Other Events and Attributes:

• Nickname: The Crusander
• FSID: KFLJ-TW7
• Appointments / Titles: Between 8 Jan 1103 and 7 Jan 1149; Count of Maurienne
• Appointments / Titles: Between 8 Jan 1103 and 7 Jan 1149; Count of Savoy
• Military: 1147; Second Crusade

Notes:

Amadeus III of Savoy (1095 – April 1148) was Count of Savoy and Maurienne from 1103 until his death. He was also known as a crusader.[1]

Biography
He was born in Carignano, Piedmont, the son of Humbert II of Savoy and Gisela of Burgundy, the daughter of William I of Burgundy. He succeeded as count of Savoy upon the death of his father.[1] Amadeus had a tendency to exaggerate his titles, and also claimed to be Duke of Lombardy, Duke of Burgundy, Duke of Chablais, and vicar of the Holy Roman Empire, the latter of which had been given to his father by Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor.

He helped restore the Abbey of St. Maurice of Agaune, in which the former kings of Burgundy had been crowned, and of which he himself was abbot until 1147. He also founded the Abbey of St. Sulpicius in Bugey, Tamié Abbey in the Bauges, and Hautecombe Abbey on the Lac du Bourget.

In 1128, Amadeus extended his realm, known as the "Old Chablais", by adding to it the region extending from the Arve to the Dranse d'Abondance, which came to be called the "New Chablais" with its capital at Saint-Maurice. Despite his marriage to Mahaut, he still fought against his brother-in-law Guy, who was killed at the Battle of Montmélian. Following this, King Louis VI of France, married to Amadeus' sister Adélaide de Maurienne, attempted to confiscate Savoy. Amadeus was saved by the intercession of Peter the Hermit, and by his promise to participate in Louis' planned crusade.

Crusade
In 1147, he accompanied his nephew Louis VII of France and his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine on the Second Crusade.[2] He financed his expedition with help from a loan from the Abbey of St. Maurice. In his retinue were many barons from Savoy, including the lords of Faucigny, Seyssel, La Chambre, Miolans, Montbel, Thoire, Montmayeur, Vienne, Viry, La Palude, Blonay, Chevron-Villette, Chignin, and Châtillon. Amadeus travelled south through Italy to Brindisi, where he crossed over to Durazzo, and marched east along the Via Egnatia to meet Louis at Constantinople in late 1147. After crossing into Anatolia, Amadeus, who was leading the vanguard, became separated from Louis near Laodicea, and Louis' forces were almost entirely destroyed.

Marching on to Adalia, Louis, Amadeus, and other barons decided to continue to Antioch by ship. On the journey, Amadeus fell ill on Cyprus, and died at Nicosia in April 1148.[3] He was buried in the Church of St. Croix in Nicosia. In Savoy, his son Humbert III succeeded him, under the regency of bishop Amadeus of Lausanne.[4]

Family and children
With his first wife Adelaide, he had:[5]

Adelaide married Humbert III of Beaujeu[5]
In 1123 he married Matilda of Albon,[5] daughter of Guigues III of Albon, they had:

Matilda (1125–1158), married king Afonso I of Portugal[5]
Agnes (1125–1172), married William I, Count of Geneva[5]
Humbert III (1135–1188)[5]
John
Peter
William
Margaret (died 1157), founded and joined the nunnery Bons in Bugey[5]
Isabella
Juliana (died 1194), abbess of St. André-le-Haut[5]

Amadeus married of Albon, Matilda in 1123. Matilda was born in 1105 in Albon, Ardèche, Rhône-Alpes, France; died in 1145 in Nicosia, Nicosia, Cyprus. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Appointments / Titles: Count of Savoy
• Appointments / Titles: The Blessed
• Appointments / Titles: The Saint
• FSID: LVYG-MC1

Umberto married of the Holy Roman Empire, Beatrice between 8 Jan 1176 and 7 Jan 1177 in France. Beatrice was born in 1138 in Wien, Wien, Wien, Austria; was christened in 1145 in Bourgogne, Marne, Champagne-Ardenne, France; died on 22 Nov 1184 in Château, Dordogne, Aquitaine, France; was buried after 22 Nov 1184 in Speyer Cathredal, Speyer, Speyer, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Appointments / Titles: Count
• Appointments / Titles: Count of Savoy & Maurienne
• FSID: 2RBD-G4X
• Alternate Birth: 27 May 1177, Charbonnières, Savoie, Rhône-Alpes, France
• Alternate Death: 27 Jan 1233, Aoste, Isère, Rhône-Alpes, France

Notes:

Thomas (Tommaso I; 1178 – 1 March 1233) was Count of Savoy from 1189 to 1233. He is sometimes numbered "Thomas I" to distinguish him from his son of the same name, who governed Savoy but was not count.

