Duchy of Bouillon

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1456–1794 duchy centered around modern Bouillon, Belgium

Duchy of Bouillon

Duché de Bouillon

1456? – 1794

Flag

Coat of arms

The Duchy of Bouillon as at 1560, shown within the Lower Rhenish–Westphalian Circle

Status|

* State of the Holy Roman Empire
* Fief of early modern France

Capital| Bouillon
Common languages| Walloon
Government| Dukedom
Historical era| Middle Ages

• Ardennes lords of Bouillon

| by the 11th century

• La Marck châtelains

| from 1415 the 15th century

• First style of Duke

| 1456

• Treaties of Nijmegen

| 1678

• Abolition of manorial
and feudal rights

26 May 1790

• Ducal constitution

| 23 March or 1 May 1792

• Proclamation of the
Republic

24 April 1794

• Annexed to France

| 26 October 1795
(4 Brumaire, Year IV)

Preceded by | Succeeded by

|

|  | Lower Lorraine

|

| Republic of Bouillon |

|

Today part of| Belgium

The Duchy of Bouillon (French: Duché de Bouillon) was a duchy comprising Bouillon and adjacent towns and villages in present-day Belgium.

The state originated in the 10th century as property of the Lords of Bouillon, owners of Bouillon Castle. Crusader Godfrey of Bouillon, later the first King of Jerusalem, sold Bouillon to the Prince-Bishopric of Liège, in 1095. The Prince-Bishops of Liège consequently became lords of Bouillon and eventually adopted the title of duke. The duchy was later claimed by members of the Houses of La Marck and La Tour d'Auvergne. From 1678, it was a sovereign duchy under French protection and ruled by La Tour. It was annexed by France in 1795.

## Geography

[edit]

Map of the Duchy

The Duchy of Bouillon was a sovereign duchy until 1795. In 1789, it had a population of 2,500. The largest town was Bouillon, situated on the Semois. It also consisted of the surrounding villages: Sugny, Corbion, Alle, Rochehaut, Ucimont, Botassart, Sensenruth, Noirefontaine, Gros-Fays, Fays-les-Veneurs, Bertrix, Carlsbourg, Paliseul, Jehonville, Opont, Anloy, Porcheresse, Gembes, Gedinne, Sart-Custinne, and Tellin.

Bouillon is located in a Walloon-speaking region.

## History

[edit]

Bouillon Castle The Semois with Bouillon Castle in the background History of the Low Countries

Frisii |  | Belgae
| Cana–
nefates | Chamavi,
Tubantes | Gallia Belgica (55 BC–c. 5th AD)
Germania Inferior (83–c. 5th)
| Salian Franks |  | Batavi |  |  |
unpopulated
(4th–c. 5th) | Saxons | Salian Franks
(4th–c. 5th) |  |
Frisian Kingdom
(c. 6th–734) |  | Frankish Kingdom (481–843)—Carolingian Empire (800–843)
Austrasia (511–687)
|  |
Middle Francia (843–855) | West
Francia
(843–) |
Kingdom of Lotharingia (855– 959)
Duchy of Lower Lorraine (959–) |
Frisia |  |  |

Frisian
Freedom
(11–16th
century) |
County of
Holland
(880–1432) |
Bishopric of
Utrecht
(695–1456) |
Duchy of
Brabant
(1183–1430)

Duchy of
Guelders
(1046–1543) |
County of
Flanders
(862–1384) |
County of
Hainaut
(1071–1432)

County of
Namur
(981–1421) |
P.-Bish.
of Liège

(980–1794) |
Duchy of
Luxem-
bourg
(1059–1443)

Burgundian Netherlands (1384–1482) |  |

Habsburg Netherlands (1482–1795)
(Seventeen Provinces after 1543)  |   |

Dutch Republic
(1581–1795) |
Spanish Netherlands
(1556–1714) |   |

Austrian Netherlands
(1714–1795) |  |

United States of Belgium
(1790) |
R. Liège
(1789–'91) |
|  |   |

Batavian Republic (1795–1806)
Kingdom of Holland (1806–1810) |
associated with French First Republic (1795–1804)
part of First French Empire (1804–1815)

