A Brienne cadet line holds the castle of Ramerupt on the Aube, north of Brienne, and Venizy on the edge of the Othe in the Senonais.
Ramerupt was the home of Rabbenu Tam, the great Tosafist (died 1171), and has a Jewish community. Its lord Erard will become the most dangerous rival of the house of Champagne, but on 1 January 1200 he is a young vassal of the count.
Who he is
- Name
- Erard of Brienne (Erard de Brienne)
- Title
- Lord of Ramerupt and Venizy
- Since
- Not pinned: after his father Andrew of Brienne, lord of Ramerupt, died on the Third Crusade
- Born
- Not pinned (about 1170s)
- Family
- Son of Andrew of Brienne, younger brother of Count Erard II, and of Adelaide, lady of Venizy. First cousin of Walter III of Brienne and of John of Brienne.
- Confidence
- medium
fmg lists Andrew of Brienne as lord of Ramerupt and his wife Adelaide as lady of Venizy; Erard is the future claimant to Champagne (married Philippa, Henry II's daughter, about 1215). His succession date and age are not pinned here.
Overlord
Theobald III, count of Champagne
What it holds
- Ramerupt: castle and village on the Aube
- Venizy: his mother's lordship near Saint-Florentin
How it was acquired
Inherited from his father Andrew (Ramerupt) and his mother Adelaide (Venizy).
Allies and rivals
His Brienne cousins; later the Lorraine princes and the Joinville kin in the war of 1216-1222.
How things stand that morning
Held.
Wealth
Aube valley land; the Jews of Ramerupt.
Military
Castle of Ramerupt.
Threats
- None pressing in 1200
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: Holder inferred from his parents' titles in fmg; no 1199-1200 charter seen.
On the map: Small clusters around the two castles.
Primary sources for Champagne
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 Alberic of Trois-Fontaines, Alberic of Trois-Fontaines (about 1227 to 1241, at the Cistercian abbey of Trois-Fontaines in Champagne). The widest net of any Latin chronicle for 1200, compiled from dozens of sources, many now lost. Read online
- 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
- 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
- Chronicle of Roger of Howden, Roger of Howden (about 1192 to 1201). The fullest single narrative for the year. 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
- 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
- The Conquest of Constantinople, Robert de Clari, knight of Picardy (about 1205 to 1216). A rank-and-file crusader's account that begins with the preaching of the crusade and the taking of the cross in 1199 to 1200 by the counts of Flanders, Blois and Champagne and by the Picard lords, among them Peter of Amiens, Robert's own lord, then the negotiations with Venice. Read online
3 more in the sources library for France and Iberia.
Sources and studies
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.