Thomas was born in Aiguebelle, the son of Humbert III of Savoy and Beatrice of Viennois. His birth was seen as miraculous; his monkish father had despaired of having a male heir after three wives. Count Humbert sought counsel from St. Anthelm, who blessed Humbert three times, and it was seen as a prophecy come true when Thomas was born shortly before Anthelm himself died on 26 June 1178. He was named in honour of Saint Thomas Becket.

Coat of arms of Savoy
Thomas was still a minor when his father died on 4 March 1189, and a council of regency was established, composed of his mother Beatrice, his father's cousin Boniface I of Montferrat, and the Bishop of Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne. He had reached his majority by August 1191. Thomas possessed the martial abilities, energy, and brilliance that his father lacked, and Savoy enjoyed a golden age under his leadership. Despite his youth he began the push northwest into new territories. In the same year he granted Aosta Valley the "Charte des Franchises", recognising the right to administrative and political autonomy. This right was maintained until the eve of the French Revolution. Later he conquered Vaud, Bugey, and Carignano. He supported the Hohenstaufens, and was known as "Thomas the Ghibelline" because of his career as Imperial Vicar of Lombardy.

Career Edit

Thomas worked throughout his career to expand the control and influence of the County of Savoy. One of the key tools that he used was his large number of children, who he worked to get into positions of influence in neighboring regions. In part, this was done by getting many of his sons into episcopal offices in surrounding territories, in a time when bishops had temporal as well as spiritual authority. In addition to Guglielmo and Bonifacio, who made their careers in the clergy, their brother Thomas started out as a canon at Lausanne and became prévôt of Valence by 1226. Pietro was also a canon at Lausanne and served as acting bishop there until he was replaced in 1231. In 1219 he worked to get his daughter Beatrice married to the fourteen-year-old Ramon Berenguer IV, Count of Provence. This established a close relationship between the two adjoining counties which would help cement Savoy control over trade between Italy and France.

Thomas also fought many battles to expand his control. In 1215, his troops fought in an alliance with Milan against Monferrato, destroying the town of Casale. In 1222, he captured Cavour.

Thomas also worked through diplomatic and economic means to expand his control. The county of Savoy long enjoyed control over critical passes through the Alps. In his quest to gain more control over Turin, Thomas made an agreement with their rival Asti to reroute their French trade around Turin through Savoyard lands in a treaty on 15 September 1224. In 1226, Emperor Frederick II came to northern Italy and named Thomas Imperial Vicar of Lombardy. In this role, he mediated in a Genoese rebellion and a dispute between the town of Marseille and their bishop. Thomas also made a policy of granting franchises and charters to towns on key trade routes which enabled the merchant class to develop more wealth and built support for his rule.

Thomas died at Moncalieri, Savoy.

Family and children Edit

In 1195 he ambushed the party of Count William I of Geneva, which was escorting the count's daughter, Margaret of Geneva, to France for her intended wedding to King Philip II of France. Thomas carried off Marguerite and married her himself, producing some eight sons and six daughters.

Amedeo, his immediate successor
Umberto, d. between March and November 1223
Tommaso, lord and then count in Piedmont and founder of a line that became the Savoy-Achaea
Aimone, d. 30 August 1237, Lord of Chablais
Guglielmo (William of Savoy), Bishop of Valence and Dean of Vienne
Amadeo of Savoy, Bishop of Maurienne
Pietro, who resided much in England, became Earl of Richmond, and ultimately in 1263 became the disputed count of Savoy
Filippo, archbishop of Lyon, who resigned, through marriage became Count Palatine of Burgundy and ultimately in 1268 became the disputed count of Savoy
Bonifacio who became archbishop of Canterbury
Beatrice of Savoy, d. 1265 or 1266, married in December 1219 to Ramon Berenguer IV, Count of Provence (1209-1245) and was mother of four Queens-consort
Alasia of Savoy, abbess of the monastery of St Pierre in Lyon (d.1250)
Ágatha of Savoy, abbess of the monastery of St Pierre in Lyon (d.1245)
Margherita of Savoy, d. 1273, married in 1218 to Hartmann IV of Kyburg
Avita of Savoy (1215-92) who married Baldwin de Redvers, 7th Earl of Devon and Robert Aguillon (d.1286).
He had illegitimate children too:

