Arthur II, Duke of Brittany

Arthur II
Duke of Brittany
Reign	18 November 1305 – 27 August 1312
Predecessor	John II
Successor	John III
Born	25 July 1261
Died	27 August 1312 (aged 50) Château de L'Isle
Burial	Cordeliers Convent
Spouse	Marie, Viscountess of Limoges Yolande of Dreux
Issue Among others	John III John of Montfort
House	House of Dreux
Father	John II
Mother	Beatrice of England
Religion	Roman Catholicism

Arthur II (25 July 1261 – 27 August 1312), of the House of Dreux, was Duke of Brittany from 1305 to his death. He was the first son of John II and Beatrice, daughter of Henry III of England and Eleanor of Provence.

After he inherited the ducal throne, his brother John became Earl of Richmond.^{[lower-alpha 1]}

As duke, Arthur was independent of the French crown. He divided his duchy into eight "battles": Léon, Kernev, Landreger, Penteur, Gwened, Naoned, Roazhon, and Sant Malou. In 1309, he convoked the first Estates of Brittany.^{[lower-alpha 2]} It was the first time in French history that the third estate was represented.

Arthur died at Château de l'Isle in Saint Denis en Val and was interred in a marble tomb of the cordeliers of Vannes. The tomb was vandalised during the French Revolution, but later repaired and is on display today.

Marriages and children

In 1275, Arthur married Marie, Viscountess of Limoges, daughter of Guy VI, Viscount of Limoges and Margaret, Lady of Molinot.^[1][2] Her maternal grandparents were Hugh IV, Duke of Burgundy and his first wife Yolande of Dreux. They were parents of three children:

• John III, Duke of Brittany (8 March 1286 – 30 April 1341).^[1]
• Guy of Brittany, Count of Penthièvre (1287 – 1331).^[1] Father of Joanna of Penthièvre.^[1]
• Peter of Brittany, Seigneur of Dol-Combourg and Sant-Maloù (1289 – 1312).^[1]

Mary died in 1291. In May, 1292, Arthur married Yolande of Dreux,^[3] who was Countess of Montfort, daughter of Robert IV, Count of Dreux and Beatrice de Montfort. Yolande had briefly been Queen Consort of Scotland by her first marriage.^[4] They were parents of seven children:

• John of Montfort (1295 – 16 September 1345).^[3]
• Beatrice of Brittany (1295–1384). Married Guy X, Lord of Laval.^{[lower-alpha 3]}
• Joan of Brittany (1296–1364). Married Robert, Count of Marle, Lord of Cassel^[5] (son of Robert III, Count of Flanders).
• Alice of Brittany (1297–1377). Married Bouchard VI, Count of Vendôme, a member of the House of Montoire.
• Blanche of Brittany (born c. 1300). Considered to have died young.
• Marie of Brittany (1302–1371). A nun.

Ancestry

Ancestors of Arthur II, Duke of Brittany

16. Robert II of Dreux               8. Peter I, Duke of Brittany                       17. Yolande de Coucy               4. John I, Duke of Brittany                             18. Guy of Thouars, Duke of Brittany               9. Alix of Thouars                       19. Constance, Duchess of Brittany               2. John II, Duke of Brittany                                   20. Theobald III, Count of Champagne               10. Theobald I of Navarre                       21. Blanche of Navarre               5. Blanche of Navarre                             22. Guichard IV, Sire of Beaujeu               11. Agnes of Beaujeu                       23. Sybille of Flanders               1. Arthur II, Duke of Brittany                                         24. Henry II of England               12. John of England                       25. Eleanor of Aquitaine               6. Henry III of England                             26. Aymer, Count of Angoulême               13. Isabella of Angoulême                       27. Alice of Courtenay               3. Beatrice of England                                   28. Alfonso II, Count of Provence               14. Ramon Berenguer IV, Count of Provence                       29. Garsenda, Countess of Forcalquier               7. Eleanor of Provence                             30. Thomas I, Count of Savoy               15. Beatrice of Savoy                       31. Marguerite of Geneva

See also

• Dukes of Brittany family tree

Footnotes

1. There are discrepancies about how this title was separated from the Duke of Brittany and invested in John. One history recounts that Arthur conferred it on his brother, while an alternative history is that King Edward I invested John as Earl of Richmond the year after John and Arthur's father had died,
2. Brittany would eventually have both an "Estates" and a "Parliament"
3. The Lords of Laval would become Governors of Brittany after 1491. when Anne de Bretagne married Charles VIII of France.

References

1. Jonathan Sumption, Trial by Battle: The Hundred Years War, (Faber & Faber, 1990), 372.
2. Duplès-Agier, H. (ed.) (1874) Chroniques de Saint-Martial de Limoges (Paris), Anonymum S Martialis Chronicon, Chroniques de Saint-Martial de Limoges, p. 172.
3. Jonathan Sumption, Trial by Battle: The Hundred Years War, 373.
4. Goodall, W. (ed.) (1759) Joannis de Fordun Scotichronicon cum Supplementis et Continuatione Walteri Boweri, Vols. I, II (Edinburgh) ("Joannis de Fordun (Goodall)"), Vol. II, Lib. X, Cap. XXXIX-XL, p. 127.
5. Diocesis of Bruges (ed.) (1852) Chronicon abbatiæ Warnestoniensis (Bruges), Appendix, p. 34.