William VII (born Peter, ''Pierre-Guillaume'') (1023 – autumn 1058), called the Eagle (''Aigret'') or the Bold (''le Hardi''), was the

duke of Aquitaine The duke of Aquitaine (, , ) was the ruler of the medieval region of Aquitaine (not to be confused with modern-day Aquitaine) under the supremacy of Frankish, English, and later French kings. As successor states of the Visigothic Kingdom ( ...

and

count of Poitou Among the people who have borne the title of Count of Poitiers (, ; or ''Poitou'', in what is now France but in the Middle Ages became part of Aquitaine) are: *Bodilon * Warinus (638–677), son of Bodilon *Hatton (735-778) Carolingian Count ...

(as William V) between 1039 and his death, following his half-brother

Odo Odo is a name typically associated with historical figures from the Middle Ages and before. Odo is etymologically related to the names Otho and Otto, and to the French name Odon and modern version Eudes, and to the Italian names Ottone and Udo; a ...

. William was the third son of

William V of Aquitaine William the Great (; 969 – 31 January 1030) was duke of Aquitaine (as ) and count of Poitou (as or III) from 990 until his death. Upon the death of the emperor Henry II, he was offered the kingdom of Italy but declined to contest t ...

, the eldest by his third wife, Agnes of Burgundy. He was brother-in-law of the

Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans (disambiguation), Emperor of the Romans (; ) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period (; ), was the ruler and h ...

Henry III, who married his sister Agnes. His mother remarried to

Geoffrey Martel Geoffrey II, called Martel (1006 – 14 November 1060), son of Fulk the Black, was a French knight and Count of Anjou from 1040 to 1060 and Count of Vendôme from 1032 to 1056. He fought battles against William VII, Duke of Aquitaine, Theobald ...

Count of Anjou The Count of Anjou was the ruler of the County of Anjou, first granted by King Charles the Bald, Charles the Bald of West Francia in the 9th century to Robert the Strong. Ingelger and his son, Fulk the Red, were viscounts until Fulk assumed the t ...

, during his reign. William won his patrimony in a war with his half-brother Odo, who was killed in battle at Mauzé. He did not, however, succeed in occupying Gascony. Geoffrey Martel refused to concede to him the territories gained in the reigns of his predecessors. William set to work regaining his patrimony by force of arms. He was besieging Geoffrey in

Saumur Saumur () is a Communes of France, commune in the Maine-et-Loire Departments of France, department in western France. The town is located between the Loire and Thouet rivers, and is surrounded by the vineyards of Saumur itself, Chinon, Bourgu ...

when he died of

dysentery Dysentery ( , ), historically known as the bloody flux, is a type of gastroenteritis that results in bloody diarrhea. Other symptoms may include fever, abdominal pain, and a feeling of incomplete defecation. Complications may include dehyd ...

. He was married to Ermesinde, of unknown origins. Two daughters have been hypothesized to be children of this couple: *

Clementia In Roman mythology and ancient religion, Clementia is the goddess of clemency, leniency, mercy, forgiveness, penance, redemption, absolution, acquittal, and salvation. Description She was defined as a celebrated virtue of Julius Caesar, who w ...

, who married

Conrad I of Luxembourg Conrad I (c. 1040 – 8 August 1086) was Count of Luxembourg (1059–1086), succeeding his father, Giselbert. Conrad was embroiled in an argument with the Archbishop of Trier as to the abbaye Saint-Maximin in Trier which he had avowed. The arc ...

* Agnes, who married

Peter I of Savoy Peter I (c. 1048 – 9 August 1078) was count of Savoy and margrave of Turin jointly with his brother Amadeus II of Savoy from c. 1060 to 1078. He ruled only nominally, as true power was in the hands of his mother, Adelaide of Susa. Peter pres ...

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