Counts of Hesbaye

The Counts of Hesbaye have their roots with the Merovingian and Lotharingian families, providing the basis for much of the nobility of Western Francia from the eighth through eleventh centuries. Hesbaye (Hesbaie), derived from pagus Hasbaniensis, lays in what is today eastern Belgium, south of a line from the river Demer in the west to the town of Maaseik in the east, west and north of the river Meuse as far as the river Dyle in the west. This article discusses the Counts of Hesbaye and provides a guide to the counties that evolved in the 11th and 12th centuries.

The division of Lotharingian territories was agreed to in the Treaty of Meersen of 8 August 870 between Louis the German, King of East Francia, and his half-brother Charles the Bald, King of the West Franks. The treaty allocated …comitatum…in Hasbanio comitatus IV… to Charles. The reference to four unnamed counties within Hesbaye suggests that it might have been a geographical entity and not a county itself. Vanderkindere believed that these four counties are those obtained by quartering Hesbaye, a hypothesis based on an interpretation of geography rather than any contemporary documentation. These counties were, according to him:

No reference to these four counties, or any ruling counts, apart from in the county of Hesbaye itself, has been found prior to the 870 agreement. Counties that have some historical, geographical and genealogical relationship to Hesbaye include Louvain, Grez, Betuwe, Looz, Duras and Aarschot. The counts have numerous relations with the major family dynasties of the medieval Franks.

Hesbaye itself is first mentioned in 715. The third continuator of the Gesta Abbatum Trudonensium names Robertus comes vel dux Hasbanie, who can be identified with the ancestor of Robert of Hesbaye, the direct ancestors of the Robertians and the House of Capet. The ancestors of Ermengarde of Hesbaye, the wife of Louis I the Pious, were also recorded as the Counts of Hesbaye.

There are indications that, by the late 9th or early 10th centuries, the House of Reginar had acquired interests in the county of Hesbaye. Guillaume de Jumièges describes how Rainier au long cou duc de Hasbaigne et du Hainaut et Radbold prince de Frise fought the Viking Rollo but were forced back to their castles. The Chronicle of Alberic de Trois Fontaines also refers to Rainerus Hainonensium comes et Hasbanii dux fighting the Vikings, dated to 876. It is not certain that these can be considered reliable authorities, particular because of the reference to dux, for which no other indications have been found that this was an officially sanctioned title in the Reginar family at that time. However, other sources indicate that Reginar, Duke of Lorraine, held property in the county including the Abbey of Saint Servatius at Maastricht.

Counts of Hesbaye

The earliest known Count of Hesbaye is Lambert, who married Chrotlind, daughter of Theoderic III, King of Neustria and Austrasia. The early counts were therefore direct descendants of Clovis I, King of the Franks, as well as the ancestors of the royal families of Robertians and the House of Capet.

Robertians. The first known Counts of Hesbaye are:

Non-Dynastic Counts. Robert II’s reign as Count of Hesbaye marked the end of the dynasty stretching back to the Merovingian kings. Two other counts have been recorded prior to the arrival of the House of Reginar.

Counties of Reginar. In 853, Charles the Bald implemented the Capitulary of Servais providing for senior clergy and nobility to help patrol the realm. Within the plan, the fourth district (Misscaticum 4) included "the counties of Reginar" as an area of interest. This district was based in Thérouanne and likely included what was to become Hesbaye. The biography of Gilbert, Count of the Maasgau, father of the founder of the House of Reginar, identifies a Count Meginhere and his son Reginar as possible ancestors, based primarily on onomastics. Reginar was convicted of treason against Louis the Pious and executed in 818 along with Bernard, King of Italy, so it is not likely that this Reginar was the count. It is more likely that Meginhere had another child whose son Reginar inherited the counties mentioned in Charles' pronouncement. This is likely to be the ancestral line that led to Emmo. The most likely candidate for this count is Raganar, killed in 876 in service of Charles the Bald as standard-bearer in the Battle of Andernach.

House of Reginar. House of Reginar was prevalent in the county beginning in 876, when Reginar I is first identified as duc de Hasbaigne. Because of the gap between Reginar I and his grandson Rudolf, it is assumed that Reginar II was the count, although this is unverified. The same is true of Otto, who is presumed to be the count based on his father Rudolf, Count of Betuwe and his son Arnulf.

