Count Thibaut III of Blois & Countess Garsinde du Maine

 639677060. Count Thibaut III of Blois & 639677061. Countess Garsinde du Maine

1012, Theobald born in Blois, s/o 1279354120. Eudes II, count of Blois & 1279354121. Ermengarde d’Auvergne.

~1030, Garsinde born in Maine, d/o §§Comte Herbert du Maine, s/o §§Herbert ‘Watchdog’ [See 1062-64]

7/20/1031, Henry I became King of France on the death of his father.

1032-37, ‘Odo comes filius [Odonis comitis]’ confirmed a donation of his father, subscribed by ‘Tetbaldi filii eius, matris eius Ermengardis … Hervei vicecomitis.’

4/15/1036, Garsinde’s grandfather died. (S) Ecclesiastical History of England, Ordericus Vitalis, V2, P73.

11/15/1037, Thibaud III’s father Odo II of Blois died at the battle of Bar-sur-Aube. Thibaut succeeded as Comte de Blois, de Chartres, de Châteaudun, et de Sancerre. [Thibaut’s younger brother Stephen became Comte de Meaux, et de Troyes.]

1038, Thibaut lost Langeais to Fulk Nerra of Maine. (S) Fulk Nerra, Bachrach, 1993, P239.

1040, Hardicanute became king of both Denmark and England.

1040, Fulk Nerra of Maine died; succeeded by Geoffrey Martel.

1041, ‘Theobaldi filii Odonis Campaniensis’ of Blois lost Tours to Geoffrey Martel. [But later recaptured the town.]

1043, Geoffrey Martel, supported by King Henry of France, began a siege of Tours.

8/21/1044, Thibaut and his brother Stephen, assisted by Geoffrey of Chaumont, in an attempt to end a siege of Tours being conducted by Geoffrey Martel, clashed at the battle of Nouy. ‘Tetbaldus, filius Odonis comitis’ was captured. For his release, he had to surrender Tours and its surrounding lands, moving his seat of power to Chartres.

[–––Thibaut & Garsinde–––]

By 1045, Thibaut married Garsinde.

1047, Thibaut’s brother Stephen died. Stephen’s heir, Eudes III of Troyes and Meaux, a minor.

1047, Thibaud’s sister Berthe married [2^nd time] to Garsinde’s uncle Hugh, count of Maine.

1047, William, Duke of Normandy, with the help of King Henry, suppressed a revolt of his vassals at the battle of Val-es-Dunes near Caen. Count Theobald supported King Hnery with a force of 500 knights. (S) Norman Conquest of England, Brown, 1984, P19.

1048, Thibaut, with Eudes III of Troyes and Meaux, and the Duke of Normandy, at the royal court of King Henry at Senlis, required his nephew Eudes III to give to King Henry an important abbey. (S) Battle Conference, 1993, P109.

By 1049, Geoffrey [Martel] of Mayenne took Garsonde as his mistress.

[–––Thibaut––] & [––& Garsinde–––]

1049, Thibaut repudiated Garsinde.

1049, King Henry of France and Duke William of Normandy supported Thibaut in a campaign against Geoffrey of Gatinais, Count of Anjou. (S) Battle Conference, 1993, P108.

 [–––Garsinde & Azzo–––]

By 1051, Garsinde remarried to Azzo II of Este of northern Italy.

1051, Thibaut’s borther-in-law Hugh, count of Maine, died. Thibaut did not defend his nephew Herbert’s lands when he was attacked at Le Mans by Geoffrey Martel.

4/7/1051, Garsinde’s father died, her brother Hugh succeeding.

8/1051, Thibaut and Geoffrey Martel both signatories to a charter.

By 1052, Thibaut was allied with Duke William of Normandy [likely giving up any claim on the county of Maine.]

1053-58, Geoffrey of Gatinais [older brother of Fulk of Anjou, and nephew of Geoffrey Martel, count of Anjou] captured Touraine and Vendome from Theobald of Blois.

2/1054, Duke William of Normandy had to repel the forces of King Henry I of France invading from the east, while the King’s brother Odo invaded from the west. Count Theobald supported King Henry.

8/1057, Duke William defeated the forces of King Henry at the battle of Varaville on the coast. William had waited until the invading forces were half on each side of a bridge to launch a surprise attack on one half. Count Theobald was a member of King Henry’s retinue.

8/4/1060, Philip I succeeded as King of France.

