William II, Count of

Nevers Nevers ( , ; la, Noviodunum, later ''Nevirnum'' and ''Nebirnum'') is the prefecture of the Nièvre Departments of France, department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Regions of France, region in central France. It was the principal city of the ...

(born prior to 1089, reigned 1098 – 21 August 1148), was a crusader in the

Crusade of 1101 The Crusade of 1101 was a minor crusade of three separate movements, organized in 1100 and 1101 in the successful aftermath of the First Crusade. It is also called the Crusade of the Faint-Hearted due to the number of participants who joined this ...

Family

He was a son of

Renauld II, Count of Nevers Renauld II, Count of Nevers and Auxerre (died 1089) was the son of William I of Nevers, Count of Nevers and Ermengarde of Tonnerre.Constance Brittain Bourchard, ''Sword, Miter, and Cloister: Nobility and the Church in Burgundy, 980-1188'', 342. He ...

and his second wife Agnes of Beaugency.Constance Brittain Bourchard, ''Sword, Miter, and Cloister: Nobility and the Church in Burgundy, 980-1188'', (Cornell University Press, 1987), 342. He had an older half-sister, Ermengarde of Nevers, who married into the

House of Courtenay The House of Courtenay is a medieval noble house, with branches in France, England and the Holy Land. One branch of the Courtenays became a Royal House of the Capetian Dynasty, cousins of the Bourbons and the Valois, and achieved the title o ...

. She was a daughter of Renauld II and his first wife Ida of

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...

and

Forez Forez is a former province of France, corresponding approximately to the central part of the modern Loire ''département'' and a part of the Haute-Loire and Puy-de-Dôme ''départements''. The final "z" in Forez () is not pronounced in the Loire ...

. He had at least two younger brothers. The better known of them was Robert of Nevers, Viscount of Ligny-le-Château who joined his brother on the Crusade of 1101. The other was Hugh of Nevers, only mentioned in a charter dating to 1144.Constance Brittain Bourchard, ''Sword, Miter, and Cloister: Nobility and the Church in Burgundy, 980-1188'', 346.

Count

The ''Origine et Historia Brevi Nivernensium Comitum'' mentions that Renaud II served as co-ruler to his father but predeceased him on 5 August 1089. His death left William I as the only Count of Nevers and William II as his heir apparent. On 20 June 1098, his grandfather died and William II succeeded to the County of Nevers. (William II should not be confused with his paternal uncle William of Nevers, Count of Tonnere). He took part in the

. He set out in February 1101 with 15,000 men, but his army failed to take the heavily garrisoned

Konya Konya () is a major city in central Turkey, on the southwestern edge of the Central Anatolian Plateau, and is the capital of Konya Province. During antiquity and into Seljuk times it was known as Iconium (), although the Seljuks also called it D ...

and was virtually wiped out during the disastrous Battle of

Heraclea Cybistra Heraclea Cybistra ( grc, Ἡράκλεια Κύβιστρα), or simply Heraclea or Herakleia (Ἡράκλεια), also transliterated as Heracleia, was a town of ancient Cappadocia or Cilicia; located at the site of modern Ereğli in Konya Provi ...

. He arrived in

Antioch Antioch on the Orontes (; grc-gre, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου, ''Antiókheia hē epì Oróntou'', Learned ; also Syrian Antioch) grc-koi, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου; or Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπ� ...

with only a handful of knights. He persuaded Louis VI to break peace with

Henry I Henry I may refer to: 876–1366 * Henry I the Fowler, King of Germany (876–936) * Henry I, Duke of Bavaria (died 955) * Henry I of Austria, Margrave of Austria (died 1018) * Henry I of France (1008–1060) * Henry I the Long, Margrave of the No ...

and throw his support behind

William Clito William Clito (25 October 110228 July 1128) was a member of the House of Normandy who ruled the County of Flanders from 1127 until his death and unsuccessfully claimed the Duchy of Normandy. As the son of Robert Curthose, the eldest son of William ...

in 1115. He was imprisoned shortly afterwards by Theobald, Count of Blois. He participated in the

Council of Troyes There have been a number of Ecumenical council, councils held at Roman Catholic Diocese of Troyes, Troyes: Council of 867 The council was held on orders of Pope Nicholas I, to deal with Hincmar of Reims and his quarrels. The decrees were signed o ...

which opened on 14 January 1129 and is known for his support of the

Second Crusade The Second Crusade (1145–1149) was the second major crusade launched from Europe. The Second Crusade was started in response to the fall of the County of Edessa in 1144 to the forces of Zengi. The county had been founded during the First Crusa ...

. He is believed to have been buried in

Chartreuse Chartreuse () may refer to: Food and drink * Chartreuse (liqueur), a French liqueur * Chartreuse (dish), a French dish of vegetables or meat tightly wrapped in vegetable leaves and cooked in a mould Religion * Carthusians, a Catholic religi ...

, where

Bernard of Clairvaux Bernard of Clairvaux, O. Cist. ( la, Bernardus Claraevallensis; 109020 August 1153), venerated as Saint Bernard, was an abbot, mystic, co-founder of the Knights Templars, and a major leader in the reformation of the Benedictine Order through ...

attempted and failed to

resurrect Resurrection or anastasis is the concept of coming back to life after death. In a number of religions, a dying-and-rising god is a deity which dies and is resurrected. Reincarnation is a similar process hypothesized by other religions, which ...

him.

Marriage and children

William II married Adelais. Her family name and ancestry are unknown. They had at least four children.: *

William III, Count of Nevers William III, Count of Nevers (c. 1107 – 21 November 1161) was Count of Nevers, Auxerre and Tonnerre (1148–1161). He was born in Auxerre. Family He was a son of William II of Nevers and his wife Adelaide. The ancestry of his mother is unkno ...

(c. 1107 – 21 November 1161). *Renaud of Nevers, Count of Torrene (d. 1148). Died while participating in the

. *Robert of Nevers. Only mentioned in a charter dating to 1134. *Anne of Nevers. Married William VIII, Count of Auvergne.

References

External links

{{commonscat, William II, Count of Nevers Nevers, William II, Count of Nevers, William II, Count of William II Counts of Auxerre Nevers, William II, Count of Nevers, William II, Count of