern, to the House of Be ...

, was a member of the

House of Bourbon The House of Bourbon (, also ; ) is a European dynasty of French origin, a branch of the Capetian dynasty, the royal House of France. Bourbon kings first ruled France and Navarre in the 16th century. By the 18th century, members of the Spanis ...

. He was the son of

Louis I, Count of Montpensier Louis de Bourbon (1405 – May 1486) was the third son of John I, Duke of Bourbon and Marie, Duchess of Auvergne. He was Count of Montpensier, Clermont-en-Auvergne and Sancerre and Dauphin of Auvergne and was a younger brother of Charles I of ...

and Gabrielle La Tour,

and

Dauphin d'Auvergne This is a list of the various rulers of Auvergne. History In the 7th century Auvergne was disputed between the Franks and Aquitanians. It was later conquered by the Carolingians, and was integrated for a time into the kingdom of Aquitaine. The c ...

. He was appointed to the

Order of Saint Michael , status = Abolished by decree of Louis XVI on 20 June 1790Reestablished by Louis XVIII on 16 November 1816Abolished in 1830 after the July RevolutionRecognised as a dynastic order of chivalry by the ICOC , founder = Louis XI of France , hig ...

by King

Charles VIII of France Charles VIII, called the Affable (french: l'Affable; 30 June 1470 – 7 April 1498), was King of France from 1483 to his death in 1498. He succeeded his father Louis XI at the age of 13.Paul Murray Kendall, ''Louis XI: The Universal Spider'' (Ne ...

in October 1483.

Life

Gilbert was the first person, after a number of divisions of

Auvergne Auvergne (; ; oc, label=Occitan, Auvèrnhe or ) is a former administrative region in central France, comprising the four departments of Allier, Puy-de-Dôme, Cantal and Haute-Loire. Since 1 January 2016, it has been part of the new region Auverg ...

in the Middle Ages, to carry the bloodlines of the respective dynasties of each of the three main divisions of Auvergne, the

countship 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: ...

, the

duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...

dom and the dauphinate. His paternal grandmother

Marie of Berry Marie de Berry (c. 1375 – June 1434) was ''suo jure'' Duchess of Auvergne and Countess of Montpensier in 1416-1434. She was the daughter of John, Duke of Berry, and Joanna of Armagnac. She was married three times. She acted as administrator of ...

, Duchess of Bourbon, was heiress to the

duchy of Auvergne This is a list of the various rulers of Auvergne. History In the 7th century Auvergne was disputed between the Franks and Aquitanians. It was later conquered by the Carolingians, and was integrated for a time into the kingdom of Aquitaine. The ...

. The creation for the Berry and Bourbon branches was made of lands that were confiscated from the count of Auvergne by

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 ...

. His paternal great-grandmother Anne of Auvergne was daughter of the

Dauphin of Auvergne This is a list of the various rulers of Auvergne. History In the 7th century Auvergne was disputed between the Franks and Aquitanians. It was later conquered by the Carolingians, and was integrated for a time into the kingdom of Aquitaine. The c ...

and after the extinction of her brother's line, in her issue the heiress thereof. Though Gilbert was by no means the primogenitural heir to any of them, as head of the cadet branch of his family, he received Montpensier and the dauphinate as

appanage An appanage, or apanage (; french: apanage ), is the grant of an estate, title, office or other thing of value to a younger child of a sovereign, who would otherwise have no inheritance under the system of primogeniture. It was common in much o ...

s inside the extended family.

Marriage and issue

On 24 February 1482 Gilbert married

Clara Gonzaga Clara Gonzaga, Countess of Montpensier, Dauphine of Auvergne, Duchess of Sessa (Italian: ''Chiara Gonzaga''; French: ''Claire (de) Gonzague''; 1 July 1464 – 2 June 1503) was an Italian noblewoman of the House of Gonzaga. She was the daughter of ...

(1 July 1464 – 2 June 1503), daughter of

Federico I of Gonzaga Federico I Gonzaga (25 June 1441 – 14 July 1484) was marquess of Mantua from 1478 to 1484, as well as a condottiero. Biography Federico was born in Mantua in 1441, son of Ludovico III and Barbara of Brandenburg. He was a good friend of the ...

Mantua Mantua ( ; it, Mantova ; Lombard language, Lombard and la, Mantua) is a city and ''comune'' in Lombardy, Italy, and capital of the Province of Mantua, province of the same name. In 2016, Mantua was designated as the Italian Capital of Culture ...

; they had the following issue: * Louise, Duchess of Montpensier (1482 – 15 July 1561), eventually the heiress of all the Bourbon estates, but not titles *

Louis II, Count of Montpensier Louis de Bourbon, Count of Montpensier (1483 – August 14, 1501, Naples) was the son of Gilbert, Count of Montpensier and Claire Gonzaga. He was Count of Montpensier and Clermont-en-Auvergne and Dauphin d'Auvergne from 1496 to his death. ...

(1483 – 14 August 1501) *

Charles III, Duke of Bourbon Charles III, Duke of Bourbon (17 February 1490 – 6 May 1527) was a French military leader, the count of Montpensier, Clermont and Auvergne, and dauphin of Auvergne from 1501 to 1523, then duke of Bourbon and Auvergne, count of Clermont-e ...

(17 February 1490 – 6 May 1527, in battle), *

François François () is a French masculine given name and surname, equivalent to the English name Francis. People with the given name * Francis I of France, King of France (), known as "the Father and Restorer of Letters" * Francis II of France, Kin ...

Duke of Châtellerault Duke of Châtellerault (french: duc de Châtellerault) is a French noble title that has been created several times, originally in the Peerage of France in 1515. It takes its name from Châtellerault, in the Vienne region. The first title was cre ...

(1492 – 13 September 1515,

Battle of Marignano The Battle of Marignano was the last major engagement of the War of the League of Cambrai and took place on 13–14 September 1515, near the town now called Melegnano, 16 km southeast of Milan. It pitted the French army, composed of the be ...

) * Renée, Lady of Mercœur (1494 – 26 May 1539, Nancy), married on 26 June 1515 at the

Château d'Amboise The Château d'Amboise is a château in Amboise, located in the Indre-et-Loire ''département'' of the Loire Valley in France. Confiscated by the monarchy in the 15th century, it became a favoured royal residence and was extensively rebuilt. Kin ...

Antoine, Duke of Lorraine Antoine (4 June 148914 June 1544), known as the Good, was Duke of Lorraine from 1508 until his death in 1544. Raised at the French court, Antoine would campaign in Italy twice: once under Louis XII and the other with Francis I. During the Germ ...

*Anne (1495 – 1510, Spain) Gilbert was made the

Viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning "k ...

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

in 1495 after king

occupied the city. In July 1496, Montpensier he was captured at

Atella Atella was an ancient Oscan city of Campania, located 20km directly north of Naples. Remains The ruins of the city walls, private houses, the so-called ''garden of Virgil'' and many tombs remain, on sites in the ''comuni'' of Frattaminore, Ort ...

with the remaining French forces, he and his men were held in a malarial marshland near

, where he later died.

References

Sources

* * * * * {{s-end House of Bourbon-Montpensier Bourbon-Montpensier, Gilbert de Bourbon-Montpensier, Gilbert de Bourbon-Montpensier, Gilbert de Bourbon-Montpensier, Gilbert de 15th-century peers of France

Life

Marriage and issue

See also

References

Sources