1062 at La Hougue, Thibaud III, patron of Marmoutier, at the Ducal court of William [future Conqueror] where the duke made concessions to Marmoutier. Geoffrey of Chamont a witness to the charter. (S) Battle Conference, 1993, P110.

1062-64, Count Hugh of Maine died without heirs. Hugh’s heirs were sisters Garsinde, 2nd wife of Azzo II of Este; Paula (756441093), wife of John of Le Fleche; and Margaret, unmarried. There was also his aunt Biote, d/o Herbert Wake-the-Dog, married to Walter of Mantes, count of Pontoise.

1063-64, Thibaut [by force or some other means] made Eudes III of Troyes and Meaux, heir of his brother Stephen, flee from Champagne. (S) Battle Conference, 1993, P109.

1065, Conan II of Brittany sought an alliance with Thibaut against Anjou. (S) William the Conqueror, Douglas, 1999.

3/20/1066, Haley’s comet appeard in the sky at its closest point to earth, and was interpreted as an evil omen.

10/25/1066, William I crowned King of England

1068, King Philip joined a coalition with Thibaut, count of Blois, and the lords of Maine, against Count Geoffrey ‘the Bearded’ [successor of Count Geoffrey Martel.] (S) Cambridge Medieval History, Bury, 1911.

[–––Garsinde–––]

4/1069, The city of Le Mans revolted with the support of Azzo, lord of Este. Azzo returned to Italy leaving his wife Gersinde and their son Hugh (d.1131 without heirs) in charge of Maine.

3/1070, Le Mans revolted against Geoffrey Martel; and Garsinde was held captive in the city.

1070, Thibaut allowed Jews [of Spanish origin] to open a school in Champagne. [Thibaut had links with Andalucia, the Umayyad Spanish caliphate, and the counts of Toulouse.] (S) Knights Templar of the Middle East, Albany, 2006, P70.

Bef. 1071, Geoffrey Martel re-captured Le Mans.

4/22/1073, Pope Gregory VII succeeded Pope Alexander II.

5/1077, Pope Gregory requested support from Count Theobald of Blois to Hugh of Die, papal legate, in an issued associated with Gerard, bishop-elect of Cambrai. (S) Pope Gregory VII, Cowdrey, 1998, P360.

1077-81, ‘Teobaudus comes palatinus’ donated property to Montierender.

1080, Theobald’s son Stephen married by proxy to Adela, d/o William [the Conqueror], King of England.

1082, Count Theobald of Blois urged Hugh of Die, papal legate, to excommunicate Count Walter of Brienne for harm done to the monastery of Montier-en-Der. (S) Cartulary of Montier-en-Der, Bouchard, 2004, P175.

1/11/1078, A charter to Cluny subscribed by: ‘… Tetbaldi comitis, Stephani comitis, Adeladis comitisse.’ [Thibaut, his son Stephen, and Stephen’s wife Adela.]

Bef. 1080, Geoffrey of Chamont was again allied with Thibaud III and his son Stephen-Henry in support of King William of England. (S) Battle Conference, 1993, P112.

12/27/1080, By letter, Pope Gregory requested the aid of Count Theobald of Blois. (S) Pope Gregory VII, Cowdrey, 1998, P343.

4/28/1081, By letter, Pope Gregory requested that Count Theobald of Blois abstain from contact with excommunicates.  (S) Pope Gregory VII, Cowdrey, 1998, P341.

5/25/1085, Pope Victor III succeeded Pope Gregory VII.

9/26/1087, William Rufus crowned King of England; succeeding William the Conqueror. His elder brother Robert became Duke of Normandy.

1089, Thibaut died; buried at Epernay [near Reims]; leaving son Stephen-Henri as heir of Blois and Champagne [his half-brothers Odo, and then Hugh, receiving Epernay, Bar-sur-Aube and Vitry.] (S) Aristocracy – Champagne, Evergates, 2007, P7.

(S) Battle Conference, 1993. (S) Foundation for Medieval Genealogy.

Family notes:

1091, An Italian, Hugh of Este, s/o Marquis Azzo, and a cousin of Helias, made claims on Maine, through Garsinde du Maine, former wife of Count Thibaut III of Blois and Champagne, who had been repudiated and had remarried in northern Italy.

Children of Thibaut and Garsinde:

i. Stephen-Henri of Blois (319838530), born 1045 in Blois.

ii. Hugh of Blois, born ? in Blois.

By 1100, Hugh held the 3 contiguous areas in southern Champagne that formed the future “county of Champagne.”