Matilda of Tuscany, or Matilda of Canossa, also referred to as la Gran Contessa, was a member of the House of Canossa in the second half of the eleventh century. Matilda was one of the most important governing figures of the Italian Middle Ages. She reigned in a period of constant battles, political intrigues, and Roman Catholic excommunications. She was able to demonstrate an innate and skilled strategic leadership capacity in both military and diplomatic matters.
Godfrey of Bouillon was a preeminent leader of the First Crusade, and the first ruler of the Kingdom of Jerusalem from 1099 to 1100. Although initially reluctant to take the title of king, he agreed to rule as prince (princeps) under the title Advocatus Sancti Sepulchri, or Advocate of the Holy Sepulchre.
Bouillon is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Luxembourg in the Ardennes, Belgium.
Hugh, called the Great was the first count of Vermandois from the House of Capet. He is known primarily for being one of the leaders of the First Crusade. His nickname Magnus is probably a bad translation into medieval Latin of an Old French nickname, le Maisné, meaning "the younger", referring to Hugh as younger brother of King Philip I of France.
Conrad II of Italy, also known as Conrad (III) (12 February 1074 – 27 July 1101), was the Duke of Lower Lorraine (1076–1087), King of Germany (1087–1098) and King of Italy (1093–1098). He was the second son of Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV and Bertha of Savoy, and their eldest son to reach adulthood, his older brother Henry having been born and died in the same month of August 1071. Conrad's rule in Lorraine and Germany was nominal. He spent most of his life in Italy and there he was king in fact as well as in name.
Frederick II, son of Thierry I of the House of Ardennes and Richilde von Blieskastel, daughter of Folmar III, Count in Bliesgau, was the Count of Bar and Duke of Lorraine, co-reigning with his father from 1019.
Godfrey III, called the Bearded, was the eldest son of Gothelo I, Duke of Upper and Lower Lorraine.
Welf I was Duke of Bavaria from 1070 to 1077 and from 1096 to his death. He was the first member of the Welf branch of the House of Este. In the genealogy of the Elder House of Welf, he is counted as Welf IV.
The Duke of Spoleto was the ruler of Spoleto and most of central Italy outside the Papal States during the Early and High Middle Ages. The first dukes were appointed by the Lombard king, but they were independent in practice. The Carolingian conquerors of the Lombards continued to appoint dukes, as did their successors the Holy Roman Emperors. In the 12th century, the dukes of Spoleto were the most important imperial vassals in Italy. From 1198, the Duchy became under the sovereignty of the States of the Church.
Boniface III, son of Tedald of Canossa and the father of Matilda of Tuscany, was the most powerful north Italian prince of his age. By inheritance he was count of Brescia, Canossa, Ferrara, Florence, Lucca, Mantua, Modena, Pisa, Pistoia, Parma, Reggio, and Verona from 1007 and, by appointment, margrave of Tuscany from 1027 until his assassination in 1052.
The County of Verdun was a sovereign medieval county in the Duchy of Lower Lorraine.
Beatrice of Bar was the marchioness of Tuscany by marriage to Boniface III of Tuscany, and Regent of Tuscany from 1052 until her death, during the minority of and in co-regency with, her daughter Matilda. She was the daughter of Frederick II, Duke of Upper Lorraine, count of Bar, and Matilda of Swabia. She was married first to Boniface III of Tuscany and later to Godfrey of Lotharingia.
Boniface IV Frederick was the only son of Boniface III of Tuscany and Beatrice of Bar. He was young when his father died on 6 May 1052 and he inherited the great north Italian margraviate.
The Crusade cycle is an Old French literary cycle of chansons de geste concerning the First Crusade and its aftermath.
The House of Ardenne–Verdun was a branch of the House of Ardenne, one of the first documented medieval European noble families, centered on Verdun. The family dominated in the Duchy of Lotharingia (Lorraine) in the 10th and 11th centuries. All members descended from Cunigunda of France, a granddaughter of the West Frankish king Louis the Stammerer. She married twice but all or most of her children were children of her first husband, Count Palatine Wigeric of Lotharingia. The other main branches of the House of Ardennes were the House of Ardenne–Luxembourg, and the House of Ardenne–Bar.
The House of Flanders, also called the Baldwins, was a medieval ruling family of Frankish origin that was founded by Baldwin Iron Arm, son-in-law of Charles the Bald. The House of Flanders was the first dynasty to transform a county function of the Carolingian Empire into a hereditary fiefdom, the County of Flanders, falling under West Francia and the subsequent Kingdom of France, following the empire's partition acted by the Treaty of Verdun in 843.
The Margraviate of Antwerp consisted since the eleventh century of the area around the cities of Antwerp and Breda.
Albert III was the Count of Namur from 1063 until his death. He was the son of Count Albert II and Regelinde of Verdun.
Conon was a Lotharingian nobleman and military leader of the First Crusade. He was one of the most prominent lords of the Ardennes, being the count of Montaigu, lord of Rochefort and advocate (defender) of the city of Dinant from 1064. He was also one of the most important vassals of the bishop of Liège. His chief seat was the castle of Montaigu.
Lambert, Count of Montaigu and Clermont, son of Conon, Count of Montaigu. Lambert was also Seigneur de Rochefort, Advocate of Dinant, and Advocate of Saint-Symphorien-des-Bois.
