Count of Holland

Who he is

Name

Dirk VII, with Countess Adelaide of Cleves

Title

Count of Holland

Since

1190

Born

1160s (not pinned)

Family

See the realm record Holland

Confidence

high

Count and countess issue charters jointly from 1198.

Overlord

The king; the count of Flanders for Zeeland west of the Scheldt

What it holds

• Rijnland round Leiden, with the Burcht of Leiden held for him by the burgrave
• Delfland and Schieland, with the count's court at 's-Gravenzande and the old castle site at Vlaardingen
• Kennemerland round Haarlem (the count's court) up to Alkmaar, the frontier with West Frisia
• Dordrecht and the Grote Waard, with the toll; the toll at Geervliet on the Maas
• The Maas islands: IJsselmonde, Putten, and Voorne under its own lords
• The Alblasserwaard and the Krimpenerwaard under his vassals
• Zeeland east of the Scheldt: Schouwen and Duiveland, with Zierikzee
• Zeeland west of the Scheldt: Walcheren and the Bevelands, with Middelburg, held of Flanders and shared with the Flemish count
• The advocacy of Egmond Abbey, exercised through the lords of Egmond

How it was acquired

Inherited; the Grote Waard and the toll rights from Henry VI.

Allies and rivals

See Holland.

How things stand that morning

Held by Dirk VII and Adelaide. Zeeland west of the Scheldt is a condominium with Flanders; the West Frisian frontier north of Alkmaar is quiet as far as the sources show, but not at peace.

Wealth

Tolls at Geervliet and Dordrecht, the courts' fines, the dues of the peat-reclamation villages, herring and salt.

Military

Castles and courts at Leiden, Vlaardingen, Haarlem and 's-Gravenzande; vassal castles of Voorne, Teylingen and Egmond. No numbers are recorded.

Threats

• The West Frisians
• Brabant's claims in the south
• Flanders in Zeeland
• Utrecht's claims to the river lands

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. 3 November 1200Merchant treaty with Brabant at LeuvenDepends on: Peace with Brabant Stopped by: War

Places of note

• Burcht of Leiden: The count's motte castle, held by the burgrave
• Vlaardingen: Old castle site of the counts
• Haarlem: The count's court in Kennemerland
• 's-Gravenzande: The count's court (curtis) in Delfland
• Geervliet toll: The count's toll on the Maas, confirmed by Henry VI in 1195
• Dordrecht: The count's toll town; Dirk VII dies here in 1203
• Egmond Abbey: The counts' house abbey; Adelaide led the defence from here in 1195
• Rijnsburg Abbey: Nunnery founded by the counts; burial place of the countesses

Where the sources disagree

Evidence: The county's core is clear; its edges toward Utrecht (Woerden, the Gooi), the West Frisian frontier and the Brabant border are drawn roughly.

On the map: Dutch land units are whole modern municipalities; the Haarlemmermeer and the other great lakes of 1200 are drawn as land.

Primary sources for Holland

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.

• Annals of Egmond (12th century to about 1205). The house annals of Egmond, the counts of Holland's abbey, and the main native source for Holland around 1200. Read online
• Chronicle of the abbots of Wittewierum (Bloemhof), Emo of Wittewierum (from 1219 to 1237, continued by Menko to 1273). The chronicle opens only in 1204 with the founding of Emo's Premonstratensian house in the Groningen Ommelanden, so it has nothing for 1200 itself. Read online