William VIII, Duke of Aquitaine

William VIII, Duke of Aquitaine

William VIII (1025 – 25 September 1086), born Guy-Geoffrey ("Gui-Geoffroi"), was duke of Gascony (1052-1086), and then duke of Aquitaine and count of Poitiers (as William VI) between 1058 and 1086, succeeding his brother William VII (Pierre-Guillaume).

Guy-Geoffroy was the youngest son of William V of Aquitaine by his third wife Agnes of Burgundy. He was the brother-in-law of Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor who had married his sister, Agnes de Poitou.

He became Duke of Gascony in 1052 during his older brother William VII's rule. Gascony had come to Aquitanian rule through William V's marriage to Prisca (a.k.a Brisce) of Gascony, the sister of Duke Sans VI Guilhem of Gascony.

William VIII was one of the leaders of the allied army called to help Ramiro I of Aragon in the Siege of Barbastro (1064). This expedition was the first campaign organized by the papacy, namely Pope Alexander II, against a Muslim city, and the precursor of the later Crusades movement. Aragon and its allies conquered the city, killed its inhabitants and collected an important booty.

However, Aragon lost the city again in the following years. During William VIII's rule, the alliance with the southern kingdoms of modern Spain was a political priority as shown by the marriage of all his daughters to Iberian kings.

He married three times and had at least five children. After he divorced his second wife due to infertility, he remarried to a much younger woman who was also his cousin. This marriage produced a son, but William VIII had to visit Rome in the early 1070s to persuade the pope to recognize his children from his third marriage as legitimate.

*First wife: Garsende of Périgord, daughter of Count Aldabert II of Périgord and his wife Alausie, herself the second daughter of duke Sans VI Guilhem of Gascony (divorced November 1058), no children. She became a nun at Saintes.

*Second wife: Matoeda (divorced May 1068)
# Agnes (1052-1078), married Alfonso VI of Castile
*Third wife: Hildegarde of Burgundy (daughter of duke Robert I of Burgundy)
#Agnes (d.1097), married Peter I of Aragon
#William IX of Aquitaine, his heir

ources

*Owen, D. D. R. "Eleanor of Aquitaine: Queen and Legend".
*"Nouvelle Biographie Générale". Paris, 1859.

ee also

*Dukes of Aquitaine family tree


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно решить контрольную?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • William X, Duke of Aquitaine — William X of Aquitaine (1099 – April 9, 1137), nicknamed the Saint was duke of Aquitaine, duke of Gascony and count of Poitiers as William VIII of Poitiers between 1126 and 1137. He was the son of William, the troubadour by his second wife,… …   Wikipedia

  • William IX, Duke of Aquitaine — Miniature of William from a 13th century chansonnier now in the Bibliothèque nationale de France William IX (Occitan: Guilhèm de Peitieus; French: Guillaume de Poitiers) (22 October 1071 – 10 February 1126), called the Troubador, was the Duke of… …   Wikipedia

  • William VIII — may refer to:* William VIII of Aquitaine (1025–1086) * William VIII of Montpellier (died 1202) * William VIII of Montferrat (1420–1483) * William VIII, Duke of Brunswick (1806–1884) …   Wikipedia

  • Duke of Aquitaine — Map of France in 1154 The Duke of Aquitaine (Occitan: Duc d Aquitània, French: Duc d Aquitaine, IPA: [dyk dakitɛn]) ruled the historical region of Aquitaine (not to be confused with modern day Aquitaine) under the supremacy of …   Wikipedia

  • William V of Aquitaine — William V (969 ndash; 31 January 1030), called the Great ( le Grand ), was Duke of Aquitaine and Count of Poitou (as William II or III) from 990 until his death. He was the son and successor of William IV by his wife Emma, daughter of Theobald I… …   Wikipedia

  • William the Conqueror — The Duke of Normandy in the Bayeux Tapestry King of England Reign 25 December 1066 9 September 1087 Coronation 25 December 106 …   Wikipedia

  • William IX — ▪ duke of Aquitaine and Gascony born Oct. 22, 1071 died Feb. 10, 1127, Poitiers, Fr.       medieval troubadour, count of Poitiers and duke of Aquitaine and of Gascony (1086–1127), son of William VIII and grandfather of the famous Eleanor of… …   Universalium

  • Duke of Cornwall — For the steamship, see TSS Duke of Cornwall. HRH The Prince of Wales, the current Duke of Cornwall The Duchy of Cornwall was the first duchy created in the peerage of England. The present Duke of Cornwall is The Prince of Wales, the eldest son of …   Wikipedia

  • Aquitaine — /ak wi tayn /; Fr. /ann kee ten /, n. a lowland region in SW France, formerly an ancient Roman province and medieval duchy. Latin, Aquitania /ak wi tay nee euh/. * * * Historical region, southwestern France. It was roughly equivalent to Aquitania …   Universalium

  • William, Count of Poitiers — Infobox British Royalty prince name = William succession = Count of Poitiers reign = 17 August 1153 – April 1156 predecessor = Henry II of England successor = Vacant (later Emperor Otto IV) royal house = House of Plantagenet father = Henry II of… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”