NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Geoffrey of Anjou

Geoffrey V (August 24, 1113 – September 7, 1151), Count of Anjou and Maine, and later Duke of Normandy, called Le Bel ("The Fair") or "Geoffrey Plantagenet", was the father of King Henry II of England, and thus the forefather of the Plantagenet dynasty of English kings. geoffrey of anjou, husband of empress matilda, father of henry ii of england enamel effigy on his tomb in le mans cathedral This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... August 24 is the 236th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (237th in leap years), with 129 days remaining. ... Events Pierre Abélard opens his school in Paris End of Kyanzitthas reign in Myanmar Alaungsithus reign begins in Myanmar Suryavarman Is reign begins in the Khmer Empire Births Geoffrey of Anjou Deaths Categories: 1113 ... September 7 is the 250th day of the year (251st in leap years). ... Events Ghazni is burned by the princes of Ghur Geoffrey of Anjou dies, and succeeded by his son Henry, aged 18. ... For other uses, see Anjou (disambiguation). ... Maine is one of the traditional provinces of France. ... Normandy is a geographical region in northern France. ... Henry II of England, depicted in Cassells History of England, Century Edition, published circa 1902 Henry II (March 5, 1133 – July 6, 1189), ruled as Duke of Anjou and as King of England (1154–1189) and, at various times, controlled parts of Wales, Scotland, eastern Ireland, and western France. ... Angevin is the name applied to two distinct medieval dynasties which originated as counts (from 1360, dukes) of the western French province of Anjou (of which angevin is the adjectival form), but later came to rule far greater areas including England, Hungary and Poland (see Angevin Empire). ...

Geoffrey was the eldest son of Fulk, Count of Anjou and King-Consort of Jerusalem. Geoffrey's mother was Eremburge of La Flèche, heiress of Maine. Geoffrey received his nickname for the sprig of broom (= genêt plant, in French) he wore in his hat as a badge. In 1127, at Le Mans, at the age of 15 he married Empress Maud, the daughter and heiress of King Henry I of England, by his first wife, Edith of Scotland and widow of Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor. The marriage was meant to seal a peace between England/Normandy and Anjou. She was eleven years older than Geoffrey, and their marriage was a stormy one, but she survived him. Fulk of Anjou, king of Jerusalem (1092-1143), was the son of Fulk IV, count of Anjou, and his wife Bertrada (who ultimately deserted her husband and became the mistress of Philip I of France). ... The Kingdom of Jerusalem was a short-lived country established in the 12th century by the First Crusade. ... Events Conrad III establishes the Hohenstaufen dynasty when he is crowned antiking to the Holy Roman Emperor, Lothar II. First coalition of the Norman princes against Roger II of Sicily. ... Empress Maud (1102 – September 10, 1167) is the title by which Matilda, daughter and dispossessed heir of King Henry I of England and his wife Maud of Scotland (herself daughter of Malcolm III Canmore and St. ... Henry I (c. ... Edith of Scotland, (c. ... Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor, (1081 - May 23, 1125) was the fourth and last ruler of the Salian dynasty. ...

The year after the marriage Geoffrey's father left for Jerusalem (where he was to become king), leaving Geoffrey behind as count of Anjou. Chroniclers describe Geoffrey as handsome, red-headed, jovial, and a great warrior; however, Ralph of Diceto alleges that his charm concealed his cold and selfish character. When King Henry I died in 1135, Maud at once entered Normandy to claim her inheritance. The border districts submitted to her, but England chose her cousin Stephen of Blois for its king, and Normandy soon followed suit. The following year, Geoffrey gave Ambrieres, Gorron, and Chatilon-sur-Colmont to Juhel de Mayenne, on condition that he help obtain the inheritance of Geoffrey’s wife. In 1139 Maud landed in England with 140 knights, where she was beseiged at Arundel Castle by King Stephen. In the "Anarchy" which ensued, Stephen was captured at Lincoln in February, 1141, and imprisoned at Bristol. A legatine council of the English church held at Winchester in April 1141 declared Stephen deposed and proclaimed Maud "Lady of the English". Stephen was subsequently released from prison and had himself recrowned on the anniversary of his first coronation. Ralph of Diceto was a 12th century English chronicler. ... Stephen (1096 – October 25, 1154), the last Norman King of England, reigned from 1135 to 1154, when he was succeeded by his cousin Henry II, the first of the Angevin or Plantagenet Kings. ... The Anarchy in English history commonly names the period of civil war and unsettled government that occurred during the reign (1135–1154) of King Stephen of England. ...

