Raoul of Clermont



Raoul II/III of Clermont-Nesle (c. 1245 – Kortrijk, July 11, 1302) was Seigneur (Lord) of Nesle in Picardie (de), Viscount of Châteaudun (de), Grand Chamberlain of France and Constable of France.

Biography
Raoul was the eldest son of Simon II of Clermont (c. 1216 - 1286) by Adele ("Alix") of Montfort (d. 1279), daughter of Amaury VI of Montfort. His father had a brother called Raoul (d.a. 1243), sometimes numbered II, causing confusion about the partentage of Raoul's children, as either somehow might come into question. Having Raoul's uncle as No. II and his nephew as Raoul IV, makes himself No. III. There are other issues with the genealogy, as discussed in the article about Simon II.

Raoul de Clermont was one of the most important generals of King Louis IX of France. He participated in most campaigns of the King, including the Eighth Crusade against Tunis. appointed Constable of France in 1285 (probably), he fought in the Aragonese Crusade and in the Franco-Flemish War (1297-1305) against the County of Flanders, with Count Guy of Dampierre, his in-law. The governor of Flanders, Jacques de Châtillon, put in place by the French king was also Raoul's in-law. The French King Philip "the fair" (1268 - 1314) sent him with his brother Guy I of Clermont, Marshal of France, to attack the enemy at the Siege of Lille (1297), where they were victorious and took a large number of prisoners. In 1302, together with his brother Guy, he fought under Robert II, Count of Artois against the Flemish in the Battle of the Golden Spurs at Kortrijk, and the French army was utterly defeated, all three killed and the Flemish regained independence. The brutal, unlawful execution of Walram, Count of Jülich that had surrendered to the French in a previous battle (Furnes 1297) was fiercely avenged on the battlefield.

His daughter Alix succeeded in Châteaudun but record about succession in Nesle is not present.

Marriage and issue
Raoul married firstly in c.1268 Alix (Yolande) of Dreux (nl) (c. 1255 - c. 1293), Viscountess of Châteaudun, daughter of Robert of Dreux (de) (1217 - c.1264). They had three daughters:
 * Alix (c.1275 - c.1330), Viscountess of Châteaudun, Lady of Mondoubleau. Called Alix of Clermont, Nesle or Beaumont.
 * Alix married firstly 1286 to Guillaume IV of Flanders (fr) (1248 - 1311), Seigneur of Dendermonde, Crèvecoeur and Richebourg, son of Guy of Dampierre, Count of Flanders. They had about six children:
 * Guillaume/William (c.1290 - 1320), married to Marie of Vianden (1290 - 1344), daughter of Philip of Salm-Vianden, Herr of Rumpst, youngest son of Philip I, Count of Vianden.
 * Jeanne (c.1290 - 1342), married to Gérard van Diest (de) (1275 - 1333), Châtelain (Burggraf) of Antwerpen and Otto of Cuijk (de) (1270 - 1350).
 * Marie of Dampierre (c.1290 - 1350), Viscountess of Châteaudun, married 1317 to Robert VII of Auvergne (fr) (1280 - c.1326) and had seven known children, including Jean I (fr) (d. 1386), Count of Auvergne, Boulogne and Montfort.
 * Alice (c.1295 - 1320)
 * Jean/John (c.1295 - 1325) married 1315 to Béatrice, daughter of Jacques de Châtillon, governor of Flanders. They had five children.
 * Guy (c.1290 ? - 1345), Seigneur of Richebourg, married after 1315 Marie of Enghien (de), daughter of Gerard of Enghien, Herr of Zottegem. Châtelain (Burggraf) of Gent (de). Secondly, in 1321 Guy married Béatrice of Putten (1300 - 1354), daughter of Nikolaas III/IV (nl) (d. 1311), Herr of Putten (de). They had one daughter.
 * Secondly, in 1312 Alix married John I of Chalon-Arlay, Sire of Salins (c. 1258–1315), and they had one daughter:
 * Catherine of Châlon (d.1355), married 1342 to Thiébaud (Thibaut) V Seigneur (lord) of Neuchâtel-Bourgogne (fr) (c.1317-1366), being a widower, and bore four children.


 * Isabelle (d.a. August 1324), Lady of Semblançay, married Hugues of l'Archévêque, Seigneur of Montfort-le-Rotrou (d.b. August 1324), son of Guillaume VI of l'Archévêque (fr) (d. 1315).
 * Béatrix (d.b. 14 September 1320), married Aymer de Valence, 2nd Earl of Pembroke (c. 1275 – 1324), Seigneur of Montignac (House of Lusignan).

In January 1296 Raoul married secondly Isabelle of Hainault (d.c. 1305), daughter of John II, Count of Holland and Philippa of Luxembourg. They had no recorded children. However. some genealogists attribute Isabelle and Béatrix to this second marriage.

Ancestry

 * Not to be confounded with fr:Gertrude de Nesle-Soissons (1185 - 1220), daughter of her paternal uncle Raoul "the good" of Nesle, Count of Soissons and Alix of Dreux.