Aymon (+ 1243), who was Count of Larches, with Beatrice of Grisel married
Thomas "the big", who was count of Lioches
Giulio

Family/Spouse: verch Tudor, Jane Marie. Jane was born in 1177 in Wales; died in DECEASED. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Thomas married de Genève, Countess Marguerite Beatrix between 8 May and 7 Jun 1195 in Charbonnières, Savoie, Rhône-Alpes, France. Marguerite (daughter of de Genève, William I and of the Holy Roman Empire, Beatrice) was born in 1180 in Genève, Switzerland; died on 15 Apr 1257 in Pierre-Châtel, Isère, Rhône-Alpes, France. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Family/Spouse: Faucigny, Beatrix. Beatrix was born in 1177; died in DECEASED. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Appointments / Titles: Countess of Montpellier
• Appointments / Titles: Countess of Provence
• FSID: M1Q6-XVH
• Occupation: Countess of Savoy
• Birth: 1201, Chambéry, Savoie, Rhône-Alpes, France

Notes:

Beatrice di Savoia was born before 1204. She was the daughter of Tomaso I, Conte di Savoia and Margaret de Faucigny.2 She married Raimond Berengar V, Comte de Provence, son of Alfonso II, Comte de Provence and Gersend de Sabran, Comtesse de Forcalquier, in December 1220. She died circa 1266.
Children of Beatrice di Savoia and Raimond Berengar V, Comte de Provence

* Marguerite de Provence+3 b. 1221, d. 20 Dec 1295
* Eleanor of Provence+4 b. 1223, d. 24 Jun 1291
* Sanchia of Provence+1 b. c 1225, d. 9 Nov 1261
* Beatrice, Comtesse de Provence+3 b. 1234, d. c Jul 1267

Citations

1. [S106] Royal Genealogies Website (ROYAL92.GED), online ftp://ftp.cac.psu.edu/genealogy/public_html/royal/index.html. Hereinafter cited as Royal Genealogies Website.
2. [S11] Alison Weir, Britain's Royal Family: A Complete Genealogy (London, U.K.: The Bodley Head, 1999), page 69. Hereinafter cited as Britain's Royal Family.
3. [S16] Jirí Louda and Michael MacLagan, Lines of Succession: Heraldry of the Royal Families of Europe, 2nd edition (London, U.K.: Little, Brown and Company, 1999), table 45. Hereinafter cited as Lines of Succession.
4. [S105] Brain Tompsett, Royal Genealogical Data, online http://www3.dcs.hull.ac.uk/genealogy/royal/. Hereinafter cited as Royal Genealogical Data.

Family/Spouse: Berenger, Count Raimund IV. Raimund (son of de Provence, King of Aragon Alfonso II and de Sabran, Countess Gersinde II) was born in 1198 in Aix, Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France; was christened in Forcalquier, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France; died on 26 Aug 1245 in Aix, Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France; was buried after 26 Aug 1245 in Eglise Saint Jean de Malte, Aix, Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• FSID: 9CZK-TNP
• Appointments / Titles: Between 1233 and 1253; Count of Savoy

Notes:

Amadeus IV (1197 – 11 June 1253)[1] was Count of Savoy from 1233 to 1253.

Amadeus was born in Montmélian, Savoy. The legitimate heir of Thomas I of Savoy and Margaret of Geneva, he had however to fight with his brothers for the inheritance of Savoy's lands after their father's death. His brothers Pietro and Aimone spurred a revolt in Aosta Valley against Amadeus, but he was able to crush it with the help of Manfred III of Saluzzo and Boniface II of Montferrat, who were his sons-in-law. Together with his brother, Thomas, he fought against the communes of Turin and Pinerolo, but with uncertain results.

