Louis of Burgundy (1297 – August 2, 1316) was a member of the

Capetian House of Burgundy The House of Burgundy () was a cadet branch of the Capetian dynasty, descending from Robert I, Duke of Burgundy, a younger son of King Robert II of France. The House ruled the Duchy of Burgundy from 1032–1361 and achieved the recognized title ...

who ruled the

Principality of Achaea The Principality of Achaea () or Principality of Morea was one of the three vassal states of the Latin Empire, which replaced the Byzantine Empire after the capture of Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade. It became a vassal of the Kingdom o ...

and claimed the defunct

Kingdom of Thessalonica The Kingdom of Thessalonica () was a short-lived Crusader State founded after the Fourth Crusade over conquered Byzantine lands in Macedonia and Thessaly. History Background After the fall of Constantinople to the crusaders in 1204, Bonifac ...

. Louis was a younger son of Duke

Robert II of Burgundy Robert II of Burgundy (1248 – 21 March 1306) was Duke of Burgundy between 1272 and 1306 as well as titular King of Thessalonica. Robert was the third son of duke Hugh IV and Yolande of Dreux. He married Agnes, youngest daughter of Louis IX o ...

and Agnes of France. In 1313, he took part in a complex marriage pact designed to secure control by the Angevins and the Burgundians over Frankish Greece. On July 31, 1313, he married

Matilda of Hainaut Matilda of Hainaut ( French: ''Mathilde de Hainaut''; November 1293 – 1331), also known as Maud and Mahaut, was Princess of Achaea from 1316 to 1321. She was the only child of Isabella of Villehardouin and Florent of Hainaut, co-rulers of Ac ...

, heir-general of

William II Villehardouin William of Villehardouin (french: Guillaume de Villehardouin; Kalamata, 1211 – 1 May 1278) was the fourth prince of Achaea in Frankish Greece, from 1246 to 1278. The younger son of Prince Geoffrey I, he held the Barony of Kalamata ...

, to whom

Philip I of Taranto Philip I of Taranto (10 November 1278 – 26 December 1331), of the Angevin house, was titular Latin Emperor of Constantinople (as Philip II) by right of his wife Catherine of Valois–Courtenay, Despot of Romania, King of Albania, Prince of Acha ...

gave the

in fief. Louis ceded his claims on the family lands in Burgundy to his elder brother, Duke

Hugh V of Burgundy Hugh V (1294 – 9 May 1315) was Duke of Burgundy between 1306 and 1315. Hugh was the eldest son of Duke Robert II of Burgundy and Agnes of France, Duchess of Burgundy, Agnes of France.''The Morea:1311-1364'', Peter Topping, A History of the ...

, who in turn ceded to Louis the claim to the Kingdom of Thessalonica, which had been sold to their family in 1266. He subsequently did homage to Philip of Taranto, who was suzerain of Achaea and nominally also Thessalonica as titular

Latin emperor The Latin Emperor was the ruler of the Latin Empire, the historiographical convention for the Crusader realm, established in Constantinople after the Fourth Crusade (1204) and lasting until the city was recovered by the Byzantine Greeks in 1261 ...

, and agreed to assist in a campaign to recapture the Latin Empire. Matilda and Louis arrived separately in Achaea, she sailing directly from

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...

Navarino Navarino or Navarin may refer to: Battle * Battle of Navarino, 1827 naval battle off Navarino, Greece, now known as Pylos Geography * Navarino, Wisconsin, a town, United States * Navarino (community), Wisconsin, an unincorporated community, Unit ...

with 1,000 troops, while Louis came by way of

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

, where he was soliciting aid from the

Republic A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...

Ferdinand of Majorca Ferdinand of Majorca ( ca, Ferran de Mallorca; 1278 – 5 July 1316) was an ''infant'' of the Kingdom of Majorca; he was born at Perpignan, the third son of King James II. He was Viscount of Aumelas and Lord of Frontignan from 1311 and c ...

