Arthur II, Duke of Brittany

Duke of Brittany from 1305 to 1312

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(1312-08-27) (aged 51)
Château de L'Isle
Burial|

Cordeliers Convent

Spouses|

Marie, Viscountess of Limoges

(m. 1275; died 1291)​

Yolande of Dreux

(m. 1292)​

Issue
Among others|

* John III, Duke of Brittany
* Guy, Count of Penthièvre
* Peter, Lord of Dol-Combourg
* John, Count of Montfort
* Beatrice, Lady of Laval
* Joan, Countess of Marle
* Alice, Countess of Vendôme
* Blanche
* Marie

House| Dreux
Father| John II, Duke of Brittany
Mother| Beatrice of England

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.[1]

After he inherited the ducal throne, his brother John became Earl of Richmond.[a]

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.[b] 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[edit]

In 1275, Arthur married Marie, Viscountess of Limoges, daughter of Guy VI, Viscount of Limoges, and Margaret, Lady of Molinot.[2][3] 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).[2]
* Guy de Penthièvre, Count of Penthièvre (1287 – 1331);[2] father of Joanna of Penthièvre.[2]
* Peter of Brittany, Seigneur of Dol-Combourg and Sant-Maloù (1289 – 1312).[2]

Marie died in 1291. In May 1292, Arthur married Yolande of Dreux,[4] who was Countess of Montfort, daughter of Robert IV, Count of Dreux, and Beatrice de Montfort. Yolande had briefly been Queen of Scotland by her first marriage.[5] They were parents of six children:

* John of Montfort (1295 – 16 September 1345).[4]
* Beatrice of Brittany [fr] (1295–1384); married Guy X, Lord of Laval.[c]
* Joan of Brittany (1296–1364) [fr]; married Robert, Count of Marle, Lord of Cassel[6] (son of Robert III, Count of Flanders).
* Alice of Brittany [fr] (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.

## See also[edit]

* Dukes of Brittany family tree

## Footnotes[edit]

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[edit]

1. ^ Hereford Brooke George, Genealogical Tables Illustrative of Modern History, (Oxford Clarendon Press, 1875), table XXVI
2. ^ a b c d e Jonathan Sumption, Trial by Battle: The Hundred Years War, (Faber & Faber, 1990), 372.
3. ^ Duplès-Agier, H. (ed.) (1874) Chroniques de Saint-Martial de Limoges (Paris), Anonymum S Martialis Chronicon, p. 172.
4. ^ a b Jonathan Sumption, Trial by Battle: The Hundred Years War, 373.
5. ^ 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.
6. ^ Diocesis of Bruges (ed.) (1852) Chronicon abbatiæ Warnestoniensis (Bruges), Appendix, p. 34.

Arthur II, Duke of Brittany

House of Dreux

Cadet branch of the Capetian dynasty

Born: 2 July 1262 Died: 27 August 1312

Regnal titles
Preceded by

Marie

|  Viscount of Limoges
1275–1301
with Marie (1275–1291) | Succeeded by

John III

Preceded by

John II

|  Duke of Brittany
1305–1312
Count of Penthièvre
1305–1312  | Succeeded by

Guy

Preceded by

Beatrice

|  Count of Montfort
1311–1312
with Yolande | Succeeded by

John II

* v
* t
* e

Monarchs of Brittany

Early monarchs|

| c. 578–907|

* Waroch
* Saint Judicael
* Alain II Hir
* Morman
* Wihomarc
* Nominoe
* Erispoe
* Salomon
* Pascweten
* Gurvand
* Judicael
* Alan I
* Gourmaëlon

|

Viking occupation|

| c. 907–938|

* Hroflr
* Rognvaldr
* Incon

|

House of Nantes|

| 938–958|

* Alan II (938–952)
* Drogo (952–958)
* Hoël I (960–981)
* Guerech (981–988)
* Alan (III) (988–990)

|

House of Rennes|

| 958–1072|

* Conan I (990–992)
* Geoffrey I (992–1008)
* Alan III (1008–1040)
* Odo I (1008–1034)
* Conan II (1040–1066)
* Hawise (1066–1072)
* with Hoël II (1066–1072)

|

House of Cornouaille|

| 1072–1156|

* Alan IV (1072–1112)
* Conan III (1112–1148)
* Bertha (1148–1156)
* with Odo II (1148–1156)

|

House of Penthièvre|

| 1156–1196|

* Conan IV (1156–1166)
* Constance (1166–1201)
* with Geoffrey II (1181–1186)
* later Guy of Thouars (1199–1201)

|

House of Plantagenet|

| 1196–1203|

* Arthur I (1196–1203)

|

House of Thouars|

| 1203–1221|

* Alix (1203–1221)
* with Peter I (1213–1221)

|

House of Dreux|

| 1221–1341|

* John I (1221–1286)
* John II (1286–1305)
* Arthur II (1305–1312)
* John III (1312–1341)

|

War of the Breton Succession|

| 1341–1365|

* Joan (1341–1364)
* with Charles (1341–1364)
disputed by
* John of Montfort (1341–1345) and John IV (1345–1365)

|

Montfort of Brittany|

| 1365–1514|

* John IV (1365–1399)
* John V (1399–1442)
* Francis I (1442–1450)
* Peter II (1450–1457)
* Arthur III (1457–1458)
* Francis II (1458–1488)
* Anne (1488–1514)

|

House of Valois|

| 1514–1547|

* Claude (1514–1524)
* Francis III (1524–1536)
* Henry (1536–1547)

|

Courtesy title|

| 1547–present|

* Louis de France (1704–1705)
* Louis de France (1707–1712)
* François de Bourbon (1973–1984)

|

*[m.]: married
*[c.]: circa
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