Gilles (Ægidius) (died before 1193), was
Count of Montaigu and Clermont, through his father
Count Godefried of Montaigu, and
Count of Duras, through his wife Juliane, daughter of
Count Otto of Duras. Gilles was also Seigneur of
Rochefort
Rochefort () may refer to:
Places France
* Rochefort, Charente-Maritime, in the Charente-Maritime department
** Arsenal de Rochefort, a former naval base and dockyard
* Rochefort, Savoie in the Savoie department
* Rochefort-du-Gard, in the G ...
,
Jodoigne
Jodoigne (; ; ) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Walloon Brabant, Belgium.
On January 1, 2006, Jodoigne had a total population of 12,440. The total area is which gives a population density of .
The municipalit ...
and
advocate
An advocate is a professional in the field of law. List of country legal systems, Different countries and legal systems use the term with somewhat differing meanings. The broad equivalent in many English law–based jurisdictions could be a ba ...
of the
abbey of Saint-Trond. He was thus an important noble in
Lower Lotharingia
The Duchy of Lower Lotharingia, also called Northern Lotharingia, Lower Lorraine or Northern Lorraine (and also referred to as '' Lothier'' or '' Lottier'' .
In 1174, Gilles also married Laurette de Looz, daughter of
Louis I, Count of Looz, and his wife Agnes von Metz. They divorced childless in 1176.
Gilles contracted leprosy, giving up most of his lands to his brothers
Conon
Conon () (before 443 BC – ) was an Athenian general at the end of the Peloponnesian War, who led the Athenian naval forces when they were defeated by a Peloponnesian fleet in the crucial Battle of Aegospotami; later he contributed significantly ...
and Pierre. Gilles was succeeded as Count of Montaigu, Clermont and Duras by his brother Conon, possibly as early as 1175. In a charter dated 1175 donating property to the
Knights Hospitaller
The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), is a Catholic military order. It was founded in the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem in the 12th century and had headquarters there ...
, Gilles is referred to as former count and his brothers Pierre and Conon as Counts of Montaigu and Duras, respectively. He kept the lordship of Jodoigne and was then at least once referred to as count of Jodoigne. (His mother had also referred to herself as countess of Jodoigne.
[Hanon de Louvet Vol.1 p.71])
Leprosy, however, was not the end of his military life, according to
Gislebert of Mons
Gislebert (or Gilbert) of Mons ( 1150 – 1225) was a clergyman in the administration of the County of Hainaut and a chronicler whose ''Chronicon Hanoniense'' (''Chronicle of Hainaut'') is an essential eyewitness source for events affecting his pat ...
, as he and his brother Conon fought the duke of Louvain, for seizing Duras and Jodoigne, his only remaining allod. They were able to recover Duras. Moreover, he writes of his capture in the town of Namur by
Baldwin V, Count of Hainaut
Baldwin V of Hainaut (1150 – 17 December 1195) was count of Hainaut (1171–1195), margrave of Namur as Baldwin I (1189–1195) and count of Flanders as Baldwin VIII (1191–1195).
History
He was the son of Baldwin IV, Count of Hainaut. In t ...
, who held him captive for a long time.
Gilles and his brothers prepared to go on crusade, though Gilles probably never went ahead with this plan. None of the brothers had heirs, and so arrangements were made for their possessions.
References
Sources
*Hanon de Louvet (1941) ''Histoire de la Ville de Jodoigne''
* Wolters, Joseph Mathias, ''Notice Historique sur l’Ancien Comté de Duras en Hesbaie'', Gyselinck, 1855 (available o
Google Books
*{{citation, author=C. G. Roland, title=Les seigneurs et comtes de Rochefort, journal=Annales de la Société archéologique de Namur, volume=20, year=1893, url=https://archive.org/details/annalesdelasocie20soci/page/130, pages=63–141.
12th-century deaths
Counts of Montaigu
People from Lower Lotharingia