Later Counts. After the exile of Reginar III, a series of non-dynastic counts ruled Hesbaye until its absorption into the Prince-Bishropic of Liege in 1040. This list is not conclusive. Given that Reginar IV replaced both Werner as Count of Valenciennes and his brother Renaud as Count of Mons after they were both killed (by Reginar IV and his brother Lambert), it seems likely that he would have become the Count of Hesbaye as well. There is, however, no evidence of this.

Emperor Henry III gave Hesbaye to the Prince-Bishropic of Liege in 1040. See also the Counts of Liège.

Nobility of Hesbaye

Prior to the establishment of Hesbaye as a count under Lambert, there were numerous notable figures that were ancestors of Lambert who helped establish the county and nearby bishoprics and abbeys. These were all descended from Charibert I, King of Paris, and therefore Clovis I, King of the Franks. They were the ancestors of the Robertians.

Nobles

Religious Figures

Counts of Louvain

The Counts of Louvain were members of the House of Reginar, and became the Landgraves of Brabant. As discussed above, the first Count of Louvain, Lambert, assisted his brother Reginar IV in the killing of Werener and his brother Renaud. Brabant also absorbed the Count of Aarschot, as discussed below. See the Main Article, Counts of Louvain.

Counts of Grez

The Counts of Grez (Gray) are recorded with the comital title only at the end of the 11th century. The county of Grez was situated between the county of Leuven and the territory of Liège proper and probably recognised the suzerainty of the prince-bishop. The Counts of Grez’ land likely lay within Liège territory and included Vaux, part of the episcopal county of Huy. It is likely that the county was incorporated into Brabant in the early 12th century.

Warner is referred to as a relative of Godfrey of Boullion[2] although it is unclear what that relationship was. Given the relationships above, it is most likely that Warner and Godfrey were both related to Reginar III, Count of Hainaut. Warner had one son Henri de Grez by his wife Adelende (d. after 1095). It is not known whether or not this Henri succeeded his father as count.

Counts of Betuwe

The Counts of Betuwe were the predecessors to the Counts of Looz, and include:

The next generations of counts were known as Counts of Looz.

Counts of Looz

The Counts of Looz descended from the Counts of Betuwe and are intermingled with the Counts of Duras. See the Main Article Counts of Looz and a related article Counts of Chiny.

Counts of Duras

The county of Duras developed in the 11th century in the area of the former county of Hesbaye, which disappeared from the records. The known Counts of Duras are:

Henry's brother Louis II was identified as regent of Duras, presumably prior to Henry's coming of age. After Henry, no other Counts of Duras are recorded. See also Counts of Montaigu.

Counts of Aarschot

The known Counts of Aarschot are:

Godfried III, the last Count of Aarschot, sold the county to Godfrey III, Duke of Brabant, in 1172 to allegedly finance his participation in the Third Crusade, although it is doubtful that he ever took the cross. Godfrey of Brabant, younger son of Godfrey's great-grandson Henry III, Duke of Brabant, is next recorded as a Lord of Aarschot in the late 13th century, beginning a dynasty first of lords and then of dukes that survives to this day. The sister of Godfrey of Brabant was Marie, Queen consort of France, by virtue of her marriage to Phillip III the Bold, King of France.

Sources

Medieval Lands Project, Comtes de Hesbaie

Wolters, Mathias J., Notice Historique sur l’Ancien Comté de Duras en Hesbaie, Gyselinck, 1855 (available on Google Books)

Gestorum Abbatem Trudonensium Continuatio Tertia 1007, MGH SS X

Guizot, M. (ed.), Histoire des ducs de Normandie, par Guillaume de Jumiège, WJ, Paris, 1826

Verhelst, "Een visie op de omvang en indeling van de pagus Hasbania".

Scheffer-Boichorst, Paulus (editor), Chronica Albrici Monachi Trium Fontium, in Monumenta Germaniae Historica: Scriptorum, vol. 23, Hanover, 1874

Vanderkindere, Léon, La Formation territoriale des principautés belges au Moyen Âge, Bruxelles, H. Lamertin, 1902

Medieval Lands Project, Graven van Aarschot

References

  1. ↑ Murray, Alan V. (1992). "The army of Godfrey of Bouillon, 1096-1099 : Structure and dynamics of a contingent on the First Crusade" (PDF). Revue belge de philologie et d'histoire, tome 70, fasc. 2.
  2. ↑ Edgington, Susan (2007). Albert of Aachen: Historia Ierosolimitana, History of the Journey to Jerusalem. London: Clarendon Press. p. 61.
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