William II, Count of

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

(French: ''Guillaume II'', born prior to 1089, reigned 1098 – 21 August 1148), was a crusader in the

Crusade of 1101 The Crusade of 1101, also known as the Crusade of the Faint-Hearted, was launched in the aftermath of the First Crusade with calls for reinforcements from the newly established Kingdom of Jerusalem and to rescue the famous Bohemond of Taranto fr ...

Family

He was a son of Renauld II, Count of Nevers 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. She was a daughter of Renauld II and his first wife Ida of

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

and

Forez Forez (; ) is a Provinces of France, former province of France, corresponding approximately to the central part of the modern Loire (department), Loire ''département in France, département'' and a part of the Haute-Loire and Puy-de-Dôme ''dépa ...

. 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

Seljuk Seljuk (, ''Selcuk'') or Saljuq (, ''Saljūq'') may refer to: * Seljuk Empire (1051–1153), a medieval empire in the Middle East and central Asia * Seljuk dynasty (c. 950–1307), the ruling dynasty of the Seljuk Empire and subsequent polities * S ...

-controlled

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. In 19th-century accounts of the city in En ...

and was virtually wiped out during the disastrous Battle of

Heraclea Cybistra Heraclea Cybistra (), 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 Province, Turkey. History Middle Bronze ...

. He arrived in

Antioch Antioch on the Orontes (; , ) "Antioch on Daphne"; or "Antioch the Great"; ; ; ; ; ; ; . was a Hellenistic Greek city founded by Seleucus I Nicator in 300 BC. One of the most important Greek cities of the Hellenistic period, it served as ...

with only a handful of knights. He persuaded Louis VI to break peace with Henry I and throw his support behind William Clito in 1115. He was imprisoned shortly afterwards by Theobald, Count of Blois. He participated in the Council of Troyes which opened on 14 January 1129 and is known for his support of the

Second Crusade The Second Crusade (1147–1149) 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 Crus ...

. He is believed to have been buried in Chartreuse, where

Bernard of Clairvaux Bernard of Clairvaux, Cistercians, O.Cist. (; 109020 August 1153), venerated as Saint Bernard, was an abbot, Mysticism, mystic, co-founder of the Knights Templar, and a major leader in the reform of the Benedictines through the nascent Cistercia ...

attempted and failed to resurrect 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 (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