Princip. of the Netherlands (1813–1815) |
Kingdom of the Netherlands (1815–1830) |
Gr D. L.
(1815–)

Kingdom of the Netherlands (1839–) |
Kingdom of Belgium (1830–)
|  |
Gr D. of
Luxem-
bourg
(1890–)

The Duchy of Bouillon's origins are unclear. The first reference to Bouillon Castle comes in 988 and by the 11th century, Bouillon was a freehold held by the House of Ardennes, who styled themselves Lords of Bouillon. On the death of Godfrey III, Duke of Lower Lorraine in 1069, Bouillon passed to his nephew, Godfrey of Bouillon. In 1095, Godfrey of Bouillon sold Bouillon to Otbert, the Prince-Bishop of Liège, in order to finance his participation in the First Crusade. Godfrey later became first ruler of the Kingdom of Jerusalem.

The Prince-Bishop of Liège granted the châtellenie of Bouillon to the House of La Marck in 1415. In 1456, Louis de Bourbon, Bishop of Liège became the first individual to style himself "Duke of Bouillon". In 1482, the then Châtelain of Bouillon, William de La Marck, ordered the assassination of Louis in a plot to install his son, Jean de la Marck, as Prince-Bishop. This plot proved unsuccessful: John of Hornes was elected as successor of Louis de Bourbon as Prince-Bishop of Liège. John then fought a war with William that ended with the Treaty of Tongeren, signed May 21, 1484, with the de la Marck family relinquishing its claim on Liège, though they retained Bouillon Castle as a pledge for a loan of 30,000 livres and for their support for the Prince-Bishop against the emperor Maximilian I. In 1492 Robert II de la Marck began calling himself "Duke of Bouillon", but in 1521, Érard de La Marck, Prince-Bishop of Liège (and Robert's brother), with the backing of the troops of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, managed to regain Bouillon for the Prince-Bishopric.

On becoming chatelain in 1536 Robert Fleuranges III de La Marck also styled himself "Duke of Bouillon" and his successor Robert IV maintained the right to this title. During the Italian War of 1551–1559, Bouillon was occupied by the forces of Henry II of France to keep them free from Habsburg influence, but Henry confirmed Robert IV as Duke of Bouillon.

From 1560 to 1642, the Dukes of Bouillon were also the rulers of the independent Principality of Sedan.

With the death of Charlotte de La Marck in 1594, the duchy and the title passed to her husband Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne and thereafter became the possession of the House of La Tour d'Auvergne. France again invaded Bouillon in 1676 during the Franco-Dutch War, but Godefroy Maurice de La Tour d'Auvergne retained the title. From this point on, although the Duchy of Bouillon was officially still a part of the Holy Roman Empire, it was in actuality a French protectorate. This state of affairs was confirmed by the 1678 Treaties of Nijmegen.

In the wake of the French Revolution, the French Revolutionary Army invaded the Duchy of Bouillon in 1794, creating the short-lived Republic of Bouillon. In 1795, Bouillon was annexed to France. The last duke, Jacques Léopold de La Tour d'Auvergne, died in 1802 without any children (which was the extinction of the La Tour d'Auvergne family).

In 1815 the Congress of Vienna established an arbitral commission to determine the "Duke of Bouillon" and decided in favor of Charles Alain Gabriel de Rohan (the last duke's closest relative on his paternal side) over Philippe d'Auvergne (a postulated relative, who had been adopted and declared an heir by Jacques' father, Godefroy de La Tour d'Auvergne, when he was the duke). Meanwhile the Duchy of Bouillon was annexed to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, then in personal union with the Kingdom of the Netherlands (later becoming part of the Kingdom of the Belgians in 1830). The title, territory and the debt of Bouillon remained a bone of contention between the bishopric and the noble houses before and after the French annexation of Bouillon in 1795. Court rulings about claimants were not resolved until 1825.