, who also claimed the principality ''jure uxoris'' (his wife Isabelle de Sabran was descended from the younger daughter of William II Villehardouin), had landed there in 1315 and taken to

Glarentza Glarentza ( el, Γλαρέντζα), also known as or Clarenia, Clarence, or Chiarenza, was a medieval town located near the site of modern Kyllini in Elis, at the westernmost point of the Peloponnese peninsula in southern Greece. Founded in th ...

. Matilda arrived late in 1315, and several barons, including the count of

Cephalonia Kefalonia or Cephalonia ( el, Κεφαλονιά), formerly also known as Kefallinia or Kephallenia (), is the largest of the Ionian Islands in western Greece and the 6th largest island in Greece after Crete, Euboea, Lesbos, Rhodes and Chios. It i ...

returned to her allegiance. However, her army was beaten by Ferdinand and his

Catalans Catalans (Catalan language, Catalan, French language, French and Occitan language, Occitan: ''catalans''; es, catalanes, Italian language, Italian: ''catalani'', sc, cadelanos) are a Romance languages, Romance ethnic group native to Cataloni ...

on February 22, 1316 at Picotin. About this time, Louis arrived, making an unsuccessful attempt to capture the castle of

Chalandritsa Chalandritsa ( el, Χαλανδρίτσα) is a town and a community in Achaea, West Greece, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Erymanthos, of which it is the seat of administration. Chalandritsa is si ...

. Ferdinand sent for aid from the

Kingdom of Majorca The Kingdom of Majorca ( ca, Regne de Mallorca, ; es, Reino de Mallorca; la, Regnum Maioricae; french: Royaume de Majorque) was a realm on the east coast of Spain, which included certain Mediterranean islands, and which was founded by James I o ...

and the

Catalan Company The Catalan Company or the Great Catalan Company (Spanish: ''Compañía Catalana'', Catalan: ''Gran Companyia Catalana'', Latin: ''Exercitus francorum'', ''Societas exercitus catalanorum'', ''Societas cathalanorum'', ''Magna Societas Catalanorum' ...

, but neither arrived in time to prevent his death and defeat by Louis at the

Battle of Manolada The Battle of Manolada was fought on July 5, 1316, at Manolada, on the plains of Elis in the Peloponnese. The two leaders were Louis of Burgundy and the ''infante'' Ferdinand of Majorca, both of whom claimed the Principality of Achaea in right of ...

on July 5, 1316. Four weeks later, Louis died. The ''

Chronicle of the Morea The ''Chronicle of the Morea'' ( el, Τὸ χρονικὸν τοῦ Μορέως) is a long 14th-century history text, of which four versions are extant: in French, Greek (in verse), Italian and Aragonese. More than 9,000 lines long, the ''Ch ...

'' attributes his death to a fever, while the Catalan '' Declaratio summa'' states that he was poisoned by Count

John I Orsini John I Orsini ( it, Giovanni Orsini) was the count palatine of Cephalonia and Zakynthos from 1303 or 1304 to his death in 1317. Married to an Epirote princess, John spent a decade at the Epirote court before succeeding his father, Richard Orsini, a ...

of Cephalonia. His death left Achaea in an unsettled state, with his brother

Odo Odo or ODO may refer to: People * Odo, a given name; includes a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Franklin Odo (born 1939), Japanese-American historian * Seikichi Odo (1927–2002), Japanese karateka * Yuya Odo (born 1990), J ...

, his widow, and the Angevins all attempting to gain it.

References

* * {{Authority control Burgundy, Louis of Burgundy, Louis of House of Burgundy Titular Kings of Thessalonica

Louis Louis may refer to: * Louis (coin) * Louis (given name), origin and several individuals with this name * Louis (surname) * Louis (singer), Serbian singer * HMS ''Louis'', two ships of the Royal Navy See also Derived or associated terms * Lewis ( ...

14th-century people of the Principality of Achaea