He was succeeded by his young son Boniface.

Career
Head of the family
As the eldest son of Thomas I of Savoy, Amadeus inherited the county and associated lands on his father's death in 1233. However, his brothers Peter and Aymon demanded that he divide the territories and give them their share. In July 1234, he and his brother William convened a family meeting at Château de Chillon. While both sides arrived with armed troops, William was able to negotiate a treaty between the brothers. This treaty kept the lands intact, but recognized the authority of the younger brothers within certain regions under Amadeus.[2] These territories were on the frontiers of Savoy lands, designed to encourage the brothers to expand the county rather than diminish it. When his brother Thomas left his career in the church in 1235, Amadeus granted him similar territories.[3]

Before he had a son, Amadeus changed his mind many times regarding his will. Initially, he had made his sons-in-law his heirs, but in 1235, he rewrote his will in favour of his brother Thomas. In December of that year, it went back to having his sons-in-law as heirs, until Amadeus was preparing for the siege. Then he rewrote the will in favour of Thomas. In March 1239, his daughters convinced him to return it to their favour. On 4 November 1240, Thomas returned and persuaded him to rewrite the will in his brother's favour again. When Thomas left, once again the will was reversed.[4] His final will was written in 1252, leaving the title and nearly everything to his son, Boniface, and naming his brother Thomas as regent and second in line for the title.[5]

Among European powers
Amadeus faced many challenges in balancing the demands of the greater powers in Europe at that time. Henry III of England wrote to Amadeus in 1235 to seek his consent and blessing to marry the Count's niece, Eleanor of Provence[6] In 1238, Amadeus went to the court of Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, in Turin, where he was knighted by the Emperor. Then with his brothers, he led troops as part of the siege of Brescia.[7] In July 1243, Amadeus and his brother Thomas were ordered by Enzo of Sardinia to join him in a siege of Vercelli, which had recently switched allegiances from the Empire to the Pope. Not only was the attack on the city unsuccessful, but Amadeus and his brother were excommunicated for it.[8] When the brothers wrote to the new Pope Innocent IV to appeal the excommunication, he granted their request.

In late 1244, when Pope Innocent IV fled from Rome, Amadeus met him in Susa and escorted him through the passes to Chambéry, and then provided his brother Philip as escort for the Pope downriver to Lyon. However, Amadeus was then willing to open the same passes to the imperial army. He also signed a treaty with Henry III on 16 January 1246 which gave rights of passage through the passes to the English in exchange for an annual payment of 200 marks. That same month, Amadeus joined a force which went to Provence to rescue his niece, Beatrice of Provence from the forces of Frederick and escort her to her marriage to Charles of Anjou[9] By May 1247, Frederick was ready to move against the Pope. He had gathered his army in Turin, and ordered those still loyal to him in the kingdoms of Arles and France to meet at Chambéry (the capital of Savoy). However, the revolt of Parma pulled Frederick back from this plan. That same summer, Amadeus blocked an attempt by the Pope to send 1500 soldiers to the Lombard League. On 8 November 1248, Frederick asked Amadeus and his brother Thomas to go to Lyon and start negotiations for peace. However, their efforts were unsuccessful and war continued until the death of Frederick.[10]

Family and children
He married twice, and each marriage produced children

c. 1217,[11] he married Marguerite of Burgundy, daughter of Hugh III, Duke of Burgundy.
Beatrice of Savoy (d. 1258), married firstly in 1233 Manfred III of Saluzzo (d. 1244),[12] married secondly on 21 April 1247 Manfred of Sicily
Margaret of Savoy (d. 1254), married firstly on 9 December 1235 Boniface II of Montferrat,[13] married secondly Aymar III, Count of Valentinois
on 18 Dec 1244, he married Cecilia of Baux, "Passerose", daughter of Barral of Baux[14]
Boniface, Count of Savoy
Beatrice of Savoy (1250 – 23 February 1292) married Peter of Chalon and Infante Manuel of Castile.
Eleonor of Savoy, married in 1269 Guichard de Beaujeu
Constance of Savoy, died after 1263

Amadeus married Burgundy, Marguerite of in 1217. Marguerite was born in UNKNOWN; died in DECEASED. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]