Jossande de Flotte, also known as Josserande de Fleet, Josserane, or Josserande Flotte, was a noblewoman born to Pierre Arnaud de la Flotte and Adelaide de Comps.
Birth
There seems to be some debate on her exact birthdate but it has been listed on multiple sources as, 1104, 1106, c. 1110, or c. 1120. More research will need to be conducted of contemporary sources to determine the exact date.
She was born in
La Flotte
La Flotte (; sometimes locally La Flotte-en-Re), is a '' commune'' on the Île de Ré off the western coast of France, administratively part of the department of Charente-Maritime within the larger Nouvelle-Aquitaine region. , which is a commune on the
Île de Ré
Île de Ré (; variously spelled Rhé or Rhéa; Poitevin: ''ile de Rét''; en, Isle of Ré, ) is an island off the Atlantic coast of France near La Rochelle, Charente-Maritime, on the northern side of the Pertuis d'Antioche strait.
Its highe ...
, an island in the Atlantic Ocean off the midwestern coast of France.
Family
She was the sister of Henri I Lambert de Flotte (c. 1090). She was married to
Bertrand I,
Count of Forcalquier
The County of Forcalquier was a large medieval county in the region of Provence in the Kingdom of Arles, then part of the Holy Roman Empire. It was named after the fortress around which it grew, Forcalquier.
The earliest mention of a castle at For ...
, in the Kingdom of France around the year 1130. There is debate on the marriage date, and more research will need to be done to confirm the exact date. Some sources state that the marriage date was in 1135, yet it is a disgrace for a countess to bear a child to a count illegitimately. Since her first child with Bertrand I was born in 1130 and he is listed as legitimate heir, this would show that their marriage must have been before 1130. She then became the Countess of Forcalquier upon marrying Bertrand I, Count of Forcalquier. She bore a son, Guillaume IV in 1130,
and heir to Forcalquier. She would go on to bear three other children, a son, Bertrand II (1135–1207), and daughters Alix (1150–1219) and Azalais.
This quote was cited on a genealogical website about Josserande De Flotte:
"The state of Provence, containing what is most remarkable in the ..." by Robert de Briancon:
"... But whatever it may be, this family of Flotte is very old in Provence and there is a great appearance which she defends of Arnaud Flotte, who, in the year 1150, is named among the Gentishommes of the country, who followed the party of Count Raimond Berenger, against the Princess Etiennette des Baux, called Jofferande Fleet epousa Bertrand second, Earl of Forcalquier ... "
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Josserande de la Flotte
12th-century births
1152 deaths
Year of birth uncertain
French countesses