Marie I or Mary (1136 – 25 July 1182 in St Austrebert,

Montreuil Montreuil is a French place name derived from Medieval Latin , "Little Monastery". It most often refers to Montreuil, Seine-Saint-Denis (aka Montreuil-sous-Bois), a French commune in the eastern suburbs of Paris, Seine-St-Denis department. It ma ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

) was the ''

suo jure ''Suo jure'' is a Latin phrase, used in English to mean 'in his own right' or 'in her own right'. In most nobility-related contexts, it means 'in her own right', since in those situations the phrase is normally used of women; in practice, especi ...

Countess of Boulogne Count of Boulogne was a historical title in the Kingdom of France. The city of Boulogne-sur-Mer became the centre of the County of Boulogne during the ninth century. Little is known of the early counts, but the first holder of the title is rec ...

from 1159 to 1170. She also held the post of Abbess of Romsey for five years until her abduction by

Matthew of Alsace Matthew, Count of Boulogne (–1173), also known as Matthew of Alsace, was the second son of Thierry, Count of Flanders and Sibylla of Anjou. Matthew forcibly abducted the nun Marie de Boulogne, daughter of Stephen, King of England, and constr ...

, who forced her to marry him. She is one of several possible identities of the author

Marie de France Marie de France (floruit, fl. 1160–1215) was a poet, likely born in France, who lived in England during the late 12th century. She lived and wrote at an unknown court, but she and her work were almost certainly known at the royal court of Kin ...

Early years

Marie was the younger daughter of King

Stephen of England Stephen (1092 or 1096 – 25 October 1154), often referred to as Stephen of Blois, was King of England from 22 December 1135 to his death in 1154. He was Count of Boulogne '' jure uxoris'' from 1125 until 1147 and Duke of Normandy from 113 ...

and his wife

Matilda I, Countess of Boulogne Matilda I of Boulogne ( – 3 May 1152) was Countess of Boulogne in her own right from 1125 and Queen of England from the accession of her husband, King Stephen, in 1135 until her death in 1152. She supported Stephen in his struggle for the ...

. She was born in 1136, one year after her father had succeeded to the English throne. His reign was to be marked by the civil war known as "

The Anarchy The Anarchy was a civil war in England and Duchy of Normandy, Normandy between 1138 and 1153, which resulted in a widespread breakdown in law and order. The conflict was a war of succession precipitated by the accidental death of William Adel ...

" during which he fought a series of battles to retain the crown which was claimed by his cousin

Empress Matilda Empress Matilda (10 September 1167), also known as Empress Maud, was one of the claimants to the English throne during the civil war known as the Anarchy. The daughter and heir of Henry I, king of England and ruler of Normandy, she went to ...

. Marie had three brothers,

Eustace Eustace ( ) is the rendition in English of two phonetically similar Greek given names: *Εὔσταχυς (''Eústachys'') meaning "fruitful", "fecund"; literally "abundant in grain"; its Latin equivalents are ''Fæcundus/Fecundus'' *Εὐστά ...

William William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...

, Baldwin, and one sister, Matilda.

Abbess

Marie became a novice at the Priory of Lillechurch in

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

, but later transferred to

Romsey Abbey Romsey Abbey is the name currently given to a parish church of the Church of England in Romsey, a market town in Hampshire, England. Until the Dissolution of the Monasteries it was the church of a Benedictine Order, Benedictine nunnery. The surv ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

. The abbey had been rebuilt by her uncle

Henry of Blois Henry of Blois ( c. 1096 8 August 1171), often known as Henry of Winchester, was Abbot of Glastonbury Abbey from 1126, and Bishop of Winchester from 1129 to his death. He was the son of Stephen II, Count of Blois and Adela of Normandy, a yo ...

, Bishop of Winchester. It was at Romsey that she became a nun sometime between 1148 and 1155. She was elected Abbess of Romsey in 1155, the year following her father's death and the subsequent ascension to the English throne of Empress Matilda's son

Henry II Henry II may refer to: Kings * Saint Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor (972–1024), crowned King of Germany in 1002, of Italy in 1004 and Emperor in 1014 *Henry II of England (1133–89), reigned from 1154 *Henry II of Jerusalem and Cyprus (1271–1 ...