## List of dukes of Bouillon

[edit]

### Prince bishops of Liege 1456–?

[edit]

See also: Prince-Bishopric of Liège

Picture  | Name  | Father  | Birth  | Marriage  | Became duke  | Death  | Spouse

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

| Louis de Bourbon | Charles I, Duke of Bourbon | 1438  | unmarried  | 1456
claimed title on accession to bishopric | 30 August 1482  | none
| John of Hornes | James of Hornes | around 1450  | unmarried  | 1484 (accession)
maintained ownership of Bouillon | 1505  | none
| Érard de La Marck | Robert I de la Marck | 31 May 1472  | unmarried  | 1505 (accession)
maintained ownership of Bouillon | 1538  | none

### House of La Marck, ?–1588

[edit]

See also: House of La Marck

Picture  | Name  | Father  | Birth  | Marriage  | Became duke  | Death  | Spouse

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

| Robert I de La Marck | Jean de La Marck | 1430  | 15 June 1446  | appointed chatelaine of Bouillon | February 1487  | Jeanne de Marley
| Robert II de la Marck | Robert I | 1465  | 25 December 1490  | claimed title of Duke, 1492 | March 1536  | Catherine de Croÿ
| Robert Fleuranges de La Marck | Robert II | 1491  | 1 April 1510  | claimed title of Duke, 1536 | 21 December 1537  | Guillemette of Saarbrücken, Countess of Braine
| Robert IV de La Marck | Robert Fleuranges | 5 January 1512  | 1 March 1539  | confirmed in title by Henry II of France | 15 February 1556  | Françoise de Brézé, Countess of Maulevrier
| Henri-Robert de La Marck | Robert IV | 7 February 1540  | 7 Feb 1558  | 15 February 1556
father's death | 2 December 1574  | Françoise de Bourbon
| Charlotte de La Marck
suo jure | Henri Robert | 5 November 1574  | 19 May 1594  | 2 December 1574
father's death | 15 May 1594  | Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne
Picture  | Name  | Father  | Birth  | Marriage  | Became duke  | Death  | Spouse

### House of La Tour d'Auvergne, 1588–1802

[edit]

See also: House of La Tour d'Auvergne

Picture  | Name  | Father  | Birth  | Marriage  | Became duke  | Ceased to be duke  | Death  | Spouse

|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|

| Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne | François de La Tour d'Auvergne | 28 September 1555  | 19 November 1591  | 15 May 1594
first wife's death | 25 March 1623  | Charlotte de La Marck
15 April 1595  | Elisabeth of Nassau
| Frédéric Maurice de La Tour d'Auvergne | Henri | 22 October 1605  | 2 January 1634  | 25 March 1623
father's death | 9 August 1652  | Eleonora Catharina Febronis van den Bergh
| Godefroy Maurice de La Tour d'Auvergne | Frédéric Maurice | 21 June 1636  | 19 April 1662  | 9 August 1652
father's death | 26 July 1721  | Marie Anne Mancini
| Emmanuel Théodose de La Tour d'Auvergne | Godefroy Maurice | 1668  | 1 February 1696  | 26 July 1721
father's death | 17 April 1730  | Marie Armande Victoire de La Trémoille
4 January 1718  | Louise Françoise Angélique Le Tellier
21 March 1725  | Louise Henriette Françoise de Lorraine
| Charles Godefroy de La Tour d'Auvergne | Emmanuel Théodose | 16 July 1706  | 2 April 1724  | 17 April 1730
father's death | 24 October 1771  | Maria Karolina Sobieska
| Godefroy de La Tour d'Auvergne | Charles Godefroy | 26 January 1728  | 27 November 1743  | 24 October 1771
father's death | 3 December 1792  | Louise de Lorraine
14 May 1789  | Marie Françoise Henriette de Banastre
| Jacques Léopold de La Tour d'Auvergne | Godefroy | 15 January 1746  | 17 July 1766  | 3 December 1792
father's death | 1794
Bouillon absorbed into the French First Republic | 7 February 1802  | Hedwig of Hesse-Rotenburg
Picture  | Name  | Father  | Birth  | Marriage  | Became duke  | Ceased to be duke  | Death  | Spouse

### House of Rohan, 1816–1975

[edit]

In 1816, the Congress of Vienna restored the title of "Duke of Bouillon", giving it to Charles Alain Gabriel de Rohan, grandson of Marie Louise de La Tour d'Auvergne, who was the daughter of the former duke Charles Godefroy de La Tour d'Auvergne. In 1918 Austria became a republic so the ducal titles ceased to exist.

