Peter of Courtenay ( ( – 1249 or 1250 in

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

) was a French knight and a member of the

Capetian House of Courtenay The Capetian House of Courtenay, also known simply as the House of Courtenay, was a royal house and cadet branch of the Capetian dynasty. Founded by Peter I of Courtenay, a son of King Louis VI of France, the family drew its name from the lordsh ...

, a

cadet line A cadet branch consists of the male-line descendants of a monarch's or patriarch's younger sons ( cadets). In the ruling dynasties and noble families of much of Europe and Asia, the family's major assets (realm, titles, fiefs, property and incom ...

of the royal

House of Capet The House of Capet () ruled the Kingdom of France from 987 to 1328. It was the most senior line of the Capetian dynasty – itself a derivative dynasty from the Robertians and the Karlings. The direct line of the House of Capet came to an ...

. From 1239 until his death, he was the ruling Lord of ConchesConches is much more likely to be

Conches-sur-Gondoire Conches-sur-Gondoire () is a commune on the Gondoire river in Brie, in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. It is roughly from Paris. Its remarkable sights include a monastery church of the 12th ...

in Seine-et-Marne rather than

Conches-en-Ouche Conches-en-Ouche (, literally ''Conches in Ouche'') is a commune in the Eure '' département'' in northern France. Geography It is located by the Rouloir river, southwest of Évreux in the Normandy region. The town is located on a plateau kn ...

in Normandy (no family links and too far away from the other fiefs). and

Mehun-sur-Yèvre Mehun-sur-Yèvre (, literally ''Mehun on Yèvre'') is a commune in the Cher department in central France. Population Economy The French porcelain manufacturer Pillivuyt is based locally. See also *Communes of the Cher department The fo ...

Life

Peter was the eldest of five sons of Robert of Courtenay, Lord of Champignelles and his wife Matilda of Mehun. From his parents he inherited the castle of Conches and Mehun. On 25 August 1248, he sailed with his cousin, King

Louis IX of France Louis IX (25 April 1214 – 25 August 1270), also known as Saint Louis, was King of France from 1226 until his death in 1270. He is widely recognized as the most distinguished of the Direct Capetians. Following the death of his father, Louis VI ...

, from

Aigues-Mortes Aigues-Mortes (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Gard Departments of France, department in the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region of southern France. The medieval Ramparts of Aigues-Mortes, city walls surrounding th ...

to fight the

Seventh Crusade The Seventh Crusade (1248–1254) was the first of the two Crusades led by Louis IX of France. Also known as the Crusade of Louis IX to the Holy Land, it aimed to reclaim the Holy Land by attacking Egypt, the main seat of Muslim power in the Nea ...

, during which he died. Most historians think he died during the battle for the city of

Al Mansurah Mansoura (; ' , rural: ) is a city in Egypt located on the eastern bank of the Damietta branch of the Nile river. The city is the capital of the Dakahlia Governorate and has a population of 621,953 as of 2021. Etymology ''Mansoura'' in Arabic ...

on 8 February 1250. On that day, Count

Robert I Robert I may refer to: * Robert I, Duke of Neustria (697–748) *Robert I of France (866–923), King of France, 922–923, rebelled against Charles the Simple * Rollo, Duke of Normandy (c. 846 – c. 930; reigned 911–927) * Robert I Archbishop o ...

of Artois led a vanguard of Crusaders in a spontaneous attack on the city. The vanguard was caught in a trap set by the defending

Mamluks Mamluk or Mamaluk (; (singular), , ''mamālīk'' (plural); translated as "one who is owned", meaning "slave") were non-Arab, ethnically diverse (mostly Turkic, Caucasian, Eastern and Southeastern European) enslaved mercenaries, slave-sold ...

and all attackers were killed. However, the chronicler

Jean de Joinville Jean de Joinville (, 1 May 1224 – 24 December 1317) was one of the great chroniclers of medieval France. He is most famous for writing the ''Life of Saint Louis'', a biography of Louis IX of France that chronicled the Seventh Crusade.' Biog ...

maintains Peter of Courtenay died on an earlier date. After the conquest of the Egytion port city of

Damietta Damietta ( ' ) is a harbor, port city and the capital of the Damietta Governorate in Egypt. It is located at the Damietta branch, an eastern distributary of the Nile Delta, from the Mediterranean Sea, and about north of Cairo. It was a Cath ...

in June 1249, a large part of the crusader army camped outside the city wall, until they were ready to march to Al Mansurah in the autumn. The Sultan of Egypt offered a reward of one gold

solidus Solidus (Latin for "solid") may refer to: * Solidus (coin) The ''solidus'' (Latin 'solid'; : ''solidi'') or ''nomisma'' () was a highly pure gold coin issued in the Later Roman Empire and Byzantine Empire. It was introduced in the early ...

for the head of each crusader. During the night, Saracens would sneak into the Crusader camp, kill sleeping Crusaders in their tents, and steal their severed heads. According to Joinville, Peter of Courtenay was the victim of one such attack. However, Joinville may be mistaken. One should consider that he wrote his chronicle decades after the fact, and that Peter de Courtenay is mentioned twice later in the chronicle, in connection with the Battle of Al Mansurah.It is possible that Joinville confused Peter with his cousin Guillaume de Courtenay, Lord of Yerre, who also participated in the Seventh Crusade, and survived (see ''Histoire généalogique de la maison de France'', p. 517)

Marriage and issue

Peter was married to Pétronille (d.1289), a daughter of Gaucher of Joigny and

Amicie de Montfort Amicie de Montfort (before 1210 – 1253) was a French noblewoman and nun. In the Montfort family, which had many people called Simon or Amicie, she became widely known as the daughter of the man, Simon de Montfort, 5th Earl of Leicester, who foug ...

. They had: * Amicie (d. 1275 in Rome; buried in St. Peter's Basilica), Lady

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 ...

of Conches and Mehun, married in 1262 to Count Robert II of Artois (d. 1302).

Notes and references

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Courtenay, Peter of, Lord of Conches

Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...

Lords in France Christians of the Sixth Crusade Christians of the Seventh Crusade 1210s births 13th-century deaths 13th-century French people Year of death uncertain