Auxonne

Who he is

Name

Stephen II (Etienne II d'Auxonne)

Title

Count of Auxonne (he had styled himself count of Burgundy until Otto I forced him to drop it)

Since

not pinned (after his father Stephen I's death in 1173, as a child)

Born

about 1170 (not checked)

Family

Of the old comital house of Burgundy (the Ivrea line), through its Macon-Vienne branch: grandson of the brother of Count Renaud III, whose daughter Beatrice married Barbarossa. So he is the male heir of the old counts, against the Staufen heirs of Beatrice. His sister Agnes is the wife of Richard of Montbeliard. Wife: Beatrice, heiress of the county of Chalon; their son John (later John of Chalon 'the Elder'), born 1190; a daughter Clemence later marries Berthold V of Zahringen. Cousin of Gaucher of Salins and of the count of Macon.

Confidence

medium

fr.wikipedia on Otto I and on Richard of Montbeliard; de.wikipedia on Berthold V. Mother and birth not checked against a dedicated source.

Overlord

For Auxonne, Duke Odo III of Burgundy since 1197; for his other rights, in theory the count palatine.

What it holds

• Auxonne: castle and town on the east bank of the Saone, held of the duke of Burgundy since 1197
• Claims to the title and rights of the old counts of Burgundy
• Through his wife Beatrice, the expectation of the county of Chalon (held on 1 January 1200 by her father's line: Centre researcher)

How it was acquired

Inherited share of the Macon-Vienne branch; Auxonne put in the duke's fief in 1197.

Allies and rivals

Allies: Richard of Montbeliard (his sister's husband), Odo III of Burgundy, Otto IV. Enemy: Otto I. Kin: Simon II of Lorraine (not checked: through his mother), Gaucher of Salins, William IV of Macon.

How things stand that morning

Holds Auxonne under the duke and is at war with the count palatine. Across the Saone the duchy (Centre researcher); upstream and downstream the count palatine's Gray and Dole.

Wealth

Saone toll and crossing at Auxonne; rents; later the Chalon inheritance. No figures.

Military

Castle of Auxonne. In arms against Otto since 1198 with Richard of Montbeliard. No numbers.

Threats

• Otto I (until 13 January).

What the year holds

What happened next, if nothing in play changes it. Each event carries what it depends on and what would stop it.

In 1200

1. from 13 January 1200With Otto dead and a child countess under a regent, Stephen can press his claims to the county; the duke of Burgundy stands behind him through Auxonne.Depends on: Otto's death. Stopped by: Philip of Swabia backing the regency in force, or a settlement by marriage.

Later, on the likely course

1. later courseStephen keeps up the war with the Merania counts after 1208; his son John acquires Chalon (1227-1228) and in 1237 exchanges Chalon and Auxonne with the duke for Salins.Depends on: The Chalon inheritance. Stopped by: n/a

Places of note

• Castle of Auxonne: Seat on the Saone

Where the sources disagree

Evidence: The 1197 homage, the title quarrel and the Welf alliance are in fr.wikipedia's Otto and Richard pages; his own dates are not checked against a dedicated source.

On the map: Rough castellany round Auxonne.

Primary sources for Burgundy

Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.

• Chronicle of Robert of Auxerre, Robert of Auxerre (Robert of Saint-Marien) (about 1190 to 1211; continued at Saint-Marien to 1227). A universal chronicle whose last twenty years are contemporary and well informed from Burgundy and the Auxerrois. Read online
• Deeds of Philip Augustus, Rigord (about 1186 to 1206, in stages). The French court's own chronicle for the year, from the monk of Saint-Denis who called himself the king's chronographer. Read online
• The Conquest of Constantinople (Villehardouin), Geoffrey of Villehardouin (about 1207 to 1213). Opens with the preaching of Fulk of Neuilly and the tournament at Ecry (28 November 1199) where Theobald III of Champagne and Louis of Blois took the cross, then the taking of the cross by Baldwin of Flanders, Hugh of Saint-Pol, Geoffrey of Perche and others through early 1200, the assemblies at Soissons and Compiegne in 1200, and the six envoys sent to Venice in the winter of 1200 to 1201. Read online
• Documents of the French Royal Treasury of Charters, vol. 1 (755 to 1223) (755 to 1223; the archive was organised from the 1190s). The treaties and bonds the French crown kept in its own archive, printed in date order. Read online
• The Acts of Philip Augustus, with Delisle's Calendar, Various (the French royal chancery) (1179 to 1223). The king's own charters and treaties for the year: the peace of Peronne with Baldwin IX in January 1200, the treaty of Le Goulet with John on 22 May 1200, the marriage settlement for Louis and Blanche, the privilege for the scholars of Paris, grants to towns, abbeys and Norman lords, and the first acts of the king's new acquisitions in the Vexin, Evreux and Berry. Read online