Biography of King Charles Capet of Sicily 1227-1285

Paternal Family Tree: Capet

Maternal Family Tree: Dangereuse Ile Bouchard Viscountess Chatellerault 1079-1151

23rd May 1200 [his father] King Louis VIII of France [aged 12] and [his mother] Blanche Ivrea Queen Consort France [aged 12] were married. She the daughter of [his grandfather] Alfonso VIII King Castile [aged 44] and [his grandmother] Eleanor Plantagenet Queen Consort Castile [aged 38]. He the son of King Philip II of France [aged 34] and Isabelle Flanders Queen Consort France. They were third cousins. He a great x 3 grandson of King William "Conqueror" I of England. She a granddaughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England.

On 8th November 1226 [his father] King Louis VIII of France [aged 39] died. His son [his brother] Louis [aged 12] succeeded IX King France: Capet.

On 21st March 1227 King Charles Capet of Sicily was born to [his father] King Louis VIII of France and [his mother] Blanche Ivrea Queen Consort France [aged 39]. He a great grandson of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England.

On 27th May 1234 [his brother] King Louis IX of France [aged 20] and [his sister-in-law] Margaret Provence Queen Consort France [aged 13] were married. She by marriage Queen Consort of France. She the daughter of Raymond IV Count Provence [aged 36] and [his future mother-in-law] Beatrice Savoy Countess Provence [aged 36]. He the son of [his father] King Louis VIII of France and Blanche Ivrea Queen Consort France [aged 46]. They were half third cousins. He a great grandson of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England.

In 1237 [his brother] Alphonse Count Poitiers II Count Toulouse [aged 16] and [his sister-in-law] Joan Countess of Toulouse [aged 17] were married. She the daughter of Raymond Rouerge VII Count Toulouse [aged 39] and Sancha Barcelona Countess Toulouse. He the son of [his father] King Louis VIII of France and [his mother] Blanche Ivrea Queen Consort France [aged 48]. They were second cousins. He a great grandson of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England. She a great granddaughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England.

On 31st January 1246 King Charles Capet of Sicily [aged 18] and Beatrice Provence Queen Consort Sicily [aged 15] were married. She the daughter of Raymond IV Count Provence and Beatrice Savoy Countess Provence [aged 48]. He the son of King Louis VIII of France and Blanche Ivrea Queen Consort France [aged 57]. They were half third cousins. He a great grandson of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England.

In 1248 [his son] Louis Capet was born to King Charles Capet of Sicily [aged 20] and [his wife] Beatrice Provence Queen Consort Sicily [aged 17] at Nicosia. He a great x 2 grandson of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England.

In 1250 [his daughter] Blanche Capet Countess Flanders was born to King Charles Capet of Sicily [aged 22] and [his wife] Beatrice Provence Queen Consort Sicily [aged 19]. She a great x 2 granddaughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England. She married 1265 her third cousin Robert Dampierre III Count Flanders, son of Guy Dampierre Count Flanders and Mathilde Bethune.

Battle of Mansoura

                    On 8th February 1250 the Battle of Mansoura was fought between Crusaders led by [his brother] King Louis IX of France [aged 35] commanded by Robert Capet Count of Artois [aged 33] and Ayyubid forces.
                
                    Robert Capet Count of Artois and William Longespée [aged 42] were killed.
                
                    Alexander Giffard fought; possibly killed.

Battle of Fariskur

On 6th April 1250 the Battle of Fariskur was the last major battle of the Seventh Crusade. The Crusader army was defeated. King Louis IX of France [aged 35] and his two brothers Alphonse Count Poitiers II Count Toulouse [aged 29] and King Charles Capet of Sicily [aged 23] were captured.

On 8th May 1250 King Louis IX of France [aged 36] and his two brothers Alphonse Count Poitiers II Count Toulouse [aged 29] and King Charles Capet of Sicily [aged 23] with 12,000 fellow prisoners were allowed to leave for Acre [Map] after paying a ransom of 400,000 dinars.

Memoires of Jacques du Clercq

This is a translation of the 'Memoires of Jacques du Clercq', published in 1823 in two volumes, edited by Frederic, Baron de Reissenberg. In his introduction Reissenberg writes: 'Jacques du Clercq tells us that he was born in 1424, and that he was a licentiate in law and a counsellor to Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, in the castellany of Douai, Lille, and Orchies. It appears that he established his residence at Arras. In 1446, he married the daughter of Baldwin de la Lacherie, a gentleman who lived in Lille. We read in the fifth book of his Memoirs that his father, also named Jacques du Clercq, had married a lady of the Le Camelin family, from Compiègne. His ancestors, always attached to the counts of Flanders, had constantly served them, whether in their councils or in their armies.' The Memoires cover a period of nineteen years beginning in in 1448, ending in in 1467. It appears that the author had intended to extend the Memoirs beyond that date; no doubt illness or death prevented him from carrying out this plan. As Reissenberg writes the 'merit of this work lies in the simplicity of its narrative, in its tone of good faith, and in a certain air of frankness which naturally wins the reader’s confidence.' Du Clercq ranges from events of national and international importance, including events of the Wars of the Roses in England, to simple, everyday local events such as marriages, robberies, murders, trials and deaths, including that of his own father in Book 5; one of his last entries.

