Duke of Aquitaine

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[Note : The Roman numerals after the names indicate which duke of that name they were and are not necessarily the same as their ordinals for their other titles.]
Coat of arms of the duchy of Aquitaine.
Coat of arms of the duchy of Aquitaine.

The Duke of Aquitaine (French: Duc d'Aquitaine} ruled the historical region of Aquitaine under the supremacy of the Frankish and later the French Kings.

Contents

[edit] Dukes of Aquitaine under Frankish Kings

Merovingian kings in boldface.

[edit] Direct rule of Carolingian Kings

After 778, Charlemagne appointed no more Dukes, assuming direct rule of Aquitaine. In 781, he appointed his son Louis as a subordinate King and assigned him with Aquitaine. After Louis, several other members of the dynasty ruled over the region as subordinate kings.

After 882, when Carloman succeeded his brother Louis III to become King of all Western Francia, Aquitaine remained under the supremacy of the French king.

[edit] Dukes of Aquitaine under French Kings

The Carolingian Kings again appointed Dukes of Aquitaine, first in 852, and again since 866. Later on, this Duchy was also called Guyenne.

House of Poitiers (Ramnulfids):

House of Auvergne:

House of Poitiers (Ramnulfids):

  • Ebalus the Bastard (927’Äì932), for a second time.

House of Rouergue:

House of Capet:

House of Poitiers (Ramnulfids):

House of Plantagenet:

[edit] Plantagenet rulers of Aquitaine

In 1337, King Philip VI of France reclaimed the fief of Aquitaine from Edward III, King of England and Duke of Aquitaine. Edward in turn claimed the title of King of France, by right of his descent from his grand-father King Philip. This triggered the Hundred Years' War, in which both the Plantagenets and Valois claimed the supremacy over Aquitaine due to the King of France.

In 1360 both sides signed the Treaty of Bretigny, in which Edward renounced the French crown but remained sovereign Lord of Aquitaine (rather than merely Duke). However, when the treaty was broken in 1369, English claims and the war resumed.

In 1362, King Edward III, as Lord of Aquitaine, made his eldest son Edward, Prince of Wales Prince of Aquitaine.

In 1390, King Richard II appointed his uncle John of Gaunt as Duke of Aquitaine. That title passed on to John's descendants.

Henry continued to rule over Aquitaine as King of England and Lord of Aquitaine. He succeeded in obtaining the French crown for his family by the Treaty of Troyes in 1420. Henry's baby son Henry VI became King of England and France in 1422, but gradually lost control of France until 1453.

[edit] Valois and Bourbon Dukes of Aquitaine

The Valois Kings of France, claiming supremacy over Aquitaine, granted the title of Duke to their heirs, the Dauphins.

With the end of the Hundred Years War, Aquitaine returned to direct rule of the King of France and remained in the possession of the King. Only occasionally was the Duchy or the title of Duke granted to another member of the dynasty.

[edit] Sources

Charles Oman, The Dark Ages (476’Äì918). 1914. Rivingtons, London.

[edit] External links

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duke_of_Aquitaine"