During 1142 and 1143, Geoffrey secured all of Normandy west and south of the Seine, and, on 14 January, 1444, he crossed the Seine and entered Rouen. He assumed the title of Duke of Normandy in the summer of 1144. In 1144, he founded an Augustine priory at Chateau-l’Ermitage in Anjou. Geoffrey held the duchy until 1149, when he and Maud conjointly ceded it to their son, Henry, which cession was formally ratified by King Louis VII of France the following year. Geoffrey also put down three baronial rebellions in Anjou, in 1129, 1135, and 1145-1151. The threat of rebellion slowed his progress in Normandy, and is one reason he could not intervene in England. In 1153, the Treaty of Westminster allowed Stephen should remain King of England for life and that Henry, the son of Geoffrey and Maud should succeed him. At Château-du-Loir, Geoffrey died suddenly on September 7, 1151, still a young man. He was buried at St. Julien's in Le Mans France. Geoffrey and Maud's children were: Louis VII the Younger (French: Louis VII le Jeune) (1120 - September 18, 1180) was King of France from 1137 to 1180. ... Treaty of Westminster is the title of several treaties, including: Treaty of Westminster (1153) Treaty of Westminster (1461) Treaty of Westminster (1511) Treaty of Westminster (1654); ending the First Anglo-Dutch War Treaty of Westminster (1674); ending the Third Anglo-Dutch War Treaty of Westminster (1755) Treaty of Westminster (1931... Le Mans is a city in France, located at the Sarthe River. ...

Geoffrey also had illegitimate children by an unknown mistress (or mistresses): Hamelin; Emme, who married Dafydd Ab Owain Gwynedd, Prince of North Wales; and Mary, (1181-1216) who became a nun and Abbess of Shaftesbury and who may be the poetess Marie de France. The first reference to Norman heraldry was in 1128, when Henry I of England knighted his son-in-law Geoffrey and granted him a badge of gold lions (or leopards) on a blue background. (A gold lion may already have been Henry’s own badge.) Henry II used two gold lions and two lions on a red background are still part of the arms of Normandy. Henry's son, Richard I, added a third lion to distinguish the arms of England. Henry II of England, depicted in Cassells History of England, Century Edition, published circa 1902 Henry II (March 5, 1133 – July 6, 1189), ruled as Duke of Anjou and as King of England (1154–1189) and, at various times, controlled parts of Wales, Scotland, eastern Ireland, and western France. ... Hamelin de Warenne (d. ... Dafydd ab Owain Gwynedd (died 1203) was Prince of Gwynedd from 1170 to 1195. ... North Wales is the northernmost region of Wales, bordered to the south by Mid Wales. ... Marie de France was a poet, in France and England during the late 12th century. ... Events Pope Honorius II recognizes and confirms the Order of the Knights Templar. ... Binomial name Panthera leo (Linnaeus, 1758) The Lion (Panthera leo) is a mammal of the family Felidae. ... Binomial name Panthera pardus (Linnaeus, 1758) Leopards (Panthera pardus) are one of the four big cats of the genus Panthera. ... Richard I (September 8, 1157 – April 6, 1199) was King of England from 1189 to 1199. ...

References

Categories: 1113 births | 1151 deaths | Dukes of Normandy | Counts of Anjou Fulk of Anjou (1092 – November 10, 1143), king of Jerusalem from 1131, was the son of Fulk IV, count of Anjou, and his wife Bertrada (who ultimately deserted her husband and became the mistress of Philip I of France). ... Counts of Anjou, c. ... Henry II of England, depicted in Cassells History of England, Century Edition, published circa 1902 Henry II (March 5, 1133 – July 6, 1189), ruled as Duke of Anjou and as King of England (1154–1189) and, at various times, controlled parts of Wales, Scotland, eastern Ireland, and western France. ... This is a list of counts and dukes of Maine, France. ...