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In 1252 [his daughter] Beatrice Capet was born to King Charles Capet of Sicily [aged 24] and [his wife] Beatrice Provence Queen Consort Sicily [aged 21]. She a great x 2 granddaughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England. She married her second cousin once removed Philip Courtenay, son of Baldwin Courtenay and Marie Brienne.

On 27th November 1252 [his mother] Blanche Ivrea Queen Consort France [aged 64] died.

In 1254 [his son] Charles II King Naples was born to King Charles Capet of Sicily [aged 26] and [his wife] Beatrice Provence Queen Consort Sicily [aged 23]. He a great x 2 grandson of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England. He married 1270 Mary of Hungary Queen Consort Naples and had issue.

In 1256 [his son] Philip Capet was born to King Charles Capet of Sicily [aged 28] and [his wife] Beatrice Provence Queen Consort Sicily [aged 25]. He a great x 2 grandson of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England. He married 28th May 1271 Isabella Villehardouin.

On 27th May 1257 [his sister-in-law] Sanchia Provence Queen Consort Germany [aged 29] was crowned Queen Consort Germany at Aachen Cathedral, Aachen aka Aix-le-Chapelle.

In 1258 [his son] Robert Capet was born to King Charles Capet of Sicily [aged 30] and [his wife] Beatrice Provence Queen Consort Sicily [aged 27]. He a great x 2 grandson of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England. He died aged seven in 1265.

In 1261 [his daughter] Elizabeth Capet was born to King Charles Capet of Sicily [aged 33] and [his wife] Beatrice Provence Queen Consort Sicily [aged 30]. She a great x 2 granddaughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England. She married before September 1272 Ladislav Unknown.

On 9th November 1261 [his sister-in-law] Sanchia Provence Queen Consort Germany [aged 33] died at Berkhamsted Castle, Hertfordshire [Map].

In 1265 [his son-in-law] Robert Dampierre III Count Flanders [aged 16] and [his daughter] Blanche Capet Countess Flanders [aged 15] were married. She by marriage Countess Flanders. He the son of Guy Dampierre Count Flanders [aged 39] and Mathilde Bethune. They were third cousins. He a great x 5 grandson of King William "Conqueror" I of England. She a great x 2 granddaughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England.

In 1265 [his son] Robert Capet [aged 7] died.

Battle of Benevento

On 26th February 1266 the Battle of Benevento was fought between King Charles Capet of Sicily [aged 38] and Manfred King Sicily [aged 34]. Manfred King Sicily was killed. His fifth cousin Charles succeeded King Sicily. [his wife] Beatrice Provence Queen Consort Sicily [aged 35] by marriage Queen Consort Sicily.

In 1267 [his wife] Beatrice Provence Queen Consort Sicily [aged 36] died.

After 23rd August 1268 Guy Montfort Count Nola [aged 24] was created 1st Count Nola by King Charles Capet of Sicily [aged 41] as a reward for his performance at the Battle of Tagliacozzo

In November 1268 King Charles Capet of Sicily [aged 41] and Margaret Burgundy Queen Consort Sicily [aged 18] were married. She by marriage Queen Consort Sicily. The difference in their ages was 22 years. He the son of King Louis VIII of France and Blanche Ivrea Queen Consort France. They were third cousin twice removed. He a great grandson of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England.

In July 1269 [his daughter] Blanche Capet Countess Flanders [aged 19] died.

Chronicle of Abbot Ralph of Coggeshall

The Chronicle of Abbot Ralph of Coggeshall (Chronicon Anglicanum) is an indispensable medieval history that brings to life centuries of English and European affairs through the eyes of a learned Cistercian monk. Ralph of Coggeshall, abbot of the Abbey of Coggeshall in Essex in the early 13th century, continued and expanded his community’s chronicle, documenting events from the Norman Conquest of 1066 into the tumultuous reign of King Henry III. Blending eyewitness testimony, careful compilation, and the monastic commitment to record-keeping, this chronicle offers a rare narrative of political intrigue, royal power struggles, and social upheaval in England and beyond. Ralph’s work captures the reigns of pivotal figures such as Richard I and King John, providing invaluable insights into their characters, decisions, and the forces that shaped medieval rule. More than a simple annal, Chronicon Anglicanum conveys the texture of medieval life and governance, making it a rich source for scholars and readers fascinated by English history, monastic authorship, and the shaping of the medieval world.

