Dirk VI, Count Of Holland
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Dirk VI (c. 11145 August 1157) was
Count of Holland The counts of Holland ruled over the County of Holland in the Low Countries between the 10th and the 16th century. The Frisian origins While the Frisian kingdom had comprised most of the present day Netherlands, the later province of Friesland ...
between 1121 and 1157, at first, during his minority, under the regency of his mother Petronilla. He was the son of Count Floris II. After his death he was succeeded by his eldest son Floris III. He married Sofie of Salm, Countess of Rheineck and Bentheim. She was heiress of Bentheim, which she ruled together with her husband and which was inherited by the couple's second son Otto after his parents' death.


Petronilla's regency

When his father died in 1122, Dirk was only 7 years old and his mother, Petronilla, governed the county as regent. In 1123 she supported the uprising of her half-brother, Lothair of Süpplingenburg, Duke of Saxony against
Emperor Henry V Henry V (; probably 11 August 1081 or 1086 – 23 May 1125) was King of Germany (from 1099 to 1125) and Holy Roman Emperor (from 1111 to 1125), as the fourth and last ruler of the Salian dynasty. He was made co-ruler by his father, Henry IV, in ...
. After Lothair had been elected king of Germany himself in 1125 he returned
Leiden Leiden ( ; ; in English language, English and Archaism, archaic Dutch language, Dutch also Leyden) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Nethe ...
and Rijnland to Holland, which had both been awarded to the
Bishop of Utrecht List of bishops and archbishops of the diocese and archdioceses of Utrecht. Medieval diocese from 695 to 1580 Founders of the Utrecht diocese * * * * * Bishops * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ...
in 1064 (Later on during Dirk's reign the wooden fortifications at Leiden would be replaced by a stone castle). Because Petronilla saw little ability or ambition in Dirk as he grew up, she stalled letting go of the regency when he reached adulthood (fifteen years old), until her favourite son Floris could attempt to take over the county.


Floris ''the Black''

This Floris, called "the Black" () did possess those qualities which his older brother seemed to lack. He openly revolted against him and was from 1129 to 1131 recognised as Count of Holland by, amongst others, King Lothair and Andreas of Kuyk,
Bishop of Utrecht List of bishops and archbishops of the diocese and archdioceses of Utrecht. Medieval diocese from 695 to 1580 Founders of the Utrecht diocese * * * * * Bishops * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ...
. After March 1131 Dirk again appears as count of Holland alongside him, the brothers apparently having reached an agreement. Only a few months later, however, in August 1131 Floris accepted an offer from the West-Frisians to become lord of their entire territory, which reignited the conflict with his brother. After this the people from
Kennemerland Kennemerland () is a coastal region in the northwestern Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It includes the sand dunes north of the North Sea Canal, as well as the dunes of Zuid-Kennemerland National Park. History Kennemerland gets ...
joined the revolt as well. A year later, in August 1132 King Lothair intervened and managed to reconcile the brothers. This did not pacify the Frisians however, who continued their revolt, which was nonetheless eventually suppressed. Later that year, on 26 October Floris was ambushed near
Utrecht Utrecht ( ; ; ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city of the Netherlands, as well as the capital and the most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Utrecht (province), Utrecht. The ...
and murdered by Herman and Godfried of Kuyk, leaving Dirk to rule the county on his own. King Lothair punished this act by having Herman and Godfried's castle razed and banishing the two. Floris was buried at
Rijnsburg Abbey Rijnsburg Abbey () was a Benedictine Order, Benedictine nunnery in Rijnsburg, Netherlands, active between 1133 until 1574. History It was founded by Petronilla of Lorraine, regent of Holland, in 1133 and was thereafter under the protection of the ...
.


Imperial affairs

Count Dirk had supported his relative Lothair of Saxony against
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and with his assistance parts of Holland were regained that had been awarded to and occupied by the
Bishopric of Utrecht The archdiocese, archbishopric, diocese or Bishopric of Utrecht may refer to: * Diocese of Utrecht (695–1580) The historic Diocese of Utrecht was a diocese of the Latin Church (or Western) of the Catholic Church from 695 to 1580, and from 1559 ...
in 1064. Furthermore, with help from King Conrad III and support of the counts of
Cleves Kleve (; traditional ; ; ; ; ; Low Rhenish: ''Kleff'') is a town in the Lower Rhine region of northwestern Germany near the Dutch border and the River Rhine. From the 11th century onwards, Cleves was capital of a county and later a duchy ...
and
Guelders The Duchy of Guelders (; ; ) is a historical duchy, previously county, of the Holy Roman Empire, located in the Low Countries. Geography The duchy was named after the town of Geldern (''Gelder'') in present-day Germany. Though the present pr ...
and his brother-in-law Otto II, Count of Rheineck, he was able to get a candidate of his own (Herman of Horne) recognised as bishop of Utrecht.