. About four years later, on 11 October 1159, her brother William died in

Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...

. As his marriage to

Isabel de Warenne, Countess of Surrey Isabel is a female name of Iberian origin. Isabelle is a name that is similar, but it is of French origin. It originates as the medieval Spanish form of '' Elisabeth'' (ultimately Hebrew ''Elisheba''). Arising in the 12th century, it became popul ...

had been childless, Marie, his only surviving sibling, succeeded as the ''suo jure'' Countess of Boulogne.

Countess of Boulogne

abducted Marie from the abbey in 1160, and forced her to marry him in defiance of her religious vows. He therefore became ''

jure uxoris ''Jure uxoris'' (a Latin phrase meaning "by right of (his) wife"), citing . describes a title of nobility used by a man because his wife holds the office or title '' suo jure'' ("in her own right"). Similarly, the husband of an heiress could beco ...

'' Count of Boulogne and co-ruler. On 18 December 1161,

Pope Alexander III Pope Alexander III (c. 1100/1105 – 30 August 1181), born Roland (), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 7 September 1159 until his death in 1181. A native of Siena, Alexander became pope after a Papal election, ...

wrote a letter to the Archbishop of Rheims in which he discussed Marie's abduction by Matthew of Alsace and her subsequent constrained marriage. Marie's marriage to Matthew was annulled in 1170. This was the same year that she gave birth to their younger daughter, Mathilde, in

Louvain Leuven (, , ), also called Louvain (, , ), is the capital and largest city of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located about east of Brussels. The municipality itself comprises the sub-municipalities of ...

Later life

Following the annulment, Marie re-entered the religious life as a

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

nun at St. Austrebert, Montreuil, where she died on 25 July 1182 at the age of about 46. Her former husband Matthew continued to reign as Count of Boulogne until his death in 1173 when their eldest daughter Ida succeeded as countess. Following the death of Ida's daughter, Matilda II, the county of Boulogne eventually passed to

Adelaide of Brabant Adelaide of Brabant (also known as Alix of Brabant, Aleyde de Brabant, Alix of Louvain or Adelheid van Brabant), born around 1190, died in 1265, was Countess of Boulogne from 1262 to 1265, the third reigning Countess in succession. She was the dau ...

, daughter of Marie's second daughter, Mathilde. Marie, among others, has been identified as the poet

Issue

Marie and

had: *

Ida, Countess of Boulogne Ida of Boulogne (c. 1160 – 1216) was suo jure Countess of Boulogne from 1173 until her death. Life Ida was the elder daughter of Matthew of Alsace and Marie I, Countess of Boulogne. Her maternal grandparents were King Stephen of England ...

(1160/1161 – 21 April 1216), married firstly Gerard of Guelders; secondly Berthold IV of Zahringen; and thirdly Count

Renaud de Dammartin Renaud de Dammartin (Reginald of Boulogne) (c. 1165 – 1227) was Count of Boulogne from 1190, Count of Dammartin from 1200 to 1214 and Count of Aumale from 1204 to 1214. He was the eldest son of Alberic III of Dammartin and Mathilde of Clerm ...

, by whom she had one daughter,

Matilda II of Boulogne Mahaut or Matilda II of Boulogne (also known as ''Mathilde'', ''Maud de Dammartin''; 1202 – January 1259) was Countess of Boulogne in her own right and Queen of Portugal by marriage to King Afonso III from 1248 until their divorce in 1253. Sh ...

, who succeeded her as countess. *

Mathilde of Flanders Matilda of Boulogne (1170 – 16 October 1210) was the younger daughter of Matthew, Count of Boulogne, and Marie I, Countess of Boulogne. Matilda became Duchess of Brabant by her marriage to Henry I, Duke of Brabant. Matilda's parents ...

(1170 – 16 October 1210), married in 1179

Henry I, Duke of Brabant Henry I (, ; c. 1165 – 5 September 1235), named "The Courageous", was a member of the House of Reginar and first duke of Brabant from 1183/84 until his death. Early life Henry was possibly born in Leuven (Louvain), the son of Count Godf ...

References

Sources

* * * * * *