Marie d'Albret, Countess of Rethel, Countess of Nevers (25 March 1491 – 27 October 1549) 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 Rethel The first rulers of Rethel might have governed under the Abbey of Saint-Remi and later independently, before the county passed first to the counts of Nevers, then to the counts of Flanders, and finally to the dukes of Burgundy. In 1405 the county ...

, a title which she inherited at the age of nine upon the death of her mother, Charlotte 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 ...

, Sovereign Countess of Rethel, on 23 August 1500. She was the wife of Charles II of Cleves, Count of Nevers.

Family

Marie was born in the Chateau de Cuffy, France on 25 March 1491, the eldest child of Jean d'Albret, Sire of Orval, Governor of

Champagne Champagne (; ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, which demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, spe ...

, and Charlotte of Nevers, Countess of Rethel. She had two younger sisters, Charlotte d'Albret, wife of Odet de

Foix Foix ( , ; ; ) is a commune, the former capital of the County of Foix. It is the capital of the department of Ariège as it is the seat of the prefecture of that department. Foix is located in the Occitanie region of southwestern France ...

, Count of Comminges; and Hélène d'Albret (16 July 1495- 28 October 1519). She had two illegitimate half-siblings, Jacques d'Albret, Bishop of Nevers, and Françoise d'Albret, Abbess of Notre Dame de Nevers. Her paternal grandparents were Arnaud Amanieu d'Albret, Sire d'Orval (died 1463) and Isabelle de

La Tour d'Auvergne The House of La Tour d'Auvergne () was an important French nobility, French noble dynasty. Its senior branch, extinct in 1501, held two of the last large fiefs acquired by the French crown, the counties of count of Auvergne, Auvergne and count of ...

(died 8 September 1488), daughter of Bertrand V de La Tour,

Count of Auvergne This is a list of the various rulers of Auvergne. History In the 7th century Auvergne was disputed between the Franks and Aquitanians. It was later conquered by the Carolingians, and was integrated for a time into the kingdom of Aquitaine. The cou ...

and

Boulogne Boulogne-sur-Mer (; ; ; or ''Bononia''), often called just Boulogne (, ), is a coastal city in Hauts-de-France, Northern France. It is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Pas-de-Calais. Boul ...

and Jacquette du Peschin. Her maternal grandparents were

John II, Count of Nevers 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 * Secon ...

, Count of Rethel and Pauline de Bosse-Bretagne. Marie's paternal great-great-grandfather was

Charles d'Albret Charles I d'Albret (December 1368 – 25 October 1415) was the Lord of Albret and the Constable of France from 1402 until 1411, and again from 1413 until 1415. He was also the co-commander of the French army at the Battle of Agincourt where he ...

Constable of France The Constable of France (, from Latin for 'count of the stables') was lieutenant to the King of France, the first of the original five Great Officers of the Crown (along with seneschal, chamberlain, butler, and chancellor) and the commander-in ...

, who was killed while commanding the French troops at the

Battle of Agincourt The Battle of Agincourt ( ; ) was an English victory in the Hundred Years' War. It took place on 25 October 1415 (Saint Crispin's Day) near Azincourt, in northern France. The unexpected victory of the vastly outnumbered English troops agains ...

in 1415. Marie became the sovereign Countess of Rethel at the age of nine upon the death of her mother, Charlotte, at the Chateau de Meillan-en-Berry, who had herself held the ''suo jure'' title.

Marriage

On 25 January 1504, Marie married Charles II 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 ...

, Count of Nevers (died 17 August 1521), the son of

Engelbert, Count of Nevers Engelbert of Cleves, Count of Nevers (26 September 1462 – 21 November 1506) was the younger son of John I, Duke of Cleves and Elizabeth of Nevers, only surviving child of John II, Count of Nevers. In 1481, Engelbert was sent with a large army ...

and Charlotte of Bourbon-Vendôme. Upon her marriage she became the Countess of Nevers. Together Charles and Marie had: * Francis I of Cleves, 1st Duke of Nevers, Count of Rethel (2 September 1516- 13 February 1561) on 19 January 1538 at the

Louvre Palace The Louvre Palace (, ), often referred to simply as the Louvre, is an iconic French palace located on the Right Bank of the Seine in Paris, occupying a vast expanse of land between the Tuileries Gardens and the church of Saint-Germain l'Auxe ...

he married Marguerite of Bourbon-La Marche (26 October 1516- 20 October 1589), daughter of

Charles de Bourbon, Duke of Vendôme Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English and French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*karilaz'' (in Latin alphabet), whose meaning wa ...

and

Françoise of Alençon Françoise () is a French feminine given name (equivalent to the English Frances or Italian Francesca) and may refer to: * Anne Françoise Elizabeth Lange (1772–1816), French actress * Claudine Françoise Mignot (1624–1711), French adventure ...

, by whom he had six children including

Henriette of Cleves Henriette de La Marck (31 October 1542 – 24 June 1601), also known as Henriette of Cleves, was a French noblewoman and courtier. She was the 4th Duchess of Nevers, ''suo jure'' Countess of Rethel, and Princess of Mantua by her marriage with ...

(31 October 1542- 24 June 1601), heiress to the Duchy of Nevers and County of Rethel, who in her own turn married Louis I Gonzaga of

Mantua Mantua ( ; ; Lombard language, Lombard and ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Italian region of Lombardy, and capital of the Province of Mantua, eponymous province. In 2016, Mantua was designated as the "Italian Capital of Culture". In 2 ...

. Marie became a widow in 1521. In 1539, she took the title of Duchess of Nevers, although in point of fact, her son Francis was the ''suo jure'' duke. On 27 October 1549 Marie died at the Hotel de Nevers in Paris at the age of fifty-eight. Her son Francis succeeded her as Count of Rethel.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Albret, Marie d', Countess Of Rethel 1491 births 1549 deaths 16th-century women monarchs Counts of Rethel Countesses of Nevers

Marie Marie may refer to the following. People Given name * Marie (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name ** List of people named Marie * Marie (Japanese given name) Surname * Jean Gabriel-Marie, French compo ...

French suo jure nobility 16th-century peers of France