Amaury VI of Montfort
Amaury VII of Montfort (French: Amaury, * 1195, † 1241 in Otranto ), since 1218 Mr. and from 1223 was a Count of Montfort l'Amaury, and lord of Épernon. He was also from 1218 to 1224, a Viscount of Carcassonne, Béziers and Albi, and Titulargraf of Toulouse and titular of Narbonne. From 1230 he held the office of Constable of France.
According to another census Amalric VII is also called Amalric VI. performed.
Family and descendants
He was a son of Simon IV de Montfort, 5th Earl of Leicester, and Alix de Montmorency, and the older brother of Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester.
In 1214 he married Beatrice of Viennois († 1248 ), daughter of Guigues VI. , Dauphin of Viennois ( Older house Burgundy ), and Beatrix of Sabran, Countess of Gap and Embrun. Their children were:
- John I († 1249 in Cyprus during the sixth crusade ), Count of Montfort
- Margarethe († 1284 or later) ∞ Count Johann III. of Soissons
- ∞ to 1256 Infant Ferdinand of Castile, Count of Aumale († 1260 )
- ∞ to 1267 Henry of Grandpré, Lord of Livry
- ∞ with Simon II of Clermont, Lord of Nesle and Ailly († 1268 )
Life
Amalric took part in the wake of his father on the Albigensian Crusade, where he is first mentioned in 1213 in Castelnaudary. There he was ordained a feast of John the Baptist at the instigation of his father by the bishops of Orleans and Auxerre, and in the presence of his parents at a "Knights of Christ". In battle, he is first mentioned in August 1216 before Beaucaire, where the Crusaders suffered the first major defeat against Count Raymond VII of Toulouse. In June 1218 he also fought in the disastrous siege of Toulouse, when his father was killed by a catapult projectile. As the eldest son Amalric then took over the leadership of the Crusaders and should thereby prove the stronger resistance against the princes of the Languedoc as wholly inappropriate.
Supported by the French crown prince Louis VIII committed Amalric in December 1218 a massacre of the population of Marmande, lost in the spring of 1219 a large army at Baziège and lost 1221 Castelnaudary to the Count of Foix. In January 1224, the Count of Toulouse, Carcassonne and finally conquered enabled the grown up in exile heirs Raimund II Trencavel the entry into the city. Amalric was then beaten and without greater support to the crusade, especially since Pope Honorius III. now urged an end to the fighting. Amalric, signed on January 14, 1224 a truce and withdrew the next day in his northern French homeland.
The nunmehrige King Louis VIII convened in November 1225 in Bourges, a council of the prelates of France, where he proclaimed a new crusade in the Languedoc. The King decided to lead the campaign personally and claimed here is that all conquests should fall to the Crown. The legal basis for the King was the distinction made in Bourges transfer of the rights of Amalric to the Crown. These rights are negotiated by the legacy of his father, which included the Vice- county of Carcassonne and Toulouse the county. The legitimacy of these claims, however, was controversial because it stemmed by a investiture of the Pope and not the was about by the King of Aragon before lord of Carcassonne and Toulouse. However, the King of France recognized their validity. Amalric took part in the crusade and took this part in the siege of Avignon, which fell in August 1226. As a result, all major cities in the region were without a fight, including Carcassonne, Narbonne and Montpellier, only the strong Toulouse refused to surrender.
Christmas 1230 Amalric was appointed in Melun to the Constable of France, the ministry which previously held by his uncle Mathieu II de Montmorency. In addition, he had to drop in favor of his brother to the Crown and all claims for possessions of his family in England. This was King Louis IX. required of all French barons who. both in France and England fief possessed, as the barons should worship only one of the relevant Kings Thus, especially the overlap of interests of England in France should be reduced.
1239 Amalric took the crusade Theobald of Champagne ( crusade of the barons ) in the holy land part. The crusade enjoyed the support of King Louis IX. , Who took over the full funding and Amalric allowed to lead the royal lilies banners on this train. However, the company was very successful, winning against the Damascene Ayyubids followed in November 1239, a defeat against the Egyptian Ayyubid at the Battle of Gaza, came in Amalric in captivity. He was imprisoned in Cairo and released under the mediation of Richard of Cornwall in winter 1240/1241 again.
On the way back to his home he died in April 1241 in Otranto ( Apulia) and was buried in the church of St. Peter in Rome.