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In 1270 [his son] Charles II King Naples [aged 16] and [his daughter-in-law] Mary of Hungary Queen Consort Naples [aged 13] were married.

On 20th August 1270 King Edward I of England [aged 31] and Eleanor of Castile Queen Consort England [aged 29] sailed from Dover, Kent [Map] to Tunis [Map] via Sicily [Map]. On arrival at Sicily [Map] King Charles Capet of Sicily [aged 43], brother of the recently deceased King Louis IX of France [aged 56], had signed a treaty with the Emir so Edward returned to Sicily [Map].

On 25th August 1270 [his brother] King Louis IX of France [aged 56] died. His son [his nephew] Philip [aged 25] succeeded III King France: Capet. Isabella Barcelona Queen Consort France [aged 22] by marriage Queen Consort France.

Murder of Henry of Almain

                    On 13th March 1271 Henry "Almain" Cornwall [aged 35] was murdered while attending mass at the Chiesa di San Silvestro, Viterbo by his cousins Simon "Younger" Montfort and Guy Montfort Count Nola [aged 27] in revenge for the deaths of their father Simon and older brother Henry at the Battle of Evesham.
                
                    The murder was carried out in the presence of the Cardinals, who were conducting a papal Election, [his nephew] King Philip III of France [aged 25], and King Charles of Sicily [aged 43]. The Montfort brothers were excommunicated.
                
                    Henry "Almain" Cornwall was buried in Hailes Abbey [Map].
                
                    The deed is mentioned by Dante Alighieri some forty years after in the Divine Comedy who placed Guy de Montfort in the seventh circle of hell.

On 28th May 1271 [his son] Philip Capet [aged 15] and [his daughter-in-law] Isabella Villehardouin [aged 11] were married.

On 21st August 1271 [his brother] Alphonse Count Poitiers II Count Toulouse [aged 50] died.

Before September 1272 [his son-in-law] Ladislav Unknown and [his daughter] Elizabeth Capet [aged 11] were married.

On 17th November 1275 [his daughter] Beatrice Capet [aged 23] died.

On 1st January 1277 [his son] Philip Capet [aged 21] died.

                    Letters. 1279. Letter XVII. [his former sister-in-law] Eleanora Queen-Dowager of England [aged 56] to her son Edward I [aged 39].
                
                    Eleanora, by God's grace queen of England, to our dear son Edward, by the same grace king of England, health and our blessing.
                
                    Know, sweet son, that we have understood that a marriage is in agitation between the son of the King of Sicily [aged 51] and the daughter of the King of Germany [aged 60]; and, if this alliance is made, we may well be disturbed in the right that we have to the fourth part of Provence, which thing would be great damage to us, and this damage would be both ours and yours. Where fore we pray and require you, that you will specially write to the aforesaid king, that since Provence is held from the empire, and his dignity demands that he should have right done to us about it, he will regard the right that we have, and cause us to hold it. Of this thing we especially require you, and we commend you to God.

In 1280 [his sister-in-law] Yolande Burgundy II Countess Nevers and Flanders [aged 33] died.

On 7th January 1285 King Charles Capet of Sicily [aged 57] died.

The History of William Marshal, Earl of Chepstow and Pembroke, Regent of England. Book 1 of 2, Lines 1-10152.

The History of William Marshal was commissioned by his son shortly after William’s death in 1219 to celebrate the Marshal’s remarkable life; it is an authentic, contemporary voice. The manuscript was discovered in 1861 by French historian Paul Meyer. Meyer published the manuscript in its original Anglo-French in 1891 in two books. This book is a line by line translation of the first of Meyer’s books; lines 1-10152. Book 1 of the History begins in 1139 and ends in 1194. It describes the events of the Anarchy, the role of William’s father John, John’s marriages, William’s childhood, his role as a hostage at the siege of Newbury, his injury and imprisonment in Poitou where he met Eleanor of Aquitaine and his life as a knight errant. It continues with the accusation against him of an improper relationship with Margaret, wife of Henry the Young King, his exile, and return, the death of Henry the Young King, the rebellion of Richard, the future King Richard I, war with France, the death of King Henry II, and the capture of King Richard, and the rebellion of John, the future King John. It ends with the release of King Richard and the death of John Marshal.

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In 1308 [his former wife] Margaret Burgundy Queen Consort Sicily [aged 58] died.