Geoffrey II of Thouars
Quick Facts
Biography
Geoffroy II of Thouars,(990 - 1055), was the son of Savary III and the viscount of Thouars from 1015 to 1043.
Viscount
Geoffroy succeeded his uncle Ralph I in 1015, continuing the war against William V of Poitiers and Hugues IV of Lusignan, and capturing the castle of Mouzeuil. After years of indecisive warfare, peace iswassealed with the marriage of the daughter of Ralph I, Audéarde, with Hugh IV of Lusignan.
Geoffroy's relations with Fulk III Nerra.Count of Anjou, were strained as a result of a castle built by Geoffroy in Montfaucon in 1026. The castle was a threat to the county of Anjou;in response, Fulk's castellan, Girorius, halted Geoffroy's advance at the cost of his own life.
Despite this hostility, Geoffroy allied with the son of Fulk Nerra, Geoffroy II of Anjou, and assisted him in his attempt to seize power in the County of Poitiers and the Duchy of Aquitaine. They devastate the surroundings of Poitiers, while William VI, Duke of Aquitaine does the same in the Angevin regions of Loudun and Mirebeau. On 9 September 1033, Geoffroy Martel and Geoffroy II of Thouars defeat William at Moncontour.
Geoffroy de Thouars became a monk at Saint-Michel-en-l'Herm just before dying in 1055.
Marriage and family
Geoffrey married Agnès de Blois, daughter of Odo I, Count of Blois and Bertha of Burgundy, they have:
- Aimery IV
- Savary, Viscount of Fontenay
- Geoffroy
- Raoul
- Hélène born about 1030, who married Archambaud I Janvre, lord of Bouchetière.
Sources
- Abel, Mickey (2012). "Emma of Blois as Arbiter of Peace and the Politics".In Martin, Therese (ed.). Reassessing the Roles of Women as 'Makers' of Medieval Art and Architecture. Volume 1. Brill.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
- Bachrach, Bernard S. (1993). Fulk Nerra, the Neo-Roman Consul. University of California Press.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
- Painter, Sidney (1957). "The Lords of Lusignan in the Eleventh and Twelfth Centuries". Speculum. University of Chicago Press. 32 (Jan.).CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)