Geoffrey Martel’s Divorce from Agnes
Geoffrey’s marriage to the widowed countess of Poitou failed to deliver its expected advantages, and after 1050 Agnes ceased to appear as countess.…
Quarrels with Peter-William of Aquitaine
The 1053 quarrel with Peter-William came to nothing practical, but in spring or early summer 1058 the duke of Aquitaine blockaded Geoffrey within Saumur.…
The 1058 Invasion of Normandy
In 1058 King Henry and Geoffrey Martel, recognizing William as their most dangerous rival, forgot old grudges and planned a vast plundering raid.…
Defeat at Varaville
As the host crossed the Dive at the Varaville ford, it was caught simultaneously by the inflowing tide and by Duke William himself.…
Deaths of Geoffrey Martel and King Henry
Henry died in summer 1060 and Geoffrey Martel followed in November, receiving the monastic habit at the abbey of S.…
Geoffrey the Bearded’s Inheritance
With Geoffrey the male line of Fulk the Red expired. The heirs through the spindle-side included his nephew Fulk “the Gosling,” already compensated with Vendôme, and the two sons…
Dissolution of the Angevin Dominion
The dominion Geoffrey the Hammer bequeathed was no compact whole but a bundle of four states held on different tenures.…
Battle of Chef-Boutonne (1061)
While Saintes was being besieged by the new Duke William VII of Aquitaine, who claimed Saintonge by the 1036 cession terms, a strong Angevin party in the city appealed to Geoffrey…
Loss of Saintonge
Saintes opened its gates to the Angevin victor, but the gain was only temporary. The following year the duke of Aquitaine blockaded the city until sword and famine compelled the g…
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