Robert I (25 September 1216 – 8 February 1250), called the Good, was the first

Count of Artois The count of Artois (French: Comtes d'Artois, Dutch: Graven van Artesië) was the ruler over the County of Artois from the 9th century until the abolition of the countship by the French revolutionaries in 1790. House of Artois *Odalric (c. 850s) ...

. He was the fifth (and second surviving) son of King

Louis VIII of France Louis VIII (5 September 1187 – 8 November 1226), nicknamed The Lion (french: Le Lion), was King of France from 1223 to 1226. As prince, he invaded England on 21 May 1216 and was excommunicated by a papal legate on 29 May 1216. On 2 June 1216 ...

and

Blanche of Castile Blanche of Castile ( es, Blanca de Castilla; 4 March 1188 – 27 November 1252) was Queen of France by marriage to Louis VIII. She acted as regent twice during the reign of her son, Louis IX: during his minority from 1226 until 1234, and during ...

Life

He received Artois as an

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 ...

, in accordance with the will of his father (died 1226) on attaining his majority in 1237 (aged twenty-one). In 1240

Pope Gregory IX Pope Gregory IX ( la, Gregorius IX; born Ugolino di Conti; c. 1145 or before 1170 – 22 August 1241) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 March 1227 until his death in 1241. He is known for issuing the '' Decre ...

, in conflict with

Emperor Frederick II Frederick II (German: ''Friedrich''; Italian: ''Federico''; Latin: ''Federicus''; 26 December 1194 – 13 December 1250) was King of Sicily from 1198, King of Germany from 1212, King of Italy and Holy Roman Emperor from 1220 and King of Jerusa ...

, offered to crown Robert as emperor in opposition to Frederick, but the French count refused to pretend to such a title. Blason province fr Artois

Marriage

On 14 June 1237 Robert married

Matilda Matilda or Mathilda may refer to: Animals * Matilda (chicken) (1990–2006), World's Oldest Living Chicken record holder * Matilda (horse) (1824–1846), British Thoroughbred racehorse * Matilda, a dog of the professional wrestling tag-team The ...

, daughter of

Henry II of Brabant Henry II of Brabant ( nl, Hendrik, french: Henri; 1207 – February 1, 1248) was Duke of Brabant and Lothier after the death of his father Henry I in 1235. His mother was Matilda of Boulogne. Henry II supported his sister Mathilde's son, ...

and

Marie of Hohenstaufen Maria of Swabia (1199/1200 – 29 March 1235) was a member of the powerful Hohenstaufen dynasty of German kings. Family Maria of Hohenstaufen was born in Arezzo, Tuscany, Italy around 1199/1200. She was the second daughter of Philip of Swabia an ...

.
They had two children: * Blanche (1248–1302) * Robert II (1250–1302), who succeeded to Artois.

Death

While participating in the Seventh Crusade, Robert died while leading a reckless attack on

Al Mansurah Mansoura (' , rural: ) is a city in Egypt, with a population of 960,423. It is the capital of the Dakahlia Governorate. Etymology ''Mansoura'' in Arabic means "victorious". The city is named after the El Mansoura Battle against Louis IX of F ...

, without the knowledge of his brother King

Louis IX Louis IX (25 April 1214 – 25 August 1270), commonly known as Saint Louis or Louis the Saint, was King of France from 1226 to 1270, and the most illustrious of the Direct Capetians. He was crowned in Reims at the age of 12, following the d ...

. After fording a river, he and a group of

Knights Templars , colors = White mantle with a red cross , colors_label = Attire , march = , mascot = Two knights riding a single horse , equipment ...

charged a Mamluk outpost, during which the Mamluk commander, Fakhr-ad-Din Yusuf, was killed. Emboldened by his success, Robert, the Templar knights, and a contingent of English troops charged into the town and became trapped in the narrow streets. According to

Jean de Joinville Jean de Joinville (, c. 1 May 1224 – 24 December 1317) was one of the great chroniclers of medieval France. He is most famous for writing the ''Life of Saint Louis'', a biography of Louis IX of France that chronicled the Seventh Crusade.''V ...

, Robert defended himself for some time in a house there, but was at last overpowered and killed.

References

Sources

* * * * * , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Robert 01 Of Artois 1216 births 1250 deaths Heirs presumptive to the French throne 13th-century French people House of Artois Counts of Artois French military personnel killed in action Christians of the Sixth Crusade Christians of the Seventh Crusade Children of Louis VIII of France Sons of kings