William (died 834) was a magnate in the

Frankish Empire Francia, also called the Kingdom of the Franks ( la, Regnum Francorum), Frankish Kingdom, Frankland or Frankish Empire ( la, Imperium Francorum), was the largest post-Roman barbarian kingdom in Western Europe. It was ruled by the Franks dur ...

during the reign of his first cousin,

Louis the Pious Louis the Pious (german: Ludwig der Fromme; french: Louis le Pieux; 16 April 778 – 20 June 840), also called the Fair, and the Debonaire, was King of the Franks and co-emperor with his father, Charlemagne, from 813. He was also King of Aqui ...

. He was the

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: ...

from about 830 and, at the time of his death in battle, was Louis's

constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in criminal law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. A constable is commonly the rank of an officer within the police. Other peop ...

. His brother was Odo, Count of Orléans, and he was also a kinsman of

Bernard of Septimania Bernard (or Bernat) of Septimania (795–844), son of William of Gellone, was the Frankish Duke of Septimania and Count of Barcelona from 826 to 832 and again from 835 to his execution. He was also count of Carcassonne from 837. He was appointed t ...

. In 834, the emperor's son, Lothair rebelled, supported by Count

Lambert I of Nantes Lambert I (died 836) was the Count of Nantes and Prefect of the Breton March between 818 and 831 and Duke of Spoleto between 834 and 836. Lambert succeeded his father Guy. Lambert participated in an expedition undertaken by Louis the Pious in 81 ...

and

Matfrid Matfrid (died 836) was the Frankish count of Orléans in the reign of Emperor Louis the Pious. He is usually thought to have been the first of the lineage known to historians as the Matfridings (German ''Matfridinger'' or ''Matfriede''). Matfrid wa ...

, the former Count of Orléans. The emperor sent an army against them under the leadership of William and Odo. A battle took place in the

Touraine Touraine (; ) is one of the traditional provinces of France. Its capital was Tours. During the political reorganization of French territory in 1790, Touraine was divided between the departments of Indre-et-Loire, :Loir-et-Cher, Indre and Vie ...

after Whitsunday (25 May), at which both William and Odo died, along with several other notables: a certain Count Fulbert, Count Guy of Maine and Abbot Theoto of Saint-Martin, the imperial archchancellor. The historian

Adrevald of Fleury Adrevald ( – 878) was a Benedictine monk and writer. He was born in a village near the Abbey of Fleury, which he later entered as a monk. He acquired considerable reputation by his writings, especially ''Opusculum de corpore et sanguine Domini'', ...

referred to these men as "leaders of war" (''ductores belli''). MGH, Scriptores, 15.1, p. 489, ch. 21: ''ductores belli, Odonem fratremque illius Willelmum comitem Blesensium, Teutonem denique abbatem Sancti Martini, Guidonem comitem Coenomannensem cum multis aliis amplae opinionis viris mortem oppetiisse'' ("leaders of war, Odo and his brother William, count of Blois, and Theoto, abbot of Saint-Martin, Guy, count of Maine, with many other men of high esteem met death"). Although William is also named in the ''

Annales Bertiniani ''Annales Bertiniani'' (''Annals of Saint Bertin'') are late Carolingian, Frankish annals that were found in the Abbey of Saint Bertin, Saint-Omer, France, after which they are named. Their account is taken to cover the period 830-82, thus contin ...

'' and the ''

Vita Hludovici ''Vita Hludovici'' or ''Vita Hludovici Imperatoris'' (The Life of Louis or the Life of the Emperor Louis) is an anonymous biography of Louis the Pious, Holy Roman Emperor and King of the Franks from AD 814 to 840. Author The work was written ...

'', he is not mentioned by

Nithard Nithard (c. 795–844), a Frankish historian, was the son of Charlemagne's daughter Bertha. His father was Angilbert. Life Nithard was born sometime around the year Charlemagne was crowned '' Imperator Augustus'' in December 800. He was probably r ...

in his account of the battle.

Notes

834 deaths Counts of Blois Year of birth unknown 9th-century French people {{S-end