Boulogne

Who he is

Name

Renaud of Dammartin (Renaud de Dammartin), with Countess Ida of Boulogne

Title

Count of Boulogne in right of his wife; heir to the county of Dammartin

Since

1190-1191 (his marriage to Ida, arranged by abduction by his father Aubry)

Born

Renaud about 1165 (about 35); Ida about 1160 (about 40)

Family

Renaud is the eldest son of Aubry (Alberic) III, count of Dammartin, still alive. Ida is the daughter of Matthew of Alsace and Mary of Blois, so a granddaughter of King Stephen of England and a first cousin of Baldwin IX; widowed twice (Gerard of Guelders, Berthold of Zahringen) before Renaud. Their only child, Matilda (Mahaut), is born about 1200-1202: not pinned whether she is born on 1 January 1200.

Confidence

medium

English Wikipedia (Renaud I, Count of Dammartin; Treaty of Le Goulet). His formal allegiance on 1 January 1200 is inferred, see notes.

Overlord

The king of France: since 1191 the homage of Boulogne belongs to the king with Artois, and the treaty of Peronne keeps it so.

What it holds

• Boulogne: the castle, the port and the shrine of Notre-Dame
• Calais and the Calaisis
• Wissant, the old crossing to England
• Etaples on the Canche, Desvres, Samer, Marquise and the Boulonnais forests
• Claims to the old English honour of Boulogne (not pinned)

How it was acquired

Marriage to Ida, 1190-1191; the king accepted the match and took the homage.

Allies and rivals

Allies: John (since 1199) and Baldwin IX. Rivals: the house of Guines (Arnold was Ida's betrothed), the Dreux family. Old friend of the king.

How things stand that morning

Renaud and Ida hold the Boulonnais. Formally Renaud is John's ally that morning (medium confidence); in practice he is waiting on the Flemish peace.

Wealth

The Channel crossing, herring fisheries, salt, the pilgrimage to Notre-Dame of Boulogne, the forest of Boulogne.

Military

Castle of Boulogne; the ports' ships.

Threats

• Being left alone when Baldwin makes peace
• The king's anger
• Guines

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.

1. January-May 1200, not pinnedRenaud makes his peace with the king, following Baldwin.Depends on: Baldwin's peace at Peronne; the king's willingness to forgive. Stopped by: John keeping him with more money or land.
2. 22 May 1200Le Goulet: John recognises Boulogne as a French fief and drops Renaud.Depends on: John and Philip settling. Stopped by: Failure of Le Goulet.
3. During 1200 (not pinned)Aubry of Dammartin dies; Renaud becomes count of Dammartin.Depends on: Natural death. Stopped by: Nothing in play.
4. 1201 (after the birth of Philip Hurepel in September 1200)A marriage is arranged between Renaud's daughter Matilda and the king's son Philip (date not pinned).Depends on: Renaud's reconciliation. Stopped by: A new break with the king.

Places of note

• Castle of Boulogne: Seat
• Calais: Port
• Wissant: Crossing to Dover

Where the sources disagree

• Renaud's allegiance on 1 January 1200 is not settled by a dated document found here; the assignment's question is answered by inference from the alliances of 1197-1199 and the Le Goulet clause.

Evidence: His career is well known in outline; the months of his return to Philip are not pinned here.

On the map: Approximate, especially towards Guines.

Primary sources for Held of the king

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 Andres, William of Andres (about 1220 to 1234). The chronicle and cartulary of a small abbey between Guines and Ardres, near the border of Flanders and Boulogne. Read online
• Chronicle of Hainaut, Gislebert of Mons (about 1195 to 1196). Ends in 1195, so it has no 1200 entries, but it is the indispensable background for Flanders and Hainaut: the career of Count Baldwin V of Hainaut (VIII of Flanders), his union of the two counties, the settlement with Philip over Artois, the rights, castles, fiefs and vassals of Hainaut listed by a man who ran its chancery, and the youth of Baldwin IX, who held both counties in 1200. Read online
• Chronicles of Saint-Martial of Limoges, Bernard Itier and other monks of Saint-Martial; Geoffrey of Vigeois for the earlier chronicle (Geoffrey's chronicle to 1184; Bernard Itier's notes about 1195 to 1225). Bernard Itier, librarian of Saint-Martial, kept dated notes through 1200 of what reached Limoges: Richard's death at Chalus in 1199, the viscounts of Limoges and the lords of the Limousin, John's passage through Aquitaine in 1200 and the affairs of Angouleme and the Lusignans, and the abbey's own elections and prices. Read online
• The Great Chronicle of Tours, Anonymous (a canon of Saint-Martin of Tours) (about 1227). The Loire valley's view of the Angevin succession. Read online
• Universal Chronicle of the Anonymous of Laon, Anonymous (an English-born canon of Laon) (about 1219). A Picard chronicle whose author had lived in England and keeps an eye on both kingdoms. 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
• Deeds of Philip Augustus; The Philippide, William the Breton (Guillaume le Breton) (Gesta about 1214 to 1220; Philippide 1214 to 1224). William abridged Rigord for the years before 1207 and then continued him, so for 1200 the Gesta is a shortened Rigord with a few added touches: the Le Goulet settlement, Blanche's marriage, and the interdict. Read online
• History of the Counts of Guines, Lambert of Ardres (about 1196 to 1203, unfinished). A house history of the counts of Guines and lords of Ardres, written while Count Baldwin II and his son Arnold were alive and finishing in 1203. Read online

4 more in the sources library for France and Iberia.