Stephen I (1133–1190), Count of

Sancerre Sancerre () is a medieval hilltop town and commune in the department of Cher, Centre-Val de Loire, France, overlooking the river Loire. It is a member of Les Plus Beaux Villages de France (The Most Beautiful Villages of France) Association, no ...

(1151–1190), inherited Sancerre on his father's death. His elder brothers Henry Ι and Theobald V received Champagne and Blois. His holdings were the smallest among the brothers (although

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 ...

, the youngest, received no land and entered the church instead).

Biography

Born in 1133, Stephen was the third son of Count

Theobald II of Champagne Theobald the Great (1090–1152) was count of Blois and of Chartres as Theobald IV from 1102 and was Count of Champagne and of Brie as Theobald II from 1125. Theobald held Auxerre, Maligny, Ervy, Troyes and Châteauvillain as fiefs from Odo ...

and

Matilda of Carinthia Matilda of Carinthia (Mathilde of Sponheim; died 13 December 1160 or 1161) was a daughter of Engelbert, Duke of Carinthia and his wife Uta of Passau. She married Theobald II, Count of Champagne in 1123. Her children with Theobald were: * Henry I ...

Travel to Jerusalem

In 1169, a delegation led by Archbishop

Frederick de la Roche Frederick of La Roche (died 30 October 1174) was the sixth Latin archbishop of Tyre (1164–1174), chancellor of the kingdom of Jerusalem (c. 1150), and the chief diplomat of King Amalric. He was a Lorrainer, from the family of the . Bishop of Ac ...

arrived in France to seek a husband for Sibylla, the daughter of King

Amalric of Jerusalem Amalric (; 113611 July 1174), formerly known in historiography as , was the king of Jerusalem from 1163 until his death. He was, in the opinion of his Muslim adversaries, the bravest and cleverest of the crusader kings. Amalric was the younger ...

. Stephen accepted the offer and traveled east with Duke

Hugh III of Burgundy Hugh III (1142 – 25 August 1192) was Duke of Burgundy between 1162 and 1192. As duke, Burgundy was invaded by King Philip II and Hugh was forced to sue for peace. Hugh then joined the Third Crusade, distinguishing himself at Arsuf and Acre, wh ...

in 1170. He brought with him the monies raised by King

Louis VII Louis VII (1120 – 18 September 1180), called the Younger or the Young () to differentiate him from his father Louis VI, was King of France from 1137 to 1180. His first marriage was to Duchess Eleanor of Aquitaine, one of the wealthiest and ...

's tax of 1166, which had been levied for four or five years. Since it was anticipated that Stephen might someday be king in right of his wife—Amalric's only son,

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, ...

, was suspected of having

leprosy Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a Chronic condition, long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the Peripheral nervous system, nerves, respir ...

—the

High Court of Jerusalem The Haute Cour ({{langx, en, High Court) was the feudal council of the Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was sometimes also called the ''curia generalis'', the ''curia regis'', or, rarely, the ''parlement''. Composition of the court The Haute Cour was a ...

invited Stephen to decide the case of the division of the estate of the sonless Henry the Buffalo among his three daughters. Stephen divided it up equally, but ordered the younger two to do homage to the eldest. After several months in the Holy Land, Stephen refused to marry Sibylla and returned home.

Return to France

Stephen built a six-towered castle on the local hill and strengthened the fortifications of the town of Sancerre itself. In 1153, he married the daughter of

Godfrey of Donzy Godfrey may refer to: People * Godfrey (name), a given name and surname * Godfrey (comedian), American comedian, actor Places In the United States * Godfrey, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Godfrey, Illinois, a village * Godfrey, Kansas, an ...

, named Alice. By 1155, Stephen granted the

Customs of Lorris Customs is an authority or agency in a country responsible for collecting tariffs and for controlling the flow of goods, including animals, transports, personal effects, and hazardous items, into and out of a country. Traditionally, customs ...

to the merchants of the town and probably seven others. He was the ''de facto'' leader of a group of powerful baronial rebels against King Philip II between 1181 and 1185. In 1184, Stephen and a band of Brabançon mercenaries were defeated by the Philip and his

Confrères de la Paix Capuciati is the name (from ''caputium'', hood, the headgear which was one of their distinctive marks) of a short-lived Catholic confraternity also named Confrères de la Paix ("Confraternity of Peace"). They formed an organisation of warriors ded ...

, an organisation of warriors formed in 1182 in Le Puy dedicated to curbing feudal warfare. Stephen abolished

serfdom Serfdom was the status of many peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to manorialism and similar systems. It was a condition of debt bondage and indentured servitude with similarities to and differences from slavery. It developed du ...

in his domains by 1190.

Crusade

Stephen and his brother, Theobald, joined the

Third Crusade The Third Crusade (1189–1192) was an attempt led by King Philip II of France, King Richard I of England and Emperor Frederick Barbarossa to reconquer the Holy Land following the capture of Jerusalem by the Ayyubid sultan Saladin in 1187. F ...

in 1190. He died on 21 October 1190 at the Siege of Acre, and Theobald died there a few months later in January 1191.

Issue

Stephen and Alice had: *

William I William I may refer to: Kings * William the Conqueror (–1087), also known as William I, King of England * William I of Sicily (died 1166) * William I of Scotland (died 1214), known as William the Lion * William I of the Netherlands and Luxembour ...

, who succeeded him as Count of Sancerre. *Jean *Stephen, lord of Saint-Brisson

References

Sources

* * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Stephen 01 of Sancerre House of Blois 1133 births 1190 deaths Christians of the Third Crusade Counts of Sancerre