Picture  | Name  | Father  | Birth  | Marriage  | Became duke  | Death  | Wife

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

| Charles Alain Gabriel
[1][2][3] | Henri Louis, Prince of Guéméné
(Rohan)  | 18 January 1764  | 29 May 1781  | 1816
accession | 24 April 1836  | Louise Aglae de Conflans d'Armentieres
| Louis Victor Mériadec
[1][2][3][4] | Henri Louis, Prince of Guéméné
(Rohan)  | 1766  |  | 24 April 1836
accession | 1841  | Berthe de Rohan
| Camille Philippe Joseph Idesbald
[1][2][3] |  Charles-Louis-Gaspard de Rohan-Rochefort
Adopted by Louis Victor Mériadec | 19 December 1801  | 28 May 1826  | 1846
accession | 13 September 1892  | Adelheid zu Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg
| Alain Benjamin Arthur
[1][2][3][5][6] | Arthur de Rohan (1826–1885), son of Camille Philippe | 8 January 1853  | 10 October 1885  | 13 September 1892
accession | 24 February 1914  | Johanna of Auersperg
| Alain Anton Joseph Adolf Ignaz Maria
[1][2][3][5][6] | Alain Benjamin Arthur | 26 Jul 1893  | 29 September 1921  | 24 February 1914
| 17 March 1975  | Margarethe von Schönburg-Hartenstein
Picture  | Name  | Father  | Birth  | Marriage  | Became duke  | Death  | Wife

## Bibliography

[edit]

* Jacques Marsollier (1647-1724): Histoire du maréchal duc de Bouillon; où l'on trouve ce qui s'est passé de plus remarquable sous les regnes de François II, Charles IX, Henry III, Henry IV, la minorité & les premières années du regne de Louis XIII
* Vol I (1726), online
* Vol II (1726), online
* Vol III (1726), online

## See also

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Duchy of Bouillon.

* Duchess of Bouillon
* Prince of Sedan

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ a b c d e Also Prince of Rohan.
2. ^ a b c d e Also Prince of Guéméné.
3. ^ a b c d e Also Duke of Montbazon.
4. ^ Also Count of Saint-Pol
5. ^ a b Also Prince of Rochefort.
6. ^ a b Also Prince of Montaubon.

* v
* t
* e

Princes of Bouillon

The generations start from the Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne, first sovereign Duke of Bouillon

1st Generation|

* Frédéric Maurice, Duke of Bouillon
* Henri, Viscount of Turenne

2nd Generation|

* Godefroy Maurice, Duke of Bouillon
* Emmanuel Théodose, Cardinal de Bouillon

3rd Generation|

* Emmanuel Theodose, Duke of Bouillon
* Louis Henri, Count of Évreux

4th Generation|

* Frédéric Maurice Casimir, Prince of Turenne
* Charles Godefroy, Duke of Bouillon

5th Generation|

* Godefroy, Duke of Bouillon

6th Generation|

* Jacques Léopold, Duke of Bouillon

* v
* t
* e

Princesses of Bouillon

The generations start from Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne, first sovereign Duke of Bouillon

3rd generation|

* Maria Henriette, Hereditary Princess of Sulzbach

4th generation|

* Armande, Princess of Epinoy
* Anne Marie Louise, Princess of Soubise
* Marie Charlotte, Princess of Craon

5th generation|

* Marie Louise, Princess of Guéméné

6th generation|

* none

Authority control databases: National |

* Germany

|

*[c.]: circa
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