Ecclesiastical affairs and pilgrimage

Dirk and his mother supported the abbeys of Egmond and
Rijnsburg Rijnsburg () is a village in the eastern part of the municipality of Katwijk, in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. It lies on the Oude Rijn (Utrecht and South Holland), Oude Rijn, from which it takes its name. History Rij ...
, which flourished in this period. The nunnery at Rijnsburg was established by Petronilla in 1133. Two of her granddaughters, Sophie and Hedwig later joined it, one of them as abbess. Dirk and
Sophie Sophie is a feminine given name, another version of Sophia, from the Greek word for "wisdom". People with the name Born in the Middle Ages * Sophie, Countess of Bar (c. 1004 or 1018–1093), sovereign Countess of Bar and lady of Mousson * Soph ...
went on a
pilgrimage A pilgrimage is a travel, journey to a holy place, which can lead to a personal transformation, after which the pilgrim returns to their daily life. A pilgrim (from the Latin ''peregrinus'') is a traveler (literally one who has come from afar) w ...
to the
Holy Land The term "Holy Land" is used to collectively denote areas of the Southern Levant that hold great significance in the Abrahamic religions, primarily because of their association with people and events featured in the Bible. It is traditionall ...
in 1138 and it was on this pilgrimage that their first son Dirk, called ''Peregrinus'' ("Pilgrim"), was born, but he died when he was only 12 years old. On the return journey, in 1139, Dirk visited
Pope Innocent II Pope Innocent II (; died 24 September 1143), born Gregorio Papareschi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 14 February 1130 to his death in 1143. His election as Pope was controversial, and the first eight years o ...
and asked for the abbeys of Egmond and Rijnsburg to be placed under direct papal authority and this request was granted. In this way Dirk removed the Bishop of Utrecht's influence over those abbeys. Dirk's mother, Petronilla, died in 1144 and was buried at Rijnsburg. In 1155 the Frisians revolted again and plundered the area of
Santpoort Santpoort is a town in North Holland, Netherlands consisting of two parts, with a combined population of 10,610 in 2023: * Santpoort-Noord, a village with a population of 7,270 in 2023 * Santpoort-Zuid, a village with a population of 3,385 in 2023 ...
nearby
Haarlem Haarlem (; predecessor of ''Harlem'' in English language, English) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the Provinces of the Nether ...
, but they were beaten back by the knights of Haarlem and Osdorp. In 1156 Count Dirk VI resolved the protracted conflict between the abbeys of Egmond and
Echternach Echternach (, ; or locally ) is a commune with town status in the canton of Echternach, in eastern Luxembourg. Echternach lies near the border with Germany, and is the oldest town in Luxembourg. History The town grew around the Abbey of Echt ...
, which had been ongoing ever since the establishment of Egmond in 923 by Count Dirk I. At the time of the establishment the Count had granted Egmond the rights over all the churches in the area, which had previously belonged to Echternach. Repeated attempts were made to regain these lost rights, initially with little result, but in 1063 William I, Bishop of Utrecht, decided to split the rights between the two abbeys. This division was unacceptable to Egmond however, and its abbots pressed the counts for compensation. Finally, in 1156, Dirk VI resolved to give all the rights over the churches to Egmond again, compensating Echternach with the rights over the proceeds of the church in
Vlaardingen Vlaardingen () is a large town and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in South Holland in the Netherlands. It is located on the north bank of the Nieuwe Maas river at the confluence with the Oude Maas. The municipality admin ...
and lands on the island of
Schouwen Schouwen is the name of a former island of the Dutch province of Zeeland.Schouwen-Duiveland ...
. Although the abbot of Egmond was a witness at the agreement, it seems he may have attended under pressure, as only a little while later he
excommunicated Excommunication is an institutional act of religious censure used to deprive, suspend, or limit membership in a religious community or to restrict certain rights within it, in particular those of being in communion with other members of the con ...
both Count Dirk and his son Floris. This perhaps is the reason that Dirk, unlike his forefathers, was not buried at Egmond, but at Rijnsburg.


Family

Count Dirk VI married Sophie of Salm, Countess of Bentheim some time before 1137. She was a daughter of Otto of Salm, Count of Rheineck and Bentheim, son of Hermann of Salm, King of Germany. Dirk and Sophie had (at least) nine children: #Dirk, known as Pilgrim (''Peregrinus''), born 1138/1139 – died 1151. # Floris, born ca. 1140 – died 1 August 1190 at
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 ...
(succeeded his father as Floris III, Count of Holland, in 1157). #Otto, born 1140/1145 – died 1208 or after (inherited his mother's county and became Count of Bentheim). #
Baldwin Baldwin may refer to: People * Baldwin (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the surname Places Canada * Baldwin, York Regional Municipality, Ontario * Baldwin, Ontario, in Sudbury District * Baldwin's Mills, ...
, born ca. 1149 – died 30 April 1196 (firstly, Provost at St Maria in Utrecht; secondly,
Bishop of Utrecht List of bishops and archbishops of the diocese and archdioceses of Utrecht. Medieval diocese from 695 to 1580 Founders of the Utrecht diocese * * * * * Bishops * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ...
from 1178 until his death). #
Dirk A dirk is a long-bladed thrusting dagger.Chisholm, Hugh (ed.); "Dagger", ''Encyclopædia Britannica'', 11th ed., Vol. VII, New York, NY: Cambridge University Press (1910), p. 729. Historically, it gained its name from the Highland dirk (Scott ...
, born ca. 1152 – died 28 August 1197 in
Pavia Pavia ( , ; ; ; ; ) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy, in Northern Italy, south of Milan on the lower Ticino (river), Ticino near its confluence with the Po (river), Po. It has a population of c. 73,086. The city was a major polit ...
(also became Bishop of Utrecht, in 1197, but died the same year). #Sophie (in 1186 she became abbess of Rijnsburg Abbey, established by her grandmother). #Hedwig, died 28 August 1167 (a nun at Rijnsburg). #Gertrud (died in infancy). #Petronilla. Also, it was alleged that Count Dirk had fathered an illegitimate son, whose name was Robert.


Notes


Sources

* *
Dirk VI of Holland at www.genealogie-mittelalter.de
{{Authority control 1110s births 1157 deaths People excommunicated by the Catholic Church Counts of Holland Christians of the Crusades Medieval child monarchs Burials at Rijnsburg Abbey 12th-century nobility from the Holy Roman Empire 12th-century counts in Europe Jure uxoris counts