Arthur II (25 July 1261 – 27 August 1312), of the
House of Dreux, was
Duke of Brittany
This is a list of rulers of Brittany. In different epochs the rulers of Brittany were kings, princes, and dukes. The Breton ruler was sometimes elected, sometimes attained the position by conquest or intrigue, or by hereditary right. Hereditary ...
from 1305 to his death. He was the first son of
John II and
Beatrice, daughter of
Henry III of England
Henry III (1 October 1207 – 16 November 1272), also known as Henry of Winchester, was King of England, Lord of Ireland, and Duke of Aquitaine from 1216 until his death in 1272. The son of John, King of England, King John and Isabella of Ang ...
and
Eleanor of Provence
Eleanor of Provence ( 1223 – 24/25 June 1291) was a Provence, Provençal noblewoman who became List of English royal consorts, Queen of England as the wife of King Henry III of England, Henry III from 1236 until his death in 1272. She served ...
.
After he inherited the ducal throne, his brother
John
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Second E ...
became
Earl of Richmond
The now-extinct title of Earl of Richmond was created many times in the Peerage of Peerage of England, England. The earldom of Richmond, North Yorkshire, Richmond was initially held by various Breton people, Breton nobles; sometimes the holde ...
.
As duke, Arthur was independent of the French crown. He divided his duchy into eight "battles":
Léon,
Kernev,
Landreger,
Penteur,
Gwened,
Naoned,
Roazhon, and
Sant Malou. In 1309, he convoked the first
Estates of Brittany. It was the first time in French history that the
third estate was represented.
Arthur died at
Château de l'Isle in
Saint Denis en Val and was interred in a marble tomb of the
cordeliers
The Society of the Friends of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen ( ), mainly known as Cordeliers Club ( ), was a Populism, populist List of political groups in the French Revolution, political club during the French Revolution from 1790 to 179 ...
of
Vannes
Vannes (; , , ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Departments of France, French department of Morbihan, Brittany (administrative region), Brittany, northwestern mainland France. It was founded over 2,000 years ago.
History
Celtic ...
. The tomb was vandalised during the
French Revolution, but later repaired and is on display today.
Marriages and children
In 1275, Arthur married Marie,
Viscountess of Limoges, daughter of Guy VI, Viscount of
Limoges
Limoges ( , , ; , locally ) is a city and Communes of France, commune, and the prefecture of the Haute-Vienne Departments of France, department in west-central France. It was the administrative capital of the former Limousin region. Situated o ...
, and Margaret, Lady of
Molinot. Her maternal grandparents were
Hugh IV, Duke of Burgundy
Hugh IV (9 March 1213 – 27 or 30 October 1272) was Duke of Burgundy from 1218 and titular King of Thessalonica from 1266 until his death in 1272. Hugh was the son of Odo III, Duke of Burgundy, and Alice de Vergy.
Issue
Hugh married twice, fir ...
, and his first wife,
Yolande of Dreux. They were parents of three children:
*
John III, Duke of Brittany
John III ''the Good'' (in Breton ''Yann III'', in French ''Jean III''; 8 March 128630 April 1341) was Duke of Brittany, from 1312 to his death and 5th Earl of Richmond from 1334 to his death. He was the son of Arthur II, Duke of Brittany, and ...
(8 March 1286 – 30 April 1341).
*
Guy de Penthièvre,
Count of Penthièvre (1287 – 1331); father of
Joanna of Penthièvre.
* Peter of Brittany,
Seigneur of Dol-Combourg and
Sant-Maloù (1289 – 1312).
Marie died in 1291. In May 1292, Arthur married
Yolande of Dreux, who was
Countess of Montfort, daughter of
Robert IV,
Count of Dreux, and Beatrice de
Montfort. Yolande had briefly been Queen of Scotland by her first marriage. They were parents of six children:
*
John of Montfort (1295 – 16 September 1345).
* (1295–1384); married
Guy X, Lord of
Laval.
* ; married Robert, Count of
Marle, Lord of
Cassel (son of
Robert III, Count of Flanders
Robert III (1249 – 17 September 1322), also called Robert of Béthune and nicknamed The Lion of Flanders (''De Leeuw van Vlaanderen''), was the Count of Nevers from 1273 and Count of Flanders from 1305 until his death.
History
Robert was the ...
).
* (1297–1377); married Bouchard VI,
Count of Vendôme, a member of the
House of Montoire.
* Blanche of Brittany (born ); considered to have died young.
* Marie of Brittany (1302–1371); a nun.
See also
*
Dukes of Brittany family tree
This is a list of rulers of Brittany. In different epochs the rulers of Brittany were kings, princes, and dukes. The Breton ruler was sometimes elected, sometimes attained the position by conquest or intrigue, or by hereditary right. Hereditary ...
Notes
Sources
*
*
*
, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arthur 02, Duke of Brittany
1261 births
1312 deaths
13th-century Breton people
14th-century dukes of Brittany
Dukes of Brittany
House of Dreux
Jure uxoris counts