William the Simple ( – c. 1150) was
Count of Blois
Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...
and
Count of Chartres from 1102 to 1107, and
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 Sully.
Biography
William was the eldest son of
Stephen, Count of Blois and
Adela of Normandy, daughter of
William the Conqueror
William the Conqueror (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), sometimes called William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England (as William I), reigning from 1066 until his death. A descendant of Rollo, he was D ...
. William was the older brother of
Theobald II, Count of Champagne;
Stephen, King 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 1135 ...
; and
Henry, Bishop of Winchester.
In the absence of male issue to
Henry I of England
Henry I ( – 1 December 1135), also known as Henry Beauclerc, was King of England from 1100 to his death in 1135. He was the fourth son of William the Conqueror and was educated in Latin and the liberal arts. On William's death in 1087, Henr ...
, William was the eldest legitimate grandson of William the Conqueror. He would thus have been the principal rival to Henry's daughter
Matilda to inherit the throne after Henry's death. However, William was not considered as a candidate for the
English crown. Several historians have taken the view that he was passed over because of mental deficiency; hence his soubriquet "William the Simple". Though widely argued, this has never been clearly substantiated.
William was at first groomed to inherit the comital thrones of Blois and Chartres, and was designated count shortly before his father's departure on his second crusade in 1102. During his mother's dispute with the Chartres cathedral chapter (1102–1104), William burst in the cathedral demanding the burghers of Chartres take an oath to kill the canons, harass
Ivo of Chartres
Ivo of Chartres, canon regular, Can.Reg. (also Ives, Yves, or Yvo; ; 1040 – 23 December 1115), was a French canon regular and abbot who then served as the Bishop of Chartres from 1090 until his death. He was an important authority in Catholic c ...
, and secure episcopal lands.
William was soon removed from wide-ranging comital duties by his mother, and when her second son Theobald came of age, around 1107, Adela elevated him to the position of Count of Blois-Chartres. William retired to his wife's lands in
Sully. Despite his removal from comital duties, he supported his brother Theobald's familial ambitions.
Marriage
On 13 November 1104, William married
Agnes of Sully, heiress to the lordship of
Sully-sur-Loire, chosen as his wife by his mother, Adela.
Children of Agnes and William:
*
Eudes Archambaud
*Ranier (Rodolphus), Prior of
La Charité-sur-Loire, Abbot of
Cluny
*Margaret (c. 1105–1145). She married
Henry I, Count of Eu, about 1122.
*
Henry, Abbot of
Fécamp,
Bishop-designate of Salisbury, and
Archbishop-elect of York
*Elizabeth (died 1128), Abbess of
Sainte-Trinité
Notes
References
Sources
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{{s-end
Counts of Blois
Counts of Chartres
Lords of Sully
House of Sully
1080s births
1150s deaths
House of Blois
Jure uxoris lords
French royalty and nobility with disabilities