John of Béthune (; died 1238) was a French nobleman and military leader in the

County of Artois The County of Artois (, , ) was a historic province of the Kingdom of France, held by the Dukes of Burgundy from 1384 until 1477/82, and a state of the Holy Roman Empire from 1493 until 1659. Present-day Artois lies in northern France, near ...

.Jean-François Nieus, "Élisabeth Candavène, comtesse de Saint-Pol (†1240/47): une héritière face à la Couronne", in ''Femmes de pouvoir, femmes politiques durant les derniers siècles du Moyen Âge et au cours de la première Renaissance'' (De Boeck, 2012), pp. 185–211, esp. 196–200. John was the fifth son of William II, lord of Béthune, and Matilda, heiress of

Dendermonde Dendermonde (; , ) is a city in the Flemish Region, Flemish Provinces of Belgium, province of East Flanders in Belgium. The Municipalities of Belgium, municipality comprises the city of Dendermonde and the towns of Appels, Baasrode, Grembergen, M ...

André Duchesne André Duchesne (; sometimes spelled ''Du Chesne'', Latinized ''Andreas Chesneus'', ''Andreas Quercetanus'', or ''Andreas Querneus''; May 158430 May 1640) was a French geographer and historian, generally styled the father of French history. Duch ...

, ''Histoire généalogique de la maison de Béthune'' (Paris, 1639), pp. 178–180. As such, he inherited little money and no land. His eldest brother, Daniel, lord of Béthune, was the first husband of Eustachie, daughter of Lord Gaucher III of Châtillon and the Countess

Elisabeth of Saint-Pol Elizabeth, in French Élisabeth Candavène (c. 1180 – 1240/1247), was the countess of Saint-Pol from 1205 until her death, although her effective rule was limited to the periods 1219–1222 and 1226–1227. The rest of the time the county was ru ...

. In 1228, between June and November, John married the widowed Elisabeth, who was almost forty. They had no children. John is first attested in 1220. In 1223, he subscribed his mother's act founding an abbey dedicated to

Saint Giles Saint Giles (, , , , ; 650 - 710), also known as Giles the Hermit, was a hermit or monk active in the lower Rhône most likely in the 7th century. Revered as a saint, his cult became widely diffused but his hagiography is mostly legendary. A ...

in Dendermonde. According to Alain Derville, John served the

King of England The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the form of government used by the United Kingdom by which a hereditary monarch reigns as the head of state, with their powers Constitutional monarchy, regula ...

in a military capacity before returning to Artois. According to the chronicler Philippe Mousket, he led the armies of Count Ferdinand of Flanders against Duke Henry I of Brabant in 1227 in support of the lord of

Enghien Enghien (; ; ; ) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. On 1January 2006, Enghien had a total population of 11,980. The total area is , which gives a population density of 295 inhabitants per km2. ...

. John's marriage the following year was probably meant to seal an alliance between Elisabeth and Ferdinand against

Philip Hurepel Philip I of Boulogne (Philip Hurepel) (1200–1235) was a French prince, Count of Clermont-en-Beauvaisis in his own right, and Count of Boulogne, Mortain, Aumale, and Dammartin-en-Goële ''jure uxoris''. Philip was born in September 1200, the s ...

, who was challenging Blanche of Castile for the regency of France. The marriage was within the

prohibited degree of kinship In law, a prohibited degree of kinship refers to a degree of consanguinity (blood relatedness), or sometimes affinity (relation by marriage or sexual relationship) between persons that makes sex or marriage between them illegal. An incest taboo ...

, but the attempts of Enguerrand of Coucy and Elisabeth's son Hugh V to have it annulled failed. As husband of the countess of Saint-Pol, John was deputed to receive the homage of the abbot of Anchin. According to William of Andres, Ferdinand invaded Saint-Pol in 1229, but was defeated by Elisabeth's son Hugh, an ally of Hurepel. After this, John's role in his wife's life ceased, although the rights he had acquired in Encre through her were recognized by Hugh in 1233. Afterwards, John went to the

Latin Empire of Constantinople The Latin Empire, also referred to as the Latin Empire of Constantinople, was a feudal Crusader state founded by the leaders of the Fourth Crusade on lands captured from the Byzantine Empire. The Latin Empire was intended to replace the Byzanti ...

. He returned to the west with the Emperor Baldwin II in 1236 and was given command of the army raised by Baldwin to retake Constantinople from

John of Brienne John of Brienne ( 1170 – 19–23 March 1237), also known as John I, was the king of Jerusalem from 1210 to 1225 and Latin emperor of Constantinople from 1229 to 1237. He was the youngest son of Erard II of Brienne, a wealthy nobleman in Cham ...

. He set out for the east in early 1238. When the army's passage through Italy was blocked by the German emperor Frederick II, who preferred an alliance with

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

over Baldwin, John of Béthune gave himself as a hostage to Frederick. The army was allowed to pass, but soon after his release John died at

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

. His death caused the army to disintegrate.Jean Longnon, ''L'empire latin de Constantinople et la principauté de Morée'' (Paris, 1949), p. 179.

References

{{reflist 1238 deaths People from Béthune Latin Empire people